Augustine in His Own Words (continued)
The Preacher 135 rolling out of the reader's mouth, than there followed the sound of the beating of your breasts, naturally, because you heard what the Lord said: "I confess to you, Father." The moment the word "I confess" (Confiteor) rang out, you all beat breasts. To beat one's breast: What is it other than accusing what lies hidden within the breast and punishing it by thumping the hidden sin out into the open? Why did you do this? Because you heard: "I confess to you, Father." You did hear "I confess," but you didn't pay attention to the One who was doing the confessing. Now, come and get turned around the right way on this. If Christ says, "I confess"—Christ, from whom every sin is far, far removed—then confessing is not only for sinners but is sometimes also for praisers. We, therefore, confess either by praising or by accusing ourselves. Both confessions are good piety, either when you, who are not without sin, blame yourself or when you praise the One who can have no sin.26
The Three Aims of Eloquence
Augustine, the ex-teacher of rhetoric, remained convinced, even at the end of his career, that the pagan Cicero had insights that could aid Christian orators. Following Cicero, he argues that eloquence has three aims: teaching, delighting, and persuading. From On Christian Teaching, Book 4:
(12.27) A certain man of eloquence27 has said—and said rightly—that an eloquent person should speak in such a way that he "teaches, delights, and persuades," adding: "To teach is a necessity, to delight makes it enjoyable, but to persuade is a triumph."28 Of these three aims, the one mentioned first, that is, the necessity of teaching, shapes what we say; the other two shape how we say it. So the one who speaks with the aim of teaching should not think he has spoken to the person he wishes to teach so long as he has not been understood. Although he has verbalized what he himself understands, he should not consider that he has really spoken—really communicated—if the one listening to him has not really understood. But if the speaker has really been understood, then he has truly spoken, no matter how he happens to speak.
royalty ("Your Highness") and clergy ("Your Holiness"). Augustine and his contemporaries, such as John Chrysostom, played on this custom and invented various polite titles in addressing their congregations. So here Augustine speaks to his congregation as "Your Charitableness."
26. S. 67.1 (PL 38:433); my trans. On this theme of "confession," see also en. Ps. 29.22, 78.17, 94.4, 141.19; s. 29B.1–6 (= Dolbeau 8).
27. "A certain man of eloquence": Cicero. 28. " 'To teach . . . triumph' ": Quoting Cicero, Orator 69; however, Cicero has "prove" (ut probet) rather than "teach" (ut doceat). Augustine, in other words, is adapting Cicero to an ecclesial setting: lawyers prove, preachers teach.