03 - Augustine - Calvinistic but Denied Calvinism

Augustine - Calvinistic but Denied Calvinism

“But it is worth while to expound the whole of that passage of the apostle more fully, ‘O Timothy, keep the deposit, avoiding profane novelties of words.’” Vincent of Lérins (~434 A.D.) , A Commentary chapter 22.

Vincent wrote of many great men of the church, but he was silent on Augustine. (Semi-Pelagian)

After this time, the first two authors who said “Calvinistic things” were Ambrose and Augustine. Ambrose (381) said one thing (Nicene & Post-Nicene Fathers 10:126) that is arguably Calvinistic: “That the nature of everything is of His will, and He is the Author of all things which have come into being.” (Of the Holy Spirit 2:91). However, Athenagoras said almost the same thing, and He defended free will in the same work, so this does not prove Ambrose was a Calvinist. Ambrose also taught that baptism opens the kingdom of heaven to infants in On Abraham 2:79. Most Calvinists would not say that infants going to heaven is caused by, or contingent on, water baptism. Augustine taught some points that Calvinists use, but he also taught things Calvinists would deny (5:109,317-319,378).

Augustine said he knew nothing of Hebrew in a letter to Memorius. He relied on the Septuagint or the Latin. In Confessions he wrote of his early dislike for Greek, which prevented him from developing overmuch in it. (Forster & Marston p.267)

“SUMMARY OF THE REFORMED DOCTRINE OF ELECTION ... 15. All of those dying in infancy are among the elect.” Boettner p.148,149)

Other Calvinists who agreed with this include Charles Hodge, W.G.T. Shedd, B.B. Warfield, and C.H. Spurgeon. Indeed, I have not read of any Calvinists who were not at least optimistic that all infants, dying in infancy, are saved.

AugustineOn the Spirit and the Letter, written in 412 A.D.

“Consequently a man cannot be said to have even that will with which he believes in God, without having received it; since this rises at the call of God out of the free will which he received naturally when he was created. God no doubt wishes all men to be saved and to come into the knowledge of the truth; but yet not so as to take away from them free will, for the good or the evil use of which they may be most righteously judged. ...nevertheless they do not therefore overcome His will, but rob their own selves of the great, nay the very greatest, good, and implicate themselves in penalties of punishment... Thus God’s will is for ever invincible; but it would be vanquished, unless it devised what to do with such as despised it, or if these despises could in any way escape from the retribution which He has appointed for such as they.” (Nicene & Post Nicene Fathers First Series vol.5 Anti-Pelagian Writings p.109) In Augustine’s Retractations, he mentions this work, but does not retract any of this.

Based on God respecting man’s free will, and the fact that Augustine’s definition of God’s irresistible will is very different from a Calvinist’s one cannot say Augustine was a Calvinist. One could still say that Augustine had Calvinistic tendencies, though.

Calvinists can have a simple answer for this and the preceding tract: the early church did preach Calvinism, because the early church read the Bible and it is in the Bible. There are two answers for this: the Bible never explicitly denies free will, affirms fatalism, or talks of people Jesus did not die for using those words. As for the Bible’s teaching leading to those conclusions, we should look at what the believers who were native speakers of New Testament Greek said concerning the verses Calvinists often quote. This we will do in the next tract.

Augustine did not read or write Greek. Was Augustine a “true Calvinist” before Calvin was even born? Did Augustine say a lot of inconsistent teaching on this subject. After studying Augustine, I have come to the conclusion that neither of the previous hypotheses is true. Though I frankly disagree with Augustine on many matters, I was surprised that I basically agreed with him on this issue. Augustine believed in total depravity, defined differently from Calvinists. Augustine believed in irresistible will, defined very differently from Calvinists. However, in my opinion, Augustine was all messed up in teaching as Christian doctrine, that unbaptized infants automatically go to hell, while the act of baptism makes them go to heaven. The Greatness of Augustine Reconsidered

Forster and Marston write (p.286) Through the influence and advocacy of Augustine thousands of simple brethren of Christ were actually caused to be hungry exiled strangers, homeless, in prison or in pain. How then may we reconcile the words of Jesus with Renwick’s description of Augustine as ‘the greatest Christian of his age”? How may we understand Souter’s description of him as ‘the greatest Christian since New Testament times”? ... On what are we to base our standards of greatness? Can Augustine be excused on the grounds that ‘he was only a child of his times’?”

(They go on to discuss Tertullian, Lactantius, Athanasius, Martin of Tours, Ambrose, and Chrysostom’s stated positions against using force on heretics. After discussing Calvin and Augustine’s teaching the torture and killing of heretics, they say “It becomes still less convincing when we are told, often by the same apologists, that those like Calvin and Augustine were the most competent Bible scholars in history. ... Surely if Augustine had the greatness of mind and strength of character to overturn all the Christian teaching of the first 300 years, it is absurd to excuse his advocacy of persecution on the grounds of a spirit in him of conformity. The tragic fact is surely that those who deny any power but God’s and hence reduce everyone including Satan to servants of God may (if times are ripe) finish by using Satan’s own weapons of fear, force, pain, and persecution. Although Augustine initially adopted persecution because of it practical success (and it was indeed practically successful), he himself directly linked it with his theological system.

We have, in summary, to recognize the effect of Augustine’s teaching on our thinking even today. Yet we must decide whether his teachings are truly a ‘restoration;’ of the Apostle Paul....

We must decide for ourselves whether we believe that Augustine, or the Christians of the first three centuries, had the true Pauline doctrine. Our decision on this issue is going to affect our whole attitude to God and his conflict with evil.” Forster, R.T. and V. Paul Marston God’s Strategy in Human History Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. 1973. (p.286-287)