A Work on the Proceedings of Pelagius 9
9 The Third Item in the Accusation; And Pelagius’ Answer PL 44, 324
Another statement was read which Pelagius had placed in his book, to this effect: “In the day of judgment no forbearance will be shown to the ungodly and the sinners, but they will be consumed in eternal fires.” This induced the brethren to regard the statement as open to the objection, that it seemed so worded as to imply that all sinners whatever were to be punished with an eternal punishment, without excepting even those who hold Christ as their foundation, although “they build thereupon wood, hay, stubble,” concerning whom the apostle writes: “If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss; but he shall himself be saved, yet so as by fire.” When, however, Pelagius responded that “he had made his assertion in accordance with the Gospel, in which it is written concerning sinners, ‘These shall go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into life eternal,’” it was impossible for Christian judges to be dissatisfied with a sentence which is written in the Gospel, and was spoken by the Lord; especially as they knew not what there was in the words taken from Pelagius’ book which could so disturb the brethren, who were accustomed to hear his discussions and those of his followers. Since also they were absent who presented the indictment against Pelagius to the holy bishop Eulogius, there was no one to urge him that he ought to distinguish, by some exception, between those sinners who are to be saved by fire, and those who are to be punished with everlasting perdition. If, indeed, the judges had come to understand by these means the reason why the objection had been made to his statement, had he then refused to allow the distinction, he would have been justly open to blame.
Item recitatum est quod in libro suo Pelagius posuit, « In die judicii iniquis et peccatoribus non esse parcendum, sed aeternis eos ignibus exurendos. » Quod ideo fratres moverat, ut objiciendum putaretur, quod ita dictum est, tanquam omnes peccatores aeterno essent supplicio puniendi, non eis exceptis qui fundamentum habent Christum, quamvis superaedificent ligna, fenum, stipulam, de quibus dicit Apostolus: Si cujus opus exustum fuerit, detrimentum patietur; ipse autem salvus erit, sic tamen quasi per ignem . Sed cum respondisset Pelagius, « hoc secundum Evangelium se dixisse, ubi dicitur de peccatoribus, Illi ibunt in supplicium aeternum; justi autem, in vitam aeternam » : nullo modo potuit christianis judicibus evangelica et dominica displicere sententia, nescientibus quid in verbis de libro Pelagii prolatis moverit fratres, qui disputationes ejus vel discipulorum ejus audire consueverunt; quando his absentibus qui libellum contra Pelagium sancto episcopo Eulogio dederunt, nullus urgebat, ut peccatores per ignem salvandos a peccatoribus aeterno supplicio puniendis aliqua exceptione distingueret, et eo modo intelligentibus judicibus cur fuerit illud objectum, si nollet distinguere, merito culparetur.