the fifth century downward to its present state. London 1714. A new ed. in the "Lib. of
Anglo-Cath. Theol." Oxford 1844.
Eus. Amort: De Origine, Progressu, Valore ac Fructu Indulgentiarum. Aug. Vindel. 1735 fol.
Muratori: De Redemtione Peccatorum et de Indulgentiarum Origine, in Tom. V. of his Antiquitates
Italicae Medii Aevi. Mediol. 1741.
Joh. B. Hirscher (R.C.): Die Lehre vom Ablass. Tübingen, 5th ed. 1844.
G. E. Steitz: Das römische Buss-Sacrament, nach seinem bibl. Grunde und seiner gesch. Entwicklung.
Frankf a. M. 1854 (210 pages).
Val. Gröne (R.C.): Der Ablass, seine Geschichte und Bedeutung in der Heilsökonomie. Regensb.
1863.
Domin. Palmieri (R.C.): Tractat. de Poenit. Romae 1879.
George Mead: Art. Penitence, in Smith and Cheetham II. 1586–1608. Wildt, (R.C.): Ablass, in
Wetzer and Welte2 I. 94–111; Beichte and Beichtsiegel, II. 221–261. Mejer in Herzog2 I.
90–92. For extracts from sources comp. Gieseler II. 105 sqq.; 193 sqq.; 515 sqq. (Am. ed.)
For the authoritative teaching of the Roman church on the Sacramentum Poenitentiae see Conc.
Trident. Sess. XIV. held 1551.
The word repentance or penitence is an insufficient rendering for the corresponding Greek
metanoia, which means a radical change of mind or conversion from a sinful to a godly life, and
includes, negatively, a turning away from sin in godly sorrow (repentance in the narrower sense)
and, positively, a turning to Christ by faith with a determination to follow him.^403 The call to repent
in this sense was the beginning of the preaching both of John the Baptist, and of Jesus Christ.^404
In the Latin church the idea of repentance was externalized and identified with certain
outward acts of self-abasement or self-punishment for the expiation of sin. The public penance
before the church went out of use during the seventh or eighth century, except for very gross
offences, and was replaced by private penance and confession.^405 The Lateran Council of 1215
under Pope Innocent III. made it obligatory upon every Catholic Christian to confess to his parish
priest at least once a year.^406
Penance, including auricular confession and priestly absolution, was raised to the dignity
of a sacrament for sins committed after baptism. The theory on which it rests was prepared by the
fathers (Tertullian and Cyprian), completed by the schoolmen, and sanctioned by the Roman church.
It is supposed that baptism secures perfect remission of past sins, but not of subsequent sins, and
(^403) Penitence is from the Latin poenitentia, and this is derived from poena,ποίνη(compensation, satisfaction, punishment).
Jerome introduced the word, or rather retained it, in the Latin Bible, forμετάνοια, and poenitentiam agere forμετανοει̑νHence
the Douay version: to do penance. Augustin, Isidor, Rabanus Maurus, Peter Lombard, and the R. Catholic theologians connect
the term with the penal idea (poena, punitio) and make it cover the whole penitential discipline. The English repentance, to
repent, and the German Busse, Bussethun follow the Vulgate, but have changed the meaning in evangelical theology in conformity
to the Greekμετάνοια.
(^404) Matt. 3:2; 4:17; Mark 1:15. Luther renewed the call in his 95 Theses which begin with the same idea, in opposition
to the traffic in indulgences.
(^405) Pope Leo the Great (440-461) was the first prelate in the West who sanctioned the substitution of the system of secret
humiliation by auricular confession for the public exomologesis. Ep. 136. Opera I. 355.
(^406) Can. 21: "Omnis utriusque sexus fidelis, postquam ad annos discretionis pervenerit, omnia sua solus peccata confiteatur
fideliter, saltem semel in anno, proprio sacerdoti."Violation of this law of auricular confession was threatened with
excommunication and refusal of Christian burial. See Hefele V. 793.