Chapter 1 — First, the intention of the work is set down

The Word of the eternal Father, containing all things by his immensity, willed to become small in order to recall man, laid low by sin, to the height of divine glory. This he did not by putting aside his majesty, but by taking to himself our littleness. Lest anyone be excused from grasping the teaching of the heavenly Word, which he handed down clearly and at great length through the various volumes of Sacred Scripture for those who have leisure to study, he has compressed his teaching about human salvation into a brief summary for those who have little time.

Man’s salvation consists in knowing the truth, so that the human mind may not be confused by various errors; in aiming for the right goal, so that man may not fall away from true happiness by pursuing the wrong ends; and in carrying out the law of justice, so that he may not besmirch himself with various vices.

He encompassed the knowledge of the truth necessary for man’s salvation within a few brief articles of faith. This is what the Apostle says in Romans 9:28: The Lord shall make a shortened word upon the earth; and later he adds: This is the word of faith, which we preach (Rom 10:8). He straightened out man’s aim with a short prayer in which, while he taught us to pray, he showed us where our aim and hope should point. In a single precept of charity he summed up that human justice which consists in observing the law: Therefore, love is the fulfilling of the law (Rom 13:10).

Hence the Apostle, in 1 Corinthians 13:13, taught that the whole perfection of this present life consists in faith, hope, and charity, as in certain brief headings outlining our salvation: so faith, hope, and charity abide. These are the three virtues, as St. Augustine says, by which God is worshiped.

Wherefore, my dearest son Reginald, so that I may hand on to you a compendious teaching about the Christian religion, which you can keep continually before your eyes, my entire aim in the present work revolves around these three virtues. I shall treat first of faith, then of hope, and lastly of charity, both because the Apostle’s order has this sequence and because right reason demands it. Love cannot be rightly ordered unless the proper goal of our hope is established; nor can this happen if knowledge of the truth is lacking. Therefore, the first thing necessary is faith, by which you may come to a knowledge of the truth. Second, hope, that your aim may be fixed on the right end. Third, love is necessary, that your affections may be perfectly put in order.