The theological doctrine propounded by Pelagius, a British monk, and condemned as heresy by the Roman Catholic Church in ad 416. It denied original sin and affirmed the ability of humans to be righteous by the exercise of free will.
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(Christianity) A Christian belief that denies the view of original sin and the necessity of grace, asserting that man is capable of achieving salvation by his own efforts.
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Origin of pelagianism
From the name of its founder, Pelagius: Pelagian +"Ž -ism
From
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Pelagianism Sentence Examples
Against Manichaean dualism he had vindicated free will; but as against Pelagianism he taught the bondage of sinful man - a position accepted in the East but never welcome there, and not more than half welcome even in the West.
Theologically, the Thomistic system approximates to pantheism, while that of Scotus inclines distinctly to Pelagianism.
It seems not unlikely that Pelagianism had taken root among the Christian communities of Ireland, and it was found necessary to send a bishop to combat the heresy.
It may be added that after the Reformation Arianism was revived in Socinianism, and Pelagianism in Arminianism; but the conception of heresy in Protestantism demands subsequent notice.
Within Calvinism itself Pelagianism was revived in Arminianism, which denied the irresistibility, and affirmed the universality of grace.