REILGIOUS OPINIONS. CCCCXXXV 



Augmentis Scientiarum&quot; abounds with religious sentiments, De Aug- 

 contains two tracts, one upon natural, the other upon re- mentis * 

 vealed religion, &quot; the sabbath and port of all men s labours :&quot; 

 and concludes, &quot; Attamen, quoniam etiam res quseque 



fectum, tuam gloriam repetit, tuere et rege. Tu, postquarn 

 conversus es ad spectandum opera, quee fecerunt manus 

 tuse vidisti quod omnia essent bona valde ; et requievisti. 

 At homo, conversus ad opera, quae fecerunt manus suge, 

 vidit quod omnia essent vanitas et vexatio spiritus; nee 

 ullo modo requievit. Quare si in operibus tuis sudabimus, 

 facies nos visionis tuas et sabbati tui participes. Suppliccs 

 petimus, ut haec mens nobis constet: utque riovis clce- 

 mosynis per manus nostras et aliorum, quibus eandem 

 mentem largieris, familiam humanam dotatam veils.&quot;* 



&quot; May God never permit us to give out the dream of 

 our fancy as a model of the world, but rather in his kind 

 ness vouchsafe to us the means of writing a revelation and 

 true vision of the traces and stamps of the Creator on 

 his creatures. May thou, therefore, O Father, who gavest 

 the light of vision as the first fruits of creation, and hast 

 inspired the countenance of man with the light of the 

 understanding as the completion of thy works, guard and 

 direct this work, which, proceeding from thy bounty, seeks 

 in return thy glory. When thou turnedst to look upon 

 the works of thy hands, thou sawcst that all were very 

 good and restedst. But man, when he turned towards the 

 works of his hands, saw that they were all vanity and 

 vexation of spirit, and had no rest. Wherefore if we labour 

 in thy works, thou wilt make us partakers of that which 

 thou beholdest and of thy rest. We humbly pray that our 

 present disposition may continue firm, and that thou mayest 

 be willing to endow thy family of mankind with new gifts 

 through our hands, and the hands of those to whom thou 

 wilt accord the same disposition.&quot; 



* Vol.ix. p. 178. 



