Bellarmine · De Controversiis · On the Sacraments in General · Book II: On the Effect, Number, and Ceremonies of the Sacraments

Chapter 5: The third class of arguments: from Councils

Our translation, from the Latin of the Opera Omnia (Paris: Vivès, 1870–74), vol. III, De Sacramentis in Genere, Book II: On the Effect, Number, and Ceremonies of the Sacraments. The Latin source text is public domain; this English rendering is released with the site. Scripture quotations follow Bellarmine's Vulgate citations, rendered in Douay-Rheims wording where he quotes exactly. Click “Show the Latin” for the original (raw OCR of the scan; scanning errors remain — the scan itself is the authority).

The third class of arguments, from Councils. The Council of Nicaea, which lately translated from the Greek was published by Alphonsus Pisanus, in the chapter which is entitled [diatyposis], the doctrine on Baptism, before the eighth canon: “Our Baptism,” it says, “is not to be considered with the eyes of the body, but with the eyes of the mind; thou seest water, consider the power of God hidden in the waters.” And below: “He who was baptized descended indeed liable to sins, held in the corruption of servitude, but ascended from that servitude and free from sins, a son of God, and heir, and co-heir of Christ.”

The first Constantinopolitan Council, in the Creed: “We believe in one Baptism unto the remission of sins.” The Council of Milevis chapter 2: “Little ones, who could not yet commit any sins in themselves, are therefore truly baptized unto the remission of sins, that in them there may be cleansed by regeneration what they contracted by generation.” But certainly in little ones Baptism cannot be the cause of the remission of sins by exciting faith. The second Council of Orange, canon 25: “This also, according to the Catholic faith, we believe: that, grace having been received through Baptism, all the baptized, Christ helping and cooperating, can and ought, if they be willing faithfully to labor, to fulfill the things which pertain to salvation.” Note that this cannot be expounded of the excitation of faith. For a little below the same Council says that by God faith is first inspired, that we may faithfully seek the Sacraments of Baptism. Besides, even if faith, according to the adversaries, justifies from sins, yet it does not give the grace of working well. But Baptism, according to this Council, gives the grace of working well. To these add the more recent Councils, the Florentine and the Tridentine.

CAPUT  V. 

Tertia  classis  argumentorum  ex  Conciliis. 

Concilium  Nicaenum,  quod  nuper  e  Graeco 
versum,  editum  est  ab  Alfonso  Pisano  in  ca¬ 
put,  quod  inscribitur  SiaTurcocrtf,  doctrina  de 
Baptismo,  ante  8.  canonem  :  «  Baptisma 
nostrum,  inquit,  non  oculis  corporis  consi¬ 
derandum  est,  sed  mentis  oculis  ;  aquam  vi¬ 
des,  considera  virtutem  Dei  in  aquis  abscon¬ 
ditam.  ii  Et  infra  :  «  Descendit  quidem  is, 
qui  baptizabatur,  peccatis  obnoxius,  servi¬ 
tutis  corruptione  detentus,  ascendit  autem 
ab  ea  servitute  et  peccatis  liber,  filius  Dei, 

'  et  haeres,  et  cohaeres  Christi.» 

Concilium  Constantinopolitanum  I,in  Sym¬ 
bolo  :  «  Credimus  unum  Baptisma  in  remis¬ 
sionem  peccatorum.  » 

Concilium  Milevitanum  cap.  2:  «  Parvuli, 
qui  nihil  peccatorum  in  semetipsis  adhuc 
committere  potuerunt,  ideo  in  remissionem 
peccatorum  veraciter  baptizantur,  ut  in  eis 
regeneratione  mundetur,  quod  generatione 
traxerunt.  »  At  certe  in  parvulis  Baptismus 
non  potest  esse  causa  remissionis  peccato¬ 
rum  excitando  fidem. 

Concilium  Arausicanum  II,  canone  25  : 
«  Hoc  etiam  secundum  fidem  Catholicam 
credimus,  quod  accepta  per  Baptismum  gra¬ 
tia,  omnes  baptizati,  Christo  adjuvante  et 
cooperante,  quae  ad  salutem  pertinent,  pos¬ 
sint  et  debent,  si  fideliter  laborare  voluerint, 
adimplere.  »  Nota,  non  posse  id  exponi  de 
excitatione  fidei.  Nam  paulo  infra  idem  Con¬ 
cilium  dicit,  a  Deo  prius  fidem  inspirari,  ut 
Baptismi  Sacramenta  fideliter  requiramus. 
Praeterea  etiamsi  fides,  secundum  adversa¬ 
rios,  justificet  a  peccatis,  tamen  non  dat 
gratiam  bene  operandi.  At  Baptismus  ex 
hoc  Concilio  dat  gratiam  bene  operandi. 

His  adde  Concilia  recentiora, Florentinum, 
et  Tridentinum. 


(1)  Luc.  VII,  5C;  1.  Petr.  III,  21;  Joau.  V,  24;  Joan.  VI,  52;  Act.  XV,  9;  Eph.  V;  Rom.  III,  28; 
Tit.  III,  5;  Rom.  V,  1  :  Joan.  III,  3. 


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