Augustine's Use of the Concept of Praeuaricatio: A Case Study in the Recent Debate on Continuity in Augustine's Doctrine of Grace

The present article offers a synthetic and chronological analysis of Augustine's use of the Latin concept praeuaricatio (transgression). The analysis is situated within the recent scholarly debate on the continuity/discontinuity in Augustine's doctrine of grace. As the concept of praeuaricatio entails many topics that play a major role in the Pelagian controversy (such as Augustine's exegesis of Romans, the function of the Mosaic law and the nature of original sin), a chronological overview of Augustine's use of the theme can provide new arguments for one of the positions in the aforementioned debate. The conclusion of the article supports the continuity-thesis. Already in his commentaries on Romans from 394-396 Augustine argues that the transgression of the law originates from misdirected desire (concupiscentia). The sinful desire that humanity inherited from Adam does not decrease, but only increases when confronted with the prohibition of the law. As a consequence, man transgresses the commandment which increases human sin (abundaret delictum). Only the grace of Christ can free man from the reign of concupiscence and his permanent lapse into transgression. This concept of praeuaricatio is also present in other contexts, such as the anti-Manichaean Contra Faustum (where Augustine argues that praeuaricatio would be impossible if the law were evil), De Genesi ad Litteram and De Ciuitate Dei. The use of the term becomes central in the Pelagian controversy. There, Augustine defends the uniqueness of Adam's first transgression. His transgression vitiated human nature, so that his descendents were henceforth bound to transgress the law. Against Julian of Aeclanum, Augustine uses this position to show that the Catholic view on concupiscence is a middle way between Pelagianism and Manichaeism. The article concludes by stating that Augustine's main ideas on praeuaricatio were already present before the Pelagian controversy and outside this controversy. Even before Ad Simplicianum (where some scholars situate the rupture in the development of Augustine's doctrine of grace) Augustine regards man as totally incapable of avoiding transgression without the help of the grace of Christ. © 2012 Brepol Publishers.status: publishe