Chri,\'1 J<.•.ws. he [PauJ) says. thal is. Christ Snvior. So (continued)
26 Tile Gmce of Cilrl."
The 1\hnt •·cflri ~t .. : Its Meaning and Use 21 mothers of Christ" (7.7): "a teacher. thc•·cro,·c. of the hwnility of Christ" (31.31: see 32.32f. ); "to suffer for Christ" ( 47 .47). Similar expressions occur in The Ad11amag~ o_(Virginity. 141 11tc smnc language is typical of other asce1·i· cal writings. The final sections of The 1\vrk o[M""ks provide good examples: ""the poor of Christ," ''Christian warfare;· "tO serve Christ." "'soldiers:• '·serwdtcr. whi<pcrcr who dcnic.\ that Jesus Cluist bas come in Lhe flesh. So mrn the Manichees away from your houses. your eaiS. your hearts. The Mnnichecs. you sec. deny quite openly that Cluist has come in the nc.~h. So thelr spirits arc not from God."tS9
In the same sermon. Augu'>Line rcfulcs the ~·lanichean doctrine of the good and wicked nnwrcs. In doing >0. he renw1ds his l~e.1fCrs that everylhing has been crcalcd lhrough Chri>t and that the real incarnation of Christ as the means of salvation re<tore. and lift, up nota nature tl Jat is wicked in itself but a nature I hat ha; become wicked. «n In order to refute the Manichcan chesis on
\13JUS in Christ."14()
A typic.1lly Christocentric language also OCCUIS in semJOilS on 1be feasts of manyrs and in Other hagiogr JphicalccxL\: "achlccc of Chrioa";'" "che feast of a holy vitgin who publicly ce>tified ahouc Christ and earned a cestimonial from Chrisc":"1 '·to deny" or "confes~ Chrisf';"• ·'cribuce to lhe victorious Christ.""" Appropriacdy. chc wricings on the saints t.how che excent tO which, in Augustine's vie". the perfect Christian life is grounded in Christ. 'Ibis life consisL< of naught else but love for Christ and. consequently. witness to the the divinity of the soul. he then >how< them that the wickedness of the soul consists in eiTOC' and weakncs~ (infinnitu~} or. in other \v-ords. has its ground within the SO<Il itself: finally. he refers again to the real incamacion as the source of S31vntton.1• 1 lo'-e of Christ in the "cicy of God.""'
In defending the Old Tc,twncnc against the Manicbees. Augustine develops the basic theme of chc "prophecy of Christ." which had already been taken up by Chri>tian cheology m nn early dutc. In his polemic with the Manichees, Lhis theme acquired new rclcvQ.ncc.•t.: His most extensi_ve explanation of the cheology of prophecy is found in the Auswcr to Fausllls, Books 12 and 13. "'
8. The Word ''Christ" in Works of Theological Controversy
Allhough the Cmife,\·.dmr.f is an entirely pcr~ona l work in which August-ine speaks willt his God nbouc himself. ne Lhc same time. the major qucscions that
Here he responds to Faustus' claim Lhat the prophets did not in any way pro· claim Christ in advance. He offers two arguments. FirsL, he goes back to the occupied him in hi< episcopal activily are also 1ouched on. As a resul1. this account of himself also Sh()W~ us the way in which he spoke of Christ in theowords or chc Apostle and the words of Jesus himself''-" Then he gives proof eo the comrury in che form of a widc·rangi•tg typological explanation of the history of lsrncl,'" 1hc "p•·ophctic nation.'''"' He <tlso takes as his basic principle that the cnti1·c Bible. even if no1 nlways with equal clari1y, proclaims Chdst'''' !'or 1his tensoo1, he speaks continually of Christ: of the pretigur:nions of Clwist and I he r •·cfigurut iMs, too. of those who reject Chdst'" and those whn bcli~vc in Christ .H ....
logical polemics.
a) ·'Christ" in the i\mi-Mm1ichcnn Concroversy
The reference in che Co,l{essitm.< to the Manichees. who always had the name of Christ on their lips.''" lUt11S Lhc rcacll.:r'.s anention to the whole anti Manichean conrt'Ovcrsy. In n lcucr 10 Oishop Dcutcrius, Augustine surns up lhe Manichean heresy in three points: denial of the reality of Chrisc's incarnation: cnoncous undcr~ tanding of' th..: pa1riurchs, the prophets. nnd lhe Law: descent of the godlike soul i1110 this world and Lhe necessity of setting it
In these passages. t\ugu.stinc is dealing wich the proclamation in advance of Chtisl nnd the ChUL'Ch.'"' He juscifies this Chrislological and ecclesiological inccrprct<ltion m)t only by 1he authority of the Aposcle171 buc also by the language of allegory'" tllld by references to allegory io Pltilo"' and Lhe pa· gans.'" In the Jhinccmh book. Augustine again tries to prove the usefulness of prophecies fnr belie!' in th~ divinity of Christ. His aim here is to coumer the objection of l'austus 1ha1 the prophecic.' would not help a pagan to believe the free."' In the Rev/~ ions. he me ne ions only I he fi rstcwo en·ors. bm in addition accuses Faus1us of an ~tdultcr1Hion or the New TeM::nnent writings. 154 He thus mencions all four of the chemes 1ha1 he develops in his an ti -~1anichean wdtings and in which he spc~ks especially of ChriM.
prophets and. lhrough I he prophet., Clu·ist."' lo response. he shows how prophecic< wrincn. as I he Jews an est long before I he coming of Christ'"' have been fulfilled in the hi<tory of the Church: in pcrsccutions of the Church, in the spread of the Church. and in che Church's internal difficulties.177 In tl1e process. he al<o points out cmphaucally tbal it i< only through Israel and its pmpheh that the pagans ha'e been in~cructed about tile one true God'" and about Chri>t. God's me,_.nger.~»
Auguc;;rine first comes out ag;~in~c the Doceti)t tendencies of the ~{aJti chees'" Against these. he empha>iLc.<. ChriM "born of the Virgin (of a won Jan)""" and Christ who suffered and d•cd.'" In addiuon. be takes pains to explain. in the lij!ht of Paul. the tmc meaning of the "llesb of Christ" and of his members.'" In order to combat the illu-.ory Christ of the Manichees. he emphatically exhorts h" Christian,, '" connccti<on "ilh I John 4:1-3: ·'So meanwhile. denrly belo,·ed. turn your ear. away from every debater. preacher.
In the di..:ussion of tile Christian meaning of che Old Testament. Augustine was uhimutcly forced to take up the que.<tion of the "authority of the
28 71u• Gmr~ of CJrru1 n1t H~rd ••Chrilt'': Its Meaning and Use 29 faith." In doing <o. he developed the insight> into the relation of taith to rea- """ that he had acquired during his own conve~ion. Agaonst Faustus. he em· ph.1sizc; fiN Of all the need of witnesse;, and signs for faith in Christ.'"' as well a.' the purifying power of simple faith.'" The "aut.honty of the faith" itself •s denved primanly from the Bible1n or. more occurately, from the agrce-
Spinl. ... Tile Son, howe\et, d"'elh in thi .. !lo«ond ou•d vi,.ib1e light: because I the Son] is twofold. :~<:<t>rding 10 the Apostle "ho "'>" tha! I the Sonj i'\ the ''isdom and po\\'Cr of God. "'1! bclit\e that his potA'« n;Sides m the sun and hi~ "isdom in the moon. vJ
In the anti-Manichean controver;y, Ausu>tinc thus linb il>e concept of Christ with statements about the true humanity of the Redeemer. wi~h ~he idea of prophecy and fulfillment, and with the norm of authority: Christ is ille truly rncm between the :1postolk aod the prophetic writing,.'"' whcrca!-. it has no support lrotn the authorily of pagan1.,. or even Mnnichcnn wriling~.'~ For its part. the authority of the Bible acquires its full force f•·om the authority of the Church.1lVI I:dr 1hix rca:son. ar the end of the entire workf AuguMinc once again emphatically warns his readerS to hold fast ICJ the nuthority of the Scripr11res incarnate Son of God. in whom the prophecies of the biblical authors have been fullillcd and on whom the authol'ity or the Scl'ipturcs but also or the Church is based.
1 his has been preserved inract through HpO$tc>lic succcs:sion since. thetime of ChrisL. "' b) Apolugctics
In the thineenth book. meanwhile, he pl<1ccs less emphasis on tracing this Church-supported authority back 10 the authority of Chrb t himself.'" Perhaps Faustu; ·>tress on ~le "rcputal ion of Christ" (fan111 Cllristi) deterred Augustine from rcfen·ing specifically to Christ.',. Elsewhere. he is perfectly clear on the point. Not only does he insist that Christ. the Word. spoke in the prophets ... and that one must go 10 Christ in order to understand the Old T~ament191 In Tile Atlwmtal/e of Btli~J he also criticiLCS heretic' who arc unwilling to believe unlc~~ they have achieved rational insight: 111 hi~ 'ic". they are not
was helped on his w:•y to tl>e whole Christ by the philosophers. To his djsappoinm1ent., however, they themsclve' did not speak of Cllrist: they did not know the incamate Word."" With this statement in the Confessionr, we touch on illC realm of apologetics: here. 100. Christ has an important place.
We meet the theme in the sero10ns in which Augu>tine comes to grips with the rernn:m~ of contemporary paganism with 1b cu~tonlS and its criticisms of Christianity.'"' The sense of Chri;tinmty's superiority that finds expression
m all.'" At the same time, he insists that within the Church. the reason for helicving is that Christ has given the Church such great amhority.'93 in these sermons is especially characteristic of his addresses on the feasts of rhe mnnyrs.ro&Titc sermoos recently di~covcr\!d in M:unz can also be regarded u' belonging among the sermons of this kind. In lhese, Augu:o;Linc invites pagat». wbo evidently have entered the basilica of Boseth, to convert to the Christhm faith."" In so doing. he spcnks of the ''Church of Christ'' (no. 4), of "believing in Christ" (no. I 9). of the "name of Christ" in whom all eanhly events take place (no. 20), of "the cross <>f Christ on the foreheads of kings" (no. 24). In a special way, however. he urge> Oil them the "humility of Chtist, the mcdidnc that cures pride" and, in keeping with this. concludes his invitation to conversion with these words: "Let the p•·oud. then. d•ink the cup of the humility of the humiliatcd Christ. Let them deign 10 be humble: let them now recognize the rncdicine meam for them; let tllCm come and believe" (no. 26).
Out (his crnph~i!.-1 on authority in tbe comroversy with the Manichccs did not keep Augus1inc from aJso ~ubjccling rhcir objection~ to a hjstorical critiqltC, espcciully their objections to the Gospel of Matthew.•"·'
Also h) be no Lcd i!. his view that even the just of (hC Old 1'c!::U-uHcnt were justiliccl by faiiJ>.'" In the linal analysis. their faith w:1s the same as the 1>1ith
The only difference was that they lived in :1 different order of ,igns: they believed in the future coming of Christ. whercu; Cluistians believe that he has already come.'"'
TI1c fact that in all his discussions with the ~1anichcc<. Augu,tine constantly speak-\ of Chri>t1VJ will cease to surprise if ooe ~>car\ in mind the importance Christ hnd for them.''"' 11>cy e•'Cn rcganled M ani n.< an apostle of Cbrist.'., They alw ~ke of Christ in their explanations of "the sa''ior "ho sn'es and must be ,a, crJ."~ A typical c•ample is Fonunams. "ho in hi' debate with Augustine speaks of"Chri>t the Savior" and in addition appeals 10 the relevant pa.<sagc.' in
'11le language of apologetic.~ likcwi..e characteri7<:>. t.he letters whicb Augustine exchanged with pagans. especially with pagan intellectuals. ln his letter 10 Volusian, in which the i~<ue is the incarnation of Christ. he speaks continually. of coorse. of Chri<t."" In hi~ lcuer to Oioscorus, a young Greek who ha> asked him all kinds of question<. he b no lc;s explicit. He speaks there of "the Christian faith."'"' of ''the Chrisli:>n era" and ~he subjection of
Paul."" Above all. they cultivated a real Christ·centercd piety. In botl> East and We,t. C'hrist had a place in Manichean teaching: he hrou!!hl light and salvation.J•IJ 11roof' or thi~ is Lhe w:·ty in which Lhe Manichces confcs.wc.l Christ. Thus. in FnUSlUS' courc~:-,ion of faith a.'\ cited by Augustine WC rend:
Plawnic philosopher'S to Christ the King,"" of th~ salutary humility which
JCMIS Christ came into Lhc world lO lCHCh,111 :Uld or LhC growing reputation both of the name of Cluist and of those who have acknowledged Christ 10 be
il.self and have entered inlo his i'ICI'Vicc (milifia).212 AlsQ or interest is the correspondence with anolhcr pag:Hl, Longinianus. Here Augustine asked
Therefore. we \\'Of$ hip lhe one deily under I he thn:cfold nnnu; of the Falhcr. Ciucl ahnigh1y. <.If Christ I the Pmhcr'o;l Son. und ol the Holy
30 The Gmce of Cill'l.<t
7'/w \VtJid "Chrisl": Its Me(lning wul Use 31
of Christ''1' 1 :nld which has been whoUy victorious since even lhe Roman emperot·s submitted 10 the name of ChriM."' On the or.her hand, knowledge nf ·•sacred history" and. above all. of tJte central event that is the
Longinianus what he thought or Chris1. but he was undcrswnding when the man gave him nn evasive answcr.211 Th..: rwrne ''Christ" also occurs with re· markable frequency in a lcucr in which Augu,tinc answered the questions of pagans, especially quc\tions about ~le resurrection, the delayed coming of O uist, and the prophet Jonnh.'" l'ypical. finally. is the w~y in which. in a letincam~ tion of Christ i~ not based on fables and myths but on a reliable writ· ten history."' In the final analy>is. this last de>crvcs to be trusted because of the promises made by the prophets and Christ himself which have been fulfilled in tlte Church., .. 11 i, precisely along this line that in the second balf of his Tlte City of God. Augusune trie; to ~how against Porphyry'-'' r.hat Christi:m• can achie•e knowledge of the "unhersal way."l-'6 Thus, he uses history in his effon 10 penetrate the my$tery of God that ha> been revealed in the one mediator. Jc,us Chri•t.
ter to the pagan residents of M:1duura, 1he Bishop of Hippo denies them the right to greet him with the name of Chri>t."'
The language of apologetic< undoubtedly find> itS most impressive use in The City of God. Thus. the name of Chri>l already appears in the introduction. in which the author chastiiCS pagans for their ingratitude in defaming "the Christian era" and in blaming the sufferings of Rome on Chris1." 6 In keeping with this apologetic tone. "Christ" occurs rather [requen~y in ~•c firsl tbree books."' In Books 4 to 10. ho•ve•er. it is ICS> fn:quent and is entirely missing
We should observe that J\ugu>tine earlier uses the apologetic language of '1'/Je Cit)' of God in another 1•-ss well-known but noneU•clcss remarkable work, fmm Book 6. Since '"the \ccond half of the work (Books 11-22) Augustine is making use of a grem deal of the te>ulls of his exegetico-theological work. there is room to distinguish 10 some extent between the apologetic.'" the anti· Manichean.'19 nnd the liturgical'"' ways of speaking of Christ. Especially striking in these books is the kind of exegesis in which "Christ" is accompanied by applied biblical testimonies. more specifically, the typological explanations of the histories of the patriarchs and the monarchy,"' the prophecies of Christ and the Church,'ll the eschatological texts of the New Testament,'" and the Pauline texts on the rcsurrec Liou.l2ol
C01u.n1 of the Ewmgeltsts. Before giving. ut Books 2 to 4, exegetical proof of the essential ugn:cmcnt among tJJC four gospels. he takes up. in Book l. the pagan obj<.'Ction that Christ left no writing; behind him.::n In doing so, Augustine uses almost exclusively the title "Christ.''"' At the same time, he opposes Christianity to pngnnbm. speaking of "the enemies of the name of Christ:·m of "tho'e who praise Christ [but] arc malicious detractors of the ChriStian religion."""' as well as of "the Christian faith"'·" and even of ,;ctte
King of the Christians."'''
Here agnin, lhc cxp1·cs:,lon "the Christian era." wh.ich occurs several times, deserves special attcntion . .:43 By il Auguslinc means the pe1iod in which idolmry has been vnnquishcd. us the prophets had promised. Pagans may claim to "praise Christ'' hut they resist becoming Christians. They see Christ as indeed a wise person but they refuse to recognize him as the one in whorn the God of
In this apologetic usage. the lirst thing that strikes the. reader is r.he fact that Augustine often speaks m the saruc lime of Christ. Christians, and pagans.225 as well as or the "Christ inn relig iou~· and the name of Cltrist. 21~ In lhis setting, the Church, "the falllily or Christ," is presented, not nrdy in the biblical and apocalyptic sense but also in the political sense. as "the city of Chrisl, the unconquered king.""'
Israel. the only true God, hus announced the end nf idolmry.'"' Finally, in this work Augustin~ :lln.:ady ~elS forth hi:-; do~.:trinc of lhe one 111ediator between God and humnnity and thet'cby rc.'ponds to the pagan objection which he had mentioned at the beginning: Christ. bnving become head of his Church, led the evangelists by the hand and th\tS excluded any contradiction from their
Far more impl'essive, howcvCI\ is the w~1y jn which Augu ~ai ne repeatedly contrasts the pride of the pagnus and ~•c philosophers. wllich at bottom is the pride of the demons, with "Christ's way of humility." 1\t the climax of Au· gustine's debme with the l' latonic philosopher:.. we tead: "What reason is there for your refusal to become Christians on account of opinions which are your own, though you your<clves nuack ~ •em'? lt can only be that Christ came in humility. and you are proud.''"' So. too. he emphatically proclaims Christ as crucified, as foolishness to 1hc pagans.""
c) "Christ" in the Renlm of l)ogrna
Since in tlte Confes.<iOIL< Augus1ine describes-from his later vamage point-tlle development of his i1litially still vague faitll in Christ."" we must also take current dogma into account, as this had developed in the orthodox Churches a.~ a result of the Trinitarian and Christological contn)\'ersies of the
But the theme that is of the most far-reaching imponance for Utc Christology of Augustine is tl1a1 of the "universal way:· which those false mediators, the demons. cannot open up. TI>is ""'Y •vas opened by Jesus Christ. the one true mediator bet•vecn God and humanity, through his sacrifice on the fourut century. His references to "my God. the humble Jesus" and .. the whole human being" that wa;. "in Christ""'' echo both the Arian and the Apollinarist comrover>ic' with which. especially the fonner. IJC dealt in detail and in the proces.• spoke repeatedly of Chri>t. He did so whenever the scripture reading cross.1·~
Notewonhy. finally, is the conception of Christian history. On the one hand, Augustine repeatedly refer. to ''the Christian era:· which began with the
The \\'«Jnl •·<:Jttiu'': lo. Meaning and Ust 33
32 Tl.t Gmc~ of Chri.sJ as meaning God'> ;peaking"'' and parnphmses "Oc,h" a.' "the likeness of sinin the liiUIJ!.Y or elsewhere gave him the opportunity. The opportunity a.rosc especially in his ongoing commentary on the Founh Gospel."' btll also in many expo<itions of the Psalms'., :md in other exegetical •crmon,."" ntese comroful flesh" (Rom 8:3)."" He lays great strc.s on the "canonical rule" that gov· ems the use of two-member fonnulas in accordance with the traditional rules for the communicatiOn or idioms~ in other words. he diMinguishes between Lhe (biblical) assertions made about Christ as Gocl and those made about Christ as human being}~~'~ vcrsic\. which by now had become traditionaL were refloctcd even more strongly in his explanations or the Orthodox faith."' But they nlso became a mallcr of present relevance whc.m he directly opposed comcmpomry Arians:t"~2
At lhC S.:.III'IC Lime. it is or interest for the t.lo<.:ll'ill~ of the Trinity thtU in his anti-Arian writings f1'01ll u later period (afte,· 4 19). he applies the "less than the Father" not only tO the incarnation b111 also to the eternal origin of d1e
In :lddition, [here was the al Tair of Lcporius.zn FioaiJy. in hjs varicn1s dl!scription~ of heresies. Auguslinc cornmcms on the Lwo crron:; or which we are spcaf...ing here .!!-~
Word from tlte FatliCr.I'IU
may be mentioned thm will help us understand this dogmatic context. First. the word "Chrbt" occurs here only when Augu,tinc is spe:tking of the "economy of salvation." that is, wheo he is speakjng of Chrbt who is both God and human being."' Second, it is to be empha,il-Cd that "Otrist" is always conceived as tlte subject of b<Jth divine and human predicates.""
Some" hat less numerou' than the two-member fonnulas arc those with three members. Thc>e originate in the anti-t\pollinari" tradition:"" in them. the human element JS described as consisting of "(rational) soul" and ''fle,h": "Nor. as some have said, was Lherc simply flesh and Word: there was ne.sh and soul and \Vord."272 In using these formul:ls, l\ugustinc i~t not simply endeav·
In the entire area of dogm:1 that is inspired by the tradition of I he fourth ccn111ry, i1 is the two ~par1 ronnulas thm srand out Lhe ntOSL In this context, those stntcments may be I'Cg~wd..::d a.s fundamental in which Clw i~l is l'epreoring to prove the existence of the human soul of Chl'ist from the relevant pa~· sages of Scripture. especially Ma11hew 26:38 and p!u'allcls."' Rather. he IS a1so explaining the ciH1rrtcter of thjs soul. ina:-.much as he ascribes to it all human (non-sinful) weaknesses. which it ha; freely accepted."• The D<JCctist tendencies of the Manichces and Priscillianists arc opposed in tl1e formula "Word and human >pirit and human flesh," with text> of Scriprure being sup·
SCillcd as God and hum~m being or si1i1ply as the God-hum:.n: ;1'me human being, true God: God ami human being. the whole Chri>t. This is tlle Catho. lie f:lith:·.tn
Following the anti-Arian trndilion. in which the primary i~~uc was a clear description of tlle sonship or gcnemtion of Christ. thc.o,c ba,ic stmemems are plied for each element.'"
made more precise by means of antithe<CS in which the t "'of old origin of Chriq is expressed. Pollowing the confes~ion of i>1ith, Augustine speaks first and foremost of "Christ,'' the "Son of God" and the "Human One" ((ili11s lwminis): "t\ccordiog to the IJ'UC Cn li t~l lic litith our Lord and Suvior Jesus Christ
After 360, writerhud begun to balance the Ch.rbtological antitheses used against the Arian~ with formulas emphasizing unily, these being takeo par· tiallv from earlier 1rnclitions. \Vc find tht!se in Arnbi'O~e. Damasus, and Jero';ne among the J.utin writers."• Augustine himself did lll)t hesitate to folis Son of God according to his divinity and son of David according I<J the f'Josh.''"8 Acco,·dingly. Christ is "bom of God and. by lhe pow~ ,· of the Holy Spiril, of the Virgin Mary.''"'' Both birlhs are described a.' wonderful.'•' low this tradi Lion, We find such formul.as. lhcrd'or~. in sermons from around 400 or earlierP' Thus. we re~1d in an explanation of the multiplication of tl1c loaves:
Using a more biblical language. Augustine distinguished. a.s the tradition did. between Christ as only·b<:gouen (waigenitus) and first-born (primogeni-
(Otri"l mu<t bt feored. but be mu<t be 10\ed <v<n more. He is human being ;md Cod: the one Christ is human being llflCI (;od. just as tllr). "'' This expresses more strongly than other antitheses the fact that Christ one human bcmg is body ;mJ soul~ not hO\\C\"Ct. Ood and human being as 1\\>1) !)C I~on~. In Chris1 there arc indeed two ,u~ tances. God and human being. bul one person. w that t11c thrccfolll Trinity might remain aad not become rourrold wilh I he addirion oft\ humun person. 118
IS the natural and not the adopted Son of the Father."'' Accot'din$1y, Augustine repe:uedly says. in stm ngly anti-Arian language. that as God. Cluist is equal to the Ft1thcr (Patri aequalis). while as human being he i!-> le~~ than 1he Father (minor Pmre).163
The analogy wilh the unity of the hum:m bciug, tO which allusion is made here, is developed clsewhe,·e."" especially in the leuer to Volusian,>•• wiLh the aid of Neoplatonic anthropology." ' Augustine's intention in using this already
Just as often, he U!ieS more. technical terms and speaks o(' 1he 1wo subswnccs 0 1· two nmure.o; or Christ. 2M The same idea. but wichout di1·cct reference to the 1 wo binhs. is also exp,·es,cd in the two biblical themes thnt had long since become p:m of the Christian tmdition: "the Word was made nesh" of the Johannine Prologue anrl "in the form of God, in the form of a ,Ja,'C'' of the traditional comparison b to safeguard the immutability of God. Tbe same i' true of the idea of God and Oesh being united by means of the soul."' In :addition. AuguSIJJIC developed a nOteworthy teaclting on the communication of
LA:ncr to the Philippians. Augu,tine uo;es both passages o,cpamtcly"" but often together'" well."" In domg ;,o, he gives his personal explanation of "Word" idioms.21'
34 Tile Gmce of CluL<t
Tltt~ HY.Ird "Christ"; Its Meaning and Use 35
For ~.e re.~t. Augustine's conccplion of I he oneness of Christ is shown. al· though with more or less clarity. in llte Vllrious, likewise traditional ways of describing the incarnaciont14: as an event ({ieri),l&.\ a laking on (susccprio)256 or assumption (assumptio).:~ a drawing ciO!)C (accedere). 211 or even a mingling wilhoul confusion (mi\lio sine confi••ione)."• Allhough in using these tenus Augustine is clearly >larting from the leaching of the faith according to which only the Son became a human being."" he doe~ n01 yet arrive at the technical
In answer 10 1hc lir~l and decisive question, he maiotains that ChrisL is not. here or there but everywhere and Lhat >he c-.: fore the Church, too, must be uni· versa!: "If )'011 oncnd to Clui'l. he is everywhere. You say. 'Christ is here'; buo
1 say, 'He i< everywhere.' ... Sec what Church I poilll oucto you. See what Christ bought, see what he redeemed. sec for what he shed his blood.""" In addition, Augustine continually harks back to more or less biblically inspired themes. all of which underscore I he poinL!hat Christ is the Lord of !he "one Cacholic Church," the one. all-embracing Church.""
fonnulation or the dogma. Thm is, he does not u!>C U•c cxpre;.sion ·'the one person of Christ" in order 10 dco,cribe the starting poi01 of U1e incarnation. In his thinking, ''the oole person of Chri~t'' i~ mlhcr the resuh of the ineffable union between the godhead and ohe humanity in Jesus Christ."'
Thus, he very often refers to what the Apostle says about tbe seed that is Christ (Gal 3: 16)."" No less frequent are his admonitory references 10 the "in· heritance of Chri<t" that includes all nations (allusion to Ps 2:2)."" Along this same line are the cxhortauons in which Augustine calls 10 mind the "oneness of Chri.r.""'' "the peace of Chri.r."'" or "!he love of Christ.""' More vividly but no less biblically, he depicts the Church as the <me bride of Christ, m as the chaste virgin who clings 10 Christ alone (sec 2 Cor 1 I :2f.).m In doing so. he is obviously taking n01icc of the exegesis of the Song of Songs, which !he d) "Christ" in the Anti·Oonatisl Writing' h is perhaps permissible 10 sec the references in the CoJifessions to "your one Church, the body of your only Son:...,, and "the faith. within the Catholic Church, in your Christ""'' a> allu>ions 10 the Donatist controversy. In any c.ase. the anti-Donatist writing!) c~u1 be !tiCCn u~ n special setting for Christology. "Christ" has an impor1nn1 place in these writings. apart from the some-
DoMtists had cited.' "
More concretely. he spenks of the "altar of Christ.'' beside which no other alwr mny be built.'" Sy this. he aho conveys that the one Church of Christ is founded on the Eucharbt: on Lhe "table of Christ."'" the sacrifice of ChrisL.'" and the reception of the body :•nd blood of Christ.' " Finally, ic is especially in Lhis conrcxt of the Euchal'ist, and often with anti·Donatist echoes, thm he develops his doctl'inc of I he "whole Christ." the head and members that make up the one Chcist. '" llcre he is clearly influenced by Tyconius. a Donatist.31() yer the prosopic exegesis he use.,, which distinguishes "the person of the bead" and the "pcc·son of I he body" as subjects of various statements (voces), has roots lhm go fnr dccpe1·. ' 21 times lengthy historical diS<Juisilions in which the word occurs hardly at all.,.. The same is tl'\le of a series of lcttcrs.2
nutncn)U ~ and sometimes famous sermons!"' many or che F.>'p<lsirion,< of rile f>sfllms. ~I'' and c'pccially the early homilies on I he Gospel of John.m
In these wri1ings. Augustine obviously keeps in mind the fundameotal outlook of his advcrsnrics.299 In his view, the Oonntist~ have a cot Tect te.aching about Chrisc buc no1 about 1hc Church of Christ. They acknowledge 1ha1 the Church has a hend :111d a body. bul they dn nm know where the 1n1e Church of Chtist is.JO) In lhcir ignorance, they call iiHO question Lhrcc J)(Jii11S in pmticular: the universality of the Church, thnt is, ''lhe Church spc-ead throughout 1l1e entire world'': lhe holiness of the sncramcnl.$ administered jo the Catholic Church and t..hus the true meaning of ''the communion of the holy" (comm.unio sanctorum):101 nnd the COC.'!is Lcnc.x: in 1he Church of lhe jusl and sinners. the "mixed body," or 1he nmuc·e of tl1c ">OCicty of the holy" ( sociews scmcwrum). tq'
The 01hec· two queM ions arc also nuswered by reference to Christ. On che one hnnd. Augu~t inc secs the holiness of Lhc sacraments as oligin::uing in Chris1. He presupposes that Chrisl is the ''ol'iginator of the sacrament." the sole teacher of true baptism.'" and U1e only tnce priest."' Accordingly, the decisive fnc1or is 1' 01 Lhc. integ.ricy of lhe human minister bur the sacramental presence of Chcisl. it is Christ :cnti ll(>l the holder of office who is !he "ocigin;· ·'n)(lc." and "head"'; it i~ not lltc "conscience of the minister" that is decisive for the faith of the baptized. for it is Christ who gives faith."'
To these three que.~tion ;.. Augu<rine gives answers U1a1 arc compleoel)• Christologicnl. In doing so, he take~ a~ his >larting point the principle that !be same sacred Scripture~ thnt proclaim Chrisl abo contain ohe real tnctb about the Church of Christ. "In the Scri111ures we lean• Christ. in the Scriptures we learn the Church. . . . See the ScripiUre~ we have in conunon. see where we know Christ, <ee where we know the Church. If you hold fast to Christ. why do you not hold fast 10 the Church?" 1 1t is in the words of Christ, !hen, not in the words of human beings. thnt \VC find ll>e an;wcr to !he question of where che Church h . ••
By means nf this Christologil:lll grounding. Augustine ensures the holiness or baptism e'en in those ca<cs in which one does not know whether the bap· tizer is imeriorly a member of tile Church."' For this reason. be does not weary of repeating 10 his faithful that Christ himself baptizes.'"' Likewise. he repeatedly speak< of the "baptism of Christ.'' panly in opposition 10 !he baptism of John."' NOf' does he fail 10 &ay more precisely in !his co01e.<1 that Christ baptiZe'< "'by the invisible action of majesty": "Christ baptizes n01 by a visible mini<try . . . but by hidden grace. by rudden power in the Holy
36 11w (;rare of ClmM
11re U~rd "CIIti\t ": Its Meanb1g and Us,. 37
Pclal!ius. These passages include Romans 5: l12, c'pccially 5:5 and 5: 12.'" Romans 7:24f .. '" Romans 8:3."' and Roman'> S:28ff.' .. Also frequently cited are (ialatians 2:21.1" Galatians 3:26. "' Galmians 6:2.'" I Corinthians I: 17. ~"
Spirit:'"' 'lltis means that when baptism is adminhtcred in the name of Christ and "ith hos "ords. '"' it makes the baptiud per<On a member of the Church of Chrht. even though it may 001 bestow the ·~u>ticc of Christ," since the "sacrament> of ChrisC have their salutary effect only in the Catholic Church that is connected in oneness of life with Chri\1 its head.'"'
I Connthians 15:21 L"' Philippians 2:2 1..,. and llim01hy 2:5 .... 7
At the same time. Augustine alo;o use~ the word "Christ" in expressions of his own. ai Utougb these are often derived from Paul or other biblical writers.
the valid celebration of the Eucharht as depending. Like baptism. on the name of Christ and on Christ's consecn11ory blessing."' At the same tirnc. he also resolves the third and mostth()rny diflicuhy by reference to Chrbt. Ouri ng the time of this world. the "body of Chrisl'' i, "mixetl":332 both good nnd bad Christians belong tO the Church."' In other words. "even the wicked """ gathered together in the sharing M Christ's sacraments:''" Only Christ. the Lor<l of the Church, knows who belongs to hi no imcri<>rly "' well.
I le speaks of Christ, to begin with. in many pa»ages iJl which he is deal· ing wi1h bapti~rn. He often uses such phrase:-. as ··regc:nera Lion in Christ:· "to be reborn in Christ," or ~imi lar for-mu Ins. HIJ a:-. well a:-:; ''the baptism or Christ"·"' He repeatedly recalls that Christ is "Jesus'' and "Savior" even for little children.'"' So too. he speaks <Jf Clubt when the subject is U1c origin of hutnun sinftllness or I he need which 1hc entire human race has of redemption.
In this context, it is the many form~ of the Pauline Adam-Ciu·isl "ntithesis that sumd out."'' Thus. the ooigin of all huonnn beings from A dam is seen as the counleopan (fonna e corrrrario) of rebio1h from Christ."'' Here the "llesh of ChrisC himself is exempted from any sin: it is only a "tike JleSS of sinfulllesh'' (Rom 8:3).'.,
AI the end of time. as judge of the living "nd the dead. Clu'i>l will separate true and false Christi"ns and thus make known I<J all who hi' members are.
e) The Anti ·Pcl:~gian Semantic Field
On the other hand, Augustine fundamentally agn.oes woth Julian that Christ is "the supreme form of justice:·'"' although he has reservations about the im· im1ion of Adam and the mere imitation of Christ.'"' Furthennore. "Christ" is
In the Ccmfes.itms. finally. Augustine also anticipates hi> teaching on grace again,llhe Pelagmns. '"According to \\'hat he ~ays. Pelagius himself in· terprered the work in this \Vay.33" In one settie. chi' unti-Pel:ag_ian semantic field is doubtle:.s identical with the general exegetical and especially with the Paulinc >emantic lields. which we saw earlier. But here the Pnuline and other bib I ictll tCxh are brought to bear in an original way.
froquently found in connection with the theme nf U1c just persons of the Old Tesuunenl. AugusLine's view is that they. too. :tttalnecl their !"alvation only through faith in the incarnation of the Son of God, through "faith in Christ foretold.""'
In hi~ work on 1 Jeresies. in whi<.:h Augustine outlines his teaching on grace in a pO:\itivc W<ly and at the same [irne dclincs the l!l'rQI'S of his Pelagian adversaries. ' 17 il is rcmark:.1bfe that be does not put the emphasis on Christ. In
Finally, "Christ" also appeurs in texts in which the inte1play of divine gnocc and human freedom is discussed.'"' Christian freedom is possible oi Jiy fnct. however. as he insists clsc\vhcre. the Pelaginn views on grncc cnlllhe redemptive work of Christ into question. Thus, they empty the cro;s of its meaning"' If their view is "ccepted. Christ died in vain (Onl 2:21 ).'·" For this reason, Augustine repearcUJy describes 1hem as enemies of Lhc grace of Chri<t."" In Other words. tl1e Doctor of grace does not weary of following the ApoStle (Rom 7:24f.) and presenting his own theology of grace as a doctrine of "the grace of God through Jesus Christ our Lord.""' He doe.' not, therefore. simply ob>erve thm the emire Bible is about this divio~e grace of Christ.", but he nl\o entitles one of his writings Tire Grau of Clrrist. '"
0 11 the basis of the love Uoat is JXlllred oul inl<> hclli'IS by the Holy Spirit (sec Rom 5:5). but U1is Spirit is the one whom Christ promises and gives;" and who'e outpouring therefore presupposes "faith in Christ:' "" The joy that uprightness gives (delectatio iustitiae) a l ~o comes from Cluist."" At the same lime, the Father draws human being> to Christ: "Therefore 10 be drown to Chri>t b)' the Fatller and 10 hear and learn from the Father that one should come to Christ: this is naught else than to receive the gift of faith by which one believes in Christ.''"' For the re~t. p:t<l>llg<!> are nol lacking in which "e find the themes memiotled here brought together. A good example is the let· ter in which Alypius and Augu<tinc inform Paulinu' of :>lola about the Pelagian heresy. m h cannot come a.~ a surprise. 1herefore. lhat in his anti.Pt:lagian trealises. sem1ons.'" and leucrs. "' Augustine constantly speaks of Christ. This is of course tnoe, lirs1 of all. of expositions in which he cites the Paulinc tcstirno· nia.' ... But in this regard, tbe readeJ' is immediately stnoek by the fact that Au· gustinc appeals lO 0:1 relatively few passages which I'CCUI' more or less frequently. Among these, as the subject re<1uio·cs, citntions fi'Om the L.ctter to the RonHlU$ lUke firsl place since the divergent intcrpt·cwlions of this Lcucr form the most hmly controverted point in the dispute between Augustine and
9. The OriginaUty of Augustine's Use of the Word "Chl'ist"
External influences undoubtedly plnyod their pan in Augustine's varied use of tho wotd ''Christ." These diffco·cnl uses followed the tradition of the
38 The Grace of ChriSI
Church in large measure."' In pai'Ciculur. his way of ~peaking of Chrisc in the great conu-c)vcr.,ics was dch.:rmincd by extema.l faccor.\ inasmuc-h as in these coocroversies he concinually paid heed to his adversaries. who in their own way appealed tll Chri~t: 10 ihe Chrbc~enccrod J>iccy of che Maoichees. to the radical following of Chri>t of the Don:uists. eo che Paulinism of the Pelagians. and to pllgan opposicion to Chriscians and cheir Christ. Nor is there any denying that Augustine's use of .. Chris1 .. ofcen sounds quite Mereotyped. ll~ac is the impression given by the salutation' of letters. scandard phra.->es of the Church ·s everyday language. qock explanations (that .. rock .. means .. Christ. .. for instance). and countless ochoc\ of Paul. But we may not underestimate t11e underlying li\'ely fnith in Chri>t Jli'C>Cnl in the Church. Morco--cr. the not infrequent pas.~agc~ in which Auguscinc speak.' directly eo Christ attest to his deep love for his Lord ami Redeemer . .,.
C HAPTER 2
The Christocentrism of Augustine
We may go funher. lt seems juscificd. in lighc of all chat has been said. to speak of a theology that i< ~tamped wich the name of Christ. In particular, questions asked of Auguscinc by others were the occasion for giving to some extent a systcmacic fonn 10 his rcllcction> on the ceocral imponance that Christ had for him. Thi' is erne not only of the Letter to Volusian. on which there is general ngreemenc.'" In addition. the rather special <1uestioos which Dardanns pnl to him l'egnrding Luke 23:43 and I :42ff. led him to distinguish between Christ as Cod nnd Chri<t :1.\ human being as well as becween Christ's
1. Christ Is All.. Christ delights in che tnllh. dclighcs in blessedness. delights in righteousness, delighcs in evcrla,ting life. all of wbich are Christ.''' Thus Augustine to his faithful in Hippo. llut he spoke even more vividly to women consecrated to (iod: •1'hc joy of Christ';, virgins is from Christ in Christ. with Christ, after Christ, chrough Chrisl. on account of Chrisc. The special joys of virgins of various modes of pt·escnce-.cvcrywhet·e~ in tndjvidunl soul :s~ in the Churchand thus to rrcscnt his COI'I'CSpondcnl with u complete Chl'istology .. H6 fn a less technical but no less Cotnprchcnsive way. Augustine pre.sents hjs teaching on Christ in his explanation oi'the mcssianic Psalm 109. In addicion. we may see Chrislological syn Lhcscs in SOtllC of his overview~ of heresies.317 Here again. Augustine is doubtless dependent on chc tl'~td il iou . 1t i:s wonh noting! however. that even in chese instances. he lhinks in h.-mns of ChristoiQgy aod traces all errors in the t~'l i th to miswkcn undCI'Standings of Christ:1'n>!
Christ nrc not the same tl..~ those of persons not virgins, even (hough the latter nlso belong to Chrisc. .. ! For him, Chrisc was Ute goal of aU longing: "Let all sighs be sighs l'o1· Clwist; desire him alone. who is the most beautiful of all :md who loves tho ugly in order to m:~ke chem beautiful; run to him alone. sigh for him nlonc ... ' ror lhis reason, his prayc1· w Uod could ooly be prayer with and to Christ: "As p1·icst he prays l'o1· us. as head he pnrys in u~: we pray ro him as to our God.''·•
11 wns in such language as this Lh;JL AugusLine daily gave eloquenL exprc~os· sion to his ;,Chri'\t i:~ 1111,'' hoth in his pastoral and lheological actjvily and in the whole of his own life.' I lis conversion, as he describes it in the COI!{es-
Finally, it is not ccccncl'ic lo see in the Confessions the beginning of a Christological syn1hcsi~. By this I mean th~11 insofal' as h..: contrasts here the Word of God which. according eo him. Lhe Pl:uoniscs had discovered, with che incarnate Word or .luhn us unde,·scood in the cccle.sial tradition. he already gives the main lines or hi~ antithetical Christology. The sense, however, in which it is permissible to describe hi' piety and cheologicalthinking as Christoceull'ic must <till be shown in decail.
fions, was in fact nolhing btll ll 1urning lO the whoJe Christ: to the ··wisdom and power of God:·• eo the Word with God and the Word wiU• us.' On the other hand, Christ rclll'CSCnted the solution to his major problems. Christ was his staning poinc for C3CkJing the dillicuhic.~ of U1e Manicbees witb the Old Tcstamenc and with religiou' knowledge: the ''Christ who was prophesied'' and .. Christ :11 auchority ... His solution in the Don:nist t·ri~is was .. Christ in the Cacholic Church, .. which is .. the inheritance of Christ:· .. the one Christ. head :md body ... ·1·he gr:tee of God which t11rough Jesus Christ our Lord free.~ us from the body of de:nh" wa' chc central motif in his disputes witl1 tlte Pelagians . .. The one rm:dincor between God and hum:micy. the human being Jesus Chri•t'' wa.< the p.1«word in controver:.y with the pagans. since '·che humble Christ" alone opened the ··w:•y of unh ersal salvation ...