This volume addresses the complex and conflicted vision in Augustine's City of God, as a heavenly city on earthly pilgrimage.

This authoritative English-language commentary discusses Books 1-5, in which Augustine argued that Rome suffered worse disasters before Christianity was known; that empire depends on injustice; and that everything depends on the will of the true God, not on the many gods of Roman tradition.

The author discusses Augustine's views on women, particularly women within Christian theology. The author also addresses how Augustine's views were based on his cultural and psychological circumstances, and how his ideas on and attitudes towards women changed.