Part 1: The Grace of God in General

Grace is a favor or a gift, to which we have no rightful claim. It is a benefit bestowed upon us, a privilege extended to us, purely out of love and mercy, which we could not demand, because we have not merited it.

Divisions of Grace

1. Natural

2. Supernatural

3. Outward

4. Inward

5. Immediate

6. Indirect

When the grace consists in any kind of a temporal good, affording to our body, our temporal life, or some advantage, it is called Natural Grace.

When it consists of something calculated to help the salvation of our soul, giving us an increased power for the successful attainment of our last end, it is called Supernatural Grace.

When God, influences man to preach the Word of God, it is an Outward Grace, because man is thereby acted upon outwardly by it.

When the Word of God penetrates to the inward man, when the eyes of his mind are opened, and his will moved to follow the voice of Him Who calls, it becomes an Inward Grace, for the influence penetrates into man's interior being.

Sometimes, a man receives a call to faith or to conversion from God Himself -- as, for example, St. Paul. This is an Immediate Grace.

Most frequently, God makes use of certain agents or means in imparting to us His graces --as, for example, the messenger of faith, when He sent Philip to the servant of Queen Candace, or He makes use of Chrisitan parents, pious teachers, zealous preachers and pastors, devout confessors, good books, edifying examples, dreadful chastisements, general calamity, sufferings, sickness, and trouble, by all or any of which He exercises such an influence on us and in us that we may believe, become converted, do penance, or enter upon a strict mode of life. This is an Indirect Grace.

Inward Supernatural Grace is:

1. Grace of Assistance, also called Efficacious Grace and Preventing Grace, because it works upon the soul.
   

2. Grace of Holiness, also called Permanent Grace and Sanctifying Grace, because it remains in the soul to adorn and strengthen it.
   

Passages from Scripture

"No man can come to Me, except the Father, Who hath sent Me, draw him" (John 6:44)

"No man can say, the Lord Jesus, but by the Holy Ghost" (1 Corinthians 12:3)

"Not that we are sufficient to think anything of ourselves: but our sufficiency is from God" (2 Corinthians 3:5)

Selections from the Fathers

"As the arid earth, if it be not moistened, cannot bring forth fruit, so we, too, who of ourselves are nothing but dry twigs, can bear no fruit without the wholesome dew of grace." (St. Irenaeus)

"The healthiest bodily eye cannot see anything without light: likewise man, even if perfectly justified, cannot make one step forward in the way of sanctification if divine grace do not assist him." (St. Augustine)

"It is not at all possible to do anything right if one have not grace from above." (St. John Chrysostom)

"As the body without the soul is dead and unable to do anything, so the soul without divine grace is dead for the kingdom of heaven: it cannot do anything towards pleasing God." (St. Macarius)

Illustrations

What the rain is to the plants, the sun to the earth, what food is to the body, and salt to food, divine grace is the same to the life of the soul.

As the body cannot live without the soul, so the soul cannot live without grace. As soon as the grace of God departs, the soul is spiritually dead.

Grace is the root of spiritual life.

Grace is like a fire which imparts light, warmth, and life. Thus it is the grace of God that keeps up within us the light of faith, enkindles the warmth of divine charity, and creates a higher life in and with God: "I live, not now I: but Christ liveth in me" (Galatians 2:20)

From the Lives of the Saints

The great St. Augustine, whose youth was as full of erros as his mature life was full of virtues, owed his conversion chiefly to the unceasing prayers of his devout mother, St. Monica, and to a special intervention of God. For a long time his heart yearned for a knowledge of divine truth. The sermons of St. Ambrose, many of which Augustine had listened to, had made a deep impression on his mind. With his soul filled with unrest, he woud often withdraw from busy life, in company with a single companion, his friend Alypius, in the hope of finding truth and grace. It was on one of such occasions that grace did reach his soul and effect his conversion --an event whcih he thus describes in his book, "Confessions":

"When deep meditation lifted up my misery from a slough of despair, and placed it fairly before the eyes of my soul, there arose within my breast a violent struggle, which was accompanied by a copious flow of tears. To give fuller scope to my feelings, I arose and went away from Alypius; for solitude seemed to be better adapted to the free flow of my tears. Throwing myself on the ground under a fig-tree, I wept bitterly. Oh, what torrents of tears fell from my eyes, and became to The, O Lord, a pleasing sacrifice! And many were the things I said to Thee, if not in the following words, at least in the following sentiments: 'And Thou, O Lord, how long? Wilt Thou be angry forever? Be not mindful of my past misdeeds.' For I felt the captivity in which they held me, and again cried out: 'How long, how long? Tomorrow, always tomorrow? Why not now? Why shall not this hour be the last of my shame?'

"Thus I spoke and wept in the greatest bitteness of my heart, when, lo! I seemed to hear, from a neighboring house, the voice of a girl or young boy, who in sweet tones repeated the words: 'Take and read, take and read.' At once my expression of countenance changed, and I began seriously to inquire of myself whether it was the voice of children at play. Then reflecting further, I supressed my tears, arose, and felt convinced that I had received a divine command to open the Sacred Scriptures and read the first passage I should meet. "

"I hastened back, where I had left the Epistles of the Apostle, and, opening the book, I read greedily the first passage that met my eyes: 'Not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and impurities, not in contention and envy: but put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh in its concupicenses' (Romans 13:13-14). I did not wish to read more. It was not necessary, for, as I finished the passage, a light of calm security was shed upon my heart, dispelling the dark vapors of uncertainty and indecision. Closing the book, I related to Alypius what had happened. He begged me to show him what I had read. He read further on than I had, as follows: 'Him that is weak in faith take unto you' (Romans 14:1) He was strengthened by this passage, and took resolutions similar to mine, though he had for some time been a far better man than I had been.

"Then we went to my mother and told her what had happened and how it came to pass. She was overpowered with joy, and praised Thee, O God, Who can do more than we can understand. Then she perceived that You had favored me far beyond her expectations. Then did Thou so convert me that I craved no longer for anyhting wordly. I found myself in that justification by faith which Thou had long held out to me. Thou did change her sorrows into a joy greater than she had asked for."

Proceed to Part 2: Actual Grace of God

Source of Meditation

The Means of Grace

Original 1894 Publication

Eternal rest grant unto Fr. Richard Brennan, O Lord, and let Your perpetual light shine upon him. May his soul and the souls of all the faithfully departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.

Amen

Grace: How God Sees Our Soul

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