Catholic Theology Plain Pure Peaceable, Section 19
SECT. XIX. Of Mortal Sin, or what Sin will not ſtand with Saving Grace.
283. But as to the queſtion, How great the Sin muſt be which is inconſiſtent with true love to God, or holineſs? that belongeth to the Controverſie about Mortal and Venial Sin: where the difficulty is as great to one ſide as another: ſo great, that not only Pious Gerſon, but many another have confeſſed it too hard for them well to ſolve.
284. In general, It is certain that all Sin is ſo far Mortal as to deſerve Vid. Le Blank de Pece. Mort. & Ven. & 2 Diſp.Death according to the Law of Nature and Innocency, and ſo far as to make us need a pardon: Though not ſo far as to be inconſiſtent with ſpiritual life and juſtification, and right to Glory, and to make damnation due to us according to the Law of Grace. And Pr…teſtants confeſs Vid. Rob. Baronim de Peccat Mort. & Ven. The beſt I know on the Subject.the diſtinction of Mortal and Venial Sin, under the name of Wickedneſs, or Reigning Sin, and Sin of Infirmity in this ſence; that Mortal Sin is that which is inconſiſtent with true Faith, Repentance, Love, Juſtification and right to life, and is never pardoned till the perſon be changed by true converſion: But Venial Sin or Infirmity is that which conſiſteth Vid. Epiſcopii Reſp. ad Qu…ſt. 64. q. 18. pag. 19.with all theſe aforeſaid, and is preſently pardoned by the Covenant of Grace, upon the actual or habitual Repentance or hatred of it in the Sinners.
285. It is certain that the interruption of the Act of Divine Love, will not prove a Sin to be Mortal. For though I deteſt ſuch concluſions as the Janſeniſt gathereth from the Jeſuites Morals, that loving God once or Davenant de Juſtit▪ Actuali, cap. 35. Saith that Sin may be called Mortal in three degrees. 1. Becauſe it is never pardoned, as the Blaſphemy of the Holy Ghoſt. 2. Thoſe which bring novum reatum mortis ſed remiſſibilem upon repentance. And ſuch he maketh all ſuch groſs Sin acted as is mentioned, 1 Cor. 6. and Gal. 5. which be they that the Papiſts call Mortal Sin. 3. The daily infirmities of the faithful, which in rigour of Juſtice deſerve death, but are pardoned by Grace.twice in a man's life, or once a month, may ſave him, yet it is certain that the love of God is not always notably acted by any: It is interrupted in our ſleep, and in common ſtudies and buſineſſes which take up the whole man; And therefore if a Sin (as ſinful ſtudy) interrupt it, that will not prove it a Mortal ſin.
286. And it is certain that a ſin is not therefore Mortal becauſe it diminiſheth the Habit of Love. For that may be in thoſe that ſtill are the juſtified Children of God.
287. There are two Degrees of Mortality in Sin, as our Divines at Dort do more than intimate (and thoſe of Breme there): The one is, when ſin putteth a man into the ſame ſtate, as to the Love of God, which he or any other was in, in the next degree before true Juſtification, or Sanctification or Converſion: which is when the Habit of Divine Love, and all other ſaving Grace is ſo far loſt, as that Habitually the Creature▪ is more loved than the Creator: If any do fall thus far (which is the controverſie) then it's granted that their Juſtification, Adoption and right to Heaven, is loſt. But while God is habitually deareſt to the Soul, and Sin is habitually more hated than loved, there ſin is habitually repented of; And for my part I do not think that perſon is unjuſtified, or ſhould be damned if he ſo dyed.
288. And I believe that this was the caſe of David and Peter: And its very improbable that they loſt the very habits of love to God, and hatred of Sin.
289. The other degree of Mortality, the ſaid Divines take to be ſome heinous Act of Sin like David's or Peter's, which deſtroyeth not the habit, but is ſo great, that the perſon, though he loſe not his fundamental Right, yet is put into an immediate ineptitude and incapacity of Heaven, and his Right ſo ſuſpended, as that he cannot have poſſeſſion That Grace and Mortal Sin oppon…ntar privative ſic…t l…x & t…n…brae, &c. …id. Careres Sum. Theol. 2. …. pag 23, &c.till that obex be removed by true repentance.
290. If you ask them whether that man ſhall go to Heaven or Hell if he ſo die; they tell you that it is not to be ſuppoſed; for God hath decreed that he ſhall not ſo die, but ſhall repent (which Auſtin will ſay of all the Elect) and ſometime he half dreamed of Purgatory for ſome ſuch.)
291. The true reaſon why ſuch a heinous ſin muſt be actually Repented of before full pardon and capacity for Heaven, and the true note to know what ſins muſt have ſuch actual Repentance (and ſo are thus f… Mortal) is this; there are ſome Sins ſo eaſily known to be Sins, and ſo notoriouſly calling the Conſcience to Repent, that to lye in them unrepented of long (when the ſudden violent temptation and paſſion's over, and a man hath opportunity to act according to his ſetled habits) will not conſiſt with the truth of ſuch a Habit of love and holineſs, and of hatred of Si…: So that though neceſſitate praecepti the Act of Repentance be as neceſſary as the Habit, yet neceſsitate medii ad ſalutem it is the Habit that is abſolutely neceſſary in ſe, and the act ſo far as the abſence of it cannot ſtand with ſuch a habit. This is my judgment of this difficult caſe: He that can open it better, deſerveth all our thanks.
But here the difficulty is exceeding great, what love to God that is which mortal Sin or ungodlineſs is inconſiſtent with: or by which a man may know that he hath ſaving Grace. I have contented my ſelf hither-to with ſaying that It is a loving God above all: But that is ſtill dark and ſhort of ſatisfaction: Adrian (after Pope 6.) Quolib. 7. q. 3. 4. fol. 45, 46. hath called me to diſtincter thoughts. He concludeth, 1. A man that loveth a friend leſs than himſelf, may yet Sin mortally for that friend. (But that is no wonder, becauſe, 1. He loveth his friend and ſelf more tha… God. 2. And thinketh that he hurteth not himſelf ſo much as he profiteth his friend by Sin) 2. He inferreth that a Mortal Sinner doth not always love the Creature more than God; becauſe he that loveth himſelf more may Sin mortally in love to his friend: For as a man may love himſelf more than the ſole end for which he ſinneth: So he may love God more.
Anſ. I ſuppoſe it is miſ-printed, for the ſence ſhould be [He may love God more]. But, 1. I doubt of the antecedent: That Sinner loveth himſelf as the End of his ſinning for his friend: For it is to gratifie that proud or ſelfiſh humour by which he loveth his friend for the Likeneſs, Love or Uſefulneſs of that friend to himſelf; and ſo his love is finally for or to himſelf. 2. When he ſinneth he doth not practically think that the hurt to himſelf or the wrong to God is ſo great an evil, as the pleaſure of Sin is good.
But his inſtance more poſeth me; viz. that a mortal Sinner (or ungodly man) may chooſe rather to be annihilated, and his friend too, than Chriſt ſhould be blaſphemed by all the world, or than God (per impoſſibile) ſhould periſh, or loſe his Omnipotency, &c. (for ſome Romans dyed for their Countrys): Therefore he concludeth, that Thus to love God above our ſelves or all, is not enough to Salvation; but we muſt alſo love God above all ut ſinem ultimum & qui ſit ratio & menſura diligendi caetera; Ita, viz. quod omnia refer at homo in Deum, nolit que am are niſi quantum Deo placuerit, & eadem velit abdicare & perdere ut ſatisfaciat divino beneplacito & Sanctae ejus voluntati, ut ſit ei quantum ad amorem liberum attinet Deus omnis in omnibus, & dicat, vivo jam; non ego, ſed Chriſtus vivet in me; againſt it, He muſt not only ſo love God as that he would die rather than God ſhould die or ſuffer (were it poſſible); but ſo as to love him as the end of all our lives, and to love the pleaſing of his bleſſed Will in the glorifying of him, better than all things that can ſtand in any competition:] And I think this to be a neceſſary truth: I dare not ſay that every man is Godly that had rather die than God, or the Sun, or the Earth, or his Country ſhould periſh. God's Being is not, as ſuch, our End: But his Will (or his Eſſence as it is his Will) is the Beginning, Governour, and End of all; And it is the Pleaſing of this Will of God (in the Glory of our holineſs and obedience, in which his holineſs and other perfections are reſplendent) which muſt be loved above all. As a man may chooſe to die, or at leaſt loſe all that he hath, rather than his Father ſhould die or be for ever tormented; and yet will not forbear fornication and drunkenneſs to pleaſe his Father's will; becauſe he practically thinketh that the bare diſpleaſing of his Father doth not ſo much hurt him, as his ſinful pleaſure doth himſelf good; ſo is it in the preſent caſe. (And I may add that, God is not loved as God, that is, as perfectly holy and juſt in governing the world and him, by any bad man: But as he is the God and Preſerver of Nature, Nature may love him; but not as he is a moſt holy Governour) which is eſſential to the Relative notion of our God.
He concludeth therefore truly [That this true ſort of Love to God doth put us in a ſtate of Salvation, and Mortal Sin conſiſteth not with it.]
But I agree not with him of the Impoſsibility of being certain that we have this Love, though I think his words worth the reciting to prove the difficulty of it: fol. 47. N. O. P. [Dico quod licet poſſit probabilem conjecturam habere, quod act us ille dilectionis inſit; non tamen poteſt evidenter cognoſcere & pro certo: Quomodo enim ſcire poterit, quod it a Deo ſe totum infundit propter ſe, i. e. bonitatem & Sanctitatem ejus, …t nec Vitam aeternam niſi in Deo & propter Deum diligat? animo paratus, & efficaciter volens, omnia & ſeipſum & alia, quum Deo placcbit perdere, ut impleatur Sancta voluntas Dei? Quod etiam nulli creaturae nec ipſ…ſibi libero aliquo amore adhaeret in ſe in Deo & propter Deum; Quae volunt as multo eſt purior & laudabilior quam volunt as perferendi pro Chriſto Martyrium pro ſpe aſſequendi vitam aeternam. Et certe longe aliud est optare aut Velle, quam ſic Deum amare, & de facto ſic affectum eſſe, & ſic efficaciter velle, ſicut opto & deſidero efficax Velle Scientiae, ſeu ad ſcientiam: Sed ubi efficaciter id vellem, manum ad aratrum mittens, labori, vigiliis & id genus operis non parcerem—Si ponatur per Revelationem certiorari, non nego ſic certum fieri poſſe—Nec expedit hominem niſi valde ſciens & doct us fuerit de his multum ſe tentare, quoniam difficilimum eſt proprias affectiones metiri.
But ſure theſe fruits grow not on any common ſtock, and the Heirs of Heaven and Hell are not ſo like as to be undiſcernable, nor Gods promiſes ſuch as no man can be ſure that he hath a right to them. It is enough that theſe things do prove aſſurance difficult and rare.