61.—History of the Pelagian Heresy. The Pelagian Heresy Was Raised by Sundry Persons Who Affected the Monastic State.

Since it was necessary that the Apostle Paul’s prediction should be accomplished,—“There must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you,”154    1 Cor. xi. 19.—after the older heresies, there has been just now introduced, not by bishops or presbyters or any rank of the clergy, but by certain would-be monks, a heresy which disputes, under colour of defending free will, against the grace of God which we have through our Lord Jesus Christ; and endeavours to overthrow the foundation of the Christian faith of which it is written, “By one man, death, and by one man the resurrection of the dead; for as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive;”155    1 Cor. xv. 21, 22. and denies God’s help in our actions, by affirming that, “in order to avoid sin and to fulfil righteousness, human nature can be sufficient, seeing that it has been created with free will; and that God’s grace lies in the fact that we have been so created as to be able to do this by the will, and in the further fact that God has given to us the assistance of His law and commandments, and also in that He forgives their past sins when men turn to Him;” that “in these things alone is God’s grace to be regarded as consisting, not in the help He gives to us for each of our actions,”—“seeing that a man can be without sin, and keep God’s commandments easily if he wishes.”

61. Quoniam necesse erat impleri quod praedixit apostolus Paulus, Oportet et haereses esse, ut probati manifesti fiant in vobis (I Cor. XI, 19): post veteres haereses, invecta etiam modo haeresis est, non ab episcopis, seu presbyteris, vel quibuscumque clericis; sed a quibusdam veluti monachis, quae contra Dei gratiam, quae nobis est per Jesum Christum Dominum nostrum, tanquam defendendo liberum arbitrium, disputaret, et conaretur christianae fidei firmamentum evertere , de quo scriptum est, Per unum hominem mors, et per unum hominem resurrectio mortuorum: sicut enim in Adam omnes moriuntur, sic et in Christo omnes vivificabuntur (Id. XV, 21, 22): et in actibus nostris Dei adjutorium denegaret, dicendo, «ut non peccemus, impleamusque justitiam, posse sufficere naturam humanam, quae condita est cum libero arbitrio; eamque esse Dei gratiam, quia sic conditi sumus, ut hoc voluntate possimus, et quod adjutorium legis mandatorumque suorum dedit, et quod ad se conversis peccata praeterita ignoscit;» in his solis esse Dei gratiam deputandam, non in adjutorio nostrorum actuum singulorum. «Posse enim hominem esse sine peccato, et mandata Dei facile custodire, si velit.»