Grace, Free Will & Predestination

Jansenism: The Augustinian Heresy That Divided the Church

What was Jansenism? The Augustinian movement that became Calvinism in Catholic dress—the five propositions, Port-Royal, Pascal, and why Rome condemned it.

What the Council of Trent Actually Said About Justification

A Catholic convert reads the Council of Trent's 1547 Decree on Justification verbatim—and finds that what Protestants are taught it says is not what it says.

Theology Glossary: Key Terms in the Catholic Theology of Grace

Definitions of key terms in Catholic grace theology: prevenient grace, sufficient and efficacious grace, sanctifying and actual grace, monergism vs. synergism, justification, and more.

Calvinism vs. Catholicism

Calvinism vs. Catholicism explained side-by-side: authority, salvation, sacraments, predestination, the Church, and Mary. A scholarly 2026 comparison of the two great Augustinian traditions.

1 Samuel 2:25 Meaning: “The Lord Wanted Them Dead”

An exegetical study of 1 Samuel 2:25—the Hebrew ḥāpēṣ, the hardening tradition, and the Catholic response from Aquinas to Trent to De Auxiliis.

The Subjective View of the Atonement

Peter Abelard's relational theory of the atonement, its limits, and how Catholic teaching holds objective and subjective redemption together.

Athanasius on the Atonement

How Athanasius understood Christ's work through incarnation, deification, and the triumph over death—resources for a richer Catholic theology of the cross.

Augustine on the Atonement

How Augustine's Trinitarian theology shaped atonement doctrine—victory, sacrifice, grace, and love united in Catholic soteriology.

Christus Victor

What is Christus Victor? The earliest Christian atonement theory teaches that Christ defeated sin, death, and the devil. Explore the Church Fathers' witness.

John Chrysostom on the Atonement

How the Golden-Mouthed Father understood Christ's atonement through victory, ransom, sacrifice, and exchange—a patristic synthesis that enriches Catholic theology.

Gregory of Nyssa on the Atonement

Gregory of Nyssa's Christus Victor theology: the fishhook, divine deception, theosis, and universal restoration in early patristic soteriology.

Massa Damnata: Augustine’s Doctrine of the Condemned Mass

What is Augustine’s massa damnata? The condemned mass—its roots in Romans 5 and 9, the Thomist–Molinist debate, and the Catholic theology of grace.

Divine Foreknowledge and Free Will: The Catholic Answer

Can God know the future and humans still be free? The Catholic intellectual tradition offers robust answers through Thomism and Molinism. Here’s how they work and why they matter.

Divine Providence and Free Will: A Catholic Guide

A comprehensive Catholic guide to the theology of divine providence and free will. Covers Thomism, Molinism, open theism, process theology, divine simplicity, foreknowledge, and how the Catholic tradition reconciles God's sovereignty with human freedom.

Divine Providence Models Compared: Thomism, Molinism, Open Theism, and Process Theology

A side-by-side comparison of the four major Christian models of divine providence: Thomism, Molinism, open theism, and process theology. How they differ on foreknowledge, freedom, sovereignty, and evil.

Does God Know the Future? What Catholics Believe

Does God know the future? The Catholic Church teaches that God's knowledge is exhaustive, encompassing even the free acts of creatures. Here's what that means and why it matters.

Greg Boyd's Open Theism: A Catholic Critique

Gregory Boyd is arguably the most publicly visible advocate of open theism. A Catholic evaluation of his major works—God of the Possible, Satan and the Problem of Evil, and Is God to Blame?—and the theological vision they present.

Is Molinism Compatible with Thomism?

Molinism and Thomism are the two great Catholic frameworks for reconciling divine sovereignty and human freedom. Are they truly incompatible, or can insights from both traditions be harmonized?

Molinism: Divine Sovereignty and Human Freedom

What is Molinism? Luis de Molina's middle knowledge (scientia media), the De Auxiliis controversy, and how Molinism compares to Thomism and Calvinism.

Open Theism: A Catholic Evaluation

What is open theism? A Catholic evaluation of the open model of God, its scriptural case, philosophical arguments, and why it falls outside defined Catholic dogma.

Open Theism vs. Molinism: A Catholic Comparison

How do open theism and Molinism differ on divine foreknowledge, human freedom, and providence? A Catholic comparison of two frameworks for understanding God’s knowledge of the future.

Open Theism vs. Process Theology: What's the Difference?

Open theism and process theology both reject exhaustive divine foreknowledge, but they differ profoundly on creation, omnipotence, and God's nature. A Catholic comparison of these two critiques of classical theism.

The Openness of God (1994): Summary and Catholic Response

A chapter-by-chapter summary of The Openness of God (1994) by Pinnock, Rice, Sanders, Hasker, and Basinger—the book that brought open theism to mainstream evangelical attention—with a Catholic evaluation of its arguments.

Romans 9–11: Election, Israel, and the Mystery of Salvation

What does Romans 9–11 really teach about election and predestination? This Catholic interpretation engages Thomism, Molinism, Calvinism, and Arminianism — the most comprehensive treatment online.

Theology Glossary: Key Terms in the Divine Providence Debate

Definitions of key theological and philosophical terms in the debate over divine providence, foreknowledge, and free will: from actus purus to scientia media.

Can You Lose Your Salvation? Catholic Teaching

Can a Christian lose their salvation? The Catholic Church teaches that mortal sin can sever one's relationship with God — but that grace can always be restored through repentance.

Catholic vs. Calvinist Predestination: What Divides Us and What We Share

How do Catholic and Calvinist views of predestination differ? A comparison of Thomism, Molinism, and Reformed theology on election, grace, and free will.

Lumen Gentium and Salvation Outside the Church

What does Lumen Gentium 16 teach about salvation outside the Church? A clear Catholic explanation of LG 14-16, extra ecclesiam nulla salus, and invincible ignorance.

Pelagianism and Semi-Pelagianism: Why the Church Condemned Both

Understand Pelagianism vs. semi-Pelagianism: why both heresies were condemned, their impact on theology, and what they teach about grace and salvation.

God Desires All Men To Be Saved

What does 1 Timothy 2:4 mean for Catholic theology? A reflection on Catechism §74, predestination, free will, and God's universal desire for salvation.

Pluralism v. Inclusivism: Salvation and Diversity

Inclusivism vs. pluralism: how each theology handles salvation, religious diversity, and Christ's role—with Catholic, Hick, and Pannenberg perspectives.

To Know God as a Catholic

Catholic teaching on knowing God: reason, revelation, and grace. A walk through CCC §§31–35 with Reformed and Arminian parallels.

My Theology Circa 2007

A snapshot of my evangelical theology in 2007 — from Open Theism to Arminianism — before seminary reshaped everything. A starting point for tracing my faith journey.

The Crucifixion of the Warrior God: A Bridge Too Far

A critical review of Greg Boyd's Crucifixion of the Warrior God. Boyd's cruciform hermeneutic is promising, but does his reading undermine Scripture's reliability?

Greg Boyd’s Answer to the Problem of Suffering: A Review

Explore Greg Boyd’s open theism response to suffering. This review of Is God to Blame? examines how Jesus Christ redefines our understanding of evil and divine compassion.

Does Everything Happen for a Reason?

Does everything happen for a reason? A Catholic examination of divine sovereignty, free will, and the problem of evil—and why God is not the author of suffering.