Chapter IX.—(20.) Who May Be Said to Walk Without Spot; Damnable and Venial Sins.

Having premised these remarks, let us carefully attend to the passages which he whom we are answering has produced, as if we ourselves had quoted them. “In Deuteronomy, ‘Thou shalt be perfect before the Lord thy God.’62    Deut. xviii. 13. Again, in the same book, ‘There shall be not an imperfect man63    Augustin’s word is inconsummatus. The Septuagint term τελισκόμενος (which properly signifies complete, perfect) comes to mean one initiated into the mysteries of idolatrous worship. among the sons of Israel.’64    Deut. xxiii. 17. In like manner the Saviour says in the Gospel, Be ye perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.’65    Matt. v. 48. So the apostle, in his second Epistle to the Corinthians, says: ‘Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect.’66    2 Cor. xiii. 11. Again, to the Colossians he writes: ‘Warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ.’67    Col. i. 28. And so to the Philippians: ‘Do all things without murmurings and disputings, that ye may be blameless, and harmless, as the immaculate sons of God.’68    Phil. ii. 14, 15. In like manner to the Ephesians he writes: ‘Blessed be the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ; according as He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him.’69    Eph. i. 3, 4. Then again to the Colossians he says in another passage: ‘And you, that were sometime alienated, and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath He reconciled in the body of His flesh through death; present yourselves holy and unblameable and unreprovable in His sight.’70    Col. i. 21, 22. In the same strain, he says to the Ephesians: ‘That He might present to Himself a glorious Church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing but that it should be holy and without blemish.’71    Eph. v. 26, 27. So in his first Epistle to the Corinthians he says ‘Be ye sober, and righteous, and sin not.’72    1 Cor. xv. 34. So again in the Epistle of St. Peter it is written: ‘Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end, for the grace that is offered to you: . . . as obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: but as He who hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; because it is written,73    Lev. xix. 2. Be ye holy; for I am holy.’74    1 Pet. i. 13–16. Whence blessed David likewise says: ‘O Lord, who shall sojourn in Thy tabernacle, or who shall rest on Thy holy mountain? He that walketh without blame, and worketh righteousness.’75    Ps. xv. 1, 2. And in another passage: ‘I shall be blameless with Him.’76    Ps. xviii. 23. And yet again: ‘Blessed are the blameless in the way, who walk in the law of the Lord.’77    Ps. cxix. 1. To the same effect it is written in Solomon: ‘The Lord loveth holy hearts, and all they that are blameless are acceptable unto Him.’”78    Prov. xi. 20. Now some of these passages exhort men who are running their course that they run perfectly; others refer to the end thereof, that men may reach forward to it as they run. He, however, is not unreasonably said to walk blamelessly, not who has already reached the end of his journey, but who is pressing on towards the end in a blameless manner, free from damnable sins, and at the same time not neglecting to cleanse by almsgiving such sins as are venial. For the way in which we walk, that is, the road by which we reach perfection, is cleansed by clean prayer. That, however, is a clean prayer in which we say in truth, “Forgive us, as we ourselves forgive.”79    Matt. vi. 12. So that, as there is nothing censured when blame is not imputed, we may hold on our course to perfection without censure, in a word, blamelessly; and in this perfect state, when we arrive at it at last, we shall find that there is absolutely nothing which requires cleansing by forgiveness.

CAPUT IX.

20. His praemissis, ea testimonia quae posuit iste cui respondemus, tanquam nos ea protulerimus, diligenter audiamus. «In Deuteronomio: «Tu autem perfectus eris coram Domino Deo tuo (Deut. XVIII, 13). Item illic: Et non erit inconsummatusin filiis Israel. Item Salvator in Evangelio: Estote perfecti, quia Pater vester qui in coelis est, perfectus est (Matth. V, 48). Item Apostolus ad Corinthios secunda: De caetero, fratres, gaudete, perfecti estote (II Cor. XIII, 11). Item ad Colossenses: Corripientes omnem hominem, et docentes in omni sapientia, ut exhibeamus omnem hominem perfectum in Christo (Coloss. I, 28). Item ad Philippenses: Omnia facite sine murmuratione et haesitatione, ut sitis irreprehensibiles et simplices, sicut filii Dei immaculati (Philipp. II, 14, 15). Item ad Ephesios: Benedictus Deus et Pater Domini nostri Jesu Christi, qui benedixit nos in omni benedictione spirituali, in coelestibus in Christo, sicut elegit nos in ipso ante mundi constitutionem, ut essemus sancti et immaculati in conspectu ejus (Ephes. I, 3, 4). Item ad Colossenses: Et vos cum essetis aliquando alienati et inimici sensu in operibus malis , nunc autem reconciliati in corpore carnis ejus per mortem ejus, exhibete vossanctos et immaculatos et irreprehensibiles (Coloss. I, 21). Item ad Ephesios: Ut exhiberet ipse sibi gloriosam Ecclesiam, non habentem maculam aut rugam, aut aliquid hujusmodi, ut sit sancta et immaculata (Ephes. V, 27). Item ad Corinthios 0302 prima: Sobrii estote et justi, et nolite peccare (I Cor. XV, 34). Item in Epistola sancti Petri: Propter quod succincti lumbos mentis vestrae, sobrii, perfecte speratein eam quae offertur vobis gratiam, quasi filii obedientiae, non configurati prioribus ignorantiae vestrae concupiscentiis ; sed secundum eum qui vocavit vos Sanctum, et ipsi sancti in omni conversatione sitis; quia scriptum est, Sancti eritis, quia ego sanctus sum (I Petr. I, 13-16). Unde et beatus David dicit: Domine, quis habitabit in tabernaculo tuo, aut quis requiescet in monte sancto tuo? Qui ingreditur sine macula, et operatur justitiam (Psal. XIV, 1, 2). Et alibi: Et ero immaculatus cum eo (Psal. XVII, 24). Et alibi: Beati immaculati in via, qui ambulant in lege Domini (Psal. CXVIII, 1). Item apud Solomonem: Diligit Dominus sancta corda; accepti sunt autem illi omnes immaculati» (Prov. XI, 20, sec. LXX). Horum testimoniorum aliqua currentes exhortantur, ut perfecte currant; aliqua ipsum finem commemorant, quo currendo pertendant. Ingredi autem sine macula non absurde etiam ille dicitur, non qui jam perfectus est, sed qui ad ipsam perfectionem irreprehensibiliter currit, carens criminibus damnabilibus, atque ipsa peccata venialia non negligens mundare eleemosynis. Ingressum quippe, hoc est, iter nostrum quo tendimus ad perfectionem, munda mundat oratio. Munda est autem oratio ubi veraciter dicitur, Dimitte nobis, sicut et nos dimittimus (Matth. VI, 12): ut dum non reprehenditur , quod non imputatur, sine reprehensione, hoc est, sine macula noster ad perfectionem cursus habeatur: in qua perfectione, cum ad eam venerimus , jam non sit omnino quod ignoscendo mundetur.