chrétiennes sur le texte de ces livres sacres, etc., à Paris, 1693 et 1694," though previously condemned by us, and blending in many ways the lies of perverse doctrines with Catholic truths, was still considered by many as free from any error, was in every direction forced into the hands of the faithful of Christ, and was disseminated everywhere with too much avidity by the contrivance and exertions of some always striving for innovation, having been even rendered into Latin, in order that the contagion of the pernicious instruction may if possible pass from nation to nation, and from kingdom to kingdom, we felt the greatest concern that the flock of the Lord intrusted to our charge should be imperceptibly led away into the road of perdition by wily seductions and fraud of this kind, and excited not less by the incentives of our pastoral solicitude, than by the frequent complaints of orthodox believers, but especially by the letters and entreaties of several of our venerable brethren, particularly of the bishops of Gaul, we have determined to oppose by some more effectual remedy the spreading disease, which might even at some future time induce still worse consequences.
And on directing our careful attention to the consideration of the very cause of the evil, we clearly discovered that the chief ruin from this book progressed and gained strength mainly because it lay concealed mthin, and like foul corruption cannot obtain vent except by cutting down on the ulcer, as the book itself at its first appearance entices its readers by a certain show of piety; for its words are rendered as it were emollient with oil, whilst they are in reality arrows, and coming from a well-strung bow,[1] so prepared for mischief, that they transfix in secret those straight of heart. Accordingly we thought that nothing more opportune or more conducive to health could be done by us than if we were to present a more distinct and clear exposition of the fallacious doctrine of the book, which hitherto has been merely alluded to in a general way by us, by selecting from it several propositions one by one, and by uprooting from the middle of the wheat[2] with which they were covered, and placing before the eyes of all the faithful of Christ the
