One cannot change hearts, minds, and souls without conversion. Metanoia, the Greek word for repentance or change of life, must occur for a person to actually change a lifestyle, habits of thinking, actions.
John the Baptist preached metanoia, and so did Christ. But, Jewish and Catholic scholars tell us that the real word to be used is "resipiscite", the interior changing of one's mind. When I took Biblical studies in college, the scholars who taught me were clear on metanoia being a change of lifestyle as well as a changing of the mind.
However, in this first conversion, to which Christ not merely called all people, but commanded that we all repent, as is clearly seen in
Matthew 4:17New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition
From that time Jesus began to proclaim, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”
To proclaim is to command.
This first conversion involves both the changing of one's mind about morality, God, lifestyles, but also the changing of one's actions. There is an implication of sorrow in the word metanoia as well, indicating remorse.
Recently, in conversation with someone on the evil of gradualism, I noted that definitions and distinctions in words are essential in both theology and the spiritual life. The first conversion to Christ must involve the changing of a lifestyle of sin to one of moral goodness. One cannot merely accept the Gospel without doing what Christ commands. Here is Christ on this point:
Matthew 7:21-23New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition
21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many deeds of power in your name?’ 23 Then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; go away from me, you evildoers.’
Those who are saying "Lord" may not be converted in their actions, or their hearts, minds, and souls.
Deeds must follow repentance, but one cannot remain in a state of sin, that is, living in sin, after accepting Christ as Lord. This is one of the errors of gradualism.
The process of holiness comes after the first conversion. The second conversion, as taught by the saints, and written about at length on this blog, involves purification, that final purging of venial sins and the tendencies to sin.
But, the first conversion is not a process, It is a decision, the metanoia the "resipiscite".
Metanoia, resipiscite, is a change of direction, a turning around and facing God and His ways involving both a change of mind and change of action.
One leaves egotism and selfishness, errors in thinking, deceit, and the actions of sin. As when a parent corrects a child, sometimes understanding is incomplete. Sometimes repentance is imperfect. We call that imperfect contrition, when one is sorry for sins because one fears the punishment of hell, Perfect contrition stems from the love of God and the desire only to please Him and not offend Him.
Both types are valid, but both types of contrition cannot be a split between mind and body. Without the change of a lifestyle, one has not actually repented. One can speak of process with regard to the second conversion, but not the first.
God gives all people grace for this first conversion. This grace is explained in the posts listed after those on the second conversion. No one on earth now, in the past, or to come has ever been denied the grace of conversion. To return to God, after a life of sin, is a grace given to all.
These posts should help people understand why gradualism is heretical.
31 May 2012
Letting God Be God-a Second Conversion. Posted by Supertradmum. I had an insight into the real power of the Passion and Death of Christ. God died. We have emphasized the Humanity of Christ sthe sco much in the last two ...
24 May 2013
Continuing with this on the second conversion of the soul, which is known well to the nuns at Tyburn, Garrigou-Lagrange notes that this purification process applies to all Catholics and the goal is to come to God totally and ...
26 May 2013Met
Good news regarding the second conversion and passive purification. Posted by Supertradmum. Peter was not acting in a holy manner when he was running from Rome and death. He was avoiding his martyrdom, which ...
09 Oct 2014
There is a second conversion which involves a detachment from venial sin. Again, a person cannot even be holding on to habits and knee-jerk reactions to venial sin and follow the road to perfection. I have reiterated this ...
06 Nov 2014
60, 63), the second conversion of the apostles took place more properly at the end of the Passion when Peter wept over his denial, and that Pentecost was like a third conversion or more properly a transformation of the soul, ...
03 Aug 2013
The necessity of a second conversion arises from all that remains in us of often unconscious egoism which mingles in the greater number of our acts. In a number of people this necessity comes from their unwillingness to be ...
31 Jan 2014
Community builds on the first and second conversions. Only when one is dedicated to the life of perfection, can one succeed in community. First, a conversion to Christ and then a conversion to the baptismal promises and the ...
21 Jan 2014
The necessity of a second conversion arises from all that remains in us of often unconscious egoism which mingles in the greater number of our acts. In a number of people this necessity comes from their unwillingness to be ...
12 Feb 2014
In connection with Peter's second conversion, we should recall that St. Thomas teaches (2) that even after a serious sin, if a man has a truly fervent contrition proportionate to the degree of grace lost, he recovers this degree of ...
10 Feb 2014
Retarded souls...At the beginning of the third part of this work, we shall speak of the second conversion through which one passes, with greater or lesser generosity, from the purgative way of beginners to the illuminative way ...
15 Mar 2014
In Garrigou-Lagrange, simple prayer is found in the beginning states, before the Dark Night and before the Second Conversion. The Illuminative State at the last stage is truly one of power and getting things done. In other ...
18 Aug 2013
The second is that of traditional or orthodox Catholics, who want to grow deeper in love with God, as I do. This is not a blog which tries to convert, or convict at the level of the first conversion, which is giving one's life to Christ, ...
14 Aug 2013
One wonderful man I know, a single gentleman who works for Catholic charities in another country, said he sobbed for three days, and had his second conversion. Another man I have spoken with has told me the same thing, ...
28 Jan 2013
The entrance into the illuminative way, which is the second conversion described by St. Catherine of Siena, Blessed Henry Suso, Tauler, and Father Lallemant, is called by St. John of the Cross the passive purification of the ...
18 Apr 2013
From this higher point of view, the illuminative way demands the passive purification of the senses, which, we have seen, marks the entrance to it and is like a second conversion, analogous to that of the apostles, especially of ...
01 Aug 2014
The entrance into the illuminative way, which is the second conversion described by St. Catherine of Siena, Blessed Henry Suso, Tauler, and Father Lallemant, is called by St. John of the Cross the passive purification of the .
13 Aug 2014
This was the way of St. Augustine, St. Francis and St. Ignatius, all converted once, and then converted in the second conversion to follow the path of purification and allow God to live in them. St. Paul writes this, showing us he ...
02 Dec 2012
This is the second point. This point is key. Not merely correction nor conversion. The new evangelism must be followed up with the steps of perfection. One cannot end catechesis with the Creed, but move on, as the original ...
29 Apr 2013
The entrance into the illuminative way, which is the second conversion described by St. Catherine of Siena, Blessed Henry Suso, Tauler, and Father Lallemant, is called by St. John of the Cross the passive purification of the .
02 Sep 2013
Protestantism is a hindrance to the the higher states, from the second conversion, the dark night and following as one is a heretic in serious ares, such as the definitions of grace, or the Person of Christ, or the denial of the ...
02 Sep 2013
Protestantism is a hindrance to the the higher states, from the second conversion, the dark night and following as one is a heretic in serious ares, such as the definitions of grace, or the Person of Christ, or the denial of the ...
10 Feb 2014
These reflections on retarded souls lead us to speak of the necessity of the second conversion or passive purification of the senses, which marks, according to St, John of the Cross, the entrance into the illuminative way of the ...
13 Sep 2014
Sometimes called second conversion, as in the mystics and the perfection series. If inquiry be made as to the mode of this increase, it can only be explained by the philosophical maxim: "Qualities are susceptible of increase ...
09 Jun 2012
First, he noted that we need to take seriously the theme of Scripture that the Kingdom of God is at hand at the moment which requires conversion. I have noted this ...... Second Talk from the Latin Mass Society Conference.
27 Sep 2013
... one's one sins and flaws when one is raising children and one can respond in grace and gratitude for changing and converting in the second conversion, when one is working with the character building of one's children.
11 Sep 2014
And Elizabeth Scalia's article reveals a complete misunderstanding of repentance, conversion, change of lifestyle and the Gospel message. Sadly, she simply does not understand "Repent and believe the Good News." To accept gay ... Christ went out to sinners, because as God, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, He could give the grace and conviction to sinners to repent. They repented because of Christ. Gays in the parade will not change for Cardinal Dolan.
19 Sep 2012
This is my second night sky report for September. Posted by Supertradmum. Four planets are up now and only now. However, you have to be looking at different times to see these beauties. Starting at night, Mars and Saturn ...
25 Jan 2013
O God, who taught the whole world: through the preaching of the blessed Apostle Paul,: draw us, we pray, nearer to you: through the example of him whose conversion we celebrate today,: and so make us witnesses to your truth in the world. Collects; second translation thanks to Fr. Z. Happy Feast of St. Paul, and may he help us on our way to perfection in the Love of Christ. And from the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and ...
19 Aug 2014
Such is the second conversion referred to in other posts, and such is the beginning of the Illuminative State. Have you ever seen a person like this? Totally focused on God, this person moves in the virtues. The soul avoids and ...
20 Aug 2014
When one can say these words of Bernard in truth, in the second conversion, one is in the Illuminative State. I wrote of rational, not affective love, in the beginning of this new series. The enlightened mind now experiences ...
13 Aug 2012
The second part of the verse notes that those who are sealed in the sacrament will be set free "when the day comes". This is an eschatological reference to the Coming of Christ, when He separates the goats from the sheep, ...
10 Feb 2014
... which Bossuet speaks of here as necessary before illumination, is the passive purification of the senses which we shall discuss farther on: it is, in fact, at the threshold of the illuminative way, like a second conversion.
13 Sep 2014
Follow the tags for many posts on grace. I am reminded by a friend today that only those in sanctifying grace can obtain merit. She was referring to some people she knows who do not always go to church on Sunday and to ...
02 Sep 2014
I knew that would happen if those who could did not respond to grace. I even wrote on this blog that God showed me the possibility of a take-over in this town of ss couples and businesses. Not only is an opportunity for grace ...
13 Aug 2014
The predominant faults we have cause us not to cooperate with grace. Pride, greed, envy, lust and so on keep one from following the urgings of grace. Do people actually ignore little hints, or even big hints? Yes. A man I know ...
23 Jul 2014
The predominant faults we have cause us not to cooperate with grace. Pride, greed, envy, lust and so on keep one from following the urgings of grace. Do people actually ignore little hints, or even big hints? Yes. A man I know ...
20 Jun 2014
Yes, this is a wonderful grace-but it takes much suffering from others and dependence upon Divine Providence to obtain it and recognize it. Forgiveness with the will and prayer for those that calumniate us is also a path to ...
10 May 2014
One does not get more "grace" by doing things in the traditional mode; one may get merit; one can have more easy access to grace through the traditional movement. One may be made more open by attending the Latin Mass, ...
29 Jul 2013
Justification is to be derived from the prevenient grace of God, through Jesus Christ, that is to say, from His vocation, whereby, without any merits existing on their parts, they are called; that so they, who by sins were alienated .
06 Mar 2014
There is much confusion among Catholics less than 55 years old on the nature of grace. This is owing to bad catechesis and the Protestantmindset which crept into the Church in the 1970s. I am reposting this and one.
23 Jul 2013
Grace is not fairy dust. Grace is the life of God given to us in several ways. There are also many posts on grace. One can use the search bar or the labels or the tags. Sacramentals. Here is merely the section on sacramentals ...
22 Mar 2013
The CCC is clear on merit and grace and this is like a summary of the perfection series! I do not think a commentary is necessary here. These selections from the CCC have been repeated in the Doctors of the Church series ...
17 Jul 2013
Wherefore I beseech You, through grace and mercy, that, from today henceforward, I may never again wander from the path of Your doctrine, given by Your goodness to me and to whoever wishes to follow it, because without ...
05 Nov 2013
A gentle reminder is that the Dark Night is a grace, but one offered to all. How long it takes is up to God. For some, it lasts months and for some years. Again, one is reminded of Blessed Mother Teresa's 50 years in the Dark ...
07 Apr 2013
I reiterate this point today as many converts coming from the Evangelical and Lutheran, as well as Anglican communities do not understand this interplay of grace and will. Grace is not a feeling. It is not a consolation. It is the ...
22 Mar 2013
Justification is to be derived from the prevenient grace of God, through Jesus Christ, that is to say, from His vocation, whereby, without any merits existing on their parts, they are called; that so they, who by sins were alienated ...
22 Mar 2013
Indeed, as has been said, grace which is termed sufficient with respect to a perfect act, for example, contrition, is infallibly efficacious with respect to an imperfect act, such as attrition.9. Sufficient help is divided into remote and ...
22 Mar 2013
We differ greatly from the Protestants, as we believe that Christ wants all to be saved. Grace is available to all men and women, but God gives as He wills, not as we will...We also believe that reason is an important faculty in ...
14 Oct 2013
Third, the unity of this saint with the Holy Spirit would bring a near completion of this conception of "all is grace". Through intense suffering and death of the ego, Therese went through the purification of the senses and spirit ...
22 Jan 2013
I am discovering young, intelligent, holy Millennials who far outstrip their parents' generation in virtue and knowledge. They are all converts or reverts. Grace is freely given. God is preparing a great generation. I can see this ...
03 Dec 2013
It is clear that the grace of the sacraments leads one to perfection. The Eucharist, states Blessed John Paul II, gives us both the power and the source of that complete gift of self. Christ gives Himself to each one of us and each ...
03 Jun 2012
The phrase Dei Gratia, is part of the title of the monarch of Great Britain. By the grace of God, she reigns. Now, Americans have a hard time with this overlap of religion and politics. And, this weekend's amazing celebration of ...
21 Jan 2013
Who would be sufficient without God's grace to give continual attendance to reading and constant earnestness in work, receiving no advantage of present gain? And all these matters, as we cannot desire them continuously ...
04 Dec 2013
... The Grace of Forgetfulness. Posted by Supertradmum. Listen to the mp3s I listed earlier.....Fr. Ripperger notes that the way of perfection is brutal. God bless this good priest, carrying on the tradition of Garrigou-Lagrange and ...
09 Mar 2013
Sanctifying grace is an habitual gift, a stable and supernatural disposition that perfects the soul itself to enable it to live with God, to act by his love. Habitual grace, the permanent disposition to live and act in keeping with God's ...
24 Mar 2012
I find that the recent plethora of false visions do not help the real concept of Mary as Mother of God, but only emphasize her role as petitioner, not even her role as Mediatrix of All Grace. The quicker Rome clarifies her position ...
24 Mar 2013
... grace from another blog. Posted by Supertradmum · http://www.stpeterslist.com/5452/sacraments-of-the-dead-12-questions-on-sacrilege-and-grace/ · Email ThisBlogThis!Share to TwitterShare to FacebookShare to Pinterest ...
09 Jun 2014
Imagine Divine Providence, God from all time thinking of each one of us, seeing us in sanctifying grace, desiring that we persevere in baptismal innocence, as do so many of the saints. Each one of us is the object of God's ...
24 Feb 2014
Speaking with a certain group of friends who are much younger than I am, I have discovered a huge discrepancy between their theological training as to the meaning of sin, grace and conscience which has shown me the ...
09 Jul 2014
“The Semi-Pelagians maintained that man can have the initium fidei et salutis, the beginning of faith and a good desire apart from grace, this beginning being subsequently confirmed by God. According to their view, not God ...
09 Mar 2013
The Protestants do not make an distinction between actual, that is, temporary grace, and sanctifying grace. Catholics believe in the Indwelling of the Holy Trinity-a grace given at baptism and throughout life in the Sacraments ...
10 Mar 2013
Evangelizing the Baptized. Five. Posted by Supertradmum. From the CCC: 1227 According to the Apostle Paul, the believer enters through Baptism into communion with Christ's death, is buried with him, and rises with him:.
09 Mar 2013
On Evangelizing the Baptized. Posted by Supertradmum. If we as Catholics are not evangelizing, we are not obeying Christ. We are a Church of missionaries. There has been a excellent discussion on Protestantism and ...
09 Mar 2013
Evangelizing the Baptized-Four: Two Graces. Posted by Supertradmum. The Protestants do not make an distinction between actual, that is, temporary grace, and sanctifying grace. Catholics believe in the Indwelling of the ...
10 Mar 2013
Evangelizing the Baptized: Six--the Holiness of the Church. Posted by Supertradmum. This is the hard part for Protestants. They think that they grow in holiness through obedience to the Commandments and works. They do ...