Translator name not noted above: William Benham. Originally published between 1909 and 1917 under the name "Harvard Classics," this stupendous 51-volume set-a collection of the greatest writings from literature, philosophy, history, and mythology-was assembled by American academic CHARLES WILLIAM ELIOT (1834-1926), Harvard University's longest-serving president. Also known as "Dr. Eliot's Five Foot Shelf," it represented Eliot's belief that a basic liberal education could be gleaned by reading from an anthology of works that could fit on five feet of bookshelf. Volume VII features two of the most influential works of Christian spirituality and philosophy. The Confessions of Algerian bishop SAINT AUGUSTINE (354-430) is a foundational work of Western theology and one of the earliest autobiographies, offering keen insight into the workings of the medieval mind. The Imitation of Christ, by THOMAS KEMPIS (1380-1471), is perhaps second only to the Bible in importance in Christian thought, offering the wisdom needed to find a direct path to a relationship with God.

Translator name not noted above: William Benham. Originally published between 1909 and 1917 under the name "Harvard Classics," this stupendous 51-volume set-a collection of the greatest writings from literature, philosophy, history, and mythology-was assembled by American academic CHARLES WILLIAM ELIOT (1834-1926), Harvard University's longest-serving president. Also known as "Dr. Eliot's Five Foot Shelf," it represented Eliot's belief that a basic liberal education could be gleaned by reading from an anthology of works that could fit on five feet of bookshelf. Volume VII features two of the most influential works of Christian spirituality and philosophy. The Confessions of Algerian bishop SAINT AUGUSTINE (354-430) is a foundational work of Western theology and one of the earliest autobiographies, offering keen insight into the workings of the medieval mind. The Imitation of Christ, by THOMAS KEMPIS (1380-1471), is perhaps second only to the Bible in importance in Christian thought, offering the wisdom needed to find a direct path to a relationship with God.

They that seek shall find him, and those who find shall praise him. The first autobiography ever written, Augustine's Confessions ranks amoung the most profound books in history. But it's more than that; this testament shows how God gives rest to the weary and hope to the hopeless. "This book is the masterpiece from which all other Christian memoirs flow. Augustine's astonishing story remains as fresh as it did when he wrote it in the late fourth century. The Confessions still speaks with a clear, vivid and altogether distinctive voice to believers and seekers searching for the One who will give rest to their restless hearts." --James Martin, SJ, author of My Life with the Saints