On Continence.

 1. It is difficult to treat of the virtue of the soul, which is called Continence, in a manner fully suitable and worthy but He, whose great gift thi

 2. And lest it should seem that necessary Continence was to be hoped for from the Lord only in respect of the lust of the lower parts of the flesh, it

 3. Lastly, to show more plainly the inner mouth, which by these words he meant, after having said, “Set a watch, O Lord, to my mouth, and a door of Co

 4. For which cause our Lord Himself also with His own mouth saith, “Cleanse what are within, and what are without will be clean.” And, also, in anothe

 5. And on this account that, which, the parts that beget being bridled by modesty, is most chiefly and properly to be called Continence, is violated b

 6. But it is one thing to fight well, which now is, when the strife of death is resisted another thing not to have an adversary, which will then be,

 7. This conflict none experience in themselves, save such as war on the side of the virtues, and war down the vices: nor doth any thing storm the evil

 8. Such soldiers the Apostolic trumpet enkindles for battle with that sound, “Therefore let not,” saith he, “sin reign in your mortal body to obey its

 9. And also, when he exhorts us, that we live not after the flesh, lest we die, but that by the Spirit we mortify the deeds of the flesh, that we may

 10. But in order that we fall not away from Continence, we ought to watch specially against those snares of the suggestions of the devil, that we pres

 11. But some one will say to me that it is one thing to live after man, another thing to live after the flesh because man forsooth is a rational crea

 12. When, therefore, you hear it said, “Sin shall not reign over you ” have not thou confidence of thyself, that sin reign not over thee, but of Him,

 13. In this so great conflict, wherein man under Grace lives, and when, being aided, he fights well, rejoices in the Lord with trembling, there yet ar

 14. And some indeed, who are used to excuse their own sins, complain that they are driven to sin by fate, as though the stars had decreed this, and he

 15. And there are also they who in excuse of their sins so accuse God, as to say that sins are pleasing to Him. For, if they were displeasing, say the

 16. But God wanted not power to make man such as that he should not be able to sin: but He chose rather to make him such, as that it should lie in his

 17. Now therefore let us return to that, wherefore we have said what we have. We have need of Continence, and we know it to be a divine gift, that our

 18. All we therefore, who believe in the Living and True God, Whose Nature, being in the highest sense good and incapable of change, neither doth any

 19. For the flesh lusts after nothing save through the soul, but the flesh is said to lust against the spirit, when the soul with fleshly lust wrestle

 20. There are therefore in us evil desires, by consenting not unto which we live not ill: there are in us lusts of sins, by obeying not which we perfe

 21. That, therefore, the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, that there dwelleth not in our flesh good, that the law in our members is opposed to the la

 22. I say not, therefore, with what error, but with what utter madness, do the Manichees attribute our flesh to some, I know not what, fabled “race of

 23. The Apostle has made known to us certain three unions, Christ and the Church, husband and wife, spirit and flesh. Of these the former consult for

 24. If what we have made mention of out of the Apostolic Epistles seem to you to fall short of an answer, hear yet others, if ye have ears. What saith

 25. But, say they, how is the flesh by a certain likeness compared unto the Church? What! doth the Church lust against Christ? whereas the same Apostl

 26. Thus much will suffice to have treated on behalf of true Continence against the Manichees deceitfully continent, lest the fruitful and glorious la

 27. There are also they who, in doing open service to evil demons, contain from pleasures of the body, that, through their means, they may satisfy unl

 28. Far be it therefore that we say of continence, of which Scripture saith. “And this very thing was wisdom, to know whose gift it was,” that even th

 29. Thus the spirit of man, cleaving unto the Spirit of God, lusts against the flesh, that is, against itself: but for itself, in order that those mot

 30. But, after that he had made mention of these evils, he added and said, “On account of which cometh the wrath of God on the sons of unbelief.” Sure

 31. “But now do ye also,” saith he, “put down all ” and he makes mention of several more evils of that sort. But what is it, that it is not enough for

 32. But whether keenly contending, that we be not overcome, or overcoming divers times, or even with unhoped and unlooked for ease, let us give the gl

28. Far be it therefore that we say of continence, of which Scripture saith. “And this very thing was wisdom, to know whose gift it was,”106    Wisd. viii. 21 that even they possess it, who, by containing, either serve errors, or overcome any lesser desires for this purpose, that they may fulfill others, by the greatness of which they are overcome. But that continence which is true, coming from above, wills not to repress some evils by other evils, but to heal all evils by goods. And, briefly to comprehend its mode of action, it is the place of continence to keep watch to restrain and heal all delights whatsoever of lust, which are opposed to the delight of wisdom. Whence without doubt they set it within too narrow bounds, who limit it to restraining the lusts of the body alone: certainly they speak better, who say that it pertains to Continence to rule in general lust or desire. Which desire is set down as a fault, nor is it only of the body, but also of the soul. For, if the desire of the body be in fornications and drunkennesses; hard enmities, strifes, emulations, lastly, hatreds, their exercise in the pleasure of the body, and not rather in the motion and troubled states of the soul? Yet the Apostle called all these “works of the flesh,” whether what pertained to the soul, or what pertained properly to the flesh, calling forsooth the man himself by the name of the flesh.107    Gal. v. 19, 20, 21 Forsooth they are the works of man, whatsoever are not called works of God; forasmuch as man, who does these, lives after himself, not after God, so far as he does these. But there are other works of man, which are rather to be called works of God. “For it is God,”108    Phil. ii. 13 saith the Apostle, “Who worketh in you both to will and to do, according to His good pleasure.” Whence also is that, “For as many as are led by the spirit of God, these are sons of God.”109    Rom. viii. 14

CAPUT XIII.

28. Continentia non tantum libidines corporis, sed et animi cupiditates coercet et regit. Motus animae pravi continentia cohibendi, negato consensu et rejecta vel cogitationis delectatione. Absit ergo ut continentiam, de qua Scriptura dicit, Et hoc ipsum erat sapientiae, scire cujus esset hoc donum (Sap. VIII, 21), etiam eos habere dicamus, qui continendo, vel erroribus serviunt, vel aliquas minores cupiditates ideo vincunt, ut alias expleant, quarum granditate vincuntur. Ea vero quae vera est desuper veniens continentia, non aliis malis mala premere alia, sed bonis mala sanare vult omnia. Cujus ut breviter complectar actionem; omnibus prorsus delectationibus concupiscentiae, quae adversantur delectationi sapientiae, coercendis atque sanandis invigilat officium continentiae. Unde angustius eam sine dubitatione metiuntur, qui solas libidines corporis cohibere definiunt: melius profecto illi, qui non addunt corporis, sed generaliter libidinem sive cupiditatem regendam dicunt ad continentiam pertinere. Quae cupiditas in vitio ponitur, nec tantum est corporis, verum et animi. Etenim si cupiditas corporis est in fornicationibus et ebrietatibus, numquid inimicitiae, contentiones, aemulationes, postremo animositates, in corporis voluptatibus, ac non potius in animi motibus et perturbationibus exercentur? Carnis tamen opera haec omnia nuncupavit Apostolus, sive quae ad animum, sive quae ad carnem proprie pertinerent, ipsum scilicet hominem nomine carnis appellans (Galat. V, 19-21). Opera quippe hominis sunt quae non dicuntur Dei; quoniam homo qui haec agit, secundum se ipsum vivit, non secundum Deum, in quantum haec agit. Sunt autem alia opera hominis, quae magis dicenda sunt opera Dei. Deus est enim, inquit Apostolus, qui operatur in vobis et velle et operari, pro bona voluntate (Philipp. II, 13). Inde est et illud: Quotquot enim Spiritu Dei aguntur, hi filii sunt Dei (Rom. VIII, 14).