Saint Prosper of Aquitaine (390-455) was a secular theologian, a disciple of Saint Augustine of Hippo who actively participated in the main religious controversies of his time, especially those concerning Pelagianism and what would later be called ‘semi-Pelagianism’; Furthermore, as a layman, he was a servant and collaborator of Pope Leo I during his pontificate (440-461).
Errors, confusion, heresies
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Semi-Pelagianism was an attempt to reconcile the ideas of the Pelagians with the doctrine of the Church regarding grace and original sin. The Pelagians of long standing had maintained that eternal life could be gained without the aid of divine grace, by relying only on free will and human effort; To do this, they relied on ideas such as that original sin would have affected Adam exclusively and that its consequences could be remitted if a blameless life was pursued. The Semi-Pelagians, their “heirs”, appear after the forceful response given by Saint Augustine (354-430) to this problem, who had pointed out that both grace and human freedom are necessary for salvation and that it is up to man to always cooperate. with divine initiative. The Semi-Pelagians attempted to embrace Augustinian criticism but without abandoning the underlying theses of Pelagius (354-420), whose doctrine ended up condemned as heretical (Council of Carthage in 418).
The Semi-Pelagians, unlike their inspirer, admitted the help of divine grace to achieve salvation, but only on the basis of a primordial movement of the human will, that is, of an act of freedom in which God does not take any part. part at all.
The disciple who honors the teacher
Prosper of Aquitaine, a disciple of Augustine, became known in the midst of this complex doctrinal dispute thanks to his writings. These, fortunately, are preserved to this day.
Prosper of Tire – the name by which this saint is also known – was born in the ancient French region of Aquitaine in the 4th century and was trained by the monks of the monastery of Saint Victor in Marseille.
In 428, Prospero wrote a letter to Saint Augustine – who was already in Hippo at that time – about the difficulties that arose in and around Marseille against the doctrine that Augustine had developed. For this reason, Augustine wrote two treatises: About the gift of perseverance y Of the predestination of the saints.
Cooperator of truth
Meanwhile, in support of his teacher, Prospero wrote a short treatise on grace and free will. Among his theological works are Against the Ingratus (Against Pelagianism), Answers for Augustine (A Defense of Saint Augustine) and On the grace of God and free will (On grace and free will), a work written in opposition to certain theses of Saint John Cassian.
Saint Prospero is also recognized for being the author of a Chronicle about the Church, a historical account that includes the period from the creation to the conquest of Rome by the Vandals in the year 455. This writing was a kind of synthesis of the work of the same name written by Saint Jerome, but to which Prospero added some corrections and precisions.
Saint Prospero ended his days as secular secretary to none other than Pope Saint Leo the Great (Leo I). He died around the year 455.
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