Mark Wenz
The concept of grace has roots in ancient religions in which the Goddess was revered, as well as in Greek and Roman mythology. The word “grace” has its origins in the Old French word gracier, meaning “to thank,” and in the Latin word gratia, which means “kindness, favor, esteem.” The adjective form of the word “gracious” means both “courteous, kind, and pleasant” and “showing divine grace,” as in the sentence, “I am saved by God’s gracious intervention.” Grace is a concept prevalent in much of human history.
The concept of grace is present in the world’s various monotheistic religions. For Christians, grace describes the spontaneous, unearned gift of divine favor bestowed upon humankind by a benevolent God. Similarly, in Judaism, grace is an attribute of God that signifies His loving kindness and mercy. For the non-religious, secular grace is a proactive acceptance, love, and caring for our fellow human beings. In all of these belief systems, the key words are love, kindness, mercy, and caring.
The world’s major religions of Eastern origin also speak favorably of grace. According to Google, “In Hinduism, grace refers to the divine assistance and blessings bestowed by the divine, which facilitates spiritual growth, transformation, and liberation.” Won Buddhism teaches that “grace implies co-existence, interdependence, and oneness and is manifested in four ways: the grace of heaven and earth, of parents, of fellow beings, and of laws.”
The Unity Church to which I belong shares similar beliefs. According to the Unity website, “Grace is unity and oneness within ourselves and with God and is a gift … from God simply because you are God’s child.” Further examination of the website reveals the giving kindness of grace by offering up the following examples from Unity church members:
1. After moving into a new home, you receive a gift from a neighbor when you are feeling lost and alone.
2. You feel overwhelming joy when a lost pet is unexpectedly returned to you.
3. The answer to a serious dilemma comes to you just at the right moment.
4. The sweetness of a pet’s gentle nudge lifts your spirits when you are down.
5. Finding the right gift for a friend deepens the bond between you.
As these examples show, acts of grace can be simple, yet their effects can be profound.
Christian psychiatrist M. Scott Peck wrote in his seminal work The Road Less Traveled that “grace hastens the journey of spiritual growth,” which is a journey that many of you reading these pages are on. According to his biographer, Australian poet Victor Daley experienced grace at the end of his life: “[Daley] was being tenderly cared for in a Catholic hospital. Before dying, one of his last acts was to thank the nurses for their kindness. ‘Don’t thank us,’ the nurses said. ‘Thank the grace of God.’ Very perceptively, the poet asked, ‘But aren’t you the grace of God?’”
If only we could all be so open to the giving and receiving of grace.