reges differentia agnoscatur To the firmament of heauen that is of the vniuersall Church God made two greate lightes to witt hee ordeined two great dignities which are the authoritie of the Pope the power of the Kinge but that power which ruleth spirituall things is greater that which ruleth things carnal is lesser that there may be as great difference knowne betweene Popes and Kinges as there is betweene the Sunne and the Mone The fourth Hound TEll me O Pope is not thy Romishe Purgatorie so sotted and senselesse a thinge as it can neither be proued by the scriptures nor yet by the ancient writers haue not thyne owne renowmed children Syluester Prieras who was somtime maister of thy sacred pallace and for his profounde knowledge surnamed Absolutus Theologus as also thy glorious so supposed Martyr Iohn Fisher our late Byshoppe of Rochester vttered so much in printed bookes to the viewe of the worlde I wote it is so and that all the worlde may knowe the vanitie and abhomination of late Romish religion I will set downe their expresse wordes Thus therefore writeth Syluester Indulgentia nobis per scripturā minime innotuit licet inducatur illud apostoli si quid donaui vobis sed nec per dicta antiquorum doctorum sed modernorum the Popes pardons were not knowne to vs by the holy scriptures although some doe alledge S. Paul for that purpose nether knowne by the auncient father but onely by the late writers Loc pardons and consequently purgatory being the ground thereof cannot be proued out of the scriptures My Lord of Rochester hath these expresse wordes sed graecis ad hunc vsque diē non est creditum purgatorium esse Legat qui velit graecorum veterum commentarios et nullum quantum opinor aut quam rarissimum de purgatorio sermonem inueniet Sedneque Latini simul omnes at sensim huius reiveritatem cōceperunt paulo post non absque maxima sancti spiritus dispensatione factum est quod post tot annorum curricula purgatorij fines indulgentiarū vsus ab Orthodoxis sit receptus quamdiu nulla fuerat de purgatorij cura nemo quaesiuit indulgentias nam ex illo pendet omnis indulgentiarum existimatio Si tollas purgatorium quorsum indulgentiis opus erit his enim si nullum fuerit purgatorium nihil indigebimus contemplantes igitur aliquandiu purgatorium incognitum fuisse deinde quibusdam pedetentim Partim ex reuelationibus partim ex scripturis fuisse creditum atque ita tandem generatim eius fidem ab orthodoxa ecclesia fuisse receptissimam facillime rationem aliquā indulgentiarum intelligimus Quum itaque purgatoriū tā sero cognitū ac receptū ecciesiae fuerit vniuersae quis iam de indulgentijs mirari potest quod in principio nascentis ecclesiae nullus fuerat carū vsum caeperunt igitur indulgentiae post quā ad purgatorij cruciatus aliquandiu trepidatum erat The Greeks to this day do not beleeue there is a purgatorie Reade who will their commentaries and he shall finde either verie seldome mention of purgatorie or rather none at all for neither did the Latine Church conceiue the veritie of this matter all at once but ley surelye by little and little neither was it done without the great dispensation of the holy ghost that after so many yeares Catholicks both beleeued purgatory and receiued the vse of pardons generally so long as there was no care of purgatorie no man sought for pardons For of it dependeth all the estimation that we haue of pardons If thou take awaie purgatory to what end shal we need pardons For if there be no purgatory we shall need no pardons Considering therfore how long purgatory was vnknown thē that it was beleeued of some by little and little partly by reuelations and partly by the scriptures and so at the last beleeued generally of the whole Church we doe easily vnderstande the cause of pardons synce therefore purgatory was so lately knowne and receiued of the whole Church who can now admire pardons that there was no vse of them in the Primitiue Church Pardons therefore began after the people stoode in some feare of purgatorie Thus O Pope writeth thine owne deare Byshoppe whose testimonie must needes be of great credite with thee Whose wordes notwithstanding if they be well marked with the due circumstances thereof are able of themselues without more adoe to perswad any man liuing to detest all popish religion For first we learne here that the greekes neuer beleeued purgatory no not to the daies of this Byshoppe who liued within these three score yeares last past Secondly that the church of Rome now the mother of all superstition did not beleeue the said purgatory for many hundreds of yeares after S. Peters death whose successour for all that thou O Pope boasts thy selfe to be Thirdly that this purgatory which is now the foundation of papistry crept by little and little not all at once into the Latine Church Fourthly that purgatorie was found out by reuelation from heauen or if you had rather so thinke from the deuell of Hell Fiftly that pardons came not vp vntill purgatory was found out the reason hereof saith our popish Byshopp is this because forsooth if there be no purgatory all popish pardons are needlesse Sixtly that pardons were not heard of nor knowne to the Primatiue Church Seuently that pardons then began when men began to feare the paines of purgatorie but of this matter I haue written more at large in my booke of Motiues The Fift Hound TEll me O Pope hast thou not imposed vpon thy Monkes Friers and Nunnes such an heauie yoake as they are not able to beare Is not the prohibition of matrimonie contrarie to Christs institution to the doctrine of the Apostls to the practise of the Primitiue church was not Pope Syritius the first man that made any setled law for that purpose was not the mariage of priests allowed in the Church for one thousand yeares after christ doth not thine owne Gratianus tell vs euen out of thine owne approued decrees that many priests sonnes haue beene Popes of Rome Doth hee not name Bonifacius Agapitus Theodorus Syluerius Faelix Hosius Gelasius Densdedit and many others Doth not thine owne glosse vpon the same text thinke it better to say they were all bastardes then to graunt them to be legitimate children lawfully begotten in holie wedlocke doth not the same glosse alledge for his excuse that vit iu tollitur per successionem the fault is taken away by vertue of their holy succession commeth not the same Gratian roundly vpon the glosse and affirmeth plainly that priests might marrie lawfully euery where vntill the late inhibition made by Siritius doth not Socrates that famous Greeke historiographer tell vs that Byshops of the east Church did in his time beget children of their lawfull wiues and that euen in the time
Theologus absolutus Where now if it were not sacriledge to dispute of the Popes power as I haue proued it to be I would aske this one question why any soules abide in purgatory since a plenarie is sufficient for their discharge which for all that the Pope grauntteth vsually as a thinge verie frequent during mine owne aboade at Rome Is it because he cannot that is contrary to his owne doctrine Is it because it staÌ„deth not with discretion there is asmuch discretion to doe it for the deade as for the liuing Is it because he will not so it seemeth and then he wanteth charitie as I haue already said The tenth Hound TEll me O Pope doth not thy sottish religion tell vs that thou maiest erre as a priuate man but not as Pope or a publicke Person as if it were saide thou maiest sitte in thy pontificalibus thou mayest ride vpon thy white Palfrey thou mayest talke and write they pleasure and that euen while thou art Pope and so vtter heresies and blasphemies whatsoeuer and yet for all that canst thou neuer teach or define any errour or heresie as beinge Pope indeede I wote it is so thy chiefest Doctors haue so tolde mee Vignerius hath these expresse wordes si dicatur summus pontifex errare potest in animo suo concipere aliquem articulum Orthodoxa fidei contrarium etiam priuatim proferre vt legitur de Anastasio secundo Si ergo posset nouum symbolum edore fides ecclesiae vnius hominis periculo subiaceret dicendum quod summus pontifex vt priuata persona errare potest non tamen vt est summus pontifex Ideo si vt priuata persona symbolum edere tentaret non esset symbolum maximè vbi a vera fide deuiaret If any say that the Poope may erre and conceiue in his hearte any article contrary to the Catholike faith and also vtter the same priuately as we read of Pope Anastatius the seconde If therefore hee coulde make a new creede the faith of the Church shoulde be subiecte to the hazzard of one man We answere saith Vignerius that the Pope may erre as a priuate person but not as Pope or the hie Byshoppe Therfore if hee should make a creede as a priuate man it should be no creede at all especially where hee swerued from the right faith Beholde here gentle reader vpon what rotten stuffe the Papistes woulde haue vs to ground our faith Wee must say they beleeue that the Pope cannot erre and yet are wee sure that hee can erre and that hee hath alreadie erred in verie deede Wee must likewise beleeue that he cannot but teach the truth and yet must we also beleeue that hee can both teach heresie and be an heretike himselfe VVe must furthermore beleeue as you haue already heard that it is sacriledge to dispute of the Popes power and yet must we both dispute of his power and straitly examine his doctrine as also know constantly whether he speaketh publiquely as a publike man or priuately as a priuate man And neuertheles when we haue done all that we can we know no more what to thinke or say of his doctrine then when we haue an Eâ—le by the taile For when he shall tell me I must beleeue this and that then if hee speake as a priuate man where is my saith but let vs here the cry of some other houndes That famous papist Iohâ—ures Gerson sometime the chancellor of Paris hath these expresse wordes hoc fecit latroni qui verisimiliier nondum compleuer at paenitentiam pro omnibu peccatis suis qui fuit illa hora propria beatificatus vidit deum facie ad faciem sicut sanctiin Paradiso Propter quod insuper apparet falsitas doctrinae papae Ioannis 22. quae damnata fuit cum souo buccinarum coram rege Philippoper Theologos Parisienses credidit potius Theologis Parisiensibus quam curiae This hee did to the theefe who by likelihoode had not yet accomplished pennance for all his sinnes who was blessed in that verye houre and sawe GOD face to face as doe the Saintes in Paradise by reason whereof further appeareth the falshoode of the doctrine of Pope Iohn which was condemned with the sounde of Trumpetes before king Phillippe by the diuines of Paris and the king beleeued the diuines of Paris rather then the court In which wordes we haue to note First that Maister Gerson auoucheth the theefe crucified with Christ to haue seen God face to face in that houre and so to haue beene blessed Secondly that he reproueth the false doctrine of Pope Iohn Thirdly that his doctrine was condemned with the sound of trumpets in the presence of the king of France Fourthly that the king gaue more credit to the diuines of Paris then to the iudgement of the Pope or court of Rome Fiftie that neither the king nor the learned Papists did at that time graunt to the Pope such power and authoritie as the Pope this day doth insolently chalenge to himselfe Sixtly that the Pope taught false doctrine euen in a weighty matter of saith Which thing not onely Gerson affirmeth together with the diuines of Paris as you haue heard but Pope Adrian himselfe testifieth the same as the zealous papist Alphonsus de castro reporteth in these expresse words sexta haeresis docet nullam animam ante diem iudicij esse beatam quum vt ait nulla anima anâ—e illum diem videt deum Huius haeresios authores sunt Armeni eandem etiaÌ„ tuentur Greci post istos surrexit Iohannes 22. huius nominis pontifex Sed ne verbis meis aliquis in hac parte deroget verba Adriani papae referaÌ„ qui in suo quarto senteÌ„tiarum in calce cuiusdam quaestionis de sacramento confirmationis it a ait nonissime fertur de Ioanne 22. quod publice docuit decla rauit ab omnibus teneri mandauit quod a nimae purgata aute finale indicium non habent solaÌ„ quae est clara facialis visio dei vniuersitatem Parisiense ad hec induxisse dicitur quod nemo in ea poteraet gradum in Theologia adipisci nisiprimitus hunc errorem iurasset se defensurum per petuo ei adhaesurum Haec Adrianus The sixt heresie teacheth that no soule is in eternall blisse before the day of dome because as it saith no soule before that day seeth God the Armeni are the authors of this heresie and the Greekes holde the same After these rose vp Pope Iohn the 22. of that name But least any man distrust my words in this point I will receite the words of Pope Adrian who in his fourth booke of sentences in the ende of a certaine question of the sacrament of confirmation saith thus last of all it is reported of Pope Iohn the 22. that he publiquely taught declared commaunded all men to held this opinion that the soules of the iust haue not before the day
enim se fore obedieÌ„tes summo Pontifici quod intelligitur donec Pontifex est dum iubet ea quae secundum Deum sacras canones iubere potest sed non iurà t se noÌ„ dicturos quod sentiunt in concilio vel se non deposituros eiâ— si haeretiouÌ„ esse conuincant This oth taketh not away the liberty of Bishopps which in counsels is necessarie For they sweare that they will be obedient to the Pope which is to be vnderstood so long as he is Pope and while hee commaundeth those thinges which he may commaund agreeable to God and the holy cannons but they sweare not that they will not speake what they thinke in the counsell or that they will not depose him if they proue him to be an heretique Out of these wordes of the Iesuite I note first that he sawe right well that this oth bringeth no small discredite to the late Romish religion in regarde whereof hee seeketh many shiftes to saue the Popes credite if it might bee I note secondly that all clergie-men admitted to giue voyces in counsels are sworne wholy to obey the Popes constitutions I note thirdly that the said persons are sworne to beleeue that the Pope cannot erre in his iudiciall decrees of faith or manners that no counsels are of force without the Popes confirmation that all counsels confirmed by him are approued by the holy Ghost that he can excommunicate and depose all Emperours Kinges Queenes and Bishops in the Christian worlde that hee can deliuer by his free pardons all soules out of purgatorie and a thousand other thinges of like homelie qualitie for all such matters are contayned in the Popes holie holie cannons and consequently in their most lamentable othe I note fourthlye that they are sworne to admitte his decrees who as they beleeue may be an heretique I note fiftlye that they are sworne to admit his iudgement in all matters of faith whome yet them selues maye iudge and depose for heresie Fie fie vpon all filthy popery I note sixtly that the popish fundamentall article in appointing the Pope iudge ouer all controuersies is quite ouerthrowne turned vpside downe in this Bellarminus his explication For when hee saieth while he commaundeth c. he granteth euery Bishop freedome to examine and to iudge of the Popes coÌ„stitutions Which libertie if they would constantly performe all true christians would agree with them For none that beleeue rightly in God will deny obedience to the Pope When soeuer he preacheth or teacheth any thing which is agâ—eeable to God holy cannons But true christians finding his canons to be disholy his decrees to be against God thinke as Bellarmine heere teacheth them that they may iudge his bad dealing and are not bound to obey him The thirde hound is Melchior Canus whose expresse wordes are these Decreta quoe a legatis contra sedis apostolicae traditionem apprebentur non habent Romanae ecclesiae authoritatem nec aliter se habent quam si a consilio sine legatis prodijssent Sequitur solidam auctoritatem quam in confirmandis fratribus dogmatibus Petrus habet in legatos transferre non potest The decrees which the legates shall approue against the tradition of the Church of Rome haue no authoritie from the Church of Rome neither are they of any more force then if they had proceeded from the counsell without consent of the Legates The sound authority which Peter hath in confirming his brethren and decrees he can not transferre vnto his Legates Thus writeth Canus that great piller of Popishe Doctrine Out of whose wordes I note first that decrees of counsels be of no force without consent of the Popes Legates I note secondly that the decrees of counsels euen when they haue the consent of the Legates are for all that of no force when the Legates condiscend to any thing against the Popes minde I note thirdly that the Pope cannot giue or translate his authoritie to the legates and consequently that the Pope doth no little abuse the whole world when he calleth together all Byshoppes in the world and yet will allowe nothinge that they do vnlesse it be the same that he decreth in his chaire at home The 17 Hound TEll me O precursor of Antichrist if thou be not that Antichrist himselfe doest not thou take vpon thee to depose Kings and to dispossesse them of their Scepters and regalities doest not thou chalenge authoritie to make Kings doest not thou tell them that they haue not their power from God but through thee and thy meanes I wote it is so thy domicican Fryer Syluester reprooueth it thy Iesuite Bellermine confirmeth it and thy sworne Vassals Campion Ballard and their complices did put the same in execution Syluester hath these expresse wordes nec obstat quod potestas imperialis est adeo concessa secundum multa iura quia est a deo mediante Papa quia eam concedit non vt homo sed vt vicarius dei Nec sunt sic distinctae potestates spiritualis scilicet temporalâ—s quin vna alteri subaliernetur ad instar solis Lunae nec sunt distinctae quasi semper sint in diuersis sed quia sunt ordinata ad distincta scilicet spiritualia temporalia in vno eodemque summo pontifice est vtraque in summo It skilleth not that many lawes affirme imperiall power to be of GOD. For it is but from GOD by the Popes meanes who granteth it not as man but as the Vicar of GOD. Neither are the two powers the spirituall and the temporall so distiâ—ct but that they remaine subordinate the one to the other after the resemblance of the Sunne the Moone Neither are they distinct as being alwaies in diuers subiectes but as ordeyned to distinct thinges spirituall and temporall For they both are in one and the same Pope euen in the highest degree These wordes gentle Reader neede no interpretation they are full of open blasphemie as all that haue eyes may see Bellerminus hath these wordes Childericum deposuit Papa in eius locum Pipinum Caroli magni patrem regem creari iussit The Pope deposed Childericus and commaunded to place Pipinus father to Charles the great in his throne Againe in an other place the same Bellermine hath these expresse wordes at si isti ijdem principes conantur auertere populuÌ„ a fide omnium consensu possunt debent priuari suo dominio But if these princes goe about to auerte the people from the faith of the Church of Rome for so he meaneth then by the consent of all they may and must be dispossessed of their scepters Regalities Againe in the second Chapter he saith thus quod si Christiani elim non deposuerunt Neronem Dioclesianum Iulianum apostatam ac valentem ArianuÌ„ similes id fuit quia deerant vires temporales Christianis If the
Christians in time past did not depose Nero Diocletian Iulian Valens and such like Emperours the cause thereof was this because they wanted power and force and were not strong enough for that attempt Againe a little after hee hath these wordes at non tenentur Christiani imò nec debent cum euidenti periculo religionis tolerare regem infidelem But Christians are not bound to tolerate a King that is an infidell or not a papist as the Ie suite vnderstandeth the worde who will haue none to be christians but papistes nay they must not tollerate such a one with the euident perill of religion And our Ie suite hath this reason to perswade vs thus to thinke because forsooth saith he de iure humano est quod hunc aut illum habeamus regem It is by the law of man that we haue this or that man to be our Kinge This is the doctrine of our Iesuite and consequently of the Pope himselfe Out of which disloyall and most vnchristian assertion I inferre First that the Pope and his Iesuites would most willingly depose our most gracious Soueraigne from her royall throne and regalitie if they were of force and power so to doe I inferre secondly that our Iesuite doth here approoue peremptorily many naughtie abhominable factes aswell in the sight of god as in the eyes of the worlde First the diabolicall excommunication of Pope Pius Secondly the disloyall fact of Murton who brought the same into this Realme Thirdly the publishing thereof by Felton Fourthly the practising of the curse or excommunication by Sanders Fitz-Morice Ballard and others their sedicious complices Fiftly the renewing of the printe the dispercing of the copies at Rome by our Iesuites Persons and Campion which thing was done during mine own abode at Rome as a very compendious preparatiue for their more commodious entrance into this land I inferre thirdly that all subiectes are by this doctrine styrred vp and encouraged to manifest rebellion as also to haue no scruple of conscience in so doying the reason hereof is euident because if kinges receiue their authoritie from man as this Iesuite auoucheth then may kinges indeede be displaced by man as Romish parasites irreligious Pollitikes do beare the world in hand But God himselfe telleth vs another tale by his annointed kinge Salomon the wise per me reges regnant legum conditores iusta decernuÌ„t By me kinge doe reigne Princes decree iustice By me princes rule and all nobles and iudges of the earth And the apostle saith non est potestas nisi a Deo There is no power but of GOD. The 18 Hound TEll me O holy disholy father of Rome how thou hast aspired to thy Lordes titles wilt thou holde thy peace must I needes speake for thee doubtles the glossers of thy Canons gaue thee all thy Lordle titles themselues being blind bayards and very beggerly fellowes For by reason of their pouertie they flattered and sought to please and by reason of their ignorance they writt many things which they did not vnderstand The great papist Franciscus a Victoria hath these expresse wordes sed glossatores iuris hoc dominium dederunt papae cum ipsi essent pauperes rebus doctrina But the glossers of the popish Canon-law gaue this dominion and these royall titles to the Pope when them selues were blinde bayards and beggerly fellowes O noble birth of Poperie The 19 Hounde TEll me O three headed Cerberus who blasphemously namest thy selfe the Vicer vniuersall of Christ Iesus who was he that first gaue thee the primacye and the headship of the Church was it not that blodie Phocas the parricide did he not rauish many godly matrons and murder the godly Emperour Maurâ—ius together with his wife children didst not thou shortly after obtaine of him that the church of Rome might be called the head of all churches I am sure it was so for so write thine owne zealous Papistes and renowmed Cronographerss Sigebertus Plalmerius Bergonensis Polidorus and others Sigebertus hath these very wordes post queÌ„ Bonifacius Romanae ecclesiae presidet Hic obtinuit apud Phocam â—mperatorem vt ecclesia Romanacaput esset omnium ecclesiarum cumprius Constantinopolitana id vsurpare tentasset After whome Boniface gouerned the Church of Rome He obtained of the Emperour Phocas that the Church of Rome should be the head of all Churches and this he did because the Church of Constantinople writt it selfe the head of all Churches by whose testimonye it is most euident as yee see that the Church of Rome neuer sought for the primacie ouer other Churches vntill the church of Constantinople proudly chalenged that name For which proude appellation S. Gregory surnamed the great that holy and learned Byshoppe of Rome stoutly withstoode Iohn the Byshoppe of Constantinople tearming him Antichrist and the name Antichristian And because his owne assertion plainly recited is most forcible to perswade the reader I will set downe his owne expresse words which are these ego autem fidenter dico quia quis quis se vniuersalem sacerdotem vocat vel vocari desiderat in elatione sua Antichristum praecurrit I speake boldly that whosoeuer either calleth himselfe vniuersall Priest or desireth so to be called is for his intollerable pride become the precursor of Antichrist So then the Church of Rome for the space of sixe hundred yeares after Christ continued in equalitie and vniformitie with other Churches euen vntill the yeare of our Lord 607. at which time Bonifacius the third of that name was proudly exalted by Phocas as is already saide The 20 Hounde TEll me O Pope thou that makes thy selfe the foundation and rocke vpon which the Church is built doe not thine owne deere darlings affirme boldly that the church is neither built vpon Peter nor vpon thee but vpon the faith and confession that Peter made I wote they doe so and thou shalt heare their expresse wordes Dyonisius carthusianus hath these wordes super hanc petram quam confessuses hoc est super meipsum lapidem angularem montem altissimum de quo ait apostolus fundamentum aliud nemo potest ponere praeter id quod positum est quod est Christus Iesus Vpon this rock which thou hast confessed that is vpon mine owne selfe the corner-stone the high mountaine of which the Apostle speaketh another foundation can no man lay then that which is layed which is Iesus Christ vpon this rocke I say will I builde my church that is the congregation of the faithfull Thus writeth thine owne Fryer and thy deare Doctor Nicholaus de Lyra confirmeth this verdict in these expresse wordes ego dico tibi pro te pro socijs tuis quin tis es Petrus 1. confessor verae petrae quae est Christus Et super hanc petram quam confessus es id est super Christum aedificabo ecclesiam meam portae inferi id