第54章

'A priest,' he remarks in another work, 'may and ought to absolve a woman who is guilty of living with a paramour, if she cannot put him away honourably, or has some reason for keeping him- si non potest honeste ejicere, aut habeat aliquam causam retinendi- provided she promises to act more virtuously for the future.'" "Well, father," cried I, "you have certainly succeeded in relaxing the obligation of avoiding the occasions of sin to a very comfortable extent, by dispensing with the duty as soon as it becomes inconvenient;but I should think your fathers will at least allow it be binding when there is no difficulty in the way of its performance?" "Yes," said the father, "though even then the rule is not without exceptions.For Father Bauny says, in the same place, 'that any one may frequent profligate houses, with the view of converting their unfortunate inmates, though the probability should be that he fall into sin, having often experienced before that he has yielded to their fascinations.Some doctors do not approve of this opinion, and hold that no man may voluntarily put his salvation in peril to succour his neighbor; yet I decidedly embrace the opinion which they controvert.'" "A novel sort of preachers these, father! But where does Father Bauny find any ground for investing them with such a mission?" "It is upon one of his own principles," he replied, "which he announces in the same place after Basil Ponce.I mentioned it to you before, and I presume you have not forgotten it.It is, 'that one may seek an occasion of sin, directly and expressly- primo et per se- to promote the temporal or spiritual good of himself or his neighbour.'" On hearing these passages, I felt so horrified that I was on the point of breaking out; but, being resolved to hear him to an end, I restrained myself, and merely inquired: "How, father, does this doctrine comport with that of the Gospel, which binds us to 'pluck out the right eye,' and 'cut off the right hand,' when they 'offend,' or prove prejudicial to salvation? And how can you suppose that the man who wilfully indulges in the occasions of sins, sincerely hates sin? Is it not evident, on the contrary, that he has never been properly touched with a sense of it, and that he has not yet experienced that genuine conversion of heart, which makes a man love God as much as he formerly loved the creature?" "Indeed!" cried he, "do you call that genuine contrition?