We could not miss, after reflection on the Lenten fasting and prayer of St. Bernard of Clairvaux, the usual sermon "theme" of S. Alfonso M. de 'Liguori, if on the one hand may seem the least flexible in terms of fasting or at least power (Minimum of Naples made him the cause why he said that "you do not go to hell for a steak"), with the sermon Today, written for the first Sunday of Lent offers us another example of "ecclesiological and pastoral incorrect", at least for the sensitivity of the media today, talking about "the number of 'sins, than which God forgives no longer" us back in some way in the days of Hermas and the dispute between the early Christians the possibility of obtaining forgiveness for sins committed after baptism: a real "gem" for the supporters of a return to Christianity "first way" (which, usually, coincide with those who reject the traditional view as "fixity" and support the need to overcome it taking "the signs of the times" and updated as the same).
Out controversy more or less playful - you could say that in the S. Alfonso, on the first hard-liners, it is more prudent penalty taker - as is always worthwhile to read the sermon is from the historical point of view, either because inspiring caution, reinforces one of the cardinal virtues.
Sermon XV - For Sunday of Lent
The number of 'sins, after which God no longer forgive.
Not tentabis Dominum Deum tuum. (Matt. 4. 7.)
In the current gospel says that Jesus Christ having gone to the desert, let the devil take him on the pinnacle, or is top of the temple, and having to tell him: You filius Dei example, you deorsum mitte, adding that the angels were freed from any offense. But the Lord answered that in the holy card is written: tentabis Dominum Deum tuum. That sinner who indulges in sin without wanting to resist temptation, and without meaning to at least beg God to give him the help to survive, hoping that the Lord one day I'll get away from that precipice, he tries to make God's miracles, or to use with it a mercy extraordinary out of the common order. God wants to save everyone, as the Apostle saith: Omnes homines vult proud Salvos 1, but we still want to strive for our salvation, at least by taking the means to avoid being defeated by the enemy, and to God when we coll'ubbidire called to repentance. Sinners receive calls from God, and they forget and they continue to offend, but God did not forget. He numbers so that we dispense with, as the sins that we do, so when the time comes given by God, he deprives us of His grace, and puts his hand to 'punishment. And precisely what I want to show you today in this speech, that when the number arriving in sins, God punishes and more unforgiving. Watch out.
They say many holy fathers, s. Basil, St. Jerome, s. Ambrose, s. Thurs Chrysostom, St. Augustine and others, as God holds each person to determine the number of days of life, of 'degrees of health or talent that wants to give him, according to the words of Scripture: Omnia in mensura number et, et weighted disposuisti 2, so again holds for each fixed number of 'who wants to forgive sins, a task which, more unforgiving. illud convenit hearing nos, says s. Augustine, in tamdiu unumquemque Of patientia sustineri, consummate quo, we come nullam illi reservari 3. The same Eusebius writes Caesariensis: Deus expectat even unto certum numerum, et Postei deserit 4. And the same write the fathers named above.
I Misitano Dominus, ut mederer contritis ropes 5. God is ready to heal those who keep good will to change my life, but can not sympathize with the stubborn. The Lord forgives sins, but can not forgive those who have the will to sin. Nor can we ask why God, why a pardon to one hundred sins, and to another, the third or fourth sin sends him to death, and condemnation to hell. He said the prophet Amos 6: Super tribus sceleribus Damascus, et super eum convertam quatuor not. In what ought to worship the divine judgments, and say with the Apostle: O Altitudo divitiarum sapientiae et scientiae Gods! Quam sunt incomprehensibilia Iudica eius 7! He who is forgiven, says s. Augustine, one is forgiven for God's mercy, he who is punished and rightly punished: quibus datur mercy, free datur: datur not at issue, not ex-iustitia datur 8. Those whom God has sent to the first sin in hell! St. Gregory writes that a child of five years, which had already been the use of reason in a blasphemy to say was caught and taken to hell by demons. He revealed the divine Mother of God Blessed that servant of Florence, that a child of twelve years to the first sin was condemned, and another son of eight years to the first sin and death damage. You say, but I am young, there are many more sins that keep me. But what of that? So God, if you sin, is obliged to wait! In the Gospel of St. Matthew 9 says that our Saviour is the first time I found a fig tree without fruit, cursed him, saying former numquam you nascatur fructus, and dried. And so you have to shake to commit a mortal sin, and especially if you are first you have committed others.
God says: De freight they propitiate sin sine metu; neque adiicias peccatum super peccatum 10. Do not say so, my sinner: because God has forgiven me other sins, so forgive me if I make this one. This is not to say that, because if you add another sin to sin forgiven, you have to fear that this sin again to join the first sin, and thus to accomplish the number, and abandoned by God you'll stay That's how you explain more clearly what the Writing in another place: Dominus patienter expectat, ut eas (nationes) Cumulative judice advenerit dies in fullness peccatorum puniat 11. So God is patient and waits until a certain number, but when the measure is full of 'sins, and punishes not wait longer: Signasti almost 12 m and saccule delicta. Sinners put their sins in the bag, without taken into account, but well take it into account to God for the punishment, when the harvest is matured, ie when the number is up: Falces Mitte, quoniam maturavit messis 13.
Of these examples, then there are many in the divine Scriptures. In a place of Jews talking about the Lord said to me Tentaverunt decems vices, this is how he will number the sins, not videbunt terram, here's how the numbers work, punishes 14. In another place speaking of the Amorites, trattenea said that their punishment, because the task was not yet the number of their sins Necdum enim sunt iniquitates amorrhaeorum I completed 15. In another place we have the example of Saul, that the second time having disobeyed God, remained abandoned, so much that he prayed that Samuel was interposed for him following the Lord: Gate, quaeso, peccatum meum, reversing mecum et, ut adorem deum 16: Samuel knew that God abandoned him, he replied: Do not revert tecum, quia abiecisti sermonem Domains, you proiecit et Dominus, etc. 17: Saul, you have abandoned God and God has abandoned you. Furthermore, there is the example of Belshazzar, who according to the table with his women defiled the vessels of the temple, and then saw a hand that wrote on the wall: Mane, Thecel, Phares. Daniel came and demanded the explanation of such words, explaining the word Thecel, said to the king in such Appensus Statera, et inventus habens eg minus 18: giving him to understand that the weight of 'his sins had caused overflows the scales of divine justice , and in fact was killed the same night: nightly Eadem interfectus east Balthassar rex chaldaeus 19. And oh, those poor is the same, they who continue to offend God, their sins when they reach a certain number, they are overtaken by death, and sent to hell! Ducunt performing suos dies, and in a puncto infernal descendunt to 20 ! Tremble, my brother, that another deadly sin that God will send you to hell.
If God put his hand to 'punish the offense right away when the man, no one would see God so despised, as now you see him, but because he does not punish immediately, and waits for his mercy and holds the punishment, so sinners are given courage to follow to offend against Quia not quote profertur sententia Malos, absque fear Ullo filii hominum perpetuating bad 21. But we must be persuaded that God expects and supports, but does not wait and can not stand forever. Samson with Delilah in Tresco continuing hoped to free himself from the dangers of 'Philistines, as he had done before: I Egrediar sicut doors, et me excutiam 22. But in the time taken remained, and he was stripped of life. Do not say, feel the Lord: I have made so many sins, and God has punished me: I dixeris, sins, et quid accidit mihi sad? Altissimus enim east redditor 23 patiens. God has patience until such time, after which he punishes the sins and the last first. Is one, as they say, and pay everything. And how much greater was the patience of God, the more severe will be his revenge.
Hence Chrysostom says that more ought to be feared when God endures, that when once chastises: Plus timendum east Cumulative tolerat, quam cum festinanter punitive. And why? Because, says St. Gregory that those with whom God uses more mercy, if not the end, are punished more severely: Quo diutius expectat (Deus) durius damnatio. And the saint said that these these are often punished by God with a sudden death, without having time to convert: Saep here diu Tolerate sunt, sudden death rapiuntur, ut ante-mortem liceat flere nec. And how much greater is the light that God gives to some to mend, the greater is their blinded and hardened in sin. He wrote s. Peter Melius enim illi not cognoscendi viam iustitiae erat, quam post agnitionem retrorsum converter 24. Miserable sinners who return after the light had to vomit and says s. Paul can not be, morally speaking, that they be converted once again: Can not enim east, eos here Semel illuminated sunt, gustaverunt etiam donum coeleste ... sunt et Prolapse, rursus renovari poenitentiam to 25.
So what do you feel God says, or sinner: Wires, sinned, not adiicias iterum, sed et de pristinis deprecating, ut tibi dimittantur 26: Son, do not add to those offenses that I have done, but wait and pray that you first Let them be forgiven, otherwise it can easily be another grave sin for you that you do not close the divine mercies, and you'll stay lost. When, therefore, my brother, the enemy will try to commit another sin, 'between yourself and God forgives me no more, what will become of me for all eternity? And if the devil replies, do not be afraid, God is merciful: answer, but how safe is it me or what probability, that on returning to sin, God will use me mercy and forgive me? This is what God threatens those who despise the divine call: vocavi Quia ego quoque et renuistis ... in interitu ridebo Silvestro et vos subsannabo 27. Note those two words, ego quoque, is to say that because you have mocked God, confession, and then promising new trade, so God burlerà you in your death, ridebo et subsannabo. The Lord does not make fun, not Deus irridetur 28. And the wise man says: Sicut canis revertitur here to vomitum suum, sic imprudens here iteratively stultitiam Suam 29. B. The Dionysius the Carthusian excellently explains this text, and says that as rendesi abominable and disgusting that dog eats what he first got sick, so hateful to God rendesi those who turn to make those sins that he detested the first confession to Sicut id quod vomitum east reiectum , east valde resume abominable ac ugly, delet reiterari sic sins, are the words of the Carthusian.
But big deal! If you buy a house, you already use all diligence to make sure the caution and do not waste your money, if you try to make sure you get your medicine well that you can not do harm, if you pass a river trying to make sure not to fall into , and then for a brief satisfaction, for an outburst of revenge, for the pleasure of the beast, which had just ended, you want to risk your eternal salvation, saying, then I confess! And when I ask of you, I confess? Tomorrow. And who promises you this day tomorrow? Who makes sure you have the time, and God does not make you die in the act of sin, as many succeeded? Diem Tenes says s. Augustine, Horam not Tenes here? You may not be sure that you have another hour of life, and say: Tomorrow I will confess it to me? Look what it says s. Gregory: Here we come Poenitentia spopondit, not sinful diem crastinum promisit 30. God has promised forgiveness to those who repent, but has not promised to wait till tomorrow who offends, maybe the Lord will give you a time of penance and maybe not, but if not I will give, what will become of your soul ? Meanwhile, for a lousy taste have you lose your soul, and you put yourself at risk to remain lost forever.
Would you do for that everything is a short-satisfaction, money, house, farms, liberty and life? No, and then as a taste for what you put in a place to loss of all, the soul, heaven and God? Tell me, do you believe that they should be matters of faith heaven, hell, eternity? Do you believe that if you grasp the six dead in sin, condemned forever? What temerity, what madness, condemn yourself to an eternity of punishment, by saying, I hope hereafter to be remedied? He says s. Augustine: Nemo specific sub salutis vult aegrotare; is not a fool who takes the poison say piglierò remedies below and I will heal, and you want to condemn you to hell, by saying, I will deliver below? Oh the madness that has brought and brings many to hell, according to the threat of God that says: Fiduciam habuisti in your malice, you veniet super malum, et nescies ortum eius 31. Have you sinned rashly trusting in divine mercy, the punishment will come suddenly, without knowing whence it comes. What do you say? That solve? If this sermon do not make a strong resolution to give to God, I cry for the damned.
Notes 1 1. Tim. 2. 4. 2 Wis. 11. 21. 3 C. De Vita Christi 3. 4 L. 8. c. 2. 5 Isa. 61. 1. 6 1. 3. Romans 7 11. 33. 8 1. de corrept. 9 Cap 21. 19. 10 Eccl. 5. 5. 11 2. Malach. 6. 14. Iob 12. 14. 17. 13. Joel. 3. 13. No. 14 14. 22. et 23. January 15 15. 16. 16 1. Reg 15. 25. 17 Ib. vers. 26. 18 Dan 5. 27. 19 Ib. vers. 30. Iob 20. 21. 13. 21 Eccl. 8. 11. Iudica 22. 16. 20. 23 Eccl. 5. 4. 24 2. Petr. 2. 21. 25 Hebr. 6. 4. and 6. 26 Eccl. 21. 1. 27 Prov. 1. 24. et 26. 28 Gal. 6. 7. 29 Prov. 26. 1. Homilia 30. 12. in Evang. since prope. 31 Isa. 47. 10. and 11.
