| In the system of Augustine’s theology, the evil is the result of the Will which comes from men’s free Will, and whether a man will be saved or not is upon to God’s Grace. Free will, as a sign of oneself, reflects such subjectivities of men as Judgment and reasoning. While Grace is given by God for free, the sovereignty of it is in God, individuals can do nothing but to accept it by one’s faith. As we can see clearly that there is a confliction in the relationship between the free Will and the Grace of God, the former requires men’s judgment, while the latter indicates the men should give up their right of judgment.However, the opposition in Augustine’s system can not cancel the one while retaining the other. Or, Augustin have formed his unique theological system in this tension.So,it is particularly important to deal with this tension between Will and Grace to grasp the idea of Augustine. I will thus follow the line of Will and Grace to divide my thesis into three sections in order to find out some answers to the question of how Augustine deals with this tension.The first part of my paper will focus on Augustine’s theory about evil. I will explore Augustine’s way in finding out the reason for the evil and his demonstration that men’s free choice, instead of God, is the source of evil. The discussion of those two themes, namely free will and evil, is based upon his books of On Free Choice of the Will and On the Soul and Its Origin.The second part mainly deals with his theory about salvation. I will introduce the argument between Augustine and Pelagius on Grace based on his book of On Nature and Grace, against Pelagius. In his book of On the Predestination of the Saints, Augustine discussed men’s way to the fully grace.The last part of my work talks about "the belief of Grace and the evil of free Will". I will show the incompatible relationship in the tension of Grace and Free will. I will conclude that Augustine’s thought about predestination is the sign of his fullness of the maintenance of the Grace of God. |
