St. Felix IV
Felix · 526 – 530
Appointed with Ostrogothic royal backing, he converted a Roman temple into the Basilica of Saints Cosmas and Damian.
Felix was from Samnium in southern Italy. He owed his election largely to the Ostrogothic King Theodoric, which made some Roman clergy uneasy. Despite this political debt, Felix proved a capable pope. He affirmed Augustine's teaching on grace against Semi-Pelagian currents at the Council of Orange in 529, and he transformed an ancient Roman temple in the Forum into the church of Saints Cosmas and Damian, whose apse mosaics still survive today.
Grace, Not Merit
The Council of Orange in 529 settled a debate that had simmered for a century: does God's grace come first, or does human effort earn it? Felix backed Augustine's answer. Grace comes first, always. Human beings cannot take the first step toward God on their own. This teaching still shapes Catholic understanding of salvation.