Saint Augustine his enchiridion to Laurence, or, The chiefe and principall heads of all Christian religion a most profitable booke to all those which desire to haue a most compendious briefe of Augustines doctrine, out of Augustine himselfe, when he was old, being repurged, by the old manuscript, of many faults and vnusuall wordes, wherewith it formerly flowed.

TOVCHING THE varietie of sinnes.

CHAP. 78.

That certaine things seeme little in respect of the kinde and qua∣litie thereof: which are sinnes notwithstanding, albeit re∣puted in the number of lesser sinnes.

IT resteth in the iudgement of God, and not of man, to deter∣min of sins, which of them be lit∣tle, & which be great. For we see that certain things were permit∣ted by the Apostles thēselues by way of pardō; as was that which venerable Paul saith vnto man and wife, Defraude not one ano∣ther except it be with consent for a time, that ye may giue your selues to prayer, & againe come togither that Satan tempt you not for your incontinencie. It might be thought not to be a sin for a man

to haue carnall knowledge with his wife vpon any other motion then to beget children (which is the good of matrimonie) but for carnall pleasure, that therby the weakenesse of those which can∣not liue chastly might auoyd the deadly sin of fornication, adulte∣rie, or any other kinde of vncleā∣nesses (too filthie to bee vttered, and whereunto lust may inforce vs through the tentatîon of Sa∣than) therfore might be thought not to be a sinne as I saide, but that he addeth afterwardes, This I say of fauour and not of commā∣dement. Who now denieth it to be a sinne, when as the authority of the Apostle confesseth that they are to haue toleratiō which do the same? It is also of the like nature where it is said, Dare any of you hauing businesse with an o∣ther, be in aged vnder the vniust, & not rather vnder the Saints? And a little afterwards, If then yee haue iudgement of things pertai∣ning to this life, set vp them to

iudge which are least esteemed in the Church. I speake it to your shame; Is, it so that there is not a wise man among you, no not one that shall be able to iudge between his brethren? But brother go∣eth to lawe with brother, and that vnder the vnbeleeuers? For, there it may be thought, that to haue sued one against another, were no sinne: but because hee would haue his cause iudged out of the Church, therfore in the prosecu∣tion of that matter, he saith fur∣ther, Now, therfore there is vt∣terly a fault amongst you, be∣cause yee goe to lawe one with an∣other. And, lest any man should excuse this sinne in this sort: say∣ing, that he hath iust occasion to goe in law in suffering a wrong which hee seeketh to auoide by the sentence of such as set in place of authoritie; by and by hee meeteth with such surmises, and excuses: saying, Why rather sufferre not wrong? Why rather suffer yee not barned? To come to

that again which the Lord spea∣keth, saying, If any man will sue thee at the law to take away thy cloake, let him haue thy coat also. And in another place hee sayeth, Hee that taketh from thee those things which be thine, doe not seek them againe. Hee therefore for∣bad those which were his, to goe to law with other men for world∣ly things. Out of which doctrin the Apostle saith that it is sin to sue: Howbeit, when hee suf∣freth such trials of lawe to passe betweene brethren, brethren being iudges, but vehemently forbiddeth the same out of the Church; It appeareth here, what by leaue may be granted to the weak. In respect whereof, and of the like sins, with others though lesse then these committed through offences growing out of our owne words or thoughts (The Apostle Iames saying and confessing for in many thinges wee all affend) It is necessarie that wee dayly and often pray (vnto

the Lord, saying, Forgiue vs our trespasses: not lying in that which followeth, as wee for∣giue them which trespasse against vs.

CHAP. 79.

The scripture condemneth many thinges, which men would not thinke to bee sinnes, but that the word of God doth admonish vs thereof.

THere be certain sinnes, which might be thoughtto be of no regard, but that by the sciptures they are denounced to be grea∣ter then the world taketh them to bee. For, who would thinke that a man which calleth his brother Foole, should be guil∣tie of hell fier, but that the Trueth it selfe affirmeth as much? Howbeit, presently af∣terwardes hee giueth a salue for that sore, giuing there with a

precept howe to reconcile thy selfe to thy brother. For, by and by afterwards he saith, If ther∣fore thou dost make oblation of thy gift vnto the Altar, and thy selfe there remembring that thy brother haue ought against thee, &c. Or, who would thinke it so great a sinne to obserue daies & months and yeares and times, as they do which will or will not begin any thing vpon certain dayes or mo∣nenthes, or in certain yeares (be∣cause according to the vaine and superstitious doctrine of some, times be held to be luckie or vn∣lucky) vnlesse the feare of the A∣postle made vs dreadfull of the greatnesse of this euill, saying to such persons, I feare lest I haue laboured in vaine amongst you.

CHAP. 80.

Certaine sinnes againe, which bee verie great and fearefull, are, through vse and custome, helde light.

HEreupō it commeth to passe, that sinnes, although they be great and horrible, yet through a custome of committing them, they are taken to bee verie small ones, or nothing at all: in so much as men are so farre from concealing them, as it is their glorie to make them knowen, & memorable to the world; Be∣cause as it is written, The sinner is commended in the wicked desires of his owne heart: and he that dot〈…〉〈…〉 ill, doth therein blesse himselfe. Such a kinde of sinne is called in holy scripture by the title of ini∣quitie and clamor; according to that place of Isa••, the Prophet ••ouching the barraine vyneyard, I 〈◊〉〈◊〉, ••aith he, that it should

haue done iustice, but it did iniust∣ice: and did not that which was right, but that which gaue cause of clamor and exclamation. W••ere∣unto that which is said in Gene∣sis, doth agree. The complaint or cry of the people of Sodom and Gomorah is increased, because not onely those heinous sinnes which raigned amongst them, were vnpunished, but also were openly and vsually committed, as though they had a warrant therein by law. Euen so in these our times, as many euils, though not of like qualitie, are grow••n to bee as visible and common; in so much, as wee neither dare ex∣communicate any of the Laitie, nor yet degrade a clergy man for the same. Whereupon, when I did certaine yeares past, expound the Epistle to the Galatians in that place, where the Apostle saith, I feare lest that I haue la∣boured in vain amongst you, I was by that occasion forced to cry•• o••t, Woe to those sinnes amongst

men which are simply of thēselues most fearefull vnto vs before wee see them in exāple; yet afterwards being vulgar and vsuall (for the purgation whereof the blood of the sonne of God was shed) although they become so great and heynous, as they cause the kingdome of God to be viterly shut vp against thē, yet are we inforced by seeing them often, to tolerate them generally, and by oft toleration, to become sinners also our selues in many of them. But would to God, O Lord, wee were not transgres∣sors our selues in all those sinnes which we cannot restraine in o∣thers. But now wil I weigh my words whether the vehemencie of my griefe hath drawen me to say something that may bring me into questi∣on.

CHAP. 81.

There be two causes of sinne, that is to say, ignorance and weake∣nesse, or frailtie as he calleth it, or rather obstinacie. Of the first, which is ignorance, we are called sinners: of the other (cal∣led weakenesse or obstinacie) wee are said to be trangressors.

I will now, or in this place, af∣firme that, which, no doubt, I haue often deliuered in other places of my workes, that wee sinne two wayes: As, either in not seeing what we should do, or else in omitting to doe that which we see ought to be done. Of which two sorts of sinning, the first is imputed to the euill of ignorance, the second to the e∣uill of weakenesse or frailtie of our nature. Against which euils, we ought indeede to striue; how∣beit we are no doubt subdued & vanquished except the grace of

God do assist vs, that we do not onely see what we ought to do, but also through the recouerie of our affection lost, our delite in righteousnesse may ouercome the delites of those things, wher∣in wittingly and seeingly wee sinne, either by desiring to haue them, or fearing to lose them: whereby wee are not onely sin∣ners (which wee were before, when wee sinned through igno∣rance) but also transgressors of the law, in as much as we do not that which we knowe we ought to doe, or doe that which wee knowe wee ought not to doe. Wherefore, if wee haue sinned, wee not onely say, for remission of our sinnes, Forgine vs our tres∣passes, as wee forgiue them that trespasse against vs: But also fur∣ther, for our assistance and helpe, lest wee should fall into sinne, wee say in that respect, Lead vs not into temptation: Hee being therefore to bee prayed vnto, of whom it is saide in the Psalme,

God is my light, and my saluation; To the ende his illumination might disperse the cloud of our naturall ignorance, and his sal∣uation supply our infirmitie and weakenesse.

CHAP. 82.

That our repentance commeth from God, as well in respect of the inward motion thereunto, as of the effect and open confes∣sion of our fault.

FOr, repentance it self, when it is to bee performed vpon an vrgent cause, according to the maner or custom of the Church, is for the most part pretermitted through our own defalt & weak∣nes; Because, shame maketh vs fearefull to bee a scorne vnto the world, whilest we more regarde our reputation amongst men, than our duetie to God. The con¦sideration wherof shuld humble vs to the performāce of penance.

By which reason the mercie of God, is requisit, not onely in the action of repentance, but also to incite and stir vs vp therunto. Els would not the Apostle haue said of some, least perhaps God did not giue them repentance. And the Euangelist, foretelling the occa∣sion why Peter wept so bitterly, saith, The Lord looked back vpon him.