| This paper explores the Christian concept of grace and how literature, music and art show grace as a transforming power which makes the believer, through repentance and forgiveness, a person who wants to follow Christian law and to do good in the world. Though grounded in the field of philosophy, this paper establishes historical perspective on the topic of grace, outlining some of the religious debates it has fostered before looking at four modern interpretations of the subject. Five literary interpretations of the subject of grace are then examined, The Brothers Karamazov , Les Miserables, “Babette's Feast,” “For the Time Being,” and “A Hymn to God the Father.” Next, grace is found in three musical compositions, the hymn “Amazing Grace,” Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, and Mozart's Requiem Mass. Finally, van Eyck's The Adoration of the Lamb , Bellini's St. Francis in Ecstasy, and da Vinci's Last Supper are examined. |
