Our Lord and Master Jesus Christ, in saying, "Repent ye, etc.," intended that the whole life of his believers on earth should be a constant penance.

And the word "penance" neither can, nor may, be understood as referring to the Sacrament of Penance, that is, to confession and atonement as exercised under the priest's ministry.

Nevertheless He does not think of inward penance only: rather is inward penance worthless unless it produces various outward mortifications of the flesh.

Therefore mortification continues as long as hatred of oneself continues, that is to say, true inward penance lasts until entrance into the Kingdom of Heaven.

The Pope will not, and cannot, remit other punishments than those which he has imposed by his own decree or according to the canons.

The Pope can forgive sins only in the sense, that he declares and confirms what may be forgiven of God; or that he doth it in those cases which he hath reserved to himself; be this contemned, the sin remains unremitted.

God forgives none his sin without at the same time casting him penitent and humbled before the priest His vicar.

The canons concerning penance are imposed only on the living; they ought not by any means, following the same canons, to be imposed on the dying.

Therefore, the Holy Spirit, acting in the Pope, does well for us, when the latter in his decrees entirely removes the article of death and extreme necessity.

Those priests act unreasonably and ill who reserve for Purgatory the penance imposed on the dying.

This abuse of changing canonical penalty into the penalty of Purgatory seems to have arisen when the bishops were asleep.

In times of yore, canonical penalties were imposed, not after, but before, absolution, as tests of true repentance and affliction.

The dying pay all penalties by their death, are already dead to the canons, and rightly have exemption from them.

Imperfect spiritual health or love in the dying person necessarily brings with i