First, An holy Life is not the product of our Natural Reason and Will;1 that of Pelagius (A Deo habemus quod Homines sumus, à nobis ipsis quod justi sumus; That we are Men is from God, that we are just Men is from our selves) is impium effatum, a very wicked Saying, such as justly grates upon the Ears of good Men; because it utterly evacuates the Grace of Christ: Its true, Reason is a very excellent thing; it can dive into Nature, and bring up some of the secrets of it. It can teem out many Arts and Sciences; it can measure out Rules and Moral Virtues to Men; but it cannot make a Man holy; it can of it self tell us, That God is an Infinite, Wise, Just, Good, Superexcellent Being; but after all is done, it cannot raise up that Love to him, which is the Spring of an holy Life; that Love is from God, and a fruit of the Holy Spirit. Bellarmine lays down this very fairly and roundly, Non posse Deum sine ope ipsius diligi, 2neque ut Authorem Naturae, neque ut Largitorem Gratiae, neque perfectè, neque imperfectè ullo modo; That without the help of Grace we cannot love God, neither as the Author of Nature, nor as the Giver of Grace, neither perfectly nor imperfectly any way: If Reason cannot elevate our Love to God, then it cannot produce an holy Life, which is a fruit of that Love. Further, it may, having the Gospel set before it, gather up a great stock of Notions touching God, and Christ, and the holy Commands in the ⟨p. 394⟩Word, and the incomparable Rewards in Heaven; but it cannot raise up holy Principles and Actions in us; if it could, then the very first and rudest draught of Pelagius, which made all Grace to consist in Doctrinâ & Libero Arbitrio, must be a very Truth; then internal Grace, which renews the Soul, and rectifies the Faculties thereof, must be a fancy needless and altogether superfluous; its true, the Will in Man is a free Principle; but to Divine objects it is not at all free till it be made so by Grace: There is such a gravedo Liberi Arbitrii, such a pressure of innate corruption in it, that it cannot ascend above it self to love God above all; and dedicate the Life to him: Thus we see, that an Holy Life is too high a thing to issue forth from mere Principles of Nature, when the Apostle tells us, That Love, Joy, Peace, Longsuffering, Gentleness, Goodness, Faith, Meekness, Temperance, are Fruits of the Spirit, Gal 5.22.
First, An holy Life is not the product of our Natural Reason and Will;1 that of Pelagius (A Deo habemus quod Homines sumus, à nobis ipsis quod justi sumus; That we are Men is from God, that we are just Men is from our selves) is impium effatum, a very wicked Saying, such as justly grates upon the Ears of good Men; because it utterly evacuates the Grace of Christ: Its true, Reason is a very excellent thing; it can dive into Nature, and bring up some of the secrets of it. It can teem out many Arts and Sciences; it can measure out Rules and Moral Vertues to Men; but it cannot make a Man holy; it can of it self tell us, That God is an Infinite, Wise, Just, Good, Superexcellent Being; but after all is done, it cannot raise up that Love to him, which is the Spring of an holy Life; that Love is from God, and a fruit of the Holy Spirit. Bellarmine laies down this very fairly and roundly, Non posse Deum sine ope ipsius diligi, 2neque ut Authorem Naturae, neque ut Largitorem Gratiae, neque perfectè, neque imperfectè ullo modo; That without the help of Grace we cannot love God, neither as the Author of Nature, nor as the Giver of Grace, neither perfectly nor imperfectly any way: If Reason cannot elevate our Love to God, then it cannot produce an holy Life, which is a fruit of that Love. Further, it may, having the Gospel set before it, gather up a great stock of Notions touching God, and Christ, and the holy Commands in the ⟨p. 394⟩Word, and the incomparable Rewards in Heaven; but it cannot raise up holy Principles and Actions in us; if it could, then the very first and rudest draught of Pelagius, which made all Grace to consist in Doctrinâ & Libero Arbitrio, must be a very Truth; then internal Grace, which renews the Soul, and rectifies the Faculties thereof, must be a fancy needless and altogether superfluous; its true, the Will in Man is a free Principle; but to Divine objects it is not at all free till it be made so by Grace: There is such a gravedo Liberi Arbitrii, such a pressure of innate corruption in it, that it cannot ascend above it self to love God above all; and dedicate the Life to him: Thus we see, that an Holy Life is too high a thing to issue forth from meer Principles of Nature, when the Apostle tells us, That Love, Joy, Peace, Longsuffering, Gentleness, Goodness, Faith, Meekness, Temperance, are Fruits of the Spirit, Gal 5.22.
- 1Aug. in Job. Tract. 81.
- 2De Grat. & Lib. Ar. l. 6. c. 7.
