CHRISTIAN LIVING EUCATION we respond to God’s grace through the ordinary and

LESSON 4: NAMING GRACE everyday life in the world.” Meaning, life in the world is
sacramentalthe medium of God’s outreach and of human
Introduction This lesson aims to explore an authentically response. God is not seen as a distant God of the
Catholic understanding of grace, as a response to the Moralistic Therapeutic Deism. God actively works and
growing trend of Moralic. Therapeutic Deism. participates in life, within the very reality and history of
human beings
Exposition
All relationships start from somewhere. Your relationship AUGUSTINE AND GRACE
with your family started when they committed to love and
care for you, even before you were born. In the The struggle to find God present in our lives is not new.
relationship with God, the encounter begins with God’s Throughout human history, men and women of the
self-gift of Himself and His divine will in grace. NB: Grace is Church have tried to grapple with this complex mystery of
the dynamic outreach of God to humanity. grace. One of the great Doctors of the Church, Saint
Augustine of Hippo, provided a solid foundation for the
However, grace has been a highly misunderstood reality Church to direct its theological discourse on grace.
among Catholics. This is evident in the misconceptions • For Augustine, God moves, and God acts. God in love
regarding grace within the practice of the Eucharist. For springs into action, creating the world, making a
example: covenant with Israel that will reach to all the world in
• Some people go to mass out of routine Christ.
• Others through social conformity with groups
• Still others consider God as a judge/policeman who • This notion of God’s dynamism is a direct critique of
can be bribed to avoid punishment the very foundations of beliefs blind to grace, such as
those of Moralisitc Therapeutic Deism.
In this context, grace is not anymore linked to a
relationship, but reduced to a commodity. Augustine reminds us that God’s outreach to humanity
reaches its pinnacle in the incarnation in which God took
MORALISTIC THERAPEUTIC DEISM radical action with the full embrace of human life.

Sociologist CHRISTIAN SMITH conducted a study in 1999. LITURGY, SACRAMENTS AND SACRAMENTALS
In his study, he discovered a common religious
perspective that characterized young people’s Unbelief is often grounded on the argument that God is
understaning of God. Smith called this Moralistic not present within the people’s lives. Therefore, within
Therapeutic Deism. the Catholic tradition, there is a clear attempt at
showcasing that God indeed graces our lives with His
• MORALISTIC because religion is meant to provide a presence, and is involve in our context, situation and
moral framework. history. One of the ways is which God communicates and
reaches out to us is through a sacrament.
• THERAPEUTIC because religion is meant to provide an
inward sense of fulfillment WHAT ARE SACRAMENTS?
Sacraments are sacred signs/symbols which signify some
• DEISM because other than a provider of moral spiritual effect which is realized through the action of the
guidelines and emotional stability, God is basically absent. Church (CFC, # 1532). The Seven Sacraments are:

WHY HAS THIS WORLDVIEW BECOME SO PREVALENT? 1. Sacrament of Baptism

2. Sacrament of Confirmation
Smith argues that young people have “turned from 3. Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist
traditional sources of moral authority and guidance to a 4. Sacrament of Reconciliation
new authoritative class of professionals and popular 5. Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick
psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, and other 6. Sacrament of Holy Orders
therapeutic counsellors, authors, talk show hosts, and 7. Sacrament of Holy Matrimony
advice givers.” This resulted into misguided understanding
about some foundational aspects regarding faith, The seven sacraments are defined as ‘actions of Christ
especially amongst Christians. Christianity is replaced by a and of the Church’ which unite us to Christ by the power
different religious faith. of the Holy Spirit, and incorporate us into His Body, the
Church ( CFC 1517).
Where do we begin to encounter and engage Moralistic
Therapeutic Deism, the situation of “spiritual but not MARY CATHERINE HILKERT, professor of systematic
religious,” and even other world religions in a vastly theology of Notre Dame, explains that the mystery of
pluralistic society? grace can be encountered fully through the liturgy and the
We must begin firmly rooted in our Catholic faith and in sacraments
what makes us truly Catholic. This begins with a
recognition of the presence of God as active in our lives “SACRAMENTALS”
and in our world. It begins with the experience of grace,
and the authentically Catholic principle of grace (Badion, Besides the seven sacraments, the Church over the
2018). centuries has instituted “sacramentals” as helpful
avenues for grace:
THE SACRAMENTAL PRINCIPLE
Nothing is more significant to what makes us Catholic • the People of God, the Church, over the centuries has
than the sacramental principle. Noted expert in religious instituted- sacramentals (cf CCC 1667-73). They are
education THOMAS GROOME says, “the sacramental objects, actions, practices, and the like, that help us
principle means that God is present to humankind and
become aware of Christ’s grace- filled presence around • We listen to music during times of joy and celebration.
us or liberate from the Evil One (Exorcism). However, music is just as powerful in times of difficulty, in
times when we feel grace is nowhere to be found
• They help us receive the sacraments with greater fruit,
and render “holy various occasions in life. FEW EXAMPLES OF BEAUTIFUL MUSIC IN THE CHURCH:

“ SYNTHESIS ” • Gregorian Chant • Pater Noster

• Ave Maria • Gift of Finest Wheat
• The liturgy, seven sacraments and sacramentals allow • Prayer of St. Francis
us to recognize that God is present in humankind.
DE MUSICA OF ST AUGUSTINE
• It also opens for us the possibility to respond to On the night of his mother’s death, Augustine again
God’s grace though the ordinary and everyday realities allows himself to weep. The repeated experiences of
of our life in this world. mourning and song will force him to begin writing De
Musica, a treatise which culminates, in Book 6, with the
faculty of judgement- or what he calls ‘estimate’-
“NAMING GRACE IN OUR LIVES” reason overcoming emotions: ‘to enjoy with the senses
is not the same as to estimate by reason.’
Recognizing God in our lives is the challenge given to us as
the Church. This challenge can be referred to as, “BEAUTY OF CHURCH ARCHITECTURE”
“naming the grace.” This section of the lesson gives
suggestions for honing the practice of naming grace in • “Buildings can and do communicate a mediated divine
order to form a sacramental awareness and imagination. presence.”
As believers, we will be able to recognize the presence of • Who among us has not been inspired by the beauty of
God in us and among us. San Agustin Church in Intramuros, or of the grandeur of
Manila Cathedral?
WHAT IS THE CHALLENGE? • The Philippines is rich with many beautiful Churches
that act as monolithic icons of the immensity of the
In the “disenchanted world” where empirical and beautiful God.
scientific understanding is more highly valued than belief, • The Philippine’s rich history of Catholicism remains
the first order of business is a reclamation of enchantment preserved in its Church architecture, one that signifies and
with the world, and its ability to become avenue for grace preserves a Filipino history of encountering God’s grace.
for all peoples. British Theologian David Browm argues
that “God can come sacramentally close to his world and DAILY MYSTAGOGY
vouchsafe experiences of himself through the
material.”What is the challenge? In the “disenchanted • The capacity of naming grace must be done habitually in
world” where empirical and scientific understanding is order to strengthen it within the believer.
more highly valued than belief, the first order of business
is a reclamation of enchantment with the world, and its • MYSTAGOGY means learning about the mysteries of
ability to become avenue for grace for all peoples. faith, pondering upon such mysteries such as the liturgy,
the sacraments and the mystery of grace
BRITISH THEOLOGIAN DAVID BROWM argues that “God
can come sacramentally close to his world and vouchsafe EXPERIENCING GOD THROUGH NARRATIVE
experiences of himself through the material.”
• Another important source for knowing grace in our lives
A. RECOGNIZING THE SACRED IN THE ARTS is by engaging narrative: the Biblical stories, historical
accounts, contemporary examples and fictional tales can
• Because the arts are capable of engaging one’s all form the sacramental awareness.
emotions and stimulating religious experience, they may
be useful in helping students to encounter God and to Narratives contribute substantially to communicating and
understand the Bible at a deeper, more personal level expressing what one’s faith means.
• The arts are not only a fascinating lure into the spiritual
realm of human existence but also an evocative language • God entered into human history taking on humanity in
expressing universal human experiences. its entirety through the Incarnation

• Because the arts are capable of engaging one’s • Three events dominated the Christian story: God’s
emotions and stimulating religious experience, they may creating act; His redeeming act in Jesus Christ, and His
be useful in helping students to encounter God and to sanctifying presence in all in the Holy Spirit (CFC, # 226).
understand the Bible at a deeper, more personal level •
The arts are not only a fascinating lure into the spiritual SUMMARY
realm of human existence but also an evocative language The sacramental principle reminds us that all things bear
expressing universal human experiences. the potential for the divine, but depending on the
situation and the piece of art we are using, encounter
MUSIC AS ART with God may not come as easily or readily. However,
openness and a prayerful disposition can help make this
Creative imagination can be found present in the encounter easier. A prayerful disposition can be honed
experience of music. through daily acts of prayer

• Music can become a sacramental way in which God

reaches out to us, and in a similar manner, a way for us
to reach back to God.