On Christian Doctrine — St. Augustine — any reading of the Bible that does not actively build up the double love of God and neighbor is fundamentally incomplete or misunderstood

Augustine’s De Doctrina Christiana establishes a foundational hermeneutical and rhetorical framework designed to guide the believer in the twin tasks of discovering and communicating the truth of Holy Scripture. The text is famously organized around the distinction between things and signs, teaching that while words are signs pointing toward divine realities, the ultimate object of enjoyment must be the Triune God alone, with all created life serving as a means to reach that end. This teleology of love serves as the supreme interpretive rule: any reading of the Bible that does not actively build up the double love of God and neighbor is considered fundamentally incomplete or misunderstood. Beyond exegesis, Augustine adapts classical eloquence to the service of the Gospel, insisting that the Christian teacher must move the heart and clarify the mind while remaining dependent upon divine grace and personal holiness. Ultimately, the work serves as a spiritual roadmap that transforms the study of the Word into a pilgrimage of the soul toward its eternal home in God.