Dr Paul Allen

“Give What You Command, and Then Command Whatever You Will”:  Augustine, Pelagius, and the Question of Original Sin   By  Brad Green Original sin, in particular the relationship between Adam and the rest of humanity, is one of the most vexing doctrines in the history of Christian thought. Henri Blocher captures it well when he refers to the doctrine as a “riddle.”1  Often, the best way to come to terms with a complex theological issue is to go at it through a close study of a key historical controversy that surrounds the doctrine. The doctrine of original sin would entail an analysis of the pitched theological struggle between Augustine and Pelagius (and the Pelagians). This was a literary battle, as Augustine never met Pelagius, although they both were in Rome simultaneously.  1 Henri Blocher, Original Sin: Illuminating the Riddle, NSBT 5 (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1997). Note: the enumeration of these footnotes differs from those used in the full chapter sin...

Reformers like John Calvin quoted Augustine more than any other author outside Scripture. They celebrated, among other qualities, how he championed the truth that God saves sinners not on the basis of their works but by his grace.   When it came to the doctrine of justification by faith, however, the Reformers did not find the clarity they wanted in the great church father.  Augustine never offers a systematic treatment of the meaning of justification, and a careful reading of his works reveals ambiguities in his treatment of the doctrine.   Nevertheless, he speaks of justification mainly in terms of God making sinners righteous rather than declaring sinners righteou s. To the Reformers, then, his way of expressing the doctrine obscured, even if it did not deny, Christ’s righteousness as the sole ground of a sinner’s justification before God. Augustine of Hippo (354–430) championed the truth that God saves sinners not on the basis of their works, but by his grace alone. E...

In a time of tumult and crisis, a bishop writes to encourage his friends and colleagues in ministry. There is much to discourage them: their perceived lack of ability; biblical and theological illiteracy in their congregations; interruptions to their busy schedules; and scandals rocking the church. As he writes, he looks for a golden thread that will tie together his advice and will call them back to faithfulness in their task. That bishop was Augustine of Hippo. Though he wrote a millennium and a half ago, his words ring true today. In a remarkable section of Instructing Beginners in Faith, “How to Avoid Discouragement,” Augustine addresses a number of challenges pastors face. He binds his encouragements together under one theme: the call to follow Christ in the simple and humble work of love. His advice is timeless, and we would do well to listen to it. Communication It worries us what was imbibed by the mind in one swift draught takes long and convoluted by-ways as it comes to expre...