vvriting against u Contra 18 articul Wiolif VViclif maketh y In articulo 11. 12. tvvise mention of a booke of his ovvne sent to the Bishoppe of Hereford Dâ—…num Ersordenseâ—… he calleth him in confutation of the booke of VValter Britte 27 While I wrâ—…e these thinges I cannot but thinke vpon the audacious absurdnesse of my ignorant Doctour who blusheth not to vtter that is is y Ration 1. most manifest that all in England vvere Papistes vvithout exception from the first Christening thereof vntill this age of King Henry the eight Hee is doubtlesse an honest man and worthy to be trusted on his word It is not only manifest but most manifest not that the greatest part but all yea beâ—… shal not be scanted all wâ—…ut â—…ption were â—…apistes c. Were Iohn Wiclifâ—… bones burnt because he was a Papist were the Bulâ—… of the Pope against him for that cause and were the Archbishop Arondelâ—… Costâ—… against his followers so severe because they were Papists The man is hâ—… to be pittied for his simplicity A man may know by the lawes ProclamatioÌ„s letters proceedings by the State against some as against Heretickes As also by the Records of Bishops yet extant by the manifold executions burnings afterward that even in that deepe time of ignorance England did give most noble testimony of Christs truth against Popery eveÌ„ so farre as to the fiery trial If the Christian Reader peruse the Ecclesiastical History of M r. Foxe he shal find how z 〈◊〉 An. 1400. sub K. Henrie 4. before the Coâ—… William Saâ—… a Priest was burnt after him Iohn Baâ—…y and that because they were Wiclevists oâ—… Lâ—… as they the â—…ed them and not because they were Papists There are the reasons also and asseveratioÌ„s of Pâ—…y and Thorpe against Popery with diverse other matters And is it â—…ot to bee thought that the Heretikes increased when a â—…ynode a 〈◊〉 Sub Reg. Henric. 5. was assembled in Sâ—… Pâ—… Church at London into the vvhich â—…me 〈◊〉 Inquisitoâ—… who in a former Synode were appointed to 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 the vvâ—…gs of VVâ—… vvherein they found 24â—… Conclusions an vvhich they supposed to bee Iâ—… 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the 〈◊〉 â—…eere of K. Henry the 〈◊〉 dâ—… 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ward the L. 〈◊〉 was â—…ge 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as 〈◊〉 had beene a â—…de of Traiâ—… but hee was then 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 â—…ed Hâ—… So was oâ—… 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for his 〈◊〉 consumed to 〈◊〉 Not longâ—… 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 besideâ—… 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Sub 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Religion 〈◊〉 and VVâ—… tvvo 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 followed afterwardâ—… Neither â—…d â—…he 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and of King 〈◊〉 the 〈◊〉 escape 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of sundrie 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 CHRISTâ—… 〈◊〉 sake 〈◊〉 for 〈◊〉 profession of the â—…hy the particular stories of vvhome may bâ—…â—…ounde in the Authour abouâ—… 〈◊〉 The Clergy of these times did beare much sway with their Princes and lefte no meanes vâ—…ught no stone vnâ—…ned to keepe vp the dignitie and preheminence of their Romish Hierarchy and the superstitions Idolatry vvhich then vvas in vse Novve â—…in the raignes of all these Princes so many were slaughtered for the testimonie of a good conscience hovve manie weake brethren vvere there vvho did not make open profession of their faith and hovve many did there lie hid diverse of them in probabilitie having confederates and some of them being Priestes and therefore not vnlikely to have learning both to confirme themselves in the truth and such other as hearde them Thus have I both in England and else-vvhere brought vp the doctrine of the Gospell vntill the time of Iohn VViclef who flourished in the yeere 1371. 28 Heere it may please the Reader to remember that the iudgment before cited of â—…vo c Gregor 11. Gregor 12. Popes vvas that VViclef taught the doctrine of Marsilius of Padua and of Iohn of 〈◊〉 Of the later of these there yet appeareth no monument vvritten But hee ioyned in d Catalog test verle lib. 18. opinion vvith the former But as for Marsilius Patavinus our Adversties cannot but acknovvledge him to bee a verie learned man after the measure of the age vvherein hee lived vvhich vvas in the yeere 1324. Hee vvrote a e Defensor pacis booke against the vsurped power of the Bishope of Rome vvhich argument hee entred into in behalfe of the Emperour Levvis of Bavâ—…e vvho vvas mightily laide at by three Popes successiuelie There the Authour avovveth as right and iust the supreme authoritie of the Emperour displaying the iniquitie of the Popes vsurpation over Christian Princes and Generall Councels The booke is vvoorth the reading to see vvhether all in times past did allowe of the Popes doctrine and proceedinges or not His opinions are these That the Pope is not superiour to other Bishoppes and much lâ—… the Emperour and civill Magistraâ—… That thing as are to bee decided by the â—…ure Thâ—… 〈◊〉 men of the laiâ—… 〈◊〉 in Councels That the Clergy and Pope himselfe are to bee subiect to Magistrates That the Church is the 〈◊〉 companie of the faithfull That CHRIST is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of the Church and appointed 〈◊〉 to bee 〈◊〉 Uiâ—… That Priestes may bee â—…ryed That Saint Peter was 〈◊〉 at Rome That the Popish Synagoge 〈◊〉 a dâ—… of theeves That the doctrine of the Pâ—… not to bee follovved because it leadeth to everlasting destructâ—… In the time of this Marsilius lived that noble Poet Danie vvho vvrote also a booke against the Pope f Petrus Messias in Ludovico Câ—… the Monarchie of the Emperour but for taking part vvith Lewes of Bavâ—…ere hee vvas condemned for an heretike and his booke â—…hereticall Then also vvrote g Catal. test verit lib. 18. Occam directly to the same purpose but for his labour therein and his large reproofe of the Papâ—…cie in other pointes hee was excommunicated by the romane Bishop vvhich he so much contemned that hee not vnwillingly dyed vnder that sentence Aboute that time vvere here and there dispersed sundry godly men who sawe more then the common sorte touching Religion As h Ibid. ex Hen. de Erford Hayâ—… a Minorite vvho frequently saide in his Sermons that the Church of Rome vvat the vvhere of Babylon and that the Pope and Cardinals vvere meere Aâ—… vvhich propositions were helde somevvhat before also by i Ibidem Gerâ—… and Dulcinus tvvo learned men This Duâ—… may be thought to haue had many followers since k Hist. Hussit lib. 2. Cochleus coulde say that Iohn Hus committed spirituall fornication with the Wâ—…sts and with the Dulâ—…nists The same opinions concerning the Pope and Rome did that rare man l Epist. 20. in Poesi Italica Franciscus Petrarche seeme fully to embrace as may appeare to any who will reade his vvorkes hovvsoever Cardinall
brought for we wil ever do grant so much as any man can in truth wish to bee collected out of them But what is all this to the purpose since neither then nor since they do agree with the polluted doctrine of your Sinagoge and the faith which olde Rome spreade or mainetained is no more consonant to this infidelity which our new Rome maintaineth then an apple is like an oyster Which one answere although it cut of al your cavils which you fetch from antiquity in praise of Rome and we frequētly inculcate it vnto you yet because it so biteth you will in no sort remember It is a tricke in Rhetorike but it is withall but a base shift to slippe by that or to seeme to forget that which woundeth to the hart and vtterly destroyeth T. HILL BUt the Protestants per adventure will grant that the true Church flourished in those dayes but not afterwardes vntill this age in which they haue reformed the same yet is it most manifest that it flourished afterwardes even vntill this our time no lesse then it and before if not more for in Saint Gregory his daies it was spreade all over the worlde as appeareth by his Epistles to the Bishops of the East of Afrike Spaine France England Sicily And by Saint Bede in cap. 6. Cantic as also by Saint Bernard who disputing before Rogerim King of Sicily avouched that in those daies the East all the West Fraunce Germany Englande Spaniardes and many barbarous nations obeyed the Bishoppe of Rome G. ABBOT 8. The Protestāts not fearing that you shal gaine any thing by that which is truth wil refuse to yeeld you nothing that is true In the first Church that is while the Apostles lived the spouse of Christ for doctrine was most glorious for some hundreds of yeares afterwards her honor flourished not a little yet so that some pety superstitions began to creepe in heere and there But about six hundred years after Christ shee for the outward face did more more droupe in doctrine f 1. Ioh. 2. 18 Antichrists began to peepe vp in the Apostles time but then they coulde not properly be called the great Antichrist And that which was thē was not so eminently as that the followers of the Apostles did much obserue it being then more troubled with persecution or heretiks then with superstition In processe of time matters grew to a worse state evil opiniōs creeping in at last the maine g 2. Thes. 2. 3 Apostasie followed But in this Apostasie very great declining there were who yeelded not to the time but kept thēselues vnspotted of the world especially for mainest points of salvation And it being thus whē things were at the worst God in this later age hath suffred that truth which was more hidden to illustrate the Christian world again Yea but you wil proue that since the Primitiue Church faith florished more thē before or at the least it was not diminished vntill our time You can do wonders Sir or els your own reason would informe you that nothing beene added til these lare navigations of the Portingales Spaniards Christianity must needs be exceedingly diminished when the Saracens Turks for so long space haue devored so much of Asia Europa Africa as is or hath bin vnder thē You are but a simple man for story weaker for Cosmography or els you would not so improbably talke at randon But any thing serveth your turne Well the faith was in Gregories times over all the worlde How proue you this Forsooth he wrote Epistles to Bishops of Spaine France England Sicely yea of the East of Afrike Ergo the faith was over all the world A young man of the age of sixteene yeares hath by his diligence learned without booke the Epistle to Philemō that to the Colossians yea the book of Ruth and the Prophecy of Aggeus therefore he can say all the Bible by hart This is Logike for the Seminaries but not currant elsewhere VVhat wrote he into Tartaria or India or Manicongo what to Finland or Iseland or a thousand places more And what saith Bede h In Cantic 6. The summe of the citisens of that celestiall countrey doth exceede the measure of our estimation But this is spoken of all the faithfull that are were or ever shall bee in the world As also that following vpon the texte Adole scentularum non est numerus There are saith hee young maidens vvhereof there is no number because there are sound innumerable cōpantes of Christiā people Which within seaven lines after he maketh most evident The vniversall Church which in the same her faithfull members from the beginning even vnto the ending of the vvorld from the rising of the Sunne vnto the setting from the North and the Sea doe praise the name of the Lorde Doth this shew any extraordinary thing in the time of Beda or any flourishing of the Church or more thē that there were faithfull toward al parts of the world Such is that which was brought touching S. i In vita Bernard L◅ 217 Bernard who vpō a great schisme in the Church of Rome betweene Innocentius and the Antipape Petrus Leonis being sent for to compose this strife and to see whether he could winne over to Innocētius Robert the King of Sicely who stood for Peter in his Oration saith that if Peters side were good they who acknowledged Innocentius for Pope should bee in very ill case And these hee nameth Then the Easterne Church shall perish vvhich at that time coulde comprehend no more but those fewe Christians vvhich were vvarring in or about Palestina for the Greeke Churches did not then acknowledge the Popes Iurisdiction the whole West shall perish Fraunce shallperish Germany shall perish the Spanish and English and the Barbarian kingdomes shall be drowned in the bottome of the Sea Where he doth not adde these special countries over and aboue the VVest but signifieth vvhat was meant by that generall name that is to saye Fraunce Germany Spaine and England vvith some inferiour Kingdomes So that now if S. Bernard doe say any thing heere your all the worlde is vvonderfully shrunke in the vvetting So you strive against the streame and the farther you goe the worse you goe T. HILL AND in these daies it is all over Italie all over Spaine and in Fraunce in most partes of Germany in Poleland Boheme besides England Hungary Greece Syria Aethiopia Aegypt in vvhich Landes are many Catholikes and in the newe world it flourisheth mightily in all the foure partes of the world Eastward in the Indies VVestward in America Northward in Iaponia Southward in Brasilia in the vttermost partes of Afrike G. ABBOT 9 AS many as be disposed to knowe the Popes strength harken now to his muster-maister Al Italie commeth first as being neerest the Popes nose then all Spaine is the second legion But how would it be in these lands if your Inquisitours did
vile and odious reportes when in this age wherein God hath afforded more plentifull meanes to discover their falshood they doe dare not only in their sermons or in their secreter whisperings but in their Printed bookes to proclaime abroade concerning vs most false and vngodly calumniations and imputations as that we do teach all loosenes of life and a Weston vbique Libertinisme by this our new Gospel that we b Campian Ration 8. maintaine that al sins are aequal that wee hould it as a Maxime that God is the Author of sinne and whatsoever else it pleaseth M. Campian and his felowes to invent devise touching vs wheeras we vtterly disclaime these the like Positions as execrable vngodly Yea that Mounti-banke whom once before I mentioned hath not blushed to assevere that wee so teach as that by our doctrine c Certaine Articles or forcible Reasons At Anwerp 1600. the Protestantes are bound in conscience never to aske God forgivenesse of their sinnes And that they are bound in conscience to avoide all good workeâ—… As also that we make God the onely cause of sinne And holde that God is vverse then the Devil So shamelesse was this fellow growne that he neither knoweth not careth what he saith And yet many a poore Papist abused and gulled by the Devilâ—… deceiving instrumentes doth swalow such goageons runneth away with these things beeing as verily perswaded of them as that the Gospell is true Such a hand the Seminary Priests have over their disciples that they may not reade our bookes to see whether these obiections be true or no neither may they heare ought to the coÌ„trary Now if they thus vse vs who can speake for ourselves wil any maÌ„marveile that those who professed the verity two or three hundred of yeeres since do tâ—…st of the malignant aspersion of those times 35 The Romanists not withstanding all this which hath beene said do not yet so leave vs but once more farther adde that none of all those which hitherto have bin named or can be named but in some knowne confessed and vndoubted opinions did vary from you and therefore they and you may not bee saide to have beene al of one Church Our Maisters of Rhemes do thinke that this lyeth hardly vpon vs therfore thus vauntingly they vrge that they d In Rom. â—…1 4. will not put the Protestants to prove that there were seaven thousand of their Sect when thâ—…r new Elias Luther began but let them prove that there were seven or any one either theÌ„ or in al ages before him that was in all points of his beleefe VVhat the olde Fathers taught vvee shall have time inough in diverse Chapters heere-after to shewe where by the assistance of GOD wee shall discusse many single pointes of faith but for other of later time it is most easy to manifest that all those whome before I have named did generally for all maine matters teach the same which vvee novve doe teach There is no Papist vvho can truely and vvithout calumniating them or sayning thinges vpon them demonstrate that in causes vvhich touch the substance of faith or the foundation of Christian Religion they did dissent from vs. Hee who will try this let him looke on the Declaration e In M r. Foxes Eccles Histor. of Walther Brute which I before mentioned and let him reade it set downe by himselfe and not reported by other And what did that learned lay-man deliver there which was not the beleefe of Wiclif and the rest of the English professing the Gospell in those times But if there bee in some petty matters yea questions of some reasonable moment difference in opinion betweene them and vs shall vvee not therefore bee of the same Church with them or they with vs Yes verily for otherwise many of the auncient Fathers should not be of the Communion of Saintes or Catholike Congregation with those who came after them and amended their errours For vvas not f Divin Iustir l. 7. 14 Lactantius spotted with the Millenarie infection and g Augustin Epistol 48. Cyprian vvith the matter of Rebaptizing Had not Austen an h Epistol 106. 107. opinion of the necessity of the Eucharist to be administred to children and that Infants being deade without i Epist. 28. Baptisme were not only deprived of the fruition of heavenly ioyes but were damned to the pit of hell and to everlasting torments And what man religiouslie affected will suspect but that although Saint Cyprian and the other Affricane Bishops aslembled in a k Concil Carthag in CypriaÌ„ oper Councel did concerning the new baptizing of those who were already baptized by Heretikes determine cleane contrarie to Cornelius the rest of the Italian Bishops yet they should not be of the same faith in generall and of the same holy Church whereof Cornelius was Saint Austen can thus write concerning Cyprian l De Baptism contra Donatist lib. 1. Whereas that holy man Cyprian thinking otherwise of Baptisme then the matter was vvhich was afterward handled and with most diligent consideration established did remaine in the Catholike vnity both by the plentifulnesse of his charitie a recompence was made and by the sickle of his suffering there vvas a purging m Lib. 〈◊〉 In another place hee saith The authoritie of Cyprian doth not terrifiâ—… meeâ—… but the humilitie of Cyprian doth refresh mee Hee meaneth that if that vvorthy man had lived to have seene more light in that argument or to beholde vvhat the succeeding time had reveiled and concluded in that behalfe hee vvould in greate humilitie and meekenesse of hearte have conformed himselfe and yeelded vnto it VVhich may iustly serve for a true defence of the Waldenses Iohn Wiclif Iohn Hus or any other servant of God who might seeme in matters of small moment to vary from vs. 36 And thus I trust that by this time it appeareth to every one who will not wilfully close his eies stoppe his eares against an appâ—…rant truth that God hath at all times had his children houlding the verity of Christian Religion not approving of the filthie Superstitions sacrilegious Idolatries of the abhominable Antichrist of Rome So that it is a most fonde collection that either the Popish Convocation or Confusion are the right vndoubted spouse of Iesus Christ or els that for a thousand yeeres togither there was no Church in the worlde They doate much vpon themselves and on the opinion of their bewty who in such intolerable deformities doe predicate and magnifie their Synagogue as the vnspotted wife and mystical body of our most blessed Saviour Truth it is that intending to blind the ignorant and to abuse the simple they laboured by all externall pompe and shew to give to their hypocrisy and outward formality a setled opinion of pietie and sanctitie and for that cause there was no corner of the braine of man or rather of men in many ages succeeding togither
so maintaine them For such dissolute dawbing of paper you are worthy to be rewarded at least with nothing It may be said of you your maister Bristow c Virgils Eclog. 3 Et vitula tu dignus hic It cannot be denied that some men of learning haue disliked the over-much heaping vp of Sentences out of the Fathers to no purpose or needlessely especially if it haue bin done in Latin or Greeke wheÌ„ SermoÌ„s are made to the ordinary people in the vulgar tongue But the iudgmeÌ„t of the most iudicious such as respect the edificatioÌ„ of the heaters wil warraÌ„t this their opinion while it dislâ—…keth not the vse but the abuse But that any maÌ„ of learning in our church or of true accouÌ„t in our state haue simply coÌ„dcÌ„ned the vsing of theÌ„ you caÌ„not shew Some weaker men in a little humâ—…ur haue seemed to bee no great favourets of theÌ„ paâ—…tly because they know them not as d 〈◊〉 in Adâ—…gijs Knowledge hath none more eger enemy theÌ„ 〈◊〉 persoÌ„ partly because they haue not learning to vnderstaÌ„d theÌ„ Also because they wil not be at cost to buy theÌ„ or if these impedâ—…eÌ„ts were remooved because they wil not take the paines to read theÌ„ But even such do daily more more reforme their iudgmeÌ„t we doubt not but God who hath put the spirit of moderatioÌ„ temperaÌ„te into the greatest wisest most learned of such as in times past were otherwise minded wil loine vs al in one against you the coÌ„mon enemies of the truth who in an Italionated out-landish faction litle care what you do And so I trust every English maÌ„ defiring to keepe himself in spiritual purity e Iacobâ—… 27 Motiv 14. vnspotted of the world Poperty the odious names of Puritans Precisias wherat you haue so triuÌ„phed shall to the greefe of your harts be extirpated al who loue the Gospel ioining in one as ChristiaÌ„s brethreÌ„ shal be dutiful subiects to God our King Your conclusion is ridiculous worthy to be hissed at The Protestants defend the Fathers against the Puritanes Ergo the Fathers be against both the Protestants and the Puritanes This is Logicke of the Popish Seminary 4 The titles which you heere bestow on the ancient Fathers Bristow setteth downe thus f 〈◊〉 14. excellent wits continual study woÌ„derfull learning servent praier holy coÌ„versation favour in Gods sight mighty working of infinite miracles froÌ„ whence froÌ„ the rest the Reader may iudge whether you had not Bristowes booke lying before you wheÌ„ you skuffled togither this Rhapâ—…ody As for these praises we neither envy theÌ„ nor deny theÌ„ to those great laÌ„pes of the first Church vnlesse it be that of working of miracles wherof we make a doubt And by these helps we say that they were wel furnished to vnderstand expound many things in the Scripture as also somewhat by their neerenesse to the time of the Apostles in those places especially where truth was kepte without mingling And yet we will you heere to remember that fewe or scant any one of the Fathers had the Scriptures freshly delivered vnto him from the Apostles themselues you are pitifully out for diverse hundreds of yeeres came betweene Christes disciples and the most of the olde Doctours And againe to call to minde that soone after the Apostles yea as g Eccl. Hist. Lib 3. 26. Eusebius saith immediately after their death heretakes came plentifully in who laboured what they coulde to corrupt the fountaines wheÌ„ce all pure water was to flowe Remember also that for three hundred yeeres by the extremity of persecutioÌ„ the Pastours were few they had little liberty to come togither to conferre about thinges questioned or to follow their studies so much as they would And yet farther remeÌ„ber that some of theÌ„ came late froÌ„ the Gentiles as Cyprian some froÌ„ heretiks as Eusebius froÌ„ the ArriaÌ„s AusteÌ„ the Manichees somefroÌ„ meere secular callings as Ambrose of al these without Gods special grace they might a little participate Then he is bliÌ„d who seeth not that they had not al those helps as these haue whoÌ„ you cal late folish vnstudied vnlearned profane arrogaÌ„t fellowes These words you vse when you Doctour Hill are not worthy to be sorted with the meanest of a thousand among them which speech without amplification or any diminution may be iustifyed onely in the present Church of England For first wee have the writinges of all those Fathers themselves like to which every private man of them had not no nor all the world neither before their times Secondly since their daies there be infinite bookes written which give light to matters in controversy Thirdly our age by meanes of printing hath better facility to come by al bookes theÌ„ those ancient times had Fourthly progres of daies hath made many thiÌ„gs plainer to later ages because they haue bin already fulfilled theÌ„ they could be to former tims wherin meÌ„ did but gesse at theÌ„ Fifthly God hath made the scriptures of such sort as that meÌ„s wits are to be exercised in theÌ„ vntil y e day of iudgmeÌ„t it beloÌ„geth to that industry which God requireth in his servaÌ„ts y e they shold not satisfy theÌ„selues w t the labours of others so growidle bue they shold search farther inventis addâ—…re Sixthly the helpe of the toÌ„gues is more rife now then it was amoÌ„g the ordinary sorte of them as may be seene by Athanasius who was so stuÌ„bled in the h Prov. 8. 22 8. Chap. of the Proverbs the i Athanas. in decret Nicen. Synod ArriaÌ„s to prove Christ a creature vrging thence by the traÌ„slatioÌ„ of the Septuagint that it is in the text k 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Septuag The Lord made mee or created me the beginning of his waies to which without difficulties he might easily haue aunswered if hee had looked into the l 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Hebrew where it is rather as Hierome readeth it the Lord possessed mee or as Arias Montanus hath it the Lord got or obtained me Also Austen had no Hebrew and both he Gregory very little Greek as els-where I have shewed Now although it be likely that neerest to the fountaines the waters runne most cleerely the farther of that we are they are the more likly to be polluted yet in spirituall thinges that is not to bee vnderstood of place or time but of keeping close to the original of the writen word and not varying from it And so a man furnished by God as m Exod. 31 〈◊〉 Beseleel was to the framing of the Tabernacle may be by the means aboue named and by praier conference study nothing inferiour to those first lightes even as S. Austen was more excellent in some of his expositions on the Scripture then Origene and some other more ancient then himselfe were Which as both for him S. Hierome especially
sheweth by what sinister meanes such came to bee reputed Fathers who were more fit to bee taken for children 29 Fourthly I name that which is most horrible of all other even a manifest evidence of a desperate cause and that vvhich is rotten at the roote VVherein the impudency and shamelesse fore-head of the vvhore of Babylon and her Peeres can never sufficientlye bee exclaimed vppon albeit heaven and earth and all the creatures therein bee called to vvitnesse For hath this Antichristian broode so longe fledde from the Scriptures to the Fathers and haue they and doe they so crake of these every where and are they nowe forced to raze them and pare them and blurre them else they cannot hould vp their irreligion This is the case of vvhich I desire all my weake and abused country-men to take notice In the Conventicle of Trent there were certaine u Index Expurgar Belgic in Regul CoÌ„cil Tridentini rules made vvhich openlye did pretend the purging and clensing of bookes from hereticall matters but secretly intende more even to raze out what they thinke fitte out of olde or newe as their practise in this behalfe doth testifie vvhich is vvarranted by the covert orders there concluded For this businesse in diverse places of the Papacy vvere secretly appointed some of their owne stampe men conscience-lesse and fitte for any vile acte to revise as well the Fathers as later bookes of all sortes and vvhatsoever made against Popery and could not handsomely bee glosed should vppon the newe printing of the bookes by Printers in Popishe places bee cunningly altered or quite lefte out This must bee done notwithstanding that all the copies even formerly printed by themselves and many written ones in their libraries and as many in ours did plainely shevve the contrarie Yea though marveilous store of copyes vvritten hundreds of yeeres before vvhen as neither Luther nor Hus nor Wiclefe vvere yet borne did concurre in that for which we plead Heere-vppon closely vvas dravvne first u An 1571. one Index Expurgatorius by the vvarrant of Philippe the second King of Spaine and of the Duke of Alva Governour of the Lovve Countryes for him There in the Kinges letters patentes prefixed before the booke charge is given that in every city where booke-sellers dvvell there shoulde bee some Prelates appointed to supervise all noted bookes and that x Diploma Regis Catholici Belgic they should have vvith them privatelye and no other men knovving of it one Index Expurgatorius vvhich they shoulde neither communicate vnto others nor graunt a copy of it to any man but only shall most diligently take care of that that they inquire vppon expunge and restore the places before spoken of According to this were al the new printed bookes proceeded withall by them and our men not knowing the mystery wondred at those things which were left out and altered but could not gesse at the true cause till about fifteene y An 1587 yeeres after Franciscus Iunius by Gods speciall providence light vpon one of them and published it to the vvorlde Sutable to this vvas there by the commaundement of Pope z An. 1572. Pius the 5. a Censure vpon the Glosses of the Canon Lawe closely framed by Frier Thomas Manriq Maister of the holy and Apostolike Palace and the same by the a An 1580 mandate of Pope Gregory the 13. was afterward reviewed by Sixtus Faber also Maister of the same Palace Apostolike and according therevnto were the Glosses of the Canon Lavv printed all thinges being blotted out which made against the Romishe faith This also vvas concealed as the Index Expurgatorius had beene before till that b An 1599 latelye Doctour Iohn Pappus mette vvith it and published it to the view of all vvho vvill reade it I finde also c F. Gregor Capuch in libris Corrig fol 166 mention of a Censure concerning certaine Authours vvhich vvas put out in Spaine in the yeere 1562. but the booke it selfe is not yet come for ought that I knowe to anye of our handes But after that by the meanes of Gaspar Quiroga Cardinall and Archbishoppe of Toledo beeing also cheefe Inquisitour in Spaine d An 1584 Madriti apud Alphons Gomezium RegiuÌ„ Typograph there was printed another Index Librorum Expurgatorum which was not without the advise of the highe Sonate of the holy Generall Inquisition This booke also vvas unknovvne to any Protestant vntill that her late Maiesties forces taking the tovvne of e An. 1596 Calez in Spaine there vvas one of these Indices founde there vvhich beeing brought into England was by a f M. Tho. Iames. man carefull to laye open such fraudes sent to the L. of Plessis into Fraunce vvho keeping the originall in his ovvne Library g An 1601 printed it at Saumure and made it knowne to the bodye of Christendome In the beginning of this edition it is shevved that they thrust out diverse thinges of their ovvne vvriters as out of the vvoorkes of Osorius Ferus a booke called h Edit Venetijs An 1576. Ordo Baptizandi cum modo visitandi Yea out of the Glosse on Epiphanius and from the Tables in the endes of the woorkes of Chrysostome Hilary Hierome Cyril of Alexandria vvhen notvvithstanding the matters to bee put out and razed are either literally or in sence apparantly and not to bee spoken against in the Texte of those Fathers Nay in the Index of the Bibles put out by Robert Stephanus these propositions must bee blotted out as suspect i Ioh 11. 26 Hee vvho beleeveth in CHRIST shall not dye everlastingly k Act. 15. 9. By faith the heartes are purified l Gal. 2. 16 UUee are iustified by faith in Christ Christ is m 1. Con 1 30. our righteousnesse No n Ps 143. 2 man is righteous before God o 1 Cor 7â—… 2. Every man may have his wife wheras yet notwithstanding they are the very worde of GOD as may bee seene in the places quoted 30. Last of all for ought that is yet come to our knowledge there was a treatise p Venetijs An 1597 apud lo Baptistam lo Bernardum Sessam Concerning bookes to bee corrected put out by Fâ—…ter Gregory a Capuchine Neopolitane intituling himselfe Purger of the bookes at Naples This fellow doth frequently make mention of the Censure put out in Spaine Anno 1562. 1584. is much more peremptory then it or any other whom I haue seene I will breefely lay downe some things that I finde in him Speaking then of q Litera F. fol. 153 Frauncis Petrarcha thus he saith Let there bee put out the foure expositions with the texte to wit Dell ' impia Babilonia 〈◊〉 Avara Babilonia Fontana de dolori fiamma del Cielo which matters how neere they touch Rome every one acquainted with Petrarkes works do wel know Mentioning the Bibles of the r Fol. 166. Vulgar edition thus he speaketh Bibles which
3. looke pale you amplifie your former proposition that if this be yeelded vnto Christs passion availed little or nothing at all for fifteene hundred yeeres but for a thousand yeeres hee vvas so farre from drawing all vnto him that he drewe not so much as one person that any man can name This is spoken like a man of some mettal indeede by this shal your disciples know how to trust you hereafter But as if yet you had deserved but one end of a sharpingstone and meant to have the rest with you before that you depart you tel vs that in our own couÌ„try there of England which whether you speake with some contept or no your selfe can best discover it is most manifest that all were Papists without exception from the first Christening therof vntill this age of King Henry the eight You are a blessed companion a man may beleeve much vpon your word Doubtlesse you perswade your selfe that all who should reade your booke would be madde or drunke or senselesse or else you must thinke that they would admitte and admire you for a singular lyar Besides that of Antiquitie the vvritings and testimony of your owne men will convince you in this to have neither wit nor shame VVe make it good against you that the thousands and ten thousands of the servants of God in the Primitive Church knew at the first nothing and afterwards but little of your blasphemous Popery and that not in the mainest points And albeit in processe of time superstitioÌ„ as it was p 2. Thes. 2. 3. 1. Tim. 4. 1. 2. Pet. 2. 1. foretold did by little and little creepe in yet in all ages God had his Church of such as did not spotte their soules with your horrible contammations And we maintaine it that in our owne lande there were testimonies most luculent of such as detested the AntichristiaÌ„ pride other loose behaviour of the Romane Clergy both in doctrin manners served the Lord after the prescript of his owne word as now we do endevor to do If you know not this M r. Doctor you have reade but little so in some sort we question your scholarship or else you have reade it and so wee question your conscience But vvee vvill hope the best that it is your ignorance although these present propositions and many other in your booke doe give vs great occasion to suspect your honest conscience Your owne men will be ashamed that you talke in this fashion as anon you shall perceive But I follow you a while T. HILL AND so the Protestants affirme of other Countries boldly say Luther in postil Ger. 1537 part 2. fol. 141. that vntill this age the Gospell lay in the dust was hiddeÌ„ vnder the bench and Christ was vnknowne Which to say as the Protestants must needes say and blush not to say indeede is meere madnes and flat infidelitie and a plaine denying of Christ and no small establishment of Mahomets Religion For the Protestantes and Mahumetanes agree in this that the Church which Christ founded fell some five or sixe hundred yeeres after his ascension into most horrible errours and then say the Turkes the Angell Gabriel was sent from God to Mahomet to teach him hovve hee shoulde reforme the saide Church because it would not stande with the wisedome and goodnesse of Almightâ—… God to suffer his Church to vanish avvaie through errours and superstitions vvithout sending in time to reforme it And in this out of doubte the Turkes have farre greater reason then the Protestantes have vvhich Protestants by their doctrin make Christ the most simple most improvident Lavve-giver that ever was in the vvorld For neither Plato Solon Lycurgus nor any other Lavv-maker vvhosoever was so simple and improvident as to fashion and plant a Common-wealth which before it were vvell setled should vanish away and come to nothing having no sufficient meanes to prevent errours and such abuses as would ever throvve their Lawes destroy their CmÌ„on wealths And therfore if Christ bee God the holy Bible true the Religion of the Papists must needes be that Religion which he ordained and left to all generations and consequently the onely true and right Religion G. ABBOT 10 SInce by your last fore-going wordes it hath appeared to bee your profession in your owne person to speake largely it is most probable that to the vttermost you will racke and pervert the speeches of other There is neither Luther nor any other ProtestaÌ„t so absurd as to say according to that which you would intimate heere that there was no Church till of late that the Gospell was absolutely hidden or Christ simplie vnknowne vntill their daies For we well vnderstand teach coÌ„trary-wise that in the Primitive Church plentifully afterward alwaies more or lesse in some parts of the world or other there were the Elect of God who groning to behould the common errours of their age did strive to beleeve and live after the rule of the Scriptures But the speech of Luther of vs in that behalfe is comparative that in comparison of that which it should bee or that which had bin not long after the Apostles or in respect of that which the Lord hath of late reveiled or of that which by the faithfull might have bin wished the Gospel had not for some later ages so free a course and Christ was not so ordinarlly vnpollutedly taught but the Bible lay much neglected and was cast aside in comparison of other bookes And while we acknowledge this we need not to blush neither is it madnesse in vs but q Act. 26. 25 the words of truth and sobernes as Saint Paule said in a like vniust accusation nor yet infidelity or denying of Christ or the establishing of Mahomets Religion Heere you heape vp many wordes but are not able to prove the least part of your owne Propositions wee must therefore give you leave to say much conclude nothing Your vniust imputatioÌ„ that not only in this but in diverse other matters we ioyne with the Turkes you borrow of Doctor Gefford who no lesse slaunderously then crakingly preteÌ„deth to do great things in his Calvino-Turcismus The maliciousnes wherof is already displayed and the crime returned by a learned r D. Sutliv in Turco Papismo man vpon the Papists themselves It is to be hoped that the Authour thereof will either in time repent him and turne to grace or receive the reward of his blasphemous speeches against Christs Religion his venimous revilings against his naturall Prince country In the meane while he may looke to the clearing of his credit from the accusations of father Parsons s Parsons manifestation cap. 1. 7. who describeth him to be very ill qualified no better theÌ„ a fire-braÌ„d in kindling dissension eveÌ„ among the English fugitives of the Romane Colledge But for our parts know you ô the whole rable of the Romish generatioÌ„ that vvee
But being as it is we doe not doubt but they both are Gods servants if they liue according to the Christian rules of their professioÌ„ since they both doe rightly hold the p 1. Cor. 3. 11 foundation that is to say Faith in Iesus Christ and Iustification by his bloud only We read of one called q Sozom. Eccl. Histor. lib. 1. 14. Eutychianus who wenâ—… astray being in opinion a Novatian yet he was much esteemed by the good Emperour Constantine and there were very pregnant testimonies that he was the childe of God r Euse. Eccl. Hist. l. 3. 33. Ireneus held the errour of the Chiliasts And Iustine s Dialog câ—… Tryph. lud Martyr embraced the same conceit and yet who dare seclude them froÌ„ the fellowship of the faithful So we doubt not but the maintainers of the doctrine both of Zwinglius of Luther are as wel iointly members of the Catholike Church and Communion of Saints as t Concil Carthag in Cyprian Cyprian was on the one side with his African Bishops and Cornelius was on the other side with his Bishops of Europe albeit these had much contention each with other and dyed in difference of opinion concerning rebaptising theÌ„ who were baptised by Heretikes So that the Lords name be praysed howsoever we could wish that neither formerly nor now there were any such examples yet this contention is not the first and it is but one and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as yâ—… the Pamphâ—… would haveâ—… We wil 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 T. HILL I I would you did but see what I have seene in these Countrâ—… as 〈◊〉 the 〈◊〉 â—…ds 〈◊〉 diâ—… of Luther his of-springâ—… aâ—… of the Muntzerans Anabaptists Adamâ—… Steblerians sabbataries Clanâ—… 〈◊〉 Gartâ—…der Manifestarians Dâ—…monians CoÌ„mon holders â—…pers Howling Anabaptists Davidge or giâ—… Memnoâ—… Polygamists Signifiers Figurers Valewers Pledgers Presentaries â—…tamorphists Iudâ—…sts Neutersacramentaries Image-breakers Zealons Lutheranes Soft Lutheranes or Interimiâ—… New Arrians Trinitaries Hell-maisters Hell-tormentors Antidâ—…monians Amidorfians Antadiaphorists Antosiandâ—…lans Anti-Swanck â—…dians Anti-Calvinists Hâ—…d-impositors 〈◊〉 Sâ—…s Invisibilists Sâ—…turians Adiaphorists 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Lutherâ—…-Calvinists 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Penâ—… 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 â—…drians Staâ—… Antistanâ—… New-Manâ—…chees Stâ—…bergers of such likâ—… 〈◊〉 which 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 their 〈◊〉 out of the dregges of Luthers doctrine 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 â—…e 〈◊〉 Protestants all G. ABBOT 6 IN what country you have heeretofore lived it is harde for we to tell In England you were when you published this 〈◊〉 had 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 else-where with you wheÌ„ you penned this worke if else where you did pâ—… 〈◊〉 hee should scâ—… have 〈◊〉 two or three persons in 〈◊〉 of those sectes which 〈◊〉 you â—…cite But hâ—…m â—…th hee 〈◊〉 what you â—…we hee 〈◊〉 have â—…lying before you a â—…de booke of thâ—… 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Apoâ—… Stâ—… vvhich vvas thirtie yeeres since Apology of Frideâ—… â—…taphyl 〈◊〉 into Engâ—… by our Countrey-man Stapleton This Sraphyâ—… you follovve in these vntrue reportes of yours and from his booke Englishâ—… you shamefully â—…ke all these 〈◊〉 vvorde for vvorde VVhile I reade them as also the 〈◊〉 and Cities vvhich else-vvhere you 〈◊〉 Ration 〈◊〉 I thinke vpon a Câ—… booke which 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 where 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 â—…ped toâ—… 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 spirit In Latine letters thâ—… it is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 El Adâ—…i 〈◊〉 Mâ—…ssias Sâ—…er Eâ—…nel 〈◊〉 Aâ—…ha Paracleâ—… Propheta Sâ—…des Kâ—…s Pantâ—…r all vvhich shoulde enforce the spiâ—… to doe as the Coniureâ—…â—…oulde have hâ—… Such a â—…umble and bugge-beare you propoâ—…de vnto vs heere and the Heresies vvâ—…h you 〈◊〉 are so much the liker to these vvoordes vsed in Coniuration because 〈◊〉 these for the most parte doe signifie one thing even that immaculate essence and omnipotent beeing GOD howâ—… it they be wickedly applied so for these good fellowes whom you muster heere many of them differ little in their opinions although you to make a â—…ourish do name them severally like a bâ—…dde Captaine who keeping in his liste the names of souldiers who are slaine or gone knoweth how to make vse of deade pâ—…y for his owne benefite But this is the custâ—… of you 〈◊〉 to make a shewe with names 〈◊〉 â—…en 〈◊〉 a Câ—…loge anâ—… to the same purpose hath x In Epistol apologâ—…t 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 In 〈◊〉 base answere for 〈◊〉 vnto D. 〈◊〉 And may it not bee that diverse of these vvhome you both name may bee good Christians as the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and the Scriâ—…s if they hoâ—… no vvoâ—… doâ—… 〈◊〉 their titles may importe As Sâ—…nt 〈◊〉 y De haereâ—… ad Quod vulâ—… Deum remembreth that 〈◊〉 in rehearsing of Heresies did differ from Philastrâ—… and 〈◊〉 from him because that seemed to one of them to be an Heresie which did not so seeme to another so certainâ—… if some wise man either of 〈◊〉 your sidâ—… should scaâ—… the trâ—… opinions of all whom 〈◊〉 yoâ—… 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 would prove 〈◊〉 many to be no Heresie whâ—… 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 do condemne But wee praise the everlasting Lordâ—… that whâ—…as in 〈◊〉 there is as flourishing a Church as in any 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 world we heere knâ—… the names of 〈◊〉 of them 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 with the pâ—…sons of none of them who hold such 〈◊〉 â—…tions And wee verâ—…ly beleeve that you lurking in our owne coâ—…ey have to do 〈◊〉 as 〈◊〉 of them But when yoâ—… haâ—… done 〈◊〉 that favour 〈◊〉 to 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 thâ—…se good 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 they 〈◊〉 holde you shall vnderstand our 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 And in the mâ—…ne time knâ—… you that 〈◊〉 taught 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 doctrine neither doe the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 chalenge to them if they hould ought 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 â—…emne them and writâ—… against 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 bin dâ—…red 7 But â—…o allow you so much as in any probability you can pretend thâ—… since Lutherâ—… time so many several opinioÌ„s have sprâ—…g vp as five fifty for of so many you would make shew yea that the most of thâ—… would willingly shrowde themselves vnder 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 yet doth this with vnderstaÌ„ding PersoÌ„s â—…ke any 〈◊〉 against that truth which either we or Luther did professe For might not the same have bin obiected before his death to Sâ—… 〈◊〉 the EvaÌ„gelist which you here obiect against vs 〈◊〉 of the remainder of the malicious Iewes might thus hâ—… said We al agreed vpoÌ„ the law of Moses til you came inâ—… 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 vnity for our sacrifices concord about our 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 harmony of coÌ„sent was every way to be found amonge vs. But now while you talke of Iesus this new Saviour yoâ—… caÌ„not agree among your selves what he is or how to be served You 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 many â—…cts those iarring â—…h with other the scholers of 〈◊〉 Magâ—… of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 wherof some deny the â—…-hood some deny the 〈◊〉 of your Christ and some vary in other mattâ—… And you have 〈◊〉 z Apoc. 〈◊〉 â—…5
reason of her birth the other for that she was deprived by the Pope Mentioning the story of one Fenne it is vrged that the dignity of S t. Peters successour was conferred vpon a profane woman Afterward these verses are set on her sacred Maiestie Sathanico praesul Calvini imbuta veneno est Elizabeth diraquè impietate tumet And lastly this is bestowed vpon her Elizabetha scelerum caput These thinges being writen by diverse of them beyond the seas do argue what spirit was among our Divines there If we wil have more proofe of the faithful harts of our male contented fugitives toward our late Princesse let vs looke on the words closely couched of the Rhemists in diverse places As that about u Annot in 2. Ioh. 10. Heretikes excoÌ„municated by name what things men are to withdraw from theÌ„ And let the traiterous actions of theÌ„ in our Realme expouÌ„d that covert speech of Iezabel u In Apoc. 2. 20. elsewhere But in steed of al let the Action attempted against this kingdome heere in the yeare 1588 speake which was vehemently vrged by our Priestes abroade and the people to the beste of their povver fitted for it at home 18 If these generalities do not yet satisfy theÌ„ let it be remeÌ„bred where these Seminary Priests are brought vp how flying froÌ„ their native soile in the highest discoÌ„tentment they goe into the dominioÌ„s of the Pope King of Spaine to whoÌ„ howmuch England hath bin beholding a blind maÌ„ may almost see At their expeÌ„ce they are maintained who in behalfe of their charges looke for some service again And vnder whoÌ„ have they their educatioÌ„ Vnder men Iesuited as nowe D. Worthington the Rectour of the College at Doway is or vnder the Iusuits theÌ„selves of whose vertues I have before spokeÌ„ To their Governours by othe they owe obedieÌ„ce of liklihood at their returne they take their directioÌ„ froÌ„ theÌ„ Now what maner of meÌ„ these be Allen who was long the Rectour of the College at Rhemes Persons now Governour of the Seminary at Rome may declare CoÌ„cerning AlleÌ„ our Secular Priests of late displaying the Iesuites do labour to extenuate the malice and poisonful behaviour of that hungry Cardinal but his works are extant testifying that there was never any man more virulent in hart against the state of England theÌ„ he was x Apolog. cap. 11. Persons reckoneth vp four of his bookes The Answere to the English Iustice The defence of the twelve martyrs in one yeare The Epistle allowing Sir VVilliam Stanleyes delivery vp of Daventry And the Declaration against her Maiestie and the State in the yeare 1588. In the first of these the y Chap. 2. protestatioÌ„ of Laborn before meÌ„tioned is remeÌ„bred that by other Papists as occasioÌ„ should serve it might be imitated And the whol treatise howsoever it seeme to be more closely coÌ„veied then ordinary is forced with pestilent caluÌ„niations Of the same nature is the whole subiect of the second peÌ„ned of purpose to direct meÌ„s affectioÌ„ froÌ„ the state The third is a litle Pamphlet short but not sweet maintaining the treasoÌ„ful actioÌ„ of Sir William StaÌ„ley by many an vn-ChristiaÌ„ ceÌ„sure most slauÌ„derous imputatioÌ„ As for z Allens answere 1584 exaÌ„ple That our country is fallen into Atheisme That the Queenes confederacies were only alwaies with Christs enemies That the warres of the English in the low Countries were sacrilegious warres and of a hereticall Prince And because he wil be like himselfe hee goeth on That all the actes in this Realme since the Queene was excoÌ„municated and deposed from regall dignity are voide therfore shee can denotence no warre neither may her subiects there serve her when a Prince is become an open Rebell to the See Apostolike He wishâ—…h that the rest of the English souldiours would doe as they with Sir VVilliam Stanley did He saith that the English take no quarrels in handes but for the dishonorable defence of Rebels Pyrates and Infidels I doe of purpose heere omitte many vile and execrable speeches by him added least the very rehearsing of them might iustly be offensive But the wicked man did make no coÌ„science to staine his whole couÌ„trey with horrible defamations I would heare any Secular in the vvorlde vvho can excuse this cursed fellovve The fourth was printed in Englishe and should have beened vulged if the Spanyardes coulde have sette footing in England in the yeare 1588. Hee vvho list to see it may finde it vvorde for vvorde in a Belgic Histor l. 15. Meterranus Amonge other matters there are these Our Soveraigne then beeing is called the Pretended Queene and the present vsurper Shee must be deprived of the administration of the kingdome Shee is an Heretike a Schismatike excommunicate contumacinis vsurping the kingdome against all right as for other causes so because shee had not the consent of the greate Bishoppe of Rome Shee mooved the Turke to invade Christendome Shee hath sette at sale and made a maâ—… of Lavves and rightes Some of her factes make her vncapable of the kingdome some other make her vnvvorthie of life Therefore Pope sixtus the fifth doth renew the excommunication against her and doth deprive her of her title and preteaces to the kingdomes of Englande and Ireland declaring her illegitimate and an vsâ—…per and absolving all her subiectes from the â—…th of sidelity toward her Then he chardgeth all to withdraw their â—…de from her that worthy punishment may be taken of her and that they â—…e themselues with the Duke of Parma Also it is proclaimed lawfull â—…y hands vpon vpon the Queene and a very great reward is promised to those who do so A safe conduct is then given to as many as wil bring â—…ny wâ—… like provision to the Spanish campe and to all who woulde assist that enterprise the Pope doth by Indulgence giue full pardon and plenary remission of all their sinnes If these things doe not sufficiently shew the viperous minde of this lewde Cardinall against his Prince Country nothing in the world can manifest it His dis Englished woolvish desire was that his naturall place of educatioÌ„ for which the old heatheÌ„s would haue lost ten thousand liues should haue beene in the everlasting bondage of the Spanyard Our Seculars then commending and excusing him to their powers are pitifully out but the error of them and of some English gentlementravailers was this that they imagined him in his latter yeares to be altered when indeede it was nothing else but that after the yeare 88 his hopes being deluded and neither Pope nor Spaniarde nor all their adherentes knowing how to remedy or recover that inestimable losse and incomparable dishonour vnto them his hart was as good as broken and he would seeme more desirous to shew all tolerability to single men of our English nation that he might haue some grace with theÌ„ since he began to haue so little with the Spanyard But doubtlesse venime had so putrisied him
24 Your scorne at Sir Iohn Calvine may bee easily returned on the best of your side as Sir William Allen Sir Robert Bellarmine but wee must allow you a great deale more then this Your slaunder against Calvine you take word for word from Persons his d Cap. 7. Ward-word against Sir Frauncis Hastinges to which if you please you may reade the aunswere discovering that odious calumniation e O. E. to N. D Cap 7 There you may finde first that Calvine was never Masse-Priest and therefore that Baals servauntes did falsely obiect Priest-hoode vnto him Secondly that Bolsecus the authour of this slaunder did in an open Synode confesse vvith teares that vvithout any grounde he had laide that slaunder on him Thirdlye that the tale is not onelye an vniust imputation but a sottishe and improbable Narration For first there vvas never any such legall punishment by any lavve decreede and secondlie no Recorde or testimonie is of any such matter ever done or suffered by Calvine You may there also finde how truly that crimination doth fall on the Romish generation concerning which pointe my meaning is to forbeare you for a while and nowe to followe you in the present That then these men should leaue the Papacye for feare of censure from Popish Magistrates for that whereof they were no wayes no not so much as in shevve guiltye it your foolishe collection and so much the more absurde because Calvine by your lying reporte had beene punished alreadye Anyethinge yvill serve the turne to keepe this slaunder going You might rather haue saide in behalfe of Luther that since hee vvas so esteemed by the vvhole Vniversitie vvhere hee abode for a great parte of his timeâ—… since his name after his death is honourable amonge them since he was so protected to the hazarde of all his estate by that Noble and wise and vertuous Duke of Saxony it is certaine that no exception can bee taken to his life And for Calvine that since for manye yeares hee lived in so reverende reputation at Geneva vvhere they are so strict against sinne that by the testimony of f Method hist cap. 6 Bodine a Papist no open wantonnes no lasciviousnesse is once permitted there by reason of the austerity of their discipline and that they haue as travellours reporte so sterne a law against lewde malefactours as is scant to be found in all the worlde againe that an offendour flying out of any countrey thither shall there bee subiect to as grievous punishment as he was in his owne land if he be convicted of the crime vnto which severity they are forced least their citty standing neere the dominion of so many Princes and States shoulde bee the common receptacle and sanctuary of all fugitiues and runnagates therefore Iohn Calvin vvas a man of singular honesty of life and every waye vntouchable in his conversation They who are generally so strict woulde not with such high acceptation haue admitted and for so many yeares retained a person notoriously defamed to be the chiefe standdard bearer of their profession vvhereas they might haue had many other vvorthy men and vvithout exception to haue supplyed that roume This tale then commethâ—… from Sathan the father of lyesâ—… Now it is not vpon these persons that vvee doe repose our selues but on that which they bring out of the holy Scripture which being the word of truth and inspired from the Spirit of God we feare not to adventure vpon it our selues our salvation our hope of everlasting blessednesse Neither do wee this headlongly or hare-brainedly as you suppose for we are g Act 26 25 not madde O noble Festus but with our maturest iudgements and most sober vnderstandings we study wee conferre the Scriptures in many languages we pray to God to inlighten vs we looke into the Fathers the Histories the Councels wee compare old things with new we leaue no good meanes vn-attempted to sift and found the truth and stil the farther wee looke the lesse ground we finde for Popety Divines most auncient amongst vs doe more loath it in their olde age then they did in their young Yea we turne the bookes of your writers and exemine their reasones and much adoe wee see they haue to set vp the tower of Babell and yet it cannot be at they would haâ—…e it Nay we hinder not your learned Papists freely at our book-sellerâ—… to buy all bookes of controversies in religion so they bee not mingled with state causeâ—… which course coÌ„cerning the writings of our men you permit not to your learned disciples but interdict them eveÌ„ to many of your Seminary Priests And aboue all this wee are so farre from longing to be in hell that all who are rightly instructed among vs take as great care of the saving of their soules as the deepest Romanist of you with all your Pharisticall and counterfeit hypocrisie 25 When then you make comparison betweene an vniversall consent and that also auncient on the one side and a fewe contemptible authours of novelties on the other side and you double it againe that here be but two or three Novellants and there twenty millioÌ„s of graue holy auncients which inequality say you would sway much with Iudges or with Iuries in Westminster hall we reply that you do but talke at randoÌ„ after your fashion For first Westminster hall is no place for the triall of religion Secondly your men consent not in such sort as you speake their agreement is not so generally spred as a man may see throughout all Bellarmines workes where almost in every question hee citeth different opinions and iudgements of writers in the Papacy and many things wherein Romanists agree are but falshood and you much mistake the number of those who haue and doe oppugne you Thirdelye what you say is anncient is but vpstarte and crept in as a worthy h D. Sutclifs challendge c. 2. man hath of late most learnedly shewed in a tract for that purpose and for the triall of our differences vvee lay the Bible before you then which I trust you will not offer to bring ought more aucient Hee who out of that book can win it in Gods name let him weare it We say with Tertullian i De praescript contra haereâ—… that that is of the Lord true which was first delivered And fourthly vvee doe tell you that multitude is not it vvhich must decide vvhat is trueth Amonge heathen men one k Plutari in Phocyone Phocyon standing single spake more advisedly then all the Atheniens Should Elias be overborne because he was but l 〈◊〉 King 18. 25. one when the Priests of Baal were many Who was the greater company m Ier. 2. 〈◊〉 4. Ieremy or all Hierusalem with the whole land of Iuda If you had beene present at the erecting of the image of n Dan 3. 1. Nabuchodonosor and had seene all the great Princes fall downe before that Idole and the three children stand vp
bee iustified That it is most true which S. Paule hath that a man is iustified by faith without workes because no works done before beleeving helpe toward iustification but that in beleeving actually a man is reputed iust before God that if he die immediatly having no time to worke yet he by beleeving is iustified Notwithstanding that if he liue he ought to bring forth good fruit His coÌ„clusion is that S. Paule doth speake of workes going before faith S. Iames speaketh of works following that faith which hath iustified And a right beleefe wil not be without them if it have time to shew it selfe I might heere adde how frequent a thing it is with diverse Doctors of the Church to vse the word of onely faith in speaking of our IustificatioÌ„ but of that hereafter TheÌ„ to shew that neither Luther nor we need feare the Epistle of S. Iames as crossing our other doctrine we say that S. Paule doth speake of acceptatioÌ„ to be iust S. Iames intendeth a declaration that we are iustified the one beateth on that before God where the setled apprehension of faith prevaileth which notwithstaÌ„ding wil not be without his convenient fruit the other mentioneth that before men who know not the hart but must iudge of that which is externall therefore it is rightly said by the Apostle in their persons s 〈◊〉 2. 18. Shew mee thr faith out of thâ—…e owne workes 3 Whom you meane by the of-spring of Luther we caÌ„not telt but if al who refuse those books be termed his of-spring his children shal be a thousand yeeres elder then himselfe for many of the most ancieÌ„t fathers did disclaime the books of Tobias Ecclesiasticus the Machabees for being Canonical if the rule of s Hist Ecol lib 3. 19 Eusebius he good as no wise maÌ„ wil deny it that the Canonical volumes may be distiguished froÌ„ the Apocryphal suppositious by the iudgmeÌ„t of the church by the stile by the matter purpose of the books they had great reasoÌ„ not to acknowledge theÌ„ for the Church vniformly did never admit theÌ„ they are not writteÌ„ in the language of the Iews to whoÌ„ t Rom. 3 2. were coÌ„mitted the Oracles of God therfore if they were part of Gods Oracles before the comming of Christ these Iewes should haue admitted them and retained them which they did not and the matter of them is but meane and ignoble in comparisoÌ„ of the vndoubted Scripture What a doubtful narration is that in u Cap. 6. 17 Tobias that a spirite should smell a perfume when spirits haue no flesh bones by the testimony of u Luc 24. 39 Christ himselfe coÌ„sequeÌ„tly no organes of scÌ„e that the hart liver of a fish should drive away the Devil Which if it were so S. Peter was much overseene when he taught vs how to repulse SathaÌ„ by x 1 Pet. 5 9. resisting him being stedfast in the faith For it had bin an easier way to have said get you the hart liver of such a fish make a perfume with it he dareth not come nigh you And this would wel haue beseemed S. Peter to set men to catch such fish in remeÌ„brance of his owne occupatioÌ„ since himselfe was a fisher But what if yong Toby had met with such a spirit as those were of whom Christ saith y Matth. 17. 21. This kind goeth not out but by fasting and praier The treatise called Ecclesiasticus if for any cause it should come into the Canon it must be for Salomons sake whom many would haue to bee the authour of it But the Preface it selfe remaineth confessing it to be the worke of Iesus Sirachs sonne of another Iesus his grande-father and the booke meÌ„tioneth z Cap 48. 46. Elias Ezechias Iosias Ieremy diverse other who lived hundreds of yeeres after Salomon And howe questionable a narration is that in it that a Cap 46. 20 Samuel should tell of Saules death after his owne burial which as diverse learned men thinke is a report to be beleeved in NecromaÌ„cy rather theÌ„ in Divinity For if the souls of the righteous being departed be in the haÌ„d of God which our Romanists must coÌ„fesse out of the booke of b Cap 3. 1 Wisdome we do beleeue out of the saying of David c Psal 31. 5. Into thine haÌ„d I coÌ„mend my spirit if those who die in the Lord d Apoc 14 13 do rest froÌ„ their labors how shal we suppose that the soule of such an excelleÌ„t Prophet as Samuel was might be at the coÌ„mand of so base vile a witch to be fetched froÌ„ heaven at her pleasure Or what rest shal other faithfull men and women bee imagined to haue after this life if Necromancers VVitches and Coniurers haue such power over them Albeit therefore that some of the auncient speaking according to the e 1. Sam 2â—… 15 letter of the texte doe name him who appeared Samuel because hee came vp in the likenesse of Samuel as f Epistol 80. Basile when hee saith that the VVitch raised Samuel from the deade and some other not sifting the pointe doe affirme it to bee the soule of Samuel himselfe as g Antiquit. 6. 15 Iosephus the lewe and h Dialog 〈◊〉 Tryphon Iustinus Martyr yet other more exactly looking into it tell vs otherwise as S. Austen when he calleth that which appeered i De doctr Christ lib. 24 23. the image of Samuel and especially Basile who elsewhere more advisedly pronounceth that k Basil in 〈◊〉 cap 8. they were Devils which hissing with their voice did transforme themselues into the habite and person of Samuel Yea l Chron l 1 Genebrard himselfe maketh a great doubt whither it were Samuel or no and citeth Tertullian and diverse other of the Auncients resolving the contrary As for the bookes of Machabees there be many thinges in them that no man can maintaine therfore no part of them is so much as reade in our Church as that m 1. Mach. 1. 7 AlexaÌ„der parted his kingdome among his servants while he was alive that the n Cap 8 7. Romanes tooke the greate Antiochus aliue that they tooke from him o Cap. 8. 8. India and Media and Lydia and gaue them to King Eumenes that they had a Senate consisting of p Vers. 15. three hundred and twenty men who consulted daily that they yeerely committed their q Vers. 16. government to one man whom all obeied and that there was no hatred or envy amongst them Also it wil never bee made hang togither that Iudas should be aliue in the r 2 Math 1. 10. hundred foâ—…escore eight yeere and yet he should be slaine in the s 1 Mac 9. 3. hundred fifty and two yeere Neither that Antiochus should s 1 Mac. 6. 8 die in his bed for griefe and sorrow and in another place should be
fight Then if you had your will touching the authority of these controversed books you could not make one quarter of the gaine by them as you suppose but since they are not of the right stampe we may not allow theÌ„ to you Be the matter in theÌ„ for vs or agaiÌ„st vs we may not authorize those for Authentike Scripture which God hath not so authorized In the 2. of the Machabees there is a place against Limbus PatruÌ„ where one of the seven brethren saith p Cap 7 36 My brethren that haue suffered a little paine are now vnder the divine covenant of everlasting life that is to say at that very time inioying it and in possession of it for if it be vnderstood but of the way thither the mother and brother yet remaining aliue were also vnder that covenant of assured hope but we account not of this testimony neither do wee vrge it because the booke whence it is taken is Apocryphal T. HILL FOr Heretikes ever framed the Bible to their opinions changing wresting paring and somtimes flatly reiecting al which made over-plainly against such Doctrine as they devised and so doe most impudently the Protestants now Wheras the Catholikes ever squared their Doctrine by the line and the levell of the Word of her Spouse and therefore never had cause to reiect the least iote of the holy Bible and at one worde the Catholikes followe the Bible but the Protestantes force the Bible to followe them G. ABBOT 5 WHat heretiks do to the Bible or how they intreat it we respect not neither doth it make ought against vs til you haue first proved vs to be heretiks Nay look you well to it whither you do not seclude vs from being heretiks since we do not change wrest pare the Bible We allow al Scripture to be Scripture we wreÌ„ch nothing we alter nothing but avow that our collections and interpretations are consonant to other places of Gods sacred word and in all points material are to be warranted out of some or many of the ancient fathers of the Primitiue Church which when any of you shall iumpe vpon we never refuse to put in trial with you Now that you Pseudo-Catholiks do that indeed wherwith you wrongfully charge vs how can you deny when you admit for q CoÌ„c Triden Sess 4â— authenticall no copy nor translation of the Scripture but the vulgar Latin which hath diverse flawes and gaps in it much being missing which is in the Originall Hebrew Greek When almost in al your r Vaux Catechi Horae beatissim Virginis Catechismes other books you leaue out the second CoÌ„mandement touching Images as too plainly coÌ„vincing your idolatrous carved painted stuffe in Churches So wheÌ„ in the Eucharist you take the Cup froÌ„ the s CoÌ„c Constat Sess 13 people coÌ„trary to Christs institution the relation of the forme of that Sacrament by S. Paule expouÌ„ding s Mat 26. 27 Drinke you all of this to be meant of the Clergy only how do you wrest and pare As when you say that your Masse is a dayly reall sacrifice wheras the t Heb 7 27 cap 10 18 Author to the Hebrews so copiously disputeth that there is no more sacrifice for fin Briefly you do little better then take away all the Bookes of the Bible when for so many yeares togither you willingly suffred not the laity to looke into them And how do you pervert the Scripture to confirme that abuse as when u In Apolog. Staphilus directly applyeth to that purpose the text u Mat 7 6 Giue not that which is holy vnto dogs so accounting the laity to be no better then dogges and swine Yea your great Rabbins Peter x Lib 3 Distinct 25 Lombard the Master of the Sentences Thomas of y Aquin 2. Aquine can finde so much in that place of Iob z 〈◊〉 art 6. The Oxen were plovving and the Asses were feeding in their places taking the oxen plovving to signifie the Priests reading the Scripture the Asses feeding Iob 1. 14. to be the people not troubling their heads with such matters but contenting themselues to beleeue in grosse as the Church and Cleargy do beleeue Are not these sweet men do they not froÌ„ dogs swine Oxen Asses proue their matters handsomely Thus you square your doctrine by the level of the Babilonish harlot no otherwise folowing the Bible verily as many in LoÌ„don do follow the Law when they go to Westminster after the Iudges who know much law but their followers study vnderstand little of it So you sometimes let the Bible stand in your Libraries or studies before you but you look little in it take very small acquaintance of it when any thing commeth to bee questioned you had leifer be tryed by any thing then that and for traditions you wil striue as for your soule knowing they must do the deed in vpholding your Popery or els al wil to the grouÌ„d for in the Scripture it hath no footing But we contrarywise doe teach our people to cary with them Gods booke to read it and meditate on it to try our teachiÌ„gs therby not to force the exposition thereof to their own humour but to the purpose of the holy Ghost And so I leaue you and this your slaunder 6 Here to proceed a litle farther in the matter of this Motiue we are charged as the Reader doth see to offer iniury to the scriptures in denying those to be Canonicall whoÌ„ the Romanists do grace with that name But what is our fault Is it that we do not allow all that to bee of vndoubted authority which is within the coÌ„mon volumes of the Bible Yea that is it as M. Bristow his fellows belike wold say We answer that if this be it the Church of Rome it selfe is gilty of that crime For are there not 2. books which are coÌ„monly called the 3. 4. of Esdras which theÌ„selues evermore coÌ„prise within their Bibles yet repute not Canonical No better triall of this then by the a Session 4â—… Councell of Trent which reckoning vp the sacred Volumes doeth with those vvhich are not controversed yea with those which are past controversie ioyne Tobias â—…dith Wisdome Ecclesiasticus and the two books of the Machabees but of these of Esdras not a word Heere then by the iudgement of that renoumed Synode which curleth as many as ioine not with it some tractes in the Bible are now as good as leaped out of the Bible This fact of theirs wil warraÌ„t our proceedings since by the same reason wherefore they seclude some may more bee shut out if they do deserue it Gentle Genebrard saw this wel and therfore he was desirous although it were but by the head shoulders to haue pulled in these two bookes againe b Lib. 2 Chron An. 3638. postea He therefore more then once is vehement for them would make
Nabuchodonosor and while the first temple or m Ca 16 20 Sanctuary stood Nay the consultation concerning this warre is reported to be in the n Cap. 2 1â—… eighteenth yeare of Nabuchodonosor we finde in the book of the o 〈◊〉 King 25 〈◊〉 Kings that in the nineteenth yeare of his raigne the same king sent Nabuzaradan his steward to Hierusalem vvho burnt the house of the Lorde the Kinges house and all other of worth in the citty Adde to this that whereas the writers of the bookes of Kings and Chronicles are most exacte in setting downe all great warres and victories of the Iewes from the time of Saul to the ruinating of the first temple there is not one word of any person or circumstance belonging to this warre in them nor in any other vndoubted booke of holy writ Yea Iosephus who was a Iew and with much learning and labour continueth the story of his countreymen from Adam to his own daies hath not the least mention of this Iudith or ought appertaining to her which he being so desirous to coÌ„ceale nothing which might make for the honour of his people would never in such deepe oblivion haue buryed These things may well be questioned 8 The book of Wisdome is by some of the Popish Synagoge not only accounted to be Canonicall Scripture but also reputed to be p Sixt. sent Bibli lib 1. 8 Salomons if not for the compiling yet at least for the matter And the reason therof is yeelded because there is in it a praier in the q Sap. 9. 1. name of Salomon But r Vide Sixt. Senens vbi supra Bellar de verbo Dei li. 1. 13 learned men of our parte rather hold it to be the worke of Philo the Iew which also Bellarmine citeth out of S. Hierome and that not the elder Philo but even the same who with some other of his countrymen was sent in embassage to the s Philo de legat ad caium Emperour Caligula to intreate him that the Iewes might not be forced to accept of and to erect his image or statue at Hierusalem which they held to be contrary to the law of their Moses He therefore compiled that worke insinuating to Kings and great men moderation in their governement terrour of torments after this life and the extreme vanity of Idols matters most fit for their present purpose to Caligula to giue never the lesse credit to all his words he was contented that Salomons name should be vsed in the praier before mentioned because the name of wise king Salomon was famous over al the world And that for this purpose 〈◊〉 the booke of Wisdom was made the whole drift of it may very well purport Now if there were nothing els in this treatise to check it selfe yet that bloudy s Sap 4. 3â—… sentence and censure against all borne in bastardy woulde bewray that it was written with an humane spirite and not by divine authority For although God be pleased sometimes to lay a temporal punishment vpon men so borne as he also doth on other persons yet he who so that we serue him and feare him hath professed of himselfe to be no t Act 10 34 respecter of persons he who blessed Phares being in fornication begotten vpon u Gen 38 18 29. Thâ—…ar so that our Saviour Christs petigree according to the flesh is u Matth. 1 3 derived from him he who forgiveth the parents committing adultery or fornication so that they doe repent which was x 2 Sam 12 13 Davids case adding to his adultery murther also he wil much more pardon the child that is innocent in that behalfe and not accessary to the crime of his nocent parents and will not lay that fearefull iudgement vpon him that neither he nor any who descend froÌ„ him shall long prosper The examples are manifolde how God hath powred various temporall blessings on the issue of such as haue beene borne in fornication as we need look no farther then to William the Conquerour tightly termed y Haillan Histo lib 6 Guillaume le Bastard which notwithstanding ought to incourage none to coÌ„mit that fleshly sinne but rather they are to feare and tremble at it since God may iustly destroy both the bodies and soules of such offen ders But this I haue spoken to shew that the saying of that authour cannot be iustified in Divinity neither may any man goe about to advouch it since albeit all hope well yet few are assured that all things are right in their owne birth Nay Papists theÌ„selues among whom be pretty store of bastards as wel as among other men saw this well enough which caused their z Hugo cardinal Lyra Glo. interl ordinar Dâ—…oni Car thusian Commentatours vpon that place to flie the literall sence and to interpret it of bastards spiritually meant that is heretikes and such like Of the bookes of Ecclesiasticus and the Machabees I haue spoken before and therefore say no more of them but this that S. Austen who thought reasonably well of the bookes of the Machabees yet coulde not tell how to iustifie the a 2. Mach 14. 42 commendation of Razias killing himselfe and therfore is shrewdly b Aug. epist 61. plunged how to salue all by allowing the book and disallowing the fact Since then the matter of these volumes hath such imperfections in it that it cannot keepe coherence with the vn-questioned Oracles of the sacred Scripture and the Spirit of the Almighty is ever vniforme never dissenting from it selfe if the other books do stand as not a c Mat 5. 18 title of them shall perish vnto the worlds end these then must needs fal from that high credit to which Papists would bring them and we are not to blame when we acknowledge not them for divine who haue no such slampe vpon them 9 Secondly we referre our selues to the iudgment of the lewish Church before Christ vvhose the Scriptures then vvere and to whom were commended the d Rom. 3 2 Oracles of God Among them e Luk 24 27 44 Moses and the Prophets and the Psalmes by a generall name comprised all Scripture but otherwise for order and memorie sake they reduced al their books to the two f Sixt Sen Bibli lib 1 and twenty letters of the Hebrew Alphabet and as in them they comprehended al every particle which they and we do receiue so they shut out also from thence al which they we now do expunge No better witnes of this theÌ„ that learned Iosephus who ex g Contr Apion lib. 1 professo haÌ„dleth this sheweth the dignity prerogatiue of the divine inspired writings aboue all other the credit of whom he holdeth doubtful vnsure Now in the nuÌ„ber of those of sacred authority he hath neither Tobias nor Iudith nor any one of their companions h Spec. Aug S. Austen doth witnes that the Iewes do not accepte
there is a worke vnder the name of S. Austen intituled d Lib 2 34 De mirabilibus sacrae Scripturae where by the Authour the book of Machabees is secluded from the Canon NotwithstaÌ„ding we do not vrge thâ—…t to be his but take it for a counterfeit rather yeeld that S. Austen framing his iudgment to some others opinion in the Westerne Church did repute these also Canonicall Yet here that is to be remembred which briefly before I touched concerning S. Ambrose that this mistaking in this worthy Father grew by his want of knowledge in that tongue wherein the old Testa was originally writteÌ„ by which means he was not acquatÌ„ed with many things appertaining to the Iewish church vnto whoÌ„ since al Scripture before Christs time was coÌ„mitted if these had bin Scripture they also should haue bin coÌ„mended then they should haue bin written in the tongue which they vnderstood that is to say in the Hebrew not in the Greek which was a laÌ„guage of the GeÌ„tiles as e Aut l 30. 9 Iosephus testifieth the Iews did not accoÌ„modate theÌ„selues to the learning of any tongue but their own which is to be interpreted of the ordinary sort of theÌ„ But all these controversed writings are only in the Greeke and not in the Hebrew which is a maine argument against them and ruinateth the very foundation of them Now that S. AusteÌ„ knew nothing of the Hebrew he in his own f â—…pist 131. modesty most ingenuously confesseth as also in another place he acknowledgeth that he had but little skil in the Greeke I g Cont. liter Petilian DO nat lib. 〈◊〉 truely haue attained vnto very little of the Greeke tongue and almost nothing And this made the iudgment of S. Austen the more defectiue in that behalfe Now as this great Doctour might bee overtaken partly by his ignorance of the Hebrew and many circumstances belonging to the Iews partly by leaning to the opinion of some other neere about him in the Westerne Churches of Italy Afrike so it is a matter very probable that the h CoÌ„c cart 3. can 471 CouÌ„cel of Carthage induced by the same reasons and most of all by the authority of S. Austen mighte exorbitate in their Censure vvhen they put all these Apocriphal bookes among the writingâ—… Canonical For there assembled none but such Prelates as were about Carthage which standeth toward the West of Africa in comparison of the East Churches The same causes doubtlesse moved i Decret Innocâ—…n CoÌ„câ—…js Innocentius the Bishop of Rome and therefore of the Westerne Church to put all these books into the Canon Tobias excepted of whoÌ„ he saith nothing An errour once begon goeth plentifully forward is not stayed vpon the suddaine WheÌ„ce it was that k Gelas. Epist. in Concilijs Gelasius coÌ„ ming after InnoceÌ„tius did in this case treade the steps of his Predecessor wheÌ„ himselfe togither with seveÌ„ty Bishops doth define al these writings to be sacred Scripture NotwithstaÌ„ding he who wil looke the Decree of Gelasius as l Part 1 Dist. 15. 4 Gratian citeth it about this matter shal see that the iudgmeÌ„t of Gelasius coÌ„cerning the CanoÌ„ is very weake little to be regarded And in those decrees of his which are found amoÌ„g the CouÌ„cels the same wil appeere wheÌ„ he maketh meaner things theÌ„ these coÌ„troversed books to be of irrefragable authority For in the very next Decree to that which I formerly mentioned he saith thus touching an Epistle of Leo one of his Antecessors in the Roman see The text of the Epistle of Pope Leo if any maÌ„ shal dispute of eveÌ„ to one iote shal not revereâ—…ly receive it in all things let him be accursed This heate doth shew that Gelasius was not too too much advised in his determinations of this nature but followed the tract of those that weÌ„t before him without farther ventilating or disquisitioÌ„ And this is the most of that which by mine own reading I find in Antiquity making for the iustification of these Apocryphal bookes And some such shewes there be for the story of Susanna of Bel with the Dragon which also are not in the Hebrew therfore togither with the fragmeÌ„ts of the booke of Esther some other of equal sort are by vs held to be no Scripture Hee who would behould what farther may be saide for these things let him looke m De verbâ—… Dci lib. 1. Cardinall Bellarmine where he shal finde a many weake citatioÌ„s agreeing in substance with those whom before I haue named Now if we looke what is against them we shal easily discover testimony of greater ponderosity to overturne them then is any to support vphold them 12 VVhat the Iewes did or doe esteeme of them you haue heard before Onely take this with you that n 〈◊〉 l. c. 10. Bellarmine can say out of S. o â—…n Prolog gelâ—…at Hierome that all these bookes togither are reiected by the Hebrewes Now let vs see what witnes the Easterne Church giveth of them p Eccl. Hist. lib 4 2â—… Eusebius hath an Epistle of Melito sometimes Bishop of Sardis in Asia the lesser where Melito himselfe saith that of purpose he travelled to Hierusalem into Palestina to know what were the Canonical Scriptures of the Church before Christ and there he setteth downe all those bookes which wee admit none other This was very soone after the age wherin the Apostles lived It is heere to be marked concerning this holy man as also of al the rest whom I shall name that they never had in this businesse reference to ought but to the course of the Iewes accepting their iudgement for the bookes of the olde Testament to be that wherevnto Christians also should cleaue Not long after that time came Clemens Alexandrinus of whom q Lib. 6 11 Eusebius writing saith that hee cited the bookes of Wisedome and Ecclesiasticus in his vvorkes vvhich bookes saith Eusebius all men do not receiue And he addeth as it may seeme to prevent least any man vpon his example should attribute much to those two that he cited also the Epistle of Barnabas of Clement By the iudgement then of Eusebius Wisedome Ecclesiasticus at the least are books coÌ„troversed Soone after came r Cap 19 OrigeÌ„ who lived at AlexaÌ„dria in Aegypt And he reckoneth vp the CanoÌ„ of the Iews coÌ„prised in two tweÌ„ty voluÌ„es accepting all that which we accept not naming the other saving the Machabees which he saith to be reiected of the Iews That worke of OrigeÌ„ wherin that was coÌ„tained is now lost yet in those which remain he saith that the book of Wisdome s De principijâ—… lib 4. 3â—… is not accouÌ„ted of authority with al. Athanatius after his time lived also at Alexandria he sheweth what was held for Canonical what was refused s In Synopsi There be Canonicall of the old Testament two
In 1. King 14. second place so much hee doth and no more But in a u Homil 34 in quadraâ—… 〈◊〉 third he not only hath these distinctioÌ„s of Angels but he alleageth for it Dionysius also that by the name of Areopagita calliÌ„g him an ancieÌ„t venerable Father But this is a single testimony al other of more antiquity make against him he may be supposed to do it doubtfully since naming the matter thrise he speaketh of Denis but once And moreover Gregory lived 600. yeares after Christ by which time this bastard might be a huÌ„dred or two huÌ„dred yeare old with some might be esteemed authentical which Gregory might take vp froÌ„ theÌ„ without farther examinatioÌ„ He who list to see this Denis farther discovered quite discarded let him look that noble u Lib. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Moâ—…ney writiÌ„g touching the Masse if he be not impudeÌ„tly refractary he shall be sileÌ„ced in this point for ever Thus you are like to make good work with your Fathers when the first of your tale is filâ—… populi a bastard seed which cannot inherite What you say of Ignatius ClemeÌ„s Iustâ—… TertulliaÌ„ Cyprâ—… Irâ—…us all the Fathers is a vain Popish Pilcher-like bragge which is ordinary with such crakers as you are till you cite some particular deserveth no answere but to be denied If you meant truely to your Readers you would cite them somewhat for their mony T. HILL THis is very plaine in that the Cathâ—… are put compelled by the Protestants to defend 〈◊〉 vpâ—…la the â—…dit authority of thâ—… said Fathers for the Protestantes raile as them the Catholikes defend them the Protestants refuse their authority the Catholikes holde iâ—… for 〈◊〉 the Protestants will not be â—…yed by them the Catholikes appealâ—… to their iudgement and to be bâ—…fe the Protestants make no more acâ—…te of them longer then they can wrest them to serue their 〈◊〉 thâ—… they dâ—… of Bevis of Southampton or of Adam Bell. And in 〈◊〉 the Protestantes I include all the Puriâ—…es for I am not ignorâ—… how the sâ—… Protestants are driven by the said Puritanâ—… to defende thâ—… Fathers and also are called Papistes for their labour And â—…re by iâ—… iâ—…â—…fest that the Fathers are with the Catholikes and â—…her 〈◊〉 the Protests â—…r 〈◊〉 And vvhither all thâ—… 〈◊〉 being men of exceâ—… wits of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of â—…rfull lâ—…ing servent in praier holy in conversation greatly in Gods favour mighty in working of miracles and adorned with many such like giftes vvere more like to vnderstands the Scriptures freshlie delivered vnto them from the Apostles theÌ„selues who also no doubt taught their scholors the true sence thereof and they theirs from one age to another or these late foolishe vnstudied vnlearned prophane and arregant fellowes bee iudges your selues G. ABBOT 3 TILL you came to this Period you spake something of your owne peradventure but now you are apparantly become but eveÌ„ a plaine truÌ„ke to cary along what your M. x Motiv 14 Bristow putteth into you froÌ„stealing out of whose booke you cannot coÌ„taine if your hands were bouÌ„d behind you If hee then lash lye you thinke you may do so also as lying safe vnder his shilde But his target is no thicke one as that y â—…vid Meâ—…amorph Lib 13 seveÌ„-folde buckler of Aâ—…ax was but made of thinne browne paper therfore wil not beare out one blowe I pray you where are you forced to vphold the Fathers credite against the Protestants railing at theÌ„ or who of the Protestants be they that give them not the same right which God would haue to be giveÌ„ vnto theÌ„ or which they theÌ„selues desired should be allotted vnto their writiÌ„gs We hold them their labours to be great instruments of the setting forth of Gods glory we esteeme it as a good blessing froÌ„ aboue that the Lord hath left their labors as monuments to his church wherein we not only know what was done taught in the first ages of the christiaÌ„ world but may be helped also many waies in the vnderstaÌ„ding of Scriptures beating downe of divers heresies And our men do study theÌ„ are as copious frequent in theÌ„ as Papists be which if you will you may see in the bookes of Bishop Iewel D. HuÌ„fry D. Folke Peter Martyr CheÌ„nicius yea M. Calvins InstitutioÌ„s to say nothing of divers now liviÌ„g Truth it is that when our men made the true touch-stoÌ„e only absolute Iudge of coÌ„troversies to be the Scripture Harding his coÌ„panions in effect flying froÌ„ that would needes beare the world in hand that if the triall might be by the Fathers the victory was certainly theirs Whervpon in England as also in other places before they who stood for reformation refusing theÌ„ at no weapon ioyned with them there and now as persons of desperate deplorate misery you haue nothing to helpe you but by foisting and iugling in chaungelings vpstarts counterfeits in steed of vndoubted ones by razing and curtolling and clipping the works of those reverend meÌ„ as anone I shal shew you It is therfore a grosse slauÌ„der that we do raile at them or that we do wrest them Where there is iust cause we as men z Horat. l. 11 Apistol 1 Nullius adâ—icti iurare in verba magistri bound to stand to the opinion of none but of the holy Ghost we declining-wise do leave theÌ„ but where they subscribe to the authority of God there we subscribe to them defend them refuse not to be tried by them so farre as we may by any holy learned men of which sort we hold them but yet stil know them to be men As for Bevis of Southampton Adam bell we hold to be but fictions such as were devised in the time of Popery and thought fitte then togither with other Legends to be imparted to the people that when they should rather haue looked into the word of God if they might haue bin suffered they being busied with such toies might not grow to be of such Christian vnderstaÌ„ding as to espy the idolatries collusions of the Clergy When a maÌ„ who speaketh vntruth coÌ„meth to examinatioÌ„ his tongue faltereth in his mouth his tale crosseth it selfe So doth yours who attempting both to soupe and blow at once make no bones to speake as good as flat coÌ„tradictions Simul forbere flare Eraâ—m in Adage In the one sentence the Protestante raile at theÌ„ refuse their authority make no more account of theÌ„ then of Adam Bel in the next the Protestants are driven by the Puritanes to defend the Fathers they are called Papists for their labour So they do defend them not defend them They raile on them yet speake for them This is one of the riddles fit for b Terent. in Andrias Oedipus And yet the Fathers are against both the Protestants the Puritanes And why then I request you do the ProtestaÌ„ts