On the Imputation of Adam's First Sin · §327

Man. Post. Cap. VI: PLAC fountain of evils in race not God; last-end change

Shall I say frankly what differs between your opinion and mine? I aim that the fountain and cause of all the human race's evils be referred to the human race itself, not to God. But your opinion looks to attributing it to God Himself: which I, by the reverence I bear toward my Creator and Redeemer, cannot endure. Inherent vice is the fountain of all actual sins. It is agreed between us that it draws origin from Adam's first actual sin. But it is asked first: what is the reason why that first actual sin corrupted Adam? I ascribe it to the very nature of that first sin, which was a change of the highest good, or last end—that is, apostasy from God as envious and malevolent, and turning to creatures as to the highest good or last end, against God's word. And since whatever we desire is either an end or a means to an end, and the last end contains bound to itself all means and all subordinate ends, when it was changed there followed a universal change of all that was moral in Adam; which change a bad conscience fleeing and dreading God—as offended, as angry, as judge, as enemy—increased and confirmed. But you do not hesitate to ascribe whatever it is to God Himself, who withdrew righteousness from Adam and deprived him of uprightness and holiness, so as thus to punish the actual sin and satisfy His justice.

Latin

Vis dicam ingenue quid intersit inter tuam sententiam & meam? Ego eo tendo, ut omnium malorum generis humani fons & causa in ipsum genus humanum, non autem in Deum referatur. Tua vero sententia eo spectat, ut ipsi Deo attribuatur: quod ego, qua erga Creatorem & Redemptorem meum ducor reverentia, pati non possum. Vitium inhaerens fons est omnium peccatorum actualium. Constat inter nos id ducere originem a primo peccato actuali Adami. Sed quaeritur primo, quae sit ratio, cur primum peccatum actuale Adamum corruperit? Ego id ascribo ipsi illius primi peccati naturae, quod fuit mutatio summi boni, seu finis ultimi, hoc est, apostasia a Deo, tanquam invido & malevolo, & conversio ad creaturas tanquam ad summum bonum, seu finem ultimum, contra Dei verbum. Quoniam autem quicquid appetimus est, aut finis, aut medium ad finem, & media omnia, omnesque fines subordinatos finis ultimus continet sibi colligatos, eo mutato secuta est universalis mutatio eorum omnium, quae in Adamo moralia fuerunt, quam mutationem subsecuta mala conscientia Deum refugiens & horrens, ut offensum, ut iratum, ut iudicem, ut hostem, auxit & confirmavit. Tu vero non dubitas id, quicquid est, ipsi Deo adscribere, qui iustitiam subtraxerit Adamo, eumque privaverit rectitudine & sanctitate, ut sic puniret peccatum actuale, & iustitiae suae satisfaceret.

About this text

New English, free to read. Open any section below.

English follows the locked 1661 Saumur Latin of Capita I–XIV partial through Man. Post. Caput IX (eph-ho / eph-ho pantes) before eph-ho / eph-ho pantes, reconstructed from IA PDF page images with Vision OCR and pdftotext as check. No modern English was copied. Cap. IX deepen+ remain.

Catalogue & scope

IA deimputationepri00lapl. Densify: Capita I–XII + Caput XIV + Man. Post. Cap. II–VI through Cap. X Rom. 5:14 tip. Not whole Disputatio; Cap. X Rom. 5:14+ / ~494 pp Disputatio remain.

Witnesses

This is an AI-assisted study translation. Source fidelity and completeness have not been independently certified. Open Latin on each section (or the Latin source witness link) for the source text. This is not a complete critical edition.