Azione Romana

A Treatise on Nature and Grace

St Augustine of Hippo (AD 354–430) · De natura et gratia · PL 44, 247–290

  1. extract-from-augustins-retract. Extract from Augustin’s Retractations
  2. note-on-the-following-work. Note on the Following Work
  3. 1. The Occasion of Publishing This Work; What God’s Righteousness is
  4. 2. Faith in Christ Not Necessary to Salvation, If a Man Without It Can Lead a Righteous Life
  5. 3. Nature Was Created Sound and Whole; It Was Afterwards Corrupted by Sin
  6. 4. Free Grace
  7. 5. It Was a Matter of Justice that All Should Be Condemned
  8. 6. The Pelagians Have Very Strong and Active Minds
  9. 7. He Proceeds to Confute the Work of Pelagius; He Refrains as Yet from Mentioning Pelagius’ Name
  10. 8. A Distinction Drawn by Pelagius Between the Possible and Actual
  11. 9. Even They Who Were Not Able to Be Justified are Condemned
  12. 10. He Could Not Be Justified, Who Had Not Heard of the Name of Christ; Rendering the Cross of Christ of None Effect
  13. 11. Grace Subtly Acknowledged by Pelagius
  14. 12. In Our Discussions About Grace, We Do Not Speak of that Which Relates to the Constitution of Our Nature, But to Its Restoration
  15. 13. The Scope and Purpose of the Law’s Threatenings; 'Perfect Wayfarers.'
  16. 14. Refutation of Pelagius
  17. 15. Not Everything [of Doctrinal Truth] is Written in Scripture in So Many Words
  18. 16. Pelagius Corrupts a Passage of the Apostle James by Adding a Note of Interrogation
  19. 17. Explanation of This Text Continued
  20. 18. Who May Be Said to Be in the Flesh
  21. 19. Sins of Ignorance; To Whom Wisdom is Given by God on Their Requesting It
  22. 20. What Prayer Pelagius Would Admit to Be Necessary
  23. 21. Pelagius Denies that Human Nature Has Been Depraved or Corrupted by Sin
  24. 22. How Our Nature Could Be Vitiated by Sin, Even Though It Be Not a Substance
  25. 23. Adam Delivered by the Mercy of Christ
  26. 24. Sin and the Penalty of Sin the Same
  27. 25. God Forsakes Only Those Who Deserve to Be Forsaken. We are Sufficient of Ourselves to Commit Sin; But Not to Return to the Way of Righteousness. Death is the Punishment, Not the Cause of Sin
  28. 26. Christ Died of His Own Power and Choice
  29. 27. Even Evils, Through God’s Mercy, are of Use
  30. 28. The Disposition of Nearly All Who Go Astray. With Some Heretics Our Business Ought Not to Be Disputation, But Prayer
  31. 29. A Simile to Show that God’s Grace is Necessary for Doing Any Good Work Whatever. God Never Forsakes the Justified Man If He Be Not Himself Forsaken
  32. 30. Sin is Removed by Sin
  33. 31. The Order and Process of Healing Our Heavenly Physician Does Not Adopt from the Sick Patient, But Derives from Himself. What Cause the Righteous Have for Fearing
  34. 32. God Forsakes Us to Some Extent that We May Not Grow Proud
  35. 33. Not Every Sin is Pride. How Pride is the Commencement of Every Sin
  36. 34. A Man’s Sin is His Own, But He Needs Grace for His Cure
  37. 35. Why God Does Not Immediately Cure Pride Itself. The Secret and Insidious Growth of Pride. Preventing and Subsequent Grace
  38. 36. Pride Even in Such Things as are Done Aright Must Be Avoided. Free Will is Not Taken Away When Grace is Preached
  39. 37. Being Wholly Without Sin Does Not Put Man on an Equality with God
  40. 38. We Must Not Lie, Even for the Sake of Moderation. The Praise of Humility Must Not Be Placed to the Account of Falsehood
  41. 39. Pelagius Glorifies God as Creator at the Expense of God as Saviour
  42. 40. Why There is a Record in Scripture of Certain Men’s Sins, Recklessness in Sin Accounts It to Be So Much Loss Whenever It Falls Short in Gratifying Lust
  43. 41. Whether Holy Men Have Died Without Sin
  44. 42. The Blessed Virgin Mary May Have Lived Without Sin. None of the Saints Besides Her Without Sin
  45. 43. Why Scripture Has Not Mentioned the Sins of All
  46. 44. Pelagius Argues that Abel Was Sinless
  47. 45. Why Cain Has Been by Some Thought to Have Had Children by His Mother Eve. The Sins of Righteous Men. Who Can Be Both Righteous, and Yet Not Without Sin
  48. 46. Shall We Follow Scripture, or Add to Its Declarations?
  49. 47. For What Pelagius Thought that Christ is Necessary to Us
  50. 48. How the Term ‘All’ Is to Be Understood
  51. 49. A Man Can Be Sinless, But Only by the Help of Grace. In the Saints This Possibility Advances and Keeps Pace with the Realization
  52. 50. God Commands No Impossibilities
  53. 51. State of the Question Between the Pelagians and the Catholics. Holy Men of Old Saved by the Self-Same Faith in Christ Which We Exercise
  54. 52. The Whole Discussion is About Grace
  55. 53. Pelagius Distinguishes Between a Power and Its Use
  56. 54. There is No Incompatibility Between Necessity and Free Will
  57. 55. The Same Continued
  58. 56. The Assistance of Grace in a Perfect Nature
  59. 57. It Does Not Detract from God’s Almighty Power, that He is Incapable of Either Sinning, or Dying, or Destroying Himself
  60. 58. Even Pious and God-Fearing Men Resist Grace
  61. 59. In What Sense Pelagius Attributed to God’s Grace the Capacity of Not Sinning
  62. 60. Pelagius Admits ‘Contrary Flesh’ In the Unbaptized
  63. 61. Paul Asserts that the Flesh is Contrary Even in the Baptized
  64. 62. Concerning What Grace of God is Here Under Discussion. The Ungodly Man, When Dying, is Not Delivered from Concupiscence
  65. 63. Does God Create Contraries?
  66. 64. Pelagius’ Admission as Regards the Unbaptized, Fatal
  67. 65. 'This Body of Death,' So Called from Its Defect, Not from Its Substance
  68. 66. The Works, Not the Substance, of the 'Flesh' Opposed to the 'Spirit.'
  69. 67. Who May Be Said to Be Under the Law
  70. 68. Despite the Devil, Man May, by God’s Help, Be Perfected
  71. 69. Pelagius Puts Nature in the Place of Grace
  72. 70. Whether Any Man is Without Sin in This Life
  73. 71. Augustin Replies Against the Quotations Which Pelagius Had Advanced Out of the Catholic Writers. Lactantius
  74. 72. Hilary. The Pure in Heart Blessed. The Doing and Perfecting of Righteousness
  75. 73. He Meets Pelagius with Another Passage from Hilary
  76. 74. Ambrose
  77. 75. Augustin Adduces in Reply Some Other Passages of Ambrose
  78. 76. John of Constantinople
  79. 77. Xystus
  80. 78. Jerome
  81. 79. A Certain Necessity of Sinning
  82. 80. Augustin Himself. Two Methods Whereby Sins, Like Diseases, are Guarded Against
  83. 81. Augustin Quotes Himself on Free Will
  84. 82. How to Exhort Men to Faith, Repentance, and Advancement
  85. 83. God Enjoins No Impossibility, Because All Things are Possible and Easy to Love
  86. 84. The Degrees of Love are Also Degrees of Holiness

Read after it was written: the work's reception

St Thomas Aquinas, Summa theologiae 1265–1273 cites it 18 times

I-II, q. 76, a. 1 · I-II, q. 79, a. 4 · I-II, q. 85, a. 3 · I-II, q. 109, a. 9 · I-II, q. 109, a. 10 · I-II, q. 110, a. 1 · I-II, q. 111, a. 3 · II-II, q. 19, a. 9 · II-II, q. 147, a. 8 · II-II, q. 161, a. 3 · II-II, q. 162, a. 2 · II-II, q. 162, a. 7 · II-II, q. 186, a. 9 · III, q. 27, a. 3 · III, q. 27, a. 4 · III, q. 88, a. 4

From the citations of this work in the texts on this site. More readers will be added as their texts are.

Philip Schaff (ed.), Buffalo/New York: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1886-1889. Public domain: English translation first published 1885-1900 (Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, First Series). Latin: Migne, Patrologia Latina (1844-1855), public domain; transcription from Corpus Corporum (University of Zurich).

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