to myself or to any other creature whatsoever. And now behold I offer thee them all, as much as if I were myself their first author; while, with all my heart, I pray thee, by thy infinite goodness and mercy, that thou wouldst vouchsafe to accept them. Amen.
II.
Act of Faith
Without faith it is impossible to please God[1]
Faith, as the foundation of the rest, holds the first place among the theological virtues, and is a habit of the understanding infused by God, by which the believer is enlightened to assent and adhere to those things which are revealed and proposed by God himself, through the Church.
1. O God, most faithful and true, first and everlasting Truth, with my whole soul I embrace this foundation of faith. And therefore, most humbly, prostrate on the ground, I adore and worship thee, in heaven and on earth. And I most firmly profess, in the best and most perfect manner I am able, that I now and ever both believe in my heart and confess with my mouth all that thou hast spoken, revealed, and proposed to be believed by thy holy Church, particularly those things which are contained in the Apostles' Creed. And I affirm them all to be most certain, so that nothing whatever of them can be called in question.
2. I therefore confess, and most firmly protest before thy divine majesty and the whole court of heaven, that I will live and die in the confession of this truth. Oh, how I wish that the whole world beside would know and confess thee with the firmest faith! Most deeply do I grieve that it does not believe, adore, and venerate thee as it ought.
3. I beseech thee, then, by the precious blood, the life and death of my Lord Jesus Christ, by the merits of his most holy mother, and by the intercession of thy holy apostles, disciples, martyrs, confessors, virgins, and all thy saints and elect, that thou wouldst increase in me and in all men that holy light of faith, and enkindle it in unbelievers, that all may know, confess, and adore thee the more, according to the desire
- ↑ Heb xi. 6
