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The answer is in the affirmative.
Authoritative proof. St. Augustine, in one of his
works,[1616] explains in his own admirable way, how Christ's
predestination to be the natural Son of God, which is the result of
no foreseen merits, is the exemplar of our predestination to salvation
or to adoptive sonship of glory, which likewise is not because of our
foreseen merits, since the merits of the elect are the effects and not
the cause of their predestination.
Theological proof. It is explained in the body of this article as
follows:
Christ's predestination is the exemplar of ours not on the part of
God willing, but on the part of the object willed.
It is not the exemplar because of God willing, for in God there are
not several acts of intellect and will; hence St. Thomas says:
"God wills this to be as means to that (on the part of things
willed), but He does not on account of this (first intended) will
that (by a consequent act)."[1617] In this God differs from
us, who are moved by the end to choose the means.
On the part of the objects willed, however, Christ's predestination
is the exemplar of ours in two ways.
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a) As regards the good to which we are predestinated; for Christ was
predestinated to be the natural Son of God, whereas we are
predestinated to be the adopted sons of God, which is a participated
likeness of natural sonship, for St. Paul says: "He predestinated
us to be made conformable to the image of His Son."[1618]
b) As to the manner of obtaining this good, which is by grace, our
preceding merits are not the cause but the effect of our predestination
by God. Under this aspect, Christ's predestination is the exemplar
of ours, because St. Thomas, following St. Augustine, says that
"this is most manifest in Christ, because human nature in Him,
without any preceding merits, was united to the Son of
God";[1619] and the Evangelist says: "of His fullness we
have all received."[1620]
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Reply to third objection. "The exemplate need not be conformed to
the exemplar in all respects; it is sufficient that it imitate it in
some." Our predestination, as we shall at once see, is because of
Christ's merits, whereas Christ did not merit His predestination.
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