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Father John A. Hardon, S.J. Archives
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Course on Grace
|Indwelling Trinity
Gifts of the Holy Spirit
|Sanctifying Grace
|Infused Virtues
|Gifts of the Holy Spirit
|(uncreated grace)
|(created grace)
|(created grace)
|(created grace)
Among the internal actual graces we might mention salutary:
illuminations of the mind (discursive or supra-discursive)
inspirations of the will (deliberative or supra-deliberative).
The Indwelling Trinity is the source of all other graces in us. By faith we can know that the three Persons are dwelling in just souls, but we cannot see Them. Our Lord while on earth had the Beatific Vision of the Triune God, not faith, but sight. God could give it to us here and now, absolutely speaking, but He does not. If He did, it would be heaven for us.
Connections. Are these big graces inter-connected? Yes, to some extent at least. To be saved, what grace must we have at death? Sanctifying Grace. If we have sanctifying grace, what other graces will we have? Indwelling Trinity infused virtues gifts of the Holy Spirit. May a person have faith and hope alone, without these other graces? Yes, a mortal sinner is often (ordinarily) in this condition.
There is an intimate, if mysterious, connection between sanctifying grace and the Indwelling Trinity: so that the Indwelling Trinity is the cause of sanctifying grace and sanctifying grace the necessary disposition for Indwelling Trinity. Hence if one is present in us, the other must be also. Through sanctifying grace (as cause or/and term of it?) the Trinity dwells within us, ready to be known experimentally. Why is it, then, that experimental knowledge of the Trinity is comparatively rare? We have the power for it (by charity and wisdom) it seems; but according to some theologians, we do not use the infused virtues and the gifts of the Holy Spirit as we should so as to obtain this experimental knowledge.
Why, when we have all these graces, do we not have the Beatific Vision? Because we have the light of faith and not the light of glory. When faith and hope are replaced by the light of glory we have the Beatific Vision. You can understand why faith thus is sometimes called the dark light and faith-knowledge is termed obscure. Our Lord had the light of glory and hence the Beatific Vision, love and enjoyment. What light we might ask, do the mystics have? They have, according to some theologians, the light of infused contemplation, which ranks them somewhere between mere faith and vision.
What graces are there in heaven? For the Beatific Vision, love and enjoyment: Indwelling Trinity sanctifying grace light of glory charity moral virtues gifts of the Holy Spirit. The connection between these graces is mysterious, but probably this: sanctifying grace is the radical principle of the Beatific Vision, love and enjoyment of the Indwelling Trinity, while light of glory and charity are the proximate principles (of vision and love respectively). And as the degree of sanctifying grace will determine the degree of the light of glory, so the degree of the light of glory will determine the degree of our Beatific Vision, the degree of its intensity. In the Beatific Vision everyone sees all that is God, but not in the same degree of intensity. Here we have only a knowing love of God, there we will have a seeing love of God. The greater the amount of light, the more visible God will be to us and the more lovable. The more we see His goodness and lovableness, the more we will love Him. Here we have only the dark light of faith. Faith gives us solidity and assurance, and yet it bothers us. We say, If I could only see e.g., Our Lord in the Host then I would truly love. In heaven we will see God face to face, and not merely as He is reflected in nature.
The virtues of faith and hope drop away, but charity has an essential role in the pattern of heavenly graces. For it is the infused power to love God as He loves Himself, and in heaven it enables us to have the beatific love of the Triune God that is an essential part of our eternal happiness.
The moral virtues and gifts go with us into heaven (it seems), but add only an accidental perfection to our Beatific Vision; for example wisdom will give a special relish, a savor to our enjoyment. According to Leo XIII the gifts (and virtues?) work in a more eminent way in heaven than here on earth.
Why do we say we will have these gifts and moral virtues in heaven? The norm is Our Lord and the graces He had on earth while enjoying the Beatific Vision. In Him we have reason to believe there were both the gifts of the Holy Spirit and the moral virtues and so we will have them in heaven. Moreover God can give other gifts if He will. There were, too, for Our Lord, three kinds of knowledge: wisdom, infused knowledge and experiential knowledge. These, too, we expect for ourselves in heaven, as well as the preternatural gifts of integrity, impassibility and immortality of the body.
What is the grace-pattern on earth? The Indwelling Trinity sanctifying grace infused virtues gifts of the Holy Spirit. No light of glory. Of course, both in heaven and on earth there is actual grace actual grace, but of this we shall talk later, if we have time.
We might ask many questions about the angels. Did all angels have grace? Did they have these big graces we have mentioned? Which graces do the angels in heaven have now? This last question is perhaps most easily answered. For if they have the Beatific Vision it seems they have: The Indwelling Trinity sanctifying grace light of glory charity moral virtues gifts of the Holy Spirit.
Did all the angels have grace before the fall? Theologians seem agreed that all had sanctifying grace (and hence the Indwelling Trinity) and the infused virtues and the gifts of the Holy Spirit and actual grace, so that they could freely merit the Beatific Vision. Neither angels nor we could merit heaven by natural powers: grace is needed. For condign merit of the Beatific Vision, love and enjoyment, there must be sanctifying grace, for it is the radical principle of condign merit. It is the remote principle, but it does not do the work of merit by itself, so to speak it has henchmen, the infused virtues. These are the proximate principles of condign merit. Sanctifying grace of itself gives a title to the Beatific Vision, love and enjoyment, but also gives the power to merit more of the Beatific Vision, its love and enjoyment. And God wanted the angels to merit heaven. He did not create angels in heaven, nor man. Deprived of heaven at first, creatures should desire Him and heaven. He wants us to realize what it is to be outside and therefore desire to be inside.
Could the angels sin with all this battery of grace? Yes, many did, for they were only in the vestibule of heaven and they were free, Their sin probably was one of pride (Tob. 4,14; Eccl. 10,15), perhaps a proud desire to be like God, or proud complacency in self, or proud rejection of grace or refusal to bow down before Our Lord or Lady.
How would you apportion grace to the angels? To which angel would you give the most grace? To each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christs bestowal (Eph. 4,11). But to each angel it seems grace was given according to (not because of) the measure of his natural perfection. St. Thomas said: It is reasonable to suppose that gifts of graces and perfection of beatitude were bestowed on the angels according to the degree of their natural gifts for they differ specifically, while men differ only numerically. Thus the highest Seraphim would get the most grace. Note well that no angel has any claim to grace by the perfection of its nature, for every grace is wholly gratuitous. Grace is above the power, merit, exigence of every created nature: No creature has any claim to it.
Scotus would not admit the necessity or existence of infused moral virtues for man or angel. But with St. Thomas we prefer to think that there are infused moral virtues; and to angels we assign all those that do not connote a sensitive appetite.
Angels likewise receive actual graces, it seem to us, just as Christ did (with the Beatific Vision). These actual graces take the form either of divine premotions or of septiform inspirations of the Holy Spirit (proportioned to their gifts of the Holy Spirit) or of both.
Deiform Man. What graces were given to Adam in the state of original justice? The array of graces that made him supernatural man: the Indwelling Trinity sanctifying grace infused virtues gifts of the Holy Spirit. What kind of man may we now call him? Sanctified, divinized, deified but the term we like best, the one which many Fathers and St. Thomas have used, is deiform. Adam was God-like; two complementary natures were united, interwoven, into one deiform man. Adam was not God; he was not made ever into God. But he was made god-like, a deiform man, lifted up as it were into the realm of God. And it was sanctifying grace that gave him this deiform nature, infused virtues and the gifts of the Holy Spirit that gave him his deiform powers, the Indwelling Trinity that caused and conserved all these graces in him.
We find in him also certain preternatural gifts: integrity, impassibility, immortality, infused knowledge. We call these graces, too. But while the graces mentioned above (sanctifying grace, etc.) are absolutely supernatural, since they are not due to any created nature, the preternatural gifts are relatively supernatural (supernatural relatively to human nature) since they are undue to human nature, but are due to angelic nature.
Integrated Man. The gift of integrity effected a harmonious relation between flesh and spirit in Adam, by completely subordinating his animal passions to his reason. There was no precipitous pull of passion before or against reason. This gift that put harmony and order in Adam (and Eve) gave him another likeness to God, Who is perfect Order. With such perfect order and control it is hard to understand how Adam could sin. Yet we must remember that he was free, and freedom is a tremendous power to say NO to God.
By these preternatural gifts in Adam, he became something that we are not, even when we are baptized. He became an integrated man. Human nature is not perfect in itself, and is certainly not the perfect thing that some would have us believe. If man had been created with natural endowments alone (pure nature), there would still have been the seeds of conflict within him. For in man, God has done the seemingly impossible: He has combined incompatibles, matter and spirit. The body goes quickly to the things of sense; the mind goes more slowly to things of the spirit. Thus, there are roots of disorder in mans very nature. St. Paul spoke so eloquently of this battle, this conflict in man (Rom. 7). In Adam, God did not remove the disorderly tendencies, but by the gift of integrity He put in him a principle of control.
Adam likewise had, of course, natural endowments of body, mind, and a will which was free. His nature was like ours, but probably very much better.
Original Plan. What was Gods original plan with regard to men? All these gifts to Adam were intended for the human race. We, too, would have been born with the whole line of supernatural gifts, as well as with the preternatural gifts. (The gift of infused knowledge is disputed perhaps it would have been given only to Adam, who was made adult and as King of Creation needed it to know and name the animals, plants, etc., etc.). We would have been in sanctifying grace, but not confirmed in it; we would have been free to sin and might have sinned. But we, too, would have been: deiform and integrated human beings.
The Fall. What intervened to disrupt Gods plan? Sin, the sin of Adam. And was it a grave sin? Yes. The consequences for Adam were loss of the supernatural gifts (except faith and hope??) and of the preternatural gifts: he became subject to concupiscence, pain, suffering and death of the body. And hell eternal death of the soul would be his lot unless God would show special mercy. For us the consequences were the same.
Many struggled with this question of original sin. One of these was Pelagius, born either in England or Ireland. He later went to Rome. As spiritual director there, he heard people complaining in discouragement that they were unable to keep from sin, through lack of grace. From his own disturbance he emerged with an amazing answer: there is nothing wrong with human nature, no such weakness in it. Man is a moral superman, strong and independent, full master of his destiny: he can do anything, avoid every sin, do any good, even gain the Beatific Vision without grace. Adam had no grace, lost none for us; in fact he never fell. There was no fall, there is no original sin and hence no need of grace or baptism to remit this sin.
St. Augustine of Hippo struck out fiercely against this, and wrote out boldly: Nature can do nothing without grace. The controversy was on with some monks in Africa, who felt Augustine had gone too far. St. Augustine clarified his position: nature can do nothing salutary, nothing conducive to salvation, without grace. But can human nature do all things natural to it can it keep the whole moral law without grace? We answer with St. Thomas and the Church: for a short time, yes; but for a long time, no.
The Fall, then, was devastating. And its extent? Is there complete darkness of mind? Complete loss of freedom? Is man a slave to his passions? Is he depraved? Is his nature corrupted? Luther and Calvin said, Yes. But the Church says, No: man is only deprived of superadded gifts. The Fall wrought great harm: man lost those supernatural and preternatural gifts, but not free will. Without grace man can still know God and other speculative and moral truths, and can do naturally good acts. But he cannot keep the whole natural law, without grace, for a long time. He is not corrupted or depraved; he is deprived of supernatural and preternatural gifts.
God has not made man too strong in himself. As if perhaps to say: I made angels strong, and many of them did not need Me. I will make man to lean on Me. So it is Gods part to give grace, and mans to pray for it and use it. Prayer is mans expression of his need, salutary prayer; grace is Gods answer to mans need expressed in salutary prayer.
Orginal Sin. Man in the state of original sin lacks sanctifying grace, and this is not mere absence; it is a privation. Something is not there in the soul which should be there. Moreover, there is the habitual inordinate tendency of the sense appetite, the proneness to inordinate appetition that we call concupiscence.
If God had washed His hands of man, so to speak, and left him alone, what would have happened to him? All those dying as infants would have gone to Limbo, it seems. All adults would have gone to hell, since without grace they could not long keep the entire natural law, could not long keep out of mortal sin. So if they lived long enough they would sin, die in sin and go to hell. Would there be anything contrary to justice in this? No. God could have left man thus; but we say He would not, and He did not.
The Promise. God promised man a Redeemer. This was a serious, operative promise that would be infallibly fulfilled. And something happened immediately. Grace flowed again into the world as soon as God made that Promise in virtue of the foreseen merits of the Redeemer. I will put enmity between thee and the Woman, between her seed and your seed: these were not empty words. God acted. Instantly a whole new providence, so to speak, comes into play.
Gods providence is amazing, infallible, inscrutable, reaching from end to end mightily, ordering all things smoothly. Now grace was given to Adam in view of the merits of Christ. Adam is no longer King and Center, and Eve is no longer Queen. Christ is the King of the New Order; Our Lady replaces Eve as its Queen.
Is the second providence greater that the first? It seems so. The Church in her liturgy sings, O felix culpa. Man is now centered in someone else than Adam: in Christ, the God-Man, King of angels and men. All creation is turned to this new Center. Angels apparently had the first and greatest place. Yet it seems that God loved man more than the angels. When man sinned, God sent God in the form of man so that what man had undone, Man would restore. And Our Lady? She is Woman. Again and again the bond between the New Testament and the Old seems reiterated when Our Lord speaks to Our Lady as Mulier, Woman, with no further qualification. Woman, what is that to Me and to thee? Woman, behold thy son. We feel carried back to the promise in the Garden, I will put enmity between thee and the Woman. Who else was the Woman of the Garden but Our Lady, the Second Eve?
Who received the first grace after the Fall? Adam, it seems to us, then Eve. This first grace might well have been an actual grace of repentance. Did this grace flow, so to speak, from precisely the same source as before? No; before Adam sinned he had the grace of God; after he sinned he had the grace of Christ, that is, grace dependent on the merits of Christ, the Redeemer, Who would surely come and redeem.
Justification in the Old Testament. Justification may be described simply as the acquisition of sanctifying grace (or of infused justice). If a man is in the state of sin (original or mortal) justification will mean for him a transition from the state of sin and injustice to the state of sanctifying grace and justice. Justification is all-important for salvation, for only the just those in sanctifying grace at the moment of death will be saved and reach the love and enjoyment of the Beatific Vision.
Could men be justified in the Old Testament after the fall of Adam? Yes. From the moment God promised a Redeemer, the grace of Christ began to flow out, so to speak, in view of His future merits and by its help men could achieve justification. This meant concretely that there was a remedy for original sin, open to all men, whereby they could gain remission of original sin, infusion of sanctifying grace and the right to the Beatific Vision, its love and enjoyment.
This remedy, according to many theologians, took two forms, that of sacrament and that of an interior act or perfect love or contrition. The Old Law sacraments, however, were not the cause of sanctifying grace, as ours are, but only conditions. Still, sanctifying grace did come to men when they received these sacraments.
1. Infants
Sacrament of Nature. How could infants be justified before the institution of the sacrament of baptism? They would be born in original sin, they would need sanctifying grace. How would they get it? Who will do what to get it for them, since they can do nothing for themselves? They could get sanctifying grace, according to theologians, through a so-called sacrament of nature, and remedy of nature (not a cause but a condition occasion of sanctifying grace). What was this sacrament of nature? Probably a sensible sign, an exterior rite by which parents (or others) manifested their desire of salvation for the infants and their faith in the Redeemer to come. Perhaps the rite consisted in an offering of the child to God, an invocation, a blessing, a purification.
Circumcision. From the time of Abraham there was another remedy for original sin, the sacrament of circumcision, applicable to Jewish boys (and men). For all other infants the remedy continued to be the sacrament of nature, until the New Law of Baptism was sufficiently promulgated.
The Illumination Theory. Is usually applied only to infants of the New Testament, but perhaps it could also be applied to infants of the Old Testament. Whether this theory has any validity, we shall try to indicate later, when we consider infants in the New Testament.
2. Adults
Sacraments. How would adults be able to achieve justification in the Old Testament? By way of the Jewish sacrament it seems, or by an act of perfect contrition or love.
That there were sacraments in the Old Testament, different from those in the New Testament is clear from the Councils of Florence and Trent. As such sacraments among the Jews, many theologians cite circumcision, the paschal lamb, ablutions and ablations, rites for consecrating priests and levites. A few theologians say the sacraments of the Old Law possessed a moral causality, and Circumcision at least conferred grace ex opera operato passive (cf. The Thomist, July, 1955, p. 355). But more generally they hold that these sacraments did not cause sanctifying grace ex opera operato as ours do, but only an external, legal sanctity; however, on the occasion of their reception, the faith and piety of the recipients obtained for them sanctifying grace.
Act of Perfect Contrition. Most adults were not Jews. How could they (and Jews in certain cases) be justified? The way to salvation for them was substantially the same, it seems, as that outlined by the Council of Trent. To be justified, to receive sanctifying grace, they had to prepare themselves with the help of actual grace by salutary acts of faith, hope, fear, love, contrition. If they prepared themselves properly, they would be given sanctifying grace, the infused virtues, the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and the Indwelling Trinity.
If they then elicited condignly meritorious acts of these virtues, they would increase in habitual grace. And if they prayed humbly, confidently, perseveringly they would infallibly impetrate the grace of final perseverance and die in the state of grace; then they would go to the Limbo of the Fathers, to wait until the Redeemer would release them and take them with Him into heaven.
No natural act, then, would bring them to sanctifying grace would dispose them for it; no natural act of prayer or faith or contrition. Only a salutary act one flowing out of actual grace would remotely or proximately dispose them for sanctifying grace.
And among the salutary acts required for an adults justification, one stands out; the act of perfect contrition (or love). For this act is the proximate disposition for justification: as soon as this act is elicited God infuses sanctifying grace into the soul. It is a most powerful act for it brings (but not as a sacrament does) sanctifying grace.
An act of perfect contrition involves an act of perfect love: of love of God above all things, for what He is in Himself: I want God above all things, I love God above all things. Even the angels test was fundamentally this: Do you love me above all things? An act of perfect love really must go out to God as above all things, or it does not go to Him as He is in Himself: for He is above all things. Such an act must flow from actual grace and must presuppose salutary faith: assent to revealed truth on the authority of God Who reveals it. For such faith, natural reason and natural revelation that take us only to God as reflected in nature are not enough. There must be actual grace and supernatural assent to at least two supernaturally revealed truths: one must believe that God exists and is a rewarder to those who seek Him. (Heb. 11,6).
Could adults in the Old Testament elicit such an act of perfect love or contrition? Yes. But would they not need actual grace for this? Yes. And God would give them actual grace sufficient for them to pray to believe to be perfectly contrite if they cooperated properly. What would be the first actual grace God gave them? We do not know; for every one it may have been a different grace. But many think it was an actual grace to pray, perhaps to say: God, I need You. For the grace of prayer seems to be the grace most commonly given to each one. For us in the New Testament, who are in sanctifying grace, it is ready and waiting all the time. If we need help in temptation, regularly, it seems, we first get the grace to pray.
Actual Grace. We might well pause here and ask; What is actual grace? We know it is necessary for a salutary act (one that positively conduces to salvation), and that a salutary act of perfect contrition (or love) brings sanctifying grace.
Where is actual grace? It is in the faculties in the mind and will; sanctifying grace is in the essence of the soul. Actual grace can come from God in different ways. It can come directly into the mind, in spite of complicated thought processes. It is not dependent on them. The mind can be occupied with many things; then out of the blue may come a holy thought which has no connection with the matter agitating you at present. God is acting most directly, right here and now, divorcing Himself from the normal psychological procedure. However, most actual graces seem to come in very quietly, as part and parcel of the picture. The supra-discursive, supra-deliberative actual graces, the interior actual graces that are entirely disconnected from preceding external graces, these are rather more unusual. The supra types go with very special activity of the gifts of the Holy Spirit. They relieve one of the task of reasoning and deliberating: the Holy Spirit leads and directs; in fact, you do not bother to reason (or cannot) for fear that you will spoil it. But this is the easy way; normally one gets to this easy way only by traveling the hard way a long time.
Actual graces regularly seem to involve a salutary thought of and desire (aversion) for something; a thought of praising, thanking, loving, obeying God or Christ or parents, superious; a thought of being sorry for sin and amending, etc. Suppose you wanted to produce an act of contrition in someone: you would first try to put into him the thought of being sorry, then try to move him to desire to be sorry. An act of contrition could then follow, but it might not. For he is quite free to assent or dissent to the pressure you are putting on him to be sorry. In much the same way God can give us the (supernatural) thought and desire of an act of contrition: and these would be actual graces of the mind and will. But man stays free to assent or dissent to the push or pull of Gods actual grace.
There is no such thing (ordinarily) as grace that compels or forces us. But there is such a thing as efficacious grace, but it does not force or necessitate the will to consent to it. God gives sufficient motion and power to the mind and will to place this act: if the will freely consents, the act is placed by the grace-moved will, and the grace is called efficacious (from eternity God foresaw this grace, if given, would effect this act). If, however, the will dissents, the act that could have been elicited is not elicited, and the grace is called merely sufficient. It is a matter of dogma that grace leaves one free: one can dissent to it, resist it. This was defined against the Reformers and Jansenius who said that efficacious grace necessitated the will to consent to it. Jansenius distinguished between two delights, the celestial and the terrestrial. The celestial pull (of grace) and the terrestrial pull (of concupiscence) are such that man will inevitably go according to whichever has the greater attractive power, greater intensity: and he will go thus by a necessitating traction. Besides being condemned and wrong dogmatically, Jansenius is even wrong psychologically. He said that man necessarily acts according to the strongest pull, the greater delight. But experience often show the contrary. With the gift of integrity gone, material sense pulls and delights are at times very strong: yet often grace wins out with its tiny spiritual pull. We must remember this in dealing with souls.
Essentially or partially (according to many theologians) actual grace is a supernatural motion or promotion of the mind and will to a certain salutary act. God takes the initiative physically. If I say yes, God moves along with me and I (my grace-moved will) produce the act under God, so that the act proceeds from God and from me moving under God. God starts the process in my mind and will. I assent. God and I produce the act. The salutary value of it is due to God: He is acting with an eye to the Beatific Vision.
God is the God of the present, and He uses things which move me now. Often His starting point is a prayer, but not always. Sometimes it is love of mother, sickness, death, or any apparently fortuitous event. God works in many ways. He appeals to people in different ways and to the same person in different ways at different periods of life. We outgrow certain things. So He calls, draws us in another way.
External Actual Graces. Actual grace can be internal or external (to ones mind or will). External grace alone is not enough for salvation; there must be rectitude in the will (transiently and/or permanently) and for this internal grace is necessary. But God normally seems to use external graces as occasions for giving the much more important internal (salutary) graces. Of course, He can give such internal graces independently of external graces, but He usually seems to use external graces to prepare the way for internal graces. Hence external graces can be very important as leads to internal (salutary) graces.
What are some of the external graces of the New Testament? We may divide them into persons, places, things. The greatest external grace is, of course, Our Lord His life, His example, His Cross, His Book (the New Testament); Our Lady, parents, priests, teachers, friends all can be an external grace. How can I be a potential external grace? By being what I am meant to be, and doing what I am supposed to do. Among places, some churches stand out, for God seems very near to us in them and very active. Home, retreat houses, shrines can be strong external graces. Among things, the Mass looms very large, and sacraments, and the Rosary, and often Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament is a very powerful external grace for non-Catholics, exerting a very tangible pull on them.
External graces in the Old Testament would be similar to ours: persons, places, things that would help stir up in adults good thoughts and desires, help dispose them for the reception of their sacraments or for a salutary act of perfect contrition. Such persons might have been prophets, parents, children, friends. Places might have been temples, shrines; things might have been sickness, pain, suffering. Over and over, it seems, God has tied some of His greatest graces to such things: some of His finest interior illuminations and inspirations. Often He plays the contrasts light following on desolation. He breaks mans pride by sorrow, suffering; loss; then He works in him and pours grace that points to the salutary act and gives the power to place that act.
Summary. For Old Testament adults generally the way to sanctifying grace was an act of perfect contrition or love. For Jewish adults certain sacraments were also available. For Old Testament infants generally the way to sanctifying grace was the so-called sacrament of nature, an outward sign serving as a condition or occasion for internal grace. For Jewish boys there was the sacrament of circumcision.
Grace to Human Nature of Christ. In the divine nature of Christ there was, of course, no grace, no place for grace, no need for grace, no possibility of grace. Grace is a super-added gift, and there is nothing addable to the divine nature. Grace is a supernatural gift of God to a creature; only in a rational creature is there grace.
Could grace be given to, was it given to Christ in His human nature? Could His perfect human nature be made more perfect? Even when it was substantially united to the divine nature in the Person of the Word? Yes, for the humanity of Christ is not physically altered by the divinity to which it is personally united. Each nature keeps what is proper to it.
Christ is a true man, in the perfect sense of the word, and the divine nature adds nothing to the human nature. Rather, the divine Person of the Word terminates the human nature. But, although the hypostatic union thus raised that human nature to an ineffable dignity and confers upon it a substantial sanctity which is rightly said to be infinite yet it brings about no physical change in the human nature assumed; it does not make it a partaker in the divine life, unless there are infused into the human soul those finite habits, sanctifying grace with the supernatural virtues, which are the principles of supernatural operation.
Sanctifying grace, then, was not superfluous for Christ: it had many functions to perform in His human nature. It made it supremely deiform; it gave it a principle of condign merit, whereby He could condignly merit for us all graces and glory; it gave it the proportionate disposition for the Beatific Vision.
Hence from the very first instant of its existence the soul of Christ was endowed with the supreme plenitude of sanctifying grace, of the infused virtues (except faith and hope, repentance, temperance) and of the gifts of the Holy Spirit: it was thus supremely deiform, capable of the most perfectly meritorious deiform acts day in day out. And from the very first instant the soul of Christ also had the light of glory (proportioned to its sanctifying grace) and thus always enjoyed the Beatific Vision in the highest degree.
Besides these infused habits, Christ was given all the actual graces and special inspirations of the Holy Spirit needed for the perfect operation of His deiform organism, and to make it perfectly responsive to the Holy Spirit and an apt instrument upon which God played that symphony of celestial melody and harmony which is the life on earth of the Word Incarnate.
Though He could not merit any increase of sanctifying grace and glory for Himself, He could and did throughout His life on earth merit for us, so that all graces given to the children of Adam (and to Adam himself after the fall) came from the merits of the life, passion and death of Jesus Christ, and are marked with the sign of the Cross. So that He might suffer and die for us, He was not given the preternatural gifts of impassibility and immortality.
But while sanctifying grace made Christs soul deiform, and beautified it as it does ours (though to a much higher degree), it was largely for mans sake that He accepted this grace. Why? If He would be the source and lord and model of sanctifying grace, it was fitting that He Himself possess this very grace. By possessing it on earth He showed us how a soul in the state of grace should live.
Christ, then, is the Model of grace-living, the Model of deiformity. And we may judge the deiformity in us, the God-likeness, by the gifts of the Holy Spirit in action. Supreme docility to the inspirations of the Holy Spirit will give the greatest deiformity: The greatest likeness to God. The more like to Christ we become, the more deiform we become, the more we love God, the more we walk Gods way. I am the Way, the way to God, the way that will make you more and more like God. Docility to the guidance of the Holy Spirit is the measure for me: more and more I will come to purge myself of selfishness, of the things that hold me back, of my own will and my own way. More and more I will become like to Christ, like to God.
Distribution of Grace. It is clear that Christ in His humanity merited all grace for men. Does He also distribute grace to them? In the distribution of grace in the Old Testament, since His humanity did not then exist, it seems that it played no part. But now He selects, He determines, He distributes every single grace to every single person, according to the measure of Christ (Mystici Corporis, n. 51.)
How can the humanity of Christ, His soul, concur in the production of grace? Not as a physical principal cause, but as an instrumental cause (moral or physical) of a unique type: as an instrument conjoined to divinity hypostatically united to the Word.
In the Old Testament justification came to infants by way of the sacrament of nature or the sacrament of circumcision. But with the promulgation of the gospel of Christ, these two sacraments were replaced by the sacrament of baptism, a sacrament that is not merely an occasion or condition of justification but its instrumental cause. In how many ways, then, can infants be justified now? Abstractly, there might seem to be three possibilities: baptism of water, of blood, of desire.
Baptism of Water. This is the ordinary way for the justification of infants. Is it the only way (apart from martyrdom or baptism of blood)? Theologians commonly say, Yes, and add that this is theologically certain. Their arguments are very strong. They cite: 1) the Council of Florence: they cannot be helped by any remedy but the sacrament of baptism; 2) the Roman Catechism: infants have no other manner of reaching salvation, if baptism is not administered to them (p. II c. II. N. 34); 3) the Council of Cologne: adults who are prevented from actually receiving baptism can be saved by the desire of it. But infants since they are incapable of this desire, are excluded from heavenly kingdom, if they die without being reborn through baptism (Coll. Lac. V, 320); 4) Pope Pius XII: an act of love can suffice for an adult to acquire sanctifying grace and supply for the lack of baptism; to the unborn or newly born infant this way is not open (AAS: XLIII (1951) p. 84). These arguments, in their cumulative force seem inescapable.
Limbo. What happens to infants who die unbaptized in original sin without sanctifying grace? They undergo the pain of loss of the Beatific Vision for all eternity. Where do they go? We usually say: to Limbo. Where is that? We actually do not know; but as the conciliar documents say: in infernum (DB 464, 693) we may perhaps call it the ante-chamber of heaven.
Do they also undergo a pain of sense, besides the pain of loss? St. Augustine seems to subject to a mild pain of sense. But his real mind on this point is not clear. Moreover he was battling against a Pelagian error in this field. However, his supposed rigorism influenced others for a long time, and produced some followers called torturers of infants. Some other theologians, among them Bellarmine, while not assigning to these infants a strict pain of sense (i.e. of fire), do ascribe to them a sadness over the loss of the Beatific Vision.
But most theologians hold, with St. Thomas, that these infants undergo simply the pain of loss, without pain of sense or sadness. Why no sadness over their loss? Because they will not know of it. St. Thomas says in one text (De Malo q5a3). Because their knowledge of it will not make them sad; in another text (2d33q2a2), since their perfectly ordered minds will see things Gods way.
Some have indulged in various speculations about the Limboites, e.g., that they may now and then visit heaven or that Heavenites may visit Limbo, or that there may be fusion days on earth where Limboites and Heavenites may meet and mingle (the Beatific Vision would be no problem, for the Heavenites take it with them wherever they go Our Lord had it on earth). How old will the Limboites be? Will they mature? Perhaps to an ideal age. But all this is conjecture.
The Church neither affirms nor condemns such speculations; it simply makes no declaration. The common opinion of theologians today is that infants dying without sanctifying grace will have the highest natural happiness.
Baptism of Blood. Martyrdom or baptism of blood, as instanced by the Holy Innocents, is an extraordinary way to salvation for infants. Some few theologians have tried to extend this way to all (or many other) infants. Schell tried to make their death a real imitation of the death of Christ and a quasi-martyrdom by which original sin would be deleted. But this theory was condemned by the Congregation of the Index in 1898. More recently Dom Bruno Webb varied this view by having Mother Church exercise her own faith and charity at the moment of their death in the souls of infants who die unbaptized, operating through the quasi-sacrament of death by virtue of the sacrament of baptism. But he offers no real evidence.
Baptism of Desire. Some theologians do not believe it is theologically certain as yet that infants who die without the sacrament of baptism (or martyrdom) are automatically excluded from the Beatific Vision in perpetuity. They have looked to some form of baptism of desire as a way of saving infants who die without sacramental baptism. Thus a) some have proposed the illumination theory, according to which dying children receive a sudden illumination, which enables them to receive baptism of desire by making an act of perfect love (Klee, Fangauer); b) others placed the desire of baptism not in the infants themselves but in the parents, the mother or father; c) others placed this desire on behalf of the infant in the Church, the Mystical Body of Christ so that thus the Church desires salvation for them, and the Church is very powerful.
The illumination theory is beset with difficulties. There is no convincing scriptural or patristic evidence for it. And it would seem, practically speaking, to do away with the existence of Limbo or at least with the occupants of Limbo (if it is applied to all infants). For every infant, sufficiently illuminated by grace would have to make a free choice: if it said Yes to the grace given, it would go to heaven; if it said No, it would go to hell. Then what is Limbo? While its existence is not a matter of faith, like that of heaven, hell and purgatory, still it seems to be theologically certain, according to most theologians. But if nobody went to it, it would be a place (or state) without occupants.
What if the desire is ascribed to the parents? The Dominican, Cajetan, espoused this view, but Pope St. Pius V had the passage expunged from Cajetans works. In 1947, a Dominican professor of theology defended the tenability of Cajetans position. But if this theory had any real validity, the Church would tell parents to desire salvation for unborn infants who die without baptism: but she does not.
Is there a saving desire on the part of the Church? If the Church had such power, she would certainly know it and put it to use. But there is no sign in her prayers or consciousness that it is her role to obtain the salvation of unbaptized infants through the votum ecclesiae.
The following judgment by a modern theologian summarizes this critical question. We are in the presence of a common theological teaching and a conviction which runs through a number of documents of the Church contrary to the new positions, suggesting the possibility of baptism in voto for infants. This evidence of a common teaching of theologians and of a sensus Ecclesiae blocks the way to the various solutions seeking salvation for the infants dying without baptism. Nor does the recent wave of literature change the situation. Analysis of this literature reveals clearly that we are not in the presence of a new theological movement, properly so called. On the other hand further clarification and certainly more definitive declaration are still open. As matters stand now, the question is not definitively closed. We are in the presence of a theological tradition whose critical evaluation may well call for more delicately nuanced positions; and of a gensus Ecclesiae whose dogmatic force can be determined ultimately only by a dogmatic decision of the magisterium. (Gregorianum, 1954, p. 406-473; Theology Digest, Winter, 1955, p. 3-9).
Infidels make up the majority of mankind. All can be saved; to be saved they must die in sanctifying grace. Therefore all can get sanctifying grace. But how? They must do something, since they are adults: they must dispose themselves for justification, for sanctifying grace. How? By salutary (grace-elevated) acts of faith and fear and repentance and love etc. God, then, must first lean down and give them grace, for nature alone cannot produce salutary acts.
Sequence of Actual Graces for them. Just when does God give the first actual grace to an infidel which can gradually or quickly lead him to the big graces of revelation and faith (i.e. assent to this revelation in a salutary act of faith)? At the time that God judges to be opportune, which according to many theologians is the infidels first full use of reason, when he distinguishes between good and evil.
Just what is the first grace God gives to a particular infidel, we do not know. It could take many forms. It might be a grace to turn to God, to acknowledge Him, to express his need of God or of divine help. It could involve both an external grace and an internal grace (e.g. of prayer). But sometime, somehow every adult infidel will get this remote vocation to faith and sanctifying grace. If he cooperates properly with this, God gives him further graces and ultimately the grace that is proximately sufficient for the act of faith, i.e. the grace of revelation and the grace of faith to assent to this revelation.
What is the minimum of revealed truths that he must believe in this act of faith? This is disputed. Thomists usually hold that he must believe explicitly at least four revealed truths: that God exists and is Rewarder, the Trinity and the Incarnation. Many other theologians hold that more probably it is not absolutely necessary to believe explicitly in the Trinity and Incarnation. But if it is, God will put these revealed truths also within the infidels grasp.
To be justified, is it enough for the infidel to believe, to make this act of faith? No. He will be further drawn by grace to make an act of hope and fear and repentance and love and to receive the sacrament of baptism. And by the grace of this sacrament he will be justified.
But what if he knows nothing of this sacrament, or is unable to receive it? Can he still be justified? Yes, by what is called baptism of desire, if with the help of grace he elicits the act of perfect love of God (and contrition). For in this act of love he really wills whatever God desires, and hence, implicitly desires the sacrament of baptism, (for that is what God desires), even though he is invincibly ignorant of the sacrament. If this act of love were intense and perfect enough, and he were to die immediately after making it, it seems that he would be ready for immediate entry into heaven. If, however, he lived on and later heard of the sacrament of baptism and its necessity, he would have to receive it; its reception would bring him added sanctifying grace and make it possible for him to receive other sacraments and their special graces.
Outside the Church. Where is the Church in this picture? It is a matter of dogma that outside the Church there is no salvation! How then can an infidel be saved, unless he actually becomes a member of the Roman Catholic Church, or at least explicitly desires this?
The Holy Office wrote in the so called Boston heresy case: No one will be saved who, knowing the Church to have been divinely established by Christ, nevertheless refuses to submit to the Church or withholds obedience from the Roman Pontiff But that one may obtain eternal salvation, it is not always required that he be incorporated into the Church actually as a member, but it is necessary that at least he be united to her by desire and longing This may be an implicit desire when a person is in invincible ignorance but it must be animated by perfect charity and suppose supernatural faith. (AER Oct., 1952, 311).
Thus there are two salvational ways of being related to the Church: a) as actual members by baptism of water and b) by intention and longing (explicit or implicit) through baptism of desire, Without the Church, without being related to the Church, in one of these two ways, there is no salvation: this is why we say there is no salvation outside the Church. Where there is real inability to pertain to the Church in the first way (e.g. a man does not know of the church or its necessity or cannot get baptism), the second way is open to him.
In Summary, then, we may say that God gives all adult infidels sufficient grace for salvation, and if they use it properly they will be saved. Their way to justification, to sanctifying grace is as follows:
|First Grace
| Grace of Revelation
Grace of Faith
| Act of Faith
(Hope, Faith, )
| Sanctifying Grace thru the baptism: of water
: of desire
Infants have objectively sufficient means of salvation in the Church and sacraments. But it seems that not all of them get subjectively sufficient means actual graces.
Faithful Sinners. We now turn to sinners, faithful sinners, those who had sanctifying grace and lost it, but did not lose the infused virtues of faith and hope. Other sinners are infidels.
We may divide faithful sinners into two classes: ordinary sinners and obstinate sinners. In the first class are those who, although in mortal sin, still fear God and hell, and dread punishment and desire to come out of their sin; but their desire is not yet an efficacious will to do so. Obstinate sinners are those who have become hardened in their sins by repeatedly and maliciously transgressing Gods laws, and now seem to have no fear of God or hell, and no desire to get out of their sins.
Does God give to all these sinners grace sufficient for conversion and salvation? Yes, for He sincerely wills every sinner to be saved. Even the obstinate? Yes, though it seems that He does not grant as much grace to these as to ordinary sinners. But the grace He gives is not always proximately sufficient for the necessary act of contrition. Especially in the case of the obstinate sinners, it seems to many theologians that the grace God gives them at first is only remotely sufficient, e.g. a grace to pray or give alms or do some good work that will lead to illumination of mind and compunction of heart. But if the sinner uses this grace it will be followed by a more proximately sufficient grace.
When do sinners receive grace? Not at every single moment but at a time and place opportune for a good work or repentance. Such a time and place are had when exterior graces are present, such as a sermon, tribulations, danger of death, the death a relative or friend, a First Communicant, example of a saint and the like.
Since the grace given to sinners is so often a grace to pray, in our dealings with them we should urge and help them to pray; and pray for them constantly. They will get more graces if they have people praying for them. Conversion can be extremely hard for them, unless someone interested in their welfare commends their needs to God.
Chaplains during the last war were often disturbed about the number of Catholic boys who did not know the act of perfect contrition, or thought it was too hard to make. For they realized that this act could mean eternal life for many boys. They wished that all our young people would be taught its power and importance, taught how to make it, taught to make it regularly, so that if they ever really needed it to regain sanctifying grace, it would do just that for them.
This act can be of vital importance to non-Catholics. For if they should fall into mortal sin after baptism, it is the only way for them to regain sanctifying grace. It would be a great act of charity, if Catholics told their Protestant and Jewish friends about this act of perfect contrition: what kind of love of God it involves, what kind of sorrow for sin it means, and how to make it.
Copyright © 1998 by Inter Mirifica
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Disclaimer: I do not own any copyrights whatsoever to John Lennon's song "I'm Moving On" nor is anyone paying me for minutely using the lyrics in this chapter. I'm just a big fan of old music!
Thank you, writerwithoutacause for adding me to your C2 "Catch of the Cliches." I'm honored! For everyone else, thanks for reading. Maybe once you're done with this chapter you could go read some of her fantastic poetry (cue jealousy) or her story "EPIC" (only three chapters so far but what's there is worth reading!); along with anything written by Koki Enwai, who writes a killer thriller romance and a creepy one-shot that has you holding your breath 'til the end; and Aimerz, who also writes poetry that causes me great envy.
-Note- The next chapter is where the plot finally takes off. This chapter is short compared to the rest because it's almost a "filler," developing Emma's character that much more in addition to Terence and Jackson's characters. Plus I wanted to show what Emma and Terence are really like together, unhindered by Emma's earlier staggering grief. And I didn't want things to move too quickly or it would throw the rest out of whack. Yeah, I said "out of whack." People still use that expression! LONG LIVE THE '90s!
Fingers snapped in front of my face and only because the sound made my headache twinge in response did I return to the present. When Terence noticed I was no longer zoning out into the lace on the lavender pillow I was still absently petting, he rolled his eyes. At some point he had moved from lying with his head on my stomach to sitting up and facing me, holding his hand with the snapping fingers in front of my face. Wow, I must have been pretty far gone not to have noticed before.
"Where were you?" Ter asked. His blue eyes squinted against the sunlight the better to study my expression. "Or should I say when?"
I let my gaze wander away from his sunbed-tanned face and stared out the window above my bed without answering. Terence, unhappy with my inattention, put his face directly in my line of vision. When I only closed my eyes, he nuzzled my cheek like an attention whore of a puppy. The fact that his nose was cold and wet only made it more likely that's exactly what he must have been in a past life.
"Eww," I spat, pushing his face away. "Go get a tissue, Mr. Common Cold."
"Well then don't go all comatose on me when I'm talking about your future husband!" Ter shot back, wiping his nose with some article of clothing he had swiped off the floor. When he was done, he dropped it off the side of the bed. He gave me a big grin when he noticed my expression. "Don't give me that look, Em. One less shirt that proclaims 'Chuck Norris is My Homeboy' is one more human soul I've saved." By the time I had rolled my eyes, the conversational topics had already changed. "So as I was saying about Ben…"
"Terence, no. Just… no."
"But Emma!"
"I've had enough for now, okay?" I half-snapped, half-sighed. "I already have a lot on my plate. My ex-boyfriend-slash-best-friend just died and I kind of need some time to—"
Terence seized my face between his hands and squeezed my cheeks hard. It would have been more peculiar if this wasn't something he had started doing since the day I met him, when he was working the makeup counter at Macy's and my friend Stacy asked for a free counseling; but, in making the executive decision that Stacy already had on enough makeup and I was really the one who needed work, he had grabbed my face like so and declared the concealor I was using was wrong, all wrong, for my complexion. I prepped myself for the ridicule he was about to give me, which is what the face-grabbing gesture usually implied.
"Don't say grieve," he said harshly. "That wasn't love, Emma. You took care of him only because no one else would. You two just used each other. You used him to make you look good, and he used you for the usual things that straight guys do. Chris was better than that, I know, but you were always babying him. You picked him up every time he fell, brushed him off, got him a new job or supported him with your puny paychecks when he got lazy. Stop pretending you could ever love someone like him, Em. Did you honestly like living off dry Cheerios and fruit granola bars whenever he couldn't find work? I admit, it did wonders for your figure, going from a size six to a size two in only two months, but even I like to splurge a little here and there with some ice cream or—"
I couldn't push him off the bed from the position I was in, but I did my best by putting one hand in his face and shoving. It turned into a face-grabbing match in which he pinched my cheeks tighter the harder I shoved into his face, until at last we both split apart simultaneously like a spliced atom. Terence panted for breath, seeing as my hand had been blocking off both clean air passages, while I rubbed my face with both hands.
Rubbing my left ear that had begun to ache sometime during the attack, I muttered, "Jerk. But you know, I wouldn't expect someone like you to understand compassion."
Terence stopped wheezing and his face deadpanned, but the emotion was in those dewy blue eyes. He looked hurt.
"Chris was my friend," he said softly. "I miss him. He made me feel comfortable with who and what I am. But in all other aspects, Emma, Chris wasn't a good friend. He was a lot of fun to be around, yeah, but he wasn't there for me when I needed him. That was always your job. You're the one I'd grieve, Emma. You're my best friend."
I wasn't sure how to respond to that. Touched as I was, this was Terence. There was usually an ulterior motive for when he was being touching.
My eyebrows rose. "And saying that has nothing to do with guilt-tricking me into going out with your acquaintance Ben tonight, right?"
He threw up his hands. "God! I try to do something nice for my best friend and all she has to say in reply is that she thinks I'm tricking her! Some friend you turned out to be, Emma Larson!" Shouting this, or what seemed like it to me, I watched Terence roll off my bed with surprising grace and then stomp out of my room. He didn't close the door behind him.
Rolling over onto my stomach, I pulled a pillow over my head and let the world go dark.
Only to be awoken what felt like seconds later by the John Lennon ringtone, which had seemed less ironic only last week.
"When you were angry you had love in your eyes,
when you were sad you had a dream in your voice,
But now you're giving me your window smile,
I'm moving on, moving on you're getting phony—"
It would have repeated if I didn't snatch up the phone off the nightstand just then and whip it open. I was really going to have to change that ringtone or people were going to think I was getting some morbid enjoyment out of all this.
"Hello?" I croaked.
"Hey, it's Jackson. I was just making sure you're all right."
I hesitated, which was dumb once I got to thinking about it. What else was I going to do? Hang up on the nice guy who'd called to check-up on me?
Eventually, I muttered, "Yeah. If this headache doesn't kill me."
Tinny laughter filtered through the phone. "Well," he said, "That's good, I guess. That you're alive I mean." Neither of us said anything for a full minute. I know because I checked the glowing faceplate, watching the digital seconds tick by. Then I heard Jackson's soft apology, "Whoops."
"No, it's okay." It wasn't. "But hey, I just woke up. I'll call you back."
The dismissal was in my voice. We both heard it.
"Oh… Okay then."
I hung up, rolled out of bed, and staggered across the hall into Terence's room. It didn't occur to me at the time he might not be there. He was lying in a heap under a gray down comforter, halfheartedly flipping through a trashy gossip magazine. He refused to look at me even after I said his full name three times.
Finally, I just said, "Want to help me get ready for the date tonight?"
Still without looking up, Terence smiled. "I was thinking of that pale blue tunic top paired with your white short-shorts and a chunky brown belt," he murmured. "Amanda has the perfect belt."
It should have came as no surprise when Ben picked me up three hours later. By then it was nearing seven in the evening.
Ben was an Average White Irish Boy, which is what Ter and I had renamed him as we watched him walking up the driveway to the door. He drove a dark blue Mustang and dressed in khaki shorts paired with a gray rugby shirt, and dark brown mandals. The mandals are what got me. They nibbled at Terence, too; I noticed his nose scrunching in distaste as his apprising gaze paused on Ben's feet. I continued with the appraisal, noting the auburn hair, the eyes that looked brown from here. The distance between Ben and the door closed fast. I didn't open the door right away after the bell rang, instead turning to my supposed new best friend.
"He looks like my fraternal twin," I hissed.
Terence waved an uncaring hand through the air. "At least you'll have cute kids." And before I could complain any more he was heading for the stairs that led down into the entryway. I cringed as I heard the front door open, but smiled when I heard Terence, "No. No-no-no. What were you thinking with those nasty excuses for shoes? Hemp flip-flops are still flip-flops and real men don't wear flip-flops!"
"Um," a deeper voice replied, "You told me to wear this."
"I told you to wear brown shoes! Not brown flip-flops!"
"Well the only other pair of brown shoes I have are clogs and—"
Ben was interrupted when the word 'clogs' triggered a soft scream emitted by Terence. I was snickering as, two seconds later, I walked into the entryway. Terence glanced at me and decided to forgive Ben for the fashion faux pas. He gestured at me.
"Ben O'Connelly, meet Emma Larson. Emma, Ben."
He was taller than me but shorter than Jackson so I didn't have to crane my neck back so much as I looked up at his broadening smile. It was a nice smile. Ben had good teeth, just a bit off-white but straight nevertheless. I muttered a soft hello and he did the same, as if we were two timid children. This was usually where the newest date was supposed to take over, say something witty and tell me what he had in mind for tonight. Dinner, dancing, mini-golf, fireworks, or whatever. Instead Ben, Terence, and I just stood there awkwardly. At least, Ben and I did. Terence shifted restlessly and made huffing noises, which only made everyone more aware of the awkward silence.
Finally, "Well, then. I'll just let you two be off on your way then. If you two are going to be on time for the movie, I mean." Terence sent Ben a pointed look that I probably wasn't supposed to see; but like I said, tact had never been Terence's strong suit. To me, "Em, don't do anything I would. Wear your seatbelt. Don't eat all the popcorn—Think of all the calories!—and don't accept candy from strangers. It's just gross. 'Bye now!"
All the while he had been shepherding us out the door. As he finished his little rant, Terence slammed the door behind us.
"So that's what cows feel like," murmured Ben, echoing my thoughts on the herding thing.
I flashed my most charming smile back at him, which Ben effortlessly deflected by averting his gaze. Okay then. We headed for his car, a dark blue Mustang. As much as I liked Fords, I couldn't help thinking of the latest gas prices, and how nice girls were supposed to offer to chip in for gas when the date was driving. The Mustang pulled away from the curb and we rode in silence much more awkward than it had been in the entryway.
Yeah. I could already see it now! This was going to be a great date.
"So," I said pointedly after a while. "We're seeing a movie then?"
"Oh, yeah," said Ben. "Ter said you like action flicks, so I got us tickets for the new Die Hard. Hope you don't mind."
"How do you know Terence?"
"Err. We worked together at Arby's."
Grrrrrrrreat. I had no problem with people who worked in fast food. I just didn't like to date them, seeing as I was a server and didn't make that much more than a cashier at Arby's most nights; therefore our kids would have to be raised on what we brought home from work, and we'd live in a rented apartment the rest of our days. I also had no problem with people who lived the rest of their days out in apartment complexes, but having been raised by a verbally abusive father figure in such a setting had put me off the idea of dating someone who I may end up living with in such a situation, effectively repeating history.
The movie was good. Afterward we stopped through the Taco Bell drive-thru that was just past the boundaries of the movie theatre's parking lot.
The date went as expected. When Ben dropped me off, he didn't walk me to the door or even bother trying to steal a kiss. He might have been a fun one-night-stand, he was cute after all, even if he did look like the male version of me. But he clearly wasn't interested, which didn't interest me.
I called Jackson while Ben was pulling away from the house. He answered on the third ring.
"Hey," I said before he could even mutter a greeting. "It's early." It was actually twenty minutes from midnight, which was late for some people. "You want to come over and watch a movie?"
"Um," Jackson said, which was answer enough. But I let him finish, "I'm kind of doing something. Rain-check?"
"Oh," I murmured. "Okay then."
I went inside and crawled into bed, and tried to pretend that Terence was right. I didn't miss my dead ex-boyfriend.

subset: commoncrawl


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Do the garden centres in your area matter to you? Would you mind if they were replaced by houses or apartments?
The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead is seeking residents' views as part of a consultation exercise on a number of sites that have been suggested to be suitable for development. Three sites have been identified in the Parish of Bray. These are:
• Garden Centre ( Wyevale), Dedworth Road, Windsor ( Ref GB5) 1.27ha
• Squires Garden Centre, Maidenhead Road ( Ref GB14) 0.74ha.
• Land at Water Oakley Farm, Windsor Road ( Ref GB6) 9.04ha
At two public meetings held on 8th and 11th December, organised jointly by The Oakley Green & Fifield Residents Association (OGFRA) and the Oakley Green, Fifield and District Community Association (OGAFCA), there was considerable dissatisfaction because the three sites are all in a very small area of the Parish – all are all in close proximity at the Eastern side of the Parish and all are in the Green Belt. Upwards of 150 people attended the meetings.
As regards the Water Oakley site, 80% said "yes" to some development. It was agreed that the site (close to the former Bray studios) is unsightly and that appropriate development could be an improvement provided it was within certain agreed limits and behind a 150 metre band of green space close to the A308 to preserve the open nature of the site.
However there was serious opposition to development of the Wyevale and Squires sites – 98% were against development in each case, as not only are the two sites in the Green Belt and therefore subject to Green Belt rules, but the garden centres were felt to provide considerable benefit to the community as they stand.
If it matters to you as to whether the sites are developed, it is very important that you, either as a resident or as a user of the garden centres, make your views known by filling in the consultation forms on the Borough's website and returning comments (either on line or by post) before the closing date of Friday 11 January 2013 – otherwise you may find some very unwelcome development on your doorstep!
The Borough website is www.rbwm.gov.uk/web/pp borough local plan.htm
You can contact The Oakley Green & Fifield Residents Association (OGFRA) using the contact form here if you need further information or a copy of the consultation response form.


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Ever since the trailer has released, Aiyaary has been creating immense buzz for its edge of the seat gripping storyline. The trailer has not only captivated the civilians but has also impressed the army officials to a great extent. Neeraj Pandey's Aiyaary which is set against the army backdrop showcases the loyal and obedient officer Major Jai Bakshi aka Sidharth Malhotra who idolizes his mentor Colonel Abhay Singh aka Manoj Bajpayee. The interesting turn of events leaves the audience intrigued as to what lead to the two pitted against each other.
While on their promotional spree at BSF camps, the makers garnered live reactions from the jawans who showed the excitement to watch the film.
Here are some of the reactions by the army officials:
"It absolutely raises excitement. The coming age will definitely be high on excitement and would want to join the army forces".
"It's going to be a really good movie since it shows various army incidents. The most interesting part of the trailer is Manoj Bajpayee. We were able to relate ourselves after watching the trailer. We will definitely go and watch the film".
"The trailer is quite thrilling. Will definitely watch the film".
"Aiyaary trailer is really impressive. We are eagerly waiting for the film to release. If we get a chance, we would surely want to work in such kind of films".
The helmer of celebratory films like A Wednesday, Baby, Special 26 and M.S Dhoni: An Untold Story to name a few, Neeraj Pandey is back with Aiyaary, first thriller of 2018.
Aiyaary stars an ensemble cast of Sidharth Malhotra, Manoj Bajpayee, Pooja Chopra, Rakulpreet, Anupam Kher and Naseeruddin Shah.
Plan C, Friday Filmworks and Jayantilal Gada (Pen) present 'Aiyaary' A Neeraj Pandey Film. Produced by Shital Bhatia, Dhaval Jayantilal Gada, Motion Picture Capital is slated to release on 9th February, 2018.


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As per Marriage Laws in India, The Parsi Marriage and Divorce Act, 1936 governs the matrimonial relations of Parsis in India. The Act defines the word 'Parsi' as a Parsi Zoroastrian. A Zoroastrian is a person who professes the Zoroastrian religion. A valid Parsi marriage in India is adduced. The parties should not be related to each other in any degree of consanguinity or affinity. Marriage is to solemnize according to Parsi form of ceremony "Ashirvad" by a priest in presence 2 other Parsi witnesses. Consent father or guardian is necessary if both the parties have not attained the age of 21. If Parsi individual contracts a marriage without having been lawfully divorced from existing husband/wife or such marriage been declared null and void. Parsi marriage needs to be certified. Read more at..
(Image from letusgophoto.ca)


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Tuesday, January 6, 2015
Top Ten Most Anticipated Debut Novels For 2015
6 comments:
I'm seeing The Red Queen on everyone's lists for this year. I've had it on my tbr for awhile and can't even remember where I first saw it.ReplyDeleteReplies
Yeah, I feel like the word has been out on Red Queen forever. I'm excited to finally read it!Delete
I was really excited for Red Queen (at some point), but the mixed reviews have me a bit hesitant now. I hadn't heard of Becoming Jinn -- until today, and I'm completely fascinated by it! I gotta keep my eye on it! I've also seen The Witch Hunter on many lists today, so that's one I should consider too. Hopefully the hype doesn't kill it though. 5 to 1 sounds powerful! I'm definitely adding this one to my list. :) Thanks for giving me more debuts to look into, Mel!ReplyDelete
Marlene @ The Flyleaf ReviewReplies
Oh yay!! So glad you're drawn to so many of these. I love fiction set in a Middle Eastern setting, so I immediately was drawn to 5 to 1. It has a ton of potential, and I hope it delivers! Looking forward to the rest of these too, but especially Red Queen, despite the mixed reviews. The premise just really draws me in.Delete
My Heart and other Black Holes is such an awesome title, I can't wait to try it. I am also looking forward to Red Queen. I have received a review copy of Made You Up so I can't wait to start reading that one as well! Great picks :DReplyDeleteReplies
Ooh, so jealous of your ARC of Made You Up! I was first drawn to that book because HELLO GORGEOUS COVER, but reading the premise has me even more intrigued. Looking forward to Red Queen too!Delete
Hi! Thanks for your comment! I am currently being hit by a large amount of spam, so I've upped my comment moderating settings for the time being. I will revert back to more comment friendly settings once the spammers go back to the gutters from whence they came.


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Jaltest Marine PWC Software Renewal - Level 1 (Basic)
For users of the Jaltest Marine Dealer Level Diagnostic Tool for PWC, this is the optional annual fee for 1 year. This purchase will entitle you to updates, support, and technical service information for an additional 12-months.
*The 12 months of Updates for Knowledge Base/Service Manuals is not included in this renewal. The Level 2 and 3 Renewals have this service.


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Consumption: Barthes explains a fear of consumption because there is no natural meeting with the text, when it is diminished to something which is based on your personal taste. There is always meta-conscience about the text when the qualitative terms of the text are the bigger focus than the text and the meaning itself. He calls out for a play between the reader and the text in a "game" which has no rules, but a game that forces the reader to try to be open for that the text has the power to trick you around. In this way it seems that Roland Barthes has used this practice in the text itself. The text shifts between being purposefully impenetrable and ambigious, and then being clear about the statements it makes. In relation to our Wikipedia case, Wikipedia can be viewed as a tool of information that actually doesn't have the play but it do have the consumption (every one is using it and you can choose the language you prefer).
6 Text As A Game
page revision: 4, last edited: 22 Mar 2010 13:54


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The Industrial sectors which come under the scope of Bureau of Energy Efficiency, Perform Achieve and Trade Scheme, also referred as Designated Consumers (DCs) are one of the key stakeholders for this platform. There are total 478 industries which belong to Aluminium, Cement, Chlor and Alkali, Fertilizers, Iron and Steel, Pulp and Paper, Textiles and Thermal Power Plants.
The knowledge platform works in coordination with the industry associations for conducting sector level workshops, seminar and other project activities. Some Industry association representatives are also Members to the KEP Sector learning groups. The industry association also represent various concern and issues of the industry to a large stakeholder mix.
The technology and service providers stakeholder group is diverse since the platform works for all of the eight industrial sectors. KEP partners both with process technology suppliers as well as suppliers of individual engineering equipment while carrying out knowledge dissemination activities. The objective to partner with this group is to enable a dynamic nexus between demand and supply of resource efficient technology solutions.
We also intend to connect the sector specific research institutes as well as the academics driven research institutes to the knowledge exchange platform. This will be a platform for the industry and the research institutes to work together on the issues pertaining to need of research and development in the industry and also in development of customized, innovative and new solutions.


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Is there a cost of opening an account?
No, you can open and hold accounts free of charge, regardless of your trading activity. This applies to both Live and Demo accounts. However, please remember that demo accounts are only valid for 30 days. If you leave your trade positions open overnight when the markets are closed, your positions are liable to swap fees based on the currency pair or CFDs that you are trading. Please contact an Accounts Manager if you wish to use a swap free account instead.


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TGIF! Yessss!! "Friday at Five," our list of five favorites each week, is on the blog below as we kick off another fabulous Fall weekend!
1) Decorating with Fall Pillows – I like to decorate our home with splashes of the seasons as they come, with Fall being one of our favorites! Now that it is October, we are ready to get our home looking harvest happy! An easy way to add some of the season into your home decor, is with throw pillows…think benches, sofas, even your bed.. great little added accents that easily blend in with your daily decor with a simple toss of a pillow!
2) Kait's favorite of the week: Under Armour. Kait> I like Under Armour because the clothes are so compfy and cute. The sweatshirts are silky on the outside and fuzzy on the inside. I wear these to school, when I run, to dance, and lounging at home. All the styles below are from the girl's section.
Sweatshirt | Shorts | Long Tee | Shoes | Bag
3) Cinderella on DVD – This is a favorite of all of us girls, the DVD being released in the last 2 weeks. Buy or rent the DVD for a fun girls' night in for you and your little ladies.
4) Personalized Halloween Treat Bags I've had personalized treat bags made for each of my kids, and every year it's a 'treat' 😉 to pull these out as the kids dress up in their Halloween costumes and head out for another year of trick-or-treating. It is October 2nd already, so time to get those treat bags and costumes ready! The girls shared a Halloween Costumes blog post this week, and even more cute costumes on our Girl Boutique page so check them out for more Halloween fun!
5) And our #QOTW (quote of the week) comes from one of our favorite books and movies, The Help.


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The wonders of London Fashion Week. By day 2 my feet were hurting like never before. What have I done? I was asking myself. I stuck my foot in that stiletto boot because I wanted to be on time for my first show the night before. My toes were so numb the next day – my body was feeling just a bit tired, but I really wanted to do Day 2. I've put on some natural make-up, my Fenty Pumas and walked out my door. Keep on reading to find out exactly what to wear to make the most of this week!
In terms of what to actually wear the events, I highly recommend shoes that you can walk around in, queue in and most importantly feel just a bit comfortable in (cause we all know high heeled comfortable shoes are just so hard to find). I chose to wear my Pumas in day 2 because my feet were killing me (I had my toes numb for 2-3 weeks after just 4 hours in heels the day before). You can opt for boots, pumas, low heeled sandals or even high heels if you're convinced they are bearable.
Depending on the event's nature, you can decide whether you want your outfit to be casual chic or a bit more elegant. I am not the type of person to be walking around in a wedding attendant's dress, so please don't go overboard! I've seen it all! Below is the outfit that I wore during day 2 and it got a lot of people noticing it and loving it – it fully represents me. Always go for something that represents you: remember that you're not there to adhere to a dress code, but rather to express yourself and network with people just like you. That's how you do proper networking and actually enjoy the day; just put your best self forward and approach people next to you.
Hair and make-up? Whatever makes you happy 🙂
Do have a look at Day 1 outfit and get a closer look at what can go or not during LFW.
Let's see how Day 2 went by, shall we? I regrouped with my lovely Saffy and some cool girls we met the day before and started the day! That's what I love about Fashion Week – you get to know people once and throughout the days, you keep bumping into them. It's just great – you know how much I love chatting over champagne or cocktails!
First Stop: The Rohmir SS19 Show
Ah the goose bumps because of the amazing ballet on French music! When Si tu n'existe pas started my mood was lifted: I was so happy to watch their performance. I was already in a good mood when the models started the catwalk. My favourite outfit? I can't pick one! I was in love with the big gowns & crowns and the over-sized knots over tops.
The colour palette was a mix of nude colours and browns, but also quite contrasting, the models were wearing baby pink and bright navy blue. I feel like navy blue was super popular on the cat walks. I think I saw it more than black! Can you imagine? What made a statement in her shows were also the hair and make-up.
Watch the highlights: www.rohmir.com
Where can you wear the new collection?
- Cocktail parties
- Award Nights
- Weddings
Rosella May Presentation
A casual vibe was dominating the room – models were taking instant pictures and casually walking to the bar to get refreshments. It was almost a feeling of interacting with the actors in their break. The models kept things professional and did an amazing job in introducing us to the vibes.
White was dominant in Rosella May's showcase. The splashes of paints had an amazing impact on the clothes. It was almost like breaking the pattern and adding a layer of fun to the casual clothes. The collection made me get myself a pair of dungarees – my first pair actually as I never worn one – funny right?
I loved how the make-up was complementing the colour splashes I talked to you about. It made me see the art behind this collection.
Orange graphic lines
Pink and yellow lines
My favourite part?
The presentation was very well thought through – the picture wall was amazing because it was interactive; fresh pictures taken on camera were pinned to the wall which I found super original.
Pictures taken by Pop PR.
I hope you got a good view of what you can wear at London Fashion Week and that you're super ready for next season! Hope to see you there 🙂
Thank you very much Pop PR for having me at Fashion Week this season.
Until next time,


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- Share
Ugly font may improve learning
Write stuff Inspired by comic strips and hated by font designers, new research suggests Comic Sans may help people remember what they read.
Comic Sans was released by Microsoft in 1994, as a font that looked friendly and childlike, but most importantly didn't look 'techie'.
But the font doesn't enjoy overwhelming support. A few years ago there was an internet campaign to have it banned, and there are forums where designers and typographers whinge about the font's awkward weighting and haphazard kerning.
US researchers from Princeton University and Indiana University decided to test what effect 'difficult to read' fonts such as Comic Sans have on learning and retention.
They recruited 28 volunteers to complete a task that involved remembering a set of features for three fictional characters. One group received the list in 16-point Arial font, while the other two groups received lists printed using 12-point Comic Sans MS or 12-point Bodoni MT.
Connor Diemand-Yauman, lead author of the study published in the journal Cognition, says the results showed Comic Sans has its advantages.
"The study in our paper found that in a very controlled laboratory setting we could improve our subject's memory of certain facts by having them read information that was written in a font that was slightly more difficult to read," he told ABC Radio National.
"Participants remembered the information significantly better if it was in a font that was harder to read. We were real excited by this finding."
In the second part of their study, Diemand-Yauman and colleagues moved their experiment into the classroom.
"For the second study all we did was take the reading material of students from six different classes, over 220 students, and we just changed the fonts to make it a little more difficult to read," said Diemand-Yauman.
Students were randomly assigned to a disfluent group and given reading material in a hard-to-read font such as Comic Sans or Monotype Corsiva, or to a control group.
According to Diemand-Yauman, "students [in the disfluent group] significantly remembered the information better because it felt slightly more difficult."
Challenging our visual cortex
Jonah Lehrer is a neuroscience writer and a contributing editor to Wired Magazine. He fears that e-readers, with their crisp fonts and clear display could make our brains lazy.
"I do worry that it will become so easy for the brain to read on an e-reader that we may actually start to see a decrease in what we remember and take away from a book," Lehrer told ABC Radio National.
"This is all just speculation, but what really interests me is this surprising link between the difficulty of reading and what we actually remember from it."
But according to Leher our brains are likely to adapt in order to deal with the new technology, we just don't know how that will happen
"It's important to remember that a good third of our visual cortex ... is devoted to literacy, reading. This 5000-year-old cultural invention has usurped a huge chunk of the brain," he said. "One of the trade-offs of this is that people who can read are a little worse at 'quote-unquote' reading the natural world and remembering objects such as plants and animals, because so much of our visual vortex is devoted to letters, syllables and words."
Leher suggests using cognitive psychology studies such as Diemand-Yauman's to improve our learning.
"Maybe we should read every book on an e-reader in Comic Sans," he said. "Little things like that could help us do a better job of dealing with the inevitable tradeoffs."


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You might be one of those people that perform very well when it comes to sports. If you are and you are in high school, you might have the idea that your ability at a given sport could end up putting you in line for a sports scholarship that will either entirely pay for college, or at least partially pay for your higher education. However, there is more to getting a scholarship than just being good at sports.
One thing you have to understand is that with sports scholarship there are a few ways to get them. For some, especially in the more high profile sports like football and basketball, you have a good chance at being recruited; however, not all scholarships that are sports related come from athletes being recruited.
In many cases, if you are looking for a sports scholarship, for whatever sport you happen to play, you might just have to ask. With so many high school athletes, it is conceivable that your talents at a given sport are heads and shoulders above most people; but there is still the possibility you will be overlooked. There are too many athletes and only a small number of coaches and recruits, comparatively speaking.
Sometimes you will have to contact a coach yourself, offer them up your statistics, not only on the field of play but your grades as well. In essences, you are going to have to recruit them, much like a college coach might recruit a person of superior talent.
Consider this, in most scholarship situations, a person has to ask for one rather than them being solicited for a scholarship. In fact, the way scholarships are offered to potential students are less normal and less common than the traditional way of getting a scholarship, which is to request one.
Another to remember is that you will have to be persistent as well. You will have to be aware that you might hear no a lot. However, if you have the skills and you have the talent, and of course you'll need the grades as well, you will eventually find a sports scholarship that fits your needs.
The fact is that there are plenty of sports scholarship to go around. Some might be full scholarships, others might be partial scholarships, and it is wise to not get too far ahead of yourself and only look for full scholarships as the only option. While they do exist, they are not easy to get and when it comes to paying for college these days, any help paying for it is welcome, or at least it should be.
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Money Isn't Everything
Consider these 5 factors before you start searching for investors.
I have personally been through the process of raising investment, so I am proof positive that it is possible for an inventor and entrepreneur to raise cash, even in today's economic climate. But I've also learned first-hand there are many issues to be aware of that tend to be neglected. In fact, I want to share a few insights that took me somewhat by surprise, or at least in varying degrees of surprise along the way--the main one being the amount of time and complexity associated with finding and accepting money from investors.
If you are like me, when you first thought about getting money from an investor, you thought, "if I had X dollars, I could get my product/company to Y. So, I need to find an investor, share this vision, and voila! We will both become wealthy."
Before you take that leap, though, there are some things you need to realize, in terms both of time and money.
- Raising capital is nearly a full-time pursuit. Finding investors, preparing presentations, delivering presentations, listening to feedback on presentation (often contradictory to the feedback from the prior investor), improving the presentation (it always gets better over time and with feedback), communicating with investors, then juggling and revising the paperwork.
- If you have children, you need to consider child-care. I flew in the grandparents from one state to babysit while I jetted off to another state to give a presentation. I would estimate that raising my first $500,000 consumed at least twice the amount of time than I spent writing my first two books!
- You'll need expert advice. There were terms I had never heard, coming at me like darts: capitalization, preferred shares, common shares, warrants, preferences, valuation, dilution, convertible notes.and many others.
- Hire a lawyer, and prepare to pay hefty legal fees. Raising investment capital requires adherence to various securities and trade laws with documentation and filings that must meet stringent legal standards. It is imperative to have a qualified business attorney handle these matters. Over the course of the past few years as I have raised investment capital I have paid various attorney's fees ranging from $275 to $650 per hour! It doesn't take a math degree to realize that one could spend a sizable portion of investment dollars paying someone to organize the necessary paperwork to close the investment deal.
- Don't underestimate the emotional toll. Getting yourself mentally psyched for each presentation requires energy and the belief it will be worth the effort--in spite of the fact that investors hear dozens of pitches every week and only a handful of companies win investments each year. While most investors are polite and even generous with their time--expect "no" or some variation of "no" to be the answer you will hear most often.
After all this, one might assume I would categorically advise against seeking professional investment. This is not the case. Launching and growing a business is not always easy. Depending on your goals, investment capital may be essential to accomplish your goals.
As I said before, I have navigated this process, understood enough of the terminology to get through it, and successfully raised investment myself. I have no doubt that others can do so as well. However, once you have concluded that your business has the kind of upside potential that might interest a professional investor, be aware of the consequences you'll encounter trying to raise this kind of capital.
Entrepreneur Editors' Picks
This Founder Quit His 'Prison'-Like Teaching Job Within 2 Months. Now, He and His Sister Are Helping Other Teachers Leave the Classroom and Achieve Financial Freedom.
If You Focus on Problems, You'll Only Find More Problems. Here's How to Focus on Solutions.
Facing More Than 15 Years in Prison, This Founder Transformed His Hustle Into a Powerful Personal Brand and Business. Now, He's Giving Back in a Big Way.
Apple Asks This Jarring Interview Question as a Secret Way to Evaluate a Candidate


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