To the extent possible under law, the Text Creation Partnership has waived all copyright and related or neighboring rights to this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above, according to the terms of the CC0 1.0 Public Domain Dedication (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/). This waiver does not extend to any page images or other supplementary files associated with this work, which may be protected by copyright or other license restrictions. Please go to http://www.textcreationpartnership.org/ for more information.
G. B. p. 81. Christ came to fullfill the morall law. Mat. 5.7.
ANSWER. Whence doe you learne, that those words of Christ are restrained to the mo∣rall law? did not Christ fullfill the ceremoniall law also? sure he did, both as Antitype, & as never trespassing against it.
G. B. p. 82. Two generall doctrines they have, which at two strokes dissolve all the bonds of vertu.
The one is the doctrine of Probability: the other of geod intention. By the first they teach that with a safe conscience a man may follow what any Doctor teaches: & some representing the worst actions as good, there is scarce any sin, but may the ventured on. By the second he may act any sin, provided he intend some good designe. And then you send us to the Provinciall Letters.
ANSWER. What if the Authour of those letters, being no Divine, was mistaken in re∣lating those opinions? what if he renounced the whole party which had engaged him to write in that scurrilous manner? what if he was sorry before his death, to have dealt so much with them? what if this can be proved under his Curat's hand? now this is the plaine Truth, as appeares by this following Declara∣tion, given by the Curat of S. Stephen-uppon-the-Hill, to the then Arch-Bishop of Paris. Here is the substance.
Aujourd'huy 7. Janvier 1665. Nous Har∣doüin de Perefixe Archevesque de Paris, sur ce que nous aurions apris, que Monsieur Pascal, lequel avoit la reputation d'avoir esté fort attaché au party des Jansenistes, estoit decedé dans la Paroisse de S. Estienne, & qu'il yestoit mort sans recevoir les Sacremens, a∣vons desiré sçavoir de Mr. Paul Beurrier Re∣ligieux de S. Genevieve, & Curé de S. Estien∣ne, si ce qu'on nous avoit rapporté étoit vray, qu'il fut mort attaché au party des Jansenistes.
Sur quoy ayant interrogé ledit Sieur Curé de S. Estienne, & sommé de dire la verité, aprés l'avoir promis, a répondu, qu'il avoit connu ledit Sieur Pascal six semaines avant son decés, qu'il l'avoit confessé plusieurs fois, & admini∣stré le S. Viatique, & le Sacrement d'Extreme Onction, & que dans toutes les conversations qu'il a eu avec luy pendant sa maladie, il a re∣marqué que ses sentimens étoyent toûjours fort Orthodoxes, & somis parfaitement à l'Eglise, & à N.S.P. le Pape. De plus il luy a témoigné dans une conversation familiere, qu'on l'avoit autrefois embarassé dans le party de ces Messieurs, mais que depuis deux ans il s'en étoit retiré, parce qu'il avoit remarqué, qu'ils alloyent trop avant dans les matieres de la Grace, & qu'ils paroissoyent avoir moins de soumission, qu'ils ne devoyent, pour N.S.P. le Pape........ Et que depuis deux ans, il s'é∣toit tout à fait attaché aux affaires de sonsalut, & aun dessein qu'il avoit contre les Athées, & les Politiques de ce temps en matiere de Religion....... F. P. BEURRIER.
You see here in this Declaration signed by the Curate, who assisted the Authour of the Provinciall Letters, at this Death, that he had beene engaged, or entangled, in the party of the Iansenists, that he found their sentiments were not tolerable, or orthodox, in those two capitall points, of Grace, & Submission to the sea Aposto∣lick:
that uppon that score he had withdrawne from them, & abandoned them. Yet you will have us goe to him. Well: I will comply with you: & from him I learne two things: one, that he blames some cases of private men. Another, that those cannot be charged on the Roman Ca∣tholick Church. Thus if Istand to his verdit your accusation will be cast out of the court, as lying against the whole; not against a part on∣ly. If you say: beleive him when he accuses some, but not when he absolves others, doe you think us soe weake, as to give credit to him, when you please, & when you please to recall it? what is this, but to give, & at the some time take away his judiciall authority? to name him Judge Arbiter, & tye him to speake only what you please. But I will leave him, & speake to the thing.
That you may conceive, what are probable opinions, you are to take notice, that morall actions may be reduced to four classes: to such as are evidently good, evidently bad, uncertain, & indifferent: according as they are related to the law (whither Divine Ecclesiasticall, or Civill) which is their proper Rule. Those are evidently good, which are cleerly conformable to the law: As to love God: or deale with others as we would bedealt by. Those are evidenly bad, which are contrary to the law: as to blaspheme God, or to wrong our neyghbour. Those are indifferent, which are nether commanded, nor forbidden, as to
wash your hands(a) 1.1 before eating, used by the Pharisyes. Those are uncertain, when a law is knowne, but it is unknowne whither it oblid∣ges in some circumstances. For example: the resisting an enemy(b) 1.2 who attackes you, on a Sabboth day, & repayring the breahes which he makes.
As to the first classe Actions evidently good, Probability doth not looke on them, as its object.
The same for those, which are evidently bad: They can never be committed without offen∣ding God. If any hold the contrary, stone him; the stones will not hit me, nor any Jesuit, un∣lesse by such an accident, as befell Iupiter in Lu∣cian, when directing his thunder bolt at a blas∣phemer, he mist him, & hit, & fired Pallas her Temple. And what you say, of committing any any sin, with directing intention, is soe greate a calumny, that no good intention of opposing Popery, will excuse it.
The third classe, of Actions uncertaine in themselves, are properly the object of probable Opinions: whilest it is not certaine whither the laws oblidges hic, & nunc, or no, in these cir∣cumstances, which are not specifyed in the law: yet alter very much the nature of the Action. There being no evident principle to shew it to be lawfull, or unlawfull, the Judgment we fra∣me of it, must be an Opinion only, & if the reason
be strong, it is called a probable Opinion. For ex∣ample: the Jews(a) 1.3 (hearing that their Bre∣thren had beene assaulted on a Sabboth, & not resisting, for feare of breaking the Sabboth by working on it, were all killed,) Resolved not∣withstanding that command to make what re∣sistance they could on that day. Which Reso∣lution was grounded on a probable opinion: for on the one side was the let er of the law prohibi∣ting all labour on that day: then, they myght think God would protect them, whilst they kept his law, as he(b) 1.4 conserved their goods; whilst they went thrice a yeare to the Temple: & if he did not please to defend them miracu∣lously, they myght think, it was his will, that they should glorify him by giving their lives, rather then breake his commandment: which perswasion possest the greatest part of Chril∣tians, neere the Apostles times, as may be see∣ne in Tert. Apologetick. On the other side, they considered the law of nature oblidging to seeke selfe-preservation: & that to expect a miracle was to tempt God, &c. Hence they concluded, that it was lawfull to labour for selfe defence even on the Sabboth.
To make an Opinion probable, Suarez(c) 1.5 requires that it be nether contrary to the sense of the Church, nor to any opinions commonly received, & that it be grounded on Authority,
& Reason greate above exception. All Divines even the largest, require a wayghty motive, a strong reason, & that even cōpayring it with the contrary motives: otherwise they agree, that the Opinion will not be probable; but dangerous, rash, & improbable. See two large treatises, com∣posed by R. F. Antony Teril, (agreate ornament of the Society, & an honour to our Nation) in defence of this Rule of conscience. You will find in him a solide discourse, well grounded, & gravely handled, as Truth should be delivered; without any of that Booffonnerye, which accom∣pagnyes the Authour of the Provinciall Letters, which may be tolerable in a Comedy, but not in a treatise of Divinity.
This I think cannot be doubted of in Thesi, or in generall. I will not deny, but in hypothesi, in particular doubts, or questions some men have not stucke soe close to the letter of the law, as they should: as Fr. Teril doth deplore. But those men's assertions doe not take away what we have sayd: for their private sentiments, not well grounded, deserve not the name of probable Opinions.
The last classe of Actions, are those called indifferent, as not being mentioned in any law. These must draw all the morality they have Ex intentione sive voluntate operantis. In those a good intention of the man who produces them, or his will to doe them for the love of God, gives them a good morality, which of themselves
they have not: as on the contrary a bad inten∣tion gives them the nature of fin.
Hence what you say, that our doctrine is, any sin may be committed innocently, by directing our intention, is a greate untruth, & as greate a ca∣lumny. No intention can justify a bad Action; but a bad intention may vitiate the best action: as to give an Almes(a) 1.6 for vanity. Bonum ex inte∣grâ causâ, malum ex quocumque defectu, is a ma∣xime never more true, then in morall actions. We are taught in the Catholick Church, not only to doe good things; but to doe them well: not only to doe juste things; but to dothem justly: nor pious things; but piously, non tan∣tùm bona, justa, pia; verum etiam benè, justè, piè. Nay a pious moderne Authour says, that God regards more the Adverbes; then the nounes, or verbes: for example: A Judge heares atten∣tively a cause pleaded before him, in order to give sentence, secundùm allegata & probata: the action of it selfe is good; yet his intention may mend, or marre it. Doth he that, for his law∣full allowance, it is of small merit. Regards he his duty to his Prince, & country; it is better: If for God, it is best of all. But doth he intend by it to pleasure a freind, or practice Revenge on an enemy, althô his sentence be just; yet he is unjust in pronouncing it, to satisfy his owne passions of love, or hatred. This is our doc∣trine, this we teach, this we practice, which
you understand not: & your perpetuall fault is, to speake(a) 1.7 evill of things which you know not. If you desire further information of our doctrine in this point, see S. Franc. de Sales l. 11. de Amore Dei c. 13.
Mat. 15.
1. Macchab. 2.38.
1. Macab. 2.40.41.
Exod. 34.24.
Suarez dis. 12. de bonit. & malit.
Mat. 6.2.
Iude v. 10.