Scripture in the Augustinian Sermones ad populum preached after 400
Résumé
The Bible is everywhere in Augustine’s 600 Sermones ad populum. Because they were preached in different historical, geographical and liturgical contexts, the main research question is the adaptation of biblical commentaries to the preaching contexts. My contribution investigates four fields that shed light on these adaptations. First, the personality of Augustine and his rhetorical and exegetical training shape his biblical preferences and the functions he assigns to biblical quotations. Second, the organization of the liturgical year and the structure of the Eucharistic celebration have an impact on the biblical quotations and their comments in the Sermons. Third, even though the biblical commentaries in the polemical sermons are most often identical to those of the treatises, they have a different tone and serve different functions, because the polemical comments are not primarily intended to refute opponents, but to equip the African audiences against doctrinal errors. Fourth, the Sermons have preserved the reactions of the audiences, and thus reflect the relationship between the preacher and his congregations: Augustine the preacher frequently develops an inclusive exegesis or a totalizing discourse to address each and every one of his listeners, and transforms his biblical comments according to the feedback he receives from the assemblies.