Is Romans 9,11 proof for or against the pre-existence of the soul? Origen and Augustine in comparison

Abstract

Origen postulates the idea of the pre-existence of souls before their incarnation to explain why God's love for Jacob and his hatred of Esau before their birth is just. In Augustine, the same passage is used to reject Origen's view on the basis of the inscrutability of God's judgements.

Keywords

• Christology
• Early Christian Theology
• Origen
• Soteriology