Aertnys - Theologia Moralis

Effectus. Sex sunt effectus, qui possunt Sacramentalibus atribui: 1. bonus motus gratiae; 2. remissio peccatorum venialium; 3. remissio alicuius poenae temporalis; 4. daemonis expulsio, vel cohibitio, ne noceat; 5. aliquod commodum temproale; 6. deputatio ad cultum divinum. Non omnia et singula Sacramentalia conferunt omnes illus effectus; quia non omnia ad eosdem fines sunt instituta; quod colligendum est ex singulorum institutione, et modo quo conficiuntur.

There are six effects, that may be attributed to Sacramentals. 1. Stirring of good grace; 2. remission of venial sin; 3. remission of whatever temporal punishment (due the venial sin?); 4. the expulsion of demons, without restriction or harm; 5. some temporal benefit; 6. appointment to the divine cult. (consecration to sacred use)

Not each and every Sacramental confer all these effects; because they are not each instituted for these purposes; but each (purpose) is gathered from what each is instituted for, and the mode by which it is destroyed.

- Aertnys, Josef and Damen, C. A. Theologia Moralis: Secundum Doctrinam Sancti Alfonsi de Ligorio Doctor Ecclesiae, vol. 2. (Marietti, 1950), 34.

This is a Moral Theology work in the tradition of Alphonsus which gives a nice breakdown of the "spiritual effects" obtained by sacramentals. It makes reference to distinction between effects based on for what each one is instituted for - "the church gets what she wants".

Garrigou-Lagrange

Grace here means above all sanctifying grace which makes us children and heirs of God. Actual grace is either the disposition for sanctifying grace, or the divine concurrence which makes us act supernaturally.

- Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange, Reality: A Synthesis of Thomistic Thought. (St.Louis:Herder Book, 1950), page#.


Basic distinction of actual grace: either the disposition for sanctifying grace, (which I would like to argue a blessing is for, and may be an instrumental cause of this type of grace).

Garrigou-Lagrange

Can fallen man, without the concurrence of actual grace, prepare himself for sanctifying grace? To this question the Semi-Pelagians answered Yes, saying the beginning of salvation comes from our nature and that grace comes with this initial natural movement of good will. They were condemned by the Second Council of Orange, which affirmed the necessity of actual, prevenient grace in our preparation for conversion.

- Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange, Reality: A Synthesis of Thomistic Thought. (St.Louis:Herder Book, 1950), page#.

Further insight into actual grace. I think this is interesting because I think blessings have been rejected in large part because they are seen as semi-pelagian or superstitious, but the corrective is neither Pelagian nor Lutheran. A Catholic understanding of grace, distinguished by STA help us to see that if blessings are an instrumental cause of actual grace, God's sovereignty is protected and man's duty to sanctify is fulfilled.

I've just had an epiphany. If one could elaborate the scriptural mandate to sanctify, just as once clearly can demonstrate a mandate to pray "when you pray say this: Our Father", it might give insight into the necessity of blessings in the life of grace in the soul. One immediate thought: the institution at the last supper includes the reference to our Lord "blessing" the bread and wine, and instructing his apostles to repeat the offering / blessing / Eucharist.

Garrigou-Lagrange

This explains why we must always pray. The necessity of prayer is founded on the necessity of actual grace. Except for the first grace, which is gratuitously given to us without our praying for it, since it is the very principle of prayer, it is a thoroughly established truth that prayer is the normal, efficacious, and universal means by which God wishes that we should obtain all the actual graces we need.

- Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange, The Three Ages of the Interior Life. Vol.1. (St.Louis:Herder Book, 1947), #.

Further elucidation of the concept of actual grace and its necessity in the life of grace of the soul.

Garrigou-Lagrange

It is a truth of faith defined against the Pelagians and the Semi-Pelagians,(2) that, without this grace, we can neither dispose ourselves positively to conversion, nor persevere for a notable time in good, nor above all persevere until death. Without actual grace, we cannot produce the slightest salutary act, or, with even greater reason, reach perfection.

- Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange, The Three Ages of the Interior Life. Vol.1. (St.Louis:Herder Book, 1947), #.

Further example of Garrigou-Lagrange's presentation of the necessity of actual grace.

Garrigou-Lagrange

Even in the natural order, no created agent acts or operates without the cooperation of God, first Mover of bodies and spirits. In this sense, St. Paul says in his discourse on the Areopagus: "Although He (God) be not far from every one of us; for in Him we live and move and are." (1) With even greater reason in the supernatural order, that we may produce acts of the infused virtues and of the gifts, we need a divine motion, which is called actual grace

- Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange, The Three Ages of the Interior Life. Vol.1. (St.Louis:Herder Book, 1947), #.

Garrigou-Lagrange talks about the necessity of actual grace. This is significant because in order to talk about the meaning of blessings, and "exciting pious devotion" or even a more precise "disposition", we need to know the meaning of actual grace.

Feingold

The term "actual grace" first came into common usage after the Council of Trent. Nevertheless, the notion goes back to the Gospel and Apostalic Tradition. It was one of the merits of St.Thomas Aquinas to distinguish clearly between actual and habitual grace (sanctifying grace).

Dr.Feingold explains/defends this assertion in his section on the distinction between sacntifying and actual grace.

I think this insight is significant because I want to make the case that the notion between the sacramental and the sacrament is not only related to this distinction between actual and sanctifying grace but like it, rooted in scripture and tradition only to be more precisely formulated later. Though there doesn't seem to be a particular person behind elaborating this distinction, this is more like, trying to see ordinary magisterium at work...

Feingold

"Actual grace is a kind of divine impulse given to us in order to help move us towards salvation. Actual grace enables us to cooperate freely with the movement of grace, so as to turn ourselves efficaciously towards God and perform acts which contribute towards our salvation."

- Lawrence Feingold, Class notes on Anthropology, Sin, and Grace. (St.Louis, MO: Kenrick-Glennon Seminary, distributed 2010) 195.


This definition of actual grace sets the stage for distinguishing between the spiritual effects of sacramentals, which "excite pious devotion", or more properly aid in obtaining the proper disposition to receive the sacraments, and the sacraments themselves by which we receive sanctifying grace.

Alphonsus

Caeremoniae ecclesiasticae, quae vulgo dicuntur sacramentalia, sunt actus externi religionis ad colendum Deum accommodati.

Ceremonies of the Church, which are commonly are called sacramentals, are external rites, which cultivate properly disposed worship of God.

- Alfonso Maria Ligouri, Theologia Moralis Vol.2. (Cincinnati:Benziger, 1888), 409.

paragraph #90

This is a definition of sacramentals which is significant because of the significance of the work itself, but also because it uses disposition in the definition. The work will go on to try to explain what power the sacramentals have in terms of their power to "excite pious devotion". While this may seem like a weak link, because the sacraments, the ordinary means of salvation, do not themselves provide the proper dispositions which are necessary for their fruitful reception, exciting pious devotion, that is, being properly disposed is incredibly important.

Furthermore, if we have a scientific understanding of what it means to be properly disposed, and we can say that the sacramentals help us to do that, we are coming closer to and understanding of the "spiritual effects" that the doctrinal definitions of sacramentals refer without explanation.

Alphonsus

They don't have power to work of themselves to confer grace, or remit sin, by their own power, per se, but only to the extent that they cause pious excitation.

- Alfonso Maria Ligouri, Theologia Moralis Vol.2. (Cincinnati:Benziger, 1888), .

#91

This is an example of a scientific presentation of the theology of blessing from a manual of moral theology. This particular section is significant because it tries to determine the mode of operation and efficacy and whether it can be said that sacramentals can be a means for the remission of venial sin.

Sacrosanctum Concilium

Thus, for well-disposed members of the faithful, the liturgy of the sacraments and sacramentals sanctifies almost every event in their lives; they are given access to the stream of divine grace which flows from the paschal mystery of the passion, death, the resurrection of Christ, the font from which all sacraments and sacramentals draw their power. There is hardly any proper use of material things which cannot thus be directed toward the sanctification of men and the praise of God.

- Second Vatican Council, Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy Sacrosanctum Concilium (4 December 1963), §61, at The Holy See, www.vatican.va.

This paragraph immediately follows the definition of sacramentals as an imitation of the sacraments. I think this paragraph helps us to understand the meaning of the analogy. The "power" referred to is grace, the very life of God shared with man through the sacraments instituted by Christ.

Without using the (what is in my mind scholastic) language, I think this is getting to the distinction between actual and sanctifying grace.