I’m in a difficult spot right now . . . I’m a college student feeling completely convinced and called to conversion to the RCC, but I’m living with three friends of mine who are all fundamentalist. I would say their beliefs are extremely Calvinistic in many ways. The issue of God’s sovereignty versus man’s responsibility has come up a lot recently, and I just know I’m going to have to face the issue of free will.
Amongst themselves, I think they are unsure whether a person has the free will to reject or accept God in any fashion. I just want to be ready with my answers in case they get into a discussion.
What does the Church say about predestination, free will, and God’s sovereignty? I’m having trouble finding Biblical evidence (which would be the easiest way to discuss with my roommates). Anything that the CCC might say on the subject would be helpful as well. Thanks!
Don’t really have the time to go through biblical or CCC passages, however, I would refer you to St. Augustine’s writings on predestination. In a nutshell, dumbed down to layman’s level, the gist of St. Augustine’s take comes down to this:
God is beyond the bounds of time;
Our own desitnation is NOT OURS TO KNOW–because we ARE bound by time;
From our own vantage point, we do have Free Will, and we do (essentially) control our own destinies–God simply knows how that plays/played/will play out–from His omnipotent/omnicient
vantage point (to the extent it could be described as such–that is, as a ‘point’);
Hence, while the Cat. Church teaches and believes in pre-destination, it does not put a great deal of emphasis on it (unlike Calvinism) for the simple reason that even our own pre-desitnation, is NOT OURS TO KNOW–because we ARE bound by time.
NOTE: however, the Catholic Church does NOT teach or believe in double predestination, while Calvinism does. (Double PD meaning that some folks are pre-destined for damnation).
The bottom line, is that the Catholic Church doesn’t place much emphasis on it–if not straight up de-emphasizing it–because of the potential (likely) counterproductive/adverse effects teaching it could have. So the Church emphasizes the relevant aspect–the view from our vantage point. IOW, as far as we’re concerned, we can control our destiny, by believing in Chirst, keeping is dual commandment (charity), refraining from sin, and keeping the sacraments.
If that is out of our hands…well, only God knew (knows) that.
Why give folks an easy out? Why give folks an excuse not to keep the commandments, not to obey Chirst’s commamdments, not to love one anther etc, if it was never theirs/ours to know at all?
I never understood Calivinists emphasis on this issue. It doesn’t do anyone at all, any good at all. It just doesn’t. It’s not ours to know. So acknowledge the God knows…and move on to that which is in our control–our own thoughts, words and actions.
IMHO.
