Augustine Research Paper

Humans are saved through God’s grace, and nothing we can do can earn it. For Augustine, grace is God’s love and favor towards human beings. It was visible through Jesus Christ, and is now remaining in the church through the holy spirit. While he was trying to understand God, he realized that “God is beyond the range of the human mind” . Augustine says that grace is given to all, it is not something that can be earned. While he believes that we have freewill and are responsible for our actions, he also believes that we are predestined. Because of original sin, we are not able to have moral actions, except through Christ. “Because the will cannot incline toward God of its own accord, God must initiate salvation. Reflecting on his conversion, Augustine writes to God, ‘You called me; you cried aloud to me; you broke my barrier of deafness. You shone upon me; your radiance enveloped me; you put my blindness to flight.’”
“For by grace you have been saved through faith. …show more content…
It says that when one sins, one loses a little bit of grace. The Catholics during the time of the council of Trent believed that God’s grace did indeed save us. However, because humans are condemned by sinning, those Catholics at that time also believed that humans can be saved by doing good deeds. In order to receive justification, one must be born again in Christ, of the water and of the Holy Spirit. With justification comes the remission of sins, and faith, hope, and charity. This document claims that the one who perseveres shall be saved. “For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.” Although doing good works does not deliver someone into heaven, works and faith go together. One can have a strong faith in God, but that faith is not visible unless that person also does works that glorify God. In the Bible, James explains that faith and works are active together and complete each