¹ In the name of God the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

² If anyone sins in his heart through thought and immediately repents, let him strike his breast, ask God for forgiveness, and make satisfaction, so that he may be healed.

³ But if he frequently entertains sinful thoughts and wavers between carrying them out or resisting them—whether he is victorious or defeated—let him seek forgiveness from God through prayer and fasting by day and night until the evil thought disappears and he is made whole.

⁴ If anyone thinks of committing a sin and desires to carry it out, but is prevented by circumstance, it is still a sin, though the penance differs. For example, if someone desires fornication or murder but is unable to fulfil the deed, he has already sinned in his heart. Yet, if he quickly repents, he can be helped. His penance shall be six months measured by discipline, and for a full year he must abstain from wine and meat.

⁵ If anyone sins by word through thoughtlessness and immediately repents, and did not speak intentionally or with malice, he should submit himself to penance. However, he may lighten the penance somewhat, but afterward, he must be cautious in the future to avoid sinning again.

⁶ If anyone engages in a quarrel with clergy or ministers of God, he shall do penance for a week with bread and water. Let him ask forgiveness from his God and from his neighbour with full confession and humility. In this way, he can be reconciled to God and his neighbour.

⁷ If anyone stirs up a scandal and in his heart resolves to strike or kill his neighbour, if he is a cleric, let him do penance for six months with bread and water measured by discipline. For a full year, he must abstain from wine and meat. Only then may he be reconciled to the altar.

⁸ If, however, the offender is a layman, he shall do penance for a week, since he is a man of this world. His guilt is lighter in this life, but his reward will be lesser in the life to come.

⁹ If a cleric strikes his brother or neighbour or sheds blood, it is as if he has committed murder, though the penance is not identical. He shall do penance for a full year with bread and water, abstaining from his clerical ministry. During this time, he must pray for himself with weeping and tears, that he may obtain mercy from God. For Scripture says: “Whoever hates his brother is a murderer”—how much more, then, is the guilt of one who strikes him?

¹⁰ If a layman commits the same offense, he shall do penance for forty days and give some money in compensation for the blow, in an amount deemed appropriate by a priest.

¹¹ If anyone commits violence, whether he is wealthy or just, a cleric must not give or accept money as compensation.

¹² If a cleric falls into the sin of fornication and loses his honour (symbolized by his crown), but the sin is hidden from men and known only before God, he shall do penance for a full year with bread and water, measured by discipline. For two additional years, he must abstain from wine and meat, yet he shall not lose his clerical office. For we hold that sins committed in secret can be absolved through penance and through the devoted effort of heart and body.

¹³ If, however, he has long persisted in habitual sin—even if his guilt has not been made known to others—he shall do penance for three years with bread and water, and he must lose his clerical office. For another three years, he must abstain from wine and meat, for sinning before God is no less grievous than sinning before men.

¹⁴ If any cleric falls into grave ruin by committing fornication and then murders the child conceived from the act, the crime is twofold—both fornication and homicide. Yet, it can be atoned for through penance and divine mercy. He shall do penance for three years with bread and water, measured by discipline, in weeping, tears, and prayers day and night. He must plead for the Lord’s mercy, hoping to obtain forgiveness of his sins. For another three years, he shall abstain from wine and meat, and he shall refrain from clerical duties. During the final three years of this seven-year penance, he must fast during each Lenten season (Quadragesima) on bread and water. He shall remain in exile from his homeland until the full seven years are completed. Then, by the judgment of the bishop or priest, he may be restored to his clerical office.

¹⁵ If, however, he did not murder the child, the sin is lesser, but the penance is the same.

¹⁶ If any cleric maintains a close association with a woman but has committed no sin with her—neither through inappropriate cohabitation nor through lustful kissing—his penance is as follows: for as long as he maintains this association, he must abstain from communion at the altar. He shall do penance for forty days and nights with bread and water. He must cut off his attachment to the woman from his heart, and only then may he be restored to the altar.

¹⁷ If a cleric maintains familiar relationships with many women and gives himself over to cohabitation and lustful kisses with them, but claims he has preserved himself from ruin (i.e., fornication), he shall do penance for six months with bread and water, measured by discipline. For the following six months, he must abstain from wine and meat. He shall not be deprived of his clerical office, and after completing the full year of penance, he may be restored to the altar.

¹⁸ If any cleric lusts after a virgin or any woman in his heart but does not express it with his lips, and he experiences this desire only once, he shall do penance for seven days with bread and water, measured by discipline.

¹⁹ If, however, a man persistently lusts but is unable to fulfil his desire—either because the woman does not accept him or because he is ashamed to speak of it—he has already committed adultery with her in his heart. Yet, though the sin is the same in the heart and not in the body, the penance is not the same. His penance is this: he must do penance for forty days with bread and water.

²⁰ If any cleric is a sorcerer or any woman a sorceress, and they deceive someone through their sorcery, it is a grievous sin. However, it can be redeemed through penance: they must do penance for six years. For three years, they are to consume only bread and water in measured amounts. During the remaining years, they must abstain from wine and meat.

²¹ If, however, they did not deceive anyone but practiced sorcery for lustful love, they must do penance for an entire year with bread and water in measured amounts.

²² If a woman, through her sorcery, causes another woman to miscarry, she must do penance for half a year with bread and water in measured amounts. For two years, she must abstain from wine and meat, and she must fast for six Lents (forty-day fasts) with bread and water.

²³ If, however, she gives birth to a child, as we have said, and her sin becomes manifest, she must do penance for six years with bread and water, as is decreed for a cleric. In the seventh year, she may be joined to the altar. Then, we say that she can be renewed in her crown of innocence, should wear a white garment, and be called a virgin once again. Likewise, a cleric who has fallen should, in the seventh year after completing his penance, be restored to his clerical office. For, as Scripture says: “The righteous man falls seven times and rises again”. That is, after seven years of penance, the one who fell can be called righteous. In the eighth year, evil will no longer have hold over him. However, from then on, he must guard himself diligently and not fall again. For, as Solomon says: “As a dog returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his folly”.

²⁴ If anyone swears a false oath, it is a grave crime—one that is either scarcely or perhaps not at all redeemable. Nevertheless, it is better to repent than to despair, for the mercy of God is great. The penance for this sin is as follows: first, the person must never again swear an oath for the rest of their life, since “the man who swears often will not be justified, and the plague will not depart from his house”. However, it is necessary to quickly apply the remedy of penance in this life to avoid eternal punishment in the next. Thus, the person must do penance for seven years and, for the remainder of their life, live virtuously and abstain from swearing. Additionally, they should free a servant or maidservant or, alternatively, give the servant’s value as alms to the poor or needy.

²⁵ If any cleric commits homicide and kills their neighbour, they must be exiled for ten years and do penance for seven years in a distant land. For three of those years, they must do penance with bread and water in measured amounts. During three Lents, they must fast with bread and water in measured amounts, and for four years, they must abstain from wine and meat. After completing ten years of penance, if they have conducted themselves well and have been approved by the testimony of the abbot or the priest who was entrusted with their penance, they may return to their homeland. They must then make amends to the family of the person they killed, showing acts of kindness and obedience to the victim’s father or mother, if they are still alive. They should say to them: “Behold, I will do for you whatever you ask of me in place of your son.” However, if the penitent has not sufficiently atoned, they must never be received back into their homeland.

²⁶ If someone kills another suddenly and without hatred, but they had previously been friends, and the act was committed through the devil’s instigation by a sudden impulse, they must do penance for three years with bread and water in measured amounts. For three additional years, they must abstain from wine and meat, but they may not remain in their homeland during this time.

²⁷ If a cleric steals once or twice—for example, if they steal a neighbour’s sheep, pig, or any other animal—they must do penance for an entire year with bread and water in measured amounts. Additionally, they must restore fourfold to their neighbour what they had stolen.

²⁸ However, if the cleric is guilty of habitual theft rather than a one-time or occasional offense, they must do penance for three years.

²⁹ If a cleric—whether a deacon or of any other rank—who was once a layman, chooses to live with his former concubine and their children, and returns to carnal desire, begetting another child with the concubine, he should know that he has fallen into grave ruin. His sin is no less than that of a cleric who fell into fornication with a strange woman in his youth. For by sinning after making his vow and after being consecrated to God, he renders his vow void. Therefore, he must do penance for three years with bread and water in measured amounts, and for three additional years, he must abstain from wine and meat. The man and woman must live separately during this time. Then, in the seventh year, they may be reconciled and the cleric may resume his clerical rank.

³⁰ If any cleric is greedy, it is a grave sin, for greed is called idolatry. However, it can be amended through generosity and almsgiving. The penance for this sin is that the cleric must cure and correct the vice by practicing its opposite, making reparations through acts of charity and kindness.

³¹ If any cleric is prone to anger, envy, slander, sadness, or greed, these are grave and deadly sins, for they destroy the soul and cast it into the depths of hell. The penance for such sins is as follows: the cleric must strive, through the help of the Lord, as well as through their own effort and spiritual discipline, to uproot and eradicate these vices from their heart. They must seek the Lord’s mercy and pray for victory over these sins. During this time, they are to remain in penance, weeping and shedding tears day and night. And from night to night, as long as these vices linger in our hearts, let us strive with all haste, as we have said, to counter them with their opposites. Let us cleanse our hearts of vices and implant virtues in their place: patience instead of anger, gentleness or love of God and neighbour instead of envy, restraint of heart and tongue instead of slander, spiritual joy instead of sadness, and generosity instead of greed. For Scripture says: “The anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God”, and envy is regarded as leprosy under the Law. Slander is declared accursed in the Scriptures: “Whoever slanders his neighbour will be cut off”, meaning, he will be removed from the land of the living. Sadness devours or consumes the soul. Greed is the root of all evils, as the Apostle says.

³² If any member of the clergy is found to be using the false pretense of ransoming captives to plunder churches and monasteries and is proven guilty, he shall be shamed. If he repents, he shall do penance for a full year, living on bread and water in measured portions. Everything he was found to have wrongfully acquired shall be distributed to the poor and used for charitable lending. For the next two years, he shall abstain from wine and meat.

³³ We command and exhort that assistance be given for the redemption of captives and that, according to ecclesiastical teaching, money should be lent to the needy and the poor for their relief.

³⁴ However, if the offender does not repent, he shall be excommunicated and anathematized along with all Christians. He shall be banished from his homeland and scourged with rods until he either repents or is brought to compunction.

³⁵ We must use our resources to support the churches of the saints and have compassion on all who are in need. We must welcome strangers into our homes, as it is written by the Lord: “The sick are to be visited”; we must minister to those in prison and fulfil all of Christ’s commandments, from the greatest to the least.

³⁶ If anyone, whether man or woman, even if they were a sinner, is at the point of death and requests communion, we declare that the name of Christ must not be denied to them—provided they pledge to fulfil their vow and act rightly. If they recover and return to this world, they must carry out the vow they made to God. However, if they do not make a vow to God, the responsibility will be on their own head. As for us, we must not deny them what we are bound to give: we must not cease striving to snatch the prey from the mouth of the lion or the dragon—that is, from the mouth of the devil—who never stops seeking to seize the prey of our soul, even at the final hour of a person’s life.

³⁷ Regarding laypeople: if anyone, having lived a sinful life, repents and turns to the Lord, no matter what evils they previously committed—such as fornication and if a layperson, after having lived sinfully—whether through fornication or by shedding blood—repents, they must do penance for three years. During this time, they shall remain unarmed, carrying only a staff in their hand, and they shall abstain from relations with their spouse. In the first year, they must do penance by living on measured portions of bread and water, and they must remain separated from their spouse. After completing the three years of penance, they shall give alms for the redemption of their soul and offer the fruits of their penance into the hands of the priest. They shall host a meal for the servants of God, and during that meal, the offering shall be consumed. Only after completing this full and perfect penance may they be readmitted to communion and reunited with their spouse. If they so desire, they may also dedicate themselves to the service of the altar.

³⁸ If a layperson commits adultery with another man’s wife or defiles a virgin, they must do penance for a full year, living on measured portions of bread and water. During this time, they shall not engage in relations with their own spouse. After the year of penance, they may be readmitted to communion. They must also give alms for the salvation of their soul and refrain from any further fornication with another woman for as long as they live.

³⁹ If someone defiles a consecrated virgin (a bride of Christ) and causes her to lose her consecration, and if he fathers a child with her, he must do penance for three years. In the first year, he must live on measured portions of bread and water, remain unarmed, and refrain from relations with his own wife. For the remaining two years, he must abstain from wine and meat and continue to be separated from his wife.

⁴⁰ If, however, he does not father a child with the consecrated virgin but merely defiles her, he must do penance for a full year, living on measured portions of bread and water. For an additional half year, he must abstain from wine and meat, and he shall not have relations with his wife until his penance is fully completed.

⁴¹ If a layperson, while married, commits adultery with his own female servant, the servant shall be sold. The man, in turn, must do penance for a full year, during which he shall abstain from relations with his own wife.

⁴² However, if a man fathers one, two, or even three sons by his maidservant, he must set the maidservant free. And if he wishes to sell her, he must not be allowed to do so. Instead, they should be separated from each other, and he must do penance for a full year with only bread and water, measured out in moderation. He must no longer go in to his concubine but instead remain joined to his lawful wife.

⁴³ If a man has a barren wife, he must not abandon her because of her infertility. Rather, they should both remain together in continence, and they are blessed if they persevere in bodily chastity until God renders a true and just judgment for them. For I believe that if they are like Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebecca, or Anna, the mother of Samuel, or Elizabeth, the mother of John, things will be rightly ordered for them in the end. For the Apostle says: “Let those who have wives live as though they had none, for the present form of this world is passing away”. The figure of this world is passing away. But if we remain faithful, we should always accept with joy whatever God gives us, whether prosperity or adversity.

⁴⁴ We declare that a wife must not separate from her husband. But if she does separate, she must remain unmarried or be reconciled to her husband, according to the Apostle.

⁴⁵ If a man’s wife commits adultery and lives with another man, he must not take another wife while his own wife is still alive.

⁴⁶ However, if the first wife happens to be converted and does penance, it is fitting to receive her back, provided she sincerely and willingly seeks reconciliation. But she shall not receive her dowry and must serve her former husband. As long as she lives, she should fulfil the role of a servant or handmaid with all humility and submission.

⁴⁷ Likewise, if a woman is dismissed by her husband, she must not marry another man while her former husband is still alive. Instead, she should wait for him, remaining unmarried with all patience and chastity, in the hope that God might grant her husband’s heart the grace of repentance.

⁴⁸ The penance required of both the adulterous husband and the adulterous wife is this: they must do penance for a full year, living separately, with only bread and water, measured in moderation. They must not share the same bed.

⁴⁹ We prescribe and encourage continence within marriage, for marriage without continence is neither lawful nor pure—it is sin. Marriage was granted by God not for lust but for the purpose of bearing children, as it is written: “And the two shall become one flesh”, that is, in the unity of the flesh through the generation of children, not for the indulgence of carnal desire.

⁵⁰ Couples ought to refrain from each other by mutual consent for three periods of forty days each year, so that they may devote themselves to prayer for the salvation of their souls, as the Apostle instructs. They should also abstain from marital relations on the nights of Sunday and Saturday. Furthermore, once the wife has conceived, the husband must not go in to her again until she has given birth. After childbirth, they may once again come together, in accordance with the Apostle’s teaching.

⁵¹ If they fulfil this precept, they are worthy of receiving the Lord’s Body, for they sanctify their marriage through good works—by practicing almsgiving, obeying God’s commandments, and expelling vice. In the life to come, they will reign with Christ alongside Saint Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as well as Job, Noah, and all the saints. Then they will receive the thirtyfold reward which the Saviour promised in the Gospel to those united in holy matrimony.

⁵² If anyone loses a child who dies without baptism due to negligence, it is a grave crime to lose a soul in this way. However, it can be redeemed through penance, for no sin is beyond the power of penance to heal as long as we remain in this life. In this matter, let the parents do penance for a full year with bread and water, and let them not share the same bed.

⁵³ If a cleric does not receive a child (for baptism), if the child is from the same parish, the cleric shall do penance for a full year with bread and water.

⁵⁴ No one should be called a cleric or a deacon if he is unable to baptize, nor should he receive the dignity of cleric or deacon in the Church.

⁵⁵ Monks should not baptize or accept alms. However, if they do accept alms, why should they not baptize?

⁵⁶ If a man’s wife has committed adultery with another, he must not return to her until she has done penance according to the prescribed discipline mentioned above—namely, after completing a full year of penance. Likewise, a woman must not return to her husband if he has committed adultery with another woman until he has done equal penance.

⁵⁷ If anyone destroys or profanes a creature or blessing of God, he must do penance for seven days.

⁵⁸ No one should approach the altar until their penance is completed. The end. Thanks be to God.

Conclusion #

¹ Dearest brothers, according to the judgment of the Scriptures and the opinion of certain most learned men, I have been compelled by love for you to attempt, beyond my ability and power, to write these few remedies for penance. There are, moreover, other testimonies regarding remedies or the diversity of cures that, due to brevity, the nature of the place, or my lack of skill, I am unable to include here. However, if anyone who examines the divine readings discovers more or proposes better remedies or writes them down, we both agree with and will follow them.

² This little work, composed by Vinniaus out of love for his spiritual children, overflowing from the veins of the Scriptures, aims to erase all human sins for all people.