The defence of the nonconformists plea for peace, or, An account of the matter…

I. Aquinas of the Efficacy of Sacraments, saith, 1. That they are aliquo modo Causae gratiae. 2. Not meerly Causa sine qua non. 3. Aqua baptismatis habet operationem propriam in Corpus, & ut instrumentum Divinae misericordiae, habet effectum ulteriorem; non ad gratiam quasi eam attingens in virtute principalis agentis, sed ad dispositionem praeviam; quae in quibusdam sacramentis est Character, in aliis aliquis ornatus animae proportionatus Characteri. 4. In sacramentis est aliqua virtus supernaturalis quae est ipsis principium agendi in ⟨p. 50⟩quantum sunt instrumenta Divinae misericordiae. Et haec virtus est Ens spirituale, incompletum sive intentionale.

Scotus and Ockam confute this at large; and Pet. de Aliaco Card. Cameracensis (a most judicious School-man) briefly after them in 4. q. 1. B. C. contending that Sacraments are properly no Causes of grace, but improperly; because Deus in sacramentis ordinavit sic agere, non quod ipsa sacramenta agant: Et de tali ordinatione & libera promissione ipse certificavit Ecclesiam: Vel ex sola voluntate alterius ut Causa sine qua non, quae non invenitur in naturalibus; sed (sicut meritum) in Moralibus; & proprie non est causa: Et quod sacramentum sive per virtutem propriam, sive per virtutem ei collatam, non est proprie Causa Efficiens alicujus dispositionis in anima ad gratiam praeviae (aut ipsius gratiae.)

So that their judgment is, that it is only Conditio sine qua non, dispositiva, moralis (improperly called dispositiva,) and not of the effecting, but the reception of grace. A man that doth use God's Ordinance, being in the way where God doth give his grace, and performeth the receptive Condition: Yet none of them deny a Moral Objective Causality on the Considering Adult.