I am sad that the radio show is going away, but excited for the daily mass reading project.
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Life in a State of Grace
When speaking of grace, it is important to remember that we are all sinners. There will be times when we reflect the love of God and live the Christian life well, and there will be times when we err and show our human imperfections. When we are in a state of grace, we are living the deiform life on earth imperfectly but truly. For one to do this sanctifying grace must be received because it provides the theological edifice that supersedes our human nature (Hardon Ch.4)
This deiform life, as John Hardon describes it, starts with the sacrament of Baptism. This sacrament infuses us with sanctifying grace and elevates us to partake in the divine life. In Baptism, we are born again in the way the scriptures speak. We are “born again in a new childhood of true innocence” (Hardon Ch.4). With original sin, and all sin, washed away we now partake in the deiform life imperfectly but truly. How can this be? We still have concupiscence, and though we may not fall into mortal sin we will commit venial sin. This is one of the reasons why Jesus established the sacramental system. Our physical bodies require exercise, sleep, and proper nourishment to grow into healthy adults. It is very similar in our spiritual lives as we need prayer and nourishment through the sacraments to continue in the practice of virtue (Hardon, Ch.4).
There are many saints throughout history that can be used to illustrate the example of the deiform life that living in a state of grace can bring about, but I feel the need to use a personal example. The Director of Religious education of St. Francis De Sales in Tucson, Arizona fits this mold. I am a member of the parish, and Maureen and her husband Deacon Russ, have been mentors. Maureen has suffered from Multiple Sclerosis for many years and is often in great pain. However, she never complains and offers up her sufferings for the parish and the children that she is responsible for educating in the faith. Her life is an example of how living the Christian life can inspire someone else to do the same. She is involved in many other ministries, but no matter what is going on has the time to give an encouraging word, pray for someone, and answer questions about the faith. Her zeal to share the Gospel drives her and you can see grace at work in her life. Her life is a great example for those of us under her tutelage.
Works Cited
Hardon, John. History and Theology of Grace. Ann Arbor, MI: Sapientia Press, 2005.
Varying Views of Grace
As a convert from Protestantism, one of the challenges was the concept of grace. It was taught, and still is, that justification and sanctification were an instantaneous barrage of grace that instantly transformed. Granted, this is more of a Baptist, view and can change based on denomination. This differs widely from the Catholic view that grace more of a renovation for the soul.
Protestant theology looks at grace as a forensic, or declarative, justification. The reformers saw the concept of concupiscence and took it a step further and said that man is totally depraved. This total depravity prevents man from doing anything good, and all good things done are done by God. Therefore, man is unable to do good even with the help of sanctifying grace. The work of Christ on the cross is therefore imputed to the sinners account when a faith in Christ is declared. Fr. John Hardon writes that in the Protestant view a sinner is “righteous by reason of the imputed merits of Christ and a sinner because his inherited guilt remains” (Hardon Ch.4). Justification is now a matter of declaration whereby the righteousness of Christ is imputed to the sinner making the Father see the sinner as righteous.
The is in stark contrast to the Catholic view that sees sanctifying grace as a transformative force that changes the sinner into a saint. The journey takes a lifetime and is fills with highs and lows. Through the sacrament of baptism all sin is washed away, and we have a clean slate. Through the voluntary of grace on a daily basis and is ours. Regarding this John Hardon states, “what we obtain is truly ours and no mere judicial attribution” (Hardon Ch.4). It is given to us to transform us, not merely to make a once time declaration and not change our nature. In the Protestant system we are not changed, and in the Catholic system Christ transforms us.
Works Cited
Hardon, John. History and Theology of Grace. Ann Arbor, MI: Sapientia Press, 2005.
The Link Between Lent and Confession—by Guest Blogger William Hemsworth
The following article is my guest post on The Simple Catholic blog. Visit The Simple Catholic blog at thesimplecatholic.blog for great content.
Book Review: A Concise Guide To Catholic Social Teaching
When it comes to Catholic social teaching it is fairly easy to find books on individual topics. In this volume, which is a third, edition, Kevin E. McKenna gives concise explanations on every aspect of Catholic social teaching. The author is Pastor and Rector of the Cathedral community in Rochester, NY. He has extensive experience in Catholic social teaching and Canon law. He is also the general editor for the concise series by Ave Maria Press.
The book is broken down into seven chapters that delve with vital topics such as the dignity of life and care for God’s creation. What I appreciated most, besides the conciseness of the work, was that the beginnings of each chapter listed the various encyclicals and church documents that are summarized. This allows the reader to find those documents and read them for themselves.
As previously stated, this is the third edition and the encyclicals written by Pope Francis have been included in this volume. This book is a must have in my opinion because it is a good reference piece. If there is a question on a topic of Catholic social teaching this resource is one that can be used easily to get the answer. It is good for anyone who teaches or writes about the faith s these issues will come up regularly.
[Note: This book was obtained free of charge from Ave Maria Press in exchange for an honest review.]
Divine Providence
When we speak of divine providence it can be hard to understand how free will, efficacious grace, and perseverative grace can exist can fully exist within its context. If God knows how everything will turn out, then how can we truly exercise free will? These topics can be confusing to those who are just beginning their journey in faith, but they do have an explanation.
We must remember that God is not limited to time. In fact, he is outside time. Imagine that you had the ability to travel back in time to your childhood. You have the strange opportunity of observing how you interact with others. Though you know the outcome as an adult, you are observing your childhood self-using the gift of free will to make decisions. You know how those decisions will turn out, but you as a child still used your gift of reason to decide. This analogy is, of course, a hypothetical one. Within the context of divine providence, we use our free will to cooperate with efficacious grace. Efficacious grace is grace given when we consent to it and always leads to good actions (Journet 2.10).
So, what of perseverative grace? Does God not grant us the power to persevere in grace? Regarding perseverance St. Thomas Aquinas writes that man “needs the Divine assistance guiding and guarding him against the attacks of the passions” (ST II, Q 109, A 10). This relates to free will and efficacious grace because, though it is freely given, it is still something that must be asked for. God will not deny this special help or deny his grace because of his divine providence (Hardon Ch. 3). Free will, efficacious grace, and perseverative grace can exist really and truly within the mystery of Divine Providence because they require an accent of the will and must be asked for.
Works Cited
Aquinas, Thomas. Summa Theologia. Trans. Thomas Gornall. Blackfriars, St. Joseph, IN: Ave Maria Press, 1981. Accessed August 10, 2018.
Hardon, John. History and Theology of Grace. Ann Arbor, MI: Sapientia Press, 2005.
Journet, Charles. The Meaning of Grace. Princeton: Scepter Publishers, 1997.
Farewell Amazon
It isn’t easy being an indie author. It is difficult to get reviews, and Lord knows the royalties one gets are very little, though there are some exceptions. I know this post is very different than others I do, but hear me out. I have published a few books, and praise God those have helped people develop a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ. Those books have been available for a low price pretty much everywhere…until today.
I made the difficult decision to pull my ebooks from listing on Amazon. Amazon seems to get deeper and deeper into the bullying business when it comes to indie authors. I made the decision before Amazon told my current distributor to remove them. Why? It would seem that Amazon has these built in Algorithms that scan the web to find any remnant of your material. Once in a while I post a small section of an upcoming, or previously published, book as a tease to generate interest, On the surface this would appear to be basic marketing. After all I own the material adn am only posting a small section of around 450 words out of a book that may have 23,000. To the brain trust at Amazon this is unacceptable in there mind because I am giving the “book” away.
I have gone around and around and the frustration isn’t worth it to be honest. Most of my sales come from Apple and Kobo, so it really won’t hurt sales much. While I am talking about sales I do have to mention one other thing. I don’t write for the sales. I write to spread he message of Christ and His church. I’m sure Amazon has been burned in some fashion and that is why they are choosing this route, and maybe since they are the largest dog on the block they feel the need to show their teeth. Long story short, my books will no longer be available on Amazon. All books are the lowest price I can make them, and I do that intentionally. If for whatever reason you are not able to afford the 99 cent price tag please email me, and I will gladly send you a free pdf of the book you want. No strings attached. God bless you all and thank you for your patience through my rant.
Instruments of Grace
Within the theology of grace, we see a connection between the sacraments as instruments of grace, and Christ who is the instrument of grace. Opponents of the church argue that Christ is the sole mediator and cite 1 Timothy 2:5 as a prooftext. Regarding Christ being the only mediator between God and man the church agrees and has also taught it to be so. However, Christ can mediate in any way he desires since he is the second person of the blessed Trinity. Christ chose to mediate through the sacraments. Charles Journet describes this as, “Christ was to come as Mediator, to teach, to give his grace through the sacraments” (Journet 6.6).
It is important to make the distinction instruments of grace, and the instrument of grace. The two are quite different and the distinction is vital. The sacraments are instruments of grace because they were established by Christ to convey grace. He is the instrument through which the sacraments convey grace. St. Thomas Aquinas sums it up quite nicely when he writes, “The principal cause works by the power of its form, to which form the effect is likened; just as fire by its own heat makes something hot. In this way none but God can cause grace” (STIII, Q62, A1).
This is seen in all sacraments and in a profound way in the sacrament of reconciliation. In John 20:23 Jesus tells the disciples, “If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained” (NRSV). We go to the priest to confess our sins. We are not confessing our sins to a man, but a man who is acting in the person of Christ. It is not a man that is forgiving our sin, but Jesus is working through the priest to do so.
Reconciliation is a part of repentance, and the sinner shows his intention by word and deed. The absolving of sin done by the priest is the work of God who forgives sin (STIII, Q84, A1). This shows that the sacraments are instruments of grace, and that Christ is the cause. Christ is the instrument as he instituted the sacraments.
Works Cited
Aquinas, Thomas. Summa Theologia. Trans. Thomas Gornall. Blackfriars, St. Joseph, IN: Ave Maria Press, 1981. Accessed September 15, 2018.
Stevens, P.G. The Life of Grace. New York: Prentice Hall, 1963.
Book Review: Early Jewish Literature
Wright, Archie T., Brad Embry and Ronald Herms. Early Jewish Literature: An Anthology. 2 Volumes. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 2018. Click Here To View
This book is an anthology that is made up of two separate volumes. Each volume is well over 500 pages long and includes early Jewish works from the second Temple period. For those unfamiliar with this period, it extends from 516 BC to 70 AD with the destruction of the temple by the Roman empire. It is a crucial period, not only in Jewish history, but in the development and early years of Christianity.
Volume one details scriptural texts and traditions, this includes additions to Daniel, danielic texts recovered in Qumran, and the Maccabean books. Each book has a detailed introduction detailing how it relates to the second temple period, who the likely authors are, and the theology behind it. It is very fascinating a must read for scholars of the Old and New Testament. This volume also details the romanticized texts such as Tobit, and lastly delves into the Dead Sea scrolls and their importance during this period.
Volume two begins right away with ancient wisdom texts like Sirach and the Wisdom of Solomon. Next it describes ancient apocalyptic literature such as the books of Enoch. Lastly delving into Testamentary literature. Volume two is laid out the same at volume one with detailed introductions, theologies, and excerpts that the reader can enjoy.
Works like this are important because it gives us an idea of what shaped Jewish thought during these pivotal years of the Second Temple period. Students and scholars will benefit from the brief, but detailed introductions that this anthology provides. If you like big books, then this one is for you. It is well worth it.
{Note: This book was provided free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.]
