Tertullian — On Repentance 1
I. [1] This sort of people — which we ourselves also formerly were, blind without the Lord’s light — know by nature that repentance is a certain passion of mind that comes from offense at a prior judgment. [2] But they are as far from its reason as from the author of reason himself. For reason is a matter of God, because God the maker of all provided, arranged, and ordered nothing without reason, and willed nothing to be handled and understood without reason. [3] Therefore those who are ignorant of God must also be ignorant of his matter, because no one’s treasure at all stands open to outsiders. And so, ferrying the whole conversation of life without the helm of reason, they do not know how to avoid the storm impending on the age. [4] But how unreasonably they turn about in the act of repentance will be enough to show even by this one point: they apply it even to their good deeds. They repent of faith, love, simplicity, liberality, patience, mercy: [5] according as something has fallen into ingratitude, they curse themselves because they did good, and they fix in the heart especially that species of repentance which is imposed on the best works, taking care to remember not to offer any good again. Against the repentance of evils they lean more lightly: in short they more easily offend by the same than do right by the same.
Latin
I. [1] Paenitentiam hoc genus homines quod et ipsi retro fuimus, caeci sine domini lumine, natura tenus norunt passionem animi quandam esse quae obveniat de offensa sententiae prioris. [2] Ceterum a ratione eius tantum absunt quantum ab ipso rationis auctore. Quippe res dei ratio quia deus omnium conditor nihil non ratione providit disposuit ordinavit nihilque non ratione tractari intellegique voluit. [3] Igitur ignorantes quique deum rem quoque eius ignorent necesse est quia nullius omnino thesaurus extraneis patet. Itaque universam vitae conversationem sine gubernaculo rationis transfretantes inminentem saeculo procellam evitare non norunt. [4] Quam autem in paenitentiae actu inrationabiliter deversentur, vel uno isto satis erit expedire cum illam etiam in bonis factis suis adhibent. Paenitet fidei amoris implicitatis liberalitatis patientiae misericordiae: [5] prout quid in ingratiam cecidit, semetipsos execrantur quia benefecerint, eamque maxime paenitentiae speciem quae optimis operibus inrogatur in corde figunt meminisse curantes ne quid boni rursus praestent. Contra paenitentiae malorum levius incubant: denique facilius per eandem delinquunt quam per eandem recte faciunt.