The Calvinist argument Some Calvinistic Protestants, while acknowledging that Catholics teach the necessity of grace, argue that the Catholic gospel is false because Catholics teach, under the influence of grace, man makes a free choice for or against God, thus making man's salvation dependent on his own efforts. But if salvation is dependent on something God has given man, this is no attack on the sufficiency of God's grace. This is proven by the fact that Calvinists do not regard the fact that salvation is dependent on man's faith as an attack on the sufficiency of God's grace because man's faith is a gift of God. But if it is okay for salvation to be dependent on man's faith because that is a gift, then it is okay for salvation to be dependent on man's ability to choose, for that is just as much a gift. The choice of faith is a supernatural gift Second, not only is man's free will in general a gift of God, but the kind of will used to make an act of faith is a special, supernatural gift, not a common, natural gift.
All supernatural acts require special grace.
Third, many Catholics agree with Calvinists that men are unconditionally elected to come to Christ and that this is brought about efficaciously by God's grace, with no one refusing his efficacious grace. This is the Thomistic school of Catholic theology. Thus the Calvinist argument could not apply to the Catholic teaching on salvation in general, because many Catholics agree with them. Because the Catholic Church accepts Thomism, Arminian Protestants might make a corresponding objection. Thus the Arminian argument could not apply to the Catholic teaching on salvation in general, because many Catholics agree with them.