PA, 1980); A. Di Giovanni, Sant'Agostino, La Genesi 1 (Nuova Biblioteca Agostiniana 9/1;
Introduction 165 also introduced themes and reflections that occupied him to a great extent in 412-415 (origin of the soul, origin of evil, providence).
lmportance of the work
Augustine's commentary on The Literal Meaning of Genesis represents an incomparably concentrated effort at presenting the mystery of the creation of the world in the light of all possible interpretations, from all possible angles, and by all the means available to the author in his time. Especially to be noted are his respect for the scientific theories of his age,46 his questioning rather than asser tive way of proceeding,47 and finally the abundance of explanations of a philo sophical kind.
It was clear to the author that his work could only be an attempt at an interpre tation. Such a work, which includes numerous scientific and philosophical theo ries of the ancient world, undoubtedly contains not a few passages that are outdated and can only be of antiquarian interest. Yet this commentary on Genesis has an importance that transcends time, since it deals repeatedly with basic questions of philosophy and theology that are independent of the scientific standard of his age. The trinitarian dimension of the act of creation, the problem of simultaneous creation, the meaning of the days of creation, the didactic char acter of the creation story, the relationship of the first creation story to the second, the divine government of the world, the theory of causae seminales, the nature of the human body, the creation of the soul, the fall and its consequences: these are subjects to the discussion of which Augustine made contributions that are still of interest today.48 In fact, the richest theological passages are those least concerned with exegesis, that is, those in which the writer moves beyond the immediate wording of the text and engages in penetrating reflections on the great subjects dealt with in the first pages of the Bible.
But Augustine's exegetical approach itself is also remarkable. ln contrast to the established traditions of Hexaemeron exegesis, as seen, on the one hand, in the allegorism of Philo of Alexandria, Origen, Basil of Caesarea, and Ambrose and, on the other, in the pronounced literalism of an anti-Origenist such as Epiphanius of Salamis but also in John Chrysostom, an Antiochene, Augustine pursued an independent middle way that sought to avoid the defects and dangers of each opposed position.
46. See The Literal Meaning ofGenesis 1, 19, 39. 47. See Revisions 2, 24, 1 (CCL 57, 109). 48. See J. J. O'Meara, The Creation of Man in St. Augustine 's De Genesis ad litteram (Villanova, PA, 1980); A. Di Giovanni, Sant'Agostino, La Genesi 1 (Nuova Biblioteca Agostiniana 9/1; Rome, 1988) X1X-XL1X.