Rachel Evans
Predestination is a concept that appears in the Bible, and therefore all Christian groups have a belief in the concept. However, there is considerable debate about how predestination works. The New Testament teaches that predestination is real, and St. Paul's words in Romans 8:29-30 are often interpreted as referring to predestination. The Catholic Church permits a range of views on the subject of predestination, but it is firm on certain points: God predestines no one to go to hell, and predestination does not involve a denial of free will. The two most prominent explanations of the Catholic concept of predestination are Molinism and Thomism, which fall within the scope of Catholic orthodoxy.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Catholic view on predestination | God predestines people to salvation based on his foreknowledge of their cooperation with his grace |
| God does not predestine anyone to go to hell; a person must willfully turn away from God and persist in mortal sin until the end to be damned | |
| Predestination does not deny free will; man's freedom is included in God's plan of predestination | |
| God permits sin for the greater good and to manifest his justice | |
| God's predestination is a grace that unfolds through the creation of the world, sacred history, the life of Jesus Christ, his sacrifice, the work of the Holy Spirit, and the Catholic Church and its Sacraments | |
| Predestination is a result of God's love and omniscience | |
| The two prominent explanations of the Catholic concept of predestination are Molinism and Thomism | |
| According to Molinism, God permits sin, such as original sin and the rejection of Jesus by Israel, to fulfill prophecy | |
| Thomism gained dominance in the Middle Ages and is promoted by Pope Leo XIII; it teaches that God premoves the will to a certain good while the will remains free | |
| The Catholic Church permits a range of views on predestination but rejects the idea of unconditional election | |
| Protestant view on predestination | Protestants believe in predestination but differ from Catholics on the role of free will |
| According to Protestant theology, God chooses those He will save, and everyone else is condemned to hell | |
| Calvinists, a Protestant denomination, hold the closest position to the Essenes, emphasizing predestination and unconditional election | |
| Lutherans traditionally share the belief in unconditional election with qualifiers | |
| Most Protestants do not subscribe to predestination, except those belonging to the "Reformed" movement begun by John Calvin |
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What You'll Learn
The Catholic Church permits a range of views on predestination
Predestination is a concept that appears in the Bible, and as such, all Christian groups have a belief in the concept. However, the Catholic Church permits a range of views on predestination.
The New Testament teaches that predestination is real. St. Paul says, “Those whom [God] foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the first-born among many brethren. And those whom he predestined he also called; and those whom he called he also justified; and those whom he justified he also glorified” (Rom. 8:29-30). Scripture also refers to those whom God has “elected”, and theologians often interpret this as referring to predestination.
The concept of predestination has been interpreted in different ways by various Jewish sects. For instance, the Essenes believed that everything is fated by God to happen, meaning people have no free will. On the other hand, the Sadducees denied predestination and attributed everything to free will. The Pharisees took a middle position, believing that both predestination and free will play a role.
The Catholic Church takes a different view to the Protestant interpretation of predestination. According to the latter, God chooses who will be saved and condemns the rest to hell. In contrast, the Catholic Church teaches that predestination does not deny free will. God knows who will end up in heaven or hell, but each individual has the free will to choose virtue or sin. The Church is firm on certain points, such as "God predestines no one to go to hell; for this, a willful turning away from God (a mortal sin) is necessary, and persistence in it until the end" (CCC 1037). It also rejects the idea of unconditional election, stating that God's "eternal plan of 'predestination' includes each person's free response to his grace" (CCC 600).
Within the Catholic Church, there are two prominent explanations of the concept of predestination: Molinism and Thomism. Molinists believe in "positive consequent reprobation", which is the idea that God permits sin for a greater good and to manifest his justice. They deny "negative antecedent reprobation", arguing that it is not required for man to sin. Thomists interpret CCC 600 as compatible with compatibilism, which holds that while everything is determined, the will is still free. They agree with the Molinists that God permits sin, but argue that the will remains free despite being certainly moved by God.
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Predestination and free will
The Church holds that God predestines some people to salvation, but not to hell. This is a key difference between Catholic and Calvinist teachings. In Catholicism, predestination to hell is only possible through an individual's free will and their own sins, not through God's choice. This is because God is love, and to love someone is to make them free.
The Catholic Church permits a range of views on predestination, but it is firm on certain points: God does not predestine anyone to go to hell, and a willful turning away from God (a mortal sin) is necessary for damnation. This belief is supported by Scripture, which mentions that God has "'elected' or "chosen" certain individuals for salvation. However, this does not mean that free will is compromised. Man's freedom is included within God's plan of predestination, and individuals must respond to God's grace and accept salvation.
There are two schools of thought within Catholic predestination: Molinism and Thomism. Molinism holds that God gives grace to individuals, but they can still reject it, thus allowing for both predestination and free will. Thomism, on the other hand, teaches that God gives irresistible grace, which will always lead to salvation. While Thomism maintains that the will is still free despite being moved by God, Molinism denies this, arguing that God's permission for sin is necessary to allow for free will.
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Predestination and salvation
Predestination is a concept that appears in the Bible, and as such, all Christian groups have a belief in the concept. However, there is considerable debate about how predestination works. Predestination is taken to mean every Divine decree by which God, owing to His infallible prescience of the future, has appointed and ordained from eternity all events occurring in time, especially those influenced by man's free will.
Some Jews at the time of Christ, such as the Essenes, believed that everything is fated by God to happen, so that people have no free will. On the other hand, the Sadducees denied predestination and attributed everything to free will. Finally, some Jews, like the Pharisees, believed that both predestination and free will play a role.
The Catholic Church permits a range of views on the subject of predestination, but it is firm on certain points: "God predestines no one to go to hell; for this, a willful turning away from God (a mortal sin) is necessary, and persistence in it until the end" (CCC 1037). Predestination, therefore, does not involve a denial of free will. Man’s freedom is included within the scope of God’s plan of predestination, and if we wish to be with him in eternity, we must respond to his initiative of grace and accept his offer of salvation.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church states: "To God, all moments of time are present in their immediacy. When therefore he establishes his eternal plan of 'predestination,' he includes in it each person’s free response to his grace" (CCC 600). God is aware of all the free-will decisions that creatures in time will make. Thus, he is aware of whether an individual will freely choose to accept or reject his offer of salvation, and he includes this in establishing predestination.
Calvinists take the position closest to that of the Essenes and emphasize predestination. According to Calvinism, God actively chooses certain individuals to be saved, and he gives them grace that will unfailingly result in their salvation. Those whom God does not choose do not receive this grace and are inevitably damned. God’s choice is said to be “unconditional,” meaning that it isn’t based on anything about the individuals. Belief in unconditional election is also traditionally shared by Lutherans, with various qualifiers.
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Predestination and sin
Predestination is a concept that is mentioned in the Bible and is therefore acknowledged by all Christian groups. However, there is considerable debate about how predestination works. The Catholic Church permits a range of views on the subject of predestination, but there are certain points on which it is firm: “God predestines no one to go to hell; for this, a willful turning away from God (a mortal sin) is necessary, and persistence in it until the end” (CCC 1037).
The New Testament teaches that predestination is real. St. Paul says, “Those whom [God] foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the first-born among many brethren. And those whom he predestined he also called; and those whom he called he also justified; and those whom he justified he also glorified” (Rom. 8:29-30). Scripture also refers to those whom God has “elected” (Greek, eklektos, “chosen”), and theologians often link this term to predestination, understanding the elect as those God has predestined to salvation.
At the time of Christ, some Jews—such as the Essenes—thought that everything is fated by God to happen, so that people have no free will. Other Jews—such as the Sadducees—denied predestination and attributed everything to free will. Finally, some Jews—such as the Pharisees—believed that both predestination and free will have a role. For Christians, Paul rules out the view taken by the Sadducees. But the other two views have found supporters.
Calvinists take the position closest to that of the Essenes and place a strong emphasis on predestination. According to Calvinism, God actively chooses certain individuals to be saved, and he gives them grace that will unfailingly result in their salvation. Those whom God does not choose don’t receive this grace, so they are inevitably damned. In Calvinist thought, God’s choice is said to be “unconditional,” meaning that it isn’t based on anything about the individuals. Belief in unconditional election is also traditionally shared by Lutherans, with various qualifiers.
The Catholic Church, however, rejects the idea of unconditional election, stating that when God “establishes his eternal plan of ‘predestination’, he includes in it each person’s free response to his grace” (CCC 600). Predestination thus does not involve a denial of free will. Neither does it provide an excuse to neglect our salvation. On the contrary, man’s freedom is included within the scope of God’s plan of predestination, and if we wish to be with him in eternity, we must respond to his initiative of grace and accept his offer of salvation.
The two most prominent explanations of the Catholic concept of predestination are termed Molinism and Thomism; both fall within the scope of Catholic orthodoxy. The Thomistic school would interpret CCC 600 while still maintaining physical premotion as the Thomistic school can be called followers of Compatibilism, which teaches that while everything is determined the will is still free, as freedom isn’t merely the ability to do what you want but the ability to do good. The Thomistic school also teaches that God permits sin for a greater good and to manifest his Justice. The permission of sin is called “Negative antecedent reprobation” and happens before the damnation to hell which is called “positive consequent reprobation”, the Molinists also believe in “positive consequent reprobation” but deny negative antecedent reprobation as they deny that it is required for man to sin.
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Predestination and grace
Predestination is a concept that appears in the Bible, and so all Christian groups have a belief in the concept. However, there is considerable debate about how predestination works.
The Catholic Church permits a range of views on the subject of predestination, but it is firm on certain points. The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) states:
> God predestines no one to go to hell; for this, a willful turning away from God (a mortal sin) is necessary, and persistence in it until the end.
This is in contrast to the Protestant belief that God chooses who is saved and who goes to hell. According to Catholic theology, God's grace is available to everyone, and free will is man's power to choose between good and evil. God knows who will end up in heaven or hell, but he does not predestine this.
The Catholic concept of predestination is termed Molinism and Thomism, and both fall within Catholic orthodoxy. Molinism, held by the majority of Church fathers before Augustine, states that God permits sin for the sake of accomplishing predestination. Thomism, which gained dominance in the Middle Ages, states that God premoves the will to a certain good, but the will remains free.
Predestination unfolds through the creation of the world, sacred history, the life of Jesus Christ, his sacrifice, the work of the Holy Spirit, and through the Catholic Church and its sacraments. Predestination is a grace, and God predestines out of love.
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Frequently asked questions
Predestination is the belief that God, owing to His infallible prescience of the future, has appointed and ordained from eternity all events occurring in time, especially those influenced by man's free will.
Catholic teaching supports the idea of predestination, but with a key difference from Protestant theology. While both agree that God knows who will end up in heaven or hell, the two differ on the concept of free will. Protestants believe that man is free to choose virtue or sin, but that these choices are determined by God. Catholics, on the other hand, believe that predestination does not deny free will and that man's freedom is included within God's plan.
The Catholic Church permits a range of views on predestination but maintains certain firm positions. It rejects the idea of unconditional election, stating that God's plan of predestination includes each person's free response to His grace. It also affirms that God predestines no one to go to hell; a willful turning away from God is necessary for damnation.
The two most prominent explanations of Catholic predestination are Molinism and Thomism. Molinism, held by a majority of Church fathers before Augustine, asserts that God permits sin for the sake of accomplishing predestination. Thomism, which gained dominance in the Middle Ages, maintains that God premoves the will to a certain good while preserving free will.
Some Calvinists believe that Catholics deny predestination or hold a view similar to Pelagianism. Catholics can affirm common ground by acknowledging that salvation occurs because God has taken the initiative, but also emphasize the role of free will, stressing that those who aren't saved have rejected God.
