Augustine and Heresies (The Bible: The Book that Bridges the Millennia)

Augustine spent a great deal of energy fighting a heresy called Donatism. At its core were issues of church authority. Donatism had been around since the persecutions under Diocletian, when Christians were ordered to turn over their Scriptures to Roman authorities. Some had obeyed this order. Others had refused altogether and suffered torture or death as a result. Many did something in between, such as hiding or fleeing. After the persecution ended, the church had to decide how to treat people--especially bishops--who had turned in their books or fled to avoid persecution. If a bishop had complied with the order or fled, could he still serve as a bishop once the danger was over? Or if he had lost his authority as a bishop, should he be deposed? Should he be retained but made to do penance? And the sacramental acts he performed afterwards--were they valid? If he had ordained a priest or helped consecrate another bishop, were their orders valid? The church was split over this, especially in North Africa.

The central question was whether the authority of a bishop depended on his personal holiness and conduct, or on the office conferred by the church. Bishop Donatus and his followers had argued that the personal holiness of individuals was what validated an office. A lapsed bishop or priest, therefore, no longer kept that authority. Augustine on the other hand took the view that church authority conferred in the consecration and office of a bishop held true, even if the bishop’s personal purity fell short of ideal. Such a bishop ought to do penance, but his acts as bishop were valid and carried the church’s full authority. And the orders and authority of anyone ordained or consecrated by such a bishop were valid.

Augustine’s "Just War" Theory

Another issue of church authority in the Donatist schism was the use of state interference to put down such a movement. Donatist extremists used force among their own people in order to keep them from returning to orthodox churches, and the Roman authorities opposed Donatists with violence. The North African church, including the Bishop of Hippo, came to condone this forceful interference. Augustine developed a theory of a "just war," based on this precedent together with the growing need to defend Roman cities against barbarian invasions. A war could be just if its purpose was noble, such as to achieve justice or peace. However, it must be led by appropriate authorities, and the principle of love exist despite the necessary killing. These ideas worked out by Augustine in response to Donatism and the times became enormously influential in the Middle Ages and after.

Pelagianism

Augustine wrote extensively against another major heresy, Pelagianism. A Briton who may have been a monk, Pelagius held ideas about free will, grace, and original sin that provoked strong opposition from Augustine. Pelagius believed humans were born with the freedom to choose their actions and could therefore choose not to sin. Children were born free of sin. They were not bound by the sin of Adam, which affected only Adam, not all humanity. Adam was created mortal, and whether or not he sinned, he would have died. Humanity did not die together with Adam, or rise together with Christ. The law as well as the Gospel offered a way to God. The main point was that humans could achieve salvation on their own, without the grace of God or the redemption of Christ. In response, Augustine wrote On the Spirit and the Letter, On Nature and Grace, On Original Sin, and other works. He argued that while Adam was created with the power not to sin, he lost it by sinning. Adam left bondage to sin as a heritage to his descendants-- all humankind. Because humans are born with free will but not with the power not to sin, they need the grace of God and the redemption of Christ to be saved. Salvation comes entirely by the grace of God. God gives that grace to those God elects, not necessarily according to merit.

Although the Protestant Reformation was a thousand years off, we see some of its roots in the concepts of Augustine’s teaching. The importance of God’s action in grace, of faith over works, and some of the understanding of predestination* are concepts similar to those of the Reformers. Their ideas of grace and the action of the Holy Spirit differed, and their concepts of predestination were not exactly the same. It is an oversimpification to say that the Reformers were Augustinian. So pervasive was Augustine’s impact, however, that people on all sides of many controversies quoted him in support of their views. He is widely considered the most influential Christian teacher after the Apostle Paul.

This study is a resource from:
The Women's Division
General Board of Global Ministries
The United Methodist Church
E-mail: umw@gbgm-umc.org.
Web: http://gbgm-umc.org/umw/

Augustine and Some Principal Heresies*

Donatism

Augustine’s "Just War" Theory

Pelagianism