Grace

Which Tarot card expresses the Christian Idea of Grace --

First of all, what is grace: is it an unsought miracle bestowed from above without its being "deserved"?

One Christian website says it is only by the "progressive development of grace" that we "realize the presense of God in us".

What is Grace, and when we know what it is... which tarot card is it?

Perhaps it is the 2 of cups, with the angel above pouring love down from above. Or if it is a major.. is it... the Star?

I'm not exactly sure why, but I thought of Temperance when I read your post...

Yes, I did too. After all, Temperance is a kind of angel, bestowing the never ending water of... water of... of what?

Perhaps it is the water of Grace??

Frankly, Firemaiden, that website is pretty unclear about what Grace is. "Grace is life...Grace is Love..." According to the diagram, it's linked to "faith, hope and Charity"--meaning that it's something we HAVE ("I have faith...") rather than something given to us, but then, God gave it to us....I can't make sense out of it. Given such vague definitions, you could find Grace in any tarot card you picked. The Devil could be Grace because there is the "grace" of God given us which allows us to escape his hold on us. The Death Card because God's Grace allows us to survive Death, the 10/Staves because God's Grace helps us bear our heavy load, the 10/Swords because God's Grace allows us to start over again. If we're going to go with that website's definition, then there's no need for any single card to signal God's Grace. It's in all things, and in all cards.

However, if you really want a single card for it, I'd go with Ace/Cups, which we've discussed at length and which has, in the RW deck at least, the very strong Christian elements. It stands for the Holy Grail, one of the best symbol of Christian Grace--the vessel holding the blood of Christ, which is never emptied and, when drunk, cleanses and reconnect the drinker to God. The dove with the wafer in its beak (body of Christ) further emphasizes this. And the infinate flow of the waters, cleansing and baptismal, also relates to the website's definiation of Grace. It keeps flowing over you till you realize the Presence of God.

Oh, wonderful, I like how you relate the Ace of Cups to Grace, Thirteen. (yes! that website was unclear!).

So what is Grace? Is it something we have to learn to open ourselves to? Like the willingness to believe in miracles? And what if we must choose a major?

If I recall correctly - which I may not - 'Grace' stems from the Greek Kairo (or a word very similar), which has similarities to the Hebrew Hesed (also the name of the fourth Sefirah).

It can be variously transliterated as loving-kindness, grace, an acknowledgement or wishing of wellbeing, and a few others, depending on context.

Within the Christian sense of the usage of the word, it seems to me that it is more usually applied to the spiritual gifts bestowed from God. In that sense, they may take various forms, depending on precisely what has been bestowed.

Usually, it seems to be applied to a beatitude, disposition, spiritual awakening, spiritual experience, or revelation. Ie, it seems to often be closely associated with what are considered virtues - Wisdom, Justice, Temperance, Fortitude, Faith, Hope & Charity - or the higher achievements of the Good, the Beautiful and the Truth.

As a divine bestowal, I agree that any of the cards may be considered in their graced aspect.

If there appears one card above all others which seems to depict Grace, however, I would personally have to consider it a Major Arcana. Of these, XVII the Star seems to depict this free gift, upon those who already have (the waters upon the waters) as well as upon those who do not (the waters on the parched earth).

I think Grace is breath. We do not have to work to stay alive, yet we live..... it is a perpetual miracle of living and splendid intelligence and Love in multidimensional form. It is Yes exclaiming every time we breathe....

So, as thirteen shared, it is all of the cards, for each card reflects life!

jmd said:

If there appears one card above all others which seems to depict Grace, however, I would personally have to consider it a Major Arcana. Of these, XVII the Star seems to depict this free gift, upon those who already have (the waters upon the waters) as well as upon those who do not (the waters on the parched earth).

Click to expand...

That is beautiful, jmd, thank you. Is it... perhaps an association that is often made for the Star, and for her waters?

Are the "waters upon the waters", and the "waters upon the parched earth"... images from scripture?

When you aske dthe question I thought of Temperance but then I thought no... that's Temperance. THen I thought of the High Priestess and thought it wasn't agreat answer because people are ALWAYS picking the Priestess for stuff like this and I should think of something more clever.

But thinking about it Grace seems to indicate (to me) a sense of composure, elegance, capability, and eloquence thaht I associate with this card. Also her approachability seems graceful, as her wisdom is available but not put out there for people who aren't ready to handle it. Does that make sense?

Interesting, JohnnyVoodoo. Well, I am not sure I see the Christian idea of Grace (a concept which I am also just plain having a hard time wrapping my mind around) in the High Priestess, although the way you put it, I do see the human quality of Grace - Gracefulness in her.