We need “salvation” and we need God’s “grace” (whatever that means).
To be favoured in a special way, and in this respect closely linked to the ideas of magnanimity and mercy:
From the Catholic Encyclopedia,
Grace, Under the Heading of
Nature of Actual Grace:
(a) The definition of actual grace is
based on the idea of grace in general, which, in Biblical, classical, and modern language, admits of a fourfold meaning. In the first place, subjectively, grace signifies good will, benevolence; then, objectively, it designates every favor which proceeds from this benevolence and, consequently, every gratuitous gift (
donum gratuitum,
beneficium). In the former (subjective) sense, the king’s grace grants life to the criminal condemned to death; in the latter (objective) sense the king distributes graces to his lieges. In this connection grace also stands for charm, attractiveness; as when we speak of the three Graces in mythology, or of the grace poured forth on the lips of the bridegroom (Ps. xliv, 3), because charm calls forth benevolent love in the giver and prompts him to the bestowal of benefactions. As the recipient of graces experiences, on his part, sentiments of gratefulness, and expresses these sentiments in thanks, the word
gratioe (plural of
gratia) also stands for thanksgiving in the expressions
gratias agere and
Deo gratias, which have their counterpart in the English,
to say grace after meals.
A comparison of these four senses of the word
grace reveals a clear relationship of analogy among them, since grace, in its objective signification of “gratuitous gift” or “favor”, occupies a central position around which the other meanings may be logically grouped. For the attractiveness of the recipient, as well as the benevolence of the giver is the cause, whereas the expression of thanks which proceeds from the grateful disposition is the effect, of the gratuitous gift of grace. This last-mentioned meaning is, consequently, the fundamental one in grace. The characteristic idea of a free gift must be taken in the strict sense and exclude merit in every form, be it in the range of commutative justice as, e.g., in sale and purchase, or in that of distributive justice, as is the case in the so-called remunerations and gratuities. Hence St. Paul says: “If by grace, it is not now by works: otherwise grace is no more grace” (Rom., xi, 6).
So, in summary and to clear up the confusion of terms, our “salvation” arises entirely from “God’s love for us”, which we in no way have merited but comes merely from God’s loving us; as, for example, a woman might be charmed by a man’s affection as a consequence of that which she has by nature (beauty) and by, perhaps, discipline, education or training (of her father and mother and teachers generally); of course, the latter were given and only simply because, again, she was who she was and not on account of any peculiar merit on her part. Thus, if she wonders for the cause or causes in herself of what she “did” to “earn” his love, she has missed the reality entirely and, indeed, such inquisitiveness could ruin the affection in the first place. In fact, I frequently see men becoming frustrated with their girlfriends/wives exactly because they seem to think they did something or had to do something to “merit” or “earn” their lovers affection: that is simply not the case, of course. She is loved just because of who and what she is and not -at least primarily or necessarily- on account of any peculiar merit (though of course this is not impossible and such things too may also be loved).
For the biblical basis of this see, e.g.,
the Song of Songs.
