What is the true origin of the quotation, attributed to St Augustine, beginning, 'To fall in love with God is the greatest of romances'?
score:1
The quote's attribution to St. Augustine is indeed widespread, judging by the dozens of images featuring the quote:
To fall in love with God is the greatest romance;
to seek Him the greatest adventure;
to find him the greatest human achievement
The sleuthing effort has been done already and documented at the Fauxtations blog, making the case that the quote does NOT belong to St. Augustine:
... it’s Fr. Raphael Simon, O.C.S.O., who is credited with it as far back as a 1964 story in Newsweek. I can find something like it in Fr. Simon’s book Formation of the Priest, on p. 125:
Now to fall in love with Jesus requires faith. We have to know the story of Jesus, of His coming into the world, of His teaching and deeds and fellowship in this world, of His passing to the Father, of His coming back in life after death to talk with His disciples and continue His fellowship with them, of His going to the Father and sending into our hearts the Holy Spirit and His love. This is the greatest story in the world, the greatest romance, and we are called to the greatest adventure.
Obviously that’s missing the “human achievement” part, but it shows at the very least that Fr. Simon wrote something along the lines of the quotation, and I suspect he was quoting himself here, in modified form (or perhaps he later expanded on this thought).
I don’t know who attached it to St. Augustine; the earliest I can find it attached to his name is in 1984, in How to Live Life to the Fullest: A Handbook for Seasoned Citizens.
More post
- 📝 Why does Jesus' Resurrection mean hope for an individual and in what context?
- 📝 Can a Patron Saint formally declared as such by a pope be replaced?
- 📝 Is there is any external source about Demas, Paul's fellow worker?
- 📝 How is Matthew 24:36 explained by trinitarians?
- 📝 Biblical basis for treating a second marriage as sinful even in cases of adultery?
- 📝 How do Christians who believe in current-day Apostles, Prophets and the 5-fold ministry interpret Ephesians 2:20?
- 📝 Do Rob Bell and Tullian Tchividjian represent sides of any prior Christian controversy?
- 📝 According to Protestantism, are we saved by faith into a repentance of law-following?
- 📝 Why did Jezebel curse herself?
- 📝 To the Protestant, what is the benefit of putting a cross inside the church?
- 📝 Did Jesus perform a single miracle before his fast and temptation?
- 📝 What is the biblical basis for Jesus having one nature only, a human nature?
- 📝 According to those holding that Lazarus was literally raised from the dead, why did Matthew, Mark, and Luke not mention it?
- 📝 What is the difference between Sola Scriptura and the belief in a closed canon?
- 📝 How does the Passover foreshadow the coming of Jesus as the Messiah?
- 📝 Why are we Christians if Jesus was Jew?
- 📝 Is there any biblical justification for referring to God as Mother?
- 📝 What is an overview of the early Church's viewpoints on Christology at the time of the Apostolic Era?
- 📝 If bad things can happen to good people, does this invalidate any of God's attributes or powers? Do we even dare to think of God this way?
- 📝 Why does the KJV capitilise 'Devil' in Revelation but not in Luke?
- 📝 How do monergists respond to Bible verses that support the doctrine of synergism?
- 📝 Is the 'Ho' in Hosanna! connected in any way to the 'ho' in Jehovah?
- 📝 What is the biblical basis for the idea that the church is a hospital for sinners?
- 📝 Does the Bible say when the day of the Lord (as described in 2 Peter 3:10) will occur, and does it go into more detail about this particular event?
- 📝 What level of papal distinction does Prior General Gilles Wach hold?
- 📝 According to Protestant NT scholars/historians did Gamaliel get the chronology & history wrong in Acts 5?
- 📝 Did Jesus have Free Will? (Arianism)
- 📝 According to Catholicism, can an entire nation be possessed by a demon?
- 📝 What argument and/or evidence is there that Jesus sent the disciples out armed?
- 📝 Was Jn 19:12-13 intended to be a prophecy on the Day of Judgement?
Source: stackoverflow.com
Search Posts
Related post
- 📝 What is the true origin of the quotation, attributed to St Augustine, beginning, 'To fall in love with God is the greatest of romances'?
- 📝 What is the source of the quote attributed to Origen, that "the soul has neither beginning nor end"?
- 📝 What is the origin of the Catholic apocrypha?
- 📝 What is the origin of praying hands folded?
- 📝 What is the meaning and origin of bridal veils in Christian weddings?
- 📝 What is the origin of the moral-civil-ceremonial distinction of the Old Testament law?
- 📝 What is the origin of holding hands when praying around a circle before a meal?
- 📝 What is the origin of the idea that Michael is Jesus?
- 📝 What is the origin of the Christmas tree and is it accepted in all Christian traditions?
- 📝 What is the origin of the idea that Matthew, Mark, and Luke didn't mention Lazarus in order to protect him?
- 📝 What is the origin of the Devil's red pointy costume and pitchfork?
- 📝 Among modern critics who believe in the attributed authorship of the Gospels, what are their arguments?
- 📝 What is the origin of Zoe (ζωή) vs Psyche (ψυχή) life in St. John?
- 📝 What is the origin and purpose of a new bishop being questioned by a layperson?
- 📝 What is the origin of the Christian tradition of praying before eating?
- 📝 What is the modern origin of the phrase "hell is the absence of God"?
- 📝 What is the origin of the belief that Satan tortures the unsaved in Hell?
- 📝 What is the origin of the Good Friday tradition?
- 📝 Origin of the Reformed "Marks of the True Church"
- 📝 What is significant about the title of "Son of David" that was attributed to Jesus?
- 📝 What is the origin of the Covenant of Grace?
- 📝 What is the origin of the story that James had knees as hard as a camel's, because of his praying?
- 📝 What is the historical origin of the "Last Supper" expression?
- 📝 What is the origin of the Evil Eye in Christianity?
- 📝 What is the origin of the term Prima Scriptura and the background against which it was defined?
- 📝 What was the intended meaning of the quotation marks around "sinners" in the old NIV?
- 📝 What is the origin of the "religion vs. relationship" dichotomy?
- 📝 What is the origin of the account of Lucifer found in Milton's Paradise Lost?
- 📝 What is the origin of the story of the penitent thief as a young boy?
- 📝 What is the origin of the idea that the baby Jesus did not cry?