Book II, Part 1, Chapter 9. Of some other Sins which every good Christian must endeavor to avoid

1. Besides these seven capital sins, there are several others that spring from them, which every good Christian ought to avoid as carefully as those we have already spoken of. One of the chiefest

316 THE SINNER S GUIDE.

of these is the taking of God's name in vain, because this sin points directly at God, and is in itself much more heinous than any we commit against our neighbor, let it be ever so great. Nor is this true only when a man swears by God's own name, but when he swears by the cross, by any of the saints, or by his own salvation ; because any of these oaths is a mortal sin, if brought to assert or favor a lie, and severely censured in holy writ as highly injurious \o the divine Majesty. It is true that when a man swears to a lie, without reflecting on it, he does not sin mortally; because where there is no determination of the will, and where reason does not pass a judgment on the matter, there can be no mortal sin. But this is not to be understood of those persons who have a custom of swearing without any kind of scruple, without considering either how or what it is they swear, and without making the least endeavor towards breaking off the bad habit. Such men as these, being accustomed to swear to a lie, without ever reflecting on it, are by no means free from sin, because it is what they both might and ought to have been careful in. Nor can they allege, for their excuse, that they did not think of what they said, or did not design to swear to a lie ; because, since they will not break off this habit, it is not their will to avoid the effects of it, and, therefore, these and such like inconveniences are always looked on as voluntary sins.

2. For this reason, every Christian ought to labor for the rooting out of this evil custom, that so these inadvertences may not be reckoned as mortal sins. The best method for effecting this is to take the advice given us by our Saviour, and after him by his apostle St. James : " Above all things, my brethren, do not swear ; neither by heaven, nor by the earth ; swear not in any other manner whatever. But let your discourse be yea, yea; nay, nay; that you may not fall under the judgment" (Matt. v. 34; Jac. v. 12) ; which is, that you may not be wrought on by custom to swear to what is false, and to be condemned to everlasting death. Nor is a man only to endeavor to avoid this sin in himself; he is obliged to excite in his children, his servants, and in all his family, a horror and detestation of the same vice, and to reprove his acquaintance and companions for it. And when he happens himself to be careless in this point, let him, in punishment of his neglect, give some alms, say a Pater Noster or an Ave Maria, not so much in penance for this fault, as for a memorial and advertisement to him never to fall into it again.

§ I. Of Detraction, Scoffing and Judging rashly. — 3. Another sin we are to be very diligent in avoiding is, that of detraction, as much used in the world as the former ; for there is no house so strong, no society so religious, or place so sacred, as to escape the lash of a licentious tongue. But though this vice is familiar to all sorts of persons (for the world, as it gives good men sufficient reason to weep by its daily follies, so it supplies the weak with matter of calumny and slander), yet there are always some persons to be met with, that are more naturally and more passionately inclined to this vice than others. For as there are some palates that can relish nothing that is sweet, and love nothing but what is bitter or sour, so there are some kinds of men so corrupt in themselves, and so full of a heavy and melancholy humor, that no subject of virtue, nor any commendation of one's neighbor, savors well with them, but they only delight in railing, scoffing and detraction. So that they are, as it were, asleep and dumb to all other discourse ; but as soon as any man happens to touch on this string, they are presently awake again, and ready to lash out on this subject.

4. That you may, therefore, conceive a great hatred of so hurtful and execrable a vice as this is, consider three great evils it draws after it. The first is, that it is not very far from mortal sin, for there is but a very little distance between censuring and detraction ; and these two vices being so near neighbors, it is easy to pass from the one to the other ; as the philosophers say, that those elements which agree in any one quality may be easily converted into one another. Thus we see how often it happens, that men, when they begin to censure, descend without any scruple from general imperfections to particular, from public to private, and from little to great ones. By this means they blemish their neighbor's reputation, and leave it without endeavoring to wipe off the spot. For when the tongue is once going, and the desire or itch of magnifying things once prevails, it is as hard a matter to suppress the motion of the heart, as it is to stop the violence of the flame when blown on by the wind, or to keep in a hardmouthed horse, when once he has got his head : then the railer has no respect for any man, and never stops till he discovers the most hidden secrets. This was the reason why the author of Ecclesiasticus desired so earnestly to have a guard set at this little gate, when he said, "Who will set a guard over my mouth, and a strong seal upon my lips, that they may not be the occasion of my fall, and that my own tongue may not condemn me ?" Eccl. xxii. 33. He that said it, very well knew the great consequence and the difficulty of this affair, because he expected his cure from none but God, who is the only Physician that can cure this distemper. According to these words of Solomon : " It is for a man to prepare his soul, but it belongs to God for to govern the tongue" (Prov. xvi. 1) ; so weighty a concern this is.

5. The second evil which attends this vice is, its being very prejudicial and dangerous ; because there are three evils in it, at least, which cannot be avoided. The first concerns him that speaks, the second those that hearken and consent to it, and the third concerns the absent who are talked of. It is a common saying, that walls have ears, and words have wings, and men

2C2 love to seek new friends, and to ingratiate themselves with others, by carrying tales and stories, under pretence of being concerned for the honor of those persons ill spoken of ; and so when these things come to the ears of the party that has been defamed, he is offended, and falls into a rage and passion against the man that defamed him; whence follows irreconcilable enmity, and sometimes duels and bloodshed. For this reason the wise man said, " The tale-bearer and the double-tongued shall be cursed ; because he has disturbed a great many that were at peace ;" Eccl. xxviii. 15. And all this, as you see, comes from a word spoken out of season : for, according to the expression of the wise man, " A fire proceeds from but one spark ;" Ibid xi. 34.

6. This vice, upon account of these great damages, is compared in the Scripture sometimes to a razor, which shaves the hair without being felt (Ps. li. 2) ; sometimes, again, to bows and arrows, which shoot at a great distance, and wound those that are absent (Prov. 18) ; at other times to serpents, that make no noise when they bite, yet leave their poison in the wound ; Ps. vii. The Holy Ghost is pleased to give us to understand by these comparisons the malice and evil of that vice which is so great that the wise man says, " The stroke of a whip leaves a mark on the skin, but that of a bad tongue bruises the bones ;" Eccl. xxviii. 21.

7. The third evil that attends this vice is, its being most abominable and infamous against men : because every body flies as naturally from a detractor as from a poisonous serpent. And, therefore, the wise man says, "A man that is profuse of his tongue is terrible in his city;" Eccl. ix. 25. Are not these evils great enough to make you abhor a vice which is at once so hurtful and so unprofitable ? Why will you make yourself odious in the sight of both God and man, without reaping any advantage by it ? especially by a sin that is so frequent and usual that you can scarce speak one word without exposing yourself to the danger of falling into it. Look upon your neighbor's life as a forbidden tree, which you should not so much as touch. You are to be careful in endeavoring never to speak well of yourself, nor ill of others, because the one is vanity, the other detraction. Talk of all persons as if they were virtuous men, and men of honor, and let all the world believe there is no wicked man in it by your discourse. Thus you will avoid many sins, scruples and remorses of conscience ; you will gain the favor both of God and man, and be respected as much by others as you respect every body else. Put a bridle in your mouth, and be always ready to repel and swallow down those words which you perceive will be too sharp and biting. Be assured that it is one of the most prudent and discreet actions you can do to curb your tongue, and that there is scarce any empire so great as that which a man has when be knows how to command and govern this member.

8. Do not think you are free from this vice when you use craft in your detraction by praising a man first, when you design to decry him. For there are some detractors, like surgeons, who chafe the vein gently before they open it, that their lancet may find the easier passage and the blood spurt out more freely. The royal prophet, speaking of such persons, says, " Their words are smoother than oil, but at the same time they are arrows." Ps. liv. 22.

9. And as it is a great virtue to forbear all detraction, so it is a much greater not to rail at those who have done us any injury. So that the more we find ourselves inclined to say any thing against them, the greater generosity it will be to say nothing, and to subdue this passion ; for where the danger is greatest, there the most precaution is to be used.

J.O. Nor is it enough to forbear yourself from murmuring and detracting ; you must also shut your ears against all that do so, following the advice of Ecclesiasticus : " Stop your ears (says he) with thorns, and hearken not to a backbiting tongue ;" Eccl. xxviii. 28. He thinks it not sufficient for you to stop your ears with cotton or with any thing that is soft ; he would have you do it with thorns, that so the words which otherwise you would have heard with pleasure, may not only make no impression upon your heart, but may prick the heart of him that delivers them, when he sees by your looks that you are displeased at what he has told you. Solomon gives us the same advice in clearer terms, when he says, " The north wind scatters the clouds, and a severe countenance puts a stop to a detracting tongue ;" Prov. xxv. 23. " Because (as St. Jerome says) an arrow out of a bow cannot enter into a hard stone, but, on the contrary, flies back again, and sometimes returns upon the man that shot it ;" Epist. 2. ad Nepotiam.

11. For this reason you are to impose silence upon any one that detracts, if he is your inferior, or of such a condition and rank that you may do it without offence ; if you cannot do this, you must, at least, use some cunning to divert the discourse ; or if that will not do, let the severity of your countenance make him ashamed of what he has said. By this means, being civilly told of his fault, he will turn his discourse and talk of something else. But should you, on the contrary, countenance him in the least, you will encourage him to go on, and so make yourself as guilty by hearing him, as he is by talking ; for as it is a very criminal action to set a house on fire, it would be very blameable for another to stand warming his fingers by it, when charity bids him fetch water to help to put it out.

12. But of all detractions the greatest is, when a man speaks ill of virtuous persons, because it is the ready way to discourage those that are but weak and faint-hearted, and to give an absolute repulse to such as have no courage at all, so as to deter them from entering into the way of virtue. This would be laying a stumbling-block in their way that are but just beginning to walk, though those that are quite grown up know how to pass over it. And that you may have no reason to say this is but a small and inconsiderable scandal, reflect upon these words of our Saviour : " Whosoever shall scandalize one of these little ones that believe in me, it were better for him to have a mill-stone hung about his neck, and to be sunk to the very bottom of the sea ;" Matt, xviii. 6. You are, therefore, to account it as a kind of sacrilege to make scandalous reflections on the servants of God ; for, supposing they are such as the wicked represent them, yet the character they bear should make you have a respect for them, es* pecially since God Almighty, speaking of the love he has for them, says, " Whosoever shall touch you, touches the apple of my eye ;" Zach. ii. 8.

13. Whatever we have here said against detractors and Dack-* liters may be applied to those that jeer and scoff at others ; and with much more reason, because this vice, besides it having all in it that the other has, is never without a tincture of pride, presumption and contempt of others. So that, upon this consideration, we are more obliged to avoid this vice than the former. God, in the old law, has given us a particular caution against it, in these words : " Be not a backbiter, nor a scoffer amongst the people ;" Levit. xix. 16. And, therefore, there is no need of saying any more of the deformity of it, for what has been said may suffice.

§ II. Of rash Judgments, and of the Commandments of the Church. — 14. To these two sins we may add that of rash judgment, as coming very near to them, because detractors and jeerers not only speak ill of things which really are, but whatever they imagine or fancy. And that they may never want something to be biting upon, they furnish themselves with matter whenever there is occasion, by rash judgments and secret suspicions, by turning the worst side of a thing outwards, when they might as easily turn the best ; and this is in opposition to what our Saviour has commanded us, saying, " Judge not, and you shall not be judged ; condemn not, and you shall not be condemned ;" Matt, vii. 1. This may often happen to be a mortal sin, if the matter a man passes his sentence upon is of concern and weight, and the judgment grounded on a shallow and weak foundation. But if it proves to be rather a suspicion than a judgment, it will not then be a mortal sin, because the act is not entire and perfect.

15. Besides these sins against God, there are those which a man commits against the five commandments of the church, which oblige us by precept; as hearing mass on Sundays and holidays, confessing our sins once a year, communicating at Easter, fasting all days appointed by the church, and paying of tithes. The commandment of fasting binds from one-and-twenty years of age and upwards, more or less, according to the discretion of the confessor or curate, if a man is not sick, or very weak, or old laboring men, nurses that give suck, or women that are with child, and such as are not able to afford themselves one good meal a day ; and so there may be other lawful impediments.

16. As to the hearing of mass upon Sundays and holidays, a man must endeavor to assist there, not only in body but in spirit, having his mind recollected, and with a profound silence, with his heart fixed upon God or upon the mysteries of the mass, or busied with some other pious thoughts, or saying some devout prayers.

17. And as for those persons who have servants and children, and a family to look after, they should be very careful and diligent in seeing that all under their charge hear mass upon holidays: and if they cannot let them go to high mass, because of their being employed about necessary business, at least they must make them go some time in the morning to hear a private mass, that so they may comply with their obligation. There are many masters of families very blameable and negligent in this point ; and they will answer for it to God. It is true, when there is any just and pressing necessity that hinders a person from hearing mass, as his looking after a sick person or any such employment, it will not be then imputed to him as a sin, because necessity excuses a man from this law.

18. These are the most usual sins which man generally falls into. It is our duty always to endeavor to avoid them all : some because they are mortal, others because they are very near to mortal sins, and others, again, because they are more heinous of themselves than other common venial sins. This is the way to preserve our innocence, and those white garments which Solomon requires of us, when he says, " Let your garments be always wThite, and let not your head ever want oil" (Eccl. ix. 8), that is, the unction of divine grace, which enlightens and strengthens us upon all occasions, and which instructs us in and encourages us to all kind of good.