57# 今日教会盛行一种谬误观念：世人将神性全能类比为世间君王不受约束的绝对权柄，认为上帝可单凭一己意愿随心所欲行事，随意赦免或定罪任何人，能使罪人成为无辜之人，宣告不信者为忠信之人，提拔不配、无功之人凌驾于有德有功者之上；甚至能借各样名目夺取属祂子民的财物，判人死刑，诸如此类臆想层出不穷。
此种关于神性全能的愚妄认知、信念与说教，已使无数虚假论调、悖谬见解与虚妄幻想涌入教会，其数量繁多，等同于教会信仰之中一切细碎分支、衍生歧见；此类谬论还会持续滋生，多到如同大湖之水可灌满无数水罐，又似阿拉伯旷野中万千蛇类自洞穴爬出，在日光之下肆意游走。
究其根源，不过依托 “全能” 与 “信仰” 二词，便可在民众之间散播各类臆测、虚谈与荒唐说辞，数量多到凡肉身感官所能触及的一切物象。只因持此见解者将理性全然摒除；理性一旦遭舍弃，人的思绪又何异于头顶飞禽浅陋的觉知？
人之所以超越走兽，内在所禀赋的属灵性又将置于何处？这般观念滋生的心思，便如同兽栏之中污浊臭气，只适配栏内野兽，人若沉溺其中，便与禽兽无别。
倘若神性全能行善与行恶的趋向不分轻重、等同并行，上帝与魔鬼之间又有何种分野？二者之别，不过如同两位君主：其一既是君王亦是暴君，另一仅是权能受限的暴虐者，不配称作君王；又好比一位牧人被容许同时扮演绵羊与豹兽，另一位牧人却不被允许如此行事，其间仅有这般浅薄差异。
无人不知良善与邪恶本是全然对立；倘若上帝凭其神性全能，既能意愿良善，亦能意愿邪恶，并随其意愿付诸施行，祂反倒将全然一无所能，如此连普通权能都不具备，更遑论全能。
此理可借譬喻明晓：两组轮轴反向相互掣肘，两相对冲之下，两轮终将停滞不动；又如舟船逆流而上，若无锚固定，便会被激流卷走、归于倾覆；再如人心中存有两份彼此对立的意志，其一发动之时，另一必然沉寂；倘若二者同时催动，癫狂昏乱便会侵占人心。
57# 当今流行的观点是，神的全能就像世上的一位国王的绝对权力，他可以随心所欲地做他想做的任何事，可以随意赦免或定罪，使有罪的人无罪，宣布不忠的为忠诚，提拔不配的和不够格的在配的和够格的之上，甚至以任何借口剥夺臣民的财物，判他们死刑，等等。从关于神性全能的这种荒谬的观点、信仰和教义中，与教会中信仰的运动、分裂或分支和新教派或连续变化一样多的虚假、谬误和幻想涌入教会；还有可能涌入的数量或许与大湖所能装满的瓮的数量相当，或与在阿拉伯沙漠中从洞穴里爬出来晒太阳的蛇的数量相当。仅仅提到全能和信仰这两个词，就足以在普通人中间传播许多迎合身体感官的猜测、传说和荒谬或胡说八道。因为这两个词会驱逐理性；当理性被驱逐时，人的思维比飞在他头顶上的鸟儿的理性能好到哪里去呢？或在这种情况下，人所拥有的超越野兽，并在野兽之上的灵性不就像兽穴里的臭气吗？这臭气令野兽感到愉悦，但不适合人，除非他和野兽一样。如果神性全能真的如此延伸，以至于同等地行善和作恶，那么神和魔鬼有什么区别呢？这种区别不就像两个君主之间的分别吗？其中一个君主既是国王，又是暴君，而另一个君主只是暴君，他的权力受到限制，以至于不能被称为一个国王，或说不能行使国王仁慈的职能；或者，这种区别就像两个牧羊人之间的区别，其中一个牧羊人既可以牧养绵羊，也可以牧养豹子，而另一个牧羊人不可以做出这种选择。谁看不出良善和邪恶是对立面？如果神出于祂的全能拥有意愿这两者，并出于意愿去做这两者的能力，那么祂根本就不能意愿并做任何事，因而没有任何能力，更不用说全能了。这就像两个轮子相互作用，朝相反的方向转动，这两个轮子因这种对立都会停止，完全静止不动；或像一艘船在湍急的水流中逆流而上，若不抛锚固定，它就会被冲走并毁坏；又或像一个人有两个相互矛盾的意愿，当另一个活跃时，这一个必须沉寂下来，因为如果两者都同时活跃起来，那么神志失常或令人眩晕的疯狂就会侵袭他的心智。
57. The dominant opinion nowadays is that the omnipotence of God is like the absolute power of a monarch in the world, who can do whatever she or he wishes on a whim: absolve and condemn at will, make the guilty innocent, declare the unfaithful to be faithful, promote undeserving and unworthy people above those who are worthy and deserving. Under any pretext whatever, he or she can even seize citizens' assets, sentence them to death, and so on.
Through this ridiculous opinion, belief, and teaching about divine omnipotence, the same number of falsities, errors, and fabled monsters have poured into the church as there are movements, branches, and new sects of the faith. There is still room for more - as many more as the jars you could fill with water from a great lake, or as many as the snakes in an Arabian desert that could crawl out of their caves to enjoy basking in the sunshine. All you would need [to start a new movement, branch, or sect] are those two little words, "omnipotence" and "faith," and a program to spread enough conjectures, fables, and blithering to be physically stimulating.
Each of those two words pushes reason aside. Once our reason is disengaged, our thought process is no better than that of a bird flying overhead. What then becomes of the spiritual aspect that we have but animals lack? It becomes like the smell in a zoo: it suits the wild animals that are there but does not suit people unless they are particularly beastly.
If divine omnipotence extended to doing evil as well as good, what difference would there be between God and the Devil? They would be no different than two rulers, one of whom is a monarch and also a tyrant, while the other is a tyrant whose power has been curtailed so that he or she cannot be called a monarch anymore. They would be no different than a shepherd who is allowed to keep a sheep and a leopard, and another shepherd who is not allowed to do the same. Surely anyone can see that good and evil are opposites, and that if God by his omnipotence were able to will and do both good and evil, he could do absolutely nothing. He would have no power at all, much less omnipotence.
This situation would be much like the way two wheels going in opposite directions act against one another, causing each wheel to come to a stop. It would be like a ship whose course ran against a strong current in the opposite direction. If the ship did not drop anchor and stay still, it would be carried off to its doom. It would be like a human being with two wills that disagreed with each other. When one of them acted, the other would have to be still. Otherwise, if both acted at once, a dizzying madness would assault the mind.
57. The prevalent opinion today is that God's omnipotence resembles the absolute power of a king in this world, who can act at his pleasure however he wishes: acquit or condemn whom he will, make the guilty innocent, pronounce the traitor loyal, promote the unworthy and undeserving over the heads of the worthy and deserving, even on any pretext snatch away his subjects' goods, condemn them to death, and do other similar things. As a result of this absurd opinion, belief and teaching about the Divine omnipotence, as many falsities, fallacies and chimeras have invaded the church, as there are nuances, systems and derivations of belief there. As many more can invade too, as jars can be filled with water from a large lake, or as snakes can crawl out of their holes and lie basking in the sunshine of the Arabian desert. It takes only the two words 'omnipotence' and 'faith', and then one can scatter among the common people as many guesses, fictions and rubbish as occur to the bodily senses. Both of these terms banish reason,- but if reason is banished, how is human thought superior to the reason of the birds that fly overhead? What then is the spiritual side, which distinguishes man from animals, but like the stench of zoos, which is agreeable to wild beasts, but not to human beings, unless they are like beasts?
[2] If the Divine omnipotence extended as much to doing evil as to doing good, what would be the distinction between God and the devil? It would surely be like that between two rulers, one of whom is both king and tyrant, the other a tyrant whose power is limited, so he cannot properly be called a king. Or between a shepherd who is allowed to keep leopards as well as sheep, and one who is not allowed to do this. Anyone can know that good and evil are opposites, and that if God by His omnipotence could will both at once and by willing them do them, He could in fact do nothing. This so far from being omnipotence would be a negation of His power. It would be like two wheels turning in opposite directions; the effect would be to stop both wheels and produce a stationary state. Or like a ship sailing against a strong current, which without an anchor to hold it would be swept away and wrecked. Or like a person with two inconsistent wills, so that when one is active the other must necessarily be inactive; if both were to act at the same time, his mind would be a prey to delirium and dizziness.
57. It is a prevailing opinion at this day that God's omnipotence is like the absolute power of a king in the world, who can at his pleasure do whatever he will, pardon or condemn whom he will, make the guilty innocent, declare the unfaithful faithful, exalt the unworthy and undeserving above the worthy and deserving, and even take away the property of his subjects under any pretext whatsoever, and condemn them to death, and so on. From this absurd opinion, belief, and doctrine respecting the Divine omnipotence, as many falsities, fallacies, and chimeras have flooded the church as there are changes, distinctions, and generations of faith in it; and the number that may yet flow in may equal the number of urns that might be filled from a great lake, or the number of serpents that might creep from their holes and bask in the sunshine in the desert of Arabia. What need is there except to pronounce these two words, omnipotence and faith, and then circulate among the common people conjectures and fables and nonsense such as will appeal to the bodily senses? For these two words banish reason; and when reason has been banished what better is man's thought than the reason of the birds that fly over his head? Or what then is the spirituality that man possesses over and above the beasts but like the stench in the dens of beasts, which to them indeed is agreeable, but not to a man unless he is like them? If the Divine omnipotence were so extended as to do evil as well as good, what difference would there be between God and the devil? Would there be any but such as that between two monarchs, one of whom is both a king and a tyrant, while the other is a tyrant whose power is so restrained that he cannot be called a king; or such as that between a shepherd who is allowed to lead the sheep and also to act the wolf, and one who is not? Who cannot see that good and evil are opposites, and that if God from His omnipotence had the power to will both, and from will to do both, He would be able to will and do nothing at all? Thus He would have no power, much less all power. It would be like two wheels acting against each other by turning in opposite directions, by which opposition both wheels would be stopped and be perfectly at rest; or like a vessel in a rushing stream driving it contrary to its course, so that if not held by the anchor it would be carried away and destroyed; or like a man with two opposing wills, one of which must needs be quiescent when the other is acting, for if both should act at the same time delirium or giddiness would invade his mind.
57. The idea is prevalent today that the omnipotence of God is like the absolute power of a king in the world, who can, at his pleasure, do whatever he wills, pardon and condemn whom he pleases, make the guilty innocent, declare the unfaithful faithful, exalt the unworthy and the undeserving above the worthy and the deserving; in fact that he can, under any pretext whatever, deprive his subjects of their goods, condemn them to death, and so on. From this absurd idea, faith and doctrine concerning the Divine omnipotence there have arisen in the Church as many falsities, fallacies, and chimaeras as there are movements, divisions, and successive variations of faith; and as many more may yet arise as would equal in number the pitchers that could be filled from a great lake, or the serpents that creep from their holes and bask in the sunshine of the Arabian desert. The mere mention of the two words omnipotence and faith is enough to spread among the people as many conjectures, fables, and absurdities as appeal to the senses of the body; for reason is banished when omnipotence and faith are under consideration; and when reason goes, in what respect does a man's thought excel that of the bird that flies over his head? Or in such a case what is the spirituality which a man has beyond the beasts but as the odorous vapor in the dens of wild beasts, agreeable to the beasts there but not to man, unless he is like them?
If the Divine omnipotence went out equally to do evil as well as good, what difference would there be between God and the devil? The difference would be like that between two monarchs, one of whom is both king and tyrant, and the other only a tyrant whose power is so constricted that he cannot exercise the beneficent functions of a king; or like that between two shepherds, one of whom may tend both sheep and the leopard, while the other may not exercise this choice. Any one can see that good and evil are opposites, and if God from His omnipotence could will both, and could carry out His will, He would in fact be able to accomplish nothing, and would have no power, much less omnipotence. It would be as if two wheels were to act against each other, turning in opposite directions, so that each wheel would consequently stop, and remain completely at rest. Or it would be as if a ship were to be caught in a current running contrary to its course: it would be carried away and lost if its anchor did not bring it to rest. Or it would be as if a man had two wills at variance with one another, one of which was forced to remain dormant while the other was active; but if each were active at the same time, a raging madness would seize hold of his mind.
57. Opinio hodie regnans est, quod Omnipotentia Dei sit qualis est absoluta potentia Regis in Mundo, qui potest ex lubitu facere quicquid vult, absolvere et condemnare quem vult, sontem facere insontem, infidelem declarare fidelem, indignum et immeritum evehere supra dignum et merentem, imo quod possit sub quocunque praetextu subditis sua bona eripere, tum adjudicare morti, praeter similia alia. Ex hac fatua opinione, fide et doctrina de Omnipotentia Divina, tot falsitates, fallaciae, et chimaerae 1 in Ecclesiam influxerunt, quot sunt momenta, articulationes et generationes fidei ibi, et adhuc possunt influere, quot possunt urnae impleri aquis e magno lacu, aut quot serpentes e cavernis suis subrepere, et in aprico solis jucundari in deserto Arabiae; quid opus est nisi duobus vocabulis, OMNIPOTENTIA et FIDES, et tunc coram vulgo spargere conjecturas, fabulas et nugas, quot in sensus corporis incidunt, ab utraque enim ejicitur ratio; at quid ejecta ratione cogitatio hominis praestat rationi avis supra caput volantis; aut quid tunc Spirituale, quod homini est prae bestiis, nisi qualis est nidor in bestiariis, 2 qui feris ibi congruit, et non homini nisi similis sit.
[2] Si extensio Omnipotentiae Divinae aeque foret ad faciendum malum sicut bonum, quodnam discrimen inter Deum et diabolum foret, num aliud quam quale inter duos Monarchas, quorum unus est Rex et simul tyrannus, et alter Tyrannus, cujus potestas ligata est, unde non Rex dicendus est; aut inter Pastorem, cui permissum est agere ovem et quoque pardum, et inter pastorem cui hoc non permissum est. Quis non potest scire, quod Bonum et Malum sint opposita, et quod si Deus ex Omnipotentia sua posset unum et alterum velle, et ex velle facere, prorsus nihil posset, ita ei nulla potentia, minus Omnipotentia foret; esset hoc sicut binae rotae in contrario versu in se mutuo agerent, ex qua reactione utraque rota subsisteret, et omnimode quiescerent; aut sicut Navis in torrente contra viam ejus agente, quae nisi super anchora quiesceret, abriperetur et periret: aut sicut homo cui binae voluntates inter se dissentientes sunt, quarum una dum agit, altera necessario quiescet, at si utraque simul ageret, mentem ejus delirium aut vertigo invaderet.
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