I might say that just as an
agricultural good, the production of fruits, is brought about through a
blending of the farmer’s free will in accord with his technical skill, along
with that which is not under his free will but issues forth from providence, such
as temperate climate and sufficient rainfall, so also is the good of a rational
creature a blend of his own free will and divine power coming to the aid of
that man who chooses the most virtuous way. In order that a man may be good and
virtuous, therefore, there is necessity not only of his own free will, along
with the divine help which is not within his choosing, but there is the
necessity also that he who has become good and virtuous persevere in virtue. (Origen,
Commentary on Psalm 4, c. A.D. 244, in The Faith of the Early Fathers, 3
vols. [trans. William A. Jurgens; Collegeville, Minn.: The Liturgical Press,
1970], 1:203)
