Catholic Theology Plain Pure Peaceable, Section 5 – Section 6
SECT. V. Of the Cauſes of the different Effects of Grace and Means.
§. 1. *Gerhard. Tom. 2. de lib. a…b. cap. 6. §. 1. ſuppoſeth that no cauſe of the efficacy of Grace is found in the will of man, as being dead and vicious; but yet that Grace doth not phyſically determine the will, but ſo work as leaveth it a power to reſiſt: and that reſiſtance is it that maketh the difference between man and man by making Grace uneffectual. And Georg. Calixtus was of the ſame mind, as you may ſee in his words de Miniſt. Verbi. p. 241. & in Judic. de Controverſ. num. 33. See …e Blank Theſ. de diſtinct. Grati….ALl that is Good in the Difference between man and man, is Willed by God, and Cauſed by him: But nothing that is Morally Evil.
§. 2. As in Nature, God ſeemeth to Cauſe Motion in genere by an equal univerſal Influx of the Sun, which maketh no difference per ſe, but per accidens; But the wonderful variety of motions and effects is otherwiſe cauſed: So it ſeemeth that Chriſt the Sun of Righteouſneſs, affordeth by his Means of Nature (which he Politically manageth) an indifferent influx or help for Action as Action to the ſouls of men: which as Dr. Twiſſe frequently ſaith well, is to be called Nature rather than Grace (except as the repriving of Nature is Grace) ſo far as it is meer Power to Act; becauſe it is equally indifferent to a good act as a bad, and to do or not do.
§. 3. The Power of Action as ſuch, being given by an equal Natural Univerſal Influx, it is the ORDER of Actions, where we muſt enquire of the difference and its Cauſe.
§. 4. Action it ſelf is not a proper ſubſtantial being, but a Modus Rei. But yet it is ſuch a Mode as (by the Carteſians leave) requireth more Cauſation to it, than a meer non agere doth. But ORDO Actionum is but a modus modi.
§. 5. ORDO is the beauty of the World, and ſoul; the genus of all Relation in fundamento, and of all morality, and worthy to have had a notable place in the predicaments: And yet we know not what to call it, whether any thing or nothing. The ORDO Rerum is not Res: And it is Rerum ſtatus; which we better know in ſe, than we know with what Logical Notion to cloth it.
§. 6. This excellent Nothing is the ſumm of Morality in its form; and the buſineſs of frail man on earth, and much of the glory of the Church triumphant in Heaven. It is Gods work and not ours to make new ſubſtances; It is ours to keep ORDER in our ſelves, as Gods work, yea, in the Actions, which God by Nature enableth us to. So vain a thing is man that can do no more than this, nor this but by the Power given him of God.
§. 7. Vainly therefore do the Dominicans pretend that it is a Deifying of the Will of man to ſay that God can enable it to Cauſe the various ORDER of mans Actions, by meer moral helps, without Gods predetermining premotion to that order. For this is to cauſe no Real being. And he that is moved to the Act in genere needeth no more premotion from God, to the diſorder and ſinfulneſs of the Act.
§. 8. And they that will call the production of faith, a Creation in the ſtrict and proper ſenſe, do not underſtand, that Creatio eſt Rerum, non ORDINIS rerum jam creatarum, vel exiſtentium. An Act is of it ſelf improperly ſaid to be created, in a pre-exiſtent Agent: That is not called created which is educed è▪ potentia materiae; nor that which is produced by the Potentia Activa prae-exiſtentis forma: Faith is an Act of the ſame Natural Power or faculty which we had before: And Grace (or rather Nature uſually) ſuſcitateth that faculty to the Act as an Act in genere: And Grace doth cauſe us to ORDER that act aright, as to the due object, and other circumſtances. But if any will call it a Creation, I contend not about the name.
§. 9. But the whole ſtate of the Man, Habitual, Relative and Practical ſet together, is called in Scripture, a New Creature, and the New Man, tropically, but not unfitly: Partly becauſe we are really new, though not by another Humanity or Species of Natural Eſſence, yet by many Accidents: And partly, becauſe thoſe Accidents are ſo great and make ſo great a change of our ſtate, as that they emulate a natural Eſſence; and we uſe to ſay in common things, that when an unlearned man is made learned, and a poor man a Prince, and a dying man healthful, he is another man.
§. 10. Though God be one and the ſame, and Chriſt the ſame, and the Law and Word and many Antecedent means the ſame to many on whom they have different effects, This difference may be cauſed many wayes. The Cauſes of difference.As 1. By the diverſity of other inferiour or concomitant ſecond cauſes: 2. By the diverſe Diſpoſition of the Receivers (a common cauſe of varieties in the World:) 3. By the diverſity of Impediments and temptations: And many other wayes.
§. 11. *I know that Bradwardine li. 2. c. 32. Cor. p. 612. ſaith that Deum non dare ſcientiam, eratiam aut perſeverantiam ſeu quodlibet munus ſuum creatur… capaci, eſt cauſa quare ipſa non accipit, & non habet: & non è contra. Et (p. 614.) Quicquid obex dicatur poteſt illa reſp…nſio corripi, cum nullus poſſit hunc obicem tollere niſi Deus, vel per Deum prius praetollentem; & ſi ipſe cum voluerit tollere, irreſiſtibiliter tollitur; Auferam cor lapideum, &c.The great queſtion is, How far the diverſity of Receptive Diſpoſitions is from God? Anſw. 1. God made all equal at firſt in Adam. 2. All were equal in ſin by his fall. 3. Cain and Abel differed from ſeveral cauſes, and not one alone. Abel differed from Cain in faith and obedience, by Gods grace as the chief cauſe, and his own will and agency as the ſecond cauſe. Cain differed from Abel by unbelief and ſin, by his own will and Satans temptations. 4. The ſins of later parents (as of Cain, Cham, Eſau, Achan, Gehezi, &c.) make a further difference, by depriving their poſterity of ſome means, helps or grace, which elſe they had been equally capable of with others. 5. It is certain that man hath much to do about his own heart, by which he is to be the ſecond cauſe of his own Receptive diſpoſition; and if he fail, is the only cauſe of his indiſpoſition.
§. 12. Difference is but Diſſimilitude: And an alteration of one of the ſubjects which ſoever, will make it diſſimile or to differ from the other. When the good Angels ſtood and the evil fell, if you ask, Who made the difference, It was the Devils by forſaking their firſt eſtate: Though Conſtitutively, both their ſin, and the Angels obedience made the diſſimilitude. If you ſuppoſe Cain and Abel equally under grace at firſt, and ask, Who made the difference, I anſwer, Conſtitutively Cains ſin and Abels righteouſneſs maketh, or is, the difference: But as to Reputative efficiency, Cain made the difference by rejecting grace. So if you ſhould ſuppoſe two equally qualified with common grace, and one of them to loſe it, the efficience of the difference is Imputable to him. But if you ſuppoſe two equally loſt in ſin, and one converted and not the other, the Conſtitutive Cauſes of the difference are ones ſin and the others repentance. But the Imputable efficiency is Gods grace and mans repentance or will, that is recovered.
§. 13. But when Paul doth ask, [Who made thee to differ?] he meaneth [Who gave thee that good by which thou differeſt?] and expoundeth it by [What haſt thou which thou haſt not received?] And no doubt but all good is received from God: And this would have held true, if God had by equal operation done as much on the other which had been uneffectual by his indiſpoſition or rejection.
§. 14. Nature and Scripture perſwade us, that the ſame meaſure of help or influx is not enough to make one repent or believe, which is enough to make another. For the difference of ſouls, and temptations, and impediments plainly prove it. The ſame ſtrength will not move a Mountain, which will move a Feather: nor the ſame Teaching make an ignorant Sot to underſtand which ſerveth a prepared perſon.
§. 15. Bodily aptitude, or ineptitude do much to vary receptivities; which are uſually Gods puniſhments or rewards for Parents actions: And oft-times for mens own. Some by fornication, gluttony, drunkenneſs, ſports and idleneſs, make themſelves even next to Brutes.
§. 16. But we have great Reaſon from Scripture to believe that though Gods Laws be equal, and his Judgements where men do not make an inequality; yet as a free Lord and Benefactor, he dealeth not equally with all that are of equal merit: Though he do no man wrong, nor deny any what he promiſed in his Word, but keep perfect Juſtice as a Governour; yet he may do with his own as he liſt, and he will be ſpecially good to ſome, though others ſee it with an evil eye.
§. 17. Whether all that are elect have at firſt a greater meaſure of the Divine help and impreſs than any that are not converted, no man can ſay (of which more anon.) But certainly all the elect were fore-decreed by Gods will to that certain converſion, which others were not ſo decreed to.
SECT. VI. Of the Limitations of Gods Operations on the Soul.
§. 1. THat which ſticks in the minds of many is, that God being Omnipotent, all his operations muſt be equally unreſiſtible and efficacious; becauſe none can conquer God: But they muſt conſider, that though he be Almighty, yet he doth not all that he can do: nor do his works equally manifeſt his Omnipotency. And there are theſe cauſes, for Limiting his operations in the effects.
§. 2. 1. *Gemina operatio Providentiae reperitur, partim naturalis, partim voluntaria. Naturalis per occultam Dei adminiſtrationem quae etiam lignis & herbis dat incrementum. Voluntaria vero per Angelorum opera & hominum; Vid. catera. Auguſt. de Geneſi ad lit. l. 8. cap. 9. & plura li. 9. cap. 15.The chief cauſe is his Wiſdom and Free-will. It is his Will to do what he doth, and to do no more: which hath no cauſe.
§. 3. 2. Another cauſe is, that God operateth by Jeſus Chriſt, whoſe Humanity is finite, being a Creature; and God worketh according to the Inſtrument or medium: As he ſhineth by the Sun, Moon or Stars, according to their ſeveral natures, and not according to his meer omnipotency, ſo doth he communicate Grace by Jeſus Chriſt.
§. 4. †Mark 6. 5. He (Chriſt) could there do no mighty work, becauſe of their unbelief: and 7. 24. He could not be hid: and 1. 45. Jeſus could no more openly enter into the City: with many ſuch places, all ſpeak of an Ordinate power working not ad ultimum poſſe.And Chriſt by Office being King and Prophet, will operate upon certain terms which in his Sapiential Government he ſets down. And God will not violate thoſe terms.
§. 5. 3. Alſo under Chriſt there are many ſubordinate Cauſes; There are his Word, Preachers, and all the forementioned means and helps: and Chriſt will work according to theſe means. Though he tye not himſelf from doing more or otherwiſe. I have proved that this is his uſual way. And the effect will be limited according to theſe ſecond cauſes.
§. 6. As the Sun ſhineth on us firſt in and through the air, which abateth ſomewhat of its force; and then through the exhalations, and then through the glaſs window, and each maketh ſome alteration as to the effect on us; ſo is it in this caſe.
§. 7. 4. But the notable limitation is the foreſaid Indiſpoſition of the Receiver. Every eye hath a tunicle which the Suns light muſt penetrate: But he that hath a ſuffuſion, or he that winketh, hath a greater impediment to limit the effect: ſo is it with the various degrees of Indiſpoſition, or moral incapacity, which yet be nothing if God did work ad ultimum poſſe, and did not as aforeſaid; work according to his free will and ſecond cauſes.