In his autobiography, "Confessions," Saint Augustine-a philosopher during the late Roman period-uses reason to explain and reflect on his conversion to Christianity. Most readers commonly view Augustine’s conversion to be in Confessions VIII; nevertheless, there is evidence to believe that Augustine has multiple other instances of conversion throughout his life. In fact, the people, events, and inner experiences that alter Augustine’s life lead him on his path to salvation, which he views as the turning of his heart to the Catholic faith. Specifically, Augustine must overcome intellectual obstacles-such as lack of knowledge about the Truth and attachment to false beliefs-and moral obstacles-such as pride and lust-in order to fully convert to the Catholic faith. Indeed, there are multiple examples of conversion that enable him to overcome each of these obstacles. For example, his reading of Cicero’s Horentensius, his experience with Ambrose the Bishop, his encounter with a beggar in Milan, and his reflection in the garden all prompt Augustine to convert. In general, these changes in Augustine’s mindset are more than just facts about his life: Augustine shares his experiences in the hope that they will inspire others on their own journey to redemption. Primarily, after reading Cicero’s Horentensius, Augustine converts from a life in search of pride to a life in search of knowledge. For instance, before reading Cicero’s book, Augustine constantly strove to enhance his honor. Often he desired esteem in his work as a rhetorician. For instance, Augustine confesses, “I wanted to distinguish myself as an orator for a damnable and conceited purpose, namely delight in human vanity” (38). Therefore, the obstacle he must overcome is the human flaw of pride. In fact, for this reason he would read books solely for the purpose of gaining prestige in his career. Nevertheless, Cicero’s book Horentensius encouraged Augustine to read for the sake of learning, rather than to gain pride. Indeed, in Horentensius, Cicero states that one should “not study one particular sect but to love and seek and pursue and hold fast and strongly embrace wisdom itself, wherever found’” (39). Cicero’s words infuse Augustine with a passion for knowledge out of interest; this fervor becomes stronger than Augustine’s quest to obtain honor. Cicero’s book enables Augustine to realize the emptiness in glory from popularity. For instance, Augustine claims that after reading Cicero “every vain hope became empty to [him], and [he] longed for immortality of wisdom with an incredible ardour in [his] heart” (39). Thus, by placing a life-long search for wisdom in Augustine’s heart, the action of reading Cicero’s book Horentensius causes Augustine to convert from a life in search of glorified self-worth to a life in search of knowledge. Cicero’s words enable Augustine to see the emptiness of his past desires and the true joy in his new desire to seek understanding, not for work, but for himself. In fact, Augustine’s action of reading Cicero’s Horentensius is an instance of one of Augustine’s many conversions, and it encourages Augustine to begin a further journey of conversion. Secondly, Augustine experiences another instance of conversion after interacting with Ambrose the Bishop. Specifically, Ambrose the Bishop influences him to convert from a belief in accusations against the Catholic faith to an understanding and preference for the Catholic religion. Augustine moves from Rome to Milan-thus he leaves the teachings of the Manicheans and instead undertakes the teachings of a Catholic Bishop, Ambrose. Initially, Ambrose impacts Augustine’s life through a genuine friendship. Augustine asserts, “I began to like him, at first indeed not as a teacher of the truth, for I had absolutely no confidence in [God’s] Church, but as a human being who was kind to me” (88). Therefore, before meeting with Ambrose, Augustine admits that he did not have faith in the Catholic Tradition. Nevertheless, Ambrose the Bishop subtly worked his way into Augustine’s life through his expression of Jesus’s main virtue-kindness. By doing so, Ambrose motivated Augustine to study the Catholic faith. Soon enough, Augustine spent enough tim