←1350
←1350
Smith on the Sacred Office, Lect. xviii. It was a subject of bitter regret to Augustine, that his early Ministry had been distinguished by this character—‘ut placeret, non ut doceret.’ [in order to please, not to teach] Jerome complained of many in his time—‘Id habent curae, non quomodo scripturarum medullas ebibant, sed quomodo aures populi declamatorum flosculis mulceant.’ ‘Do not ask yourself—How much or how elegantly can I talk upon such a text? But, What can I say more usefully to those who hear me, for the instruction of their minds, for the conviction of their consciences, and for the persuasion of their hearts? Do not let your chief design be to work out a sheet, or to hold out an hour, but to save a soul.’ Watts’ Humble Attempt, pp. 19, 20.