What are some sayings of the Church Fathers on grace?

By CopticBot.ai (Coptic Space Inc.) · Last reviewed 2026-10-10

The Holy Fathers of the Coptic Orthodox Church provide the most profound understanding of grace, consistently emphasizing that it is the divine life of God that restores our fallen nature.

1. St. Athanasius the Apostolic

In his defense of the true faith against the Arians, St. Athanasius emphasized that grace is not a created thing, but God Himself acting upon us:

"For the Son does not possess these things by participation, but they are His own nature; and we, being participated, are graced by Him."

St. Athanasius teaches that because Christ is God by nature, He is the source of grace. When we are "graced," we are actually participating in the life of the Son of God.

2. St. Cyril of Alexandria (The Pillar of Faith)

St. Cyril explains how grace is communicated to us through the Incarnation and the Sacraments:

"The grace of the Son is not measured out, as if given by another, but is as perfect and true as it is in Him who is Perfect... it is the fruit of the characteristic property of the Father passing over on the level of nature from Him to the Son."

As noted in the writings of St. Cyril, grace is the "characteristic property" of the Father that belongs to the Son by nature. It is not "added on" from the outside; it inheres essentially in Christ, and through our union with Him, we receive this divine inheritance.

3. St. John Chrysostom

Regarding the relationship between grace and the human will (synergy), he writes:

"If our peace comes from God’s grace, why are you so proud, since you are saved by grace? How can anyone find grace with God, except through humility?"

St. John reminds us that grace is attracted to humility. Unlike the Protestant view that ignores the state of the heart, the Fathers teach that while grace is a gift, the "vessel" of the heart must be humble to hold it.

4. St. Anthony the Great

The father of all monks spoke about the role of the Holy Spirit in granting grace for the struggle against sin:

"I prayed for you, that you also may be accounted worthy to receive that same great Spirit of fire which I have received... For when this Spirit has been received, He reveals to you the mysteries of God... and gives you the grace to be a dweller in the heavens."

5. St. Macarius the Great

In his homilies, he describes grace as the "heavenly salt" that preserves the soul:

"As salt seasons meat... so the heavenly salt of the Grace of the Spirit seasons and preserves the soul, and makes it sweet and acceptable to God, in whose presence it was previously putrid and stinking with the foulness of sin."

6. The Desert Fathers (Sayings of the Elders)

A common theme among the Egyptian Desert Fathers was the necessity of remaining in grace through constant watchfulness:

"If a man loses his gold, he can find more; but if a man loses the Grace of God, he will not find it again unless he seeks it with many tears and great labor."

Summary of the Patristic View

The Fathers teach that grace is:

• Uncreated: It is the very energy and life of the Holy Trinity.
• Transformative: It does not just cover our sins (like snow on a dunghill, as heretics might say), but it cleanses the soul entirely.
• Synergetic: It requires our active cooperation through repentance, prayer, and the Sacraments.

As St. Athanasius famously illustrated, just as the sun’s illumination is effected through its radiance, one and the same grace is from the Father in the Son. Without the radiance (grace), we cannot know the Sun (the Father).