The Buckler of the Faith, Part 2 · Article 35 · Subpart 2
Of the Sacrament of Penance.
Sect. 3 The word Repentance in French, and the word Penitence in Latin, are all one thing. Penitence is the conuersion of a sinner, which consisteth in griefe for his sinnes fore-passed, and in amendment of life in time to come. The Hebrews call this vertue,Tesh uba foreign. a Returning vntounto God, and the Greekes, an After-mind and changing of the will.
The Church of Rome, to peruert the thing, hath corrupted the signification of the word; for Penitence in the church of Rome is taken for whippings, fastings, pilgrimages, and corporall and pecuniarie punishments. Of a vertue they hauehave made a punishment: and of a repentance of the heart, a corporall exercise: according to the manner of false religions, which change vertues into outward shews, and into corporall exercises, whereof the Apostle 1. Tim. 4.8. saith, Bodily exercise profiteth little, but godlinesse is profitable to all things, which hath the promise of the life present, and of that that is to come.
Luther acknowledging this abuse, preached, that the best Penance of all is for a man to amend his life, and to become an honest man.Optima poenitentia noua vita. For which heresie, among many the like, he is blasted with thundrings & excommunications, in the Bull Exurge, of Pope Leo the 10, which is at the end of the last Councell of Latran, where he is condemned for saying, that the best Penance is a new life. In which Sentence of condemnation Iesus Christ himselfe is comprised, who, Apocalypse 2.5. speaketh thus to the Church of Ephesus, saying, Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first workes. In the Romish translation it is, Age poenitentiam, do Penance. Which Iesus Christ maketh to consist in the study of good workes.
The difference betweene vsus is not, whether Penance be necessarie to saluation, and whether we must confesse our sinnes, and turne vntounto God by earnest repentance: but whether this Penance is a Sacrament or a sacred signe, wherein a contrite sinner ought punctually to confesse his sinnes to his Curate, from him to receiue iudiciall absolution, vponupon condition to make satisfaction vntounto God by corporall or pecuniarie Penance, which whosoeuer doth not accomplish in this life, shall accomplish it in Purgatorie, from whence neuerthelesse the Pope drawes out mens soules by Pardons.
We say, that admit there were no euill at all in this, and that this kind of Penance were conformable to the word of God, yet it can in no wise be a Sacrament: Our reasons are these.
1 All our aduersaries with vsus acknowledge, that eueryevery Sacrament is a sacred and a visible signe of an inuisible grace of God.Can. Sacrificium. Sacramentum est inuisibilis gratiae visibilis forma. The Romish Decretall in the second Distinction of Consecration, maketh this definition of a Sacrament, drawne out of Saint Augustine: A Sacrament is a forme or visible apparence of an inuisible grace. And this sentence of S. Augustine is receiued among our aduersaries, that The word ought to be added to the element to make it a Sacrament. That being granted, it is manifest that this Penance is no Sacrament: for where is the element? where is the visible signe instituted by Christ? for they compose this Sacrament of foure peeces, which are, Contrition, Confession, Absolution, and Satisfaction. Contrition of the heart is no sensible nor visible signe. Confession also is no signe of the grace of God, but a declaration that we are vnworthy of his grace. Confession is not ordained to signifie the grace of God, but to aske it. Moreouer the sacred signes ought to be administred by the Pastor, but Confession is made by eueryevery particular man. I say the same of corporall or pecuniary Satisfactions, which are accomplished by the sinner, and commonly in his house, by fastings or whippings, or abroad by pilgrimages: whereas sacred signes are administred in the Church, by the hands of the Pastor. Absolution also cannot be a sacred signe of the grace of God: seeing that if it be good and auaileable, it is the grace of God. Adde hereunto, that this absolution is not an element nor a visible signe of an inuisible grace, for the words are not seene. If they answer, that it is sufficient that significantly it is the grace of God 'I say, that by the same reason the preaching of the word of God is a Sacrament, for it is sensible and a signification of the grace of God. It is not sufficient that Sacraments should be sensible signes, they must be visible, as the definition aforesaid saith, which is drawne out of the ancient Fathers, and receiued by the Church of Rome. The word must be ioyned to the element, but here they will hauehave the word to be an element.
I confesse, that the imposition of the Priests hands is a visible signe, but it is no element but an action, as the distribution of the bread in the Supper is not the element, but the bread sanctified. Moreouer this imposition of hands was not ordained by Iesus Christ, for he did not command that the Priest should lay his hands on a man to conferre Sacramentall absolution. If these words, absoluo te, &c. be a visible signe, or a sensible element, by the same reason these words in Baptisme, Baptizo te, &c. should be a sensible signe, and an element, and not a word added to the element to make it a Sacrament. Certes in disputing with our aduersaries we are constrained to speake as it were to children, to beate into them the first principles of reason and common sense.
2 The proofes which follow are no lesse plaine and euident. Our aduersaries make Contrition of the heart the first part of this Sacrament, which Contrition and griefe of heart is so necessary, that without it Penance is a kind of mockerie, and meere hypocrisie. But thereby they wound and ouerthrow their imaginary Sacrament: for besides the absurdity therein found, which is to make a vertue or disposition of the soule part of a Sacrament, as if one should make faith part of the holy Supper▪ there is a further matter, which is, that the Priest is vncertaine whether thereby he conferreth a Sacrament, because he cannot be assured of the Contrition of the sinner, and knoweth not whether the declaration which the sinner maketh, to be sorry for offending God, be true or fained. And yet if that Contrition be not had, there is no repentance, and by consequence no Sacrament of Penance. Surely this must needs be a presumptiue Sacrament which a man must guesse at, and a Sacrament which dependeth vponupon the will and disposition of the sinner, who if he will, can make it no Sacrament.
3 Adde hereunto, that all Sacraments are ministred by the Pastor; but of this Sacrament three parts, (that is, Contrition, Confession, and Satisfaction) are done by eueryevery particular man, who, if he be but halfe contrite, if he maketh but halfe a Confession, if he maketh but halfe Satisfaction, it is but halfe a Sacrament: which are extrauagant conceptions, and a strange kinde of an irregular Sacrament.
4 But the grossest absurditie of all appeareth in this, that oftentimes the Priest enioynes a sinner to make satisfaction within diuers yeares: in the ancient penitentiall Canons, there are penances found of 10, and of 20 yeares. Then seeing that this satisfaction is a part of the Sacrament of Penance, we may say that a man is 20 yeares administring a Sacrament, as if a man should employ 7 or 8 yeares to baptize a child, or to confer extreme vnction. But this is worse: for there are satisfactions which are made by respits, or spaces of times, as when a sinner is condemned to fast three yeares together, three dayes in a weeke, that is a Sacrament which is celebrated by respites, and hath a thousand delayes. So full of inuentions is superstition, and our aduersaries so ingenious to disguise religion.
5 But to shew the roote of this euill, if Penance be a Sacrament of the Christian Church, then Iesus Christ ordained it. The Councell of Trent in the 14. Session and first Chapter, findeth the institution thereof in the 20. Chapter of Saint Iohn, where Iesus Christ blowing vponupon the Apostles, said vntounto them, Receiue the holy Ghost, whose sinnes soeuer ye remit, they are remitted vntounto them, and whose sins soeuer ye retaine, they are retained. In these words of Iesus Christ, our aduersaries (which inferre quidlibet ex quolibet) finde Auricular Confession, and pecuniary and corporall Satisfaction.
Note that these words are spoken to the Apostles after the resurrection of our Lord. Whence it followeth, that repentance preached by the Prophets, was no Sacrament. And in the Gospell,Matth. 3. when S. Iohn Baptist preached saying: Repent for the kingdome of God is at hand, that repentance was no Sacrament, for then Iesus Christ was not risen againe. And which is more,Vulgata poenitemini. when in Marke 1.15. Iesus Christ said, Repent, and beleeue the Gospell, that repentance was no Sacrament, for then the Lord was not yet risen againe. And after the resurrection of Iesus Christ, Acts 2.38, when Saint Peter exhorted the Iewes (not then baptized) to repent, saying, Agite poenitentiam, Repent, or amend your liues, that repentance was no Sacrament:Nec ante aduentum Christi poenitentia erat Sacramētum, nec est post aduentum illius cuiquam ante Baptismum. for the Councell of Trent in the same place saith, That Penance is no Sacrament before Baptisme. There is no other Penance found to be in the Scripture; and it is not to be found, that this word Penance is prooued to be a Sacrament, or an exterior signe of the grace of God, but is said to be an earnest conuersion and an amendment of life. With the which Penance if we content our selues, we cannot be blamed for not receiuing other Penance then that which the Prophets, Iohn Baptist, Iesus Christ, and the Apostles preached.
6 And if we must hauehave a Sacrament of Penance, we hauehave Baptisme, whereof S. Marke speaketh thus in the first chapter, fourth verse, saying, Iohn preached the Baptisme of amendment of life, for remission of sinnes.
Which hindereth not, but that after Baptisme we should seeke to amend our liues, and bring forth fruits worthy of repentance. That also is no hinderance, but that all faithfull Pastors, as successors of the Apostles, may bind and loose… of which power we will speake hereafter.