Pelagianism was a heresy taught in the 5th century, and was spread by Pelagius and his follower Celestius. There were two councils that condemned it and several popes and saints who spoke against it. St Augustine had also argued against this heresy.
So why after over 1500 years, do we need to know about this error of Pelagianism? It’s persistent, and as you read you may see that this heresy is indeed alive and well today. It’s thriving in fact!
What is Pelagianism?
Pelagianism teaches that Adam’s original sin was not passed down, and that no one is born with original sin. It also teaches that Christ’s earthly ministry and sacrifice on the cross was merely and example of how to live, and was not necessary for our salvation. And finally, it teaches that we are not saved through God’s grace, but through our own actions. Pelagias believed we earned and accomplished our own salvation.
Pelagias believed that we needed to avoid sins on our own, through our own power, and denied the existence of a sinful nature within people.
He was actually coming from a good place when he developed his doctrine, however much it was flawed. He saw the people of Rome engaging in all sorts of sin and debauchery because they believed that because Jesus had died on the Cross, they were no longer accountable for their sins. This is also a major problem, but Pelagias tried to solve a problem with another problem.
The Errors of Pelagianism
The main issue with Pelagianism is that it suggests that we don’t actually need Jesus for our salvation. He is certainly a good example, someone to emulate, but according to Pelagianism, Christ is completely optional. This is completely against Catholic teaching for many reasons, and there are many passages within scripture that completely deny this idea. The worst part of this heresy is it undermines the sacrifice of Christ on the cross. If the sin of Adam didn’t need to be overcome, Christ would not have needed to die.
This heresy also undermines the importance of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit calls us to God, inspires us to pray, gives us wisdom, and brings us into a deeper relationship. According to Pelagias however, the decision to become a Christian is purely free will. The decision to avoid any sin or to pray more completely comes from the person, and the Holy Spirit doesn’t strengthen us in any way to do these things. This is completely false, because the Holy Spirit is intimately involved in our lives. He prompts us to do certain things, He gives us strength and many other gifts, and He calls us to become Christian, whether we were an atheist or a cradle Catholic before, we wouldn’t be faithful Catholics now without the Holy Spirit.
And the Father, who is intimately involved in each of our lives, is just seen as a distant judge of good and bad in Pelagianism. Pelagias believed the Father didn’t really get involved in trying to help us fight sin. Good and bad deeds are weighed against each other, and as long as the good deeds outweigh the bad deeds you’re good. This is the idea of trying to make up for sins by doing good things. The problem is we need to turn to God to erase our sins. We need confession. We need Our Father, and Pelagianism takes that away and makes Him like a cold judge.
Pelagianism Is Denied By The Church
Pelagias persisted with his beliefs, despite St Augustine and other Church leaders arguing against him. Despite their efforts in trying to get him to see his errors, he would not see reason. Pelagias was excommunicated by Pope Innocent I in 417 AD.
Pelagianism was condemned as heresy by the Church in the Council of Carthage in 418 AD, and again in the Council of Ephesus in 431 AD.
Some Bible Passages Against Pelagianism
Romans 5:12-21
Romans 3:10-18
Romans 8:3
Psalm 51:5
Ephesians 2:1
Ephesians 2:2-9
Pelagianism in Modern Times
Modernism is the synthesis of all heresies as they say (well Pope Pius X did anyway), and it’s clear that this heresy is indeed alive and well in our culture.
We hear it when well meaning Christians say that as long as you’re a good person you can make it to Heaven. We hear it with agnostics who don’t want to believe in a religion, but think that as long as they’re good they’ll be in the good place when they die. And it’s evident in Christian families, where someone had fallen away, where they would rather have a hopeful disposition rather than calling for that person to come back to Christ.
It’s pervasive in Hollywood culture, when they have a character with a dark past trying to make up for his sins by being the good guy. They may even have a totally atheist character end up in Heaven for being an all around good person.
And in our own Church, we see this pervasive heresy. So many Catholics don’t hold to the truth of our Faith, that we are the one true Church. Many Catholics believe other religions are just as good, that all religions are equal. They aren’t though! There is no salvation to be found in any other religion besides Christianity. It’s not in Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Agnosticism, or Atheism. Christianity is inherently better because it is the way to Heaven.
Many lay people do not know the importance of confession, and of striving to remain in a state of grace. Many clergy either don’t believe it’s important or just don’t even teach about it. There is a crisis in the Catholic Church, there is a tremendous amount of people happily living in a state of sin, believing that they will still make it to Heaven!
All Good People Do Not Go To Heaven
Not all good people go to Heaven unfortunately, and this is a very hard pill to swallow. We need Christ to make it to Heaven. We need His grace. That’s why the Catholic Church teaches what it teaches. That’s why our Church tries to encourage a wonderful and loving relationship with Christ. And of course, that’s why we really do need the sacraments, so that we can receive God’s grace. To deny ourselves these sacraments is denying ourselves that grace that we need.
All good people who are in God’s grace go to Heaven. We need to stop allowing the laissez faire attitude of Pelagianism. Getting to Heaven is not about being a good person, it’s about following Christ. Following Christ will necessarily make us good people, but we are not meriting our own salvation. It’s hard to follow Him, but that is the only way!