Grace
The Catholic Church struck back at the Reformation with the Counter Reformation. This produced repression highlighted by the inquisition, condemnation of Galileo and religious wars throughout Europe. Luther and his fellow "protestants" went on to develop their own denominations and many teaching "Grace" alone is what is necessary for "Salvation".
If we look at the definition of grace in the Catholic Encyclopedia, we will find a bewildering display of words as if written by bureaucrats and lawyers explaining the conditions of God’s will and action in a corporation or government. So many inconsistencies occur in applying this concept of God’s gift that so many justifications and explanations were necessary to keep this theory afloat. In fact the Church has Actual Grace and Santifying Grace as if Actual Grace is not sufficient. And there is also justified grace for justifying something and prevenient grace that is before all other grace.
God’s Will is really what someone says God’s Will is. And it may or may not be related to God’s Will. In fact, there may not be God’s Will at all. And "will" may simply be a human concept.
I am who I am.
What is the need of will? Most of what we call God’s Will is often the result of physics and man’s action, a car crash, for example. Where or what is the grace of the one that survives and of the one that does not. Now let’s expand on our little theory about Grace.
Grace Fields
A field is some altered space.
| Gravitational Field and Curved Space. Any mass will alter the space around itself and cause any other mass to be attracted to it according to Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity. |  |
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| Iron Filings Align Around a Magnet. A magnet affects the space around it and causes certain types of metals to be attracted. The ends of the magnet are polarized - north and south - opposite poles. |  |
One way to visualize Einstein concept of gravity is as a “rubber sheet” flat in the absence of gravity, and curved when a massive object is present. Another object is affected by field, or curved space, and “falls” into that altered space. And depending on the sizes and distance, it will orbit, as in our moon around the earth, or fall to the surface of the earth, as with an apple. Simply drop an object to demonstrate this amazing and so common phenomena - gravity.
Can not Grace be a similar thing? Can we not simply fall, or rise, into this space when the conditions are right - or harmonious? The nature of the spiritual field is a matter of pure speculation. But all fields require a source. Scientists know that electrical and magnetic fields are generated by moving electrical charges, and even living organisms have such fields.
Anaphase of Mitosis During Cell Division. Polarization of the nucleus occurs and there appears to be alignment of various parts and structures. |
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Physicians can monitor heart and brain activity by measuring these biolelectrical fields. Thought fields or waves have not been detected by scientists yet, but are likely. Is Christ or the Holy Spirit this Grace Field ? Is our thought capable of interacting with the Grace Field ?
Christ as the Grace Field Christians can relate to this model. |
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| This Grace Field, Spiritual Field, permeates all. It is that spirit of God that can interact with psyche. |  |
If there is such a thing as grace, or what appears to us as grace, and if it is a gift available to all, then it must be a condition or property of our universe. Such a condition could be viewed as a field, a spiritual field around us and all of creation. In this way the Grace Field will be what the Christian Theologians call prevenient grace - coming before.
Now according to this little theory, grace would be available to all conscious beings, Christian and non-Christian. And this is a step in the right direction. And any saving grace would be available as universal salvation.
In as much as the current Christian view of Grace makes little sense and is very arbitrary, but many, many people feel and know what they call the Grace of God, our field theory of grace is as fine a speculation as there is. If we beleive that God is, then there must be a Field and that extends as part of God.
Grace is available to all, immersing all, as gravity extends and enmeshes all objects.
Some Protestant mystics denounced eternal punishment as incompatible with the love of God. The view that God is love did become more prevalent, bringing about a change in theology. Love makes sense. Original sin makes no sense, except allegorically. Retribution is a problem in the bible. The Jews wanted it, lived by it, but they also wanted mercy, the mercy of God. God’s love is unconditional, but it appears to stop short with final judgement, and then becomes conditional on, according to Luther, Faith and God’s Grace.
Just as the view of God on a throne doesn’t make sense now, the view of God giving out Grace makes no sense. God’s gift of Grace always appears arbitrary and supernatural. We always hear preachers say we can do nothing to deserve it. This was learned from earthly Kings who gave grace.
The Other Graces
Grace has several meanings. What we have discussed here is a possible mechanism for the Christian belief of Grace as the unmerited favor of God for blessings and salvation. Another definition is "elegance, poise, dignity and finesse". And also, Grace, or blessing, before meals. In Latin "gratus" meant pleasing and thankful.
Three Graces in Primavera Sandro Botticelli, 1485, Uffizi Gallery, Florence, Italy. In Greek mythology, the three graces were Charm, Beauty, Nature and were daughters of gods and goddesses such as Zeus and Aphrodite. |
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Our theories are about relativity, or relative position. Viewed by man, us, the results are the same, we all experience similar things - pleasure, satisfaction, dispair, etc. Viewed from above this page, the path, the way, the mechanism is probably a lot different than we think.
The Next Reformation will view Man’s relationship with the Divine from a different perspective.
