Man:Totally Depraved or Wounded?

[Athanasiy]

I think , I can not get it yet.
Traditionally our Evangelical thought is Dichotomous .
There are activities which are not really sinful, but their practice can lead to the sin , therefore they are forbidden.

Does it relates to the question of the total depravity of Man and the understanding of man as just wounded by sin ?

I am interesting to get the understanding of the statement that

• all non-sinful endeavors are ultimately spiritual.
  How to understand that ?

 

[Truthstalker]

It seems to me that Catholicism and Calvinism are not as far off as one would think on this point. Both agree man is fallen. Both agree that man will not seek God on his own as a result of the fall. Both agree that man needs grace in order to turn to God. Both agree that salvation is God’s action entirely in turning man to God initially.

Man is sin-blinded. His eyes no longer work as they were designed to, but he still has eyes. Likewise with every facet of his being: decimated, wounded, crippled, but not past the point of being able to be redeemed, not so corrupt that he no longer exists. He is still essentially man, still essentially carries the image of God, no matter how much that is distorted or hidden.

It is what happens AFTER grace kicks into the life of a Christian that the differences between Catholicism and Calvinism start rearing their heads. To the Catholic, God gives man a truly free will. He is now free to live righteously - or to choose sin. To the Calvinist, man is still a slave, only now a slave of God instead of sin in the inner man. The Calvinist exchanges one slave-owner for another. The Catholic instead becomes a son of the Living God.

If you look at the fallen will of man in such as way as that even with the power of grace man cannot choose well for himself, you are of the Calvinist camp. If, however, you agree that with grace operating in your life you can choose those things that please God, you are more of a Catholic. So to me the Catholic concept of grace is more powerful than that of the Calvinist, although I am not any sort of expert on this. But that is what I think.

 

[Athanasiy]

I agree that the transmission of original sin is a mystery that we cannot fully understand.

The Calvinists predestination, excludes the presence of free will.
I do not believe the atonement is limited, that Christ offered it for some men but not for all. They claim Christ died only for the elect.
The Christ died for all, but not all shall be saved of course.
Only Heaven knows and in heaven the saved ones will be known .
As for me the Catholic Moral Assurance of Salvation is more understandable
Yes,while God may give efficacious grace only to some, he gives sufficient grace to all.
This is presupposed by the fact that he intended the atonement to be sufficient for all.
Also from the article of James Akin, I have found the interesting statement of the Pope , worthy of attention;
-“Since Christ died for all men, and since the ultimate calling of man is in fact one and divine, we ought to believe that the Holy Spirit in a manner known only to God offers to every man the possibility of being associated with this paschal mystery.”
There is no problems with salvation teaching.
Only I need more clearness with –depraved-wounded terms.

 

[Truthstalker]

I agree that the transmission of original sin is a mystery that we cannot fully understand.

The Calvinists predestination, excludes the presence of free will.
I do not believe the atonement is limited, that Christ offered it for some men but not for all. They claim Christ died only for the elect.
The Christ died for all, but not all shall be saved of course.
Only Heaven knows and in heaven the saved ones will be known .
As for me the Catholic Moral Assurance of Salvation is more understandable
Yes,while God may give efficacious grace only to some, he gives sufficient grace to all.
This is presupposed by the fact that he intended the atonement to be sufficient for all.
Also from the article of James Akin, I have found the interesting statement of the Pope , worthy of attention;
-“Since Christ died for all men, and since the ultimate calling of man is in fact one and divine, we ought to believe that the Holy Spirit in a manner known only to God offers to every man the possibility of being associated with this paschal mystery.”
There is no problems with salvation teaching.
Only I need more clearness with –depraved-wounded terms.

Read Aquinas.

 

[Athanasiy]

I did not read nothing of Catholicism, beside the Comparative Theology and Cathechism.

I studied only the Biblical Theology
Thank You for the advise.