breathe. They have put it in the power of every man to exculpate himself in acting as he pleafeth, and commiting every enormity under the fun by furnishing him with the pleas of ignorance +; furprise or paffiont, convenience ||,

Having overthrown (fays Father le Moine) the fcarecrow which the "devils had fet up at her gate, devotion is rendered lefs troublesome than vice, and more eafy than pleafure, infomuch, that fimply to live is incomparably "more difficult than to live well." According to Caramuel thofe that follow the most gentle, that is to fay, the moft licentious of all the probable opinions ought to be called not only generous soldiers, but also virgins, because those opinions do enable men to behave themselves in all the precepts of the church with fuch purity, that they do not commit hereby fo much as a venial fin:-We declares of himself that he never fo much as once in the year confeffed himself guilty of the leaft venial fin in saying over his Breviary; nay, on the contrary that he might fafely swear, that he had not committed any, though he knew himfelf chargeable with many distractions, and thofe voluntary, Le Moine Eafy devot. P. 244, 291. Caram, Theol. Fundam. p. 134.

† "A pagan, ignorant of the Chriftian religion or of the true God is ex"cufable in worshipping idols;-for whoever acts agreeably to the dictates of "confcience whether certainly right, or invincibly wrong, cannot offend God;

invincible ignorance, though even of the law of nature, fufficiently excufing "those who act according to fuch ignorance."-There is much difficulty, fays Trachala, "in comprehending the mysteries of the Trinity and of the Incar“nation, for it is not sufficient to be acquainted with the terms, but it is neceffary to form fome idea in the mind applicable to them; and of this ignorant perfons and children feem abfolutely incapable, how then is a con"feffor to behave with fuch penitents? Leffius refolves the queftion by saying, "that an explicit and distinct faith, not being neceffary neceffitate medii, "fed folius præcepti, fuch perfons as may be ignorant of these articles may be " abfolved, on condition of their promifing to inform themselves about them "hereafter. For my part I anfwer with many others, that fuch a perfon ought "to be abfolved without hesitation, it being fufficient for such ignorant penitents, that they believe in a confufed and implicit manner, &c." Extrait des Affert. danger, &c.

All breaches of the decalogue are no fins when they are committed by any man out of ignorance, surprise or paffion. Apol. pour les Cafuift, p. 26, 28.

A man fhall not be obliged to quit thofe occafions and propofitions wherein he runs the hazard of damnation, if he cannot do it with eafe and conve nience. A confeffor may and ought to abfolve a woman who entertains in her house a man with whom the fins often, if fhe cannot difengage him without lofs of reputation, or have fome caufe for retaining him: provided the refolve not to commit evil with him any more. Bauny Som. des Peches. p. 1083. Apol pour, etc. p. 49.

error

error of conscience, right intention t, and the impious. and fceptical device of probabilism ‡.

There is one thing, as fome have obferved, remarkable in the conduct of the Jefuits, and which diftinguishes them from all the other orders of the Ro mish clergy; that is, that the former have refolved their whole fyftem of morality into cafes of confcience, whereas the latter fem to think their penitents obliged as implicitly to obey their injunctions, as if they had no confcience at

It would be difficult alfo to determine which hath contributed most to the corruption of mankind, the frange lengths which the Jefuits have carried the matter of conscience, or the abominable proftitution of confeffions, pardons, and indulgences. When the morality of any action is ultimately referred to conscience, it is highly neceffary that the confciences of men should be fufficiently enlightened to perceive the natural obligation or hibition of it, as well as to judge of the good or evil confequences of fuch action, without which it is an abfolute abuse of words to call the will, or inclination of a person to do or neglect any action by the name of confcience, None ever carried the prostitution of this term farther than the Jefuits. What idea can we form of conscience suggesting fuch things as are implied in the following paffages;

Do whatever your confcience függefts to be right, and that you are com"manded to do:-If through any, invincible error you should even believe that God hath commanded you to lie and blafpheme, lie and blafpheme," "Do nothing which your confcience tells you is absolutely forbidden. Neglect even the worship of God, if you conceive he hath prohibited it.”—“ Whofoever does that which he thinks himself prudently bound to do, is concet❤ ved to act aright, although the action may be forbidden by a positive law.” Extrait des Allertions, &c. Monthly Review, 1763.

1.

"Know," fays the Jefuit in the Provincial Letters, "that we never al" low that a man should have no other defign in finning than a formal inter"tion to fin; and that if any one be fo obdurate as, in an evil action, to limit « his defire by the evil itself, we have no more to do with him. This is dia"bolical,-But, if a man be not funk into that retched condition, we endea "your to put in practice our method of directing the intention, which confifti " in a man's propofing to himself, as the end of his actions, an allowable ob"ject. Not but that we, as far as lies in our power, divert men from doing “things forbidden, but when we cannot hinder the action, we at least purify "the intention, and fo correct the viciousness of the means, by the purity of "the end. Thus you fee, have our fathers found out a means to permit the " violences men ordinarily commit in maintaining their honour. For there " is no more to be done than to divert the intention from the defire of revenge "which is finful; to incline it to a maintaining one's honour, which ac"cording to our fathers is allowable. And thus they acquit themselves of all "obligations both towards God and towards men: for they fatisfy the world by permitting the actions, and fatisfy the gofpel by purifying the intentions. This is a thing the ancients never knew; the world is engaged for "it only to our fathers. Do you now understand the business?"

"He

And that the world might be at no lofs to underftand the real intent and meaning of their system, they

"He who hath had a box on the ear given him, faith Leffius, may not have the intention to revenge himself, but he may be permitted that of avoiding infamy; and to that end may immediately put back the injury, and "that with his fword." "An incumbent, according to Hurtado, may without any mortal fin with the death of him that hath a penfion out of his liv ing, and a fon that of his father, and may rejoice when it happens; provid"ed it proceed only from a confideration of the advantage which accrues to "him thereby, and not out of any perfonal haired."-" Let the confeffors "take good notice, faith Bauny, that they may not abfolve fervants whɔ do "difhoneft meffages, if they confent to the fins of their mafters; but we must δι fay the contrary, if they do them for their own temporal advantages, &c." Lettr. Provinc. let. 7. Leffius de Just. I. ii. c. 9. d. 14, Hurt. de Sub. Peic. dif. 9.

Of all the doctrines ever hatched by the wit of man none have a more direct tendency to promote the wildeft latitudinarianifm in principle and practice than that of probable opinions. According to this, "when there are "different probable opinions on any point, fome maintaining a thing to be forbidden, others on the contrary holding it lawful, both these opinions are equally fafe in point of confcience: and though there be a neceffity that one of the two should be falfe and contrary to the law of God, yet may a man "nevertheless walk as fecurely in that which is falfe, as in that which is true, ut quamcunque duarum viarum primo diverfarum homines inierint récla "tendant ad fuperos," as Efcobar fays." A man is at liberty to make choice "of the lefs probable and less safe opinion, by quitting the more probable and more fafe: if a man is in fome doubt whether it be a fin or not to commit fuch an action, and the opinion that maintains that it is a fin to commit it "feems the more probable to him, and all things confidered he is convinced "that it is fo; yet it is nevertheless lawful for him, with safety of conscience "to do that action:-An opinion is to be accounted probable when it is con"firmed either by a reason or a confiderable authority, and to make it fuch "there is no neceffity that thefe two conditions fhould meet together, either "of them being fufficient: the former is called intrinfic, the latter extrinfic probability. According to the general confent of all cafuifts, an opinion is "then probable and may be followed without fear when it is maintained by four grave authors, and there are many who affirm, that the authority of one fingle author is fufficient for, fay they, a man abfolutely devoted to study "would not maintain an opinion if he were not induced to do it by a good and fufficient reafon." "Though there are few queftions, wherein one "does not hold the affirmative, the other the negative; yet in all these cafes "both the one and the other of the contradictory opinions is probable; "Pontius and Sanchez, fays Diana, in a certain cafe, are of contrary opinions; but being both learned men, either makes his opinion probable. Of two

"probable

they have been careful to make it fufficiently plain, adapting it to the use of perfons of every capacity, cha

racter,

probable opinions that are contraries, the fame perfon máy, as his honour "leads him, one while make use of the one, and immediately after put the "other in practice, without regarding whatever inconvenience may happen "thereby to his neighbour. That this doctrine is true, whatever mis"chievous confequences fhould follow, nay, though by this change of opi"nion a man exempts himself from the observation of the commandments of "the church."-"We are not obliged," fays Caftro Palao, "in making choice "of the way of falvation, to take that which is most certain or most probable; "it is fufficient that we take any one that is certain or probable; because there "may happen to be an error in that which appears the most certain and the most

probable. When the probability of right is founded upon the probability of *fact, therefore I conclude from the probability of fact the probability of right. "It is probable to me that the cloak I wear is my own; I imagine, neverthe"lefs, that it is more probable it belongs to you; I am not obliged, however, to give it you, but have a right to take care of it myself. In like manner, it "C may be probable to an heretic, that he is of the true religion, though the "contrary may be more probable; but it is not clear that we should therefore "oblige him to renounce his error."—" A doctor being confulted," fays Layman, may give an advice, not only fuch as is probable according to his own opinion, but what is contrary unto his opinion if it be accounted probable by "others; especially when this advice, though contrary to his judgment, hap"" pens to be more acceptable, and more for the intereft of him that confults "him: but I hold farther, that it will be prudence in him to give those who "come to him fuch advice as is held as probable by fome knowing perfon, "though he himself be convinced that it is absolutely false. Again a judge may "give fentence according to one probable opinion, quitting another opinion "that is more probable. A phyfician may prefcribe a thing that is less likely "to cure his patient, inftead of that which he conceives he may with more "probability and safety administer. A king may impofe a tribute as just ac"cording to a probable opinion, and the people may refufe, to pay it as being unjuft, according to another probable opinion."

This may ferve to give the reader a fufficient tafte of the famous doctrine of probability, and to fhew its use and pernicious tendency; by which, fpeculation and practice are entirely feparated, contradictions allowed in both, and the dreams and dangerous notions of doctors and cafuifts established as a safe rule of conduct; among whom it may never be difficult to find fome to favour whatever a person chuses: for opinions and actions, most destructive to fociety, and everfive of divine and human laws, not only one or four, but 40 or 4có of such authorities may be produced; and every day may be producing new ones, and confequently new laws: hence Caramuel lays of Diana, that he had rendered divers opinions probable which were not before, and therefore a man fios nơ longer in following them; whereas before he did fine" Hence a Catholic

rafter, and condition of life; recommending, almost in exprefs terms, avarice*, ambition †, vanity ‡, luxu

not,

bishop faid justly of thofe fophiftical jugglers in morality, that, " as they daily "find out new fins, and make new difcoveries in the unknown world of vice, "fo have they a way to fubdue what they discover, ravelling and unravelling "fins, as their humour inclines or diverts them, framing men's confciences, or rather making sport with them, as they pleafe hemfelves. It is and it is is the motto and device of this kind of fcience. Would you have any "action to be finful? they will turn that fide of the picture towards you, which "fhall reprefent it as fuch. Is it expedient there should not be any gu It in it? they will turn the other fide towards you. This is the true Lesbian rule which bends itself to the thing it is to measure. Every year, every month, nay, every quarter of the moon, furnishes us with fome new cafuift or other :" what was fin last year, is no fuch thing this year, and what is not fuch this year, fhall haply be the next, if there be any neceffity for it." Caramuel, Theolog. Fundam, paffim. Efcobar, Theal. Mor. tome i. Layman, Tbeol. Mər. l. i. 6.1. Myft, of Jefuit. &c.

"

"

*"I know, fays Efcobar, "that rich men do not fin mortally when they do "not give alms of their abundance, in the great neceffities of the poor.""Whatever men lay up," fays Vafquez, "out of a defign to raife their own "fortunes or thofe of their relations, is not called fuperfluous. For which rea"fon it will be hard to find any, amongst those who are worldly minded, that "have ought fuperfluous; no, not even among kings." Wherefore Diana natively concludes, That in the question whether rich men are obliged to give "alms out of their fuperfluity, though the affirmative be true, yet it will fel"dom or never happen that it is obligatory in point of practice." Vafq. de Elemof. c. iv. n. 14. Efc. Th. mor. &c.

"Ambition, which is an inordinate defire of dignity and greatness, is of itself a venial fin; but when a man covets that greatness to prejudice the ftate, "or to have greater convenience to offend God, thefe external circumstances "make it mortal." Efcob. tr. ii. ex, 2. n. 17.

"If a woman drefs herself gorgeously without any evil intention, but c:.ly to comply with the natural inclination the hith to be vain, (eb naturalem fas"tus inclinationem), either it is but a venial fin, or it is no fin at all.". "Though a woman be fenfible of the ill effect her curiofity in dreffing herself "would work, both in the bodies and fouls of those who should see her in rich "and gaudy apparel, yet were it no fin at all in her to make use thereof.”— "A woman, though her husband forbid it, may at her pleasure give away large "alms and donations, and honestly indulge herself in the expences attending public diverfions and drefs." Grateful doctrine to the ladies, and fufficient to cover a multitude of fins! By thefe and fome other indulgences allowed by thefe fathers, do they bid fair to become, one day, the diftinguished favourites and confeffors of the British fair. Efcob. tr. i. ex. 8, n. 5. Bauh. Scm, des Pech. 4. xlvi. p. 1094.