Was St. Vincent of Lérins Anti-Augustinian? - First Things

Was St. Vincent of Lérins Anti-Augustinian? - First Things

One of Pope Francis’s favorite theologians, as many will remember, was the early church writer St. Vincent of Lérins. Again and again, Francis cited a few lines from this fifth-century thinker, lines that endorsed the need for theological development, while also emphasizing that tradition is not stolid and immobile, but living and dynamic. Francis’s beloved citation runs: “Christian doctrine follows the law of progress. It is consolidated throug…