ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses how Augustine, Anselm, and Aquinas (AAA) assess the need for divine grace to reach heaven. In Augustine's day a churchman named Pelagius and his followers had proposed that grace was not necessary; the human being could freely choose to be good enough to merit heaven. Or, if grace was necessary, one could freely be good enough to deserve it. Augustine criticizes these claims on two counts. First, divine omnipotence is limited if God “owes” it to the created agent to effect his salvation. Second, if human beings can save themselves, Christ's incarnation, passion, and resurrection were pointless. AAA agree that grace is necessary and unmerited. Then does free will play any role at all in the salvation of the individual? In reconciling grace and free will Anselm gives free will a more decisive role than do Augustine and Aquinas. Further questions concerning grace include: Why does God give grace to some and not to others? And, Can you know if you have received the grace that will allow you to persevere on the heaven-bound path to the end of your life?
