The Life of St. Francis Xavier By Daniello Bartoli
On their arrival at the palace they found an immense concourse of the nobility awaiting them. The bonzes wished to resume the points already discussed and judged; but the king refused to allow this, and accordingly they proceeded to more difficult and subtle points, taken chiefly from the discourses which they had heard given by the saint.
The first difficulty was this:—"When God created the angels, he either foresaw that Lucifer and his accomplices would rebel, or he did not foresee it. If he did not foresee, you must admit his ignorance; in which case he is not all-perfect, as you affirm. If he did foresee it, he must either be accused of cruelty or malice, since he willed the sin of those unfortunate beings; and, with the sin, he must have willed their ruin." On hearing this blasphemous proposition, the saint turned to the Portuguese captain who sat nest to him, and said, "Observe how the devil speaks in his own favor by the mouth of this man!"
The second question was to the following effect: —"When God created Adam, he either foresaw his fall, or he did not." From which they drew the same conclusion as before.
The last query was this :—"Since, after the first sin, God was pleased to promise mankind a remedy, why did he allow so many ages to pass before the Incarnate Word came forth on earth? What fault had they been guilty of who lived before the coming of the remedy? And why were they doomed to perish? Such partiality is unworthy of a God whom you represent as being infinitely good."
Xavier replied to the first two points according to the teaching of the doctors: namely, that God undoubtedly foresaw what would follow the creation of the angels and of man, but he did not on that account decree or will those sins, nor the ruin consequent upon them; still less did he take pleasure in or desire them. He permitted them, inasmuch as he didn't prevent them; and this, in order that they should not be deprived of the free action of their will: hence it does not follow that God can be considered either cruel or malignant. With regard to the epoch of the Incarnation, he said that immediately after the fall of Adam the goodness of the Lord gave a universal remedy to all mankind, re-establishing its claim to paradise and appointing the means whereby to possess it. And although, according to the decrees of his Almighty Providence, he delayed being made man for so many ages, the merits of an incarnate God were of such infinite value that their efficacy was not to be restrained to future times only : it might equally be extended to the past. The holy man endeavored to explain these things in a manner suited to the capacity of men unused to scholastic subtleties; but, as every one knows, it is much easier to expose doubts than to comprehend the solution of them, especially when they refer to such sublime principles as these. The bonzes, therefore, were dissatisfied with these answers, which were above their understandings; so they were obstinate in their blindness, and added mockery to insult; till the indignant king, rising, uttered a sentence, wise indeed coming from the lips of so young a man, and he a pagan. "They must remain in error," said he, "who by haughty opposition would presume to fathom that truth, which can only be intelligible to the most elevated faith." Having said this, he took the saint by the hand, and going forth from the palace, followed by his courtiers, he accompanied him all the way to his lodging; the bonzes in the mean time, yielding to a frenzy of age, and invoking the vengeance of Shacca and Amida on the king.
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