Sect. 9. They have other ways to make the exercises of Christian Virtues unnecessary. They do it especially by turning the commands of God into Counsels. Of those things that are required in Scripture, some, they say, the Lord only adviseth and commends; others he commands and enjoins. Those which he adviseth, they call Evangelical Counsels; the other are divine Precepts. Now the precepts, they say, are necessary to be observed, sometimes at least; the Counsels are not needful to be observed at all, any man may be saved without complying with them, they are matters of supererogation, more than we need to do. So that all those Virtues, which they make but matter of Counsel, are unnecessary, the acts & exercise of them more than needs. And those which they make so expressly, are not small nor inconsiderable in themselves; and in consequence little less than all. Many of those admirable rules which Christ giveth us in his Sermon on the Mount, ⟨p. 167⟩wherein the singular and divine excellency of that Religion, to which he calls the world, is so very conspicuous, they will not have to be Laws, obliging all Christians, but dissolve the obligation of them by declaring them mere Counsels; though they were ratified by our great Law-giver with those universal Sanctions, Matth. 7. 21. Not every one that saith unto me Lord, Lord, shall enter into the Kingdom of Heaven, but he which doth the Will of my Father, which is in Heaven; and v. 26. Every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, who built his House upon the Sand; Maldonate giveth that as the account, why he is said, chap. 5. v. 2. THEN TO OPEN HIS MOUTH, because he (r)never before propounded that sublime doctrine of Evangelical perfection. Of this nature in (s)their account, is trusting in God such as frees us from solicitousness, about the things of this life, chap. 6. v. 31. 34. Sincerity of intention in doing good, such as is enjoined, v. 1. Patient digesting of injury, such as is commanded, v. 39. Relieving others freely, such as is required, v. 42. Innocent Communication, such as is specified, v. 37. Avoiding occasions of sin, such as are meant, v. 29, 30. Exemplary walking (t)intended, v. 14. Poverty of spirit, v. 3. Spiritual mourning, v. 4. Christian meekness, v. 5. The three last, saith Soto, (u)are Trinum Consiliorum votum.
Sect. 9. They have other ways to make the exercises of Christian Vertues unnecessary. They do it especially by turning the commands of God into Counsels. Of those things that are required in Scripture, some, they say, the Lord only adviseth and commends; others he commands and injoyns. Those which he adviseth, they call Evangelical Counsels; the other are divine Precepts. Now the precepts, they say, are necessary to be observed, sometimes at least; the Counsels are not needful to be observed at all, any man may be saved without complying with them, they are matters of supererogation, more than we need to do. So that all those Vertues, which they make but matter of Counsel, are unnecessary, the acts & exercise of them more than needs. And those which they make so expresly, are not small nor inconsiderable in themselves; and in consequence little less than all. Many of those admirable rules which Christ giveth us in his Sermon on the Mount, ⟨p. 167⟩wherein the singular and divine excellency of that Religion, to which he calls the world, is so very conspicuous, they will not have to be Laws, obliging all Christians, but dissolve the obligation of them by declaring them mere Counsels; though they were ratified by our great Law-giver with those universal Sanctions, Matth. 7. 21. Not every one that saith unto me Lord, Lord, shall enter into the Kingdom of Heaven, but he which doth the Will of my Father, which is in Heaven; and v. 26. Every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, who built his House upon the Sand; Maldonate giveth that as the account, why he is said, chap. 5. v. 2. THEN TO OPEN HIS MOƲTH, because he (r)never before propounded that sublime doctrine of Evangelical perfection. Of this nature in (s)their account, is trusting in God such as frees us from solicitousness, about the things of this life, chap. 6. v. 31. 34. Sincerity of intention in doing good, such as is injoyned, v. 1. Patient digesting of injury, such as is commanded, v. 39. Relieving others freely, such as is required, v. 42. Innocent Communication, such as is specified, v. 37. Avoyding occasions of sin, such as are meant, v. 29, 30. Exemplary walking (t)intended, v. 14. Poverty of spirit, v. 3. Spiritual mourning, v. 4. Christian meekness, v. 5. The three last, saith Soto, (u)
- (r)Quod nunquam ante, sublimem illam de Evangelica perfectione doctrinam proposuisset, Comment. in Matth. p. 99.
- (s)Vid. Joh. de Combis. in compend. Theol. l. 5. cap. 70. Ludolph. de vita Christi, par. 2. cap. 12. Angel. Sum. v. & v. precept. n. 17. Sylvest. Sum. v. praeceptum, n. 2. Soto de Just. l. 2. q. 9. art. 3. Navarre, c. 24. n. 5. Soto, de nat. & grat. l. 3. c. 2. p. 126. Jo. Sanc. disp. 7. n. 10.Vid. Joh. de Combis. in compend. Theol. l. 5. cap. 70. Ludolph. de vita Christi, par. 2. cap. 12. Angel. Sum. v. & v. praecept. n. 17. Sylvest. Sum. v. praeceptum, n. 2. Soto de Just. l. 2. q. 9. art. 3. Navar, c. 24. n. 5. Soto, de nat. & grat. l. 3. c. 2. p. 126. Jo. Sanc. disp. 7. n. 10.
- (t)Unde statim Christus in solenni illa legis promulgatione, ante necessaria praecepta proposuit perfectorum consilia Beati pauperes spiritu—Beati qui lu•ent, & his similia. Et ideo subdit vos estis lux mundi: quasi quibus competit non solum jestitiam •ulgariter colere, sed egregi• usum etiam rerum licitum abjicere, Idem. ibid.
- (u)Quod si trinum hoc consiliorum votum, quod uno hoc loco stabilitur, &c. Idem. de just. & jur. l. 7. q. 5. art. 1. p. 243.
