prevenient grace

American  

noun

1. divine grace operating on the human will prior to its turning to God.

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Etymology

Origin of prevenient grace

First recorded in 1660–70

Example Sentences

He is almost entirely dependent upon God's "prevenient grace," which gives him the desire to do God's will, and "subsequent grace," which enables him to do it.

From Time Magazine Archive

An aggressive woman with opinions about prevenient grace, or the advantages of female emigration, or the functions of the deaconess, would be far preferable to this.

From Modern Women and What is Said of Them A Reprint of A Series of Articles in the Saturday Review (1868) by Calhoun, Lucia Gilbert

What must his wrath be that the thirty thousand Needlewomen are still here, and the question of "prevenient grace" not yet settled!

From Latter-Day Pamphlets by Carlyle, Thomas

It follows that to be efficacious, prayer must be an effect of prevenient grace.

From Grace, Actual and Habitual A Dogmatic Treatise by Preuss, Arthur

The metaphorical expression “come to me,” according to the context, means “believe in me;” whereas the Father's “drawing” plainly refers to the operation of prevenient grace.

From Grace, Actual and Habitual A Dogmatic Treatise by Preuss, Arthur