Concerning the nature of the freewill

[problemsSeeing]

hi,
I’m new to catholism and have trying to better understand core things about the faith. Right now im having trouble understanding the individuality of the soul and the nature of its freewill. For example what differs between souls that allows them to make different decisions and what defines a soul as an individual. Our some souls lazy and some souls righteous and if so how did they become so. any (name removed by moderator)ut you may have on this topic will both be helpful and much appreciated…

-Brick

 

[Cari]

My limited understanding is this:

At baptism, we are all given Sanctifying grace. This is what enables us to even begin to be elegible for eternal salvation. Sanctifying grace is killed in us by mortal sin, and can only be restored through the Sacrament of Confession.

Through our actions, our prayers, attending Mass, and, above all, God’s own boundless generosity, we are also given Actual grace, which helps us grow in holiness.

Each soul, due to free will, will respond differently to different situations. Say, for example, two baptised people are both faced with the opportunity to commit “the perfect crime”. Person A, though baptised, hasn’t taken advantage of the graces poured out by God, and so has conditioned his free will to act in a selfish, immoral manner. Person B has taken advantage of the undeserved gift of God’s graces, and so has conditioned his soul to act in a completely different manner.

Or, to use a different metaphor: two people, initially identical in physical attributes, both decide to run a marathon. Person A runs maybe a few times a week, but mostly puts off training and sits around and eats a lot of fast food. Person B finds and follows a training schedule, eats nutritious foods, and gets plenty of rest. They started out in the same condition, but, due to their freely chosen actions, ended up with wildly different results.

So it is with our souls.

C

 

[problemsSeeing]

Person A, though baptised, hasn’t taken advantage of the graces poured out by God, and so has conditioned his free will to act in a selfish, immoral manner. Person B has taken advantage of the undeserved gift of God’s graces, and so has conditioned his soul to act in a completely different manner.
a person choosing to except gods graces or not I can understand, but why does Person A choose not to take advantage of God's Graces as compared to Person B?

 

[Cari]

a person choosing to except gods graces or not I can understand, but why does Person A choose not to take advantage of God’s Graces as compared to Person B?

That would be the heart of free will. Who knows why Our Lady said “yes” to God, when Eve said “yes” to the devil? Who knows why Judas betrayed Our Lord and committed suicide, yet St. Peter denied Our Lord, and lived to be given the chance to take it back.

Perhaps the one who turns their back on God’s grace has become “of the world”, rather than “in it”. Perhaps the one who turns their back on God’s grace has been wounded by the enemy in the spiritual battle we’re all involved in. I honestly don’t know why people choose bad. I do know, however, that the Church has shown us an arsenal of spiritual weapons, tools, and tactics to make sure that our use of free will is in union with God’s plan.

I also know, that no matter how far a person strays from God, strays from the plan God intended for him, as soon as they repent and return to God, He can set their life back on track.