regret for an evil and truly detests it he also hath a will to avoid it if he hath not this will it is certain he hath neither sorrow nor aversion By this definition you see that Contrition is composed of three interior acts a Sorrow a Detestation and a good Purpose Detestation is the first Act which is the ground-work on which are raised the other two For he who hath conceiv'd in his heart an hatred against Sin hath a Sorow for having committed it and a purpose not to commit it any more So that we must chiefly apply our selves to this detestation or hatred and this is what we must carefully take notice off That we may arrive at this we must perfectly understand the malice that is included in Sin. for we only hate and detest those things which we know to be wicked Now there are in Sin two sorts of evils the evil of the fault and the evil of the punishment The first is the Injury which by Sin is done to God. The other is the damage which the same Sin draws upon Us in punishment of that injury which we did to God. The one regards God the other our Salvation and both of them render Sin infinitely detestable The evil of the fault because it offends God and the evil of the Pain because it makes us loose God and become punishable by eternall Damnation In fine Theotime there is nothing more detestable and which ought to breed in us a greater horror then the cause which produceth these two evils which are the greatest and most terrible of all mischiefs Sin offends God so highly and is such an injury done unto him that all men and all Angells together are not able to comprehend how heinous it is so grievous is it Is there any evil more heinous detestable The same Sin by this injury which it does to God separates us from him makes us loose his Grace excludes us for ever from his Glory and makes us subject to eternal Damnation And can we speak or think of an evil more dreadfull and which deserves more our hatred and detestation Let us raise our thoughts higher and consider Sin not only in general and as it is others but as it is within our selves and say to our own hearts By the Sins which I have committed I have offended my Creator my Redeemer my Benefactour my All God infinite in greatness in Bounty in Holyness without cause without reason by my malice alone and blindness Good God! how happens it that I have not a horrour of my self and of the evils which I have done By the same Sins I have lost the Grace of God I am become his Enemy I am deprived of Heaven I am fall'n into the Slavery of the Devil and made a Victim of Hell. O Sin how horrid art thou O siin why have I committed thee O Sin I hate and detest thee with all my heart and above any thing that is detestable in the world Iniquitatem odio habui abominatus sum Psalm 118. CHAP. IV. Of the qualities or conditions which true Contrition ought to have WE speak not here of perfect Contrition whereof we shall treat in the following Chapter but more generally of the Conditions which grief necessary for the obtaining the remission of Sin ought to have whether it be perfect or imperfect and I say this Contrition must have four Conditions to wit it must be Interiour Supernatural Vniversal and Sovereign Take notice of these Conditions for they are of great importance and many are deceived in them First Contrition or sorrow for Sin ought to be Interiour that is to say from the Heart and when it is only in words and outward appearance it is not Contrition but an Illusion The Heart must sincerely produce the Sentiment and Sorrow which the words express For this reason the Council said above that it was a Sorrow of Mind and a detestation of Sin Now this detestation is an Act of the Will. The Scripture saith that it is a Conversion that is a return of the Heart to God Convert your selves to God with all your hearts We must seek for God by Penance and in seeking we shall find if we seek for him with all our hearts and with the sorrow and tribulation of our Souls Deut. 4. God reprehended the Penance of the Jews who made great Exterior Demonstrations even to tear their Cloaths as a mark of their sorrow but they were not touched in their Hearts Convert your selves to me saith God to them with all your hearts in Fasting in Tears and Lamentations and tear your Hearts and not your Garments Joel 2. In fine Theotime there is nothing more manifest both by Scripture and Reason then this truth that Penance oght to be in the Heart that is in the Will that as the Will was the cause of Sin so also it may be the cause of Sorrow and produce Penance The Heart must revoke the evil which it hath wilfully committed and detest Sin which formerly it had affected Secondly It is not sufficient to detest Sin in the Heart it must also be detested upon a good Motive that is upon a Motive sufficient to obtain Pardon for the Sin. This Motive that it may produce that effect must be Supernatural that is one of those which God hath revealed and which we know by Faith The reason is because an Action purely Natural cannot procure sanctification for the Soul which is wrought by Grace and is a thing above Nature Hence we assigned the Second Condition of Contrition to be Supernatural that is conceived upon a Supernatural Motive and consequently by a Motion inspired by God. This Supernatural Motive hath relation to two Heads Viz. to that which concerns our Supernatural good which is Eternal Happiness and to that which regards the Glory of God. I say our Supernatural good because the Natural goods as Life Health Honour Riches are not able to raise such a sorrow for Sin as might serve to obtain the Pardon from God. This we must take good notice of Such was the sorrow of Saul who did not grieve for his Sin but for the loss of his Kingdom which he saw God would deprive him of Such was the sorrow of Antiochus who did not weep for his Crimes but because of the great Misfortunes he found himself overwhelmed with Such many times is the grief of Christians who demand pardon for their Sins when they are surrounded with Afflictions which they resent more livelily then the evils which they have committed by their Sins which move them little or nothing It is very true that Afflictions make us return to God and he himself sends them us for that effect but there is a great deal of difference between the occasion which makes us do an action and the motive for which it is performed Afflictions serve for an occasion to return to God because they awake us from the sleep of sin make us reflect upon our selves be sorry for
Confession of Venial Sins AS for Venial Sins the Council of Trent hath given us two rules to follow The first is that to obtain the remission of them it is not absolutely necessary to Confess them and they may be forgiven by only Contrition and a sorrow for having committed them The reason which the Council of Trent gives is because Venial Sins do not at all destroy Sanctifying grace and so it is not necessary they should come under the Jurisdiction of the Sacrament of Pennance which is Instituted to restore that Grace to those who have lost it The Second rule is that although there be no necessity yet it is very profitable and wholsome to Confess the Venial Sins for many reasons 1. Because by the Sacrament of Penance they are pardon'd both with more certainty and more Grace 2ly By confessing them one learns better to know and correct them 3ly It is a very profitable means to avoid Mortal Sin as well by reason of the Grace which one receives by the Sacrament as also because he that hath a care to cleanse his Soul from lesser Sins will be more solicitous and apprehensive how he falls into greater according to that sentence of our Lord in modico fidelis in majore fidelis erit Luc. 16.10 Now there are two things which are to be observed in the Confession of Venial Sins The first is therein to avoid Scruples and disquiet or anxiety of mind an errour which many commit who examen themselves of their veniall Sins with the same trouble or concern as if they were Mortal and spend so much time in that examination that they think little or nothing of the means how to amend them The Second thing to be observed is that when they confess veniall Sins they always conceive a sorrow for having committed them and make a Resolution to amend them Without these two acts it is to no purpose to confess them they are not forgiven although they receive Absolution of their other Sins whereof they had Contrition Nay and I tell you more that if it happen that one have no other but Veniall Sins to Confess and have not sorrow or remorse for any of them the Absolution would be null and such a person would commit a Sacrilege by reason the Sacrament would want one of its essential parts which is Contrition This is a thing we must have a great care of for it may happen very easily But when I say we must resolve or have a will to amend our Venial Sins I speak of a real and sincere will which may be effectuall and not of a perpetual relapse as it frequently falls out You will say that this is very hard and that it is impossible to be without Venial Sins To this I Answer and it imports you to observe it well viz. That there are three sorts of venial Sins some which proceed from weakness others that are committed by inadvertency and surprize others which we call Sins of Malice that is which spring from our sole will with a perfect knowledge Such are those which are committed on set purpose or by an affected negligence which one will not at all amend or which happen by some tye or irregular affection which he hath to any thing As to the Sins of weakness or surprize it is true we can never be totally exempt from them and for these it sufficeth to have a good will to amend as well as one can But as for Sins which proceed from our will it is in our power to amend and we are strictly obliged to it because they very much displease God and the consequences are extreamly dangerous These Sins Theotime although they seem light produce very ill effects They are light if they be considered each one by themselves but being neglected and multiplyed they become very dangerous They do not destroy Sanctifying Grace but they dispose us very much to lose it All together they do not make a Mortal Sin but they dispose the Soul to fall into it They do not directly cause Death but they cause weakness and maladies which bring Death along with them that is which make us fall into Mortal Sin. In a word although these Sins do not break the league and amity betwixt God and the Soul which is in Grace yet by little and little they diminish it and by this diminution Charity is weakened in us and God also by degrees withdraws the graces and assistances which he vouchsafes us in all our Spiritual necessities And thus having less strength we more easily fall into Mortal Sin when Temptation comes Alas Theotime how many are there who have and dayly do lamentably fall the first source whereof was their neglect in correcting venial Sins Take great care of this resolution to amend them whether it be that you are in the State of Grace that you may conserve it by avoiding these sorts of Sin or you are not lest you make your self more unworthy by your neglect of them CHAP. XII Of Interiour and Exteriour Sins or of the Sins of Thought and Action IT is also very necessary and to be observed in Confession examination of Sins to know that there are Sins that may be committed interiourly or by a voluntary or willing thought only and others which proceed even to the exteriour action Thus to take Pleasure in a thought of revenge or to desire it is an interiour Sin or a Sin of thought actually to put in execution the same revenge is an exteriour Sin or a Sin of action It happens frequently that Penitents who are not well instructed confess exteriour Sins when they have committed them but say nothing of interiour Sins and those of thought when they have not proceeded unto action or effect However it is most certain that interiour Sins are the first Sins and very Criminal in the sight of God and even exteriour Sins are not Sins but because they proceed from the heart that is from the will which is the source of the Good and Evil which we do It is that which causeth all the Evil which is in our Actions and they are not wicked but in as much as they are order'd and consented to by the will. This was the reason why our Saviour said that the heart is the Fountain of all our Sins Mat. 15.18 From the Heart says he come Adultery Fornications Evil Thoughts And the wise man saith Prov. 6.18 that God hath in Abomination the Heart that contrives evil thoughts And in another place Wisd 1.3 that Wicked thoughts seperate us from God. You must have a care then Theotime when you Confess to accuse your self of the Sins of Thought when you have committed them altho' you have not put them in execution nay even when afterward you have retracted them in your heart for this retractation does not hinder the evil from having been consented to in thought and altho' it would have been far greater if you had actually put it in Execution yet however to
the crimes that caused them and have recourse to God for our deliverance but they ought not to serve as a motive to detest our sins because that would be only a pure natural sorrow which avails nothing to restore us unto the grace of God. We must have a higher motive and returning to God by afflictions detest our sins by reason of the danger to which they exposed our Eternal Salvation or the honour of God which they have infinitely offended Whosoever hath not these motives in view or one of them hath not the Contrition which disposes to grace In the third place we have said that Contrition must not be only supernatural but also Sovereign that is most powerfull The meaning hereof is that it doth not suffice to detest sin upon a supernatural motive but that this motive should over-rule and keep above the other which come into our mind so that we should rather detest the sin by reason of the damage it brings to our Salvation or the injury done to God then for any natural evils it may produce and be resolved to suffer them all rather then commit one Mortal sin This is what Divines call detesting sin supra omne detestabile that is above all that which in the world may stir up our hatred and detestation And the reason is most clear because sin is the Sovereign evil and the greatest of all evils For if we consider the offence there is none more heinous then that which it commits against God and if we cast our eye upon the punishment there is none more Dreadfull This is the reason why one cannot detest it sufficiently but by detesting it above all naturall misfortunes Herein yet we must mark well that this greater detestation doth not consist in being more sensible more lively or more vehement then the hate and detestation of other evils because that is not necessary nor always in our power but this is to be understood of the esteem or judgment which we make of Sin accounting it really the greatest of all evils as in effect it is and detesting it in this quality above all others and purposing firmly not to commit it any more upon any account whatsoever But we are yet to observe that to have that detestation of Sin above all evils in our heart it is not at all necessary that every evil in particular should be proposed as Death Torments Infamy and the like but it suffices that they should be proposed in general Likewise it is not convenient they should be propos'd severally lest their representation should make the mind to waver in its Resolution or make resolutions lightly and with presumption of its own forces which would not be perform'd when occasions were offered as it happened to St. Peter It is sufficient to esteem Sin the greatest of all evils which can ever befall us To hate and detest it as such to make a new resolution not to commit it any more but rather to undergo whatever misfortune may happen to us trusting in the mercy of God and hoping he will either free us from those mischiefs or that he will give us strength to support them by his Grace then offend him The 4th condition of Contrition is that it must be Universal in respect of all Mortal Sins that is by it we must detest all without excepting any and have a resolution never more to commit any one mortal Sin. The Holy Ghost pointed at this Condition when he said that we must do Penance for all the Sins we have committed If the Sinner shall do Penance for all his Sins he shall Live. Ezech. 18. We must convert our selves to God with all our hearts that is the heart must totally be offered to God and not divided so as to give one part to God and the other to Sin. Their hearts says he elsewhere are divided therefore shall they dye Hosea 10. The reason is evident because Mortal Sins cannot be remitted but altogether not one without the rest Man cannot reserve in his heart an affection to any one Mortal Sin but he will of necessity incur the hatred and displeasure of God. The Contrition which one may think he hath of other Sins if yet he affect any cannot justify him in the sight of God for it is absolutely false and imaginary because if he really hates any he hates all Sins there not being any one which doth not cause his damnation and infinitely offend God. Hence it is that those deceive themselves who pretend to do Penance and yet refuse to pardon injuries or to be reconciled to their Enemies those also who will not restore the goods they have unjustly gotten and those who are careless in avoiding the immediate occasions of Sin and such other like In a word all those whosoever they be that have any willfull tye upon them to any particular Sin which yet they are not fully resolved to break asunder are imaginary but not true Penitents CHAP. V. Of perfect and imperfect Contrition THis distinction is grounded upon that which we said even now of the two sorts of evils which are found in Sin to wit the one of the injury done to God and the other of the damage which thereby we bring to our own Souls When we hate Sin by reason of the Supernaturall goods which it deprives us of as of the Grace of God and Life eternal or because of the Punishment it draws upon us from Almighty God it is an act of Contrition but an imperfect one by reason we consider nothing in it so much as our own Interest and this act is called Attrition But when above this motive we raise our thoughts higher and hate Sin by reason it is an affront to the supreme goodness of God which deserves to be beloved above all things which we ought to affect more then our selves and which we are obliged to love altho' there were neither Paradice nor Hell it is an act of perfect Contrition which proceeds from Charity and the pure love of God. The first Contrition is good and profitable it is supernatural by reason of its motive and because it is an effect of the inspiration of the Holy Ghost but it doth not restore man unto Grace except it be assisted by the Sacrament because it is not of it self without the assistance of the Sacrament an act of Charity which can justify but only an act of the Virtue of Hope which is not able to confer Grace The Second is excellent and perfect and restores the Soul to the grace of God even before the receiving of the Sacrament but not without respect to the Sacrament because it includes a will or disposition of mind to receive it when occasion serves In either of them both there is a fear and love of God but differently For in Attrition there is a servile fear and an imperfect love which makes us only regard our own advantage In Contrition there is a filial fear and a perfect love or Charity
of your Sins you must read over these same Motives with much attention again and again not once or twice but many times you must begg continually of God that he will vouchsafe to grant you his Grace to understand them well and that your Soul may be moved with them in reading them you must pause some time upon those which touch you most you must weigh them well and imprint them in your heart and having understood them cast your self upon your knees and deplore your Sins in the presence of God upon those motives which you conceived best and which affected you most demand of him pardon and beseech him to shew his mercy toward you making use of this or the like prayer O my God! have pitty on me and let me partake of the effects of thy great mercy I acknowledge now the evil which I have done and apprehend the grievousness of my Sins Thou art he O my God whom I have offended whom I have attacqued rebellious ungratefull and perfidious Creature as I am Thee have I abandoned to follow my pleasures and passions I have lost thy grace and I who have been created to thy Image and likeness by my Sins have made my foul like unto those monsters of ingratitude the Devils I have lost Heaven my blessed Country I have merited Hell and Eternal Damnation which I shall never be able to avoid without the assistance of thy great mercy But above all I have infinitely offended thy bounty The injury which I have offered it is so great that it caused thy Son Jesus Christ my Saviour to suffer death O my God! how can I worthily deplore so great an evil who will give water to my head and a fountain of Tears unto my eyes to deplore night and day my misery and malice and to do Penance for my sins Make this or the like prayer but make it from the bottom of your soul make it with an humble and contrite heart in the presence of God in acknowledgment of your sins and misery Run it not over briefly take time to make it make it long and for many days Put your self in the State of a true Penitent in the sight of God and that you may perform it better make use of this means which I shall give you CHAP. XIII Of Examples of Penance taken out of Holy Writ ALltho ' what we have said may be very effectual to excite Contrition and a true sorrow for our Sins yet we will add in this place another means which without question must needs be more efficacious They are some Examples of true Penitents which we find in the Holy Scripture as well in the Old as New Testament These are the true models by which we may frame ours and learn what is true Penance and how to practice it Reade then Theotime and attend Consider David after his Sin how full of interiour trouble and concern he was for the evil he had done bedewing as he saith his bed with his tears and having always his Sins before his eyes demanding mercy of God and beseeching him to turn away his eyes from his Iniquities not to take away from him his Holy Spirit not to contemn the Sacrifice which he offer'd him of an afflicted mind of an humble and contrite heart Behold a true Penitent behold what true Contrition is Vade fac similiter Imitate this Example and you are a true Penitent You will find these excellent dispositions of a penitent mind in the seven Penitential Psalms if you reade them wth attention Behold King Ezechias weeping and lamenting in the presence of God and promising him to pass again over in his heart and in the bitterness of his Soul all his mis-spent years to bewail his Sins and obtain remission of them Reade his Canticle which begins Ego dixi in dimidio Esai 38. Cast your eyes upon the good Israelites who were sent Captives into Babilon after the taking of Jerusalem doing Penance for their Sins which had thrown them into that miserable state crying out to God from the bottom of their hearts Baruch 2. We have sinned against the Lord our God in not obeying his word To the Lord our God belongs justice and uprightness but to us nothing but shame and confusion which our iniquities have deserved We have sinned we have done evil we have dealt unjustly O Lord our God in all thy Commandments Turn from us thy anger hear O Lord our Prayers and our Petitions open thy eyes and consider that the dead praise thee not but the Soul which is sensible and afflicted with the greatness of the evils she hath done and performs due Penance for them Consider Manasses also in his Conversion groaning under the weight of his Sins and lamenting his Iniquities with such a sorrow that he acknowledged himself unworthy even to lift up his eyes towards Heaven so great he confest were his offences You will perceive these words to proceed from a truly penitent Soul overwhelmed with sorrow for his Sins Oratio Manasses 'T is true O Lord I have infinitely offended thee and my Sins are more in number then the Sand of the Sea I am unworthy to lift up my eyes towards Heaven to demand thy mercy having provoked thy anger as I have done by my Iniquities But now O my God I prostrate my self from my heart before thee to beg thy mercy I have sinned O my God I have sinned I acknowledge all the evil I have done pardon O Lord pardon I beg of thee and earnestly beseech thee do not destroy me with my Iniquities do not reserve me to the utmost rigour of thy Justice do not condemn me for ever unto the fire of Hell Remember that thou art my God the God of Penitents and thy immense bounty will best appear in me whilst it makes thee to save a miserable Sinner unworthy of thy grace and gives me occasion to praise thee eternally for thy infinite goodness Go to the Gospel and there you will find more pressing examples of Penance and Contrition There you may see a holy Penitent moved to that degree with sorrow for her Sins that she seeks the Son of God and having found him casts her self at his feet washes them with her tears such was the compunction of her heart and so abundantly did they flow wipes them with her hair and annoints them with precious Ointment thus consecrating these Riches that Hair those Tears to pious uses which till then she had employ'd in vanity And thus that sorrow she had so happily conceived broke forth into all the Signs of the love of God and spared nothing to serve him from whom she expected the remission of her Sins So that She deserved to hear from the mouth of our Saviour Luc. 7.47 that her Sins were forgiven her because she loved much There you shall find the head of the Apostles unfortunately fall'n denying his divine Master three several times But he had scarce ended his last denial when
them in this or any other occasion but what they are able to perform and that after they have done what morally speaking they are able to remember their Sins they ought to satisfy themselves to declare what they remember and rest in quiet it being most certain that other sins which they have forgot are to be comprehended in that Confession and that they are pardoned them in the absolution they receive This also is a rule of the Holy Church in the Council of Trent which condemns those of impiety who say that the Confession of all their Sins is an impossible thing and a Torture or Hell of the Conscience being it is certain saith the Council that the Church requires no more of the Penitents but that every one after he hath made a carefull Examen and search into the bottom of his Conscience should Confess those Sins which occurr to his memory and that other Sins which notwithstanding such an Examen they do not remember are esteemed generally to be comprehended in the same Confession and it is of these Sins we say to God with the Prophet Cleanse me from my hidden Sins O Lord. Psal 18.13 Those who embrace this maxime of the Church will easily find quiet of mind and banish the difficulties which arise from their Confessions It is true they are still in doubt whether in their Examen they used that diligence which the Church requires We shall tell you hereafter in the ninth Chapter wherein it consists in the mean time I shall mind you of two things here for your comfort The first that this great and obliging diligence reaches only to Mortal Sins As for Venial Sins as we are not in rigour obliged to Confess them so likewise we are not to make such an exact examen of them and as it is an excellent thing to make the best Confession we are able so it is the part of a weak Soul to be troubled with scruples and anxieties of mind The second Advertisement is that when after a serious examen of our Sins we cannot call to mind the number of them as it happens in sins of habit or custom which are frequently committed as ill Thoughts dishonest Words Oaths and the like it is sufficient to discover as near as one can the time since he was first subject to it and in that time to take notice as much as may be how often he may have fallen if he have fallen often as every day every week or otherwise and after one hath declared what he can in this manner he ought not to concern or trouble himself any further CHAP. VII An observable Advice concerning the Circumstances of Sins THE particular accidents which intervene and are not of the substance of a deed but only accompany it are called the circumstance of an action as the quality of the person who sins the place the time the design with which he acted the end which was proposed the means that were made use of the consequence and evil effects of an action as Scandal or the like All which are comprehended in this verse Quis quid ubi quibus auxilij cur quomodo quando Amongst the circumstances there are some which are light which render not an action worse then it is of it self and of these we do not speak There are others that are notorious and which aggravate exceedingly an action and make it more heinous which are those of which we treat in this place Now of these there are two sorts Some which aggravate a Sin to that degree that they change the Species or nature of it thus the circumstance of a Sacred place or a Sacred thing which is stol'n changes the Sin of theft into Sacrilege which is a different Species or sort of Sin. Others aggravate only the sin without changing the Species and are called simply aggravating Circumstances As to the former there is no question but it is necessary to declare them in Confession as we have said above in the fifth Chapter And for the other there are authors who hold one is not in rigour obliged to confess them Altho' this opinion may be true in Speculation yet in practice it is very difficult to make use of it as one ought by reason that it is very hard to discern well the Circumstances which frequently occur And this is the reason why not sticking to this opinion it is necessary that in practice we follow and observe these two Maxims The First that it is always better and more secure to declare in Confession the circumstances which aggravate the Sin. The Second that it happens frequently that one is obliged to declare them as in these following examples 1. When one cannot discern whether a circumstance which one believes to be notorious change the sin or no. And who is it except he be a very understanding person that knows this 2. When it falls out that a circumstance makes a sin to be Mortall which otherwise without it would be but Veniall Thus to steal sixpence is but a Venial sin but to steal sixpence from a poor man that had nothing else to live upon is a Mortall Sin. He who strikes another and does him no hurt commits but a venial sin but if in striking him he had an intention to wound him notoriously he commits a mortall Sin and he ought to declare that intention when he accuseth himself that he hath strook him 3. One is also obliged to tell the aggravating circumstances when it chanceth that a circumstance aggravates a mortall sin not only notably but extreamly and with excess For example A man who hath robbed five pounds hath sinned mortally another who hath stoll'n twenty thousand pounds hath also committed a Mortall sin but imcomparably a greater This excess ought to be expressed in Confession 4. This declaration is ordinarily necessary that the Confessor may understand the grievousness of the sin and the state of the Penitent without which he can neither impose a convenient Penance for the sins past nor prescribe remedies to avoid them for the future In fine to declare ingeniously his sins with all their circumstances is a sign of a sincere and truly penitent heart desirous to cure his Maladies and save his Soul. For this reason Theotime when you accuse your self of a sin explicate distinctly and clearly the circumstances which seem to render it more grievous in the sight of God. For example how you did it whether by passion or malice whether with an intention to hurt another or displease him whether any scandal or any other ill effect followed from the sin whether it was in a holy place or the like And answer always with much sincerity to the questions which your Ghostly Father shall ask you concerning your sins CHAP. VIII How great an evil it is to conceal a Mortal Sin in Confession I Would to God this evil were as rare and unheard of amongst Christians as it is great in it self and of most dreadfull consequence to
have only desired it ceaseth not to be very heinous Now I would have you observe that there are three degrees in these Sins of thought The first is Complacence the second Desire and the Third the Resolution Complacence in an evil thought is a Mortall Sin if it be voluntary or or with a willing mind and if the thing one thinks on be in it self a Mortall Sin as an impure Action a Notorious Revenge or the like The Desire which frequently follows the Complacence is also a Mortal Sin in the two Circumstances above-mention'd when it is carried away voluntarily to an evil thing and we see it is forbidden by the two last Commandments of the law of God. Now if you would know what is meant by a desire Desire is a Conditional will or a will to do the evil if it lay in our power and if we had an occasion The Resolution to do the evil is also a Mortall Sin and greater then the other two and must be confessed altho' it were not put in Execution and even altho' he have retracted and changed his resolution as we said before CHAP. XIII Of the Sin of Action and of Omission THis difference of Sins is also very necessary to be known as well for Confession as for the Conduct of a Christian Life Sins that consist in Action are easily known confess'd and avoided but Sins of Omission are hardly understood seldom Confessed and scarcely avoided being it is hard to know when one is wanting to this obligation Yet this Sin is often as great as that of action and a man shall be Damned for not doing that which he is obliged to do as soon as he that commits the evil which is forbidden him For the Law of God Theotime whereof Sin is a transgression doth not only forbid evil but also commands good There are some of these precepts which are negative and forbid evil as those Thou shalt not Kill Thou shalt not Steal and others are conceived in positive terms and command some good as those Thou shalt love the Lord thy God Keep holy the Sabboth day Each Commandment in reality is both positive and negative for those which command a good forbid the opposit evil and those that prohibit an evil command the contrary good For example the precept which commands us to love God forbids us to do any thing that displeases him And the Commandment that prohibits us from robbing obligeth us to make restitution of the goods to him whom we had robbed and thus of others And there is never a Commandment against which one may not Sin both by Commission and Omission This being so it is of great concern when one is to go to Confession that he examen himself of the Sins of Omission as well as those of Action and that he accuse himself not only of evil actions which he hath done but also of the good works he has not done when he was obliged In the examen which we shall give you hereafter we shall put the Sins of Omission together with the others upon every one of the Commandments of God. But chiefly we must examen carefully these Sins of Omission when we search into the Sins which belong particularly to our state For each state and condition hath peculiar obligations against which one Sins very frequently by notorious Omissions which are very great Sins and which are not always observed as they should be by those who often fall into them From hence it is that we do not amend them and that at the hour of Death we find our selves far more charged with Sins then ever we imagined during our life CHAP. XIV Of the Sins of Ignorance Passion and Malice I add here also this distinction or these several branches of Sins because they conduce very much toward the making us understand the quality of them and how to form a better judgment of their enormity This distinction springs from the Nature of Sin which is a voluntary and free action As it is voluntary it must be perform'd knowingly as it is free it must be done in such a manner that the will might not have done it Knowledge is hindred by Ignorance the power not to do it is hindred by Passions which carry the will on to do evil or withdraw it from good I say hindred that is either diminished or totally taken away When Knowledge is wanting it is a Sin of Ignorance when the power not to do it is hindred by Passion it is a Sin of Passion but when we are free both from the one and the other Passion as well as Ignorance then it is a Sin which proceeds from the will alone and is called a Sin of Malice that is of the will acting with full knowledge and of her own accord without being push'd on or retained by any Passion It imports you much that you should be well instructed in this Point Theotime because the greatest part of the world excuse their Sins either upon account of their ignorance or weakness which is but too ordinary amongst young people It is true there is sometimes ignorance or passion found in their Sins but they must not excuse themselves for that for I shall make it out that neither Ignorance nor Passion do allways diminish them and that the greatest part of their Sins are Sins of Malice And for the greater facility we shall divide this Chapter into Articles ARTICLE I. Of the Sins of Ignorance IT is call'd a Sin of ignorance which one hath committed for want of sufficient knowledge either of the action that he hath done or of the evil which there is in such an action Ignorance of the action is called ignorance of the Fact. Ignorance of the evil which is in the action is called ignorance of the Law of which we may be ignorant two ways either totally or in part Totally when we believe there is no ill in the action in part when we believe indeed there is some but not so much evil in it as in effect there is Either of these ignorances may happen two ways either by our fault and our will or without any fault or will on our side It happens by our fault when we are willing to be ignorant of a thing whether expressly and on set purpose or implicitly by a certain affected negligence willfully neglecting to learn what we do not know It happens without any fault of ours when there is neither an express will nor any notorious negligence on our part and it doth not belong to us to know it or to be instructed in it This being supposed it is easy to tell when it is that ignorance diminisheth the Sin when that it takes it away totally and when not at all First when ignorance doth not proceed at all from our fault neither directly nor indirectly it is certain it takes away the Sin totally and that the action which we do is not a Sin the reason is because there is no Sin without a
Sin with more liberty What is this but wilfully to run into a precipice and shut their eyes that they may cast themselves headlong more freely and without fear As for Passions we must say the same of them as of Ignorance It is true they diminish Sin when they are not voluntary but when one seeks them on design or is pleased to cherish or increase them these are not Sins of Passion but of Malice Now how ordinary is this amongst men He that has a desire of revenge does he not endeavour to nourish his hatred and indignation against his enemy He speaks against him on all occasions and is ravished with delight to hear one speak against him He whose heart is possest with impure love does all he can to cherish it he applies his care and thoughts that way all his Senses are employ'd therein as his Eyes Ears Tongue Touch he loses no occasion he searcheth after them with much care and sollicitude he follows all the motions of his Passion without resistance or any the least constraint upon himself What is this but to Sin on set purpose and malice And thus running over the greatest part of the Sins of men we shall find that they principally spring from the will and men are vicious because they will or have a mind to be so For this reason Theotime do not use to flatter your self in your Sins because you are young do not excuse your self with the ignorance of your youth nor with the passions which push it on remember that often and often again you make your ignorance and passion voluntary or wilfull and that your Sins proceed from the inclination you have to ill which you will not correct and thus the greatest part of your Sins are Sins of Malice ARTICLE IV. Of Sins which spring from a Vicious Habit. I Add here this fourth Article forasmuch as next to ignorance and passion there is another cause which draws the will to Sin and seems to diminish it viz. A vitious habit that is an inclination or facility to fall into a Sin which facility is contracted by often repeated actions of the same Sin for it is the property of actions to produce sutable habits When this habit is strong and inveterate it causes one to fall into Sin without ignorance and without passion witness those who Swear upon all occasions who have their mind always full of evil thoughts who have nothing in their mouth but immodest words and so of others This inclination is sometimes so great that it draws after it a kind of necessity to fall into the evil as St. Augustine says in his Confessions deploring the unfortunate experience he had of it Ex voluntate perversâ facta est libido dum servitur libidini facta est consuetùdo dum consuetudini non resistitur facta est necessitas S. Aug. l. 8. Confes c. 5. The will says he that is once depraved begets an inclination to ill the inclination produces a habit a habit when not resisted brings a necessity Yet this necessity doth not take away the sin because it doth not take away the liberty of the will which is always Mistress of her habit and which by means of grace may overcome it If you ask whether a vitious habit diminish the Sin I answer that of it self it doth not diminish it at all because it was freely contracted by the will and it is in her power to overcome it Hence to judge whether a vicious habit diminish the Sin we must consider how the will behaves her self in respect of the habit that is whether she be displeas'd whether she be afflicted whether she make any endeavours to correct her self and be delivered of it For in this case the habit without doubt lessens the Sin and when one falls therein he is more excusable in the sight of God and if the Sin be Mortal it is less grievous then if it were committed without a habit But if he who hath contracted a vicious habit doth not strive to amend his Sins are nothing less for being committed by a habit and then they are no more sins of frailty but become sins of malice because he willingly nourisheth the cause that produceth them And being he doth not efficaciously desire to correct his vicious habit he is rationally supposed to consent to all the Sins that spring from thence Take good notice of this rule Theotime that you may be able to judge aright of the quality of the Sins which you commit by habit and do not easily excuse your self upon this account They frequently proceed from your own fault and will. CHAP. XV. Of the Sins that are committed by Error or by Doubt THese also are two other Fountains of Sin which are necessary to be known and examined by reason of the great number of Sins that spring from them We call it error in this place when one believes there is a Sin in the action or omission when in reality there is none or that it is a Mortal when it is but a venial Sin. I Enquire whether an action or omission performed in this errour is a Sin without doubt it is and ought to be confessed and one ought to have a diligent care of himself for the future in regard to the like occasions The reason is because Sin consists in the Will and the will acts not but as it is guided by the judgment When the judgment proposes a thing as ill whether it be an action or omission if the Will embraces it she consents to it as bad in as much as she knows no other quality and Sins as if the thing were evil in effect because the sin doth not consist in the effect but in the affection And this is the reason why we say that an erroneous Conscience obliges that is when one believes that it is ill to do or omit an action he is obliged to follow that belief although false till such time as he shall be informed of the truth You must mark this well dear Theotime for two reasons First that you may avoid sinning thus by errour which happens but too often to young people who believe frequently that actions or omissions are sins when they are not yet nevertheless commit them and you ought firmly to hold and follow this rule never to perform an action or omission which you believe to be a Sin. Secondly that you may apply this truth to your Confession in which you ought to examin the Sins you have committed in this errour and to judg of the sins you have committed whether action or omission do not only examin whether it were a Mortal sin in it self or no but whether you did not verily believe it was a mortal sin for then it must be Confesied as if it were a Mortal sin Perhaps you will draw from hence a consequence in your favour If then you will say I judg either an action or omission to be lawfull and exempt from sin altho'
Not to be able to endure any thing that troubles us or is contrary to our Inclinations or to be easily impatient upon this account 2. To suffer ones solf to be carried away by the motions of Wrath and Indignation against those who give us any disgust or trouble to please ones self in these Passions and entertain them 3. To proceed to Quarrels injurious language and reproches 4. To break out into Oaths Blasphemies Curses and grievous threats 5. To execute our anger and revenge our selves of the injury which we believe was offered us 6. When one cannot effectually revenge himself to be willing to do it by wishing him harm and seeking the means to do it Not to pardon Injuries nor be reconciled to his enemies Concerning this last Article one ought to examen himself diligently because he who keeps Anger in his heart or who refuses to be truly reconciled is not in a State capable of Absolution The EXAMEN Of the Sins which one commits by another BEsides all the Sins whereof we have spoken there are yet others which are very common and of which one seldom or never examens ones self which are the Sins which we commit by others That is which others commit by our fault whereof we have already treated in general in a Chapter above we shall declare here the Species or several kinds of them in particular which we shall describe in order in the following Verses At que suas ritinam lueret mens noxia culpas Tantum nec facerent aliena piacula sontem Sed tam multiplici non sunt maculata colore Corpora pardorum quam mens humana frequentes Contrahit in foelix alieno ex crimine sordes Dum factis dictisque nocet dum voce silenti Dat sceleri causas aut nullis artibus arcet 1. Facta nocent aliis faciles ostensa sequuntur Dum mala sub ducibusque ruunt in crimina caecis Crimina perpetuo ducibus simul igne pianda Est pariterque reus sceleris 2. qui provocat 3. urget 4. Qui juvat auxilio sontes opibusque tuetur 5. Excipit occultat 6. fautor 7. sociasve malorum 8. Qui mente aut nutu seeleri consentit 9. cique Cum prohibere valet nullis conatibus obstat II. At quantis heu lingua malis dat pessima â—â—usas Inventrix scelerum morum teterrima pestis 1. Dum scelus ipsa docet 2. dum praecipit atque nefanda 3. Consilio 4. hortatu promissis prece suadet 5. Extorquet-ve minis 6. animumque accendit in iras 7. Dum malefacta probans auctorem laudibus effert 8. Vel sua deposito prodit peccata pudore 9. Aut bene quod gestum est spernit minuitque loquendo 10. Irridens facta bonis veneranda malorum Obiicit insanis multurn ridenda cachinnis 11. Vel fratres inter spargens inimica susurris Jurgia dissociat qvâ—os pax jungebat amica III. Verba ream faciunt sed ipsa silentia linguam Dum sibi subject os spernit meliora docere Vtque bonum peragant jussis urgere ruentes In vitium nu llis satagit cohibere catenis At fratrem si forte tibi quem nulla potestas Subdidit advertis peccantem vulnera siccis Aspiciens oculis molli medicante recusas Attrect are manu monitisque salubribus illum Negli gis emendare reum auctoremque ruinae Frat ernae te lingua silens te muta loquetur Seâ—l quanto graviore oneras te crimine si quae Nec fanare vales nec amica vulnera dextra Tangere saltem illis quorum est curare salutem Fratris non retegis certis sananda medelis Occultumque sinens penetrare in viscera virus Et fratrem ipse perire vides aliosque trahentem Aeternae secum per certa pericula mortis Crudelis quem non fraternae cura salutis Afficit heu fu so meruit quam sanguine Christus One may contribute two manner of ways to anothers Sin as we have already said in the Third Part Last Chapter 1. by doing an Action or speaking any word which induces our Neighbour to evil 2. in omitting to do or say that which might hinder him from offending God. The first is positive the other negative yet however criminal or offensive You must therefore examen your self here 1. Whether you have contributed to anothers Sin by your actions in any of the following ways I. In doing an evil action in his presence as an act of Impurity or the like Or also in doing any action which tho' it be not ill in it self yet is believed esteemed to be so by those who see it for in this case one ought to abstain according to the rule of the Apostle 1. Thes 5.22 From all appearance of evil refrain your selves 2. In performing any action with a design to stir up others to Sin. 3. By compelling them to it by some force or violence 4. In giving aid or assistance to another to do a wicked action as Revenge Thest Imperity contributing thereunto by money or other wise 5. In harbouring bad people in concealing them lest they should be discovered or be punished 6. In favouring evil any manner of way 7. In sharing therein whether in the action or the profit arising from thence 8. In approving the evil action of another whether only in Will or by some sign or exteriour mark of approbation 9. In not hindring evil when one may II. In the Second place you must examen whether you have been the cause of the Sins of another by words any of these ways 1. By teaching him the evil which he did not know before 2. By commanding those under your charge to do any evil thing 3. By counsel or advising them to it 4. By pressing them to it by Prayers Promises or Presents 5. By threats fear and terrour 6. Endeavouring to provoke or sollicite him to the evil one would have another do 7. By approving of evil actions and praising those who do them or are the Authors of them 8. By recounting either the Sins he hath committed bragging and vaunting that he hath done such and such things which are known Sins or even of those he never committed 9. By slighting others good deeds either by word or otherwise 10. By scoffing at them or exposing them to the scorn of others which is a grievous Sin and concerning which one ought to examen himself very strictly 11. By sowing discord and dissention amongst others either by false reports or otherwise and endeavouring to keep them up instead of procuring Peace and making them friends III. In the Third place examen the evils which you have caused in others by your filence when you were obliged to speak 1. In respect of your Inferiours as your Servants or others whether you have been wanting to instruct or cause them to be instructed in things which they ought either to know or do for the Salvation of their Souls Whether you have omitted to forbid the