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Research atlas for early Christianity. Claims are tagged attested, traditional, or disputed. Copyrighted full texts, including CCEL editions, are not included.

DeChurched Atlas

Story

Augustine's Africa

A bishop, two controversies, and the limits of his map of his enemies.

  1. Step 1

    From Milan to Hippo

    Augustine was baptized by Ambrose's church in Milan in 387 and was bishop of Hippo by the mid-390s. Confessions tells that story as a prayer, not as a neutral chronicle.

    Augustine of HippoAmbrose of MilanMilanHippo RegiusMove the map here

  2. Step 2

    A church that stays holy

    Against Donatists, Augustine argued that baptism and ordination do not depend on the minister's personal purity, and he eventually accepted coercion of schismatics by the state. The second move is his, and it was contested then.

    Augustine of HippoDonatusHippo RegiusCarthageMove the map here

  3. Step 3

    Grace

    Pelagius's call for moral effort collided with Augustine's teaching that grace precedes merit and that infants need baptism. Carthage in 418 sided with Augustine. Pelagius's surviving lines are not identical to the system Augustine described.

    Augustine of HippoPelagiusCarthageRomeCarthageMove the map here

Sources

Further reading

DeChurched Atlas — Early Christianity as history, from every source