The following excerpts come from:
Sermons of St. Robert Cardinal Bellarmine, S. J.,3
vols. (trans. Kenneth Baker; Keep the Faith, Inc., 2018), volume 3
Sermon Sixty-Three: Sermon Eight on the Catholic Faith—The
Gift of Prophecy
Did the synagogue of Satan ever
have anything like that? They do, of course, publish their predictions. Who
would not be astounded that our papists, idolaters, enemies of God not only
shine with miracles, but also the light of prophecy, but that those evangelical
brothers only lie? For the demons have always pretended to have this power of
predicting future events as a true note of divinity. Hence, for example, before
the coming of Christ in many places there were oracles of Apollo, Claros,
Pythia, Delphi, Dodona, all of which however ceased to function immediately when
God arrived in the flesh. This is something that was noted not only by St.
Anthony as one of us, but also by Plutarch, a Gentile, as something truly
amazing. Indeed Plutarch wrote a book about this disappearance, as reported by
Theodoretus in his book on oracles; and he seeks the cause for such a new and
astonishing change. For what is more amazing than that with such swiftiness in
the whole world silence should overtake all the oracles, and that their mouths
should be closed forever?
But what was the nature, I ask
you, of the predictions of demons? Sometimes they responded with obscure
circumlocutions and enigmas, so that whatever happened they might seem to have
predicted truly, and any mistake would fall to the interpreters. Sometimes they
spoke openly and clearly, but they predicted those things that they themselves were
going to do with the help of God or which had already begun to happen; but this
is not so much to divine or conjecture as it is to announce present things to
those who did not know about them.
And the prophecies of heretics
are not any more excellent. I would not produce many examples of this, if it
were permitted for us to run through the false prophecies of the false
prophets, both of the Old Testament and the New, but because of the limitation of
time we will say a few things only about the false predictions of contemporary
heretics.
. . .
Some years ago when the Anabaptists
occupied Calabria, a province of Italy, when they were captured and about to be
executed, they openly claimed (and this is something I learned from a great and
trustworthy man who, if I remember correctly, was present at the punishment)
that they should suffer no harm if they were thrown from a high tower, because immediately
angels would be present who would protect them lest perhaps they dash a foot
against a stone. These miserable men were thrown from the towers, and they
struck not only their feet, but also their heads and necks against the stones; immediately
they landed on the ground, and they all broke their heads and covered the
ground with their brains, since the angels did not come to help them. (pp. 65-66,
67)
Sermon Eighty-Five: Sermon X—On Psalm 90 (91)—On Verse
Thirteen
What is the remedy? He shall
bruise your head, Holy Scripture says. The asp observes our heel, and we
must watch his head so that we bruise his head before your heel is bitten by
him. What is the head? It is the first movement of sin, the first temptation,
the first suggestion. Is the devil suggesting to you that you do not have to
fast? Do not listen to him, bruise his head. Is he suggesting something against
faith? Do not argue with the sophist—bruise his head. (pp. 310-11—note that
Bellarmine interprets Gen 3:15 as he, not she, notwithstanding his
holding to what would later be the defined dogma of the Immaculate Conception)
