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Reply to Faustus the Manichaean

11.

Believing and teaching such monstrosities, and living accordingly, you yet have the boldness to say that you obey the precepts of the gospel, and to decry the Catholic Church, which includes many weak as well as strong, both of whom the Lord blesses, because both according to their measure obey the precepts of the gospel and hope in its promises. The blindness of hostility makes you see only the tares in our harvest: for you might easily see wheat too, if you were willing that there should be any. But among you, those who are pretended Manichaeans are wicked, and those who are really Manichaeans are silly. For where the faith itself is false, he who hypocritically professes it acts deceitfully, while he who truly believes is deceived. Such a faith cannot produce a good life, for every man's life is good or bad according as his heart is engaged. If your affections were set upon spiritual and intellectual good, instead of material forms, you would not pay homage to the material sun as a divine substance, and as the light of wisdom, which every one knows you do, though I now only mention it in passing.

Edition Hide
Contra Faustum Manichaeum libri triginta tres

11.

Haec portenta sentientes et docentes et secundum haec viventes audetis vos et dicere evangelica praecepta servare et catholicae ecclesiae derogare, in qua sunt tam multi pusilli cum magnis, quos utrosque dominus benedicit pro suis gradibus evangelica mandata servantes et evangelica promissa sperantes. p. 283,29 Sed vestrum oculum malevolus error in solam paleam nostrae segetis ducit; nam et triticum ibi cito videretis, si et esse velletis. In vobis autem et qui Manichaei ficti sunt, mali sunt; et qui ficti non sunt, vani sunt. Ubi enim fides ipsa ficta est, et qui ea simulate utitur, fallit, et qui eam veram existimat, fallitur, nec ex ea potest existere bona vita, quia ex amore suo quisque vivit vel bene vel male. Vos autem si spiritalis atque intellegibilis boni caritate, ac non corporalium phantasmatum cupiditate arderetis, ut cito dicam, quod de vobis notissimum est, solem istum corporeum non pro divina substantia et pro sapientiae luce coleretis.