Word: pelagius
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Dates: during 1940-1949
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...Pelagius, excommunicated for heresy in the 5th Century, has been identified with the belief that man could be saved by good works alone...
...this formidable view, a British monk called Pelagius† took flat exception. Augustine's austere teachings, he felt, would inevitably lead man into a fatal moral apathy. Instead, he argued that all men have the free will to earn their own salvation by good works. Grace, said Pelagius, consists simply of man's natural gifts, God's forgiveness of sins to the baptized, and His issuance of instructions and examples...
Prayer Book v. Pulpit. Pelagius made many converts to his more optimistic doctrine; but after years of vigorous controversy between him and Augustine, the Church decided that Pelagianism was heresy. Heresy or not, Pelagianism was a good deal easier to live with. By the close of the Middle Ages, says Dr. Hardman, the Pelagian doctrine of merit had virtually replaced Augustinian predestination in the practical workings of the Church...