Augustine’s doctrine of grace and predestination prompted widespread controversy even before he died, and it continued to occupy the center of theological discussion throughout the Middle Ages and even, in part, into the post-Reformation period. The following problems came to stand in the foreground: the scope of free will, the function of grace in man’s conversion and regeneration, and the meaning of predestination.
A group of monks in the city of Hadrumetum (south of Carthage) began a dispute about Augustine’s doctrine of grace during his lifetime. Some interpreted it to mean that men lack freedom of the will and that their works would therefore have no significance for the final judgment. But others disagreed by saying that grace supports the free will, thereby enabling man to do what is good; each will be judged by his own works. Augustine became involved in this dispute himself, and this motivated him to explain his position with great care in De gratia et libero arbitrio and De corruptione et gratia.
The so-called “Semi-Pelagian” school of thought also arose in opposition to Augustine; this was particularly widespread in Gaul. Augustine’s doctrine of predestination, which was interpreted as fatalism by the Semi-Pelagians, was the chief cause of this opposition. The idea that the will is incapable of faith and good works in general was also found to be objectionable. Augustine, who was informed of this attack by his disciples Prosper and Hilary, replied by writing De praedestinatione sanctorum and De dono perseverantiae.
The main architect of the Semi-Pelagian position was John Cassianus (d. 430/435), the founder of the cloister of St. Victor in Marseilles. It must be noted that Semi-Pelagianism was not an offshoot of Pelagian theology; it rather referred back to the pre-Augustinian tradition in the East. The Semi-Pelagians felt that the Pelagian heresy could be avoided without using the extreme ideas imbedded in Augustine’s doctrine of grace. John Cassianus, who saw things from the point of view of a monk, recognized the reality of sinful depravity, but he also maintained that man can live a moral life. Sin is inherited from Adam insofar as the entire human race participates in his transgression. Because of this, man cannot be saved or live a virtuous life without the help of grace. But the seeds of good, which need only be brought alive by grace, are present in human life. By the exercise of free will, man can either reject grace or pursue it. When man is converted it is sometimes God who takes the initiative, but on other occasions He waits for us to decide, so that our will anticipates God’s will. God does not will any man’s damnation. When this happens, it is done against His will.
It is obvious from what has been said that while Cassianus accepted Augustine’s concept of original sin, he rejected the idea of the omnipotence of grace. On the other hand, he believed that conversion and regeneration result from the cooperation of grace and free will. Rejection does not have its basis in the will of God.
In the years that followed, this theological position was widely accepted in Gaul. Additional forms of opposition came into being. Prosper of Aquitaine sought to promote the pure Augustinian point of view, while Faustus of Riez (in Provence; d. ca. 490/500) opposed him by going even further than Cassianus in the direction of Pelagianism. Vincent of Lerins, who coined the well-known principle which holds that the only valid tradition consists of that which is taught “everywhere, always, and by all,” thought that Augustine’s doctrine of grace was an unfounded novelty which did not satisfy the questions involved.
Faustus agreed with Cassianus in saying that the divine and human wills cooperate. But he did not believe that grace is an inner, life-giving power; as he saw it, grace is merely the enlightenment and awakening which comes by preaching, or the revelation of Scripture. The drawing power of grace and the consent of the will combine to produce conversion. Predestination is based solely on the foreknowledge of human merit.
For a time Semi-Pelagianism was very successful; it was confirmed by a synod in Aries in 473, for example. But it never won out conclusively. The popes in Rome were not much interested in the theological disputes of Gaul, and they gave most of their support to the Augustinian position. The fear of pure Pelagianism was a contributing factor in this.
Chief among Augustine’s disciples (after Prosper) was Fulgentius of Ruspe (d. 553), perhaps the most prominent theologian of his period. He was active as a bishop in North Africa, but he spent a long time in Sardinia, having been driven there by the Vandals. His greatest work, Contra Faustum, has been lost, but it is clear from his writings which are still extant that he strongly upheld the Augustinian doctrine of predestination. He, too, taught that no one who had been chosen from eternity could go lost, and also that no one who had not been predestined to salvation could be saved. Fulgentius therefore accepted a duplex praedestinatio, as well as God’s particular will to save. He interpreted the Augustinian position in a presentation of masterful clarity. Because of a similarity of styles it has been thought by some that Fulgentius was the author of the Athanasian Creed, but this has not been proved beyond all doubt. (See above, p. 87)
At this time Caesarius of Arles (d. 542) was promoting the Augustinian viewpoint in Gaul. Opposition was aroused, and Caesarius’ theology was rejected by a provincial synod in Valencia. Subsequently, however, Caesarius won the attention of the pope, and at the Synod of Orange (529) he succeeded in bringing into being a confession which dealt with original sin, grace, and predestination. The Semi-Pelagian position was repudiated in this confession, while the Augustinian doctrine of grace was implemented. This decision was confirmed in the following year by Pope Boniface II and subsequently received almost canonical prestige. This marked the end of the Semi-Pelagian controversy and further implied that a modified Augustinianism was recognized as the norm in questions concerning the doctrine of predestination.
Augustine’s doctrine of grace and predestination prompted widespread controversy even before he died, and it continued to occupy the center of theological discussion throughout the Middle Ages and even, in part, into the post-Reformation period. The following problems came to stand in the foreground: the scope of free will, the function of grace in man’s conversion and regeneration, and the meaning of predestination.
A group of monks in the city of Hadrumetum (south of Carthage) began a dispute about Augustine’s doctrine of grace during his lifetime. Some interpreted it to mean that men lack freedom of the will and that their works would therefore have no significance for the final judgment. But others disagreed by saying that grace supports the free will, thereby enabling man to do what is good; each will be judged by his own works. Augustine became involved in this dispute himself, and this motivated him to explain his position with great care in De gratia et libero arbitrio and De corruptione et gratia.
The so-called “Semi-Pelagian” school of thought also arose in opposition to Augustine; this was particularly widespread in Gaul. Augustine’s doctrine of predestination, which was interpreted as fatalism by the Semi-Pelagians, was the chief cause of this opposition. The idea that the will is incapable of faith and good works in general was also found to be objectionable. Augustine, who was informed of this attack by his disciples Prosper and Hilary, replied by writing De praedestinatione sanctorum and De dono perseverantiae.
The main architect of the Semi-Pelagian position was John Cassianus (d. 430/435), the founder of the cloister of St. Victor in Marseilles. It must be noted that Semi-Pelagianism was not an offshoot of Pelagian theology; it rather referred back to the pre-Augustinian tradition in the East. The Semi-Pelagians felt that the Pelagian heresy could be avoided without using the extreme ideas imbedded in Augustine’s doctrine of grace. John Cassianus, who saw things from the point of view of a monk, recognized the reality of sinful depravity, but he also maintained that man can live a moral life. Sin is inherited from Adam insofar as the entire human race participates in his transgression. Because of this, man cannot be saved or live a virtuous life without the help of grace. But the seeds of good, which need only be brought alive by grace, are present in human life. By the exercise of free will, man can either reject grace or pursue it. When man is converted it is sometimes God who takes the initiative, but on other occasions He waits for us to decide, so that our will anticipates God’s will. God does not will any man’s damnation. When this happens, it is done against His will.
It is obvious from what has been said that while Cassianus accepted Augustine’s concept of original sin, he rejected the idea of the omnipotence of grace. On the other hand, he believed that conversion and regeneration result from the cooperation of grace and free will. Rejection does not have its basis in the will of God.
In the years that followed, this theological position was widely accepted in Gaul. Additional forms of opposition came into being. Prosper of Aquitaine sought to promote the pure Augustinian point of view, while Faustus of Riez (in Provence; d. ca. 490/500) opposed him by going even further than Cassianus in the direction of Pelagianism. Vincent of Lerins, who coined the well-known principle which holds that the only valid tradition consists of that which is taught “everywhere, always, and by all,” thought that Augustine’s doctrine of grace was an unfounded novelty which did not satisfy the questions involved.
Faustus agreed with Cassianus in saying that the divine and human wills cooperate. But he did not believe that grace is an inner, life-giving power; as he saw it, grace is merely the enlightenment and awakening which comes by preaching, or the revelation of Scripture. The drawing power of grace and the consent of the will combine to produce conversion. Predestination is based solely on the foreknowledge of human merit.
For a time Semi-Pelagianism was very successful; it was confirmed by a synod in Aries in 473, for example. But it never won out conclusively. The popes in Rome were not much interested in the theological disputes of Gaul, and they gave most of their support to the Augustinian position. The fear of pure Pelagianism was a contributing factor in this.
Chief among Augustine’s disciples (after Prosper) was Fulgentius of Ruspe (d. 553), perhaps the most prominent theologian of his period. He was active as a bishop in North Africa, but he spent a long time in Sardinia, having been driven there by the Vandals. His greatest work, Contra Faustum, has been lost, but it is clear from his writings which are still extant that he strongly upheld the Augustinian doctrine of predestination. He, too, taught that no one who had been chosen from eternity could go lost, and also that no one who had not been predestined to salvation could be saved. Fulgentius therefore accepted a duplex praedestinatio, as well as God’s particular will to save. He interpreted the Augustinian position in a presentation of masterful clarity. Because of a similarity of styles it has been thought by some that Fulgentius was the author of the Athanasian Creed, but this has not been proved beyond all doubt. (See above, p. 87)
At this time Caesarius of Arles (d. 542) was promoting the Augustinian viewpoint in Gaul. Opposition was aroused, and Caesarius’ theology was rejected by a provincial synod in Valencia. Subsequently, however, Caesarius won the attention of the pope, and at the Synod of Orange (529) he succeeded in bringing into being a confession which dealt with original sin, grace, and predestination. The Semi-Pelagian position was repudiated in this confession, while the Augustinian doctrine of grace was implemented. This decision was confirmed in the following year by Pope Boniface II and subsequently received almost canonical prestige. This marked the end of the Semi-Pelagian controversy and further implied that a modified Augustinianism was recognized as the norm in questions concerning the doctrine of predestination.
The Synod of Orange, whose 25 canons were drawn for the most part from a collection of quotations from Augustine prepared by Prosper, sanctioned Augustine’s teaching of original sin. The synod agreed that as a result of original sin the entire man is changed for the worse, both in body and soul, and that the free will is not undamaged. Both sin and death have come to the entire human race through one man. Furthermore, the anticipatory activity of grace was strongly emphasized: the very prayers in which we pray for grace are themselves stimulated by grace. By ourselves we are unable to take the first step to receive grace. God does not wait until man wills to be cleansed from sin; He rather works through the Spirit to implant this desire within us. Neither is the longing for wholeness, or the beginning of faith, or the feeling of faith something that is a part of man by nature. When a man consents to the preaching of the Gospel, this must be attributed to the enlightenment and inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Man is not good in himself; God must work all good within him. Even the regenerate must pray to God for help in order to persevere in doing good.
The canons of the Synod of Orange also touched upon the relation between grace and merit. It was agreed that merit does not precede grace. Good works deserve reward, but good works are possible only by virtue of unmerited grace. The love of God is a gift of God; it is poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit. The final conclusion therefore was (as it says in the appendage written by Caesarius) that neither faith nor love nor good works result from the activity of the free will; they must be preceded by the divine grace of a merciful God. This grace is received through Baptism. If they are earnest about it, all of the baptized can—with Christ’s help—fulfill that which relates to the salvation of the soul. In this connection the idea of double predestination was rejected; those who taught that some are predestined to hell were condemned by the Synod of Orange.
Because man’s will for and striving after the good has its origin in grace, the latter is the source of all good in man. And grace is an inner power, not merely the influence of an external revelation. As seen from one point of view, Canon 22 of the Synod of Orange summarizes the content of the entire confession: “Of himself, no man is anything but lies and sins. If one does possess something of truth and righteousness, it comes from that fountain after which we ought to thirst in this desert, so that, sprinkled, as it were, by some of its drops, we might not succumb on the way.”
Properly speaking, the Synod of Orange marks the end of the controversy over Augustinianism. But the problems involved in the vortex of this controversy continued to elicit long-standing disputes; they also gave rise to complex speculations in the minds of medieval theologians. Some of these same questions also arose again in the post-Reformation debates, and even then the ideas which came into being during the PeIagian and Semi-Pelagian controversies were discussed anew.
A group of monks in the city of Hadrumetum (south of Carthage) began a dispute about Augustine’s doctrine of grace during his lifetime. Some interpreted it to mean that men lack freedom of the will and that their works would therefore have no significance for the final judgment. But others disagreed by saying that grace supports the free will, thereby enabling man to do what is good; each will be judged by his own works. Augustine became involved in this dispute himself, and this motivated him to explain his position with great care in De gratia et libero arbitrio and De corruptione et gratia.
The so-called “Semi-Pelagian” school of thought also arose in opposition to Augustine; this was particularly widespread in Gaul. Augustine’s doctrine of predestination, which was interpreted as fatalism by the Semi-Pelagians, was the chief cause of this opposition. The idea that the will is incapable of faith and good works in general was also found to be objectionable. Augustine, who was informed of this attack by his disciples Prosper and Hilary, replied by writing De praedestinatione sanctorum and De dono perseverantiae.
The main architect of the Semi-Pelagian position was John Cassianus (d. 430/435), the founder of the cloister of St. Victor in Marseilles. It must be noted that Semi-Pelagianism was not an offshoot of Pelagian theology; it rather referred back to the pre-Augustinian tradition in the East. The Semi-Pelagians felt that the Pelagian heresy could be avoided without using the extreme ideas imbedded in Augustine’s doctrine of grace. John Cassianus, who saw things from the point of view of a monk, recognized the reality of sinful depravity, but he also maintained that man can live a moral life. Sin is inherited from Adam insofar as the entire human race participates in his transgression. Because of this, man cannot be saved or live a virtuous life without the help of grace. But the seeds of good, which need only be brought alive by grace, are present in human life. By the exercise of free will, man can either reject grace or pursue it. When man is converted it is sometimes God who takes the initiative, but on other occasions He waits for us to decide, so that our will anticipates God’s will. God does not will any man’s damnation. When this happens, it is done against His will.
It is obvious from what has been said that while Cassianus accepted Augustine’s concept of original sin, he rejected the idea of the omnipotence of grace. On the other hand, he believed that conversion and regeneration result from the cooperation of grace and free will. Rejection does not have its basis in the will of God.
In the years that followed, this theological position was widely accepted in Gaul. Additional forms of opposition came into being. Prosper of Aquitaine sought to promote the pure Augustinian point of view, while Faustus of Riez (in Provence; d. ca. 490/500) opposed him by going even further than Cassianus in the direction of Pelagianism. Vincent of Lerins, who coined the well-known principle which holds that the only valid tradition consists of that which is taught “everywhere, always, and by all,” thought that Augustine’s doctrine of grace was an unfounded novelty which did not satisfy the questions involved.
Faustus agreed with Cassianus in saying that the divine and human wills cooperate. But he did not believe that grace is an inner, life-giving power; as he saw it, grace is merely the enlightenment and awakening which comes by preaching, or the revelation of Scripture. The drawing power of grace and the consent of the will combine to produce conversion. Predestination is based solely on the foreknowledge of human merit.
For a time Semi-Pelagianism was very successful; it was confirmed by a synod in Aries in 473, for example. But it never won out conclusively. The popes in Rome were not much interested in the theological disputes of Gaul, and they gave most of their support to the Augustinian position. The fear of pure Pelagianism was a contributing factor in this.
Chief among Augustine’s disciples (after Prosper) was Fulgentius of Ruspe (d. 553), perhaps the most prominent theologian of his period. He was active as a bishop in North Africa, but he spent a long time in Sardinia, having been driven there by the Vandals. His greatest work, Contra Faustum, has been lost, but it is clear from his writings which are still extant that he strongly upheld the Augustinian doctrine of predestination. He, too, taught that no one who had been chosen from eternity could go lost, and also that no one who had not been predestined to salvation could be saved. Fulgentius therefore accepted a duplex praedestinatio, as well as God’s particular will to save. He interpreted the Augustinian position in a presentation of masterful clarity. Because of a similarity of styles it has been thought by some that Fulgentius was the author of the Athanasian Creed, but this has not been proved beyond all doubt. (See above, p. 87)
At this time Caesarius of Arles (d. 542) was promoting the Augustinian viewpoint in Gaul. Opposition was aroused, and Caesarius’ theology was rejected by a provincial synod in Valencia. Subsequently, however, Caesarius won the attention of the pope, and at the Synod of Orange (529) he succeeded in bringing into being a confession which dealt with original sin, grace, and predestination. The Semi-Pelagian position was repudiated in this confession, while the Augustinian doctrine of grace was implemented. This decision was confirmed in the following year by Pope Boniface II and subsequently received almost canonical prestige. This marked the end of the Semi-Pelagian controversy and further implied that a modified Augustinianism was recognized as the norm in questions concerning the doctrine of predestination.
Augustine’s doctrine of grace and predestination prompted widespread controversy even before he died, and it continued to occupy the center of theological discussion throughout the Middle Ages and even, in part, into the post-Reformation period. The following problems came to stand in the foreground: the scope of free will, the function of grace in man’s conversion and regeneration, and the meaning of predestination.
A group of monks in the city of Hadrumetum (south of Carthage) began a dispute about Augustine’s doctrine of grace during his lifetime. Some interpreted it to mean that men lack freedom of the will and that their works would therefore have no significance for the final judgment. But others disagreed by saying that grace supports the free will, thereby enabling man to do what is good; each will be judged by his own works. Augustine became involved in this dispute himself, and this motivated him to explain his position with great care in De gratia et libero arbitrio and De corruptione et gratia.
The so-called “Semi-Pelagian” school of thought also arose in opposition to Augustine; this was particularly widespread in Gaul. Augustine’s doctrine of predestination, which was interpreted as fatalism by the Semi-Pelagians, was the chief cause of this opposition. The idea that the will is incapable of faith and good works in general was also found to be objectionable. Augustine, who was informed of this attack by his disciples Prosper and Hilary, replied by writing De praedestinatione sanctorum and De dono perseverantiae.
The main architect of the Semi-Pelagian position was John Cassianus (d. 430/435), the founder of the cloister of St. Victor in Marseilles. It must be noted that Semi-Pelagianism was not an offshoot of Pelagian theology; it rather referred back to the pre-Augustinian tradition in the East. The Semi-Pelagians felt that the Pelagian heresy could be avoided without using the extreme ideas imbedded in Augustine’s doctrine of grace. John Cassianus, who saw things from the point of view of a monk, recognized the reality of sinful depravity, but he also maintained that man can live a moral life. Sin is inherited from Adam insofar as the entire human race participates in his transgression. Because of this, man cannot be saved or live a virtuous life without the help of grace. But the seeds of good, which need only be brought alive by grace, are present in human life. By the exercise of free will, man can either reject grace or pursue it. When man is converted it is sometimes God who takes the initiative, but on other occasions He waits for us to decide, so that our will anticipates God’s will. God does not will any man’s damnation. When this happens, it is done against His will.
It is obvious from what has been said that while Cassianus accepted Augustine’s concept of original sin, he rejected the idea of the omnipotence of grace. On the other hand, he believed that conversion and regeneration result from the cooperation of grace and free will. Rejection does not have its basis in the will of God.
In the years that followed, this theological position was widely accepted in Gaul. Additional forms of opposition came into being. Prosper of Aquitaine sought to promote the pure Augustinian point of view, while Faustus of Riez (in Provence; d. ca. 490/500) opposed him by going even further than Cassianus in the direction of Pelagianism. Vincent of Lerins, who coined the well-known principle which holds that the only valid tradition consists of that which is taught “everywhere, always, and by all,” thought that Augustine’s doctrine of grace was an unfounded novelty which did not satisfy the questions involved.
Faustus agreed with Cassianus in saying that the divine and human wills cooperate. But he did not believe that grace is an inner, life-giving power; as he saw it, grace is merely the enlightenment and awakening which comes by preaching, or the revelation of Scripture. The drawing power of grace and the consent of the will combine to produce conversion. Predestination is based solely on the foreknowledge of human merit.
For a time Semi-Pelagianism was very successful; it was confirmed by a synod in Aries in 473, for example. But it never won out conclusively. The popes in Rome were not much interested in the theological disputes of Gaul, and they gave most of their support to the Augustinian position. The fear of pure Pelagianism was a contributing factor in this.
Chief among Augustine’s disciples (after Prosper) was Fulgentius of Ruspe (d. 553), perhaps the most prominent theologian of his period. He was active as a bishop in North Africa, but he spent a long time in Sardinia, having been driven there by the Vandals. His greatest work, Contra Faustum, has been lost, but it is clear from his writings which are still extant that he strongly upheld the Augustinian doctrine of predestination. He, too, taught that no one who had been chosen from eternity could go lost, and also that no one who had not been predestined to salvation could be saved. Fulgentius therefore accepted a duplex praedestinatio, as well as God’s particular will to save. He interpreted the Augustinian position in a presentation of masterful clarity. Because of a similarity of styles it has been thought by some that Fulgentius was the author of the Athanasian Creed, but this has not been proved beyond all doubt. (See above, p. 87)
At this time Caesarius of Arles (d. 542) was promoting the Augustinian viewpoint in Gaul. Opposition was aroused, and Caesarius’ theology was rejected by a provincial synod in Valencia. Subsequently, however, Caesarius won the attention of the pope, and at the Synod of Orange (529) he succeeded in bringing into being a confession which dealt with original sin, grace, and predestination. The Semi-Pelagian position was repudiated in this confession, while the Augustinian doctrine of grace was implemented. This decision was confirmed in the following year by Pope Boniface II and subsequently received almost canonical prestige. This marked the end of the Semi-Pelagian controversy and further implied that a modified Augustinianism was recognized as the norm in questions concerning the doctrine of predestination.
The Synod of Orange, whose 25 canons were drawn for the most part from a collection of quotations from Augustine prepared by Prosper, sanctioned Augustine’s teaching of original sin. The synod agreed that as a result of original sin the entire man is changed for the worse, both in body and soul, and that the free will is not undamaged. Both sin and death have come to the entire human race through one man. Furthermore, the anticipatory activity of grace was strongly emphasized: the very prayers in which we pray for grace are themselves stimulated by grace. By ourselves we are unable to take the first step to receive grace. God does not wait until man wills to be cleansed from sin; He rather works through the Spirit to implant this desire within us. Neither is the longing for wholeness, or the beginning of faith, or the feeling of faith something that is a part of man by nature. When a man consents to the preaching of the Gospel, this must be attributed to the enlightenment and inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Man is not good in himself; God must work all good within him. Even the regenerate must pray to God for help in order to persevere in doing good.
The canons of the Synod of Orange also touched upon the relation between grace and merit. It was agreed that merit does not precede grace. Good works deserve reward, but good works are possible only by virtue of unmerited grace. The love of God is a gift of God; it is poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit. The final conclusion therefore was (as it says in the appendage written by Caesarius) that neither faith nor love nor good works result from the activity of the free will; they must be preceded by the divine grace of a merciful God. This grace is received through Baptism. If they are earnest about it, all of the baptized can—with Christ’s help—fulfill that which relates to the salvation of the soul. In this connection the idea of double predestination was rejected; those who taught that some are predestined to hell were condemned by the Synod of Orange.
Because man’s will for and striving after the good has its origin in grace, the latter is the source of all good in man. And grace is an inner power, not merely the influence of an external revelation. As seen from one point of view, Canon 22 of the Synod of Orange summarizes the content of the entire confession: “Of himself, no man is anything but lies and sins. If one does possess something of truth and righteousness, it comes from that fountain after which we ought to thirst in this desert, so that, sprinkled, as it were, by some of its drops, we might not succumb on the way.”
Properly speaking, the Synod of Orange marks the end of the controversy over Augustinianism. But the problems involved in the vortex of this controversy continued to elicit long-standing disputes; they also gave rise to complex speculations in the minds of medieval theologians. Some of these same questions also arose again in the post-Reformation debates, and even then the ideas which came into being during the PeIagian and Semi-Pelagian controversies were discussed anew.
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