Chapter 59 [XXXV.]—The Pelagians Can Hardly Venture to Place Concupiscence in Paradise Before the Commission of Sin.

This being the case, let him think what he pleases about this concupiscence of the flesh and about the lust which lords it over the unchaste, has to be mastered by the chaste, and yet is to be blushed at both by the chaste and the unchaste; for I see plainly he is much pleased with it. Let him not hesitate to praise what he is ashamed to name; let him call it (as he has in fact called it) the vigour of the members, and let him not be afraid of the honor of chaste ears; let him designate it the power of the members, and let him not care about the impudence. Let him say, if his blushes permit him, that if no one had sinned, this vigour must have flourished like a flower in paradise; nor would there have been any need to cover that which would have been so moved that no one should have felt ashamed; rather, with a wife provided, it would have been ever exercised and never repressed, lest so great a pleasure should ever be denied to so vast a happiness. Far be it from being thought that such blessedness could in such a spot fail to have what it wished, or ever experience in mind or body what it disliked. And so, should the motion of lust precede men’s will, then the will would immediately follow it. The wife, who ought certainly never to be absent in this happy state of things, would be urged on by it, whether about to conceive or already pregnant; and, either a child would be begotten, or a natural and laudable pleasure would be gratified,—for perish all seed rather than disappoint the appetite of so good a concupiscence. Only be sure that the united pair do not apply themselves to that use of each other which is contrary to nature, then (with so modest a reservation) let them use, as often as they would have delight, their organs of generation, created for the purpose. But what if this very use, which is contrary to nature, should peradventure give them delight; what if the aforesaid laudable lust should hanker even after such delight; I wonder whether they should pursue it because it was sweet, or loathe it because it was base? If they should pursue it to gratification, what becomes of all thought about honour? If they should loathe it, where is the peaceful composure of so good a happiness? But at this point perchance his blushes will awake, and he will say that so great is the tranquillity of this happy state, and so entire the orderliness which may have existed in this state of things, that carnal concupiscence never preceded these persons’ will: only whenever they themselves wished, would it then arise; and only then would they entertain the wish, when there was need for begetting children; and the result would be, that no seed would ever be emitted to no purpose, nor would any embrace ever ensue which would not be followed by conception and birth; the flesh would obey the will, and concupiscence would vie with it in subserviency. Well, if he says all this of the imagined happy state, he must at least be pretty sure that what he describes does not now exist among men. And even if he will not concede that lust is a corrupt condition, let him at least allow that through the disobedience of the man and woman in the happy state the very concupiscence of their flesh was corrupted, so that what would once be excited obediently and orderly is now moved disobediently and inordinately, and that to such a degree that it is not obedient to the will of even chaste-minded husbands and wives, so that it is excited when it is not wanted; and whenever it is necessary, it never, indeed, follows their will, but sometimes too hurriedly, at other times too tardily, exerts its own movements. Such, then, is the rebellion of this concupiscence which the primitive pair received for their own disobedience, and transfused by natural descent to us. It certainly was not at their bidding, but in utter disorder, that it was excited, when they covered their members, which at first were worthy to be gloried in, but had then become a ground of shame.

CAPUT XXXV.

59. Quae cum ita sint, de ista carnis concupiscentia et de libidine imperiosa impudicis, domanda pudicis, pudenda tamen et pudicis et impudicis, sentiat iste quod libet; quia ei, sicut video, multum placet: non eam laudare cunctetur, quam nominare confunditur; appellet eam, sicut appellavit, membrorum vigorem, nec castarum aurium revereatur horrorem; appellet membrorum potentiam, nec caveat impudentiam. Dicat, si non erubescit, in paradiso si nemo peccasset, hunc ibi vigorem velut florem virere potuisse; nec opus fuisse ut tegeretur, 0472 quod ita moveretur, ut inde nemo confunderetur; sed parata conjuge semper exerceretur, nunquam reprimeretur, ne aliquando voluptas tanta tantae felicitati negaretur. Absit enim ut illa beatitudo posset aut in loco illo non habere quod vellet, aut in suo corpore vel animo sentire quod nollet: ac per hoc si motus libidinis voluntatem hominum praeveniret, voluntas continuo sequeretur; uxor, quae propter hoc nunquam absens esse debebat, sive conceptura , sive jam gravida, illico admoveretur; et aut proles seminaretur, aut voluptas naturalis et laudabilis expleretur; et periret semen hominis, ne appetitus tam bonae concupiscentiae fraudaretur: tantum non se converterent conjuges in eum usum, qui est contra naturam, sed quoties delectaret, membris ad hoc creatis et genitalibus uterentur. Verumtamen quid si et ille usus contra naturam forsitan delectaret, quid si et in hanc voluptatem laudabilis illa libido adhinniret? utrum sequerentur eam, quoniam suavis esset; an repugnarent, quoniam turpis esset? Si sequerentur, ubi est cogitatio qualiscumque honestatis? Si repugnarent, ubi est pax tantae felicitatis? Hic si forte erubuerit, et dixerit tantam pacem felicitatis illius, tantumque ordinem in his rebus esse potuisse, ut nunquam carnis concupiscentia voluntatem illorum hominum praeveniret; sed cum ipsi vellent, tunc illa consurgeret: tunc autem vellent, quando ad seminandos filios opus esset; ita ut nullus seminis esset irritus jactus, nullus fieret concubitus quem non sequeretur conceptus et partus, ad nutum serviente carne, ad nutum serviente libidine: hoc si dicit, saltem consideret nunc in hominibus non esse quod dicit. Et si non vult concedere vitium esse libidinem: dicat saltem per illorum hominum inobedientiam etiam ipsam vitiatam esse carnis concupiscentiam; ut illa quae obedienter et ordinate moveretur, nunc inobedienter inordinateque moveatur: ita ut ipsis quoque pudicis ad nutum non obtemperet conjugatis, sed et quando non est necessaria moveatur, et quando necessaria est, aliquando citius, aliquando tardius, non eorum sequatur nutus, sed suos exserat motus. Hanc ergo ejus inobedientiam inobedientes illi tunc homines receperunt, et in nos propagine transfuderunt. Neque enim ad eorum nutum, sed utique inordinate movebatur, quando membra prius glorianda, tunc jam pudenda texerunt.