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State of the question. The reason for inserting this article is that
Sacred Scripture attributes at least a certain fullness of grace to
some others. Thus the angel says to the Blessed Virgin Mary:
"Hail, full of grace."[935] The Scripture also says:
"Stephen, full of grace and fortitude."[936] In fact, St.
Paul writing to the Ephesians, thus expresses his desire to them:
"That you may be filled unto all the fullness of God."[937]
Moreover, for all the blessed in heaven, beatitude is the fullness of
all good, which presupposes a certain fullness of grace in this life.
What is therefore the fullness of grace that is proper to Christ?
First conclusion. Absolute fullness of grace, but not relative
fullness, belongs to Christ alone.
Scriptural proof. The Evangelist says: "We saw His glory, the
glory as it were of the only-begotten of the Father, full of grace
and truth."[938] But to be the only-begotten of the Father,
belongs to Christ alone. Therefore, too, does fullness of grace.
Theological proof. Absolute fullness of grace is attained when there
is as much grace as can be had, at least according to God's ordinary
power. But Christ alone had grace in the highest possible degree of
excellence and intensity that can be had, at least according to God's
ordinary power. Therefore Christ alone had absolute fullness of
grace, both in its intensity and extent, as was stated in the
preceding article.
Second conclusion. Relative fullness of grace does not belong to
Christ alone, but is communicated to others through Him.
There is, indeed, relative fullness of grace when it is of such a
nature and extent as demanded by the condition and office of the person
to whom it is attributed.
But several saints, especially the Blessed Virgin Mary, had grace
that was perfectly proportioned to the state and duty assigned to them.
Thus the Blessed Virgin is declared to be "full of
grace."[939] Therefore relative fullness of grace does not
belong to Christ alone.[940]
Corollary.[941] Christ's habitual grace, from the very moment
of His conception, excelled in both intensity and extent all grace,
even the ultimate grace of angels and men combined. The reason is that
the grace in Christ is in proportion to the hypostatic union, and is
in Him as the source from which it flows even to the angels; for, as
will be stated farther on, Christ is the head of the angels at least
as regards accidental grace and glory, inasmuch as the angels are His
ministers in the kingdom of God. Jesus said, "The Son of man
shall send His angels, and they shall gather out of His kingdom all
scandals, and all them that work iniquity, and shall cast them into
the furnace of fire."[942] He likewise said: "He shall send
His angels and shall gather together His elect."[943]
From these texts it is evident that Christ has a higher degree of
grace than all angels and men combined, including the blessed, just as
in a way the sun is brighter in its intensity than any lesser light
whatever, and iron is of more value than a huge pile of common stones.
Moreover, it is also said of the Blessed Virgin Mary that her first
fullness of grace excelled in intensity the final degree of grace,
though not the glory of angels and men combined, and so it is said:
"The holy Mother of God has been raised above the choirs of angels
to the heavenly kingdom."[944]
It even appears to be true that the grace received by the founders of
religious orders excels, as regards the founding of the order, the
grace of their combined associates, in this sense, that these
associates, unless their founder had been especially inspired by God,
would not have started this order, whereas, contrary to this, the
founder, deputed by God for this work, could have done it with other
companions. Thus the grace, either of St. Benedict or of St.
Dominic or of St. Francis, seems to excel the grace of his
companions. Likewise, the degree of grace in St. Thomas is greater
than that of all his commentators combined. This is more readily
understood in that grace is a quality and hence its perfection is
qualitative but not quantitative. Consequently, grace that is
equivalent for ten talents is of a higher degree than ten graces each of
which is equivalent to one talent. Thus a saint, such as the saintly
parish priest of Ars, has a greater degree of grace and accomplishes
more than many of the faithful and even priests whose charity is of a
less degree.
Thus St. Thomas shows[945] that charity—and he says that the
same applies to habitual grace—is not increased in intensity by the
addition of charity to charity; for this would be a multiplication of
charity, but not an increase of it. It is increased, however, by
becoming more firmly rooted in the recipient or, not using metaphysical
language, by a greater actuation or determination of, and inherence in
the recipient; for it is the nature of an accident to inhere.
All these statements are but one and the same way of expressing the
intensification of qualities. A new degree of charity, and a more
perfect actuation of this charity and of its inherence in the
recipient, mean the same thing.
If, then, a higher degree of grace is taken in a qualitative sense
and not in its quantitative sense, it is easy to see that Christ's
habitual grace excels in intensity even every ultimate grace of men and
angels combined. From the moment of His conception it excelled their
glory.
St. Thomas teaches that this fullness of grace is of three kinds.
He says: "There is sufficient fullness by which anyone has
sufficient grace to perform meritorious and excellent acts, as St.
Stephen did. There is likewise redundant fullness by which the
Blessed Virgin excelled all the saints on account of the eminence and
abundance of her merits. There is also efficient and affluent
fullness, which applies to Christ alone as man, as to the
quasi-author of grace. Thus there was an outpouring of grace on us by
the Blessed Virgin, yet she was by no means the author of
grace.... Christ's fullness of grace is the cause of all the
graces in all intellectual creatures."[946]
St. Thomas says in this text, "of all graces" in general; he does
not, however, determine the kind, and he does not say "even of
essential grace and glory" in the angels, which elsewhere he
denies.[947]
Objection. There would be great disproportion in the natural body if
the head were larger than the rest of the body. Therefore, for a
similar reason, there would be disproportion in the mystical body if
the grace of Christ as its head were in intensity to exceed or equal
all the grace of those that constitute His mystical body.
Reply. Gonet answers this objection by conceding the antecedent and
denying the consequence, because, as he points out, a distinction
must be made between quality and quantity, and there is by no means
parity of argument between the mystical body and the natural body.
There is indeed similarity of comparison between the two bodies as
regards the influx of the head in the members and its pre-eminence over
them. But in the natural body the substantial form demands a
determinate quantity, both in the head and in the members, that the
body may be able to perform its vital operations: and so it is
necessary that our head be smaller than our body. Moreover, since
habitual grace is the form that vivifies the mystical body of the
Church, it does not demand a determinate intensity, but can be
increased indefinitely.[948] Hence in the head of the mystical
body there can be a greater intensification of grace than in all other
persons, and this even pertains to the dignity of the head. Finally,
there is in no way any vital dependence of the mystical body on the
members, whereas, on the contrary, the head of the physical body
depends on the heart, lungs, and other parts.
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