Edition
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De civitate Dei (CCSL)
Caput XVIII: De his, qui nouissimo iudicio propter intercessionem sanctorum neminem hominum putant esse damnandum.
Sunt etiam, quales in conlocutionibus nostris ipse sum expertus, qui, cum uenerari uideantur scripturas sanctas, moribus inprobandi sunt et agendo causam suam multo maiorem quam isti misericordiam deo tribuunt erga humanum genus. dicunt enim de malis et infidelibus hominibus diuinitus quidem uerum praedictum esse, quod digni sunt; sed cum ad iudicium uentum fuerit, misericordiam esse superaturam. donabit enim eos, inquiunt, misericors deus precibus et intercessionibus sanctorum suorum. si enim orabant pro illis, quando eos patiebantur inimicos, quanto magis quando uidebunt humiles supplicesque prostratos. neque enim credendum est, aiunt, tunc amissuros sanctos uiscera misericordiae, cum fuerint plenissimae ac perfectissimae sanctitatis, ut, qui tunc orabant pro inimicis suis, quando et ipsi sine peccato non erant, tunc non orent pro supplicibus suis, quando nullum coeperint habere peccatum. aut uero deus tunc eos non exaudiet tot et tales filios suos, quando in tanta eorum sanctitate nullum inueniet orationis inpedimentum? testimonium uero psalmi et illi quidem, qui permittunt infideles atque inpios homines saltem longo tempore cruciari et postea de malis omnibus erui, sed magis isti pro se dicunt esse, ubi legitur: numquid obliuiscetur misereri deus aut continebit in ira sua miserationes suas? ira eius est, inquiunt, ut omnes indigni beatitudine sempiterna ipso iudicante puniantur supplicio sempiterno. sed si uel longum uel prorsus ullum esse permiserit, profecto, ut possit hoc fieri, continebit in ira sua miserationes suas, quod eum psalmus dicit non esse facturum. non enim ait: numquid diu continebit in ira sua miserationes suas? sed quod prorsus non continebit ostendit. sic ergo isti uolunt iudicii dei comminationem non esse mendacem, quamuis sit neminem damnaturus, quemadmodum eius comminationem, qua dixit euersurum se esse Nineuen ciuitatem, mendacem non possumus dicere; et tamen factum non est, inquiunt, quod sine ulla condicione praedixit. non enim ait: Nineue euertetur, si non egerint paenitentiam seque correxerint; sed hoc non addito praenuntiauit futuram euersionem illius ciuitatis. quam comminationem propterea ueracem putant, quia hoc praedixit deus quod uere digni erant pati, quamuis hoc non esset ipse facturus. nam etsi paenitentibus pepercit, inquiunt, utique illos paenitentiam non ignorabat acturos, et tamen absolute ac definite eorum euersionem futuram esse praedixit. hoc ergo erat, inquiunt, in ueritate seueritatis, quia id erant digni; sed in ratione miserationis non erat, quam non continuit in ira sua, ut ab ea poena supplicibus parceret, quam fuerat contumacibus comminatus. sic ergo tunc pepercit, aiunt, quando sanctum suum prophetam tam fuerat parcendo contristaturus, quanto magis tunc miserabilius supplicantibus parcet, quando ut parcat omnes sancti eius orabunt. sed hoc, quod ipsi suis cordibus suspicantur, ideo putant scripturas tacuisse diuinas, ut multi se corrigant uel prolixarum uel aeternarum timore poenarum, et sint qui possint orare pro eis, qui non se correxerint; nec tamen opinantur omni modo id eloquia diuina tacuisse. nam quo pertinet, inquiunt, quod scriptum est: quam multa multitudo dulcedinis tuae, domine, quam abscondisti timentibus te, nisi ut intellegamus propter timorem fuisse absconditam misericordiae diuinae tam multam secretamque dulcedinem? addunt etiam propterea dixisse apostolum: conclusit enim deus omnes in infidelitate, ut omnium misereatur, quo significaret, quod ab illo nemo damnabitur. nec isti tamen, qui hoc sentiunt, hanc opinionem suam usque ad liberationem uel nullam damnationem diaboli atque angelorum eius extendunt; humana quippe circa solos homines mouentur misericordia et causam maxime agunt suam, per generalem in genus humanum quasi dei miserationem inpunitatem falsam suis perditis moribus pollicentes; ac per hoc superabunt eos in praedicanda dei misericordia, qui hanc inpunitatem etiam principi daemonum et eius satellitibus pollicentur.
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The City of God
Chapter 18.--Of Those Who Fancy That, on Account of the Saints' Intercession, Man Shall Be Damned in the Last Judgment.
There are others, again, with whose opinions I have become acquainted in conversation, who, though they seem to reverence the holy Scriptures, are yet of reprehensible life, and who accordingly, in their own interest, attribute to God a still greater compassion towards men. For they acknowledge that it is truly predicted in the divine word that the wicked and unbelieving are worthy of punishment, but they assert that, when the judgment comes, mercy will prevail. For, say they, God, having compassion on them, will give them up to the prayers and intercessions of His saints. For if the saints used to pray for them when they suffered from their cruel hatred, how much more will they do so when they see them prostrate and humble suppliants? For we cannot, they say, believe that the saints shall lose their bowels of compassion when they have attained the most perfect and complete holiness; so that they who, when still sinners, prayed for their enemies, should now, when they are freed from sin, withhold from interceding for their suppliants. Or shall God refuse to listen to so many of His beloved children, when their holiness has purged their prayers of all hindrance to His answering them? And the passage of the psalm which is cited by those who admit that wicked men and infidels shall be punished for a long time, though in the end delivered from all sufferings, is claimed also by the persons we are now speaking of as making much more for them. The verse runs: "Shall God forget to be gracious? Shall He in anger shut up His tender mercies?" 1 His anger, they say, would condemn all that are unworthy of everlasting happiness to endless punishment. But if He suffer them to be punished for a long time, or even at all, must He not shut up His tender mercies, which the Psalmist implies He will not do? For he does not say, Shall He in anger shut up His tender mercies for a long period? but he implies that He will not shut them up at all.
And they deny that thus God's threat of judgment is proved to be false even though He condemn no man, any more than we can say that His threat to overthrow Nineveh was false, though the destruction which was absolutely predicted was not accomplished. For He did not say, "Nineveh shall be overthrown if they do not repent and amend their ways," but without any such condition He foretold that the city should be overthrown. And this prediction, they maintain, was true because God predicted the punishment which they deserved, although He was not to inflict it. For though He spared them on their repentance yet He was certainly aware that they would repent, and, notwithstanding, absolutely and definitely predicted that the city should be overthrown. This was true, they say, in the truth of severity, because they were worthy of it; but in respect of the compassion which checked His anger, so that He spared the suppliants from the punishment with which He had threatened the rebellious, it was not true. If, then, He spared those whom His own holy prophet was provoked at His sparing, how much more shall He spare those more wretched suppliants for whom all His saints shall intercede? And they suppose that this conjecture of theirs is not hinted at in Scripture, for the sake of stimulating many to reformation of life through fear of very protracted or eternal sufferings, and of stimulating others to pray for those who have not reformed. However, they think that the divine oracles are not altogether silent on this point; for they ask to what purpose is it said, "How great is Thy goodness which Thou hast hidden for them that fear Thee," 2 if it be not to teach us that the great and hidden sweetness of God's mercy is concealed in order that men may fear? To the same purpose they think the apostle said, "For God hath concluded all men in unbelief, that He may have mercy upon all," 3 signifying that no one should be condemned by God. And yet they who hold this opinion do not extend it to the acquittal or liberation of the devil and his angels. Their human tenderness is moved only towards men, and they plead chiefly their own cause, holding out false hopes of impunity to their own depraved lives by means of this quasi compassion of God to the whole race. Consequently they who promise this impunity even to the prince of the devils and his satellites make a still fuller exhibition of the mercy of God.