Miracle does not always signify miracle. - Blaise Pascal

I am sorry for the length of this letter, but I had not time to write a short one.

Against those who, trusting in the mercy of God, remain indifferent, without preforming good works. Since the twin sources of our sins are pride and sloth, God has revealed to us two of his attributes to cure them: his mercy and his justice. The proper function of justice is to bring pride low, however holy the works ('into not into judgement....'); the proper function of mercy is to combat sloth by encouraging good works according to this passage: 'The goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance', and this other one about the Ninevites: 'Let us repent, for who can tell if God will turn away from his fierce anger?' Thus, his mercy, far from justifying slackness, is the very quality which formally combats it. Consequently, instead of saying: 'If God were not merciful, we should have to take every effort towards virtue,' we should on the contrary say that it is because God is merciful that we must make every effort.

The source of the errors of these two sects, is in not having known that the state of man at the present time differs from that of his creation; so that the one, remarking some traces of his first greatness and being ignorant of his corruption, has treated nature as sound and without need of redemption, which leads him to the height of pride; whilst the other, feeling the present wretchedness and being ignorant of the original dignity, treats nature as necessarily infirm and irreparable, which precipitates it into despair of arriving at real good, and thence into extreme laxity.