Page:Essays on Catholicism, Liberalism, and Socialism.djvu/76

by me, lose thyself if thou wilt. I will not deprive thee of what I have given to thee, and the day that I created thee out of nothing I gave to thee free will." Such was the pact that God made with man, which, by the grace of God, was freely accepted by him; and in this way the dogmatical obscurity of Catholicism saved its historical evidence from certain shipwreck. Faith, having a greater conformity than evidence with human reason, saved this reason from destruction. Truth had to be proposed by faith, in order to be accepted by man, who is naturally disposed to rebel against the tyranny of evidence.

The same Spirit that indicates to us what we must believe, and gives us the strength to accept it, likewise makes known to us what we must do, gives us the wish to perform it, and assists us in the performance. The wretchedness of man is so great, his abjection so profound, his ignorance so absolute, and his impotency so radical, that he cannot of himself form a good intention, nor plan any great design, nor conceive an earnest desire of anything that will please God or save his soul. On the other hand, his dignity is so great, his nature so noble, his origin so excellent, his end so glorious, that God himself thinks with his thought, sees with his eyes, walks with his feet, and works with his hands. It is God who supports man that he may walk, upholds him that he may not falter, and gives his angels charge over him, that he may not fall. And if, notwithstanding all this, he should fall, He lifts him up, restores him, gives him the wish to persevere, and aids him to do so. For this reason, St. Augustin says, we believe that no one finds the way of salvation unless God calls him, and that no one after being called performs works unto sal-