Preface.

When men seek to know God, and bend their minds according to the capacity of human weakness to the understanding of the Trinity; learning, as they must, by experience, the wearisome difficulties of the task, whether from the sight itself of the mind striving to gaze upon light unapproachable, or, indeed, from the manifold and various modes of speech employed in the sacred writings (wherein, as it seems to me, the mind is nothing else but roughly exercised, in order that it may find sweetness when glorified by the grace of Christ);—such men, I say, when they have dispelled every ambiguity, and arrived at something certain, ought of all others most easily to make allowance for those who err in the investigation of so deep a secret. But there are two things most hard to bear with, in the case of those who are in error: hasty assumption before the truth is made plain; and, when it has been made plain, defence of the falsehood thus hastily assumed. From which two faults, inimical as they are to the finding out of the truth, and to the handling of the divine and sacred books, should God, as I pray and hope, defend and protect me with the shield of His good will,202    Ps. v. 12 and with the grace of His mercy, I will not be slow to search out the substance of God, whether through His Scripture or through the creature. For both of these are set forth for our contemplation to this end, that He may Himself be sought, and Himself be loved, who inspired the one, and created the other. Nor shall I be afraid of giving my opinion, in which I shall more desire to be examined by the upright, than fear to be carped at by the perverse. For charity, most excellent and unassuming, gratefully accepts the dovelike eye; but for the dog’s tooth nothing remains, save either to shun it by the most cautious humility, or to blunt it by the most solid truth; and far rather would I be censured by any one whatsoever, than be praised by either the erring or the flatterer. For the lover of truth need fear no one’s censure. For he that censures, must needs be either enemy or friend. And if an enemy reviles, he must be borne with: but a friend, if he errs, must be taught; if he teaches, listened to. But if one who errs praises you, he confirms your error; if one who flatters, he seduces you into error. “Let the righteous,” therefore, “smite me, it shall be a kindness; and let him reprove me; but the oil of the sinner shall not anoint my head.”203    Ps. cxli. 5

PROOEMIUM.

1. Cum homines Deum quaerunt, et ad intelligentiam Trinitatis pro captu infirmitatis humanae animum intendunt; experti difficultates laboriosas, sive in ipsa acie mentis conantis intueri inaccessibilem lucem, sive in ipsa multiplici et multimoda locutione Litterarum sacrarum, ubi mihi non videtur nisi atteri animam , ut Christi gratia glorificata dulcescat : cum ad aliquid certum discussa omni ambiguitate pervenerint, facillime debent ignoscere errantibus in tanti pervestigatione secreti. Sed duo sunt quae in errore hominum difficillime tolerantur; praesumptio, priusquam veritas pateat; et, cum jam patuerit, praesumptae defensio falsitatis. A quibus duobus vitiis nimis inimicis inventioni veritatis, et tractationi divinorum sanctorumque Librorum, si me, ut precor et spero, Deus defenderit atque munierit scuto bonae voluntatis suae (Psal. V, 13) et gratia misericordiae suae, non ero segnis ad inquirendam substantiam Dei, sive per Scripturam ejus, sive per creaturam. Quae utraque nobis ad hoc proponitur intuenda, ut ipse quaeratur, ipse diligatur , qui et illam inspiravit, et istam creavit. Nec trepidus ero ad proferendam sententiam meam, in qua magis amabo inspici a rectis, quam timebo morderi a perversis. Gratanter enim suscipit oculum columbinum pulcherrima et modestissima charitas; dentem autem caninum vel evitat cautissima humilitas, vel retundit solidissima veritas: magisque optabo a quolibet reprehendi, quam sive ab errante, sive ab adulante laudari. Nullus enim reprehensor formidandus est amatori veritatis. Etenim aut inimicus reprehensurus est, aut amicus. Si ergo inimicus insultat, ferendus est: amicus autem si errat, docendus; si docet, audiendus. Laudator vero et errans confirmat errorem, et adulans illicit in errorem. Emendabit ergo me justus in misericordia, et arguet me; oleum autem peccatoris non impinguabit caput meum (Psal. CXL, 5).