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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A68090	An apology or defence for the Christians of Frau[n]ce which are of the eua[n]gelicall or reformed religion for the satisfiing of such as wil not liue in peace and concord with them. Whereby the purenes of the same religion in the chiefe poyntes that are in variance, is euidently shewed, not onely by the holy scriptures, and by reason: but also by the Popes owne canons. Written to the king of Nauarre and translated out of french into English by Sir Iherom Bowes Knight.; Apologie ou défense pour les chretiens de France de la religion reformée. English	Gentillet, Innocent, ca. 1535-ca. 1595.; Bowes, Jerome, Sir, d. 1616.	1579 (1579)	STC 11742; ESTC S103023	118,829	284

legacies and foundacions of Obites to massepriests and chauntrypriests and to make good prouision of pardons specially in the time of the great Iubileis and Croysseys which they sell very good cheape And in very truth this doctrine of Purgatory hath exceedingly inriched the Cleargie yea more than any other thing For there dyed not so poore a wretch which gaue not some legacie to the priest yea often times euen the best thing they had to haue them sing masses for the case of their soules and to shorten the time of their abode in purgatory And hereunto were al sick folke perswaded by their Confessors which would make great difficultye nicenes to geue them absolution except they would promise to geue one thing or other to the church And the better to draw them hereunto they made them beleue that for euery mortall sinne their soules shold remain as is said seuen yeares in the paynes of purgatory which would be an infinite time if it were not shortened by masses For say they although that God doe in this world pardon the sinnes of all such as confesse them to the priest and make satisfaction yet doth he remit but the sinne only and not the payne so as we must needes goe to purgacory to suffer paynes for al the sinnes which we haue committed in all our life time Which paines are so great as greater are not possible For say they there is as greate difference betwixt the fire of purgatory and the fire of this world as is betwixt a burning coale the breath of a mannes mouth By reason wherof the poore world had so great feare and conceit of this hote fire of purgatory and of the infinite time which they should be fayn to remaine there accounting seuen yeares for euery mortall sinne which was committed in a mannes life time that euery man gaue vnto the Priestes as much as they would craue to the end that their time in purgatory might be shortned But contrary to this doctrine the Protestantes doe hold opinion that we haue no other purgatory than the bloud of our Lord Iesus Ghrist which washeth away and clenseth all mens sinnes which beleue in him And they say that his precious bloud is more then sufficient to wipe out all our sinnes without hauing neede to be purged by any fier And that our sauiour doth not clense vs by halfes but throughly altogether and we should doe him wrong and iniury to beleue that we haue need of any other kinde of clensing than of that which he him selfe maketh in iustifying vs by bearing our iniquities and by wyping away our sinnes and blemishes And that it is a mockery to say that God doth pardon our sinnes and not the payn due for sinne as if you wold say he forgeueth vs the dets that we doe owe him but not the payment of the dettes for he will haue that still And now to say the truth all men may easily iudge that this doctrine is better thā the doctrine of the Romish Catholickes according to our first rule because that by the same Christ our Redeemer is most honored forasmuche as he is acknowledged to be the only and whole purger of our iniquities and our true and only Attonementmaker and Iustifyer And asfor the holy scripture that doth teach vs that the faythfull and chosen of God do dye vnto the Lord and that those which dye vnto the Lord are very happy do go into the place of rest These are the expresse wordes of S. Iohn Happy are they which from this time forth do dye to the Lord for they do rest from their labors And for those which dye not to the Lord forasmuch as they be none of his nor members of the body of the true church whereof christ is the head it is certayne that there is no saluation for them And therefore it is in vayne to imagine a purgatory either for the one or for the other For as many as die to the lord go presently to rest not into purgatory And those which doe not dye to the Lord do go into euerlasting payn not into purgatorye and there is no saluation for them And as for the text taken out of the booke of the Machabees which alloweth prayer for the dead and so by consequence purgatory also The Protestantes say that it ought to be houlden for a certayn and vndoubted rule that we ought not to build any article or fayth vpon the bookes called Apocripha of which nūber this booke of the Machabyes is one insomuch as the Author thereof that wrate it confesseth that he may perchaunce haue ouershot himselfe and that he hath written in simple stile and that he was not of skill to write any better which is an vnmeete kinde of speech for the holy Ghost who can not erre nor hath any neede to be excused for speaking in a base stile for when he listeth he speaketh in a higher stile than the excellentest Orators that ouer were in the world And as touching the text where it is sayes that the sinne against the holy Ghost is not pardoned neither in this world nor in the would to come Whereupon the Romish Catholicks doe inferre following the interpretation of S. Gregory that then the other sinnes are forgeuen in the other world and so by consequence that there must nedes be a purgatory the protestantes affirme that to be an ill conclusion For in so saying our Lord Iesus Christ mente nothing else but that the sinne againste the holy Ghost shal neuer be forgeuē S. Oregory himself as we will declare hereafter doth not say that all other sinnes sauing the sinne agaynst the holy Ghost shall be pardoned in the world to come but onely that the smalest sort of sinnes which are called veniall sinnes shal be then forgeuen Let vs now come to the Canons There are two peeces of Canons in the decrees of Graecian which may easely quench and confound purgatory For by the one it is sayd that in this world one of vs may wel be helped by the prayers of another But when we depart from hence to appeare before the seate of Christ euery man must beare his own burthē and then the prayers of Saints which are in paradise will nothing auaile vs and much lesse will the prayers of mē of this world stand vs in any steade These are the wordes of the Canon In this present world we know we may helpe one another with our prayers and good aduice but when we come before the iudgement seate of Christ then neyther Iob. nor Daniell nor Noe can pray for any but euery man shall then beare his own burthen The other Canon sayth that neither the bishops nor the Apostles can assoyle the dead of their sinnes Wherupon it followeth that men haue bought the Popes pardons in vaine for the redeeming of those which are sayd to haue been in Purgatory These are the very words of the said Canon taken out of

to the king himselfe specially seeing we finde that such as dare but speake of the like matters are by the law gilty of high tresō No. And yet these that yeld to the Creature the honor that is due to the name of god which letting god alone do worship their fellow seruaunts think not themselues blame worthy at all as who should say they could reserue any greater honor vnto God. Now the reason why men make their suites to Princes by the meane and fauor of Noble men Captaines and Officers is because the king is borne a man and knoweth not in whom to repose his trust and confidence for the ordering of his publick affaires But as for GOD from whom nothing is hidden for he knoweth euery mans desertes vnto him we haue no need of an Aduocate but of a deuout hart For wheresoeuer such a harte speaketh vnto him he wil answere him By which sayings this good doctor S. Ambrose by good and apparant reasons confoūdeth the doctrine of the Romish Catholicks touching the intercession of Saints So as to vse any other mediator to Godward than our Lord Iesus Christ is a distrusting of his fauor and of the goodwill he beareth vs as though he were like vnto some rough and vncurteous prince that wold take displeasure if a mā preaced to his presence not being presented by some officer of his court For say the Protestants are not we certayn and well assured of the clemency goodnes of our Sauior that doth inuite vs to come directly vnto him Is not he our good Shepheard our Redeemer our attonementmaker our reconciler and our brother Wherfore hath he taken vpon him our flesh borne our iniquities fulfilled the law wherby we were condemned shed his most precious bloud and suffered death and passion vpon the crosse Is it not for vs that he hath done all these thinges to purchase our saluation and reconciliation with God his Father For neither for himselfe nor to increase his own glory needed he to humble and imbase himselfe so much And therefore it is not to be douted but that he doth discharge his office of Mediatorship much better than all the saintes can doe specially seeing that he is the only meanes that they be saints and without him they could not so be Now as it is not to be douted but he hath great good will to do the office of a Mediator for vs so must we beleeue that he will not consent that any other should take vpon him to doe it but is and will be the onely obtayner of our saluation and of the heauenly blessinges which God shall geue vs. These be the reasons which the Protestants do alleadge for the maintenaunce of their doctrine touching prayer Whereby it doth plainly appeare that their doctrine is the best according to our first maxime because that the honor which belongeth to Iesus Christ our Lord is therby better and more soundly and wholly without diminishing rendered vnto him then by the doctrine of the Romish catholicks who would haue so great a number of Mediators as they seem to leaue to Iesus Christ nothing els but onely the name of mediator doe attribute to the saints both the name and the effect Secondlye this doctrine of the Protestants is perfectly groūded vpon the word of God as all men may know by considering as well the precepts as the examples which are in the bible concerning prayer For first of all the holy Scripture teacheth vs to put all our trust in the goodnes of God and to pray onely vnto him assuring vs that he will geue care vnto our prayers saying If you being euill can skill to geue good thinges to your children how much rather will your Father which is in heauē geue good things to those that aske of him And agayne it exhorteth vs to vse the credit of Iesus Christ our Mediator to God the Father saying If any man haue sinned we haue an aduocate with God the Father euen Iesus Christ the righteous And to the end we should not doubt of the power and good will of our Mediator towards vs it doth assure vs of two thinges The one that he sitteth in his Maiestye and might on the right hand of the throne of his Father And the other that he doth pray and make intercessiō for vs. He is saith S. Paul vpon the right hand of God and maketh intercession for vs. And for that we should not abuse our selues in seking many mediators vnto god the holy scripture doth also teach vs that as we haue but one God to whom we ought to pray No more haue we but onely one Mediator saiing For there is but one God and one Mediator betwixt God and man the mā Iesus Christ And because we should not doubt that God is our Father and that we may vse him as a Father we are taught that those which beleeue in the Mediator are made the children of god by the same faith belief saying to all those that haue receued him he hath geuen priuiledge to become the Children of God that is to say To those which beleue in his name So as Iesus Christ himself teaching vs how we should pray to God hath willed vs to call him our Father Moreouer in the Psalmes of Dauid and in the other bookes of the Bible there are infinite numbers of examples which proue that all holy mē haue alwaies made their prayers vnto God and neuer vnto dead mē nor called vpon them to be their meanes and Intercessors vnto God. Wherupon it followeth apparantly that the doctrine of the Protestāts touching prayer is the most auncient and true according to our seconde Maxime Finally the sayd Romish Catholicks ought not to charge the Religion of the Protestants with heresie by the which they say there ought to be no praying to the Saintes which are out of this world for there is no man of so simple iudgement but he will confesse it to be meere madnes to pray to them which cannot heare him as questionles those which be dead cannot vnderstand the prayers which we make vnto thē in this world because as witnesseth the Canon they know nothing of the things which are done in this world except sayth the same Canon that those which die doe cary them newes of the things which they haue seene and vnderstoode before their death These are the very words of the Canon We must needes confes according to the trueth that those which are dead doe know nothing of that which is done here vpon earth but they may well be aduertysed of them by such as die and goe vnto them and yet not of all thinges but onely of such thinges as are lawfull for those that be heare to beare in memory and expediēt for the others to know Thus by this Canon it is most euident that we ought not to pray vnto Saintes seeing they be dead and cā neither heare nor see nor know

part of this sentēce seemeth to forbidde a good deed for it sayth receyue not the sinner Vnderstand therefore that this is spoken by a figure taking the sinner for the sin to the ende that thou admit not any sinne Thus haue you heard the very wordes of S. Augustine which doe very well declare vnto vs as well by the rule as by the first example which he setteth downe that the eating of the flesh and bloud of christ in his supper ought to be vnderstoode spiritually sacramentally and not after the manner of the cannibals which is vtterly voyd of all humanity and good manners as those transubstantiatiers would make vs beleue And whereas the catholickes vphold that this sacramēt ought not to be distributed vnto the lay people but by halfes which they doe terme vnder one kinde the same is expresly cōdemned by their owne canons as hie treason towardes god For you shall here what a canon sayth which is taken out of the decrees of Pope Gelasius It is done vs to vnderstand that some hauing receyued the holy sacrament of the body do abstayne from the cup of the holy bloud which thing they ought not to do for in asmuch as it is euident that in so doing they entangle themselues in I wot not what a kind of superstition they ought to receyue the sacrament whole togither or els to abstayne from it altogither For the deuiding a sunder of one selfe same mistery can not be done without great trechery And furthermore where as the most part of the lay catholikes do content themselues with the receyuing of the sacrament onely once a yeare which is at Easter they are condemned by the canons which declare that those are not to be taken for catholikes which receyue not three times in a yeare These be the very wordes of a cannon taken out of the councell of Agatha The laye people which receyue not the Lordes supper at Christmas at Easter and at whitsontide let them not bee taken ne reputed for Catholikes Thus may all men perceyue iudge with what manner of passion these catholikes are caried away which do so boldly condemne the Protestants as heretiques for their doctrine concerning this poynt of the supper of the Lord and so do spitefully name them Sacramentaries as though they denied this sacramēt For in so doing they do also vnawares condemne their owne cānons which otherwise they esteme so greatly that many of them do attribute more authority vnto those Cannons than to the holy scripture saying that they be the determinations of the holy mother church wherunto they ought to sticke bicause the scripture is to obscure and may be taken both wayes But indede it is nothing so for the scripture hath but one sence which is easy to be found out of a man that is willing to learne by conferring one text with another But the cannons are in many cases quite contrary one to another I know full well that too shift off these contrarieties the schole men say that we must always hold vs to those that were last made But I answer them that that is asmuch to say as we must alwayes hold vs to the worst For euery man of sound iudgement may always easely perceyue that the ancient cannons are better than those of latter tyme. And further to abate the authority of their canōs by their canōs thēselues I say that the cannons do will vs to serch the vnderstāding of the obscure textes of the scripture in the scripture it selfe And those which seeke it elsewhere are the very scholemasters of errour These are the very wordes of a cannon What is more vngodly than to hold an vngodly doctrine and not to beleue those that are most wise and learned But all such do fall into this kind of ignorance as make not their recourse to the wordes of the Prophets to the writing of the Apostles and to the authority of the Euangelistes to learne the knowledge of the truth in any obscure poynt but will needes trust to their own wit And therefore they become scholemaisters of errour because they list not to be disciples of the truth Which cannon in very deede doth deeply in few wordes condemne the scholedeuines that make more accompt of the authority of the Cannons and doctors of the church than of the very text of the scripture which they accompt to be to obscure And true it is that some textes of the scripture are in some places very darke howbeit there is no text so obscure but it may be made playne by other textes of the same scripture Specially if they resort not to the cannons and decretalls but to the Hebrue text for the the olde testament and to the Greeke text for the new testament as S. Augustine doth teach vs who sayth in this wise Such as vnderstand the latine tongue must for the better vnderstanding of the whole Scriptures haue the knowledge of two other languages more that is to wit of the Hebrue and of the Greek to the end they may haue recourse to the very fountayne of the originall coppies when the diuersitye of the Latin rranslations doth breede any doubte And hereto accordeth a Canon which sayth thus Like as the trueth of the things that are contayned in the old Testament ought to be examined by the Hebrue books Euen so the truth which is written in the new Testament ought to be made playne and cleere by the Greek bookes I besech you what can be braied aagaynst this Canon by the whole herd of these Asses which are so bold as to say that the Hebrue and Greeke tongues be the Languages of Heritickes and therefore doe vtterly reiect and condemne them Do they not by the same meanes condemne the canons and auncient doctors And if they condemne them Are they to bee holden for good Catholickes Well let vs come now to speake of the Masse Of the Masse The viii Chapter THe difference betwixt the Masse and the Supper of our Lord is great For the Catholick schoolemen which vnderstand what the masse is for all of them vnderstand it not doe say that it is a Sacrifice whereby the Priest offereth vp the body and the bloud of our Lord Iesus Christ vnto God for the soule health both of the quick and of the dead Which Sacrifice is accompanied with diuers other parcels as accessaries that is to say with diuers prayers and diuers texts taken out of the gospels and epistles of the new Testament and with divers verses taken out of the Psalmes of Dauid and other bookes of the olde Testament and interlarded throughout with many and diuers Ceremonies And this goodly omnigatherū hath bene patched together at many Sondry tymes by dyuers Popes And that is the cause why the Catholickes do put the masse among the cōmaundementes of their holy mother Church For this commaundement Thou shalt heare masse vpō the Sondayes and vpon other feastfull dayes inioyned is the first