abandon him? by no means; he sent an angel from heaven to tell him whom to apply to in order to be fully instructed in the knowledge and faith of Jesus Christ, and to be received into his Church by baptism. Now, what God did in these two cases, he is no less able to do in all others, and has a thousand ways in his wisdom, to conduct souls who are truly serious to the knowledge of the truth, and to salvation. And though such a soul were in the remotest wilds of the world, God could be in no difficulty to send a Philip to him, or an angel from heaven to instruct him, or by the superabundance of his internal grace, could infuse into him the knowledge of the truth, or, by numberless other ways unknown to us. The great affair is, that we carefully do our part in complying with what he gives us; for, of this we are certain, that if we be not wanting to him, he will never be wanting to us, but as he begins the good work in us, will also perfect it, if we be careful to correspond, and to put no hinderance to his designs.

Q. 25. Are none brought to the faith and Church of Christ, but those who correspond as they ought with the graces received before?

A. God forbid this were the case; for, though it be most certain that God will never fail to bring all those to the faith and Church of Christ, whether Heathens, Jews, Turks, or Heretics, who do faithfully correspond to all the graces he bestows upon them beforehand, yet he has no where tied himself down to bestow that singular mercy on none but these. If this were the case, how few indeed would receive it! But God, to shew the infinite riches of his goodness and mercy, bestows it on great numbers of the most undeserving; he bestowed it even upon many of the hard-hearted Jews who crucified Jesus Christ, and of the priests

who persecuted him to death, even though they had obstinately opposed all the endeavours he had used beforehand, by his doctrine and miracles, to convert them. In this he acts as Lord and Master, and as a free disposer of his own gifts; he gives to all what helps are necessary and sufficient in their present state; to those who co-operate with these helps he never fails to give more abundantly; and, in order to shew the riches of his mercy, to numbers of the most undeserving, he bestows his most singular favours for their conversion. Hence none have cause to complain; all ought to be solicitous in co-operating with what they have; none ought to despair on account of their past ingratitude, but be assured that God, who is rich in mercy, will yet have mercy on them, if they return to him; and those only ought to fear and tremble who remain obstinate in their evil ways, who continue to resist the calls of his mercy, and put off their conversion from day to day. For, though his infinite mercy knows no bounds in pardoning all sins, however numerous and grievous, if we repent, yet the offers of his mercy are limited, and if we exceed these limits by our obstinacy, there will be no more mercy for us; the time of mercy is fixed for every one, and if we do not embrace its offers within that time, the gates of mercy will be shut against us; when the bridegroom is once entered into the marriage chamber, the doors are shut, and the foolish virgins who were not ready in time, are for ever excluded, with this dreadful reproach from Jesus Christ, I know you not. Depart from me, ye workers of iniquity. Seeing, therefore, that no man knows how long the time of mercy will last for him, no man ought to delay a moment; if he misses the present offer, perhaps it may be the last. That hour will come like a thief in the night, when we

least expect it, as Christ himself assures us, and therefore he commands us to be always ready.

Q. 26. What opinion, then, may be formed of the salvation of any one, in particular, who is out of the true Church of Christ, and lives in a false religion?

A. In answer to this, I ask you another question: What opinion would you form of the salvation of one who is living in the open state of mortal sin, such as adultery, robbery, impurity, or the like? No man could pronounce, and say, that that man will certainly be lost; but every one must say, that, if he lives and dies in that state without repentance, he cannot be saved; and if it be the will of God positively to save him, he will, before he dies, give him the grace of sincere repentance, because God Almighty expressly requires from sinners a sincere repentance, as a condition without which they cannot be saved, "Except ye repent," says he, " ye shall all likewise perish," Luke, xiii. 3. The same is to be said of a person who is out of the true Church, and lives in a false religion; if he dies in that state, he cannot be saved; and if it be the will of God actually to save him, he will undoubtedly bring him to the true faith, and make him a member of the Church of Christ, before he leaves this world; and the reason is the same as in the other case. God, as we have seen above at large, requires of all men to be united to the Church by true faith, as a condition of salvation, and therefore daily "adds to the Church such as shall be saved," Luke, ii. 47. Now, let a man be ever so great an adversary to the Church of Christ at present, or ever so great a sinner though a member of the Church, yet, as no man can know what God may be pleased to do for either, before they die, so no man can pronounce and say, that either the one or the other will be

lost; for, if God pleases, he may give the light of true faith to the one, and the grace of true repentance to the other, even at their last moments, and save them.

Q. 27. But, suppose a person live in a false religion, and dies without being reunited to the communion of the Church of Christ, can it be said of such a one that he is certainly lost?

A. I must here put another question. Suppose a great sinner continues to live in his sins, and dies without any appearance of repentance, could you say of such a one that he is certainly lost? Čertainly not; because no man knows, nor can know, what may have past between God and his soul in his last moments; all that can be said is, that, if he has actually died without repentance, he is certainly lost; but if God, of his infinite goodness, has given him the grace of a perfect repentance, and he has corresponded on his part, with so great a favour, he will be saved. In the same manner, suppose a person living in a false religion dies without giving any appearance of embracing the true faith, or without being reconciled to the Church of Christ, we can never say for certain, of such a one, that he is lost; all that we can say must be under the same condition as in the other case, if he has actually died as he had lived, separated from the true Church of Christ, and without the true faith of Christ, he cannot be saved; but if God, in his great mercy, has given him, in his last moments, light and grace to see and embrace the true faith, and he has corresponded with so great a favour as God requires of him, he will be saved. Now, as no man knows, nor can know, what may have passed in the soul of either the one or the other at their last moments, so no man can pronounce of either that he is lost for certain.

Q. 28. But, in the case proposed, if a person, in his last moments, shall receive the light of faith from God, and embrace it with all his heart, would this be sufficient to make him a member of the true Church in the sight of God?

A. Most undoubtedly; the case is the same in this as in baptism. Though Jesus Christ expressly says, "Except a man be born again, of water and the holy Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God," John iii., which establishes the absolute necessity of baptism for salvation; yet, suppose a Heathen, or Turk, or Jew, should be instructed in the faith of Christ, and embrace it with all his heart, but die suddenly without baptism, or be taken away by his infidel friends, or put in an absolute impossibility of receiving baptism, and die in the above dispositions, with a sincere repentance and desire of baptism, this person will undoubtedly receive all the fruits of baptism from God; and therefore, is said to be baptised in desire. In the same manner, suppose a person brought up in a false religion, embraces with all his heart, the light of the true faith, which God gives him in his last moments, as it is absolutely impossible for him, in that state, to join the external communion of the Church in the eyes of men, yet he will surely be considered as united to her in the sight of God, by means of the true faith which he embraces, and his desire of being united to the Church, if it were in his power.

Q. 29. Is there any reason to believe, that God Almighty often bestows the light of faith, or the grace of repentance, at the hour of death upon those who have lived all their lives in heresy, or in sins?

A. That God can, in an instant, convert the most obdurate heart, either to the true faith, or to repentance, is manifest from the examples of St.