Preces Quotidianae
The Measure of Mercy
God entrusts forgiveness to us and surpasses our own mercy, so we plead for mercy despite our great sin.
And further: for you have entrusted this measure to us. Are we to practice it among ourselves, while you yourself do not grant the same? But you will grant it — and far more. For it is unthinkable that you would want more perfection in us than there is in yourself. That you should want us to forgive seventy times seven, yet yourself be unwilling. Because your mercy surpasses ours as far as you surpass us. So, relying on that mercy — with your mercy forgiving at least four hundred and ninety times — I stand far off and cast myself down, and most abjectly, as is right, and most humbly, striking that heart of mine (which does not strike me hard enough), I say again and again, I keep repeating: Lord, to me a sinner; to me, a most wretched sinner — be merciful; to me, the first of sinners; to me, wholly sin. Sin beyond measure — O Lord, to whom one never pleads without hope of pardon!
Grief and Its Insufficiency
The speaker affirms genuine grief for sin yet fears that his sorrow is not enough.
VI. But is He to be merciful—and you not grieve?✦1 I don't ask that. For I do grieve, however imperfectly;2 I fear that it isn't enough.3
Read the original Latin
Et ultra, Hane enim mensuram nobis commendasti. Nobisne, ut nos inter nos eam pr:wstemus, Tute vero eandem ut non przstes? Prestabis vero et multo magis. Absit enim ut plus in nobis perfectionis esse velis, quam in Teipso est. Ut nos ad septuagies septies velis remittere, Nolis autem Ipse. Quia "Tua nostram superat misericordia, Quantum Tu nos. Illa ergo fretus, Saltem quadringenties nonagies condonante misericordia Tua, A longe stans provolvo me, Et demississime, ut par est, humillimeque Percutiens illud (Quod me non satis percutit) cor meum, Dico ] iterum iterumque, Ingemino Domine, mihi peccatori, Mihi miserrimo peccatori, Propitius esto, Mihi peccatorum primo, Mihi toti peccato, . Peccato καθ᾽ ὑπερβολὴν, O, cui nunquam sine spe venie supplicatur!
VI. Ille vero ut propitius sit, at tu non doleas? Non peto. Doleo enim utcunque;
Metuo quidem ut satis.
Scripture echoes
- ↩Luke.18.13 — But the tax collector, standing far off, was not even willing to lift his eyes to heaven, but kept beating his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me, the sinner.'
Notes
- 1 ↩Self-address after the cry for mercy: Ille (God) vs. tu (the praying self). propitius carries the publican's petition force (propitius esto); doleas is penitential grief/sorrow, not mere physical pain.
- 2 ↩utcunque = 'in some measure / however / as best I can'; imperfect, incomplete penitential sorrow, which the next sentence (Metuo quidem ut satis) immediately doubts is enough.
- 3 ↩Elliptical after the previous 'Doleo enim utcunque': classical metuo ut = 'I fear that … not,' so the sense is fear that the sorrow/grief is insufficient (not fear that it is enough).
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