Article Sidebar
Published:
May 17, 2024Keywords:
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
All issues of Conspectus are open access, implying that they are available for download at no cost from https://sats.ac.za/conspectus/. Subscription fees and embargo periods do not apply, and readers and authors are allowed to freely share the links and content. Readers can read, print, share, link, or use articles without the permission of the Editorial Team or authors.
Once an article is published in the journal, copyright is transferred to SATS. Conspectus is protected by Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0), as stipulated here.
After publication, authors are entitled to:
- share their work on any chosen platform (including conferences and educational purposes),
- expand and edit the article for a thesis or dissertation, and
- republish the article elsewhere, provided the new publisher is made aware of the former publication. In addition, the republished article must include a citation of the original article in Conspectus.
Main Article Content
The rationale for Augustine’s development of the doctrine of predestination
Abstract
Many Christians have misconceptions about predestination. It is a complex issue that is characterized by great theological disagreement. However, it cannot be disregarded given that someone’s belief on the matter has great consequences. The African theologian Saint Augustine (AD 354–430) spoke extensively on predestination. Although the setting of the modern church is different from Augustine’s day, this article argues that the issues that Augustine confronted were not unique to his day. A comparative analysis of the literature is conducted to discover and evaluate some historical ideas. As a result, the translated work of Augustine and recent scholarly publications on this topic were consulted. This was done to identify historical opinions to assess Augustine’s influence on the theological development of the doctrine of predestination. The present article endeavors to demonstrate the influence of Augustine’s exegetical approach to the Epistle of Romans on his dogmatic pronouncements. Furthermore, it seeks to establish the polemical influence of the Pelagius controversy on Augustine’s theological views. Through a critical analysis of Augustine’s writings, this paper aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of how these two factors shaped Augustine’s theological thought.
