XVI. After all these disputations, their author introduces himself in person as arguing with another, and represents himself as under exami- nation, and as being addressed by his examiner: " Show me the man who is without sin." He answers: " I show you one who is able to be without sin." His examiner then says to him: " And who is he? " He answers: " You are the man." " But if," he adds, " you were to say, ' I, at any rate, cannot be without sin,' then you must answer me, 'Whose fault is that?' If you then were to say, ' My own fault,' you must be further asked, ' And how is it your fault, if you cannot be without sin?' " He again repre- sents himself as under examination, and thus accosted: " Are you yourself without sin, who say that a man can be without sin? " And he answers: " \\'hose fault is it that I am not with- out sin? But if," continues he, "he had said in reply, ' The fault is your own; ' then the answer would be, ' How my fault, when I am unable to be without sin?'" Now our answer to all this running argument is, that no controversy ought to have been raised between them about such words as these; because he nowhere ventures to affirm that a man (either any one else, or himself) is without sin, but he merely said in reply that he can be, — a position which we do not ourselves deny. Only the ciuestion arises, when can he, and through whom can he? If at the present time, then by no faithful soul which is enclosed within the body of this death must this prayer be offered, or such words as these be spoken, " Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our s Ps. xxxii. 2.
8 S 6 Matt. vi. 12.
' Matt vii. 2.
>ee nno\'^. in Naiurd lL iji\^.id, 45 his work De Spiritu et Lttterd, 64; also De 1 64 THE WORKS OF ST. AUGUSTIN.
[Chap. 17.
debtors," ' since in holy baptism all past debts have been already forgiven. But whoever tries to persuade us that such a prayer is not proper for faithful members of Christ, does in fact ac- knowledge nothing else than that he is not him- self a Christian. If, again, it is through himself that a man is able to live without sin, then did Christ die in vain. But " Christ is not dead in vain." No man, therefore, can be without sin, even if he wish it, unless he be assisted by the grace of God through our Lord Jesus Christ. And that this perfection may be attained, there is even now a training carried on in growing [Christians,] and there will be by all means a completion made, after the conflict with death is spent, and love, which is now cherished by the operation of faith and hope, shall be perfected in the fruition of sight and possession.
CHAP. VIII. (17.) IT IS ONE THING TO DEPART FROM THE BODY, ANOTHER THING TO BE LIBER- ATED FROM THE BODY OF THIS DEATH.
He next proposes to establish his point by the testimony of Holy Scripture. Let us carefully obser\'e what kind of defence he makes. " There are passages," says he, " which prove that man is commanded to be without sin." Now our answer to this is: Whether such commands are given is not at all the point in question, for the fact is clear enough; but whether the thing which is evidently commanded be itself at all possible of accomplishment in the body of this death, wherein '• the flesh lusteth against the spirit, and the spirit against the flesh, so that we cannot do the things that we would."- Now from this body of death not every one is liberated who ends the present life, but only he who in this life has re- ceived grace, and given proof of not receiving it in vain by spending his days in good works. For it is plainly one thing to depart from the body, which all men are obliged to do in the last day of their present life, and another to be de- livered from the body of this death, — which God's grace alone, through our Lord Jesus Christ, imparts to His faithful saints. It is after this life, indeed, that the reward of perfection is bestowed, but only upon those by whom in their present life has been acquired the merit of such a recompense. For no one, after going hence, shall arrive at fulness of righteousness, unless, whilst here, he shall have run his course by hungering and thirsting after it. " Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after right- eousness; for they shall be filled." ^ (18.) THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF THIS LIFE COMPRE- HENDED IN THREE PARTS, FASTING, ALMS- GIVING, AND PRAYER.
As long, then, as we are " absent from the ' Matt. vi. 12.
2 Gal. V. 17.
3 Matt. V. 6.
Lord, we walk by faith, not by sight; " •* whence it is said, " The just shall live by faith." 5 Our righteousness in this pilgrimage is this — that we press forward to that perfect and full righteous- ness in which there shall be perfect and full love in the sight of His glory; and that now we hold to the recutude and perfection of our course, by " keeping under our body and bringing it into subjection," '^ by doing our alms cheerfully and heartily, while bestowing kindnesses and forgi\ing the trespasses which have been committed against us, and by "continuing instant in prayer;" 7 — and doing all this with sound doctrine, where- on are built a right faith, a firm hope, and a pure charity. This is now our righteousness, in which we pass through our course hungering and thirsting after the perfect and full righteous- ness, in order that we may hereafter be satisfied therewith. Therefore our Lord in the Gospel (after saying, " Take heed that ye do not your righteousness^ before men, to be seen of them," '^) in order that we should not measure our course of life by the limit of human glory, declared in his exposition of righteousness itself that there is none except there be these three, — fasting, alms, prayers. Now in the fasting He indicates the entire subjugation of the body; in the alms, all kindness of will and deed, either by giving or forgiving; and in prayers He implies all the rules of a holy desire. So that, although by the subjugation of the body a check is given to that concupiscence, which ought not only to be bridled but to be put altogether out of existence (and which will not be found at all in that state of perfect righteousness, where sin shall be abso- lutely excluded), — yet it often exerts its im- moderate desire even in the use of tilings which are allowable and right. In that real benefi- cence in which the just man consults his neigh- bour's welfare, things are sometimes done which are prejudicial, although it was thought that they would be advantageous. Sometimes, too, through infirmity, when the amount of the kind- ness and trouble which is expended either falls short of the necessities of the objects, or is of htde use under the circumstances, then there steals over us a disappointment which tarnishes that "cheerfulness" which secures to the "giver" the approbation of God.'° This trail of sadness, however, is the greater or the less, as each man has made more or less progress in his kindly pur- poses. If, then, these considerations, and such as these, be duly weighed, we are only right when we say in our prayers, " Forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors." ' But what we say in our prayers we must carry into ^ For this reading of iiKmocrui'ni' instead of eAfnuoo- rnr there is high MS. authority. It is admitted also by Griesbach, Lachmann, I'ischendorf, Tregelles, Westcott and Hon, and AHord, Chap. 20.]
ON MAN'S PERFECTION IN RIGHTEOUSNESS.
165 act, even to loving our very enemies; or if any one who is still a babe in Christ fails as yet to reach this point, he must at any rate, whenever one who has trespassed against him repents and craves his pardon, exercise forgiveness from the bottom of his heart, if he would have his heavenly Father listen to his prayer.
(19.) THE COMMANDMENT OF LOVE SHALL BE PERFECTLY FULFILLED IN THE LIFE TO COME.
And m this prayer, unless we choose to be contentious, there is placed before our view a: mirror of sufficient brightness in which to behold the life of the righteous, who live by faith, and; finish their course, although they are not without sin. Therefore they say, " Forgive us," because j they have not yet arrived at the end of their course. Hence the apostle says, " Not as if I i had already attained, either were already per- fect...Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reachmg forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark, for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded." ' In other words, let us, as many as are running perfecdy, be thus resolved, that, being not yet perfected, we pursue our course to perfection along the way by which we have thus far run perfecdy, in order that " when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part may be done away; " ^ that is, may cease to be but in part any longer, but be- come whole and complete. For to faith and hope shall succeed at once the very substance itself, no longer to be beheved in and hoped for, but to be seen and grasped. Love, however, which is the greatest among the three, is not to be superseded, but increased and fulfilled, — contemplating in full vision what it used to see by faith, and acquiring in actual fruition what it once only embraced in hope. Then in all this plenitude of charity will be fulfilled the com- mandment, " Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind." ^ For while there remains any remnant of the lust of the flesh, to be kept in check by the rein of continence, God is by no means loved with all one's soul. For the flesh does not lust without the soul; although it is the flesh which is said to lust, because the soul lusts carnally. In that perfect state the just man shall live absolutely without any sin, since there will be in his members no law warring against the law of his mind,-* but wholly will he love God, with all his heart, with all his soul, and I Phil. iii. 12-15. ^ ' Cor. xiii. lo.
3 A/oitf. The Septuagint, however like ilic Hebrew, has Swajjieu)'; * Rom. v'u. 23, A. v. " thy might." Comp. Deut. vi. 5 with Matt. x.\ii.
with all his mind,' which is the first and chief commandment. P'or why should not such per- fection be enjoined on ihan, although in this life nobody may attain lu it? For we do not rightly run if we do not know whither we are to run. But how could it be known, unless it were pointed out in precepts?'^ Let us therefore " so run that we may obtain."? For all who run rightly will obtain, — not as in the contest of the theatre, where all indeed run, but only one wins the prize.*" Let us run, believing, hoping, longing; let us run, subjugating the body, cheerfully and heartily doing alms, — in giving kindnesses and forgiving injuries, praying tliat our strength may be helped as we run; and let us so listen to the commandments which urge us to perfection, as not to neglect running towards the fulness of love.
CHAP. IX. (20.) WHO MAY BE SAID TO WALK WITHOUT SPOT; DAMNABLE AND VENLVL SINS.
Having premised these remarks, let us care- fully attend to the passages which he whom we are answering has produced, as if we ourselves had cjuoted them. " In Deuteronomy, ' Thou shalt be perfect before the Lord thy God.''^ Again, in the same book, ' There shall be not an imperfect man '° among the sons of Israel.' " In like manner the Saviour says in the Gospel. ' Be ye perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.' '^ So the apostle, in his sec- ond Epistle to the Corinthians, says: * Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect.' '^ Again, to the Colossians he writes: ' Warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ.' '•♦ And so to the Philippians: ' Do all things without mur- murings and disputings, that ye may be blame- less, and harmless, as the immaculate sons of God.' '5 In like manner to the Ephesians he writes: ' Blessed be the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ; according as He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him.' '^ Then again [ to the Colossians he says in another passage: ' And you, that were sometime alienated, and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath He reconciled in the body of His flesh through death; present yourselves hoi}' and un- blameable and unreprovable in His sight.' '' In the same strain, he says to the Ephesians: ' That He might present to Himself a glorious Church, I 5 Matt. xxii. 37.
6 See above in Augustin's Dc Spiritii et Littera, 64. I 7 I Cor ix. 23. " I Cor. ix. 24. 9 Deut. xviii. 13.
'° Augustin's word is i)icotisuiiiniatus. The Septuagint term TeA^(T^•oMt'■o<; (which properly signifies coiuf>lctc, perfects comes to mean one initiated into the mysteries of idolatrous worship.
" Col. i. 21. 22.
i66 THE WORKS OF ST. AUGUSTIN.
[Chap. 21.
not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.' ' j So in his first Epistle to the Corinthians he says: j ' Be ye sober, and righteous, and sin not.' ^ So ] again in the Epistle of St. Peter it is written: [ ' Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be; sober, and hope to the end, for the grace that [ is offered to you:...as obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: but as He who hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; because it is written,^ Be ye holy; for I am holy.''* Whence blessed David likewise says; ' O Lord, who shall sojourn in Thy ■ tabernacle, or who shall rest on Thy holy moun- tain? He that walketh without blame, and worketh righteousness.' 5 And in another pas- I shall be blameless with Him.' *" And Blessed are the blameless in the who walk in the law of the Lord.' 7 To sage yet way, agam the same effect it is written in Solomon: ' The Lord loveth holy hearts, and all they that are blameless are acceptable unto Him.' " ^ Now some of these passages exhort men who are run- ning their course that they run perfectly; others refer to the end thereof, that men may reach forward to it as they run. He, however, is not unreasonably said to walk blamelessly, not who has already reached the end of his journey, but who is pressing on towards the end in a blame- less manner, free from damnable sins, and at the ] same time not neglecting to cleanse by almsgiv- ing such sins as are venial. For the way in which we walk, that is, the road by which we reach perfection, is cleansed by clean prayer. That, however, is a clean prayer in which we say in truth, "Forgive us, as we ourselves forgive." 9 So that, as there is nothing censured when blame is not imputed, we may hold on our course to perfection without censure, in a word, blame- lessly; and in this perfect state, when we arrive at it at last, we shall find that there is absolutely nothing which requires cleansing by forgiveness.
CHAP. X. (21.) TO WHOM GOD'S COMMANDMENTS ARE GRIEVOUS; AND TO WHOM, NOT. WHY SCRIPTURE SAYS THAT GOD'S COMMANDMENTS ARE NOT GRIEVOUS; A COMMANDMENT IS A PROOF OF THE FREEDOM OF MAN'S WILL; PRAYER IS A PROOF OF GRACE.
He next quotes passages to show that God's commandments are not grievous. But who can be ignorant of the fact that, since the generic commandment is love (for "the end of the commandment is love," '° and " love is the ful- filling of the law " "), whatever is accomplished ^ I Cor. XV. 34.
S Ps. XV. r, 2.
* Prov. xi. 20.
" Rom. xiii. lo.
3 Lev. xix. 2. * Ps, xviii. 23. 9 Matt. VI. 12.
by the operation of love, and not of fear, is not grievous? They, however, are oppressed by the commandments of God, who try to fulfil them by fearing. " But perfect love casteth out fear; " '^ and, in respect of the burden of the command- ment, it not only takes off the pressure of its heavy weight, but it actually lifts it up as if on wings. In order, however, that this love may be possessed, even as far as it can possibly be pos- sessed in the body of this death, the determina- tion of will avails but little, unless it be helped by God's grace through our Lord Jesus Christ. For as it must again and again be stated, it is " shed abroad in our hearts," not bv our own selves, but " by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us." '3 And for no other reason does Holy Scripture insist on the truth that God's com- mandments are not grievous, than this, that the soul which finds them grievous may understand that it has not yet received those resources which make the Lord's commandments to be such as they are commended to us as being, even gentle and pleasant; and that it may pray with groan- ing of the will to obtain the gift of facility. For the man who says, " Let my heart be blameless;" '■♦ and, " Order Thou my steps according to Thy word: and let not any iniquity have dominion over me; " '5 and, "Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven; " '^ and, " Lead us not into temptation; " '7 and other prayers of a like pur- port, which it would be too long to particularize, does in effect offer up a prayer for ability to keep God's commandments. Neither, indeed, on the one hand, would any injunctions be laid upon us to keep them, if our own will had nothing to do in the matter; nor, on the other hand, would there be any room for prayer, if our will were alone sufficient. God's commandments, there- fore, are commended to us as being not grievous, in order that he to whom they are grievous may understand that he has not as yet received the gift which removes their grievousness; and that he may not think that he is really performing them, when he so keeps them that they are grievous to him. For it is a cheerful giver whom God loves.'^ Nevertheless, when a man finds God's commandments grievous, let him not be broken down by despair; let him rather oblige himself to seek, to ask, and to knock.
(22.) PASSAGES TO SHOW TH.AT GOD'S COMMAND- MENTS ARE NOT GRIEVOUS.
He afterwards adduces those passages which represent God as recommending His own com- mandments as not grievous: let us now attend to their testimony. " Because," says he, "God's commandments are not only not impossible, but they are not even grievous. In Deuteronomy: '< Ps. cxix. 80. *' Matt. VI. 13.
Chap. 24.]
ON MAN'S PERFECTION IN RIGHTEOUSNESS.
167 'The Lord thy God will again turn and rejoice over thee for good, as He rejoiced over thy fathers, if ye shall hearken to the voice of the Lord your God, to keep His commandments, and His ordinances, and His judgments, written in the book of this law; if thou turn to the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul. For this command, which I give thee this day, is not grievous, neither is it far from thee: it is not in heaven, that thou shouldest say, ^Vho will ascend into heaven, and obtain it for us, that we may hear and do it? neither is it beyond the sea, that thou shouldest say, Who will cross over the sea, and obtain it for us, that we hiay hear and do it? The word is nigh thee, in thy mouth, and in thine heart, and in thine hands to do it.' ' In the Gospel likewise the Lord says: ' Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.' ^ So also in the Epistle of Saint John it is written: ' This is the love of God, that we keep His commandments: and His com- mandments are not grievous.' " ^ On hearing these testimonies out of the law, and the gospel, and the epistles, let us be built up unto that grace which those persons do not understand, who, '■ being ignorant of God's righteousness, and wishing to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the right- eousness of God." ■♦ For, if they understand not the passage of Deuteronomy in the sense that the Aposde Paul quoted it, — that " with the heart men believe unto righteousness, and with their mouth make confession unto salvation; " 5 since " they that be whole need not a pliysician, but they that are sick,'"^ — they certainly ought (by that very passage of the Apostle John which he quoted last to this effect: "This is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not grievous "3) to be admonished that God's commandment is not grievous to the love of God, which is shed abroad in our hearts only by the Holy Ghost, not by the determination of man's will by attributing to which more than they ought, they are ignorant of God's righteousness. This love, however, shall then be made perfect, when all fear of punishment shall be cut off.
CHAP. XI. (23.) PASS.'VGES OF SCRIPTURE WHICH, WHEN OBJECTED AGAINST HIM BY THE CATHO- LICS, CCELESTIUS ENDEAVOURS TO ELUDE BY OTHER PASSAGES: THE FIRST PASSAGE.
After this he adduced the passages which are usually quoted against them. He does not at- tempt to explain these passages, but, by quoting what seem to be contrary ones, he has entangled the (questions more tiglitly. " For," says he, " there are passages of Scripture which are in opposition to those who ignorantly suppose that they are able to destroy the liberty of the will, or the possibility of not sinning, by the authority of Scripture. For," he adds, " they are in the habit of quoting against us what holy Job said: ' Who is pure from uncleanness? Not one; even if he be an infant of only one day upon the earth.' " 7 Then he proceeds to give a sort of answer to this passage by help of otlier quotations; as when Job himself said: " For although I am a right- eous and blameless man, I have become a sub- ject for mockery," ^ — not understanding that a man may be called righteous, who has gone so far towards perfection in righteousness as to be very near it; and tliis we do not deny to have been in the power of many even in this life, when they walk in it by faith.
(24.) TO BE WITHOUT SIN, AND TO BE WITHOUT BLAME — HOW DIFFERING.
The same thing is affirmed in another passage, which he has quoted immediately afterwards, as spoken by the same Job: " Behold, I am very near my judgment, and I know that I shall be found righteous." 9 Now this is the judgment of which it is said in another scripture: "And He shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday." But he does not say, I am already there; but, " I am very near." If, indeed, the judgment of his which he meant was not that which he would himself exercise, but that whereby he was to be judged at the last day, then in such judgment all will be found righteous who with sincerity pray: " For- give us our debts, as we forgive our debtors." '° For it is through this forgiveness that they will be found righteous; on this account that what- ever sins they have here incurred, they have blotted out by their deeds of charity. Whence the Lord says Give alms things are clean unto you.'
and, behold, all For in the end, it shall be said to the righteous, when about to enter into the promised kingdom: " I was an hungered, and ye gave me meat," '^ and so forth. However, it is one thing to be without sin, which in this life can only be predicated of the Only- begotten, and another thing to be without accu- sation, which might be said of many just persons even in the present life; for there is a certain measure of a good life, according to which even in this himian intercourse there could no just accusation be possibly laid against him. For 7 Job xiv. 4, 5. 9 Job xiii. iS. " Luke; : XI. 41, 1 68 THE WORKS OF ST. AUGUSTIN.
[Chap. 25.
who can justly accuse the man who wishes evil to no one, and who faithfully does good to all he can, and never cherishes a wish to avenge himself on any man who does him wrong, so that he can truly say, " As we forgive our debtors? " And yet by the very fact that he truly says, " Forgive, as we also forgive," he plainly admits that he is not witliout sin.
(25.) Hence the force of the statement: " There was no injustice in my hands, but my prayer was pure." ' For the purity of his prayer arose from this circumstance, that it was not improper for him to ask forgiveness in prayer, when he really bestowed forgiveness himself.
(26.) y^HV JOB WAS so GREAT A SUFFERER.
And when he says concerning the Lord, " For many bruises hath He inflicted upon me without a cause,"- observe that his words are not, He hath inflicted 7ione 7uith a cause; but, "many without a cause." For it was not because of his manifold sins that these many bruises were in- flicted on him, but in order to make trial of his patience. For on account of his sins, indeed, without which, as he acknowledges in another passage, he was certainly not, he yet judges that he ought to have suffered less.^ (27.) WHO MAY BE SAID TO KEEP THE WAYS OF THE LORD; WHAT IT IS TO DECLINE AND DEPART FROM THE WAYS OF THE LORD.