For,
in one word, since, according to the Pope and the bishops, "the
propositions are condemned in their proper and natural sense," they
cannot possibly be condemned in the sense of Jansenius, except on
the understanding that the sense of Jansenius is the same with the
proper and natural sense of these propositions; and this I maintain to
be purely a question of fact.
The question, then, still rests upon the point of fact, and cannot
possibly be tortured into one affecting the faith. But though
incapable of twisting it into a matter of heresy, you have it in
your power to make it a pretext for persecution, and might, perhaps,
succeed in this, were there not good reason to hope that nobody will
be found so blindly devoted to your interests as to countenance such a
disgraceful proceeding, or inclined to compel people, as you wish to
do, to sign a declaration that they condemn these propositions in
the sense of Jansenius, without explaining what the sense of Jansenius
is. Few people are disposed to sign a blank confession of faith. Now
this would really be to sign one of that description, leaving you to
fill up the blank afterwards with whatsoever you pleased, as you would
be at liberty to interpret according to your own taste the unexplained
sense of Jansenius. Let it be explained, then, beforehand, otherwise
we shall have, I fear, another version of your proximate power,
without any sense at all- abstrahendo ab omni sensu.
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