Nature, Grace, and Virtue

Part 1, The Puzzle of Virtuous Non-Believers

Recently, my son and I were having a discussion about nature, grace, and virtue. 

Reflecting upon the Fruit of the Spirit--joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control--we discussed what might be called "the puzzle of virtuous non-believers." Specifically, if these virtues are fruits of the Spirit, then what account do we give when we see virtue among non-Christians, especially when that virtue surpasses the virtue of the faithful?

Such questions cause us to ponder the relationship between virtue and grace. To what degree is virtue rooted in nature versus grace? Phrased differently, are the virtues natural or supernatural?

The puzzle of virtuous non-believers is mainly a puzzle if we posit a hard and qualitative contrast between nature and grace. You see this contrast mostly in Reformed theology with its doctrines of "original sin," "bondage of the will," and "total depravity." In this view, because of sin nature is a ruin, lacking all positive potential. Everything in nature is contaminated and corrupted. And if this is your view of nature you can see why virtuous non-believers are a puzzle. How can the good fruit of virtue grow from the rotten tree of depraved human nature? It couldn't. You can't get figs from thistles. Virtue would have to come from grace alone. And yet, there are virtuous non-believers. Everyday we behold their kindness, joy, and goodness. So are these virtues also coming from grace? And if so, how, given their state of unbelief?

In light of this puzzle, one might swing to the other side. Perhaps virtues like kindness and patience are wholly natural endowments and capacities, demanding no supernatural grace in their acquisition and development. As a natural capacity virtue would find itself in the domain of psychology, behavior modification, and habit-formation. We can pursue virtue just like any other psychological or behavioral capacity. Just practice your Atomic Habits. 

And yet, while there is a lot of truth to this perspective, for we can practice kindness and patience, I expect many will also find this view of "natural virtue" a bit unsatisfactory. Again, aren't these virtues supposed to be fruit of the Spirit? Can virtue be wholly reduced to behavioral technology and human effort? Is grace unnecessary? 

Stepping back, hopefully you can see the puzzles my son and I were discussing. Clearly, there are kind, generous, and loving non-believers. And it is also true that virtues can be acquired through practice and habit-formation. And yet, the Christian faith describes these character traits as having a supernatural, spiritual origin. Virtues are fruit of the Spirit. 

Given all these observations, what, then, is the relationship between nature, grace and virtue? 

I'll share the discussion I had with my son in the next post.