Theological Term of the Week

 

Pelagianism

A view of the nature of humanity that has been condemned as heretical throughout Christian history. In this view, humanity is seen as basically good and the doctrine of original sin is denied.

 

• From Michael Horton, in Pelagianism: The Religion of Natural Man.

  Pelagius was driven by moral concerns and his theology was calculated to provide the most fuel for moral and social improvement. Augustine’s emphasis on human helplessness and divine grace would surely paralyze the pursuit of moral improvement, since people could sin with impunity, fatalistically concluding, “I couldn’t help it; I’m a sinner.” So Pelagius countered by rejecting original sin. According to Pelagius, Adam was merely a bad example, not the father of our sinful condition-we are sinners because we sin-rather than vice versa. Consequently, of course, the Second Adam, Jesus Christ, was a good example. Salvation is a matter chiefly of following Christ instead of Adam, rather than being transferred from the condemnation and corruption of Adam’s race and placed “in Christ,” clothed in his righteousness and made alive by his gracious gift. What men and women need is moral direction, not a new birth; therefore, Pelagius saw salvation in purely naturalistic terms-the progress of human nature from sinful behavior to holy behavior, by following the example of Christ.
  
  …It is worth noting that Pelagianism was condemned by more church councils than any other heresy in history. In 412, Pelagius’s disciple Coelestius was excommunicated at the Synod of Carthage; the Councils of Carthage and Milevis condemned Pelagius’ De libero arbitrio—On the Freedom of the Will; Pope Innocent I excommunicated both Pelagius and Coelestius, as did Pope Zosimus. Eastern emperor Theodosius II banished the Pelagians from the East as well in AD 430. The heresy was repeatedly condemned by the Council of Ephesus in 431 and the Second Council of Orange in 529. In fact, the Council of Orange condemned even Semi-Pelagianism, which maintains that grace is necessary, but that the will is free by nature to choose whether to cooperate with the grace offered. The Council of Orange even condemned those who thought that salvation could be conferred by the saying of a prayer, affirming instead (with abundant biblical references) that God must awaken the sinner and grant the gift of faith before a person can even seek God.
  
  Anything that falls short of acknowledging original sin, the bondage of the will, and the need for grace to even accept the gift of eternal life, much less to pursue righteousness, is considered by the whole church to be heresy. The heresy described here is called “Pelagianism.”

• From Pelagianism by R. Scott Clark:

  The Pelagian a Priori
  
  The key unstated presupposition, in Pelagius’ argument, was that there is a universal standard of justice to which all, even God are bound. Flowing from this belief is the further belief that justice requires absolute freedom of the will. Why? Because if God is absolutely sovereign, then humans must be only puppets, thus depriving God of his justice by stripping humans of their freedom and their moral responsibility. God is just. Therefore humans must have a free will. (28)
  
  Anthropology
  
  Pelagius’ notion of justice required him to deny any link between Adam and us. God, he argued, cannot blame us for another’s sin (29). Since Pelagius broke entirely the link (whether biological or legal) between Adam and us, he concluded that the only way in which sin can be transmitted is through imitation of Adam’s example (30). “[B]efore he begins exercising his will, there is only in him what God has created.” (31)

Learn more

1. The entire two articles quoted and linked above are recommended reads.
2. Theopedia: Pelagianism
   

This theological term was suggested in a round about way by Chris. Have you come across a theological term that you don’t understand and you’d like to see featured here as a Theological Term of the Week? If you email it to me, I’ll seriously consider using it, giving you credit for the suggestion and linking back to your blog when I do.

 

Click on the graphic above to find a list of all the past Theological Terms of the Week in alphabetical order.

Sunday's Hymn: The Work of Christ

In anticipation of Easter, I’m changing the subject of the Sunday’s hymns. I was posting hymns that taught us about the nature of God, but now I’m moving on to hymns that feature the work of Christ on the cross. It shouldn’t be a difficult segue, since last Sunday’s hymn showed us God as judge and it’s because God is judge that we need Christ’s cross work.

The Power of the Cross

 

Oh, to see the dawn
Of the darkest day:
Christ on the road to Calvary.
Tried by sinful men,
Torn and beaten, then
Nailed to a cross of wood.

Chorus
This, the pow’r of the cross:
Christ became sin for us;
Took the blame, bore the wrath—
We stand forgiven at the cross.

Oh, to see the pain
Written on Your face,
Bearing the awesome weight of sin.
Ev’ry bitter thought,
Ev’ry evil deed
Crowning Your bloodstained brow.

Now the daylight flees;
Now the ground beneath
Quakes as its Maker bows His head.
Curtain torn in two,
Dead are raised to life;
“Finished!” the vict’ry cry.

Oh,to see my name
Written in the wounds,
For through Your suffering I am free.
Death is crushed to death;
Life is mine to live,
Won through Your selfless love.

Final chorus:
This, the pow’r of the cross:
Son of God—slain for us.
What a love! What a cost!
We stand forgiven at the cross.

 

—-Words and Music by Keith Getty & Stuart Townend, Copyright © 2005 Thankyou Music 

Here’s the Kristyn Getty version, notable for her lilting reading from Isaiah 53 before she sings.

More on Christ becoming sin for us:

• I touched on this subject a little bit in Purposes of Christ’s Death, Nos. 14 and 15, but what I really recommend is Phil Johnson’s  indepth treatment of 2 Corinthians 5:21:
• The Key to the Gospel
  
• The heart of the gospel?
  
• The Justice of Calvary
  
• Back again
  
• About that series of posts I keep promising …
  
• The Great Exchange (Part 1)
  
• The Great Exchange (Part 2)
  
• Back to bidniss
• Back to 2 Corinthians 5:21
• End of a long series
  

 Other hymns, worship songs, etc. posted today:

• Dearest of All the Names Above at joythruChrist
  
• The Second Sunday in Lent at Magic Statistics
• Come, O Creator Spirit Blest at The Happy Wonderer
• Lord’s Day 7, 2008 at The Thirsty Theologian
  
• Give Thanks unto the Lord, Jehovah at Hiraeth
  
• Before Thy Mercy Seat, O Lord at Seasoning of the Heart
• Unto the Hills around Do I Lift Up at Whatever Things…

Have you posted a hymn this Sunday and I missed it? Let me know by leaving a link in the comments or by emailing me at the address in the sidebar and I’ll add your post to the list.

Saturday's Old Photo

 
The other blonde girl in this photo is my friend Suzanne. When we were in high school we sang duets occasionally in our little country church. Back in those days, I sang alto to Suzanne’s soprano. Our specialty was an obscure song called Dear Jesus, which, like all obscure songs, has lyrics posted on the web.

We weren’t all that good, but we were told we sounded like sisters, which must mean our voices blended well.

This photo was taken after a wedding in the big Lutheran church in town in 1973. Yes, someone was crazy enough to ask us to sing at their wedding. We were used to singing in front of a small congregation of people we knew, so this gig was a little frightening. We had to sing a couple of song from Fiddler on the Roof that neither of us liked with the guitar guy in the photo. He was the bride’s friend from university and we didn’t meet him until the rehearsal, so I don’t remember much about him, but the back of the photo says his name is Fred. The pianist’s name, it says, is Vicki.

We made our matching dresses for the occasion; or at least, I made mine. Suzanne’s mother was a wonderful seamstress so she never had to learn to sew. 

I always wanted Suzanne’s hair. Hers was nice and straight and silky, and those were the days when very long and very flat was the only acceptable way to wear hair. I had to brush my hair dry—there were no blow dryers or straighteners in the olden days!—to get it as straight as it is in this photo and it still took only a little bit of humidity to make it go—poof!—into something more like my photo in the sidebar, or worse. Some people without naturally straight hair ironed theirs with a clothes iron, but I was too afraid of split ends to go that route.

I still remember the cup of coffee I had at the reception in the church basement after the wedding. It might have been the best cup of my whole life. It was—wouldn’t you know it!—Swedish egg coffee, also known (appropriately, in this case) as Lutheran church basement egg coffee. 

To this day, I love a good cup of black coffee and hate the song Sunrise, Sunset from Fiddler on the Roof. And I’ve made peace with my hair.