A small work by the great holy father of the Western Church of the 4th-5th centuries is being published in Russian for the first time. Blessed Augustine, Bishop of Hippo (354-430), “On the Good of Marriage.” In it, the holy father sets out his teaching on the foundations of Christian marriage. He views marriage as a good that corresponds to the will of God and human nature, and sees in it a “space” for the realization of love and unity of spouses, a means of the proper direction of sensual attraction and legitimate procreation. Blessed Augustine also speaks about threats to Christian marriage: unbridled lust, adultery, etc. He bases his thoughts on the Holy Scriptures.

The editors hope that this work will be useful for the widest range of Orthodox readers.