Grace

The concept of grace as applied to religion has several different meanings. Grace is derived from the Latin word for "favor" and was first used in the twelfth century. The simplest definition of grace in a religious context refers to a short prayer of gratitude offered before a meal, a practice known as "saying grace." From a more theological viewpoint, however, grace is the favor of a divine being bestowed upon human followers.

The world's major religions differ in their understanding of how that favor is bestowed and how it makes itself known in the life of the believer. In some faith traditions, grace is a reward from a supreme being or deity for pleasing actions; in others, it is freely given as a sign of love. Some believers recognize grace in favorable circumstances, for example, a good harvest could be seen as a sign of grace and favor, while others see grace as more of a state of being, for instance, a person maintaining a calm and serene attitude during a life-threatening illness might be said to be living in God's grace.

The idea of grace encompasses a number of other states and virtues, including mercy, favor, loving-kindness, sanctity, right and moral living, divine influence, and divine presence.

Grace in Christianity

The Christian concept of grace is that God's love and favor are offered to all without condition and without the need to do anything to receive it. It is intrinsically tied to the idea that God the Son, Jesus Christ, came to earth to die for the salvation of humankind. Christians hold that because God endowed humankind with free will, people are free to accept or reject the grace and salvation offered by God.

Defining the role of grace in salvation has historically caused a division among Christians, however. In the fourth century, a debate arose between the Christian theologian Augustine of Hippo and Pelagius, a moralist, about the role of grace in salvation. Pelagius rejected the idea that God's grace was necessary for salvation and thought it could be accomplished by faith works alone; Augustine countered that because of the fall when Adam and Eve ate from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, God's grace was necessary for salvation. Most Protestants believe that salvation comes through God's grace alone, independent of the actions of the person. While the presence of God's grace in their lives may cause people to live good and holy lives, this is not a requirement for salvation, according to the teachings of John Calvin, John Wesley, and other formative Protestant leaders. The Roman Catholic Church, on the other hand, holds that while grace is necessary for salvation, so too are such things as worshiping and obeying God, professing the truths held by the church, praying, fasting, and atoning for sins.

This difference means that while Catholics believe God's freely given grace enables them to live out Christ's example to obtain righteousness, Protestants believe that they live out Christ's example because God's freely given grace has made them righteous.

Grace in Other Faith Traditions

Grace plays a role in the beliefs and practices of other faith traditions, but with a somewhat different meaning and emphasis than that which it has in the Christian faith. For example, Judaism has the concept of hesed, a Hebrew word that encompasses the concepts of mercy, loving-kindness, and compassion. This is the love God has for his people, a love evidenced in such events as the Passover, when, according to the Hebrew Bible, God spared the Israelites from ten plagues that afflicted the rest of Egypt and allowed the Israelites to escape slavery. This type of merciful grace is the ideal toward which devout Jews strive so they can faithfully fulfill their covenant with God. It is an ethical value, one which God possesses and which the faithful followers aspire to reach. This concept is the basis of many service organizations within Jewish communities.

In the Islamic view, grace is a gift from God that helps the believer reconcile with God to attain Paradise. Much like the Christian viewpoint, Muslims see grace as necessary for salvation and that no amount of good deeds can elevate the believer without grace. However, the Qur'an is less clear than the Bible about how that grace is displayed on Earth and how the presence of God's grace plays out in a good person versus one who does not live a morally wholesome life.

The Hindu faith includes the concept of kripa, or compassionate grace, and the belief that it is necessary to achieve self-realization. It is generally believed that this grace must be earned. A person who has earned this grace will find himself or herself fully immersed in a transformative period that will lead to self-realization. Hinduism also includes several other concepts of grace, including prasada, or favor; daya, a form of sympathy and gentleness; and anugraha, or loving-kindness. Some who follow the Hindu faith believe that at some point, the effort put toward following the faith and the gift of grace merge so that it cannot be determined where one ends and the other begins.

Bibliography

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Yancey, Philip. What's So Amazing About Grace? Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1997. 45. Print.