Collation 3

COLLATION III.

On the second precept of the Decalogue.

Summary.

Introduction: threefold reason why discourse should be made concerning the precepts, 1.

Repetition of the preceding collations, 2-6.

Confirmation through Scripture, 7.

What was omitted concerning the Jews, who charge Christians with three transgressions of the first precept, is supplied, 8. 9.

Solutions to these objections, 10-14.

On the second precept, Part I. Literal explanation of the same. Perjury is prohibited: three conditions of a good oath, 15.

These three conditions are explained with regard to the assertory oath, 16-19.

The objection of the Manichaeans is resolved, 20.

Likewise, three ends with threefold utility in the promissory oath, 21-23.

Part II. Spiritual explanation of the same. In three ways the name of God is not taken in vain, namely for effecting, that is, in the Sacraments; for promising, in vows; for expressing, in oaths, 24. - Likewise, in three ways it is taken in vain: first, through the frustration of a Sacrament, and this in three ways, 25. - Second, through the breaking of a vow made, and this again in three ways, 26.

Third, through the utterance of blasphemous speech, likewise in three ways, 27.

1. Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain: for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes the name of God in vain.

I am thy servant: give me understanding, that I may know thy testimonies. Therefore I have loved thy commandments above gold and topaz. Therefore I was directed toward all thy commandments; every wicked way I have hated. The Prophet David in these words shows for what reason we ought to speak of the commandments of God, and this he shows through a threefold reason. The first is that we may be inflamed to the love of the divine commandments; for nothing is so necessary as to love the law of God and his commandments. And on account of this he said: Therefore I have loved thy commandments above gold and topaz.

Second, we ought to speak of the commandments of God, that we may better know them. For the more frequently a man walks along a certain way, the better he knows it. Whence Gregory says that a man comes to know the way by walking it more frequently. But the way of going to the fatherland is through the observance of the commandments; but a man cannot keep the commandments of God unless he knows them, and he does not know them except by hearing discourse about them. Therefore David says: Give me understanding, and I shall learn thy commandments. - Third, we ought to speak of the commandments of God, that we may hate iniquity. Therefore it is said in the Psalm: Therefore I was directed toward all thy commandments; every wicked way I have hated. For when a man begins to know iniquity or sin and the disorders of sin which are against God, then he begins to detest sin. - We ought therefore to speak of the commandments, that we may love and understand them and be directed on the way to the fatherland and hate iniquity. And that we may be able to attain these three things, therefore at the beginning let us beseech the Lord, etc.

2. I said that there are ten commandments of the Decalogue, which are the foundations of all laws, and that there are two tablets, namely the first and the second. In the first tablet are contained three precepts ordering us toward God, who is three and one, and this according to three things appropriated to the three divine persons. For in the Godhead there is paternity, filiation, and procession: and according to these there are three things appropriated to the three divine persons. To the Father is appropriated majesty, to the Son truth, to the Holy Spirit goodness. These three correspond to a threefold genus of cause, namely the efficient, exemplary, and final cause. To the Father is attributed the efficient cause, to the Son the exemplary cause, because he is the image of the Father, and to the Holy Spirit the final cause. In the Father there is supreme majesty to be humbly adored, in the Son supreme truth to be faithfully professed, in the Holy Spirit supreme goodness to be sincerely loved. And according to these three, as has been said, there are in the first tablet three commandments. The first is: You shall not have strange gods before me; the second is: You shall not take the name of your God in vain; the third is: Remember to keep holy the Sabbath day.

3. Concerning the first commandment it was said that certain things are set forth beforehand for the knowledge of the commandment, certain things are appended for the observance of the commandment, and certain things are interposed for the integrity of the commandment.

It was also said that in this word: You shall not have strange gods before me, all idolatry with respect to intellectual creatures is prohibited. Secondly, idolatry with respect to figments of the human mind is prohibited, when it adds: You shall not make a graven image. Thirdly, idolatry with respect to corporeal nature is prohibited, and this with respect to things celestial, terrestrial, and infernal, when it says: Nor any likeness of those things that are in the heavens, etc.

4. It was also said that in this word: You shall not have strange gods before me, all pacts with demons are prohibited, whether they be through incantations of words, or through inscriptions of characters and images, or through the immolation of sacrifices. In these three consist all the magical arts.

5. It was also said that in the second word: You shall not make a graven image, all superstitious inventions of errors are prohibited. And concerning this it was said that every error arises either from the wicked audacity of philosophical investigation, or from the perverse understanding of Sacred Scripture, or from the disordered appetite of human carnality. On account of the first, errors arise among the philosophers, such as positing the eternity of the world and things of this kind. On account of the second, errors arise among the heretics, who hold false opinions concerning the Trinity and the Holy Spirit. On account of the third, errors arise among the Epicureans, who say that there is no other life but this one.

6. In the third statement: Nor any likeness of those things that are in the heavens etc., all perverse valuations of creatures are prohibited. And concerning this it was said that every perverse valuation of creatures is either by reason of sublimity, or by reason of sufficiency, or by reason of delight. In the first way it is the idolatry of the proud, in the second way of the avaricious, in the third way of the lustful. These things were said concerning the first commandment.

Now I was saying that there is a threefold idolatry: namely, pacts with demons, superstitious inventions of errors, and perverse valuations of creatures. In pacts with demons there is the supreme malice of all vices and the root of all evils.

7. From these three idolatries proceed all falsities and disordered states of sin, by which the wretched soul is subjected to demons; which is well signified in Revelation, where it is said: I saw coming out of the mouth of the dragon and out of the mouth of the beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet three unclean spirits in the form of frogs. By the dragon are signified pacts with demons, by the false prophet the superstitious inventions of errors, by the beast the perverse valuations of creatures.

And all these things are prohibited in the first commandment. And just as God in the first creation of things in a certain manner produced all things, so also in the first commandment he prohibits all evils, although for greater explanation he sets forth multiple commandments.

8. I omitted to say that the Jews sometimes reproach us and say that we do not properly observe that commandment, and they charge us with transgressing it. For in this commandment three statements are contained: You shall not have strange gods before me

you shall not make a graven image

nor any likeness of those things that are in the heavens etc.

9. Concerning the first statement, namely: You shall not have strange gods, they say that the Lord says: Hear, O Israel, the Lord your God is one; and you posit a Trinity, namely the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. — Concerning the second they say that we make a graven image, because our churches are full of images.

Concerning the third: nor any likeness etc., in which God prohibits worshipping corporeal nature, they say that we worship a morsel of bread; and this seems to them most absurd.

10. To the first objection, that we worship three gods, I say that if we worshipped three persons such that we said there were three gods and a threefold essence, it would necessarily follow that we worshipped three gods. But we worship the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, one God and one essence, but three persons. Whence, just as we see that in man there is a plurality of natures, namely intellectual and corporeal, and yet there is but one person, so conversely in the divine there is unity of essence and plurality of persons.

11. A certain Jew said: You say that God has a Son; why do you not give Him a wife? — These Jews understand in the most base manner. God the Father has a Word and the Holy Spirit: indeed He has a Word, through which He made all things; and He has the Holy Spirit, through whom He preserves all things. The Word flows forth from the one who speaks and is God from God. Likewise the Holy Spirit is spirated from the Father and the Son and is God and in God. The Holy Spirit alone is the one who searches the depths of hearts, and He is God.

Hence the person who wishes to understand these things and to speak about them must have the most elevated thoughts, not earthbound ones: for otherwise he cannot understand the most exalted things concerning God. For when we posit the Trinity, we do not posit Christ as a mere man, but God with man.

12. Concerning the second, which says: You shall not make a graven image, they object that we make graven images, because we have many images in our churches. I say that it is impossible for the Divinity to be carved; but we make an effigy of Christ — of Christ, I say, incarnate, and we adore that effigy.

But it must be understood that there is a twofold adoration: one which is called dulia, another which is called latria. With the adoration of dulia we can adore all those in whom there is power, wisdom, and holiness: and thus we adore princes, prelates, and masters as those in whom there is power and wisdom; likewise those who have the excellence of prophecy, as those in whom there is wisdom: and thus that captain of fifty adored Elijah.

Likewise, we thus adore the Saints who are in the homeland, as those in whom there is eminent holiness.

Similarly, the adoration of dulia is to be shown to images, not insofar as it is an image or painting, but by reason of that which is signified through it. — But to God alone is the adoration of latria to be shown.

13. Concerning the third thing which they oppose and which they most abhor, namely concerning the Body of Christ: this was most secret, but now it has been promulgated to all. — Some once said that God was not present there except as in a sign. But it must be understood that at the utterance of the word of the priest and the intention of the one speaking, the substance of the bread is immediately converted into the true Body of Christ, which has a soul united with the Divinity: and this is clear. — But the Jew says: how can this be? I say that He who can separate substance from accidents can bring it about that the substance which is under alien accidents does not appear to our senses. Hence I say that we adore the true Body of Christ and God, three and one; and in this the virtue, power, wisdom, and goodness of God are manifested. But the Jew errs who believes he can judge of this in an earthbound manner.

14. I have heard that there was a certain conjurer of demons. One day, when he was invoking a demon in the midst of certain persons who wished to obtain something from the demon, a certain priest passed by carrying the Body of Christ, and immediately the demon bowed down before him, and likewise on his return. And the conjurer said: whence is this? You have forbidden me to adore Christ, and yet you adore him? The demon replied: I did so unwillingly. Is it not written: At the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, on earth, and under the earth?

These things have been said concerning the first commandment.

15. You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain. Just as in the first commandment humble adoration of the supreme majesty is commanded, so in this second commandment faithful confession of the supreme truth is commanded, and the denial of truth is forbidden. In the Old Testament it is said that he who swears in the name of God should swear and not perjure himself. For to perjure is the same as to forswear, and this is to take the name of God in vain.

Jeremiah says: And you shall swear: the Lord lives, in truth and in judgment and in justice; and the Gloss says there that "an oath ought to have three companions: truth, judgment, and justice."

16. First, I say, an oath ought to be made with truth; whence he says: You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, that is, without truth.

Now it must be understood that there is a twofold oath, namely assertory and promissory, such that there is a certain oath given as testimony and a certain oath given as a promise. An assertory oath is made thus: I assert this to you and testify to it by the witness of divine truth.

17. Now this assertory oath must first possess truth. Truth is present in an assertory oath when a man does not deny what is true, nor affirm what is false, nor knowingly assert what is doubtful; for speech is indicative of those things which are in the heart. But do you know what it means when a man testifies to something false by the witness of divine truth? It is to say that he lies and that divine truth lies along with him. And this is the first way of taking the name of God in vain, namely, when we deny the truth.

18. Second, an assertory oath must be made with justice. It is made with justice when it is not made against a commandment of the divine law, nor against a precept of holy Mother Church, nor to the detriment of one's own salvation or that of another. And he who swears against these three swears rashly and sins in a twofold manner: both because he swears and because he keeps the oath.

19. Third, it is necessary that judgment accompany an assertory oath, so that there be in the mind a discernment of truth and justice, namely, whether the oath is true or false, just or unjust, fruitful or unfruitful. Whence, if I swear without judgment, not discerning among these three, I swear rashly. — These three companions ought to be present in an assertory oath.

20. But the Manicheans assail us and say that we ought not to swear at all, because it is said in the New Testament, namely in Matthew: You shall not swear falsely; and it follows: But I say to you, not to swear at all. But let your speech be: yes yes, no no.

I certainly say that in certain cases or for certain reasons it is quite lawful to swear. But the heretics do not rightly attend to the force of the words. For it is one thing to say: "not to swear at all," and another to say: "at all not to swear" — just as it is one thing to say: "a certain man does not run," and another: "not a certain man runs." At all not to swear is the same as in no way to swear, and not to swear at all is the same as not to swear in every way, but for certain reasons.

21. Second, the name of God ought not to be taken in vain in a promissory oath. Now a promissory oath is made in three ways, namely for promoting good, for preserving fidelity, and for entering into mutual peace. In the first way, inferiors swear to superiors; in the second way, equals to equals; in the third way, superiors to inferiors. By the first oath the Apostle swore, saying in Romans 1: God is my witness, whom I serve in my spirit. In the second way, Laban swore fidelity to Jacob. In the third way, superiors swear to protect the people. — From the first oath a threefold benefit results: faith in the intellect, love in the affections, and peace in effect. For these three reasons an oath is made for promoting good.

22. In the second way, a promissory oath is made for preserving fidelity, and this is done in three ways, namely for restraining malice, for settling controversy, and for clearing away infamy.

First, I say, it is made for restraining malice, so that a man may neither deny the true nor affirm the false; and this is the reason for the usefulness of the oath. — Second, it is made for settling controversy. Whence the Apostle says to the Hebrews: The end of all controversy is an oath.

Third, it is made for clearing away infamy. Whence in Deuteronomy it is said that the elders had to clear themselves by oath when a dead body was found.

For these three reasons an oath is made for preserving fidelity.

23. In the third way, a promissory oath is made for entering into mutual peace: and in this is understood the restraint of all mortal sins; because "every true oath is dangerous, a false one is pernicious, and no oath is safe." And for this reason it is said in Ecclesiasticus: Let not your mouth become accustomed to swearing. — This is the literal understanding of the words.

24. But the spiritual understanding of this precept is this: that we take the name of God not in vain in three ways, namely for effecting, for promising, and for expressing.

First, I say, we take up the name of God not in vain for effecting, as in the Sacraments, when it is said in baptism: I baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

Second, we take up the name of our God not in vain for promising, as when I promise to go to Saint James, or to enter religious life, by an oath.

Third, we take up the name of God not in vain for expressing, as when we speak with an oath.

25. Conversely, we take up the name of God in vain in three ways: first, through frustration of a Sacrament received; second, through breaking of a vow made; third, through uttering of blasphemous speech.

First, we take up the name of God in vain through frustration of a Sacrament received; and according to this there is a threefold degree of taking the name of God in vain. The first is when someone does not believe in the Sacrament, like a heretic. Second, when one believes but does not dispose himself for the Sacrament, like a usurer. Third, when someone does not preserve the grace received in the Sacrament, like one who afterward sins. — Hear, you who are marked with the Christian name: the character is then imprinted upon you through the power of the name of God; and when you afterward sin, you empty out the power of the Sacrament. Of such persons the Apostle says to Titus: They profess to know God, but by their deeds they deny Him; and thus you trample upon the Son of God and treat as polluted the blood of the covenant, you who were washed in the blood of Christ!

26. The second mode of taking the name of God in vain is through breaking of a vow made. And here there is likewise a threefold degree. The first is through irrational delay, as when I promise to go to Saint James by an oath and do not assign myself a fixed term, and thus always procrastinate.

In the second way, breaking of a vow occurs through a contrary will, as when someone promises something to God and afterward repents of it. Against such persons it is said in Deuteronomy: If anything has proceeded from your lips, you shall not make it void.

In the third way, breaking of a vow occurs through apostatic rebellion, as when a man apostatizes from religious life.

The first of these modes is evil, the second worse, the third worst, because it is said: An apostate man is a worthless man; on account of which it is said in Ecclesiastes: If you have vowed anything to God, do not delay to pay it; for an unfaithful and foolish promise displeases God. And this is so when time and hour and day and year were calling out.

27. In the third way, we take up the name of God in vain through uttering of blasphemous speech; and this occurs in three ways: first, when someone, speaking of God, uses cursing speech, as when he curses God.

The second mode is through mendacious speech, when someone denies what is true of God, or affirms what is false; because Anselm says that the nobler part of every contradiction is to be attributed to God. - The third mode is through reproachful speech, such as when someone speaks of the lower members of Christ, he blasphemes most wickedly, even if he speaks the truth, and despises Christ in that He was humble and assumed our nature.

And such persons have been destroyed by divine judgment. For Gregory narrates that a certain boy of six years was accustomed to blaspheme the name of the Lord. One day, when he was blaspheming and was in the lap of his father, he was seized by demons and carried into hell. On account of which it is said in Leviticus: Whoever shall have blasphemed the name of the Lord, let him surely die.

It is now clear in what ways the name of God is taken in vain.