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To: Greetings_Puny_Humans
This predestination IS the plan of God

True enough, but you (speaking collectively of anyone) don't know it. Whatever your predestination is, your works of faith are included in it, and so are the sacraments you receive -- or the sacraments you flee.

the Catholic definition, which speaks of so many graces as if it were an inanimate object to be dispensed

Grace is uncreated so not properly an "object". Read the Fathers of the Church with this in mind, and you will understand them better. It takes practice and study.

48 posted on 05/10/2013 5:27:45 AM PDT by annalex (fear them not)
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To: annalex

“True enough, but you (speaking collectively of anyone) don’t know it. Whatever your predestination is, your works of faith are included in it, and so are the sacraments you receive — or the sacraments you flee.”


You are misunderstanding predestination. Predestination is defined not as God foreseeing your works and rewarding you in advance, but rather that God has chosen to give to you His favor despite the fact that you do not deserve it, even before you have done good or evil, and inspite of your evil even, according to His own good purpose and will to save you (Rom 9:10-16, 2 Ti 1:9, Eph 1:4).

There is only one type of grace that God offers in scripture, and it is this grace which, by definition, is given to you despite the fact that you do not deserve it. Speaking of grace as “uncreated so not properly an object” is like saying that an emotional or mental state is an uncreated object. You might as well believe in magic, or the dark side or the light sight of the force, speaking like this. Grace is God’s favor, and because that is exactly what it is, it cannot be dispensed like cokes from a machine for a $1.25.


50 posted on 05/10/2013 3:05:44 PM PDT by Greetings_Puny_Humans
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