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stoning by the judgment of the sanhedrim or council, he would borrow his expression from that which they and their fathers too well understood, a barbarous custom of the Phonicians of burning children alive in the valley of Hinnom", which in succession of time the Hellenists call yeévva, not much unlike the Hebrew word: and because by our blessed Lord it was used to signify or represent the greatest pains of hell that were spoken of in that gradation, the Christians took the word and made it to be its appellative, and to signify the state or place of the damned: just as a the garden of Eden' is called Paradise.' But it was no more intended this should signify hell, than that any of the other two should. The word itself never did so before; but that and the other two were taken as being the most fearful things amongst them here, to represent the degrees of the most intolerable state hereafter: just as damnation is called death; the second death; that because we fear the first as the worst of present evils, we may be affrighted with the apprehensions of the latter. From this authority it follows; that as in the Law no sins were venial, but by repentance and sacrifice; so neither in the Gospel are they: not in their own nature, not by the more holy covenant of the Gospel, but by repentance and mortification. For the Gospel hath with greater severity laid restraint upon these minutes and little particles of action and passion: and therefore if in the Law every transgression was exacted, we cannot reasonably think that the least parts of duty, which the Gospel superadded with a new and severer caution, as great and greater than that by which the Law exacted the greatest commandments, can be broken with indemnity, or without the highest danger. The Law exacted all its smallest minutes; and therefore so does the Gospel, as being a covenant of greater holiness. But as in the Law for the smaller transgressions there was an assignment of expiatory rites; so is there, in the Gospel, of a ready repentance, and a prepared mercy.

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37. VII. Lastly; those things which men in health are bound to avoid, those sins for which Christ did shed his most precious blood, those sins for which a dying man is bound to ask pardon, though he hopes not, or desires not to escape temporal death, certain it is, that those sins are in their

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nature, and in the economy or dispensation of the divine threatenings, damnable. For what can the dying man fear but death eternal? And if he be bound to repent and ask pardon even for the smallest sins which he can remember, in order to what pardon can that repentance be, but of the eternal pain, to which every sin by its own demerit naturally descends? If he must repent and ask pardon when he hopes not or desires not the temporal, it is certain he must repent, only that he may obtain the eternal. And they that will think otherwise, will also find themselves deceived in this. For if the damned souls in hell are punished for all their sins, then the unpardoned venial sins are there also smarted for. But so it is, and so we are taught in the doctrine of our great Master. "If we agree not while we are in the way, we shall be cast into the eternal prison, and shall not depart thence till we have paid the uttermost farthing.' That is, ever for our smallest sins, if they be unremitted, men shall pay in hell their horrible symbol of damnation. And this is confessed on all hands": that they who fall into hell, pay their sorrows there even for all. But it is pretended, that this is only by accident, not by the first intention of the di vine justice; because it happens that they are subjected in such persons, who for other sins (not for these) go to hell. Well! yet let it be considered, whether or no do not the smallest unremitted sins, increase the torments of hell in their proportion? If they do not, then they are not at all punished in hell; for if without them the perishing soul is equally punished, then for them there is no punishment at all. But if they do increase the pains, as it is certain they do, then to them properly, and for their own malignity and demerit, a portion of eternal pains is assigned. Now if God punishes them in hell, then they deserved hell; if they be damnable in their event, then they were so in their merit; for God never punishes any sin more than it deserves, though he often does less. But to say, that this is by accident, that is for their conjunction with mortal sins, is confuted infinitely, because God punishes them with degrees of evil proper to them, and for their own demerit. There is no other accident by which these come to be smarted for in hell, but because

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they were not repented of; for by that accident they became mortal; as by the contrary accident, to wit, if the sinner repents worthily, not only the smallest, but the greatest also, become venial: the impenitent pays for all; all together. But if the man be a worthy penitent, if he continues and abides in God's love, he will find a mercy according to his circumstances, by the measures of God's graciousness, and his own repentance; so that by accident they may be pardoned; but if that accident does not happen, if the man be not penitent, the sins shall be punished directly, and for their own natural demerit. The sum is this:

If a man repents truly of the greater sins, he also repents of the smallest; for it cannot be a true repentance which refuses to repent of any; so that if it happens, that for the smallest he do smart in hell, it is because he did not repent truly of any, greatest, nor smallest. But if it happens, that the man did not commit any of the greater sins, and yet did indulge to himself a license to do the smallest,-even, for those which he calls the smallest, he may perish; and what he is pleased to call little, God may call great. "Cum his peccatis neminem salvandum," said St. Bernard; "with these," (even the smallest sins) actually remaining upon him unrepented of in general or particular, "no man can be saved."

SECTION IV.

The former Doctrine reduced to Practice.

36. I HAVE been the more earnest in this article, not only because the doctrine which I have all this while opposed, makes all the whole doctrine of moral theology to be inartificial, and in many degrees useless, false, and imprudent; but because of the immediate influence it hath to encourage evil lives of men. For,

37. I. To distinguish a whole kind of sins, is a certain way to make repentance and amendment of life imperfect and false. For when men by fears and terrible considerations are scared from their sins, as most repentances begin with fear, they still retain some portions of affection to their sin, some

t_Serm. 1. de Cœnâ Dom. et serm. I. de Convers. Pauli.

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lookings back and fantastic entertainments, which if they be not pared off by repentance, we love not God with all our hearts; and yet by this doctrine of distinguishing sins into mortal and venial in their whole kind and nature, men are taught to arrest their repentances, and have leave not to proceed farther; for they who say sins are venial in their own nature, if they understand the consequences of their own doctrine, do not require repentance to make them so, or to obtain a pardon which they need not.

38. II. As by this means our repentances are made imperfect, so is a relapse extremely ready for while such a leaven is left, it is ten to one but it may sour the whole mass. St. Gregory said well", "Si curare parva negligimus, insensibiliter seducti audenter etiam majora perpetramus:" we are too apt to return to our old crimes, whose relics we are permitted to keep and kiss.

39. III. But it is worse yet. For the distinction of sins mortal and venial in their nature is such a separation of sin from sin, as is rather a dispensation or leave to commit one sort of them: the expiation of which is so easy, the pardon so certain, the remedy so ready, the observation and exaction of them so inconsiderable. For there being so many ways of making great sins little, and little sins none at all, found out by the folly of men and the craft of the devil,—a great portion of God's right, and the duty we owe to him, are by way of compromise and agreement, left as a portion to carelessness and folly and why may not a man rejoice in those trifling sins, for which he hath security he shall never be damned? As for the device of purgatory, indeed if there were any such thing, it were enough to scare any one from committing any sins, much more little ones. But I have conversed with many of that persuasion, and yet never observed any to whom it was a terror to speak of purgatory, but would talk of it as an antidote or security against hell, but not as a formidable story to affright them from their sins, but to warrant their venial sins, and their imperfect repentance for their mortal sins. And indeed let it be considered; if venial sins be such as the Roman doctors describe them; that they neither destroy nor lessen charity,' or the grace of God, that they only hinder the fervency of an act,' which sleep or business "Lib. 10. Moral. c. 14.

or any thing that is most innocent, may do; that they are not against the law, but besides it; as walking and riding, standing and sitting, are; that they are not properly sins, that all the venial sins in the world cannot amount to one mortal sin;' but as time differs from eternity, finite from infinite, so do all the venial sins in the world put together, from one mortal act; that for all them a man is nevertheless beloved, and loves God nothing the less; I say, if venial sins be such (as the Roman writers affirm they are), how can it be imagined to be agreeable to God's goodness to inflict upon such sinners, who only have venial sins unsatisfied for, such horrible pains (which they dream of in purgatory) as are, during their abode, equal to the intolerable pains of hell, for that which breaks none of his laws, which angers him not, which is not against him or his love, which is incident to his dearest servants? Pro peccato magno paulum supplicii satis est patri; but if fathers take such severe amends of their children for that which is not properly sin, there is nothing left by which we can boast of a father's kindness. In this case, there is no remission; for if it be not just in God to punish such sins in hell, because they are consistent with the state of the love of God, and yet they are punished in purgatory, that is, as much as they can be punished; then God does remit to his children nothing for their love's sake, but deals with them as severely as for his justice he can, in the matter of venial sins; indeed, if he uses mercy to them at all, it is in remitting their mortal sins; but in their venial sins, he uses none at all. Now if things were thus on both sides, it is strange, men are not more afraid of their venial sins, and that they are not more terrible in their description, which are so sad in their event; and that their punishment should be so great, when their malice is so none at all; and it is strangest of all, that if men did believe such horrible effects to be consequent of venial sins, they should esteem them little, and inconsiderable, and warn men of them with so little caution. But to take this wonder off, though they affright men with purgatory at the end, yet they make the bugbear nothing by their easy remedies and preventions in the way. Venial sins may be taken off, according to their doctrine, at as cheap a rate as they may be committed; but of this I shall give a fuller account in the sixth section of this

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