Protestant apologists, especially of the Reformed/Calvinistic variety, love to claim Augustine as an early Church Father who professed their unique beliefs on grace, predestination, authority, and many other topics. I personally think such an exercise is an ahistorical grasping at straws and a false reading of a very Catholic man.Since today is St. Augustine's feast day, it is as good a day as any to reclaim Augustine and plant his theology firmly within the mind of the Church. Dave Armstrong has a post on his blog that goes a long way towards achieving that end. On all of the following doctrines, Dave has provided quotes from the works of Augustine that show the Catholicity of his thinking:
- Apostolic succession
- Baptism
- "Catholic" Church
- Church authority
- Contraception
- Deuterocanonical books
- Eternal security
- Eucharistic adoration
- Real Presence in the Eucharist
- Faith Alone
- Irresistible grace
- Mary: Mother of God, perpetual virgin, sinless
- Sacrifice of the Mass
- Merit
- Mortal and venial sin
- The papacy and the Roman See
- Penance
- Primacy and preeminence of Peter
- Prayers for the dead
- Purgatory
- Relics
- Invocation/intercession/veneration of the saints
- Scripture alone
- Sacred Tradition
It really is an amazingly helpful post! He has several other articles on the thought of St. Augustine as well:
- St. Augustine: Are Reformed Protestants or Catholics Closer Theologically to His Teaching?
- The Ambiguous Relationship of Luther and the Early Protestants to St. Augustine
- Answers For An Inquiring "Bible Christian" on Bible and Tradition Issues (Particularly St. Augustine's Position)
- "Man-Centered" Sacramentalism: The Remarkable Incoherence of James White: How Can Martin Luther and St. Augustine Be Christians According to His Definition?
- St. Augustine's Belief in the Real Presence
- St. Augustine's Eucharistic Doctrine, and a Counter-Challenge to Protestants Who Try to "Co-Opt" Him
- Refutation of James White on 1 Corinthians 3:10-15 and Purgatory [includes lengthy citations from St. Augustine]
- Lutheran Pastor Paul T. McCain's Extreme Insults of Pope Benedict XVI & Catholics, and Concealment of What St. Augustine Actually Taught about Salvation
For my part, I have a small post that answers the question, "Did Augustine Invent Original Sin?" What do you think?
Pax Christi,
phatcatholic
