Maurizio Filippo Di Silva: Augustine’s concept of materia spiritalis: Confessions, XII-XIII

The aim of this paper is to examine the Augustinian concept of materia spiritalis as it appears in Confessions XII-XIII.The Augustinian notion of spiritual matter will be analyzed by focusing on Augustine’s interpretation of the word “caelum” of Genesis 1:1. Topics selected for special consideration will be, first, Augustine’s identification of ‘heaven of heaven’ and angels (Conf., XII, 2.2), and, secondly, Augustine’s analysis of the lack of mentions to the day of the creation of the ‘heaven of heaven’ inGenesis 1:1 (Conf., XII, 12.15). In the light of it, the paper will examine the Augustinian concept of spiritual matter by analyzing Augustine’s reflections on angels as formed beings (Conf., XIII, 2.3) and on materia spiritalis as what is shaped by God to create the ‘heaven of heaven’ (Conf., XIII, 3.4). The conclusion will bring out whether and, if so, how far, the Augustinian notion of spiritual matter fits into Augustine’s interpretation of Genesis 1:1 (Conf., XIII, 10.11).