Predestination...

[flip]

I know the Church is free-will. What is the proper response / theology behind free-will in light of Romans 9?

[Pontifex]

Flip,

The question you ask is a complex one and there are volumes of books written in an attempt to get theological arms around the topic. But for the sake of simplicity I offer the following response.

We know that God is present to us, he is intimately involved with his people and all of creation. God became Man and dwelt among us. He took flesh and lived our life with all of its complexities. God is emmanent. God is with us. However, God is also a mystery, far beyond our understanding, and who knows all things past present and future. (Omniscient and Omnipresent) God is Transcendent.

We must therefore look at the will of God from these two perspectives. God is in the midst of our drama, listening to our prayers, and answering them and God is also aware of the outcome of each situation and the fate of each soul.

Sometimes theologians will use language to bring perspective but realizing that we will always fall short of a precise full-proof answer. One way of looking at this issue is to talk about the Antecedent Will of God (Voluntas antecedens) and the Consequent Will of God (Voluntas consequens). The Antecedent Will of God could be described as what God wants and pursues, but conditionally: that is, dependent upon whether there is a greater good which he also desires and which cannot be attained if the first good is pursued to completion. For example, God's will that human beings exist in the Garden of Eden in His good favor for all of their existence is an antecedent will. However, it was more important and a greater good that he manifest his infinite love and mercy to Mankind by sending his own Son as Savior. The Consequent will of God is that which God really wants, all things considered, and so this is what will actually take place in creation. This is also known as the absolute will of God.

So the fate of human beings and the human drama that manifests is all part of the divine plan. God has control over the divine economy of salvation but all people have free will to make their own decisions.

In a nutshell, it is a mystery and one that we will never totally comprehend but we must retain our responsiblity to make good decisions and to excercise our will in order to receive the free gift of redemption.

I hope this helps.

Fr. Pontifex