Pelagius vs. Augustine in the Social Imagination...

The Pelagian Heresy ~ Pelagius rejected the Augustinian concept of grace. According to his opponents, Pelagius taught that moral perfection was attainable in this life without the assistance of divine grace through human free will. Augustine contradicted this by saying that perfection was impossible without grace because we are born sinners with a sinful heart and will.

The Pelagians charged Augustine with departing from the accepted teaching (e.g.: John 8:11) of the Apostles and the Bible, and demonstrating that the doctrine of original sin amounted to Manichaeism, which taught that the flesh was in itself sinful (and thus denied that Jesus came in the flesh). 

Pelagius mistakenly thought that man always had 'righteous' free will and he just had to be reminded of that as Pelagius pointed to John 8:11. But, Augustine taught that a person's salvation comes solely through a free gift, the efficacious grace of God, but that this was a gift that one had no free choice to accept or refuse. 

So, what about John 8:11? "No one, sir," she said. "Then neither do I condemn you,"Jesus declared. "Go now and leave your life of sin." Isn't that an example of what Pelagius meant? Yes and no. Yes, because Jesus did tell the woman to go and sin no more as if to 'remind' her that she was always able to. Not! She could not be reminded of her 'righteous' free will as if she always had the ability to not sin. If she had, why would Jesus (God) ever enter in. 

No, that woman did not have that kind of mind in a fallen world to know that she could go and sin no more...of her own free will. Until the moment when she encountered Jesus Christ; the woman did even understand her 'free will' let alone her sin, nor did she ever have the ability to not sin before she encountered Jesus Christ. Jesus gave her the gift of His Grace; and thus, it was not her 'own' free will that she just had to be reminded of in order that she go and sin no more but because Jesus empowered her by the Gift of His Grace. 

For anyone to make the argument otherwise, it must be pointed that moral perfection could not be attainable by man alone/ by himself in a fallen world or a universe in a state of entropy. Our 'free will' is corrupt made corrupt at the fall. Hence, though we may think we choose to do something good or not do something good, doesn't make 'good' or right or wrong in our own eyes... in a fallen state, man alone could not fully understand the difference. 

The only time we could feel bad about doing something wrong is if we were told it was wrong because others in the same corrupt state reacting with anger, jealous or rage out of missing out on either the same opportunity/advantage as animals react; those reactions are barbaric as in tragically natural for man in a state of entropy. Jesus said, "For from the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, all sexual immorality, theft, lying, and slander". There is no not one who is without sin... all are filthy rags. 

The only time we could overcome or escape the penalty of sin (eternal damnation) is by either death or by grace. By grace gives us eternal life. But, whose grace if all the world / universe is corrupt? Only by someone outside of the corruption. So, the next problem for the two schools of thought - Pelegius and Augustine is was Jesus 'in the flesh' corrupt too simply by entering into this fallen world? 

To defend that Jesus was not corrupt by being in the flesh, one has to ask the question, Would God come into this world of sin if He could not overcome it? Would God create a stone so big He could not move it? No. He could always overcome because He is God. So, Jesus (God in the flesh) could never be touched by this corruption because His true being remained outside of it.
   
We must keep in mind, if we always had the understanding of 'right' free will choice, then why would Jesus come into the world? It would have been enough to continue looping in a forward motion until we just got it right (Ground Hog Day) through a struggle of trial and error (or until,like in the move, right choices win) as if man alone could save himself. 

Yes, Pelagian said a little grace was necessary as if to say a sprinkle of stardust over our heads or holy water was a means to remind us. We see the Pelagian Heresy in American civil religion and played out in many American dreams/films and or plays/books. Even in the Wizard of Oz! Dorothy supposedly always had the free will to go home.

In sum, until we are born again by the Holy Spirit, we cannot of our 'own' free will save ourselves from the law of sin and death! Nor can we by our own right/good choices make this a better world. It is in a state of entropy - This world is passing away ~ 1 John 2:17.



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