It is easy to see why Augustine is quite possibly the most read Christian theologian. There are several reasons for this. The first reason is that Augustine wrote very early. He lived from 354 C.E. until 430 C.E. As such, his cone of influence is very large. I am taking Stephen Hawking’s idea of a light cone and applying to historical influence rather than limits on communication. Augustine had the opportunity, being rooted father back in time, than Calvin or Piper to affect more people and institutions with his thoughts. This is not the only reason, however, as there were many theologians that came before him. For example, Justin Martyr was born a quarter of a millennium before Augustine, yet most people know of him as a symbol and not of a “doctor and father of the Church.” This is because so much of Augustine’s work survived and that his cone was expanded due to the more solidified structure of the Church at the time of his writings. For instance, Justin Martyr combined all of the gospel accounts into one work that is lost to current scholars.

So far all of this points merely to the availability and possible influence of work. This is only one side of the coin; the other side is his content. Augustine wrote a great many works. In the Retractions, Augustine lists 93 title and 232 books, or chapters . These works had great appeal to people of all ages because some of his topics have a universal applicability. For example, people have been wrestling with lust in all ages since his writing. Some of his works are written on a level that is very accessible to the common reader, and some of his writings are writing at a very deep level. Some of his deeper writings, such as his treatise on the Trinity have led some to lament, “Augustine wrote volumes because he could not write succinctly.” It must be added that the quote in the preceding sentence is disingenuous and is only included to demonstrate that his writings were sometimes difficult for readers. In addition, Augustine wrote about specific conflicts within the Church during his time. This is of great interest to historians because it sheds light on the existence, topic, and his side of these conflicts.

In summation, Augustine wrote a lot, wrote well, wrote early, wrote on a variety of topics, and wrote for a variety of audiences. The combination of these factors contributes to his wide influence.