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    • Marian Prayers >
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    • Vol. 1 - Preface and Introduction >
      • The First Epistle of Clement to the Corinthians
      • The Epistle of Mathetes to Diognetus
      • The Epistle of Polycarp to the Philippians
      • The Epistle Concerning the Martyrdom of Polycarp
      • The Epistles of Ignatius - Introduction >
        • The Epistle of Ignatius to the Ephesians
        • The Epistle of Ignatius to the Magnesians
        • The Epistle of Ignatius to the Trallians
        • The Epistle of Ignatius to the Romans
        • The Epistle of Ignatius to the Philadelphians
        • The Epistle of Ignatius to the Smyrnæans
        • The Epistle of Ignatius to Polycarp
      • The Ignatian Epistles (Syriac Version) >
        • The Epistle of Ignatius to Polycarp (Syriac Version)
        • The Second Epistle Of Ignatius to the Ephesians (Syriac Version)
        • The Third Epistle of the Same St. Igantius (Syriac Version)
      • Introductory to the Spurious Epistles of Ignatius >
        • The Epistle of Ignatius to the Tarsians (Spurious)
        • The Epistle of Ignatius to the Antiochians (Spurious)
        • The Epistle of Ignatius to Hero, a Deacon of Antioch (Spurious)
        • The Epistle of Ignatius to the Philippians (Spurious)
        • The Epistle of Maria the Proselyte to Ignatius (Spurious)
        • The Epistle of Ignatius to Mary at Nepalis, Near Zarbus (Spurious)
        • The Epistle of Ignatius to St. John the Apostle (Spurious)
        • A Second Epistle of Ignatius to St. John (Spurious)
        • The Epistle of Ignatius to the Virgin Mary (Spurious)
      • Introductory Note to the Martyrdom of Ignatius >
        • The Martyrdom of Ignatius
      • The Epistle of Barnabas
      • The Fragments of Papias
      • Introduction to the Writings of Justin Martyr >
        • The First Apology of Justin Martyr >
          • Epistle of Adrian in behalf of the Christians
          • Epistle of Antoninus to the common assembly of Asia
          • Epistle of Marcus Aurelius to the senate, in which he testifies that the Christians were the cause of his victory
        • The Second Apology of Justin for the Christians Addressed to the Roman Senate
        • Dialogue of Justin, Philosopher and Martyr, with Trypho, a Jew
        • The Discourse to the Greeks - Justin Martyr
        • Justin's Hortatory Address to the Greeks
        • Justin on the Sole Government of God
        • Fragments of the Lost Work of Justin on the Resurrection
        • Other Fragments from the Lost Writings of Justin
        • The Martyrdom of the Holy Martyrs Justin, Chariton, Charites, Pæon, and Liberianus, who Suffered at Rome
      • Introductory Note to Irenæus Against Heresies >
        • Against Heresies: Book 1 - Irenaeus
        • Against Heresies: Book 2 - Irenaeus
        • Against Heresies: Book 3 - Irenaeus
        • Against Heresies: Book 4 - Irenaeus
        • Against Heresies: Book 5 - Irenaeus
        • Fragments from the Lost Writings of Irenaeus
    • Vol. 2 - Fathers of the Second Century >
      • The Pastor of Hermas - Introduction >
        • The Pastor of Hermas: Book 1
        • The Pastor of Hermas: Book 2
        • The Pastor of Hermas: Book 3
      • Tatian the Assyrian's Address to the Greeks >
        • Fragments - Tatian the Assyrian
      • Theophilus of Antioch - Introduction >
        • Theophilus of Antioch to Autolycus: Book 1
        • Theophilus of Antioch to Autolycus: Book 2
        • Theophilus of Antioch to Autolycus: Book 3
      • Athenagoras >
        • A Plea For the Christians By Athenagoras the Athenian: Philosopher and Christian
        • The Treatise of Athenagoras the Athenian, Philosopher and Christian, on the Resurrection of the Dead
      • Clement of Alexandria - Introductory Note >
        • Exhortation to the Heathen
        • The Instructor (Paedagogus) - Book 1
        • The Instructor (Paedagogus) - Book 2
        • The Instructor (Paedagogus) - Book 3
        • Elucidations - Clement of Alexandria
        • The Stromata, or Miscellanies - Book 1
        • Elucidations - Purpose of the Stromata
        • The Stromata, or Miscellanies - Book 2
        • Elucidations - The Stromata, Book 2
        • The Stromata, or Miscellanies - Book 3
        • The Stromata, or Miscellanies - Book 4
        • Elucidations - The Stromata, Book 4
        • The Stromata, or Miscellanies - Book 5
        • Elucidations - The Stromata, Book 5
        • The Stromata, or Miscellanies - Book 6
        • Elucidations - The Stromata, Book 6
        • The Stromata, or Miscellanies - Book 7
        • Elucidations - The Stromata, Book 7
        • The Stromata, or Miscellanies - Book 8
        • Elucidations - The Stromata, Book 8
        • Fragments of Clemens Alexandrinus
        • Clemens Alexandrinus on the Salvation of the Rich Man
        • Elucidations - Clemens Alexandrinus on the Salvation of the Rich Man
    • Vol. 3 - Tertullian >
      • Section 1 - Apologetic - Tertullian >
        • The Apology
        • On Idolatry
        • The Shows, or De Spectaculis
        • The Chaplet, or De Corona
        • To Scapula
        • Ad Nationes - Book 1
        • Ad Nationes - Book 2
        • A Fragment Concerning the Execrable Gods of the Heathen
        • An Answer to the Jews
        • The Soul's Testimony
        • A Treatise on the Soul
      • Section 2 - Anti-Marcion - Tertullian >
        • The Prescription Against Heretics
        • The Five Books Against Marcion - Book 1
        • The Five Books Against Marcion - Book 2
        • The Five Books Against Marcion - Book 3
        • The Five Books Against Marcion - Book 4
        • The Five Books Against Marcion - Book 5
        • Against Hermogenes - Containing an Argument Against His Opinion that Matter is Eternal
        • Against the Valentinians
        • On the Flesh of Christ
        • On the Resurrection of the Flesh
        • Against Praxeas
        • Scorpiace
        • Against all Heresies
      • Section 3 - Ethical - Tertullian >
        • On Repentance
        • On Baptism
        • On Prayer
        • Ad Martyras
        • Introductory Notice to the Martyrdom of Perpetua and Felicitas
        • The Passion of the Holy Martyrs Perpetua and Felicitas
        • Of Patience
    • Vol. 4 - Tertullian, Minucius Felix, Commodianus, Origen >
      • Tertullian >
        • On the Pallium
        • On the Apparel of Women
        • On the Veiling of Virgins
        • To His Wife
        • On Exhortation to Chastity
        • On Monogamy
        • On Modesty
        • On Fasting (In Opposition to the Psychics)
        • De Fuga in Persecutione
        • Appendix
      • Minucius Felix >
        • The Octavius of Minucius Felix
  • Books
    • John Henry Cardinal Newman >
      • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine by John Henry Cardinal Newman >
        • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 1: Doctrinal Developments Viewed in Themselves >
          • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 1, Chapter 1: On the Development of Ideas
          • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 1, Chapter 2: On the Antecedent Argument in Behalf of Developments in Christian Doctrine
          • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 1, Chapter 3: On the Historical Argument in Behalf of the Existing Developments
          • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 1, Chapter 4: Instances in Illustration
        • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 2: Doctrinal Developments Viewed Relatively to Doctrinal Corruptions >
          • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 2, Chapter 5: Genuine Developments Contrasted with Corruptions
          • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 2, Chapter 6: Application of the Seven Notes to the Existing Developments of Christian Doctrine
          • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 2, Chapter 7: Application of the Second Note of a True Development
          • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 2, Chapter 8: Application of the Third Note of a True Development
          • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 2, Chapter 9: Application of the Fourth Note of a True Development
          • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 2, Chapter 10: Application of the Fifth Note of a True Development
          • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 2, Chapter 11: Application of the Sixth Note of a True Development
          • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 2, Chapter 12: Application of the Seventh Note of a True Development
      • Apologia Pro Vita Sua By John Henry Cardinal Newman >
        • Apologia Pro Vita Sua, Part 1: Mr. Kingsley's Method of Disputation
        • Apologia Pro Vita Sua, Part 2: True Mode of Meeting Mr. Kingsley
        • Apologia Pro Vita Sua, Part 3: History of My Religious Opinions
        • Apologia Pro Vita Sua, Part 4: History of My Religious Opinions--1833 - 1839
        • Apologia Pro Vita Sua, Part 5: History of My Religious Opinions--1839 - 1841
        • Apologia Pro Vita Sua, Part 6: History of My Religious Opinions--1841 - 1845
        • Apologia Pro Vita Sua, Part 7: General Answer to Mr. Kingsley
        • Apologia Pro Vita Sua, Appendix: Answer in Detail to Mr. Kingsley's Accusations
      • The Idea of a University Defined and Illustrated by John Henry Cardinal Newman >
        • The Idea of a University, Discourse 1: Introductory
        • The Idea of a University, Discourse 2: Theology A Branch Of Knowledge
        • The Idea of a University, Discourse 3: Bearing Of Theology On Other Branches Of Knowledge
        • The Idea of a University, Discourse 4: Bearing Of Other Branches Of Knowledge On Theology
        • The Idea of a University, Discourse 5: Knowledge Its Own End
        • The Idea of a University, Discourse 6: Knowledge Viewed In Relation To Learning
        • The Idea of a University, Discourse 7: Knowledge Viewed In Relation To Professional Skill
        • The Idea of a University, Discourse 8: Knowledge Viewed In Relation To Religion
        • The Idea of a University, Discourse 9: Duties Of The Church Towards Knowledge
        • University Subjects, Discussed in Occasional Lectures and Essays >
          • Lecture 1 - Christianity And Letters. A Lecture in the School of Philosophy and Letters
          • Lecture 2 - Literature. A Lecture in the School of Philosophy and Letters
          • Lecture 3 - English Catholic Literature
          • Lecture 4 - Elementary Studies
          • Lecture 5 - A Form Of Infidelity Of The Day
          • Lecture 6 - University Preaching
          • Lecture 7 - Christianity and Physical Science. A Lecture in the School of Medicine
          • Lecture 8 - Christianity And Scientific Investigation. A Lecture Written for the School of Science
          • Lecture 9 - Discipline Of Mind. An Address To The Evening Classes
          • Lecture 10 - Christianity And Medical Science. An Address to the Students Of Medicine
      • Loss and Gain: The Story of a Convert by John Henry Cardinal Newman >
        • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 1 >
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 2
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 3
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 4
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 5
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 6
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 7
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 8
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 9
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 10
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 11
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 12
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 13
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 14
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 15
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 16
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 17
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 18
        • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 1 >
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 2
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 3
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 4
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 5
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 6
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 7
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 8
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 9
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 10
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 11
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 12
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 13
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 14
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 15
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 16
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 17
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 18
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 19
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 20
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 21
        • Loss and Gain, Part 3, Chapter 1 >
          • Loss and Gain, Part 3, Chapter 2
          • Loss and Gain, Part 3, Chapter 3
          • Loss and Gain, Part 3, Chapter 4
          • Loss and Gain, Part 3, Chapter 5
          • Loss and Gain, Part 3, Chapter 6
          • Loss and Gain, Part 3, Chapter 7
          • Loss and Gain, Part 3, Chapter 8
          • Loss and Gain, Part 3, Chapter 9
          • Loss and Gain, Part 3, Chapter 10
          • Loss and Gain, Part 3, Chapter 11
    • Saint Augustine of Hippo >
      • The Confessions of Saint Augustine by Saint Augustine, Bishop of Hippo >
        • Book 1 - Confessions by St. Augustine
        • Book 2 - Confessions by St. Augustine
        • Book 3 - Confessions by St. Augustine
        • Book 4 - Confessions by St. Augustine
        • Book 5 - Confessions by St. Augustine
        • Book 6 - Confessions by St. Augustine
        • Book 7 - Confessions by St. Augustine
        • Book 8 - Confessions by St. Augustine
        • Book 9 - Confessions by St. Augustine
        • Book 10 - Confessions by St. Augustine
        • Book 11 - Confessions by St. Augustine
        • Book 12 - Confessions by St. Augustine
        • Book 13 - Confessions by St. Augustine
    • G K Chesterton >
      • Heretics by G.K. Chesterton >
        • Heretics, Chapter 1: Introductory Remarks on the Importance of Orthodoxy
        • Heretics, Chapter 2: On the Negative Spirit
        • Heretics, Chapter 3: On Mr. Rudyard Kipling and Making the World Small
        • Heretics, Chapter 4: Mr. Bernard Shaw
        • Heretics, Chapter 5: Mr. H.G. Wells and the Giants
        • Heretics, Chapter 6: Christmas and the Aesthetes
        • Heretics, Chapter 7: Omar and the Sacred Vine
        • Heretics, Chapter 8: The Mildness of the Yellow Press
        • Heretics, Chapter 9: The Moods of Mr. George Moore
        • Heretics, Chapter 10: On Sandals and Simplicity
        • Heretics, Chapter 11: Science and the Savages
        • Heretics, Chapter 12: Paganism and Mr. Lowes Dickinson
        • Heretics, Chapter 13: Celts and Celtophiles
        • Heretics, Chapter 14: On Certain Modern Writers and the Institution of the Family
        • Heretics, Chapter 15: On Smart Novelists and the Smart Set
        • Heretics, Chapter 16: On Mr. McCabe and a Divine Frivolity
        • Heretics, Chapter 17: On the Wit of Whistler
        • Heretics, Chapter 18: The Fallacy of the Young Nation
        • Heretics, Chapter 19: Slum Novelists and the Slums
        • Heretics, Chapter 20: Concluding Remarks on the Importance of Orthodoxy
      • Orthodoxy by G. K. Chesterton >
        • Orthodoxy, Chapter 1: Introduction in Defense of Everything Else
        • Orthodoxy, Chapter 2: The Maniac
        • Orthodoxy, Chapter 3: The Suicide of Thought
        • Orthodoxy, Chapter 4: The Ethics of Elfland
        • Orthodoxy, Chapter 5: The Flag of the World
        • Orthodoxy, Chapter 6: The Paradoxes of Christianity
        • Orthodoxy, Chapter 7: The Eternal Revolution
        • Orthodoxy, Chapter 8: The Romance of Orthodoxy
        • Orthodoxy, Chapter 9: Authority and the Adventurer
    • Saint Thomas Aquinas >
      • On Prayer and the Contemplative Life by St. Thomas Aquinas >
        • On Prayer, Question LXXXI: Of the Virtue of Religion
        • On Prayer, Question LXXXII: Of Devotion
        • On Prayer, Question LXXXIII: Of Prayer
        • On Prayer, Question LXXII: Of the Prayers of the Saints who are in Heaven
        • On Prayer, Question CLXXIX: Of the Division of Life into the Active and the Contemplative
        • On Prayer, Question CLXXX: Of the Contemplative Life
        • On Prayer, Question CLXXXI: Of the Active Life
        • On Prayer, Question CLXXXII: Of the Comparison between the Active and the Contemplative Life
        • On Prayer, Question CLXXXVI: On the Religious State
      • Summa Theologica Part 1 ("Prima Pars") by St. Thomas Aquinas >
        • Summa Theologica (Questions 1 - 26)
        • Summa Theologica: Treatise on the Most Holy Trinity (Questions 27 - 43)
        • Summa Theologica: Treatise on the Creation (Questions 44 - 49)
        • Summa Theologica: Treatise on the Angels (Questions 50 - 64)
        • Summa Theologica: Treatise on the Work of the Six Days (Questions 65 - 74)
        • Summa Theologica: Treatise on Man (Questions 75 - 102)
        • Summa Theologica: Treatise on the Conservation and Government of Creatures (Questions 103 - 119)
      • Summa Theologica Part 1-2 ("Prima Secundae") by St. Thomas Aquinas >
        • Summa Theologica Part 1-2 ("Prima Secundae"): Treatise on the Last End (Questions 1 - 5)
        • Summa Theologica Part 1-2 ("Prima Secundae"): Treatise on Human Acts: Acts Peculiar to Man (Questions 6 - 21)
        • Summa Theologica Part 1-2 ("Prima Secundae"): Treatise on the Passions (Questions 22 - 48)
        • Summa Theologica Part 1-2 ("Prima Secundae"): Treatise on Habits (Questions 49 - 54)
        • Summa Theologica Part 1-2 ("Prima Secundae"): Treatise on Habits in Particular (Questions 55 - 89): Good Habits, i.e., Virtues (Questions 55 - 70)
        • Summa Theologica Part 1-2 ("Prima Secundae"): Treatise on Habits in Particular (Questions 55 - 89): Evil Habits, i.e., Vices and Sin (Questions 71 - 89)
        • Summa Theologica Part 1-2 ("Prima Secundae"): Treatise on Law (Questions 90 - 108)
        • Summa Theologica Part 1-2 ("Prima Secundae"): Treatise on Grace (Questions 109 - 114)
      • Summa Theologica Part 2-2 ("Second Secundae") by St. Thomas Aquinas >
        • Summa Theologica Part 2-2 ("Second Secundae"): Treatise on the Theological Virtues (Questions 1 - 46)
        • Summa Theologica Part 2-2 ("Second Secundae"): Treatise on the Cardinal Virtues (Questions 47 - 122)
        • Summa Theologica Part 2-2 ("Second Secundae"): Treatise on Fortitude and Temperance (Questions 123 - 170)
        • Summa Theologica Part 2-2 ("Second Secundae"): Treatise on Gratuitous Graces (Questions 171 - 182)
        • Summa Theologica Part 2-2 ("Second Secundae"): Treatise on the States of Life (Questions 183 - 189)
      • Summa Theologica Third Part ("Tertia Pars") by St. Thomas Aquinas >
        • Summa Theologica Third Part ("Tertia Pars"): Treatise on the Incarnation (Questions 1 - 59)
        • Summa Theologica Third Part ("Tertia Pars"): Treatise on the Sacraments (Questions 60 - 90)
    • The Baltimore Catechism >
      • The Baltimore Catechism, Vol. 1
      • The Baltimore Catechism, Vol. 2
      • The Baltimore Catechism, Vol. 3
      • The Baltimore Catechism, Vol. 4
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Loss and Gain
Part 2, Chapter 19


CHAPTER XIX.

The winter had been on the whole dry and pleasant, but in February and March the rains were so profuse, and the winds so high, that Bateman saw very little of either Charles or Willis. He did not abandon his designs on the latter, but it was an anxious question how best to conduct them. As to Campbell, he was resolved to exclude him from any participation in them; but he hesitated about Reding. He had found him far less definitely Roman than he expected, and he conjectured that, by making him his confidant and employing him against Willis, he really might succeed in giving him an Anglican direction. Accordingly, he told him of his anxiety to restore Willis to "the Church of his baptism;" and not discouraged by Charles's advice to let well alone, for he might succeed in drawing him from Rome without reclaiming him to Anglicanism, the weather having improved, he asked the two to dinner on one of the later Sundays in Lent. He determined to make a field-day of it; and, with that view, he carefully got up some of the most popular works against the Church of Rome. After much thought he determined to direct his attack on some of the "practical evils," as he considered them, of "Romanism;" as being more easy of proof than points of doctrine and history, in which, too, for what he knew, Willis might by this time be better read than himself. He considered, too, that, if Willis had been at all shaken in his new faith when he was abroad, it was by the practical exemplification which he had before his eyes of the issue of its peculiar doctrines when freely carried out. Moreover, to tell the truth, our good friend had not a very clear apprehension how much doctrine he held in common with the Church of Rome, or where he was to stop in the several details of Pope Pius's Creed; in consequence, it was evidently safer to confine his attack to matters of practice.

"You see, Willis," he said, as they sat down to table, "I have given you abstinence food, not knowing whether you avail yourself of the dispensation. We shall eat meat ourselves; but don't think we don't fast at proper times; I don't agree with Campbell at all; we don't fast, however, on Sunday. That is our rule, and, I take it, a primitive one."

Willis answered that he did not know how the primitive usage lay, but he supposed that both of them allowed that matters of discipline might be altered by the proper authority.

"Certainly," answered Bateman, "so that everything is done consistently with the inspired text of Scripture;"--he stopped, itching, if he could, to bring in some great subject, but not seeing how. He saw he must rush _in medias res_; so he added,--"with which inspired text, I presume, what one sees in foreign churches is not very consistent."

"What? I suppose you mean antependia, rere-dosses, stone altars, copes, and mitres," said Willis innocently; "which certainly are not in Scripture."

"True," said Bateman; "but these, though not in Scripture, are not inconsistent with Scripture. They are all very right; but the worship of Saints, especially the Blessed Virgin, and of relics, the gabbling over prayers in an unknown tongue, Indulgences, and infrequent communions, I suspect are directly unscriptural."

"My dear Bateman," said Willis, "you seem to live in an atmosphere of controversy; so it was at Oxford; there was always argument going on in your rooms. Religion is a thing to enjoy, not to quarrel about; give me a slice more of that leg of mutton."

"Yes, Bateman," said Reding, "you must let us enjoy our meat. Willis deserves it, for I believe he has had a fair walk to-day. Have you not walked a good part of the way to Seaton and back? a matter of fourteen miles, and hilly ground; it can't be dry, too, in parts yet."

"True," said Bateman; "take a glass of wine, Willis; it's good Madeira; an aunt of mine sent it me."

"He puts us to shame," said Charles, "who have stepped into church from our bedroom; he has trudged a pilgrimage to his."

"I'm not saying a word against our dear friend Willis," said Bateman; "it was merely a point on which I thought he would agree with me, that there were many corruptions of worship in foreign churches."

At last, when his silence was observable, Willis said that he supposed that persons who were not Catholics could not tell what were corruptions and what not. Here the subject dropped again; for Willis did not seem in humour--perhaps he was too tired--to continue it. So they ate and drank, with nothing but very commonplace remarks to season their meal withal, till the cloth was removed. The table was then shoved back a bit, and the three young men got over the fire, which Bateman made burn brightly. Two of them at least had deserved some relaxation, and they were the two who were to be opponent and respondent in the approaching argument--one had had a long walk, the other had had two full services, a baptism, and a funeral. The armistice continued a good quarter of an hour, which Charles and Willis spent in easy conversation; till Bateman, who had been priming himself the while with his controversial points, found himself ready for the assault, and opened it in form.

"Come, my dear Willis," he said, "I can't let you off so; I am sure what you saw abroad scandalized you."

This was almost rudely put. Willis said that, had he been a Protestant, he might have been easily shocked; but he had been a Catholic; and he drew an almost imperceptible sigh. Besides, had he had a temptation to be shocked, he should have recollected that he was in a Church which in all greater matters could not err. He had not come to the Church to criticize, he said, but to learn. "I don't know," he said, "what is meant by saying that we ought to have faith, that faith is a grace, that faith is the means of our salvation, if there is nothing to exercise it. Faith goes against sight; well, then, unless there are sights which offend you, there is nothing for it to go against."

Bateman called this a paradox; "If so," he said, "why don't we become Mahometans? we should have enough to believe then."

"Why, just consider," said Willis; "supposing your friend, an honourable man, is accused of theft, and appearances are against him, would you at once admit the charge? It would be a fair trial of your faith in him; and if he were able in the event satisfactorily to rebut it, I don't think he would thank you, should you have waited for his explanation before you took his part, instead of knowing him too well to suspect it. If, then, I come to the Church with faith in her, whatever I see there, even if it surprises me, is but a trial of my faith."

"That is true," said Charles; "but there must be some ground for faith; we do not believe without reason; and the question is, whether what the Church does, as in worship, is not a fair matter to form a judgment upon, for or against."

"A Catholic," said Willis, "as I was when I was abroad, has already found his grounds, for he believes; but for one who has not--I mean a Protestant--I certainly consider it is very uncertain whether he will take _the_ view of Catholic worship which he ought to take. It may easily happen that he will not understand it."

"Yet persons have before now been converted by the sight of Catholic worship," said Reding.

"Certainly," answered Willis: "God works in a thousand ways; there is much in Catholic worship to strike a Protestant, but there is much which will perplex him; for instance, what Bateman has alluded to, our devotion to the Blessed Virgin."

"Surely," said Bateman, "this is a plain matter; it is quite impossible that the worship paid by Roman Catholics to the Blessed Mary should not interfere with the supreme adoration due to the Creator alone."

"This is just an instance in point," said Willis; "you see you are judging _à priori_; you know nothing of the state of the case from experience, but you say, 'It must be; it can't be otherwise.' This is the way a Protestant judges, and comes to one conclusion; a Catholic, who acts, and does not speculate, feels the truth of the contrary."

"Some things," said Bateman, "are so like axioms, as to supersede trial. On the other hand, familiarity is very likely to hide from people the real evil of certain practices."

"How strange it is," answered Willis, "that you don't perceive that this is the very argument which various sects urge against you Anglicans! For instance, the Unitarian says that the doctrine of the Atonement _must_ lead to our looking at the Father, not as a God of love, but of vengeance only; and he calls the doctrine of eternal punishment immoral. And so, the Wesleyan or Baptist declares that it is an absurdity to suppose any one can hold the doctrine of baptismal regeneration, and really be spiritual; that the doctrine _must_ have a numbing effect on the mind, and destroy its simple reliance on the atonement of Christ. I will take another instance: many a good Catholic, who never came across Anglicans, is as utterly unable to realize your position as you are to realize his. He cannot make out how you can be so illogical as not to go forward or backward; nay, he pronounces your professed state of mind impossible; he does not believe in its existence. I may deplore your state; I may think you illogical and worse; but I know it is a state which does exist. As, then, I admit that a person can hold one Catholic Church, yet without believing that the Roman Communion is it, so I put it to you, even as an _argumentum ad hominem_, whether you ought not to believe that we can honour our Blessed Lady as the first of creatures, without interfering with the honour due to God? At most, you ought to call us only illogical, you ought not to deny that we do what we say we do."

"I make a distinction," said Bateman; "it is quite possible, I fully grant, for an educated Romanist to distinguish between the devotion paid by him to the Blessed Virgin, and the worship of God; I only say that the multitude will not distinguish."

"I know you say so," answered Willis; "and still, I repeat, not from experience, but on an _à priori_ ground. You say, not 'it is so,' but 'it _must_ be so.'"

There was a pause in the conversation, and then Bateman recommenced it.

"You may give us some trouble," said he, laughing, "but we are resolved to have you back, my good Willis. Now consider, you are a lover of truth: is that Church from heaven which tells untruths?"

Willis laughed too; "We must define the words _truth_ and _untruth_," he said; "but, subject to that definition, I have no hesitation in enunciating the truism, that a Church is not from heaven which tells untruths."

"Of course, you can't deny the proposition," said Bateman; "well, then, is it not quite certain that in Rome itself there are relics which all learned men now give up, and which yet are venerated as relics? For instance, Campbell tells me that the reputed heads of St. Peter and St. Paul, in some great Roman basilica, are certainly not the heads of the Apostles, because the head of St. Paul was found with his body, after the fire at his church some years since."

"I don't know about the particular instance," answered Willis; "but you are opening a large question which cannot be settled in a few words. If I must speak, I should say this: I should begin with the assumption that the existence of relics is not improbable; do you grant _that_?"

"I grant nothing," said Bateman; "but go on."

"Why you have plenty of heathen relics, which you admit. What is Pompeii, and all that is found there, but one vast heathen relic? why should there not be Christian relics in Rome and elsewhere as well as pagan?"

"Of course, of course," said Bateman.

"Well, and relics may be identified. You have the tomb of the Scipios, with their names on them. Did you find ashes in one of them, I suppose you would be pretty certain that they were the ashes of a Scipio."

"To the point," cried Bateman, "quicker."

"St. Peter," continued Willis, "speaks of David, 'whose sepulchre is with you unto this day.' Therefore it's nothing wonderful that a religious relic should be preserved eleven hundred years, and identified to be such, when a nation makes a point of preserving it."

"This is beating about the bush," cried Bateman impatiently; "get on quicker."

"Let me go on my own way," said Willis--"then there is nothing improbable, considering Christians have always been very careful about the memorials of sacred things--"

"You've not proved that," said Bateman, fearing that some manoeuvre, he could not tell what, was in progress.

"Well," said Willis, "you don't doubt it, I suppose, at least from the fourth century, when St. Helena brought from the Holy Land the memorials of our Lord's passion, and lodged them at Rome in the Basilica, which was thereupon called Santa Croce. As to the previous times of persecution, Christians, of course, had fewer opportunities of showing a similar devotion, and historical records are less copious; yet, in spite of this, its existence is as certain as any fact of history. They collected the bones of St. Polycarp, the immediate disciple of St. John, after he was burnt; as of St. Ignatius before him, after his exposure to the beasts; and so in like manner the bones or blood of all the martyrs. No one doubts it; I never heard of any one who did. So the disciples took up the Baptist's body--it would have been strange if they had not--and buried it 'in _the_ sepulchre,' as the Evangelist says, speaking of it as known. Now, why should they not in like manner, and even with greater reason, have rescued the bodies of St. Peter and St. Paul, if it were only for decent burial? Is it then wonderful, if the bodies were rescued, that they should be afterwards preserved?"

"But they can't be in two places at once," said Bateman.

"But hear me," answered Willis; "I say then if there is a tradition that in a certain place there is a relic of an apostle, there is at first sight a probability that it _is_ there; the presumption is in its favour. Can you deny it? Well, if the same relic is reported to be in two places, then one or the other tradition is erroneous, and the _primâ facie_ force of both traditions is weakened; but I should not actually discard either at once; each has its force still, though neither so great a force. Now, suppose there are circumstances which confirm the one, the other is weakened still further, and at length the probability of its truth may become evanescent; and when a fair interval has passed, and there is no change of evidence in its favour, then it is at length given up. But all this is a work of time; meanwhile, it is not a bit more of an objection to the doctrine and practice of relic-veneration that a body is said to lie in two places, than to profane history that Charles I. was reported by some authorities to be buried at Windsor, by others at Westminster; which question was decided just before our times. It is a question of evidence, and must be treated as such."

"But if St. Paul's head was found under his own church," said Bateman, "it's pretty clear it is not preserved at the other basilica."

"True," answered Willis; "but grave questions of this kind cannot be decided in a moment. I don't know myself the circumstances of the case, and do but take your account of it. It has to be proved, then, I suppose, that it _was_ St. Paul's head which was found with his body; for, since he was beheaded, it would not be attached to it. This is one question, and others would arise. It is not easy to settle a question of history. Questions which seem settled revive. It is very well for secular historians to give up a tradition or testimony at once, and for a generation to oh-oh it; but the Church cannot do so; she has a religious responsibility, and must move slowly. Take the _chance_ of its turning out that the heads at St. John Lateran were, after all, those of the two Apostles, and that she had cast them aside. Questions, I say, revive. Did not Walpole make it highly probable that the two little princes had a place in the procession at King Richard's coronation, though a century before him two skeletons of boys were found in the Tower at the very place where the children of Edward were said to have been murdered and buried by the Duke of Gloucester? I speak from memory, but the general fact which I am illustrating is undeniable. Ussher, Pearson, and Voss proved that St. Ignatius's shorter Epistles were genuine; and now, after the lapse of two centuries, the question is at least plausibly mooted again."

There was another pause, while Bateman thought over his facts and arguments, but nothing was forthcoming at the moment. Willis continued: "You must consider also that reputed relics, such as you have mentioned, are generally in the custody of religious bodies, who are naturally very jealous of attempts to prove them spurious, and, with a pardonable _esprit de corps_, defend them with all their might, and oppose obstacles in the way of an adverse decision; just as your own society defends, most worthily, the fair fame of your foundress, Queen Boadicea. Were the case given against her by every tribunal in the land, your valiant and loyal Head would not abandon her; it would break his magnanimous heart; he would die in her service as a good knight. Both from religious duty, then, and from human feeling, it is a very arduous thing to get a received relic disowned."

"Well," said Bateman, "to my poor judgment it does seem a dishonesty to keep up inscriptions, for instance, which every one knows not to be true."

"My dear Bateman, that is begging the question," said Willis; "_every_ body does _not_ know it; it is a point in course of settlement, but not settled; you may say that _individuals_ have settled it, or it _may_ be settled, but it is not settled yet. Parallel cases happen frequently in civil matters, and no one speaks harshly of existing individuals or bodies in consequence. Till lately the Monument in London bore an inscription to the effect that London had been burned by us poor Papists. A hundred years ago, Pope, the poet, had called the 'column' 'a tall bully' which 'lifts its head and lies,' Yet the inscription was not removed till a few years since--I believe when the Monument was repaired. That was an opportunity for erasing a calumny which, till then, had not been definitely pronounced to be such, and not pronounced in deference to the _primâ facie_ authority of a statement contemporaneous with the calamity which it recorded. There is never a _point_ of time at which you can say, 'The tradition is now disproved.' When a received belief has been apparently exposed, the question lies dormant for the opportunity of fresh arguments; when none appear, then at length an accident, such as the repair of a building, despatches it."

"We have somehow got off the subject," thought Bateman; and he sat fidgeting about to find the thread of his argument. Reding put in an objection; he said that no one knew or cared about the inscription on the Monument, but religious veneration was paid to the two heads at St. John Lateran.

"Right," said Bateman, "that's just what I meant to say."

"Well," answered Willis, "as to the particular case--mind, I am taking your account of it, for I don't profess to know how the matter lies. But let us consider the extent of the mistake. There is no doubt in the world that at least they are the heads of martyrs; the only question is this, and no more, whether they are the very heads of the two Apostles. From time immemorial they have been preserved upon or under the altar as the heads of saints or martyrs; and it requires to know very little of Christian antiquities to be perfectly certain that they really are saintly relics, even though unknown. Hence the sole mistake is, that Catholics have venerated, what ought to be venerated anyhow, under a wrong name; perhaps have expected miracles (which they had a right to expect), and have experienced them (as they might well experience them), because they _were_ the relics of saints, though they were in error as to what saints. This surely is no great matter."

"You have made three assumptions," said Bateman; "first, that none but the relics of saints have been placed under altars; secondly, that these relics were always there; thirdly--thirdly--I know there was a third--let me see--"

"Most true," said Willis, interrupting him, "and I will help you to some others. I have assumed that there are Christians in the world called Catholics; again, that they think it right to venerate relics; but, my dear Bateman, these were the grounds, and not the point of our argument; and if they are to be questioned, it must be in a distinct dispute: but I really think we have had enough of disputation."

"Yes, Bateman," said Charles; "it is getting late. I must think of returning. Give us some tea, and let us begone."

"Go home?" cried Bateman; "why, we have just done dinner, and done nothing else as yet; I had a great deal to say."

However, he rang the bell for tea, and had the table cleared.

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        • Elucidations - The Stromata, Book 8
        • Fragments of Clemens Alexandrinus
        • Clemens Alexandrinus on the Salvation of the Rich Man
        • Elucidations - Clemens Alexandrinus on the Salvation of the Rich Man
    • Vol. 3 - Tertullian >
      • Section 1 - Apologetic - Tertullian >
        • The Apology
        • On Idolatry
        • The Shows, or De Spectaculis
        • The Chaplet, or De Corona
        • To Scapula
        • Ad Nationes - Book 1
        • Ad Nationes - Book 2
        • A Fragment Concerning the Execrable Gods of the Heathen
        • An Answer to the Jews
        • The Soul's Testimony
        • A Treatise on the Soul
      • Section 2 - Anti-Marcion - Tertullian >
        • The Prescription Against Heretics
        • The Five Books Against Marcion - Book 1
        • The Five Books Against Marcion - Book 2
        • The Five Books Against Marcion - Book 3
        • The Five Books Against Marcion - Book 4
        • The Five Books Against Marcion - Book 5
        • Against Hermogenes - Containing an Argument Against His Opinion that Matter is Eternal
        • Against the Valentinians
        • On the Flesh of Christ
        • On the Resurrection of the Flesh
        • Against Praxeas
        • Scorpiace
        • Against all Heresies
      • Section 3 - Ethical - Tertullian >
        • On Repentance
        • On Baptism
        • On Prayer
        • Ad Martyras
        • Introductory Notice to the Martyrdom of Perpetua and Felicitas
        • The Passion of the Holy Martyrs Perpetua and Felicitas
        • Of Patience
    • Vol. 4 - Tertullian, Minucius Felix, Commodianus, Origen >
      • Tertullian >
        • On the Pallium
        • On the Apparel of Women
        • On the Veiling of Virgins
        • To His Wife
        • On Exhortation to Chastity
        • On Monogamy
        • On Modesty
        • On Fasting (In Opposition to the Psychics)
        • De Fuga in Persecutione
        • Appendix
      • Minucius Felix >
        • The Octavius of Minucius Felix
  • Books
    • John Henry Cardinal Newman >
      • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine by John Henry Cardinal Newman >
        • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 1: Doctrinal Developments Viewed in Themselves >
          • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 1, Chapter 1: On the Development of Ideas
          • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 1, Chapter 2: On the Antecedent Argument in Behalf of Developments in Christian Doctrine
          • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 1, Chapter 3: On the Historical Argument in Behalf of the Existing Developments
          • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 1, Chapter 4: Instances in Illustration
        • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 2: Doctrinal Developments Viewed Relatively to Doctrinal Corruptions >
          • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 2, Chapter 5: Genuine Developments Contrasted with Corruptions
          • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 2, Chapter 6: Application of the Seven Notes to the Existing Developments of Christian Doctrine
          • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 2, Chapter 7: Application of the Second Note of a True Development
          • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 2, Chapter 8: Application of the Third Note of a True Development
          • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 2, Chapter 9: Application of the Fourth Note of a True Development
          • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 2, Chapter 10: Application of the Fifth Note of a True Development
          • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 2, Chapter 11: Application of the Sixth Note of a True Development
          • An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine - Part 2, Chapter 12: Application of the Seventh Note of a True Development
      • Apologia Pro Vita Sua By John Henry Cardinal Newman >
        • Apologia Pro Vita Sua, Part 1: Mr. Kingsley's Method of Disputation
        • Apologia Pro Vita Sua, Part 2: True Mode of Meeting Mr. Kingsley
        • Apologia Pro Vita Sua, Part 3: History of My Religious Opinions
        • Apologia Pro Vita Sua, Part 4: History of My Religious Opinions--1833 - 1839
        • Apologia Pro Vita Sua, Part 5: History of My Religious Opinions--1839 - 1841
        • Apologia Pro Vita Sua, Part 6: History of My Religious Opinions--1841 - 1845
        • Apologia Pro Vita Sua, Part 7: General Answer to Mr. Kingsley
        • Apologia Pro Vita Sua, Appendix: Answer in Detail to Mr. Kingsley's Accusations
      • The Idea of a University Defined and Illustrated by John Henry Cardinal Newman >
        • The Idea of a University, Discourse 1: Introductory
        • The Idea of a University, Discourse 2: Theology A Branch Of Knowledge
        • The Idea of a University, Discourse 3: Bearing Of Theology On Other Branches Of Knowledge
        • The Idea of a University, Discourse 4: Bearing Of Other Branches Of Knowledge On Theology
        • The Idea of a University, Discourse 5: Knowledge Its Own End
        • The Idea of a University, Discourse 6: Knowledge Viewed In Relation To Learning
        • The Idea of a University, Discourse 7: Knowledge Viewed In Relation To Professional Skill
        • The Idea of a University, Discourse 8: Knowledge Viewed In Relation To Religion
        • The Idea of a University, Discourse 9: Duties Of The Church Towards Knowledge
        • University Subjects, Discussed in Occasional Lectures and Essays >
          • Lecture 1 - Christianity And Letters. A Lecture in the School of Philosophy and Letters
          • Lecture 2 - Literature. A Lecture in the School of Philosophy and Letters
          • Lecture 3 - English Catholic Literature
          • Lecture 4 - Elementary Studies
          • Lecture 5 - A Form Of Infidelity Of The Day
          • Lecture 6 - University Preaching
          • Lecture 7 - Christianity and Physical Science. A Lecture in the School of Medicine
          • Lecture 8 - Christianity And Scientific Investigation. A Lecture Written for the School of Science
          • Lecture 9 - Discipline Of Mind. An Address To The Evening Classes
          • Lecture 10 - Christianity And Medical Science. An Address to the Students Of Medicine
      • Loss and Gain: The Story of a Convert by John Henry Cardinal Newman >
        • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 1 >
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 2
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 3
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 4
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 5
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 6
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 7
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 8
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 9
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 10
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 11
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 12
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 13
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 14
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 15
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 16
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 17
          • Loss and Gain, Part 1, Chapter 18
        • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 1 >
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 2
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 3
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 4
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 5
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 6
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 7
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 8
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 9
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 10
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 11
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 12
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 13
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 14
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 15
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 16
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 17
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 18
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 19
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 20
          • Loss and Gain, Part 2, Chapter 21
        • Loss and Gain, Part 3, Chapter 1 >
          • Loss and Gain, Part 3, Chapter 2
          • Loss and Gain, Part 3, Chapter 3
          • Loss and Gain, Part 3, Chapter 4
          • Loss and Gain, Part 3, Chapter 5
          • Loss and Gain, Part 3, Chapter 6
          • Loss and Gain, Part 3, Chapter 7
          • Loss and Gain, Part 3, Chapter 8
          • Loss and Gain, Part 3, Chapter 9
          • Loss and Gain, Part 3, Chapter 10
          • Loss and Gain, Part 3, Chapter 11
    • Saint Augustine of Hippo >
      • The Confessions of Saint Augustine by Saint Augustine, Bishop of Hippo >
        • Book 1 - Confessions by St. Augustine
        • Book 2 - Confessions by St. Augustine
        • Book 3 - Confessions by St. Augustine
        • Book 4 - Confessions by St. Augustine
        • Book 5 - Confessions by St. Augustine
        • Book 6 - Confessions by St. Augustine
        • Book 7 - Confessions by St. Augustine
        • Book 8 - Confessions by St. Augustine
        • Book 9 - Confessions by St. Augustine
        • Book 10 - Confessions by St. Augustine
        • Book 11 - Confessions by St. Augustine
        • Book 12 - Confessions by St. Augustine
        • Book 13 - Confessions by St. Augustine
    • G K Chesterton >
      • Heretics by G.K. Chesterton >
        • Heretics, Chapter 1: Introductory Remarks on the Importance of Orthodoxy
        • Heretics, Chapter 2: On the Negative Spirit
        • Heretics, Chapter 3: On Mr. Rudyard Kipling and Making the World Small
        • Heretics, Chapter 4: Mr. Bernard Shaw
        • Heretics, Chapter 5: Mr. H.G. Wells and the Giants
        • Heretics, Chapter 6: Christmas and the Aesthetes
        • Heretics, Chapter 7: Omar and the Sacred Vine
        • Heretics, Chapter 8: The Mildness of the Yellow Press
        • Heretics, Chapter 9: The Moods of Mr. George Moore
        • Heretics, Chapter 10: On Sandals and Simplicity
        • Heretics, Chapter 11: Science and the Savages
        • Heretics, Chapter 12: Paganism and Mr. Lowes Dickinson
        • Heretics, Chapter 13: Celts and Celtophiles
        • Heretics, Chapter 14: On Certain Modern Writers and the Institution of the Family
        • Heretics, Chapter 15: On Smart Novelists and the Smart Set
        • Heretics, Chapter 16: On Mr. McCabe and a Divine Frivolity
        • Heretics, Chapter 17: On the Wit of Whistler
        • Heretics, Chapter 18: The Fallacy of the Young Nation
        • Heretics, Chapter 19: Slum Novelists and the Slums
        • Heretics, Chapter 20: Concluding Remarks on the Importance of Orthodoxy
      • Orthodoxy by G. K. Chesterton >
        • Orthodoxy, Chapter 1: Introduction in Defense of Everything Else
        • Orthodoxy, Chapter 2: The Maniac
        • Orthodoxy, Chapter 3: The Suicide of Thought
        • Orthodoxy, Chapter 4: The Ethics of Elfland
        • Orthodoxy, Chapter 5: The Flag of the World
        • Orthodoxy, Chapter 6: The Paradoxes of Christianity
        • Orthodoxy, Chapter 7: The Eternal Revolution
        • Orthodoxy, Chapter 8: The Romance of Orthodoxy
        • Orthodoxy, Chapter 9: Authority and the Adventurer
    • Saint Thomas Aquinas >
      • On Prayer and the Contemplative Life by St. Thomas Aquinas >
        • On Prayer, Question LXXXI: Of the Virtue of Religion
        • On Prayer, Question LXXXII: Of Devotion
        • On Prayer, Question LXXXIII: Of Prayer
        • On Prayer, Question LXXII: Of the Prayers of the Saints who are in Heaven
        • On Prayer, Question CLXXIX: Of the Division of Life into the Active and the Contemplative
        • On Prayer, Question CLXXX: Of the Contemplative Life
        • On Prayer, Question CLXXXI: Of the Active Life
        • On Prayer, Question CLXXXII: Of the Comparison between the Active and the Contemplative Life
        • On Prayer, Question CLXXXVI: On the Religious State
      • Summa Theologica Part 1 ("Prima Pars") by St. Thomas Aquinas >
        • Summa Theologica (Questions 1 - 26)
        • Summa Theologica: Treatise on the Most Holy Trinity (Questions 27 - 43)
        • Summa Theologica: Treatise on the Creation (Questions 44 - 49)
        • Summa Theologica: Treatise on the Angels (Questions 50 - 64)
        • Summa Theologica: Treatise on the Work of the Six Days (Questions 65 - 74)
        • Summa Theologica: Treatise on Man (Questions 75 - 102)
        • Summa Theologica: Treatise on the Conservation and Government of Creatures (Questions 103 - 119)
      • Summa Theologica Part 1-2 ("Prima Secundae") by St. Thomas Aquinas >
        • Summa Theologica Part 1-2 ("Prima Secundae"): Treatise on the Last End (Questions 1 - 5)
        • Summa Theologica Part 1-2 ("Prima Secundae"): Treatise on Human Acts: Acts Peculiar to Man (Questions 6 - 21)
        • Summa Theologica Part 1-2 ("Prima Secundae"): Treatise on the Passions (Questions 22 - 48)
        • Summa Theologica Part 1-2 ("Prima Secundae"): Treatise on Habits (Questions 49 - 54)
        • Summa Theologica Part 1-2 ("Prima Secundae"): Treatise on Habits in Particular (Questions 55 - 89): Good Habits, i.e., Virtues (Questions 55 - 70)
        • Summa Theologica Part 1-2 ("Prima Secundae"): Treatise on Habits in Particular (Questions 55 - 89): Evil Habits, i.e., Vices and Sin (Questions 71 - 89)
        • Summa Theologica Part 1-2 ("Prima Secundae"): Treatise on Law (Questions 90 - 108)
        • Summa Theologica Part 1-2 ("Prima Secundae"): Treatise on Grace (Questions 109 - 114)
      • Summa Theologica Part 2-2 ("Second Secundae") by St. Thomas Aquinas >
        • Summa Theologica Part 2-2 ("Second Secundae"): Treatise on the Theological Virtues (Questions 1 - 46)
        • Summa Theologica Part 2-2 ("Second Secundae"): Treatise on the Cardinal Virtues (Questions 47 - 122)
        • Summa Theologica Part 2-2 ("Second Secundae"): Treatise on Fortitude and Temperance (Questions 123 - 170)
        • Summa Theologica Part 2-2 ("Second Secundae"): Treatise on Gratuitous Graces (Questions 171 - 182)
        • Summa Theologica Part 2-2 ("Second Secundae"): Treatise on the States of Life (Questions 183 - 189)
      • Summa Theologica Third Part ("Tertia Pars") by St. Thomas Aquinas >
        • Summa Theologica Third Part ("Tertia Pars"): Treatise on the Incarnation (Questions 1 - 59)
        • Summa Theologica Third Part ("Tertia Pars"): Treatise on the Sacraments (Questions 60 - 90)
    • The Baltimore Catechism >
      • The Baltimore Catechism, Vol. 1
      • The Baltimore Catechism, Vol. 2
      • The Baltimore Catechism, Vol. 3
      • The Baltimore Catechism, Vol. 4
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