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WHEN men seek to know God, and bend their minds according to the
capacity of human weakness to the understanding of the Trinity;
learning, as they must, by experience, the wearisome difficulties of
the task, whether from the sight itself of the mind striving to gaze
upon light unapproachable, or, indeed, from the manifold and various
modes of speech employed in the sacred writings (wherein, as it seems
to me, the mind is nothing else but roughly exercised, in order that
it may find sweetness when glorified by the grace of Christ); such
men, I say, when they have dispelled every ambiguity, and arrived at
something certain, ought of all others most easily to make allowance
for those who err in the investigation of so deep a secret. But there
are two things most hard to bear with, in the case of those who are in
error: hasty assumption before the truth is made plain; and, when it
has been made plain, defence of the falsehood thus hastily assumed.
From which two faults, inimical as they are to the finding out of the
truth, and to the handling of the divine and sacred books, should
God, as I pray and hope, defend and protect me with the shield of
His good will, and with the grace of His mercy, I will not be slow
to search out the substance of God, whether through His Scripture or
through the creature. For both of these are set forth for our
contemplation to this end, that He may Himself be sought, and
Himself be loved, who inspired the one, and created the other. Nor
shall I be afraid of giving my opinion, in which I shall more desire
to be examined by the upright, than fear to be carped at by the
perverse. For charity, most excellent and unassuming, gratefully
accepts the dovelike eye; but for the dog's tooth nothing remains,
save either to shun it by the most cautious humility, or to blunt it by
the most solid truth; and far rather would I be censured by any one
whatsoever, than be praised by either the erring or the flatterer.
For the lover of truth need fear no one's censure. For he that
censures, must needs be either enemy or friend. And if an enemy
reviles, he must be borne with: but a friend, if he errs, must be
taught; if he teaches, listened to. But if one who errs praises
you, he confirms your error; if one who flatters, he seduces you into
error. "Let the righteous," therefore, "smite me, it shall be a
kindness; and let him reprove me; but the oil of the sinner shall not
anoint my head."
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