On The Dilemma Of Augustine's Theory Of Free Will

St.Augustine firmly believes that human beings have free will which is a gift from God.On the early stage,Augustine develops the theory of free will to refute the fatalism of Manichaeism,which illustrated the ability of free will to choose good or evil,thus free will is the source of evil.In the later anti-Pelagian writings,Augustine turned to denied the role of free will,stressing that the salvation of people is not by virtue,but by God's grace.Nevertheless,this grace would give to who is determine by God before the creation of world.Therefore,Augustine's late predestination poses a great threat to the previous defense of free will-since everything is determined,what can we do with free will?Overall,the problem that Augustine faces can be stated as how to persist the theory of free will,when we emphasizing that god is omniscient,omnipotent,and all good.This article will examine the changes of Augustine's late free will theory,discussing the compatibility of free will and predestination.Furthermore,this article will start from the creation theory,proving that Augustine's free will theory is incompatible with the predestination,and Augustine does not leave any space for free will.