Page:Delineation of Roman Catholicism.djvu/345

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CIIAP. X?.] PENiNC h'?ATISYACTION. 33? contrition in a penitent, hath not done his work for him without the priest'8 absolution, in desire at least, yet, if ?e priest do his part, he hath done the work for the penitent, though God hath not wrought in him that excellent grace of contrition. CHAPTER XI. 8ATIStFACTION. 1. Explanation of satisfaction: 2. Their doctrine stated. The Council of Trent ?uoted. The Roman Catechism: 3. Meaning of the word penance, or repentance: �Their doctrine ks witieut foundation in Scripture: 5. It is contr?r?j to Serlio. ture: 6. Satisfaction for sin by man involves many .absurdities; (1.) It is impel. sible. Dr. Clarke quoted; (2.) It is foolish and impterm; (3.) Bellarmine's argu- ment considered; (4.) Faith only is required to justification; (5.) Christ is the pro- pitiation for sin; (6.) In the Scripture examples of pardon, human satisfaction i? omitted: 7. Their distinction between mortal and venial sins tends to immoralit),. Bishop Hay cited; (1.) Sins differ in magnitude; (2.) Yet all sin deserves damna- tion; (3.) No good man can indulge in sin: 8. Their distinction between mortal �d venial sins leads to an unholy heart and a wicked life: 9. It is ab?rd .- 10. It leads to endless uncertainties in determining cases of conscience: 11. It/8 worse when applied to practice: 12. It does away the great evil of sin: 13. It makes repentance and amendment of life imperfect and false: 14. It fo?ters a dispetition to commit one whole kind of sins: 15. They teach that "one man may eatinly for another." Roman Catech/mn on this point. According to Scripture, no man can satisfy for hirtmel� The mischiefone results of the contrary. This shown by Bishop Taylor: 16. And that the opinion of one grave doctor can make an opinion probable. The doctrine of probability. Bishop Taylor quoted. Paschal cited, who presents the doctrines of the Jesuits on this topic: 17? Their penances form no adequate restraints or cheeks on sin. The i-/nd? of penances u?ed prove this. They absurdly make prayer a penance. Uselessness of most of their penance, Dens cited: 18. Testimony of the fathers on this subject. The sense of Tertullian, Cyprian, Ambrose, and Augustine, on sat/sfaction. The apostolic fathers to be preferred to them. Clement cited; Jerome quoted; Isidore; Augustine. Second Council of Chalons in 813. Some Roman Catholics acknowledge that penancm in their chm'ch are different from those mentioned in the primitive church�Du Pin cited. Dens cited. 1. Ts?. next corruption with which we charge the Church of Rome in respect to repentance is their doctrine of satisfaction, which makes one of the three parts of their sacrament of penance. Both they and we agree that God, in his int?nite wisdom, thought ?t not to pardon the sins of mankind without a vicariou? sacrifice; that our Lord Jesus Christ became that sacrifice, in consequence of which God is willing to pardon sin; and that to all true penitents the merits of this sacdtlce shall be available for their everlasting salvation. So far we are agreed; but here we begin to differ. We say that, according to the doctrines of the Scriptures, whenever the guilt of sin is remitted, the p, nishment is remitted also. They say' that, when the eternal punishment of sin is remitted, the person must satisfy the justice of God for the temporal punishment, either by doing voluntary or enjoined acts of penance, by obtaining indulgences, or undergoing the Penalty in purgatory. But to ?tate their doctrines fully, we shaH, as usual, quote their own standards. 2. The Council of Trent, in her fourteenth session and eighth chap- ter, on the N,c?y and Fr? of satis/action, declares, that "the