Grace alone is another Reformation principle that is true when taken in the correct context. What is grace? We need to understand that before anything else first. We are redeemed by grace; and it is a free, undeserved nourishment given by God to redeem us. It is a supernatural gift, and can't be expressed in ordinary words. The truth is that our soul isn't fit for Heaven; it is battered and bruised from our sins. However, because God loves us deeply and continually, He pours grace over His believers so that we may encounter Him more and be made anew every day. Grace has the power to cleanse us from our sins; So without grace, we are hopeless, living life without the wisdom and encouragement from Christ.

 

We are only made right through the power of Christ, and through participating faithfully through the sacraments that He left with the Church. In this way, we are given the ability to seek Him more profoundly and love Him intensely. Grace helps us lift our cross and follow Christ to experience His ways and life more powerfully, and thus is a participation in the life of God. 

 

We might then ask, what then separates Catholic's and other Christians' interpretation of grace? There are two kinds of graces from God: sanctifying grace, and "agape", or "actual" grace.

 

Sanctifying grace purifies the soul for God and makes it holy. It stays in the soul, giving it supernatural life. We receive this particular grace when we are born again through water and the Spirit. 

 

Agape/or actual grace is the love of God. We sometimes call this particular grace agape grace, the Greek word for agape is love. Agape grace is the prompting from the Holy Spirit to encourage us to do what is right, and help us to say “yes”to God everyday.

 

Catholics believe that after we are justified, we must go through sanctification, which is a process of becoming more holy, co-operating with the grace of God. We must actively be saying yes to allow God’s grace to fill us. 

 

We receive both graces by God freely through our faith in Jesus. We receive grace through our prayers, hope, receiving the body and blood of Christ in the Eucharist, reading the scriptures, and attending Church.