AN ANGLICAN ALPHABET: GRACE
By BARRY GILES
From The Pilot, 1991
THE LADY who looked after the unmarried curates in my first parish was named Grace. Generations of choirboys and young curates there had smiled, if not giggled, at the line, "Grace is stor'd in the font." I still think of her when grace is referred to in prayers and hymns.
But grace, that is God's grace, cannot be stored in that sense. It is not a substance. Grace is the favour which God shows to man. It is the touch of the Holy Spirit; His power at work in us. Grace is God's free gift to us. It is not something we can deserve, nor earn. Salvation, and all means of God's grace depend entirely upon the way in which God has worked out His Will. Unlike our own wish to achieve everything by our efforts, grace emphasises our total dependence upon another - God.
The Sacraments are means of grace. That means that we cannot simply plug in and receive all the power that God through His Holy Spirit will supply. The sacramental life, indeed the whole of our Christian life, is not passive but active. We need to rely on that power, not merely the outward and visible sign, but the inward and spiritual meaning whereby God's grace, and God's grace alone, can renew us, and help us grow, day by day, into what He would have us be. If we leave Him and His means of grace out our calculations, how can we possibly grow and develop as Christians? Nobody can deserve heaven, nor any reward from God. Whatever God gives us comes entirely from His free grace.
Clergy know that there is another meaning the word, grace. When invited to a meal -¬people's homes, or on official occasions - they asked to say "grace." They know why: and they know whether or not this is a regular occurrence in that household! Long before the Christian people have thanks - grace, from the Latin deo gratias - for their food. Many still do. Many do not (except when the vicar is there!).
By BARRY GILES
From The Pilot, 1991
THE LADY who looked after the unmarried curates in my first parish was named Grace. Generations of choirboys and young curates there had smiled, if not giggled, at the line, "Grace is stor'd in the font." I still think of her when grace is referred to in prayers and hymns.
But grace, that is God's grace, cannot be stored in that sense. It is not a substance. Grace is the favour which God shows to man. It is the touch of the Holy Spirit; His power at work in us. Grace is God's free gift to us. It is not something we can deserve, nor earn. Salvation, and all means of God's grace depend entirely upon the way in which God has worked out His Will. Unlike our own wish to achieve everything by our efforts, grace emphasises our total dependence upon another - God.
The Sacraments are means of grace. That means that we cannot simply plug in and receive all the power that God through His Holy Spirit will supply. The sacramental life, indeed the whole of our Christian life, is not passive but active. We need to rely on that power, not merely the outward and visible sign, but the inward and spiritual meaning whereby God's grace, and God's grace alone, can renew us, and help us grow, day by day, into what He would have us be. If we leave Him and His means of grace out our calculations, how can we possibly grow and develop as Christians? Nobody can deserve heaven, nor any reward from God. Whatever God gives us comes entirely from His free grace.
Clergy know that there is another meaning the word, grace. When invited to a meal -¬people's homes, or on official occasions - they asked to say "grace." They know why: and they know whether or not this is a regular occurrence in that household! Long before the Christian people have thanks - grace, from the Latin deo gratias - for their food. Many still do. Many do not (except when the vicar is there!).
Given the present climate of publicity for those who hungry, perhaps it may be that more of us (w profess and call ourselves Anglicans) might reminded of our dependence upon God for our daily bread. After all graces do not have to be t solemn, or too long. One of the best is "Thank God for food." It is not so much what one says, but t reason one says it that makes all the difference all our prayer-life. Graces are prayers. There is a book, edited by Carolyn Mart called "A Book of Graces" which you may find helpful. But the best graces are those which come from the heart; and yours. Use them daily, and do not wait for next time your Rector is present!
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