Right to Sacraments, Postscript 1
The first Postscript.
ON the review I observe that the mixture of some passages of some late Papists, with the judgement of Bellarmine and the most, doth make pag. 50, 51 of the second Disput. less clear. To remove the obscurity observe, that there are divers Questions conjoyned: 1. What is necessary to make a man a true Member of the Catholick Church? And in that they mostly agree with Bellarmine as cited, that no inward grace is necessary. 2d Question is, what is the Common effect of Baptism on all that Receive it? And that they say, is the imprinting of a certain Character on the mind. What this Character is, they are not agreed: commonly they think either as Aquinas, that it is a certain qualitative power reducible to the second species of quality, that is, a spiritual power ordinata ad ea quae sunt Divini cultus, ut 3. Qu. 93. ar. 2. c. Or as Durandus and many others of them, that it is but a Relation; or as Estius and others, that it is such a moral power as is Jus Civitatis, and so is a power of receiving the common priviledges of the Church. All the Baptized: But if they should fictè recipere as to the Sacrament it self, they receive not so much as the Character; nay, saith Aquinas, are to be Baptized again when they Repent. But the grace of justification, and Remission of sin, they say is not common to all that are Baptized; but only to those that are duely disposed for Baptism. Saith Aquinas. 3. Qu. 63. ar. 3. c. Character propriè est signaculum quoddam quo aliquid insignitur, &c. Homo autem fidelis ad deo deputatur: Primò quidem & principaliter ad fruitionem gloriae & ad hoc insignitur signaculo gratiae. 2. Autem deputatur quis que fidelis ad recipiendum vel tradendum aliis, ea quae pertinent ad cultum Dei, & ad hoc proprié deputatur Character sacramentalis. So that a man in mortal sin may receive the Character, & the Character doth dispose a man to sacramental Grace. So that let them come never so sinfully to it, yet it puts them in a fair way to justification. (vid Viguerium cap. 16. ver. 15. fol. 154.) And it hath this advantage that the grace is delible, but the Character indelible. Now those Papists that I spoke of in the place I refer to (pag. 50.51.) do think that all should come to Baptism, that have but an historical Belief of the points, absolutely necessary, that so they may receive this Character, and then they have the Church-Priviledges, which being unbaptized they have not: and though yet they have not Charity or Justification, yet when by Pennance they are brought to the disposition which they wanted the foregoing Baptism will be effectual to do away all the sins that were at the time of Baptism: & Pennance will put away the rest that were since committed. Though yet quoad officium they say that men ought to come to Baptism with the due preparations. These requisites they say are, I. A Right belief, say some, explicite of the Essentials, and implicite of the rest: say others, it must be rectae fides saltem in communi, ut scilicet Credant quod Ecclesia Credit (Viguer. Just. c. 16. ver. 4. §. 1.) 2. That he repent of his forepast life, and die to sin. 3. That he have an intention of Receiving the Sacrament as the Church delivereth it, and Christ hath appointed. And if this intention, and a Right belief be wanting, the party is to be rebaptized (Viguerius ubi sup.) But what this Belief is, and what this Repentance is, they are not all agreed. But though some few may require Contrition, yet their commonest opinion is, that Attrition is a sufficient disposition, together with a fides informis, a right Belief without Charity. But yet they require that the will must be towards that Contrition and Charity, or fides formata, which yet it hath not, for it must amplecti Baptismum & Baptismi effectum, saith Thom. 3. Qu. 69. a. 9. c. that's the common measure: And Charity and Iustification are these effects. So that whoever comes with Attrition and a right Belief without Charity, shall certainly there receive Charity, Justification, Remission of guilt and punishment (poenarum sed non poenalitatum) both in foro Dei & Ecclesiae, sed non in foro mundano: And this because that this disposition doth. ex congruo merit Justification in the use of Baptism. And for all the rest that come without Attrition or a purpose to leave sin, (and saith Aquin. without Belief too. 3. Qu. 68. a. 8. c.) they receive the Character which putteth them in so fair a way to Iustification by Pennance as aforesaid, recedente fictione de debitâ dispositione. But yet I must say, that it is but few that I hear of, or read of, that will say that wicked men may come to Baptism for these advantages: But the most Learned of them conclude that no man ought to come that hath not a purpose to forsake all his mortal sins, at least, and that they are not to be Baptized that profess not this; and that others get into the Church praeter intentionem Ecclesiae as Bellarmine saith: so that in this, the chief of their Doctors own the cause that I maintain. Aquin. 3. Qu. 68. ar. 4. doth purposely dispute it, Vtrùm peccatores sint Baptizandi? And resolves it negatively, that though Peccator, quoad reatum, may be Baptized; yet not Peccator ex voluntate peccandi & proposito persistendi in peccato: & he gives three good Reasons. 1. Because such are unmeet to be incorporated into Christ, which Baptism doth. 2. Because Baptism with them cannot attain its end, to take away their sin: and in the works of God and the Church nothing must be done in vain, or that cannot reach the appointed end. 3. Because else there would be falshood in the sacramental signs, which must not be. And one would think by his Answers ad 2m & 3m that he saith as much as I, & is for the necessity of a fides formata and Conversion it self before Baptism. Saith he ad. 2. [Ideo sacramentum baptismi, non est exhibiendum, nisi ei in quo interioris conversionis aliquod signum apparet, sicut nec medicina corporalis adhibetur infirmo, nisi in eo aliquis motua vitalis nature appareat. And ad 3m answering those objectors that I intended p. 51. he saith [Dicendum quod Baptismus est fidei sacramentum: Fides autem informis non sufficit ad salutem, nec ipsa est fundamentum, sed sola fides formata, quae per dilectionem operatur ut Aug. l. de sid. & oper. Vnde nec sacramentum baptismi salutem conferre potest cum voluntate peccandi, quae fidei formam excludit. Non est autem per impressionem Characteris baptismalis aliquis disponendus ad gratiam quamdiu in eo apparet voluntas peccandi, —] he here plainly speaks de fide formata ut afferendâ, and not ut recipiendâ per baptismum. So that he is here fully for me in the main cause of these Disputations: and so must they all that do affirm a true death to sin to be one of the prerequisites; if they will not contradict themselves (and that's common) For it's a vain conceit that preparatory grace kills sin, and special grace afterward giveth a new life: that which expelleth death, is life; and that which expelleth darkness is nothing else but the light it self. Add also what Aquinas saith sup. Qu. 2. a. 3. c. Nullum peccatum dimittitur, nisi quis justificetur, sed ad justificationem requiritur contritio.] And what he saith 3. Qu. 49. a. 1. ad 2m Per fidem applicatur nobis passio Christi ad percipiendum fructum ipsius— Fides autem per quam à peccato mundamur non est fides informis, quae potest esse etiam cum peccato; sed est fides formata per Charitatem, ut sic passio Christi nobis applicetur, non solùm quantum ad intellectum sed etiam quantum ad effectum.]
Yet I know they here confound themselves by their sophistry, telling us that Contrition is before Charity materially, and after it effectively, and that Contritio se habet ut ultima dispositio ad gratiam consequendam; and that Poenitentia quae est sacramentum, is before Poenitentia q… est virtus, and is the instrument of effecting it; as though a dissembling Ceremony, or false profession would work grace; so that there is no hold of them, at the best; for they have lost themselves in contradictions. I know also that they make the Sacrament of Baptism to justifie and sanctifie infallibly all Infants that are offered by the Church, on their allowed Titles, let the Parent be never so bad; because they think the Churches Faith may serve instead of the Parents, as the Churches Intention may serve instead both of the Ministers (saith Aquinas) and the Infants; yea and the Church it self need not lend an Infant any Contrition: for they are agreed, that neither other mens sins, nor our own Original sin (which is all that the Infant hath) are the Object of Contrition; but only our own actual sin.
Yet one would think that the ordinary doctrine, that the votum vel propositum may save without Baptism, should imply that before Baptism the desires of it are supposed to have Charity or special Grace: The Roman Catechism saith, Par. 2. pag. 142. Baptismi suscipiendi propositum atque consilium, & malae acta vitae p…enitentia, satis futura sit ad gratiam & justitiam, si repentinus aliquis Casus impediat, quò minùs solutari aquâ ablui possint.] And they confess that none can be saved without Charity; therefore those that die before Baptism must be supposed to have Charity.
But ordinarily they make Attrition sufficient, and by the Sacrament give to the attrite, justification; and so Charity is conferred: And thus by an outward act a man that hath but common grace may get special grace. Yea if they Counterfeit Attrition it self, yet they receive the foresaid indelible Character which gives them the jura Ecclesiae, and as the Roman Catechism saith, Par. 2. qu. 19. pag. 125. by this Character, ad alia sacramenta percipienda redduntur idonei: And then the other Sacraments, at least by the help of Attrition, will sure justifie and save them. And thus they make a common grace sufficient to let them into the Church by Baptism, yea the meer Baptism it self without any grace at all; and so make their Character and Church-state the way to justification; which is the thing I charge them with, Pag. 50, 51.
And those that do seem exceedingly to comfort and encourage their proselytes, by telling them of the certain efficacy of the Sacraments, and that they surely put away all sin and guilt & open heaven to them, so that one would think there were assurance of Salvation or exceeding comfort reached forth; yet they take it all away again, and do but Tantalize and delude the people. For they that (with us) require Contrition before the Sacrament, do withall tell us, that no man can know by any ordinary means (but only by Revelation) whether he be Contrite or not, and consequently, whether he shall be justified, pardoned, or saved ever the more for all the Sacraments: And those that take up with Attrition, do both confound themselves and their followers with their many degrees of Attrition, and quarrels about it, and also assure them that they cannot know whether they have the necessary degree; and so after all Sacraments, they cannot tell whether they be justified.
This much I thought meet to add, for further explication of the Papists doctrine, and the state of our Controversies with them herein. Which I shall conclude in the words of Bellarmine with Amesius's Answer to them, Bellarm. Enervat. To. 3. l. 1. c. 3. [Bellarm. Fides duplex requiritur in Baptismo: Actualis una, quae praecedit baptismum, ut dispositio quaedam: quae quidem ut plurìmum, non est ex habitu fidei. Altera est quae sequitur Baptismum, quaeque est pars essentialis Justificationis, & non est actus, sed habitus.] This is the very Doctrine which I oppose in this Disputation. To which Amesius answereth. [Protest. Repugnat haec distinctio, 1. Scripturae, quae fidem justificantem antecedere docet Baptismum, Act 15.9.2. Rationi & experientiae, dictanti, eâdem planè fide recipi Baptismum, quâ recipitur fructus Baptismi. 3. Confessioni ipsius Bellarm, quae exstat. lib 2. de effect. Sacram. cap. 13. [Adulti per fidem & Contritionem veram justificantur, antequam reipsâ ad Sacramentum accedant.]
Observe here what the Protestant doctrine is.