Putting on Christ: Augustine's Early Theology of Salvation and the Sacraments by Ty PaulMonroe (Washington, DC: The Catholic University of America Press, 2022), vii + 319 pp.

Over the course of the past five decades, many influential works have appeared in the field of Augustinian studies that explore key theological themes within the context of Augustine's developing thought. Some have attempted to demonstrate continuity or discontinuity from Augustine's earlier writings to his later works, while others have been limited to sources from specific periods in order to bring much needed depth to the scholarly conversation. Ty Monroe's Putting on Christ does not fit into either category. Instead, Monroe's study offers a creative if at times disorienting approach that begins with Confessions and then turns to Augustine's earlier works to shed light on his developing soteriology and theology of the sacraments. The book's main contribution is its analysis of humility and pride, which is leveraged for its Christological and sacramental significance in the context of Augustine's ongoing debates with Manichean, Neoplatonist, and Donatist interlocutors. The upshot is to show how Confessions can be read as an explanation for how and why salvation necessitates the mediation of Christ's humility through baptism and membership in the Church. This subtle and sophisticated treatment of familiar themes in the Augustinian corpus is an accomplishment, yet readers looking for a thicker account of Augustine's early soteriology and sacramental theology may be disappointed. Monroe begins by foregrounding Augustine's baptism as the sacrament that mediates “the power of Christ's humanity and healing humility” in Confessions (15). By focusing on the subjective and objective aspects of Augustine's journey toward baptism, Monroe's aim is to identify the subtle calls to Manichean, Neoplatonist, and Donatist readers (17–18). A careful analysis of Confessions i-vi reveals the inner struggles that can only be healed by Christ's humility. Pride or superbia is the “lowest common denominator” (32) among the different errors that ensnare human beings along the way. Monroe masterfully interweaves familiar scenes from this well-worn territory, such as the healing of Augustine's childhood friend that evokes a “spiritual rebirth” and a connection to baptism (42). Augustine's progress is on display in his growing understanding of the regenerative effects of grace, which occurs in the midst of a fine-tuned argument that cannot fit into a Manichean soteriology. Monroe skillfully adds depth and texture to Augustine's interior and affective experience of superbia while insisting upon the necessary corporeal mediation of Christ's humility through the sacraments of the Church. This is a great service and contribution, for which Monroe is to be commended. In Chapter 2, Monroe continues to explore how baptism inaugurates Augustine into the very life of Christ by means of the signs and practices of the Catholic Church, with attention to the need for “humble and consistent recourse to the habits that inculcate and, more profoundly, impart within the otherwise arrogant soul a posture of penitence and gratitude–confessio” (60). By focusing on confession as a practice, Monroe helpfully illustrates how such a habit or virtue cannot be accomplished by one's efforts, but rather depends upon the grace of the incarnate Christ's humility mediated by the sacraments (67). Through this lens, the reader is reintroduced to Augustine's conversion narrative in a refreshing way. The healing that Augustine seeks cannot be found in the books of the Platonists, but only by incorporation into Christ's humanity by means of the Church's sacramental economy. Part I of Putting on Christ concludes by reaffirming that in Confessions, knowledge is not enough. Humans require concrete means of knowing and participating in Christ's humility, which is made available by means of the sacraments of the Church (100). Part I could stand alone as an achievement because of its sustained analysis of humility and its significance for the soteriology and sacramental theology of Confessions. But Monroe decides to turn to Augustine's earlier works to show how Augustine's soteriology develops as a movement away from superbia toward humilitas (107). Monroe admits that terms such as superbia and humilitas are sparse in Augustine's early writings, so it is a curious choice to focus on the superbia-humilitas dynamic. A potential insight into this choice is found in the reference to Goulven Madec's classic work, La Patrie et Voie, wherein Madec connects certain statements in the early work On Order to book vii of Confessions (113). Monroe turns his attention to broader soteriological and sacramental questions, while granting that superbia is one vice among others and humilitas remains underdeveloped in Augustine's early writings. What follows is a series of insightful observations of the accounts of knowledge, truth, and the soul in the Cassiciacum dialogues, culminating with the polemic against the Manicheans in works such as On Genesis Against the Manicheans. Monroe provides perceptive examinations of Augustine's developing view of the soul's progress. Because of the tendency of the soul to see itself “one way when the facts suggest otherwise,” there is an ever-increasing awareness of the need for healing that comes only through Christ's assumption of human flesh by his kenotic descent (151). While Monroe's analysis is consistently fruitful, the thread connecting the book's argument to the superbia-humilitas dynamic can be obscured at times, despite the author's best efforts. Chapter 4 offers helpful excursions into understudied works such as The Two Souls, Faith and Creed, and Augustine's commentaries on Romans and Galatians. As in Chapter 3, the focus remains on Christology and soteriology, with appeals to the superbia-humilitas dynamic. In the section devoted to Augustine's commentary on Galatians, Monroe argues that “the power of Christ's humility lies solely in its capacity to be the object of the believers’ faith and imitation” (212), preparing the way for the thesis that he has already laid out in Chapters 1 and 2, namely, that Confessions brings together subjective faith and objective participation in the sacraments. Monroe's treatment of Augustine's second unfinished attempt at a Romans commentary is instructive in its assessment that Augustine continues to place an “epistemic emphasis” on baptism in the context in which it appears (226). Monroe concludes that “many of the pieces” of Augustine's mature soteriology are in place, “even if they remain only partly assembled” (227). Chapter 5 is a limited discussion of the development of Augustine's sacramental theology in early works and in the context of the Donatist controversies, with a somewhat arbitrary look at Expositions of the Psalms 1–32 and some of Augustine's Letters. The author convincingly argues that in such works, Augustine makes a significant distinction not only between a sacrament and its effect, but also between a sacrament and the nature of its effect, which could be unto the endangerment of the recipient (264). This makes it possible to reconsider Augustine's definition of the baptismal sacrament in the work On Baptism in such a way that the subjective act of faith is linked to objective efficacy. Such a development in Augustine's sacramental theology is correlative to the soteriology undergoing progress toward Confessions. Having established the momentum of Augustine's developing soteriology and sacramental theology, the conclusion reiterates the project and its structure, which “apes a contemporary cinematic gimmick” (284) by starting with Confessions and going back to earlier works. While such an innovative approach can open lines for further research, it can also halt the momentum that the author has worked diligently to build. The book's strengths lie in refreshing analyses of familiar and unfamiliar texts, treated masterfully and episodically. Yet the lack of sustained analysis and argumentation hampers the work as a whole, despite the author's attempts to construct a coherent narrative. In the end, the reader may not be convinced by the argument that the superbia-humilitas dynamic of Confessions is enhanced by the research found in Chapters 3–5 on Augustine's earlier works. Parts I and II could stand on their own, and perhaps would be more effective as separate projects. The author's engagement with Augustinian scholarship is impressive in its breadth, yet it often remains at a cursory level. Monroe's argument on Christology and soteriology would be enhanced by further conversation with Madec. The positions of Cameron and McWilliam are treated favorably, yet it is not always clear why. On the other hand, Harrison's argument for continuity is subject to criticism without deep consideration. In the book's conclusion, Monroe directs his aim at J. Patout Burns, who rightly argued that Augustine's early writings do not provide a developed theology of baptism or the sacraments. However, according to Monroe, Burns was wrong to suggest that in Confessions, Augustine the convert merely submits to the teaching authority of the church as an act of humility (288). While Monroe successfully demonstrates that humility in Confessions is richly imbued with deeper theological resonances and can serve as an indication of the maturation of his soteriology and theology of the sacraments, one wonders if the criticism of Burns’ view is warranted. Perhaps the most evident weakness is the book's subtitle, Augustine's Early Theology of Salvation and the Sacraments. While Part II might be deserving of such a description, a reader would expect to find a more thoroughgoing treatment of soteriology and sacramental theology that would incorporate many more sources from the Augustinian corpus. Instead, the reader will find the superbia-humilitas dynamic as a guiding theme to draw together Confessions and some of Augustine's earlier works against the Manicheans and Donatists. Despite the misleading subtitle, students and scholars of Augustine will benefit from Monroe's innovative and illuminating work.