Mozley: A Treatise on the Augustinian Doctrine of

T -3 Augustinian
CHAP. YI.
before he had a will which exerted a power of its own 1
, and
after has not and ; Augustine comes to the question of the
nature of Christian grace, with the understanding that
grace has now to deal with a being who has not freewill.
But what kind of grace, he then naturally is to
argues^
restore and reclaim such a being, to raise him to spiritual
life, and make him persevere
in it, but an over-mastering
and controlling grace?
Less power in the grace would
suffice if there were some in the being ; for if there is any
power in nature, the complement of it only is needed from
grace; but if there is none, grace must supply the whole.
Had man freewill, grace, to be suited to his condition, must
recognise it, leave it to act, and suspend its own effect upon
its action. But when man has freewill no longer, to leave
the effect of grace dependent upon his freewill is a mockery.
If he is to be reclaimed at all, he must then be reclaimed
by an absolute act of power, and grace must either do every
thing for him or do nothing.
Here there is a clear and express definition of irresis
tible or efficacious grace, the assistance with which a
thing is done adjutorium quo aliquid fit, as distin
guished from assisting grace adjutorium sine quo ali
quid non fit ; or, as abbreviated by the Jansenist divines,
the adjutorium quo, as distinguished from the adjutorium
sine quo non. According to this definition, if the grace
defined is given, the effect takes place aliquid fit; the
renewal and conversion of the man follows in fact. By
this definition, then, the effect is made the test, whether
the grace is given or not ; and a grace, of which the bestowal
is thus tested, is by the very terms an irresistible and effi
cacious one.
But, while preceding statements are at last embodied
in a definition, the definition does no more than embody
and give point to them ; for a grace, of the bestowal of
which the effect is the test, has been described all along.
4
If every man that hath learned cometh unto Christ, if
any man hath not come, neither hath he learned. 2
1
Potentia liberi arbitrii. De 2 De Grat. Christi, c. xiv.
Corr. et Grat. c. xi.
If