The authors present Augustine's views on testimony by weaving Augustine's writings, historical situation, formal representation, and sufficient explanation into a well written and accessible paper. Augustine's beliefs are looked at from:
"...the analytical question of what sources count as testimony; the epistemological question about the status of testimony-based belief; and the doxastic question about the circumstances in which it is appropriate to believe on the basis of testimony ."(195-196)Analytically Augustine's defines testimony sources such as reports of foreign place, testifiers biography, events, etc. communicated by means that are spoken or written or other (i.e. hand symbols), where the hearer is unable to confirm, because it is at distance or past or within the mind of the testifier. It is not necessary for the testifier to be either an eyewitness of the event or and expert witness offering analysis and opinion. The epistemological question, or value as a source of knowledge, is the main concern of both Augustine and of the authors. The question is explained and Augustine's views are demonstrated using detailed descriptions and tools, but the bottom line is the veracity is formed in the mind of the hearer. Testimony becomes like any other premise it is up to the hearer to transform it to knowledge through belief. Finally, they discuss in the most technical terms of the paper the doxastic logical considerations. This is a complicated analysis of the believer's role in forming belief. The authors encapsulate Augustine's view, "a hearer should believe a testifier’s report unless it seems to the hearer either that the testifier or the report is untrustworthy."(212) These explanations are all well supported within the article. The authors wrap up their analysis by considering Hume, whose work is also discussed in my project, and Reid's views of testimony and by reframing their thought with the 1400 year prior work of Augustine's. This article is extremely helpful for my project because they equip me, with greater precision, to establish a rhetorical value for testimonies; to situate testimony within Christian beliefs; to present testimony within the Christian traditions of education, theology and apologetics; and to explain testimony within a broader philosophical discussion.
