not by lawe As fast as you saie I laied on loade of not onelie popishe witnesses but popes them selues for popes I thinke it will be harde for you to name but one beside Leo Innocentius and Gregorie the first whose sainges I alleaged And why I brought those rather then other I showed good cause I denie not yeat for all that but that euen this onely Leo I thinke is a heauier loade then yow woulde be gladde to beare That I yealded so muche at that time as to omit the testimonies of those notable popes I repent me therof By popishe witnesses you can meane no other but the fathers off Christes church and those to within the first six hundred yeares for other I alleaged none If as you would discredite A shift of M. Nowelles not hearde of before to discredite all the fathers that make for the popes auctoritie the popes because they be popes so you will discredite these auÌ„cient writers because they be popish and write for the pope then you haue founde a more neare waie I confesse then M. Iuell coulde Who alloweth all within the first 600. yeares As before for the fundatioÌ„ of this your first exceptioÌ„ you laied a false sclaunderouse lye to builde vpon so now to vnderprop the same vnder the colour off a more reasonable cause of exceptioÌ„ you bring in a feined story of Sozimus bisshop of Rome who you saie did falsefie the decrees of the Nicene councel whereupon you will conclude that neither Leo b. 3. nor anye other pope neither is to be beleued in this matter Not vnlike to the foolishe gentle woman that sware she woulde neuer loue oure Ladie more because she was a Iewe borne and the Iewes had put Christe to deathe I knowe I shall seme to manie men to digresse to far from my purpose in folowing youre rouing from the matter yeat something will I saye thereto because I knowe it to be one of the principall baites whiche suche fishers as you be M. Nowell vse to laye to bring men from the obedience of the Sea of Rome and hetherto in oure English tongue nothing hath bene answered thereto But because it is here impertinently entermedled with the answere to Leo I will first to auoide confusion ende that matter and then handle the other by it selfe Yow saye that Pighius affirmeth and I denye that the title Nowell fol. 48. a. 9 off oecumenicall or vniuersall Patriarke apperteineth to the bisshop of Rome of right and that therefore there must nedes be some erroure You report vntrulye of me M. Nowell Loke better vpon Dorman the place I reherse there the wordes of S. Gregorye who reprehended Iohn the B. of Constantinople for taking on him the name of vniuersall bishop Which title although it perteined to that Iohn in no sense and was as he affected it a prophane title and altogether mete for Antichrist yeat in that sense and meaning that it belonged to S. Gregorie in which sense onelye it is to be taken when it is applyed to the bishop of Rome I denied it not to perteine to the pope Thus doe Pighius and I agree Thus is there no errour thus goe you forwarde to encrease the numbre Lye 33. of youre lyes Yow merueile greatly that Leo woulde so ambitiously chalenge Nowell a. 14. in this epistle the same title in effect which he refused so freely offred vnto him by the whole councell c. LEO Gregorie after him Pius whiche is nowe nor Dorman anye pope that euer was before did striue about titles yow maye be suer The best title that they haue eche off them hathe bene and is to be called Seruus seruorum Dei the seruaunt of the Seruauntes of God But of this maye be merueiled more in what schole yow haue learned this manner with him that of humiltie refuseth suche titles as seme to gloriouse to deale so hardelye that because he refuseth the name he must nedes be depriued of the thinge The histories make mention that Vitellius the emperoure woulde neither be called Augustus nor Cesar Cesar refused the name of kinge Augustus and Antonius of Lordes Woulde youre wisedome haue serued yow nowe M. Nowell if you had liued in their time to denie them their Emperiall kingly and lordly auctoritie because they woulde not be called by suche names The councel is no councel where the heade is absent or â— â—0 coÌ„senteth not being present and therfore if here this coÌ„panie gathered togather in giuing this title to the pope had iudged amisse yet had not the councell erred I denie not as you saie I doe that the councell did well bothe the councell did well in offring a name mete to expresse the auctoritie which the pope had and so erred not and the bishop also well to refuse the same Except yow will saye that S. Paule when he refused the almoise and charitie off good 1. Cor. 9. men either did euell in refusing it or they euill in offring it The pope claimeth not this title no more then Leo dyd accepte it being offred Calle him by what sobre honeste name you list Graunte him the auctoritie due to him let all titles goe This is that whiche the pope claimeth and you ought not to denie This is that whiche Leo most modestly not as yow falselye terme it ambitiously chalenged to Peters seate Nowe let all reasonable men iudge hardely of the goodnesse of this exception whiche is a. 24. youre first The seconde exception that you vse against this testimonie of Leo for now yow saie yow will goe an other waye Nowell a. 28. to worke with me is that Leo saieth here vntruelye if these be Leo his wordes for that yow saye is yeat in controuersie But before you proue it yow will first aske me a question whether I haue trulye translated the place and iff I haue howe I can make these wordes in this epistle there is one dignitie common to all bishoppes to agree with these folowing there is difference of power emongest them and it is giuen to one to be aboue all the reste whose iudgement is of moste auctoritie b. 1. and howe this man is not in dignitie differing from the rest Yow doe like a wise man to goe an other awaye to worke Dorman for some men thinke you did but plaie before But I merueile why you shoulde put anie doubtes whether these be Leo his wordes or no seing that Caluin confesseth this epistle to be true and to be his To youre first question I answere that I haue translated this place trulye according to the copie printed at Colein anno 1561. To the next moued vpon this how then I can make these wordes agree one dignitie common to all and difference of power that they agree thus that allthough they haue all one dignitie of priestehode or bishoprike that yeat there is difference of power in iurisdiction If spirituall examples like yow not if you can not
venerable memorie suerlie you haue with the better sorte not a little empaired youre estimation to vse suche cancred wordes and father them falselie vpon the councell But not staing here nor contentid onelie to haue saide this yow charge him further with the mainteining of one Apiarius against his fo 46. b. 19. bishop called Vrbanus This is a maliciouse surmise of youres M. Nowell and hath no grounde Yow saie that Zozimus pretended that it was decreed at Nowell fol. 46. b. 12. Nice that the B. of Rome shoulde be the chiefe iudge aboue all other bishoppes and that it shoulde be laufull for anie man vnder anie other bishop to appeale to the B. of Rome as to the highest iudge ouer all ecclesiasticall persones Yow haue made two lyes at once For first whereas Dorman to make men beleue that the Africanes acknowledged no maner of iurisdiction in the B. of Rome yow feine the state of the cawse betwene the pope and the bishoppes of Africa to haue bene that he pretended a decree of the councell of Nice to be chiefe iudge aboue all other bishoppes as though the Africanes had denied that and not stoode rather vpon this pointe to limite and restreine his auctoritie in matters criminall and causes of correction that is one spitefull lie As to them that considre howe in matters concerning A lye 41. faithe the Africanes submitted their doinges against August epist 90. Prosper lib. contra Collator cap. 41. Pelagius and Celestius the heretikes to Innocentius and this verie councell to Zozimus the popes by them to be approued how they required Innocentius to cite to Rome Pelagius the heretike being then in the Easte so farre from Rome it is a thing moste euident So that to alleage this facte of the Africanes truly helpeth nothing youre cause at all as by a familier example of oure owne countrie maie be proued vnto you It is not vnknowen that there be some places in Englande so priuileaged that for contractes made within those places they can be called frō thence to none of the kinges courtes yeat ceasse they not therefore to be the kinges subiectes Nowe if the Africanes pretended that they were not to be called out of their owne countrie to Rome for suche causes as seemed to them reasonable namely as they them selues alleaged because it was a combrouse thing to call witnesses for euerie thing by daunger of sea to Rome yeat woulde they not hereby take awaye his auctoritie and withdrawe their whole obedience The seconde lye is that the B. of Rome shoulde pretende that it Concil African cap. 105. A lie 42. shoulde be laufull for anie man vnder any other bishop to appeale c. That this is a lye the epistle written by the bishoppes of Africa to Bonifacius the pope dothe manifestly shewe in the which they making mention them selues of such pointes as were conteined in the popes lettres saie that the thirde was de tractandis praesbiterorum diaconorum causis apud finitimos episcopos si a suis excommunicati perperā fuerint of pleading the causes of priestes and deacons before the nexte bishoppes if they were vniustly excommunicate by their owne Is this nowe sincere dealing M. Nowell to saie that the pope pretended that any man vnder any other bisshop might appeale to him whereas here appointing the priestes and deacons to the bishoppes of their owne countrie he releaseth all suche right But hereoff I shall haue anon more occasion to speake when I come to that place where you charge the councell of Africa with making a decree against sailing ouer the sea with controuersies or appellations to the B. of Rome In the meane season I will returne to the accusation put in by you against Zosimus Seing M. Nowell you haue for your parte done what you are hable to proue Zozimus a falsefier and can not I will for the iustifieng of his innocencie proue by suche meanes as a negatiue maie be proued the contrarie that he is no falsefier First I saie therefore that this canon of the councell of Nice was not onelie alleaged by Zozimus but if not before Zozimus was borne yeat surelie almost 100. yeares before he was euer pope by Athanasius B. of Alexandria by all the bishoppes of Aegipt Thebais and Lybia Who writing to Felix the pope make expresse mention thereof not by heare saye but of their owne certeine knowledge as they that were present at the making thereof Their wordes are these Nam scimus in Nicaena magna Synodo c. For Epist Athanasij et Aegipt pontific ad Felicem de in festat Arianorū we knowe that in the greate Synode of Nice where were 318 bisshoppes it was of them all by one consent confirmed that neither councelles shoulde be holden nor bishoppes condemned without the B. of Rome his sentence that these and many other verie necessarie synodicall chapitres are burned and taken from vs * The heretikes burned the canons of the councell of Nice by heretikes which dailie molest vs and seke oure destruction that they maie thereby the easelier entrappe vs. VVhereupon hauing founde occasion all canonicall and Apostolicall auctoritie indifferently contemned they driue vs vnlaufullie * An absurditie to depriue bisshoppes vvithout making the pope priuey therto without making you priuey thereto from oure owne bishoprikes inuade the shepe committed vnto vs from Christe * The apostolicall seate maketh bisshoppes by the Apostolical grace and depriue vs of oure degrees To Marcus who was bishop of Rome before Felix they write for the true copie of the councel they make expresse mention of 70. canons that were there by their owne knowledge agreed vpon Marcus writeth againe his epistle is to besene that he hath not onelie enquired out the truthe of those canons of suche aboute him as were also present at the saide coūcell but by searching the recordes of Rome had founde all things to be as they had written in their lettres Nowe ioine these two lettres of Athanasius together M. Nowell with the answere made by Marcus and crie shame to youre selfe that haue so iniuriouslie diffamed this blessed bishop as with the crime of forging a decree which Athanasius and all the bishoppes of Aegipt Thebais and Libia testifie by their lettres to haue bene trulie made almost a hundred yeares before his time in the coūcel of Nice where they were present Cōferre now the testimonie of the bishops of Africa with the witnesse that Athanasius and the other bishoppes of the easte giue to this matter The one parte saieth they could finde no such canon in the copies that were sent from Constantinople and Hierusalem and no maruell the canons being burned as Athanasius saieth so long before The othersaieth it was in the copie sent from Nice to Rome The one parte denieth not but such a canon might be elles where The other saith there was suche a one and sheweth that it with other were burned by the Arrians
together stande in some stede You go forwarde and saye For the which it pleaseth D. Harding to call the Aricans emongest Nowell ◠25. whom S. Austen Orosius and Prosper with manie other learned and godly bishoppes were schismatikes as those that submitted not their neckes to the pope and folowing Hosius his auctor he saith that Africa cōtinued in this schisme 100. yeares to wit from Boniface the first to Boniface the seconde M. Doctour Harding neuer mentto inuolue S. Austen Dorman Orosius or Prosper in anie schisme with the Africanes For as at this councell it appeareth not in the recordes thereof that Orosius who neuer was bishop but only a prieste and therfore could giue no definitiue voice in the councell that cōsisted of only bishoppes or Prosper either were present so is it more then probable that S. Austen who to the first epistle sent to Bonifacius gaue his consent and subscribed with other wherein they protested to obserue all thinges demaunded by the pope till they coulde get from the Easte the true copies of the councell of Nice it is I saie more then probable that forasmoche as in this latter epistle to Celestinus no mention is made of him at all notwithstanding that he was legat for Numidia his name so famouse his bisshoprike so greate that he sawe in the meane season so muche right in the bishop of Romes cause and so little in the other allthough by no meanes their doinges tended to the vniuersall abrogating of the popes auctoritie that he refused so muche as to put his name or suffer him selfe to be named in those lettres of theirs So that before yow had charged M. D. Harding thus odiously you ought to haue proued that suche a decree was made in the African councell and haue noted to vs the canon then that Orosius and Prosper were present at the making thereof and gaue their consentes therto Last because yow seing that the decree of the councell was not to be founde referred youre selfe to the epistle written to Celestinus yow shoulde haue tolde vs in what wordes there the mention of this decree laie hidden and proued allthough S. Austens name be not there mentioned that yeat he consented therto Againe M. Nowell whē this matter betwene the B. of Rome and the Africanes began first to be called in question it was entreated with suche humilitie and submission by the Africanes as appeareth by this epistle to Celestinus that they coulde by no meanes be accounted schismatikes Afterwardes in dede the matter grewe so farre that it burst out in to open schisme and so continued to the time of Boniface the 2. To the which schisme that euer S. Austen Orosius or Prosper consented or any other good catholike prieste or bishop yow shall neuer be able to proue And so this lye with that houge Lye 43. heape of all the rest remaineth with you and the truth with vs. But because you bragge as you doe of the companie of S. Austen and Prosper and sclaundre them to the worlde to be schismatikes I will in defence of their innocency alleage out of their workes so muche as shall I trust with the better sorte suffice for their purgation Who is it I praie you M. Nowell that saieth of the church of Rome that in it the principalitie of the apostolike chaire hathe August epist 162. euer florished Who calleth Bonifacius the same in whose time this controuersie was moued the bishoppe that hathe Lib. 1. contra 2. epis Pelag. ca. 1 the preeminence in the bishoply care aboue all other Who calleth the See of Rome alluding to the wordes of Christe in the Psalm contra partē Donat. gospel the rock which the proude gates of hell shal not ouercome Who but S. Austē whom you be not here ashamed to matche with your selfe as thinking of the pope and See of Rome as heretically as you doe To come to Prosper when you here him acknowledg that Zozimus of whom all this talke riseth added to the decrees of the African councelles sententiae suae robur the strength and force of his sentence Lib. contra Collatorem cap. 41. that with Peters sworde to the cutting of of wicked men he armed the right handes of all bishoppes for so are his wordes in Latine ad impiorum detruncationem gladio Petri dexteras omnium armauit antistitum When you are not ignoraunt if you knowe anye thinge that the same Prosper saieth Lib. contra Collatorem cap. 10. that the holye See of Rome spake to all the worlde by the mouthe of Zozimus Will you not for shame call backe againe that wretched sclaunderouse lye off youres that Prosper shoulde be touching the bishoppe of Rome of the same minde that yow are Was Zozimus taken off Prosper to be a corrupter and falsarye a countrefeite catholike and in deede a false schismatike from Christe and the truthe as youre venimouse tongue hath not feared to pronounce of him Is fier more contrary to water then is this iudgemēt of youres to that of Prospers for his vertue and auctoritie You pretend that the fathers of the coūcel of Carthage would barre Zozimus of al auctority Prosper telleth vs that so much he was estemed of them that they had the strength of his sentence added to their decrees as muche to saye as to confirme and alowe them You call him a corrupter a falsarie a countrefeite catholike a false schismatike Prosper calleth him one that armed the right handes of al bishoppes with Peters sworde to cut of wicked mē from the rest of Christes mistical body the church You restreine his power to Rome Prosper confesseth that by his mouthe the See of Rome spake to all the worlde If this be not more then impudencie good reader in M. Nowel then what is impudencie I confesse I know not But acknowledged Prosper this auctoritie in Zozimus onely no verilye For in Celestinus to whome this epistle here mentioned was sent from the African bishoppes he witnesseth that there was suche power that he cured the Iland The pope meddled in England Scotland Fraunce and in the East off Britannye infected with Pelagius heresie that he ordeined Palladius bishoppe ouer the Scottishe men that with the Apostolicall sworde he aided Cirillus the B. of Alexandria to purge the churches of the East of a double plague the Nestorians and Pelagians that in Fraunce he put them to silence who reported euill of S. Augustins writinges Finally to them that reiected certeine bookes of S. Augustins vpon pretence that they were not allowed by the pope he answered An exception in the primitiue churche againste bookes that they were not allowed by the Pope Ibid. ca. 43 in this wise Agnoscāt calumniatores superfluò se obijcere quòd his libris non speciale neque discretum testimonium si◠perhibitum quorum in cunctis voluminibus norma laudatur Apostolica enim sedes quod a praecognitis sibi non discrepat cum praecognitis probat
quod iudicio iungit laude non diuidit That is to saie Let these wranglers knowe that they obiect superfluously that there is no speciall nor seuerall testimonie giuen to these bookes the rule and doctrine whereof is praised in all bookes * Note For the Apostolicall See alloweth with those bookes that it knewe before those that differ not from theÌ„ and those which it ioyneth together in iudgement it seperateth not in praise Nowe to conclude M. Nowell are you no otherwise a schismatike thinke yow then S. Augustine and Prosper I woulde to God ye were not Then woulde you acknowledge with S. Augustine a preeminence in the B. of Rome aboue other bishoppes the seate of Rome to be suche as hell gates shall not preuaile against it Then woulde you submit to the pope your doinges to be alowed as bothe S. Augustine and the whole councell of Afrike did then woulde you extende the iurisdiction of that See to England Scotland Fraunce and to the Easte churches Then woulde you confesse that the B. of Rome for the time being is the mouthe to speake to all the worlde and beareth the sworde of Peter to cut of wicked men to helpe and arme the good For all these thinges doe S. Austen as hathe bene declared and Prosper acknowledge Whereby appeareth howe shamefully you haue sclaundered them with the maintenauÌ„ce of your schismaticall and erroniouse opinions concerning the See of Rome To S. Augustine Orosius and Prosper you ioyne the patriarkes of Alexandria and Constantinople Cirillus and Atticus But why them I praie you M. Nowell Because in those canons that they sent there was no mentioÌ„ of that which the B. of Rome alleaged I graunte you for they were burned by the Arrians as by the reporte of Athanasius yowe hearde before And must they nedes be schismatikes with yowe because the Arrians burned the true copies of the councell of Nice and they sent suche as they had Howe holdeth that argument I praie yow Well yow thought euerie thing woulde helpe and therefore yow iumbled all together let it speede as it might * The answere to the obiection made of the African councell Nowe to returne to the African councell and to conclude in fewe wordes all that hathe bene or maie hereafter by me be saide therein I first saie that the African councell made no suche decree as yow saie it did nexte that at this time when S. Austen and the other bishoppes of Africa were assembled about the time of Bonifacius the pope the firste the controuersie was not about the vniuersall auctoritie of the B. of Rome but touching the moderation and limiting thereof in certeine causes of appellation The like whereunto as it hathe bene attempted and done in this realme of England in the daies of that noble prince Edward E. 3. anno 25. 27. the thirde by restreining the popes power in conferring of ecclesiasticall promotions and barring the triall of certeine sutes out of the realme without breache of vnitie or renouncing due obedience to that See so was it at the beginning in Afrike although after it brake out in to an open schisme Thirdly I answere that if there had bene suche a decree made as is pretended yeat this considered that it had but the auctoritie of one prouince it ought to giue place to that councell at the which there were present bishoppes not of Africa only who were also there but off all the partes of the worlde beside I meane the councell of Sardica in the third and 7. canon whereof the bishoppes of Africa consenting thereto 300. if you go to nombring M. Nowell for your 217. and chosen men all of purpose to matche with the Arrians agreed vpon this which the Africanes denied to wit that it should be laufull for any bishop condemned to appeale to the bishop of Rome Last of all iff you thinke M. Nowell that it maie be laufull for you to obiect against vs the facte of the Africanes who vpon suche beginning as hathe bene declared came at the last to open rebellion against their laufull heade I doubte not but to all that be learned or wise it will seme as reasonable that we obiect to yow againe the perfecte reconciliation and humble submission of the saide Africanes made after a hundred Epistol Bonifacij 2. ad Eulalium Alexand Tom. 2. Concil yeares wandring a straie after greate plagues by loÌ„gue captiuitie vnder the moste barbarouse and cruell Wandales by Eulalius the Archebishop of Carthage in the name of that whole prouince to Bonifacius then pope the seconde off that name Thus muche touching the African councell It foloweth After this Zozimus his successour Bonifacius the firste Celestine the first with all others allmoste folowing Zozimus steppes and Nowell b. â—4 ambition haue with toothe and naile striuen for this supremacie and for that purpose did sticke still to the falsified Nicene canon and haue likewise falsified other councelles in sundrie places and haue forged a greate many of the epistles nowe abrode in the names of the olde popes Clement Anacletus Euaristus Telesphorus and other their predecessours Suerlye M. Nowell if there had bene that sinceritie in Dorman yow and vprightnes that shoulde be in a diuine yff that grauitie and poise that shoulde be in a writer yff that common honestie that shoulde be in euerie Christian man yow woulde either for the one respect or the other haue so tempered youre stile that there shoulde neuer haue slipped from youre pen into the viewe of the worlde suche cancred and rancorouse slaunders against suche learned and vertuouse fathers so sclendrelie yea by no meanes at all proued Bring furthe the canons therefore that yow saye haue bene falsified name the popes that haue forged these epistles Name them not onelie but proue it otherwise yow wil be taken for a maliciouse Lier Thinke yow that it maye be sufficient for yow to borowe this oute off Caluins Institutions and without anie farder proufe bid Lib. 4. Inst. cap. 8. Sect. 11. all the worlde beleue you Yow be not Caluin M. Nowell nor England is not Geneua God be praised therefore But yow proue it thus Whereas euer those godlye olde fathers euer subiect to persecution Nowell fo 48. a. 3. and deathe neuer thought of anie suche matters neither had lust or leisour to occupie their heades and pennes aboute such ambitiouse matters You are foulie deceauid M. Nowel for the greater the Dorman persecution was the more necessarie must it nedes be to teache that ordre which Christe left in his churche of the necessitie of one heade that so the membres acknowleging the same might be out of the feare of all schismaticall discorde Neither made they so often mention thereof for ambition sake as youre spiders nature sucketh out hauing learned at their Maisters handes before that the greatest emongest them shoulde belike the least Who seeth not that Lucae 22. by suche foolishe collections as
that to deceiue the simple vseth here these wordes Yealde vp the honour and glorie of gouerning the whole world and church to god as though any man so claimed the gouernement of the churche as that he woulde displace Christe thereof Also you see that in this treatie hetherto as M. Dorman hathe Nowell not one worde out of the newe testament so hath he alleaged but only two textes out of the olde testament one oute of Deuteron cap. 17. c. an other of Numeri 16. which bothe make directly against him c. You see and knowe I doubte not that one texte of holye Dorman scripture is as good as a hundred You see that M. Nowell goeth guilefully aboute to abuse the simple by this terme nation as thoughe because the Iues whiche were but one nation had their chiefe prieste and high bishoppe therefore there shoulde folowe thereof naught elles but that euerye nation countrye diocesse or churche shoulde haue also their chiefe bishoppe withoute anye one heade ouer the whole whereas the Iues althoughe they were but one nation were yeat the chosen people and churche of God and emongest diuerse heades of seuerall tribues there was ouer all those heades one chiefe heade You haue seene that of S. Cyprians applieng of this texte to inferiour magistrates can be gathered no necessary argument that it maie not be otherwise applyed that is to the higher You haue seene as many as haue readen my first booke fol. 33. 34. 35. that Moises was a prieste that yeat there foloweth no absurditie of being two high priestes at once because as S. Augustine Lu quaest super Leuitic lib. 3. cap. 23. saieth they were bothe high priestes in diuerse respectes the one in commaunding to be done the other in executing thinges commaunded And withall you see that we are here by M. Nowell vntruly burdened of disobedience to oure Souereigne as not acknowledging suche auctoritye in the same ouer spirituall matters as was in Moises and Aaron VVherefore you maye well vnderstande that were it either Nowell proffitable or necessary c to haue such an one heade God woulde haue certified vs of a thing so proffitable and necessarie more plainely and exprossely then by two olde shadowes of the Iuishe churche which doe teache vs also the contrary God hath certified vs by building his church vpon one Dorman by making one generall pastour ouer all the rest that his Matth 16. Ioan. vlt. pleasure was to appointe this maner of gouernement in his churche But what meane yow to finde faulte with the testimonies of the olde testament calling them shadowes and to demaunde other of the newe hauing brought for youre opinion not so muche as one piece of a sentence out of either the olde testament or the newe Yow see howe blindely he going aboute to proue that there Nowell fo 120. a. 1 ought to be one onelye heade ouer all the church bringeth in for proufe thereof the regiment of seuerall countries kingdomes cities c. by seuerall princes seuerall magistrates and heades whiche maketh moste directly with vs that seuerall churches should in likewise haue their seuerall heades Yow see that oure question being whether the catholike Dorman churche of Christe whiche is but one ought to be ruled by one heade or manie M. Nowell here like the blinde bayard that he speakethe of saieth that my example proueth for them that it ought to be ruled by manye because many kingdomes haue many kinges wherein yow see that diuiding the church which is but one he goeth against the faithe of the churche Yow see that he dissembleth my reason which is that as a kingdom because it is one is best ruled by one heade so the church which is but one is best ruled by one heade Yow see that to this reason hetherto he neuer answered Yow see how often S. Cyprian is by him alleaged for the pope Nowell of Rome his supremacy in those places where he speaketh of Rogatian and of him selfe being bothe bishoppes c. Yow see howe the places of S. Cyprian and S. Hierom Dormna expressely mainteining the superioritie of one aboue the rest in euerye diocesse with the cause added for the auoiding of schismes brought by me to proue by more forcible reason the necessitie of one heade ouer the whole M. Nowell wresteth to the directe prouing of the B. of Rome his supremacy wherof in that place as it was not my purpose to intreate so if I had I had done preposterously and confounded my appointed ordre of writing Yow see howe the place of S. Basile brought to declare the maner off heretikes in contemning the auctoritie of their bishoppes he laieth to my charge vntruly to haue bene brought as spoken of the pope of Rome Yow see that the comparison made betwene Nouatus and oure protestantes of England holdeth in this that either of them laboureth to withdrawe the subiectes from their laufull obedience Yow haue heard good Readers the sory melodie of M. Nowelles harpe whereupon twanging on a false string he made a shamefull lye in saing that Vrsitius and Valens offred vp their recantation as well to Athanasius as to Iulius the pope Yow see that he hath oftentimes beelied S. Cyprian and S. Hierome feining them to make all bishoppes equall in auctoritie and no one to be aboue the other Yowe see his owne inconstancie and disagrement withe him selfe one while affirming all bishoppes to be equall and none to be aboue the other an other while denieng and making chiefe prelates in euerie prouince yow see him reiecting pope Leo as witnesse in his owne cause and bringing in the African to esbeare witnesse to them selues Yow see to deface pope Leo howe shamefully he sclaundreth Zosimus of whome the whole Africane councell wrote so reuerently Yow see howe he burdeneth without all maner of proufe Celestinus of whome Prosper writeth so honorably with other his successours to haue forged a greate many of the epistles nowe abrode in the names of Clement Anacletus c. yowe see howe he spareth no iniuriouse wordes to Leo calling him theefe noting him of ambition whome the councell of Calcedon called thrise blessed and God honoured withe miracles Yow see that he chalengeth vntrulie the copies of Leo to be contrarye one to an other Yow see that he is a plaine makebate and to mende his cause by setting the doctours at variance betwene them selues how he heweth mangleth and cutteth awaie from the auctors that he alleageth wordes yea sentences to serue his purpose You see in defence of schismes howe he laboureth to finde vnquietnesse emongest the Apostles and disciples of Christe you see that to deface vnitie as he taketh it from the Apostles so he attributeth it to the Phariseis and enemies of Christe You see for lacke of weightier matter he chargeth vs with the disputable opinions of scholemen and logiciners with diuersitie of apparell of diete and meates which maners as
iniuriously without auctoritie of speciall commission As for youre promise that yow make in place conuenient fol. 11. b. to bring good proufe that the B. of Rome hath wickedly exacted most vnlaufull othes both of subiectes and of princes c. when you doe so yow shall heare what I will answere in the meane season I count it but an ordinary brag Of the place of S. Basile epist 70. that it was trulye applied to the heretikes of oure time cae The. 5. Chapter M. Nowell woulde induce the reader to thinke that this place of S. Basile shoulde be brought by me to persuade that he and his companions were Arrians And therfore purging him self and his mates of this crime he concludeth thus Wherfore his sainges in that Epistle apperteine nothing to Nowell fol. 12. b. 18 vs who are nothing guiltie of those crimes and heresies but they are brought in by dreaming M. Dorman without anie cause and beside all purpose What nede this affected ignorance M. Nowell Yow Dorman knowe well inough that I neuer charged you with the Arrian heresie But thus it pleaseth yow to handle me as though yow might by this meanes bringe me in to an euill conceite with the reader by persuading that I alleage no place to the purpose The Arrians yow wote well for it is a thing incident to heresies had beside their errours in doctrine manie foule deformities in maners Now what a newe kinde of reason is this I praie yow that yow vse I am not like Dauus or Syrus in one or two properties that they haue Ergo in no propertie at all Doe you agree with the Arrians in no pointe of their maners because yow beleue you saye well concerning the doctrine of the Trinitie If you beleue well God continue you therein at the least some of your pewe felowes pretēding once as good affection therto as you do nowe haue come so farre that they not only haue blasphemed it in open sermons but protested See Staphylus in Englishe fol. 113. a. also to be readier to returne to their Cloisters then to beleue thereoff as the catholike churche dothe But let that be their faulte I saye not here that you be yeat come so farre which notwithstanding youre conclusion that you infer wherefore his sainges in that epistle apperteigne b. 18. nothing to vs is false For you ouerthrowe churches you pull downe altars you contemne the traditions of the fathers the diligent obseruation whereof S. Basile saieth in this place was condemned by the Arrians as a greate faulte beside other thinges as maie to them that reade the histories more plainely appeare So that when you called me dreaming for bringing this as not to the purpose you were belike youre selfe nodding Yow aske why these bisshoppes of the Easte whose epistle Nowell b. 25. I alleaged here wrote not to the pope as head of all the church but indifferently to all the bishoppes of Fraunce and Italy without any mention of the B. of Rome at all whereoff yow gather a folishe fonde coniecture and of that that S. Basile placed the bishoppes off Fraunce before the Italian bisshoppes which I you saie craftely dissembled that the B. of Rome shoulde not be head of the churche Trulye M. Nowell I neuer brought it to proue the bisshop of Romes supremacie I brought it to proue that the face of oure time was not muche vnlike to that of the Arrians and to that it is not impertinent For youre demaunde I aske you againe what if he wrote to the pope speciall lettres for his aide in these difficultyes And if he did how that should not make greately for his supremacie to whome he woulde not write as to a common bishop emongest other but seuerally to him selfe alone as being the head of his other brethern Trulye there is an epistle of his not many before this written by him to Athanasius wherein conferring with him about the withstanding of the Arrians heresie he telleth him that his counsell is that they sende lettres to the B. of Rome that he may considre the matter and Epist 52. giue his sentence that bicause it woulde be verye harde to haue first a common councell called and then so to sende from thence he him selfe chosing mete men for the purpose suche as shoulde aswell be hable to beare out the paines of the iourney as for their gentlenes and sinceritie off manners to warne and reproue suche peruerse men as troubled them should giue auctoritie to the matter c. Why might not this epistle M. Nowell be touching the same matter whereof he wrote to the bishoppes of Fraunce and Italie why might it not be that knowing the honour of that see of Rome to be so greate as it is he woulde by no meanes wright vnto the bishop thereof alone but ioyntly together with bishop Athanasius whose fame he knewe to be in the churche suche that he could aske no reasonable petition whiche shoulde not be graunted or what can you saye why the epistle written to Meletius that they two shoulde sende to Rome for visitours to visite their countrie whiche was in the Easte might not be concerning Epist 57. this matter How euer it be these two places argue that the omitting of the B. of Rome his name here was not as you suppose for contempte of his auctoritie And thus is this fonde coniecture of youres showed to be vaine and of no force Now for dissembling as you saie the ordre of the bishoppes named in the epistle truly you shewe youre selfe to be made euen of the paringes of malice who iudge so maliciously where no cause is For to what purpose shoulde I conceale that which no man coulde suspect that anie woulde euer haue bene so foolishe as to haue brought for an argument against the popes supremacy It foloweth S. Basile with the other bishoppes of the Easte Nowell fol. 13. a. 3. called the bishoppes alltogether brethern and felowes in the ministerie which they would neuer haue done had they had this opinion of his supremacy that M. Dorman and other papistes do nowe defende and maintaine But in the saide 70. epistle the saide bishops of the East which do not once speake of the pope do pray the Frenche and Italian bisshoppes to make humble sute to the Emperoure that he by his auctoritie woulde represse their ennemies the Arrians and relieue their miseries which maketh rather for the Emperours supremacy in the churche then for the bishoppes of Rome I tolde you a litle before of S. Basile his counsell to Dorman Athanasius to sende to the bishop of Rome for helpe against Epist. 52. the Arrians Wherby as it appeareth to be more then probable that these latter lettres were written to the other bishoppes of Italie and fraunce only not to the pope so is it euident also that the mention of the emperour and silence of the pope came not of lacke of acknowledging his auctoritie to
the which before they fledde but of this by ioyning bothe the swordes together the spirituall and the temporall the rather to vanquishe and discomfite the enemie But nowe if it were so that emongest the rest the bishop of Rome had bene comprehended in this epistle yeat the calling of him brother or felowe in the ministerie is no cause to conclude as you doe against his auctoritie For neither doe I nowe nor euer hathe anie Catholike hetherto so defended or mainteined the popes supremacy that it hathe not bene allwaies acknowledged that bothe he and other bishoppes be the ministres of one common maister allthough that maister haue made him the ruler of his felowes and ouerseer of his brethren Yea the popes them selues haue euer vsed to call the other bishoppes their brethern and felowe bishoppes not renouncing therby the auctoritie of their seate What marueile is it therfore if the bisshoppes of the East had called the pope emongest the other to whome they wrote brother and felowe in the ministerie by the which name he calleth him selfe it can not be denied Nowe where M. Dorman speaketh of persecution as he dyd Nowell Fo. 13. a. 13 alittle before of oure moste cruell practise I referre it to the iudgement of all the worlde whether the papistes or we be more cruell persecutours and wheather haue suffred more persecution they or we If they be more cruell persecutours that lacking power Dorman shewe notwithstanding more crueltie in wordes then other doe in deedes if their crueltie be greater who punishe beside and against lawe then theirs who folowe lawe if it be no crueltie at all to punishe a fewe to saue the nombre by terrour of lighter paines to vse the wordes of S. Austen to â—ib de vinit eccl cap. 17. the Donatistes complaining of the Catholikes as you doe nowe to preserue from greater euills then is the matter iudged allreadie in all vpright iudgement then nedeth there no furder processe As for the lenitie by the which you woulde commende youre selues to the worlde youre charitable sermones made aswell before the Quenes moste excellent maiestie at the courte as before the nobles and other honorable of the Realme at the Crosse in the which yow haue consumed all youre eloquence to prouoke oure moste gratiouse soueraigne to imbrue her chaste and vnspotted handes with the innocent bloude of true Catholikes hathe long since made that wel knowen to the worlde So that I maye nowe truly saye to yow as did S. Austen to certeine heretikes in his time bragging of their lenitie towardes the catholikes as you doe of youres Nulla bestia si Epist. 48. neminem vulneret propterea mansueta dicitur quia dentes vngues non habet Seuire vos nolle dicitis ego non posse arbitror No beaste if he wounde no man is therfore called tame because he lacketh teethe and nailes you saye you will vse no crueltie I thinke yow can not Is not this youre verie case M. Nowell See you not a perfect pattern of youre pitie a copy of youre dissembled and countrefeite kindenesse O were youre murdering mouthes by oure most gratiouse Souereignes commaundement vnmoosseled which god for her sake forbid youre bloud thirsty handes at libertie how woulde these tame beastes bestirre them You saye that I go about to burthen you with enuie of churches either pulled downe or altered to other vses and of altars Nowell a. 12. destroied muche like as the rebelles did burthen king Henry the eight c. How the rebelles burdened king Henry or whether Dorman they burdened him at all or no as you saye they did I will not entremedle my selfe therein Of this I am suer that you be burdened of me none otherwise then S. Hierome burdened the Hunnes and wandalles being infected Epist ad HeliodoruÌ„ with Arrius heresie when he wrote of them after this sorte The churches be ouerthrowen at the altars be horses stabled and a litle after Howe manye monasteries be their taken And againe none otherwise then Optatus the bishop of Lib. 6. coÌ„â—â—â— Donatist Mileuite in Afrike burdened the Donatistes there doing the like when he tolde them that there coulde be no greater sacrilege then to breake shaue and remoue cleane away the altars off God on the whicht bothe they them selues some tymes had offred and the prayers off the people and membres off Christ were caried As for youre excuse that you make why Abbayes were ouerthrowen in oure countrye it is not trulie muche pertinent to oure purpose in this place For had it bene all true whereof the greatest parte was moste certeinely false that you sclaunderously and falsely laied to the charges of religiouse men emongest whome as there were manie offendours euen those that haue bene since in England greate pillers and in youre newe churche chiefe fauourers of youre newe religion so were there manie innocent and good who ceassed not daie and night to lament the disordred life of those other their brethren to praie most earnestly to almighty god for their sinnes and the sinnes of the people yeat was this no cause sufficient to turne vp the churches to ouerthrowe the altars Which you youre selfe also perceiuing and knowing that aswell in king Henries time those good fathers of the Chartrehouse as in the late reigne of Quene Marie bothe they in Shene the moÌ„ckes of westminstre the Franciscanes of Grenewich the preachers of S. Bartilmewes the nonnes of Sion and Dertford liued euery ordre so honestlie in all vertue and godlines according to their rule that manie wer edified by their good examples none offeÌ„did by their euil yow flee to an other shifte against the fundations off suche religiouse houses forsothe Which because you say were laied vpoÌ„ prayer for the redemption Nowell fol. 13. 2. 23. of the soules of their founders and their progenitours soules c. Were so vnsuer and weake or rather wicked that they coulde no longre beare suche huge superstructions and buildinges as were laied vpon them Well suche fundations maye be well counted weake Dorman or rather wicked by wicked Aerius who was condeÌ„ned for Aug. lib. de haeresib haer 53. lib. 3. haere 75. the like heresie as witnesse bothe S. Austen and Ephiphanius aboue 12. hundred yeares since But to all good Christian men they seme and euer haue done proufitable and meritoriouse as to him that will take the paines to reade the boke of late learnedly written of purgatorye it shall I doubt not euideÌ„tly appeare Beside that by this meanes our colleages at home in the vniuersities yea your cathedrall churche and Deanery it selfe M. Nowell might be in some daunger to be ouerthrowen if you fal to suche scanning of their first fundations Here you compell me to entre with you into a disputation about altars And for the iustifieng of your communion Fol. 14. b. Altars Nowell 1. Cor. 10. table you alleage first that oure sauiour instituted the sacrament at a
vrge these wordes as you bring me in at youre pleasure M. Nowell To the moste blessed Lorde c. to proue thereby the popes supremacy but I will here note to the reader in this comparison the familier kinde of writing to the one calling him brother and the reuerent maner of writing to the other where of reuerēce they absteined from that worde To Athanasius they called them selues bishoppes To Iulius they vsed their propre names without all titles And will yow knowe the cause why VVhy Vrsitius and Valēs called not Iulius the Pope brother Forsoth whē they wrote to Iulius they knewe them selues to stande at his mercye as men that were oute of the churche therefore neither durst they call him brother being a catholike bishop and chiefe of all other neither them selues bishoppes hauing made them selues vnworthy that name But as sone as they were pardoned of the pope in their lettres sent to Athanasius they vsed boldly the titles of brother and bishop Whereby maye easelie be gathered that it was no recantation that they sent to Athanasius In the recantation offred to Iulius they professe to desire to be in communion with Athanasius This request saye they to him we trust you will not denie praecipuè quum pietas tua pro insita sibi integritate gratiā nobis erroris facere est dignata Nicephor li. 9. ca. 27. especially seing that youre godlines according to that naturall vprightnes which is in you hath pardoned vs allready oure faulte They adde furder that if these of the Easte churche woulde wickedly yea if Athanasius him selfe Note woulde call them into the lawe touching these matters that without his consent they woulde not goe Finally they abiure Arrius the heretike with all his fautours In the letters to Athanasius there is no renouncing of the Arrians heresie there is no mention of pardon neither of anie thing elles but that he might vnderstande that they were nowe reconciled Whereas if they had conteined a recantation the matters shoulde no doubte in as ample maner haue bene specified as in that to Iulius they were The Tripartite historie saieth that these men offered to Iulius libellum poenitentiae their recantation in writing and that to Lib. 4. cap. 34. Athanasius miserunt literas seqùe ei deinceps communicare professi sunt they sent lettres and professed that they woulde communicate with him hereafter Of all other Epiphanius writeth of this matter moste plainely His wordes are these Vrsatius ac Valens vnà cum libellis profecti ad B. Iulium Ro. Lib. 2. haeresi 68. episcopum pro ratione reddenda de suo errore ac delicto qúod calumnias struxissent papae Athanasio At suscipe inquiunt nos ad communitatem ac ad poenitentiam Sed ad ipsum Athanasium ijsdem conscriptis confirmationibus vsi sunt propter poenitentiam that is to saie Vrsatius and Valens going together with their libelles to Iulius the B. of Rome to giue account of their errour and faulte for that that they had gone about to entrappe Athanasius But receiue vs saie they to the communion and to penaunce Yea and to Athanasius him selfe they vsed the same confirmations for penaunce Lo M. Nowell one of the places that I of set purpose B. 31. woulde not note least my fraude might be perceiued in alleaging that which made nothing to the matter Maketh it not to the matter that these two being bishoppes of the East churche shoulde vpon the forsaking of their heresies take on them so long a iorney offre them selues to suche daungers by sea and by lande to their no small costes and charges to make their submission in writing which they might haue sente and auoided all those difficulties by tarieng them selues as they did in writing to Athanasius at home if the B. of Rome had bene but equall to Athanasius and had had no more to doe in the matter then he Is it impertinent that they confesse of the pope that he hath pardoned them their faulte whereas of Athanasius there is no such worde Or is it lightly to be estemed that they promise to doe nothing in those matters of their faithe not at the calling of the bishoppes of the Easte or Athanasius him selfe without the popes consent Is it not to the purpose that they went to the pope to giue an accompt of their errour and fault committed against Athanasius that they desired of the pope to be receiued to penaunce and wrote to Athanasius for their penaunce Well by this I trust it appeareth that as I had no cause to cōceale these places as though as you saie I feared lest thereby it would fal out that the world should vnderstand my guile in alleaging that which made not to the purpose so that it is you who in saing that Vrsatius and Valēs offred vp their recantation aswell to Athanasius as to Iulius haue to furder youre heresie made an impudent lye and fathered Li. 9. ca. 27. that vpon Nicephorus which is not in him and thought to dor vs and out face vs to with a carde of tē Beside this I say as I saied before that if it had bene true that they had made their recantation to Athanasius also that yeat the consequent foloweth not that then the B. of Alexandria shoulde haue bene by this meanes aswell heade of the churche as Iulius For what letteth why the pope might not enioine them after their recantation made at Rome to make the same againe to the propre bishop of that place where their heresies were moste notoriouse Or how is this any diminishing of his auctoritie The force of this example consisteth VVherin the force of the example of Vrsitius and Valēs dothe consiste in this that being bishoppes so farre from Rome they should skippe Alexandria and come to Rome why they were reconciled at Rome first and then in Alexandria afterward So that what letteth now to conclude as I did By this meanes returned they to the church c. What letteth me to reply to youre I toke my harp into my hande and twang quoth A twang of M. Nowelles harpe my stringe a Youre stringe is broken betwene youre handes and where is now youre twang a O M. Nowell when you thought with suche a seely twang of youre harpe as this is to shift youre hādes of this graue and weighty testimonie you thought belike withal so to bring all the worlde a slepe with that sweete melodie or rather as Orpheus is reported by the poetes to haue by the musike of his harpe moued wooddes mountaines and rockes to appease the furye of wilde beastes so contrary wise by that sweete noise off youres to make wise men suche tame fooles by a strange metamorphosis so to turne them into blockes and stones as that they shoulde not be hable to perceiue youre vneuen dealing Surely in my pore conceite yow littell regarded youre calling yow muche empaired your name in answering thus lewdely Was this
perceiue this agrement at home in youre owne chapitre where being all equall in the dignitie of canons or prebendaries yeat one deane him selfe also a canon and in that respecte equall to the rest is aboue the other in power nor in youre prouince of Cauntorburie where all the bisshoppes equall in that dignitie are yeat inferiour to the Archebishop in power as youre selfe some times graunte namelie before fol. 32. a. where you vse the worde chiefe prelates of euerie prouince yeat take the paines to make a step to westminstre hall where when yow beholde the honorable iudges sitting in their places although they beequall in this dignitie that they be all the Quenes iudges yeat is there you can not denie difference of power emongest them And so haue they all one dignitie common to them allthough some of them be in superioritie aboue the other I showed yow before but it pleaseth yow that it be repeated here againe where with I am also not offendid that so the reader maie the better vnderstande youre vanitie how S. Austen Contra duas epist 〈…〉 ea 1. Tom. ◠writing to Bonifacius then pope confesseth that he and other bishoppes haue all one bishoprike common with him beholde the dignitie common but that yeat altius praesidet he sitteth higher preaeminet celsiore fastigio speculae pastoralis he is aboue the rest in the higher top of the pastorall watche tower And what is this but in one dignitie difference of power whilest other bishoppes sit beneathe and loke onely euerie one to his owne flocke and he that sitteth aboue hathe power to ouerloke all This Iarre as yow call it is framed M. Nowell Yow maie now when it shall please yow doe this greate acte that you speake of that is proue Leo vntrue by two witnesses against one Although this M. Nowell calleth Leo thiefe by crafte I can not passe ouer in silence that where yow call Leo suche a witnesse as if a man shoulde aske youre felowe whether yow be a thiefe or no you liken and resemble him in those wordes to a thiefe whome the whole councell of Calcedon B. 24. as youre selfe confesse called moste holye and moste blessed yow sclaunder him whome they reioised that God had Allocutione Calcedon Concil ad Martianum Imp. prouided for his churche an impregnable defendour against all errours whome they called their heade and the kepar of oure Lordes vineyarde Youre venimouse and virulent tongue hath not spared him being deade whome Attila that cruell In Relatio Synod ad Leon. barbarouse tyrant he whome the worlde called flagellum dei the scourge of God durst not touche being a liue Paulus Diaconus an approued historiographer maketh mention Lib. 5. de Gestis Rom. that when hauing now spoiled Thracia Illiricum Macedonio Moesia Achaia Graecia Hungarie Germanie he was entred with like furie into Italie and had taken euen the high waie to Rome to sacke and destroie that this holye bishop and vertuouse olde man Leo accompanied as some saie with one Consul and parte of the Senate met him in the waye To whome after he had made a verie shorte but pithy oration to this effect to shewe mercy to the citie off Rome the cruell monstre without anie furder hurte doing reculed backe graunted to the bishop euen as he had wished before and confessed after to those that were nearest aboute him merueiling at and demaunding the cause of this sodeine chaunge of his minde that it was not for the feare of his persone who came vnto him but of an other reuerent olde man standing by him in priestly habite who threatened him terribly with a sworde ready drawen vnlesse he accorded to all thinges that he shoulde require Now considre you good readers what maner of man he is that raileth thus vpon suche a father as Leo was and thinke what it is that he will take conscience in the doing or saing who is not ashamed to diffame the chiefe man in his time of all the worlde But nowe let vs see how yow proue Leo to be vntrue Yow saye that he dissentith first from S. Cyprian and next Nowell fo 49. a. 23 from S Hierome From S. Cyprian because he is of the minde that controuersies shoulde be determined in the place where they doe arise and that this sentence of his and that no appellations shoulde be made to anie B. of an other prouince yea and that namelie not to the B. of Rome nor that he shoulde sende anie legates Laterall to heare or determine forraine matters doth the whole councell of Carthage where in was S. Augustine Orosius and Prosper confirme Youre allegation out of S. Cyprian is of no effect Dorman because yow belye him He speaketh not there against laufull appellations but onelie that criminall causes shoulde be iudged at home And so the pope allwaies obserueth He calleth not the witnesses to Rome from farre countries but delegateth a legat to the prouince where the cōtrouersie is The thing that specially grieued here S. Ciprian was that these desperate men of whome he speaketh ran to certeine Numidian bishoppes to be reconciled of them Of the B. of Rome that he neuer ment to diminish his auctoritie his sending a messenger to Rome to purge him selfe and prosecute the matter against those naughty mē with other diuerse arguments and cōiectures mētioned before in the 11. chap. doe well witnesse Of the 6. African councell because it dependeth vpon the matter of Zosimus I shall in the nexte chapitre entreate S. Ciprian you saye applieth manie suche places of the scriptures Nowell 49. b. 3. as are customably alleaged for the popes supremacie ouer all bishoppes to the declaration of the equall auctoritie of euerie bisshop in his owne diocesse The places brought by S. Cyprian are alleaged to persuade Dormen obedience to those that be heades and gouernours The graunting of one chiefe heade ouer all diminisheth not the auctoritie of inferiour bishoppes who in respecte of the priestes and people vnder them are in their diocesses the high priestes and princes of the people And thus muche doth Leo graunte in this epistle him selfe Therfore hetherto there is no Iarre betwene S. Cyprian and him You bring the place of S. Cyprian in his boke De simplicitate praelatorum or as the truer copies reade De vnitate ecclesiae to ouerthrowe Leo. The which place because youre selfe haue pitefully mangled as one that was not ignorant how euell it woulde haue serued youre turne without some helpe of youre accustomed squaring I will take the paines to alleage it trulie for you The wordes are these Et quamuis Apostolis omnibus post resurrectionem suam parem potestatem tribuat dicat Sicut misit me pater ego mitto vos accipite spiritum sanctum Si cui remiseritis peccata remittentur illi si cui tenueritis tenebuntur tamen vt vnitatem manifestaret vnitatis eiusdem originem ab vno incipientem sua auctoritate
The wordes I alleaged before it shall here suffise to note the places There was neuer yeat suche a gouernour as coulde so rule his charge were it of anye compasse that there were not manye thinges amisse therein The churche off Rome hathe bene so gouerned that it was neuer hetherto steined with heresies whiche seing none of the other apostolicall seates can saye bothe must yow be inforced to acknowledge Gods mightye prouidence in preseruing the same and to graunte withall that if that ordre to haue one generall heade ouer the whole churche were nowe to begin and the heade to be chosen that there were none to be preferred before the bishop of that See Because yow make mention of S. Paule who thinketh him vnmete to haue 1. Timoth. 3. the charge of one churche that can not gouerne well his owne house you put me in remembraunce that S. Ambrose expounding the same place calleth Damasus the pope the ruler of the whole churche And so there is one witnesse more by youre good occasion giuen to proue that this maner of heade was not vnknowen in the primitiue churche and that therefore you falselye slaundered the late popes and so haue encreased the nombre of youre lyes Two lies 40. with two mo If no man maye haue vnder his gouernaunce greater compasse then that he can tell if he be required the names off the cities townes villages hamlettes c. that he is king or Lorde ouer and in what parte of his realme they stande yow will with youre wise diuinitie bring the worlde to a good passe shortlye It is not necessarie that the Frenche kinge the Kinge of Spaine the Quene oure maistres or anye other Prince doe knowe the names of all the partes that they be chiefe gouernours of It suffiseth that their inferiour officiers doe and that if there arise anie suche controuersie as they be not able to ordre and determine they maye then aduertise the chiefe gouernour off all who maye by his greater power redresse the same Euen so is it in the Pope M. Nowell who hathe the ouersight of the whole churche not to gouerne all the membres thereof hym selfe by him selfe but by the helpe of his brethren who are called into parte of that charge with him That Zozimus the bishoppe of Rome corrupted not the canons off the Nicene councell The 16. Chapitre BECAVSE yow shall not suppose M. Nowell that I answere here to youre by talke of Zozimus as forced by necessitie but onelye as I tolde you before for this that allthough it be not pertinent to the matter it is yeat a foule fol. 46. b. 3. sclaunder to that blessed bishop and brought commonlye by youre maisters to bring into hatred the See of Rome I will this tell you before hande that yow are lyke to haue as litle honestye by the proposing of this exception in forme of lawe against my witnes as you had worshippe when being prolocutour in the conuocation house yow woulde as it is reported haue first passed by the house that they shoulde all be taken for heretikes that woulde not agree to a lawe that shoulde be afterwarde made And when yow thought to conclude being earnest to haue youre wise deuise take place vpon the silence that then was in the house euerye man being astonied at so foolishe a demaunde by this maxime in the lawe Qui tacet consentire videtur he that holdeth his peace semeth to consent where a wise man and a greate lawier telling you that in making of lawes the consent must be expresse and not presumed you sate downe in youre place as wise as before you stode vp If here therefore happening vpon the rule Qui semel est malus semper praesumitur malus He that is once euill is euer presumed naught yow thought that if you were able to proue Zozimus a falsefier yow shoulde discredite also Leo because he was a pope as well as the other you were surelie greatelye deceaued For this rule is personall M. Nowell and not locall Otherwise because it is in anye courte in Englande a good exception against his testimonie that seruing sometimes in youre churche of Powles and being nowe one of youre chiefe preachers stale away the chalice a man might take the same exception to anye other honest man of the same church But this being I suppose well inough knowē how childish and vnsauorie a kinde of proufe howe farre from the purpose this that you bring of Zozimus is let vs examine howe true it is that he falsefied the canons of the councell of Nice How proue yow this to be true M. Nowell I praye yow I proue it saie yow not by two onelie but by 217. witnesses Nowell fo 46. b. 23 the whole councell of Afrike emongest whome was S. Austen Orosius Prosper with manie other bishoppes notable in learning and vertue Well I am content to winke at yow M. Nowell as cruell Dorman M. Nowell reiecting Leo as witnes in his owne cause alleageth the Africanes in their own cause Nowell fo 47. a. 1. as yow were with me for bringing the testimonie of Leo in his owne cawse and I will be ignorant that this was the Africanes cause or that they were Africane bishoppes that gaue this sentence that you speake of But what be the wordes I praie yow that they vse against Zozimus Doe they call him expresselye a corrupter and a falsifier They all as in their epistle to Celestine one of the successours of this Zozimus appeareth testifie that there was no suche matter for the B. of Romes superioritie as was by pope Zozimus alleaged neither in their vsuall copies of the Nicene councell neither in the authenticall examples which were sent them by Cirill patriarke of Alexandria and by Atticus patriarke of Constantinople which authenticalles agreing with their owne copies and all other copies euerie where had no suche thing as Zozimus alleaged but had the cleane contrarie for that the 6. and 7. decree off the saide Nicene councell make the patriarkes of Alexandria Antiochia and Hierusalem equall with the B. of Rome If this be all M. Nowell then are yow a corrupter and Dorman a falsifier of the sainges of 217. bishoppes The mo they be 217. bishoppes sclaundred by M. Nowell in nombre the greater in vertue and learning the more is youre faulte to be detested of all men They saide that they had receiued from Cyrillus and from Atticus certeine copies of the Nicene councell in the which they coulde finde no suche thing as the pope claimed What thereof M. Nowell was then the copie that Zozimus had at Rome falsified Or if it were falsified must it nedes be by and by falsified by Zozimus Might he not alleage it as he founde it left by his predecessours Seing these learned fathers neuer vsed suche wordes but on the contrarie parte called him in their lettres to Bonifacius after his deathe beatae memoriae Venerabilis memoriae of blessed remembraunce of
in the easte churches that they might the rather ouerronne the catholikes The one parte giueth a perfect cause of their testimonie because they were present when the matter was concluded Imagine nowe the other who hauing sought in the east churche for suche a decree saide they founde no suche to saie which they doe not that they had harde of some that were present at the councell that there was no suche thing decreed which witnesses were to be beleuid This that hath bene saide maye seme I doubte not to anye reasonable man a sufficient cause why we ought to giue full credite to Athanasius and those other bishoppes and pronounce for the innocencie of Zozimus Yeat to make it the better appeare how true it is that Athanasius Manie canons made in the 1. councell of Nice that we haue not nowe saieth of the burning of the Nicene canons I will note vnto yow certeine canons which the fathers and stories off the churche witnes to haue bene concluded in that councell which yeat are not emongest those twentie whiche we haue I will first beginne with S. Ambrose who telleth you M. Nowell that you haue done euell being twise maried Epi. 82. li. 10. colū 11 Note M. Nowell to thrust youre selfe into the ministerie of the church not only because the apostle he saieth forbiddeth it but the fathers also in the councell of Nice S. Augustin reporteth that there was a decree made in the councell of Nice that a bishop shoulde not ordeine his Epist 110. successour bshiop with him notwithstanding that him selfe he confessed by ignorance thereof was so ordeined by Valerius his bishop and predecessour Iustinian the emperour saith that it was defined by the first foure generall councels that the B. of Rome should be Constitut 131. the chiefe of all other priestes S. Hierome saieth that the booke of Iudith was counted emongest the canonicall by the fathers of Nice In praefat in Iudith Theodoritus alleageth a decree of giuing ecclesiasticall degrees of consecrating bishops made also by the councell of Nice Lib. 5. cap. 9. Leo affirmeth that there was an other canon touching the doctrine of Christes incarnation Epist ad Leonē 78. Where is there anie canon of the obseruation of the Easter daye the desire of the vniforme obseruation whereof Histor tripart lib. 1. cap. vlt. Haere 70. Lib. 2. ca. 2 was one cause why the councell of Nice was called Yeat dothe bothe Epiphanius and the tripartite historye make mentiō of a decree made by the fathers touching the same Youre Apologie citeth out of the councell off Nice that we ought not to be humiliter intēti ad panem et vinum ouer basely bent to breade and wine We confesse it to be true but shew you it emongest the canons Who doubteth that the councell of Nice was assembled together against Arrius Yeat shewe one canon againste him emongest the 20. that remaine Was there thinke yow none made That were surely a strange matter that in the whole doinges thereof nothing should haue bene concluded against him for the repressing of whome the councell was specially called together Howe saye you now M. Nowell is it likely that the Arrians burned the canons of the councel or no Are all these falsaries and corrupters that haue alleaged thus manye canons to be of the councell of Nice because at this daye there is none of them extant I thinke you will not saye so If yow will not why Zozimus more then they Yes you saye there is an other cause why if not Zozimus for I thinke by this tyme you be ashamed of that matter yeat some other hath fasified those canons What is that I praye yow Because there appeared in the copies sent from the Easte the Nowell fol. 47. a. 11. cleane contrarye to that whiche the pope claimeth For the sixt and seuenth decree off the sayde Nicene councell make the patriarkes of Alexandria Antiochia and Hierusalem equall with the bisshoppes of Rome Trulye if it had bene so it is merueile that Athanasius Dorman who was there present shoulde haue bene ignorant of it Therefore excepte you will saye that either this epistle is feined and not Athanasius owne as that is wont in other auctorities brought against yow to be youre common and last refuge when you be sore pressed which if you doe you must not onelye saye it but proue it also Or that his memorie was so euill that he coulde not remembre so notable a thing so latelye before done or his malice so greate that he woulde faine that which neuer was done you muste nedes graunte that this sixt and seuenth canon haue an other meaning then to make the patriarkes of Alexandria Antiochia and Hierusalem equall with the bishoppes off Rome And so haue they in dede For the true meaning of The true vnderstanding of the 6. and 7. canon of the councel of Nice them is to appoint the limites and boundes of those primates iurisdictions of whom mention is there made according to the custome of the bishop of Rome As the wordes whiche answere trulye to the greke and are in Latine these doe wel declare Antiqui mores obtineant in Agipto Libia Pentapoli vt Alexandrinus horum omnium habeat potestatem quia episcopo Romano hoc consuetum est Similiter etiam per Antiochiam in caeteris prouincijs priuilegia seruentur ecclesijs Let olde customes be kepte in Aegypt Libia and Pentapoli that the B. of Alexandria haue the auctoritie ouer them all for as muche as the B. of Romes maner is suche Semblablye also thorough out Antioche and in other prouinces let the churches haue their priuileges kepte These wordes of the councell as they doe nothing at all diminishe the B. of Romes auctoritie so doe they confirme it verie muche The reason of the councell why the iurisdiction of the B. of Alexandria shoulde extende so far being beside the auncient custome in those partes the custome also of the B. Rome who it is to be thought vsed of long time so to alow it by conteining in his rescriptes those prouinces vnder the patriarchie of Alexandria Which was now brought as an argumēt to confirme and continue the same For this meaning that they should be all equall in power and auctoritie there is no worde there able to induce Except a man woulde bring in those graue fathers reasoning thus foolishely because the B. of Rome hath iurisdictiō ouer his owne bishoprike for more you giue him not and the councell nameth no place at all therfore the B. of Alexandria shall haue iurisdiction ouer all the bishoppes of Aegipt Libia and Pentapoli Had not this bene thinke you a goodly making of them equall If you will saie that the councell ment that the B. of Rome shoulde be patriarke in the west partes and therein they shoulde be equall beside that there be no suche wordes in the councell to inforce suche a meaning yeat shoulde
we of England be neuer the nearer for oure lot being to be still vnder the bishop of Rome all youre laboure were lost And againe one chiefe rule of youres ouerthrowen that all bishoppes be equall Which I desire the learned reader to note diligētly Because yow kepte before M. Nowell suche a stirre to haue all bisshoppes M. Nowell cast in his owne tune equall Whereas euen this verye councell that youre selfe bring by making only three of all the world equall if that were the meaning of the councell do the euidently ouerthrowe you Wel whether be liker of these two senses to be the sense and meaning of the councell I will leaue to the indifferent and learned to iudge who I doubte not when they shall easelie perceiue that the councell attributed so much to the auctoritie of the B. of Rome that his custome was alleaged to proue the iurisdiction of the B. of Alexandria to be as a directiō not onelie for that but also for the conseruing of the priuileges to other churches thorougheout Antiochia and other prouinces he will with as like facilitie espie how this sixt and seuenth canon doe not onelie not disagree with that alleaged by Zozimus but also peaseably agreing together the one confirme the other Thus muche touching these canons that you woulde so faine haue made cōtrarie without shewing the pointes wherein the patriarkes shoulde be equal with the B. of Rome to the other alleaged by Athanasius and after him by Zozimus Hauing allreadie sufficientlie declared that Zozimus is not guiltie of the crime laide to his charge I wil adde this as for a more confirmation that Zozimus if there had bene No cause way Zozimus shoulde forge a canon no suche canon in the councell of Nice had yeat no cause to forge one which he was not so simple but he wel knewe woulde not if he did long be vnespied and then the shame woulde light vpon him seing that he had for him the councell of Sardica not long after that of Nice for Osius the B. of Corduba in Spaine was present at them bothe nor of muche lesse auctoritie neither as in the which were 300. bishoppes not of one prouince but gathered together out of all the worlde out of Rome Spaine Fraunce Italie Campania Calabria Aphrica Sardinia Panonia Misia Dacia Dardania an other Dacia Macedonia Thessalia Achaia Epiros Thracia Rhodope Asia Caria Bithinia Helespontus Phrigia Pisidia Capadocia Pōtus Cilicia Phrygia againe Pamphilia Lidia the Ilandes called Cyclades Aegipt Thebais Libia Galatia Palestina and Arabia Seing I saye that he had for his purpose the canons namelie the fourthe and seuenth of so generall a councell as this was in which were also the bishoppes of Africa them selues whome he might haue obiected 300. if you goe to nombring Athanasius that strong piller of Christes churche being one of them against 217 witnesses all if I would reason as you doe in their owne cause I am not ignorant that Caluin being not so impudent as you saieth that Zozimus alleaged this decree of Sardica as a decree of the councell of Nice But as you in that point more wily thē he saw that he Distitut li. 4. cap. 7. Sect. 9. coulde neuer be hable to proue that so perceiued you also that he had farre ouershot him selfe in making of the councell holden at Sardica anie mention at all and therfore you thought it wisedome slyly to slippe it ouer and to inuolue it vtterly in silence lest thereby you might giue occasion to some to searche that councell that otherwise woulde neuer haue thought of it It foloweth And the saide 217. bishoppes made a decree in that African Nowell Fol. 47. a 15. Concil African cap. 105. councell that no sailing ouer the sea with controuersies nor appellations to the B. of Rome nor sending of his legates Laterall in to their countries as iudges shoulde be vsed according as by the epistle of the saide whole councell sent to pope Celestin it appeareth Beholde good Reader a moste impudent man who is Dorman not ashamed to name an epistle for the proufe of that whiche is not there Reade ouer the epistle here mentioned if there appeare to be anie suche decre made there as he saieth there is neuer let me be credite more The bishoppes of Africa in those lettres of theirs desire Bonifacius the Pope in this wise Vt deinceps ad aures vestras hinc veniētes non facilius admittatis that you will not hereafter ouer easely admit to be hearde suche as come to you from vs. Againe they applie the canon of the councell of Nice forbidding to receiue Can. 5. to communion suche as be excommunicat of other to this that the pope receiue not suche vel festinatò vel praepropere vel indebite either with to much haste or to rashly or not duly they desire hys holinesse to repell improba refugia wicked refuges Finally they praie him to call home his legate from thēce with these wordes probitate ac moderatione tuae sanctitatis salua the goodnes and moderatiō of youre holynesse excepted Where be nowe the wordes M. Nowell that yow grounde youre decree vpon Dothe not the contrarye rather appeare by this epistle that he might receiue suche appeales but not commonly and rashely not but vpō greate aduise Otherwise to what end were those wordes of not receiuing complaintes facilius to lightly or these praepropere indebite c. to rashely vniustly Why sayde they not rather boldely and freely oure auctoritie is as greate as youres Why inuade you other mennes iurisdiction Why vsurpe you where you haue no right Why bad they him not call home his legate telling him if they had made suche a decree as you saie they had that they had made a lawe emongest them selues that neither they shoulde sue to him nor he sende his legates to them What meaneth all this humble submissiō of theirs but the contrarie to this which you affirme that there was yeat no decree made or if there were which notwithstanding appeareth not by this epistle by this humble demeanure of theirs towardes the pope to moue him the rather to beare with and to confirme their doinges But there appeareth no suche decree to be made emongest them by the epistle here alleaged Excepte of that particuler narration of theirs of the incommodiouse calling of witnesses to Rome by sea of that they founde not they saide ordeined by anie councell of fathers that his holinesse I will vse their owne wordes shoulde sende anielegates laterall thither all the which was written to moue the pope as is maie seeme to consent to their petition excepte I saie of this particuler narration youre witte will serue you to make a generall decree Which is like enough to be youre meaning by the wise reason that foloweth taken from the superscription of the lettres sent to Celestinus Belike you remembred the maxime of the lawiers that those thinges which helpe not alone maye yeat gathered
euen nowe being come thus farre the Bishoppes answere as The 7. side § But whē I had passed the reporte went being then not fully finished and many good men muche desiring some answere and as many aduersaries as muche bragging that their bookes woulde neuer be answered the councell of some frindes and continuall bragge of so many aduersaries caused me to suffer this little taste as vntimely fruite the sooner to come abroade Yow must here imagine good Readers / that euen iust at that tyme when the reporte went that M. Iuelles answer was not fully finished / M. Nowell was come to the 15. leafe of my booke Yow must also thinke that this knowledge was brought to him by common reporte / because yowe maie not suspecte anye conference betwene them But aboue all thinges as yowe tendrelye regarde M. Nowelles pore honestie / yowe muste vnderstande two reportes / and one of them a false reporte / or elles must he be a false reporter And all this dothe M. Nowell / because for his experience he knoweth / that a lye maye better be fathered vpon reporte or common bruite / then vpon one man alone The first reporte cried as it were to M. Nowell holde youre handes for goddes sake / the B. of Sarisbury hathe killed them bothe with one blowe His answere to D. Harding is allready made / and ready to printe Herupon M. Nowell as he is a verye pitifull harted man lothe to kill them that were allready deade / by and by staied But this was false reporte / who was no soner out of sight / but in commeth the other reporte / accompanied with certeine of M. Nowelles frindes / and here began a newe crye / that he shoulde giue the onset / the bishoppes bande was not yeat ready And so he did / so harde a matter it was for him and his companions / to obteine they had gone so long vpon their credite any longre time of susteining the expectation of M. Iuelles answere / at the handes of either frindes or aduersaries / that nedes must M. Nowell be thrust furth against his will / to go before M. Iuell How likely these pretenses are to be true / time will discouer it M. Nowell staye here and goe no furder In the meane season how likely they are to be true / the wise wil be able to iudge by the circumstances of this his halting and doubtefull tale We are now come to that parte good Readers of M. Nowelles § Nowe that I haue preface / wherein he giueth certeine reasons / why he hathe so diligently largely and as it maye seme carefully also answered me whose owne doinges he affirmeth / to be more worthy of laughter then of anye earnest answere I perceiue it troubleth M. Nowell to thinke / that Demit honoem aemulus Aiaci But I pitye him the lesse / because he made the matche him selfe His reasons are / that he The first answereth not the reasons alleaged by me as mine but as D. Hardinges and not only D. Hardinges but of Eckius Pighius and Hosius yea of all those that haue written in latine for the popes vsurped power c. Lo the noble corage of M. Nowell / for whome no one man can be founde alone able to matche with him / but they must be all called furthe at once / that euer wrote in latine for the popes supremacy Which seing it is so / now be of good comforte M. Calfhill / whose Calfhill in epist. ad Martialem only sorowe yow saie was / that M. Nowell had not a more learned aduersarie Yow see that there is not only no cause of sorowe / but much occasion to reioise / that with the answering of 15. leaues of my booke / all that euer wrote for the pope shall be answered in me Where was youre witte when yow feared this Thought yow that M. Nowell woulde not prouide for suche a fowle blemishe to his honour But to the matter I am not ashamed good readers to confesse / that in writing Ipse the learned argumentes of suche as haue handled the like matter before / and that if anie reasons be weaker then other / they be those especially that be of mine owne framing And is it not so thinke yow withe M. Nowell Those emongest yow that be of the learneder sorte knowe that it is so / that in answering him I answer their Apologie / Caluin / Luther / Melancthon / Bucer / Brentius / Peter Martyr / in whose writinges the like reasons are to be founde / and that what so euer he hathe not in them / is foolishe / fonde / vnworthy to be answered The seconde The. 2. reason why M. Nowell answereth me so diligently and carefully / is he saieth / because I haue set furthe a booke sclaunderouse not to seuerall persones only but to oure whole countrie to oure lawes and to oure gratiouse Soueraigne whome he saieth I charge as vsurping vndue auctoritie sclaunderouse not at home onlye but abroade also in foraigne countries Wherefore whome so euer I shewe my selfe to be and how sclendre an answere might best become me he thought it shoulde become him not sclendrely to esteme the honour of his prince his duty to his countrye and to the lawes of the realme but with earnestnesse to repell suche reproches as I haue attempted to blemishe them withall As I haue sclaundred in my boke no priuate persons / nor saide of any one that which is not publikely knowen to be true so haue I in the whole discourse thereof / had that regarde to my duty towardes my moste redoubted soueraigne / that reuerence to her lawes / that naturall affection to my countrie / that allthough truthe of her selfe be sower and hatefull / yeat haue I bene allwaies moste far from these sclaundres wherewithe I am burdened Neither doubte I anie thinge / but if not before / yeat in that greate daye of reuelation her highnes shall moste clearely see / whether oure plaine dealing be sclaunderouse to her persone / or their hypocriticall flattry traiterouse to her soule whether he be a good bishop or no / qui laicis to vse the wordes of S. Ambrose ius sacerdotale substernit Ambr. lib. 5. epist 32. that bringeth the priestely right in subiection to laye men I charged neuer her highnesse with the vsurping of vndue auctoritie I charged those clawebackes flattring parasites for forcing vpon her grace a Fol. 28. a. in my first boke title / which Calain him selfe as I proued denied to her father And now I charge them againe for the same / and adde therunto beside / that they are the men them selues that are sclaunderouse to the Quene / to her lawes / to the whole realme First for bringing in lawes ecclesiasticall the like whereunto in all christendome are not to be founde then / for forcing vpon her grace a title / which no king or Quene christened will vse beside but aboue
and mine were so like in substance / that M. Iuell in one shoulde answere bothe / and that therfore his furder trauell shoulde be nedelesse whereas yowe knowe / that my seconde proposition the whole conclusion of my booke / haue no maner of agrement with any argument handled in D. Hardinges boke Yow haue heard the effecte of M. Nowelles smoky preface / wherin all his labour taken is bestowed to this end / to excuse the not speedy answering of the whole brotherhod / his own parcell answering / his so large earnest answering to so meane a man as I am / finally to deface me and other that haue written / by moste lewde / foolishe / and vntrue surmises Which neuerthelesse he aduoucheth so confidently / as though he had bene present at Louaine and priuey to all our doinges / and thoughtes / yea and to more then euer we thought toe Wherein how vaine he hath shewed him selfe to be / if nothing had bene saide allreadie / euen this that he hathe of M. Rastell / whome he affirmeth to haue had his booke lienge by him readye made foure yeares at Louayn whereas yeat he hathe bene Nowell in his praeface 3. side 35 Calfhill in his epistle to M. Martiall and praeface to the reader scarse on this side of the seas halfe foure yeare / at Louain wheÌ„ he printed his booke not foure full monethes were alone sufficient to declare This deceitfull dealing of his / by defacing vs to the world / liked so wel hym that came nexte after him to wrighte / that he thought his parte not to be wel plaied / vnlesse he endeuoured also inforced him selfe to doe the like And for this cause forsothe ruffling in the figure of Ruffinisâ—us he calleth M. Doctor Harding * How muche better woulde this name haue becoÌ„med M. Iuell that of a catholike became an heretike of an heretike a catholike of a catholike an heretike againe Apostata at my name he scoffeth calling me worthy Man who gaue but a Dor. M. Rastelles because it laye not so open to his scoffing spirite / he depraued vttrely / calling him Rascall But o I woulde it might please almighty God / who hathe bestowed vpon him whome he so calleth / so bountifully so manye excellent giftes of vertue and learning / that they were bothe thoroughly knowen to the worlde for suche as they are Then shoulde M. Rastell to speake the leaste / be founde to be as farre in all respectes from all base and vile condition / as this shamelesse man is him selfe from all honesty and Christian-like behauiour in so calling hym To M. Stapleton this painted poppet threateneth drye blowes / yeat wisely vnder an if / and in the name of an other The booke of Staphylus he compareth to a Ruffians sworde al to be hacked / calling by the waie a moste learned and graue councelour to the late Emperour Ferdinandus / Ruffian In dede there was a rude blacke * Iacobus Smidelinus smythe / that did the best he coulde to breake the edge and to leaue soâ—e gashes in this sworde / but those litle nickes that he made / the * Staphyl In defens Apolâ—g Calf fol. 17. b. 33. owner therof grounde out so conningly againe / that the edge of it was after more sharpe then euer it was before Lest al this should not be inough to discredite vs / last of all he chargeth suche of vs as being in Louain haue ben of newe colleage / withe the smoky styrres blowen in Scotland the fyry factions inflamed in Fraunce the Pholish treason condemned in England the popishe conspiracy attempted in Ireland Commeth not this thinke you of a high wit / and a greate discoursing heade Thankes be to God it is yeat no horned beaste that assaulteth vs thus cruelly He chargeth vs with gaping for bishoprikes / but surely if hym selfe laboured not ambitiously to be chiefe councelour to some lorde of misrule at Christmas / he woulde neuer haue stremed so farre the streightes of his simple brayne / as by this moste singuler discourse vpon these late troubles and treasons which beside him selfe neuer a man I beleue in England coulde haue dreamed of to giue a moste vndoubted experiment / what wonders he were able to worcke by his witte / if he listed to bende it But this is the lewdenesse of oure aduersaries / when to the doctrine that we defende they are able to saye nothing / to deface as muche as in them lieth our persones by vntrue surmises / by false and sclaunderouse reportes / by all meanes directe or indirecte For this they are once as it should seme by their doinges persuaded howe trulye God he knoweth that they shall be able to write nothing so absurde / that shall not with some get credite / and finde frendely entreteinement Wherfore this is good Readers the common request of vs all vnto yow / that reiecting vttrely these vaine / vntrue / and impertinenent exceptions of oure aduersaries / whereof youre eares be longe since full / it may please yow to haue a diligent eye to the matter it selfe / and not to suffer youre selues to be thus shamfully abused / and caried from thence to suche sciendre considerations as are these whether the writers be yong men / or olde many in conference / or fewe alone whether they wright in shorte space / or take long leisour whether they translate or make of their owne For surelye they that propose these exceptions / as it is an euident argument that they mistrust their cause / so seme they not to sauour of the spirite of humilitie / which seketh nothing but the honour and glorye If S. Cyprian writing this epistle to Cornelius the B. of Rome M. suell in his Replye fo 228. beginneth to â—hrincke from his chalenge name him either the high prieste or christes vicair generall in earthe or vniuersall bishop or head of the vniuersal church c. then may M. Harding seme to haue some honest colour for his defence For these respectes therfore I saie / and other which here for good causes I conceale / it hathe ben thought good to requier yowe / to signifie to vs / whether yowe will ratifie the doctrine conteined in that boke made against the crosse / lest after yow flee to the Praetor his exception Quod nomine meo gestum non est raiuÌ„ noÌ„ habebo It is reason that we demaunde / and it is lawe Consulte youre lawier so well knowen in Oxforde for his three giftes of heresye / frenesy and Ialousy / and he will tell yow no lesse When we vnderstande youre minde herein / yowe shall knowe more of oures It woulde doe well that yow declared it at Powles crosse / from whence we are contented to take notice the rather / because we trust yow will saie nothing there / but that whereto yow will stande hereafter Faultes escaped in printing Leafe Syde Lyne Faulte Correction 23 a 25
wolud woulde   26 ouersthrowe ouerthrowe 27 b 25 tho warte thow arte 51 a 32 betwe betwene 57 b 3 saunderouse slaunderouse 58 a 29 as in well as well 64 b 2 plaees places 65 b 3 praesbiterum presbyterum 74 a 24 ades heades 81 b 25 Macedonio Macedonia 82 b 5 nexte chap. nexte chap. saue one 96 b 6 Agipto AEgipto 98 b 26 Aricans Africans 108 a 1 toke on take on 155 b 10 amsuer am suer 179 a 15 churchand churche and 182 a 13 not not cōpare not compare 192 b 23 * Specially to be corrected fidei ecclesiae 198 b 1 call then call them 205 b 32 African Africanes    esbeare beare 211 b 7 in ipiet incipiet    * Specially to be corrected ipsa est sedes Petri ipsa est petra    shall not doe not In margine 86 a 21 Dorman Nowell 108 a 28 Goddes gooddes If yow finde any other faultes I trust yow will frendely amende them youre selues and considre that we printe not withe suche ease as doe oure aduersaries whose bookes yeat lacke not their faultes HONY SOYT QVI. MAL. Y. PENSE God saue the Quene A DISPROVFE OF M. NOVVELLES REPROVFE THAT the sentence prefixed before my boke to proue the Protestants Schismatikes was not abused and that M. Nowell hath passed ouer in silence the chiefe pointe in it The. 1. Chapter I TOLDE yow M. Nowell before that in this youre long Reproufe of mine so fewe leaues yow had for youre pleasure walcked oftentimes farre out of the way and that therfore I woulde in no wise binde my selfe allwaies to folowe your steppes As euen here in the very entrie to giue men to vnderstande what they are lyke to finde yow in youre whole processe leauing S. Austens interpretation vpon the place of scripture wherby he proueth them to be Math. 7. the rauening wolues that are schismatikes and those to be schismatikes who communicate not with all nations nor those churches that haue bene founded by the Apostles labour yow slily slip from that to youre owne and beare vs in hande that we are the Phariseis of whome oure Sauiour spake the saide wordes Because we walcke grauely in long garmentes pretende long praiers c. Leauing therfore all this by talcke of youres as wide from our purpose I will come to the pointe of the question which is betwene vs M. Nowell whether I lacked iudgement or store of choise in choosing this sentence of S. Austen to sette before my boke or no. Of the which I saie that all were it so that yow had clerely vanquished S. Austen and proued that this texte had bene to be vnderstande against vs because we go in long gownes grauely and yow clime in clokes vp in to pulpites or walcke in long robes lightly yeat had this mised to leaue no one suche sentence vnanswered Ergo the reader maye iudge by this how likely yow are to deale truly hereafter that begin so trustely That the places alleaged by me oute of S. Cyprian Lib. 3. epist 11. and lib. 4. epist 9. were alleaged to the purpose The. 2. Chapter I conclude therefore that these places are by M. Dorman falsely Nowell Fol. 2. b. 7 and shamelesly alleaged to make a showe or as he calleth it an introduction to the B. of Romes auctoritie whereunto they appertaine nothing at all but onely to the euersion thereof I neuer brought these places M. Nowell to proue the Dorman popes supremacie Yow nede not therfore to trouble youre selfe with the prouse of this that they apperteine to the deacon disobeing his bishop Rogatian and to Pupianus abusing S. Cyprian But allthough I graunte yow thus much M. Nowell yeat that these places because they proue not the popes supremacie appertaine therefore nothing at all to him but only to the euersion of his auctoritie that faultie and vntrue conclusion I can in no wise graunte to yow not allthough yow thinke to vnderproppe that ruinouse collection as yow doe with this sclendre staye that there is not one worde in these places of the bishop of Rome Fol. 2. a. 1. b. 6. or hys Supremacy nor he as muche as once named therein For yow shoulde haue considered M. Nowell that I entreate here in this place of the maner and nature of heretikes and schismatikes Which is I saie to rebell against their heades to contemne their superiours and laufull gouernours Nowe as youre selfe woulde not I trowe saie that if anie of yow shoulde by writing or anie other vnlaufull meanes which god forbid go about to stirre vpp the people against oure laufull Quene he shoulde speake impertinently to the purpose that to disswade them therefro shoulde begin his purposed talcke after this manner Remembre my frendes that the nature and propretie of heretikes is and allwaies hath bene after that they be once waxen strong to rebell and make warre against their laufull gouernours Remembre the late tumultes raysed in Fraunce by the Huguenotes there against their gouernour as I saie it is not to be thought that yow woulde reiect this mannes exhortation calling it impertinent to the matter tending to the euersion of the Quenes auctoritie because the example brought was of disobedience to an other prince betwene him and his subiectes and not in termes of the Quene oure maistres so surely ought yow no more to haue quarelled against me bringing these examples out of S. Cyprian Especially seing that I presupposed and afterwardes proued in the discourse of that article that the B. of Romes auctoritie was no lesse ouer the whole churche in spirituall matters then is that of other princes ouer their seuerall kingdomes in temporall iurisdiction The which pointe if yow had done ordrely yow ought first to haue confuted that so iustlie after suche disproufe yow might haue reproued the applieng of these auctorities There is no mention made in anie of these places of the B. of Cauntorbury ne yeat of London neither all though youre selfe graunte that by these places yt is proued that euery inferiour ought to be obedient to his owne bishop as Fol. ◠b. 14. his superiour and that the disobedience of suche is cause of schismes and heresies Whereupon what letted me in my preface to applie aswell these places to the disobeing of the B. of Rome allthough he be not there named as for yow when the case shall so requier to applie them to the bishoppes of Cauntorbury or London no more there then the pope mentioned by name Who is as I saide before as truly the bishop of the whole church as anie other is ouer his owne propre diocesse Yow go forwarde and saie Onely this is moste euident in what sense so euer S. Cyprian Nowell fo 2. b. 19. taketh these wordes One bishopp that ruleth the churche the B. of Carthage is that one bishop and not the B. of Rome and therfore that phrase of one bishop can make nothing
of heresies and schismes when men shoulde departe from the obedience of the pope the chiefe bishop of all other and therefore neither without cause or guilefully to deceiue the simple as yow vncharitably surmise Which youre selfe also perceiued verie well and therefore by the figure called extenuatio you terme this reason of mine a simple collection after this maner Now if he thinke yeat that he might make suche a simple collection Nowell fol. 5. a. 31. of S. Cyprian and S. Basile his wordes as this that as the beginning of heresies in their time was the contempte of the inferiours towardes their owne bishoppes for so Saint Cyprian teacheth so in likewise is the contempte of the Pope as the highest of all bishoppes the beginning of heresies nowe First I denie the argument for that it foloweth not though it be euill for the inferiour to disobey his owne bishop to whose obedience in all godlines he is bounden therefore it is euill for a straungier not to obey a straunge forraine vsurper to whome he oweth no dutie of obedience Againe I saie though it be the beginning of heresie to disobey Cyprian Rogatian yea or Cornelius being godly or catholike bishoppes yeat is it not likewise the beginning of heresies to disobeye any the late Popes of Rome who were not only no godly bishoppes as were Cyprian Rogatian and Cornelius but bothe moste wicked and in deede no bishoppes att all but false vsurpers of wordly tirannie Whome for the subiectes of an other Christian and laufull soueraigne to obeye and not to disobey is the beginning of heresies treasons and other mischiefes This is my simple collection you saie I acknowledge it Dâ—â—man for mine as simple as it is and to youre double answere thereto replye as foloweth First to the first that it is moste false that you laye for a grounded truthe that the bishop of Rome is a forraine vsurper as when I so gathered in my introduction I minded to proue in the handling of the first principall article of the popes auctoritie and so sence haue done Whereof seing youre selfe are not ignorant you haue delt not simply but doubly labouring to deceiue the simple by defacing as you thougth my preface as vnskilfully written for that I haue there only sayde and not proued that the pope is the chiefe heade of Christes churche in earthe whereas that I referred as by good ordre of writing the learned knowe I ought to the first article of the popes supremacie To the reasons and proufes in which place brought as in all youre answere you neuer come neare but cauill and wrangle against my Introduction whiche showeth the cause of schismes to be disobedience against pastours and bishops so if they be applied to this place as they must then shall it appeare how falsely you saye that the wordes of S. Cyprian were alleaged without all cause But because the whole force of this first answere of youres to proue my argument naught standeth in this that the bishop of Rome being a forriner no suche reason can be made from S. Cyprian and S. Basile his wordes I will here ouer and aboue that which I haue allreadie saide in the handling of this article in his propre place presently proue The pope taken for no foriner by S. Cyprian and S. Basile by S. Cyprian and S. Basile bothe that he was taken by them for no foriner neither in Africa Fraunce Spaine neither yeat in the Easte churche of the whiche S. Basile was For Africa first was the B. of Rome thinke yow taken Afrike there by S. Cyprian to be a forraine vsurpar whose churche he called ecclesiae catholicae radicem matricem the roote Lib. 4. epist 8. and mother churche of the catholike churche If the churche of Rome be the roote and mother to all other churches then if the mother be aboue the children if the mother and roote be no foriners to the children and branches of the tree it will folowe verie wel first that the churche of Rome as it is no foriner to the churches of Africa and to the other churches through out the worlde but aboue them all that so the bishop of the same is aboue the B. of Carthage and all other bishoppes and no foriner or vsurper And as carnall children how farre so euer they lyue from their naturall parentes cease not therfore to be their children nor their saide parentes become therby forriners euen so the bishop of Rome who gouerneth that churche that is mother to all other ceasseth not to be a father to his children dwell they neuer so farre of Was the B. of Rome reputed a straunger to the bishoppes of Africa Lib. 4. epist 8. who vsed to sende their legates to him to pacifie matters and to bring knowledge of the truthe Whose communion to holde S. Cyprian calleth in this epistle the firme holding and allowing of the vnitie and charitie of the catholike churche When all the African bishoppes assembled together in councel directed their lettres to the bishop Apud August epi â–ª 90. of Rome praying him to confirme their doings by the auctoritie of the Apostolicall See pro tuenda salute multorum quorundam peruersitate corrigenda for the preseruation of the healthe of manie and the amendement of the frowardenes of diuerse toke they him thinke yow for a forriner If S. Cyprian had had of the See of Rome that opinioÌ„ that you would gladlie persuade men he had woulde he thinke we haue saide of those schismatikes that sailed oute off Africa to Rome to complaine vpon him to Cornelius Post ista adhuc insuper c. Beside all this they haue bene so Lib. 1. Epist 3. bolde hauing appointed to them by the heretikes a false bishop to saile euen to Peters chaire and the principal churche from whence priestly vnitie sprang and to carie from schismatikes and prophane men lettres not considering that the Romaines are they whose faithe by the Apostles mouthe is praised and to whome false faithe can haue no accesse Woulde he haue saide Romam cum mendaciorum suorum merce nauigarunt quasi veritas post eos nauigare non posset quae mendaces linguas rei certae probatione conuinceret They are sailed to Rome with their marchandise of lies as though truthe coulde not saile after them able to conuince their lieng tongues by suer and vndoubted proufe Naye he shoulde and woulde you maie be suer had he bene of youre minde haue saide Let them go on goddes name what care I for the bishop of Rome Shall I be so foolishe to folowe them to debate the matter before him who is a plaine forriner to vs and hathe nothing to doe therein For thus woulde yow I dare saie at this daye answere if one shoulde go to Rome and complayne of you But nowe considering that saint Cyprian saied not thus but contrariewise made his account to stande with them and trie the matter before the bishop of
the Dorman popes supremacie I saide and do still that he exacted an vnlaufull othe against Cornelius then Pope and in that respecte the heade and gouernour of Christes church The likenes of the othe wherein I matched yow was that bothe that othe which Nouatus offred and this which yow tendre tende to one ende to trouble the beautifull ordre of Christes churche and to withdrawe men from the obedience of their laufull pastour For as laufully is the B. of Rome in spirituall matters oure heade as he was heade to Nouatus So that what so euer yow saie here of the controuersie betwene Cornelius and Nouatus for the bishoprike of Rome what so euer yow imagine of the laufulnesse of youre othes being as yow saye of obedience to youre naturall prince and oures and of the iniquitie of Nouatus othe being against his laufull bishop all is to no purpose For I susteine still that let the controuersie be as yow imagine it was yeat till yow be hable to proue that the B. of Rome is to vs a forriner and that oure obedience to him in spiritual causes cā in no wise stande with oure lauful odience to oure prince in temporall iurisdiction the resemblaunce made betwene Nouatus and yow will euer holde and be good Of oure obedience towardes oure prince whome as Gods ministre in earthe in worldly affaires we honour and reuerence as oure doinges for the time past can beare sufficient testimonie so shall I trust oure demeanure for the time to come be such as shal be able to stoppe the mouthes of al such fawning parasites as labour to make princes beleue that these two obediēces can not stande together as here M. Nowell doth making that the grounde of this lye of his that Nouatus his othe was not only vnlike but A lye 7. cleane contrarie to theirs You bring for an other difference betwene Nouatus case Nowell Fo. 6. b. 27 ▪ and youres that his othe concerned the maintenaunce of his heresie which aswell S. Cyprian B. of Carthage as Cornelius B. of Rome with all other godly bishoppes condemned What conclude yow M. Nowel herof Do the that proue anie difference Naie dothe not that match you together so Dorman much themore For youre othe is it not for the mainteinaunce of your heresies which be so horrible that aswel by al generall councelles and all the godly learned bishoppes in the world as by Pius the Pope thy are condemned Yow saye that as Nouatus required an othe of his folowers c Nowell fol. 7. a. 7. So did the professours of the same heresies trauell in Afrike with their disciples there being Africanes that they shoulde not returne to Cyprian B. of Carthage to communicate with him which as it maketh nothing for any supremacie of S. Cyprian B. of Carthage no more maketh the other for anie supremacy of Cornelius B. of Rome If yow meane that the professours of Nouatus his heresies Dorman in Afrike did exacte an othe as did Nouatus as youre wordes so did the professours c. which must nedes haue relation to that which goeth before doe importe no lesse or if yow meane not so but that they traueiled to wyn men from Cyprian as the other did from Cornelius how so euer yow meane yow can not proue so muche out of the place that yow alleage If yow coulde yeat woulde it Lib. 4. epist 9. make nothing for youre purpose for I neuer alleaged the othe of Nouatus to make for the bishop of Romes supremacie and therfore care not whether this that yow saie the folowers of Nouatus did in Africa make for S. Cyprians supremacie or no. I alleaged the facte of Nouatus to proue that heretikes trouble the ordre of the churche that did they that yow speake of in Africa aswell as Nouatus in Rome If Dorman had writen thus absurdely he had dreamed but suche egle byrdes as M. Nowell is neuer sleepe I warraunt yow but be allwaies waking It foloweth And where Nouatus began first his heresie in Afrike by striuing Nowell fol. 7◠24. against S. Cyprian and not by striuing first against Cornelius B. of Rome as M. Dorman vntruly reporteth the beginning of heresies is rather to make warre and strife against the B. of Carthage then against the B. of Rome Yow obserue well the preceptes of youre arte to staye Dorman vpon small pointes when to the greater yow be hable to saye nothing But to the matter where so euer heretikes begin in Africa as yow saie of Nouatus concerning his heresies vntruly though concerning schisme trulie or in Germanie as did Luther or in England as diuerse haue done as immediatly they make warre against the whole churche so striue they specially against the heade whose parte is to prouide for the bodie For seing that no man is to be counted an heretike but he that renounceth the vnitie of the churche no man do the that who is contented to obeye the heade thereof it foloweth verie well that who so euer is an heretike whether he beginne in Africa England or elles where striueth furthwith against the pope the heade of the churche which can not be saide of the bishop of Carthage who hath no suche office in the churche I haue done you saie maliciously and vntruly calling Nouatus Nowell b. 11. youre auncestour and youre bishoppes as his disciples indurate heretikes You purge youre selfe of that which before I charged Dorman yow not withall For I compared yow only together in that one pointe of forcing men by othes to forsake the B. of Rome Yeat forasmuche as you take the matter as you doe bragging here of youre moste earnest and pithy sermons and writinges against Nouatus doctrine c. I shall desire the learned reader to conferre this place of S. Ambrose Lib. 1. de paenitentia cap. 2. Hist Tripart lib. 8. cap. 9. written of the Nouatians with youre doctrine of penaunce Sed aiunt se domino deferre reuerentiam cui soli remittendorum criminum potestatem reseruant But they saie that they are reuerent towardes God to whom only they reserue power to forgiue synne Doe not you maintaine that man hath no auctoritie to remitte sinne and call vs at youre pleasure for saying that God hath giuen the same power to man his ministre Be not yow the folowers of Nouatus in this pointe Yow saye I beleue also that M. Dorman in the allegation off Nowell Nouatus his othe had a further respecte to that he maketh mention of the bodie and bloude of Christe by the whiche because Nouatus caused them to sweare M. Dorman thought belike thereby to proue or at least to make an insinuation to the simple that the bodie and bloude of Christe shoulde be corporally present in the Sacrament But the daily othes of blasphemouse men swearing likewise in his corporall absence doe confute that collection What respecte so euer I had this answere
bishoprike that one chiefe bishop which conioyneth all in one you shall see so many schismes as there be bishoppes and so shall all come to naught Thus maye appere how litle the worde in solidum wholy whereby you would wrest S. Cyprian to a forced meaning of youres to saye that be cause euery bishop had a part of this bishoprike wholy therefore they were all equall in that bishoprike maketh for you whereas in this tree compared to the whole bishoprike of the churche all and euery bowe thereof hath of that common life which is in it parte thereof in solidum wholly as well as the roote which conteineth them together and the roote hath but his parte of that life in solidum no more then hath the least branche there and yet is the chiefe parte of the tree for all that Thus you see how euen by S. Cyprians owne auctoritie you be cast in your own turne And loke what hath bene sayed of the tree the same may be sayed of the light of the sonne or of many riuers comming frome one heade spring As for that that you note me of falsehoode for remouing of the worde Sanctâ—ssimae frome his place and changing fo 19. b. 4 it into Sanctissimum for the remouing of any word that is a false lye For it is you that place the word Sanctissimum A lye 20. out of his ordre putting it before Episcopum whereas it shoulde and dothe folowe in S. Cyprian after and not I. As for the worde Sanctissimae changed in to Sanctissimum I confesse that the best bookes reade otherwise Which faulte either I committed by following some copye which had so either els as it is a thinge easely done in writing by taking out the place amisse For to doe it of sett purpose as youre spiders nature whiche is to turne all into poyson surmiseth what vauntage shoulde I haue gotten thereby If such titles would helpe I coulde haue brought furth the Aug. epist 90. et 92. epistles of the fathers of the councels of Carthage and Mileuet where in their seuerall letters they vse oftentimes to the pope the worde Sanctitas tua your holynesse with diuerse other to that effect To conclude the matter you saie that Maximus and his Nowell fo 22. b. in fin fellowes had a controuersie with Cornelius altogether diuerse frome oures and therefore that their example apperteineth nothing thing to this case of the Popes supremacie which then was neither moued nor knowen And againe that being priestes of Rome it was no merueile thoughe they reconciled them selues to theire owne bishop whome they had offended For the first what controuersie so euer they had it maketh Dorman no matter For heretikes they were and went from the communion of the bishop of Rome whether as heade off the church or their peculier bishop and Diocesan I care not This is that which I entendid here to proue that they forsoke their heade and so fell into schismes oute of the whiche it is impossible for any to rise without they ioyne them selues to their heade againe as these did here And iff they were priestes of Rome as I thinke they were not but suche as at that time folowed Nouatus in Rome yeat maketh this still thus farre for me that euery schisme must be holpen by returning to the heade what so euer he be Which is the thing to make you with often repeating to vnderstande it which I seeke in this place For I am here in my preface where eueÌ„ as in my first proposition it is inough to proue that it is expedieÌ„t to haue one heade in Christes church to gouerne the same although I proue it not of the B. of Rome so is it here sufficieÌ„t to proue that heresies beginne by forsaking the heade and that they must ende by returning to the same though I name not any heade by name Although for any thing that hath bene saied to the coÌ„trarie I might defende that euen in this place the same is proued in the Bishop of Rome the generall head of all That the recantation of Vrsatius and Valens offred vp to Iulius then pope maketh muche for the Bishop of Romes Supremacy The 8. Chapitre Doth not M. Nowell thinke you good readers playe the M. Nowel answereth to that which no man obiecteth mery man bothe with you and me and all the worlde beside in the handling of this place of Vrsatius or Vrsitus and Valens First while he maketh me to reason of the titles that these two bishoppes vsed in their libell of recantation and then solemly confuteth my reasons by other out of Saint Augustin and S. Ciprian with double epithetons for my single whereas I haue no suche one worde Next in coÌ„cluding the whole matter to recreate your foreweried spirites and to sende euery man to his home in loue and charitie with a fitte of mirthe For his musike rewarde you him as you shall see cause for for youre sakes it was and not mine To his answeres to my reasons of the titles of beatissimus Dominus Papa the moste blessed lorde pope or what so euer elles I will replye when that or anie other shall be proued to be mine In the meane season to this reason off his Vrsatius and Valens offred vp their recantation to Athanasius the Nowell fol. 23. b. 22. bishop of Alexandria ergo This maketh as muche for the Supremacy of Athanasius as it doth of Iulius the Pope because it hathe some apparence I will here make answere First I saye Dorman M. Nowell that the antecedent that is that they offered in like maner their recantations to Athanasius is a manifeste A lye 19. lye then that if it were true that yeat the conclusion doth not folowe and so the reason is faulty For the first let Nicephorus be examined whome you here alleage in two places the 9. boke the 13. and the 27. chapitres I meane the 27. for in the other chapitre there is no worde of that matter and so shall it appeare whether you be a lyer or no. Nicephorus hath that to Iulius the B. of Rome they offered libellum poenitentiae a libell of their repentance of Athanasius he saieth no more but onely that after their reconciliation to the pope they wrote lettres to him signifieng that they were nowe quieted and agreed in communion with him whome before they had so cruelly persecuted Of their recantation which is vnderstand by the worde Libellus poenitentiae he mentioneth no worde at all But let vs now coÌ„pare together the wordes first in the libell offred to the pope and then in the lettres sent to Athanasius To the pope they saie Beatissimo domino papae Iulio Vrsitius Valens To the moste blessed Lorde pope Iulius Vrsitius and Valens To Athanasius they write Domino fratri Athanasio episcopo Vrsitius Valens episcopi To oure Lorde and brother Athanasius the bishop Vrsitius and Valens bishoppes I doe not here
that euery one of them had he saide licence to vse the iudgement of his libertie and power Which worde pro licentia M. Nowel mangleth S. Cipriā yow guilefully lefte oute of youre translation showing youre selfe thereby to be no simple translatour but a crafty falsefier Now if they had licence in that councell of theirs euery man to saie frelye his minde if S. Cyprian saide that notwithstanding he was their archebishop and bishop off them all yeat for the present time he did renounce that auctoritie as in this sense his wordes are to be taken what maketh that against the auctoritie of the B. of Rome Dothe not the B. of Rome saye asmuch to all his fellow bishoppes in all general councelles Had not you the same offer made vnto you in the laste councell of Trent to haue bene quietly harde and no man by tirannie to haue bene compelled In saluo cōductu cōcilij Trident. to the necessitie of obeing If this answere satisfie you not let S. Augustine teache you the true vnderstanding of this place Who expounding August li. 3. ca. 3. cōtra Donat. these wordes of S. Cyprian Seing euery bishop hath according to the licence c. against the Donatistes writeth thus Opinor vtique in his quaestionibus quae nondum eliquatissima perspectione S. Cypriā expoūded by S. Austen discussae sunt Nouerat enim quantam sacramenti profunditatem tunc omnis ecclesia varia disputatione versabat liberum que faciebat quaerendi arbitrium vt examinata veritas panderetur I thinke verilie that is to saie that S. Cyprian meaneth in those questions which be not yeat by manifest examination discussed For he knewe what a depe misterie it was that was then tossed in the whole churche with ambiguouse disputations and made it free for euery one to searche and enquire that the truthe being examined might be reuealed Thus you see M. Nowell that youre falsehoode in leauing out in youre translation the worde pro licentia wil not helpe you S. Augustine by this worde liberum faciebat VVherein one bisshop cannot be iudged of another he gaue them licence expounding the meaning of S. Ciprian and telling vs beside that this place of bishoppes libertie whereby euerie one maye thinke what he will and can be iudged of no other is while thinges be not decided but remaine in doubte And therefore if you haue no other doctours or councelles to present to the pope but these yow did like a wise man to tarie at home That you saie that neither the texte of the scriptures nor the fol. 27. b. 7. interpretation of doctours nor iudgementes of councelles can haue any credite against the pope and bring Pighius to proue it that is a manifest lye For when Pighius saieth that for the A lye 22. moste parte there is nothing done in generall councelles but that the bishoppes comming together giue their consent to that which the Apostolike See decreed before he saieth not that it is so allwaies that it can be no otherwise As though the time of deliberation during the Apostolike See vpon the reasons of the councell might not be moued to decree that which otherwise it hath not determined he saieth not that against the pope neither the texte of the scriptures nor the interpretation of doctours nor iudgementes of councelles b. 24. can haue any credite And therefore moste impudently againe I tell yow yow haue belyed Pighius The councell is no councell if it lacke the auctoritie of the heade No generall councell without a head the B. of Rome And therefore you haue Pighius at no such aduantage because he saieth that the onely iudgement of the See of Rome is more sure then the iudgement of an vniuersall councell of the whole worlde which if it be true VVhy councelles be called then were it you saye for bishoppes to come to councelles a vaine thing Not so M. Nowell For although before God and with good men the iudgement arrested vpon by the see of Rome be certeinly true and can not deceiue yeat because men ignorant in the scriptures and lawes of the churche some of thē sometimes because heretikes for the repressing of whome councelles be most cōmonly called for the moste parte be not thus persuaded the pope vseth to communicate with the generall councell concerning decrees to be made The which being with generall consent approued and confirmed by the pope bothe the weake or vnlearned catholike maie be fully persuaded and the stubborne heretike with his owne weightes quite ouer weighed while bothe to the one and the other suche vniforme consent can not but argue the merueilouse grace and assistence off the holie gost An other cause maie be for that the pope by this meanes will be certified by the bishoppes off euery countrie what circumstances what maners of people in eache place maie require the decrees according to the nature of diuerse diseases to be losed slacker or streined harder For although he be so priuileaged that in making lawes for the churche he can not erre yeat hath he not the spirit of prophecie to knowe being absent all the offenses and imperfections in the churche Beside this where as otherwise it might euer be doubted whether the pope made any suche decrees or no in places farre distant from Rome hereby all suche occasion is taken awaie the bishoppes off euery countrie being present who be able to make faithe hereof to their subiectes Last of all this calling together of councelles is not in vaine while Christian princes being present and hearing all thinges debated promise the rather their assistance for the execution of suche thinges as shal be concluded And thus is this pelting obiection of youres answered Now to the next Pighius yow saye teacheth that to the see of Rome the ordering Nowell fo 28. a. 7. defining and determining of all questions and controuersies is giuen by Christe c. And the same dothe M. Dorman to teache in the 62. leafe b. out off pope Innocentius epistle That which I haue there affirmed I haue by the auctoritie Dorman not of Innocentius alone which yeat to anie reasonable Apud August epist. 90. 91. 92 93. man might seme inough considering that they were no babes to whome he wrote but euen by the auctoritie also of those fathers of the two councelles of Carthage and Mileuite especially of S. Austen expressely affirming that he answered them to all their questions euen as was right and for the bishop of the apostolicall See mete sufficiently proued Answere yow to it when yow shall be hable In the meane season it is true that I saide that the auctoritie of the B. of Rome is the fundation of all true religion the comfort and staye of the catholikes c. Against the whiche fewe wordes couched in lesse roome then fiue lynes yow haue not in fower leaues and more brought truly so muche as one worde but in the whole
miserably shaken notwithstāding the labour of the chiefe prelates of euery prouince Now to come to princes and tēporall gouernours if they haue as many seueral or contrary lawes as their be seuerall countries or nations cōcerning the keping of their people in ciuile ordre and peace what breache off vnitie What hurte What disordre in the worlde will folowe hereof I praye you So that to haue made this reason of youres probable you shoulde thus haue reasoned As in the whole worlde there is no disordre because seuerall princes haue seuerall and contrary lawes so in the churche will there be also none if diuerse bishoppes teache diuerse and contrary faithes But as no man is so blinde but he seeth the falsehode of this comparison so is no man I truste so voide of wit but that he seeth this to be as true as that which you made before Thus by reason we finde that schismes can not be appeased without one heade in the churche to whome the greater causes ought to be referred whome the rest ought to credite and obeye To the which heade because he is by Christes owne mouthe so priuileaged in Peters faithe that as he neuer yeat deliuered to the churche any erroniouse doctrine to be beleued but hathe allwaies continued the faith receiued from the Apostles so are we suer that he neuer shall we ought and maye in matters of faithe giue full and assured credite As by S. Austen we be counceled who to this purpose bringeth this saing of the ghospell Quae dicunt Epist 165 Matth. 23. facite c. Doe what they bidde you doe and addeth for the reason that in so doing oure faithe being moste certaine as being grounded not vpon man but vpon goddes promise can neuer be scattred by the tempest of anie schisme This being most true we maie boldely conclude that this state of Monarchie that is of gouerning the churche by one heade as it is moste necessarie so because we are suer that this one heade can not giue wrong iudgement in matters of faithe it is of all other for the churche the moste conuenient as being the verie best For in this pointe doe all men agree euen the moste aduersaries to this state that if one Monarche were suer allwaies to gouerne well that then that state off gouernement were to be preferred before all other To all this that hathe bene saide maye be added that iff you will nedes haue the seuerall diocesses and churches off euerie bishoprike to be like seueral kingdomes then as there is no only kingdome in earthe so by you it shoulde folowe that there is no one only churche in earthe Or if it may be enough for the church in earthe to be one body because Christe in heauen is the one heade thereof why maie not then the kingdomes of the earthe be in earthe one because Christe in heauen is the king of them also This being not I thinke vnknowen vnto you howe vneuen this comparison of youres was made yow will nowe leauing youre reason trie the matter by auctoritie S. Cyprian yow saie dothe most plainely teache that Nowell fo 32. a. 30 it is right and reason that seuerall bishoppes haue the gouernement of seuerall diocesses euen for the same cause for the which I yow saye doe vntruly alleage the necessitie of one heade To the place of S. Cyprian beginning Cum statutum sit Dorman Lib. 1. Epist 3. omnibus nobis c. I answere that it is right and reason that seuerall bishoppes haue the gouernement of seuerall diocesses and that to appease schismes and correcte vices as often as these thinges maie be in suche seueral diocesses commodiously done But that this maie be allwaies perfourmed in particuler bishoprikes and that if it can not recourse maie not be had to higher power that yow shoulde haue proued and that S. Cyprian hathe not Therefore this place maketh not against the auctoritie of one heade But you force it further and saie S. Cyprian affirmeth all suche appellations from a bishop off Nowell one countrie to a bishop of an other countrey to be vnlaufull for that that all bishoppes of all countreys be of like auctoritie and that none but naughtie and desperate men doe thinke the auctoritie of some bishoppes to be inferiour to the auctoritie of other S Cyprian affirmeth not here that all appellations from Dorman one bishop to an other be vnlaufull He saieth that it is reason and hathe bene ordeined emongest them that the subiectes of euery bishop haue their causes hearde there where the faulte was committed And maye not the B. of Rome doe this by sending his legates in all such cases of appeale to the places where the offences were committed there to examine the processe to receiue witnes to determine the matter Beside this if S. Cyprian had in this place vttrely forbidden all maner of appeales to Rome yeat by the phrase of his wordes it appeareth that it was decreed emongest them by a locall statute of their owne for the better maintenaunce of brothrely concorde Which as it extēded no fardre then to that place so if anie of them that once agreed to that ordre refuse at anie time to obey it although it ought to be a barre to him that once gaue his consent to the cōtrary yeat is it none to the pope why he maie not procede in the cause who neuer renounced his right if it be appealed to him The like to this is to be seene in the colleages of oure vniuersities where the founders in most places haue ordeined by their statutes that the membres of such colleages for the better reteining and vpholding of quiet and brotherly agrement emongest them shall propose suche quarelles and contentions as happen emongest them to the seuerall heades of suche colleages This ordre thus taken right and reason woulde haue kepte but if some frowarde body not contented with this will complaine furder to the chauncelor of the vniuersitie or chiefe patron of his colleage he may at their handes haue iustice That this was the case that S. Cyprian speaketh of manie thinges may persuade First that he saieth Cùm statutū sit omnibus nobis wheras an ordre is taken emōgest vs all he giueth vs two thinges to vnderstande that whereas they toke suche an ordre emōgest S. Cyprians place expoundyd thē it was not ordinarily so before but accustomed rather to be otherwise or elles what neded a statute to be made to for bid a thing neuer any otherwise practised Nexte that it was but for thē only for he saieth omnibus nobis emōgest all vs. So that in other places he denieth not yea by these words he cōfesseth rather that it was otherwise And therfore you haue done lewdly and made alowde lie M. Nowel to gather of this place this generall propositiō that all appellations from the bishop of one countrie to the bishop of an other be vnlaufull Whereas this ordre being taken
only in Afrike by common Cypr. lib. 1. epist. 4. consent of the Africans was not in Spaine as appeareth by the appealing from thence of Basilides to Rome Which if it had bene vnlaufull neuer woulde S. Cyprian we may be suer haue made other exception why the sentence giuen by Stephanus the pope for his restitution shoulde not be good then this because it was giuen by him that was no iudge at all of all other the best and moste peremptory neuer would he haue obiected that it was obteined by false suggestion and wrong information which argueth the goodnes and validitie of the appellation of it selfe But what speake I of Spaine when S. Cyprian his owne labouring Li. 1. ep 3. at Rome with the pope by lettres by legates by all meanes possible that this vniust appeale might not be receaued when his counting to saile after them to conuince their lieng tongues by vndoubted and assured proufe of the truthe ought sufficiently to make faithe that seing the pope had neuer confirmed this locall statute of theirs and therby not renounced his right seing his subiectes against the ordre taken had appealed to Rome he must also nedes answere the appeale for the vnlaufulnes wherof on their partes that folowed it he alleageth here their own consent in these words omnibus nobis agreed by al vs to moue therby the rather the B. of Rome not to receiue their appeale but to remit the cause home againe Whereas you saie that S. Cyprian hathe that none but naughty and desperate men doe thinke the auctoritie of some bisshoppes to be inferiour to the auctoritie of other surely yow go about bothe to proue youre selfe S. Cyprian S. Austen and all the learned fathers of Christes church naughty and desperate men You condemne in like maner the auncient generall councelles and continuall practise of the catholike churche For who is so ignorant that he knoweth not that the bookes of the learned fathers the canōs of the auncient councells the vsage of Christes churche haue so religiously alwaies obserued this difference of bishoppes that the verie names of patriarkes primates Archebishoppes reteined allwaies and vsed in the churches are able to conuince him to be an impudent lier that shall susteine the contrary Youre selfe confesse that there be chiefe prelates in euery prouince If chiefe Ergo inferious You call him a naughty and desperate man that thinketh the auctoritie of some bishoppes to be inferiour to the auctoritie of other Yow saye the same youre selfe by graunting that there be chiefe prelates Hauing sought all the meanes that my pore witte can inuent to exempt yow from this companie of naughty and desperate men I finde no other then this that perhappes you only saye it for a shift and thinke it not in deede But if you were to be accounted naught and desperate for this yeat had you in this respecte cause to reioyce that yow were like to haue the companie of S. Austen who telleth Bonifacius the pope that in the Lib. 2. de baptism contra Donat. cap. 1. gouernement of the church he was not onely aboue him but aboue all other bishopps although the office be common to all in sitting in the highest top of the pastor all watche tower who saieth comparing together S. Petre and S. Cyprian Sed si distet cathedrarum gratia vna est tamen martyrum gloria But although betwene the grace of their seates there be difference yeat the glory of martyrdome is all one And againe comparing Innocentius the pope with Irinaeus Ciprian Hilary he hath Cum his Innocentius Romanus Pontifex consedit etsi posterior tempore prior loco With these sate Innocentius the bishop of Rome although behinde them Lib. 1. cōtra Iulian. c. 2. in time yeat before them in place Yea to comfort you the more I dare promise yow the companie of S. Cyprian him selfe For if he had not bene of the minde that some bishoppes are inferiour to other in iurisdiction althoughe not in the substance or nature of bishoply ordre woulde he haue exhorted yea and required the B. of Rome to write lettres in to Fraunce to direct them to the prouince and people of Arles wherby they shoulde depose Martianus the B. there Lib. 3. epi. stol 3. With what face could he haue done this had he thought that the auctoritie of one bishop were no greater then that of an other But here you will vrge me that it is not enough to shewe by probable coniectures that in these wordes Saint Cyprian had no suche meaning vnlesse I showe withal what was his meaning Yes verily M. Nowell it were enough for me to proue that the sense which you giue to these wordes of his coulde not be true but for their sakes who desire to knowe not onely what is false but what is all so true I will open that pointe to This is therefore by this epistle of S. Cyprian moste euident that these naughty men who complained vpon S. Ciprian at Rome went first before they toke their iourney to Rome in to Numidia and there ioyned them selues to certeine hereticall bisshoppes of whome Fortunatus was made a bishop and so by reason that none were made bishoppes that stode excōmunicate it must nedes be that he was by them first absolued These hereticall bishoppes of Numidia these wicked subiectes of his owne who demaunded helpe and complained where they ought not he calleth by the name of a fewe lost and desperate men who had attempted and done so manie thinges to the derogation of the auctoritie of their owne primate and submitted them selues to the vnlaufull auctoritie of heretical and schismaticall bishoppes quasi minor videatur esse authoritas episcoporum in Africa constitutorum As though the auctoritie seme to be lesse of the African bishoppes then of those of Numidia we must supplye who toke vpon them to defende and mainteine Fortunatus and his felowes condemned in Africa before By which is ment Africa the lesser wherein Carthage stoode from which Numidia was a distincte prouince whereas yow M. Nowell take Africa for the whole as it is counted the thirde parte of the worlde pretending as thoughe no one bishop of the other two partes of the worlde had more auctoritie then the bishoppes of Africa Excepte this be the meaning of the place you can not excuse S. Cyprian of being contrary to him selfe as by the auctoritie acknowledged by him in the pope in Fraunce in Spaine in Carthage as you haue hearde as by the calling in this verye epistle the churche of Rome the mother churche and roote of the catholike churche it dothe manifestly appeare Whiche of so graue an auctor is not to be thought To conclude therefore S. Cyprian dothe not here forbid all appellations from a bishop of one countrie to the B. of an other He saieth not that all bishoppes be of like auctoritie that none but naughtie and desperate men doe thinke the auctoritie of some bishoppes to
the worlde This one heade executed the censures of the churche vpon See M. Doctor Hardinges booke the seconde edition fol. 111. b. malefactours and transgressours of the ecclesiasticall canons confirmed the ordinations and elections off bishoppes approued or disalowed councelles restored bishoppes wrongfully condemned and depriued receiued into the church such as had erred and gone a straie and all this thorough out the whole worlde But with all this I saye I will not presse you because youre Apologie and you be it neuer so easy to be proued will yeat for your honour sake perhappes denie it Only this I aske of yow how yow be not ashamed to saie that it is impossible for one man to gouerne the whole churche seing by youre owne confession for 900. yeares it hathe bene so If yow will saie that the churche hathe bene euill gouerned these latter 900. yeares allthough that yow coulde right well proue as you shal neuer be hable what maketh that for this assertion off youres that one man can not possybly gouerne the whole churche conteining to vse yowre owne wordes so manie nations so diuerse Languages and natures of men Howe proueth it that one generall heade can not so ouersee his charge that he shall be able to kepe all churches from schismes and troubles and pacifie them when they are risen If one man alone coulde for the space of 900. yeares so rule all churches dispersed thorough out all the worlde that he Note was able to plant emongest so manie nations so diuerse languages and natures of men one naughty and corrupte faithe as yow saie might not the same or maye not an other with as muche facilitie haue planted or plant if it were to be planted a truthe thorough out the whole worlde If the churche haue bene so gouerned during this terme of 900. yeares that all the affaires of the churche haue by one heade bene so ordered that no membre hath had iust cause to complaine that all membres haue agreed in perfecte quietnesse one with an other and all with their heade as youre selfe hereafter confesse allthough yow labour to qualifye the matter in this wise In deede we must nedes confesse a truthe M. Nowels confession cōcerning the quiet agrement vnder the gouernement off the Pope fol. 56. b. 25. that whilest we all remained vnder the quiet obedience off youre Romishe heade in doctrine of his traditiōs there was a coloured hinde of quietnesse concorde and loue emongest all the membres of that heade the subiectes of that one gouernour and ruler and specially emongest the cleargie of that one churche if I saye by youre confession there was suche a quiete agreing thorough out all the worlde in false doctrine will you still abide by it that the same one heade that gouerned in this peasable maner all the worlde whome he fedde with euill doctrine might not haue gouerned them as quietly if he had deliuerd to them sounde and wholesome doctrine Or will you saye that God can doe lesse in procuring good thinges then the diuell in promoting euill that God can make one man hable alone to gouerne all the worlde without schismes or to appease them being moued as great as it is in euill gouernement but not in good If you will not saye thus you must nedes saie that it is nothing impossible for one man assisted by goddes grace to gouerne the churche of the whole worlde were it greater then it is and so to confesse with all that the Apologie in saing the contrary and yow in defending the Apologie haue bothe off yow falsely blasphemously and foolishely erred As for the reason whereunto the Apologie and yow leane that as God hathe giuen to no one king to be aboue all so to no one bishop to rule the whole churche that is as I tolde you before to appoint God because he hathe made manie kingdomes to make many heades of the churche which is but one and so consequently to multiply religions and make many faithes But because you repeate verie often this comparison and thinke it so absurde that there shoulde be any more one heade ouer the whole churche thē one chiefe king aboue all the kingdomes in the worlde I will here proue that within the first six hundred yeares it was taken for no absurditie There is no man I thinke that hathe bestowed anie time in the ecclesiasticall histories ignorant what a doe Theodora the Empresse wife to Iustinian the Emperour made to haue Siluerius the pope depriue Menna the good archebishop of Constantinople and to restore Anthimius the heretike laufully before by Agapetus the pope depriued To the which wicked attempt when by no meanes the good pope coulde be brought to consent false accusations were brought in against him and so he was by tirannie remoued and cōstreined to flee to a towne called Patara of the prouince of Lycia Whither the emperour Liberatus in Breuiario cap. 22. on a time comming the bishopp there as Liberatus the Archedeacon of Carthage writeth complaining to him and calling to witnesse the iust and terrible iudgemēt of God for the vniust expulsion of the bishop of so greate a seate addeth at the last these wordes Multos esse in hoc Many Kinges to gouerne the worlde one pope to gouerne the churche mundo reges non esse vnum sicut ille papa est super ecclesiam mundi totius a sua sede expulsus that there are manie kinges in this worlde and that there is no one only kinge as that pope is ouer all the whole churche of the worlde expelled from his seate Doe you not here see M. Nowell that within the first 600. yeares the whole worlde was gouerned by one heade in spirituall matters without anie necessitie to haue it so gouerned in temporall Woulde this good bishop is it credible being a suter to the Emperour if the churche had not bene gouerned by one heade at that time or if it had bene an absurditie that there shoulde be one chiefe bishop and manie equall kinges haue dasshed the Emperour in the mouthe with suche an absurde and flatte lye Or woulde the Emperour vpon this talcke immediatly haue caused Siluerius to be called backe againe into Italie and not rather haue checked the bishop for abusing him with a lye if he had not acknowledged his wordes to be true Thus muche I trust maye serue to make the indifferent reader vnderstande that I reprehended not the Apologie without iust cause You re railing against me because it is as youre selfe cōfesse fol. 39. a. beside the matter I passe ouer But so can I this by no meanes that yow take it for no reproche yow saye to haue Nowell b. 1. youre congregation secrete scattred and vnknowen to all the worlde because this is common to yow with the primitiue churche of oure Sauiour Christe and his holie Apostles Considre I beseche the good Reader whether these newe Dorman vpstart heretikes of oure age be not brought
to a very Exigent and to extreme desperation when to excuse the secretenesse of their congregation their hidden and vnknowen churche they wrappe them selues like crafty wolues for feare of being betraied in the fine fleeses and soft wooll of the name of Christe and his Apostles As though after so manie hundred yeares that Christes faithe hath floorished thorough out all the worlde it were nowe newe to begin againe Considre whether they ought not to be ashamed if shame there were anie in them to saie that the churche was in Christes time and his apostles secrete and vnknoweÌ„ seing that to them that shall reade the Actes Act. 2. 4 alibi of the Apostles it can not be vnknowen howe mightely the churche encreased euen in their tyme Seing that the Apostle S. Paule witnesseth the contrary in saing that the Rom. 1. faithe off the Romaines Christes true faithe was preached euen then in the vniuersall worlde It is therefore a A sclaunderouse and blasphemouse lye 28. moste sclaunderouse and blasphemouse lye to saye that Christes churche was at anye tyme after the comming downe of the holie ghost secrete or vnknowen It is a lye to saie that it was so hidden that who so euer woulde at anie time haue ioyned him selfe thereto might not haue knowen it But this is an olde shift off the Donatistes who when they coulde finde none off their religion but only in Africa were driueÌ„ to say that there the church was only as you must say it was 50. yeares agoe in Germanie or elles no where Of whom as S. AusteÌ„ said then so will I saie of you now O impudenteÌ„ voceÌ„ c. O impudeÌ„t voice is there no church because thow arte not in it See to thy selfe lest thow be not in it In psalm 101. therefore For the churche shal be allthough thow be not This abhominable this detestable voice of presumption and falshoode boulstred with no truthe lightened with no wisdome seasoned with no discretion vaine rashe hedlong perniciouse did the spirite of God forsee and spake euen as it were against them when he preached vnitie In gathering the people and kingdomes together to ser us Psalmus 101. oure lorde Where is now I praie you youre churche spred thorough all nations Where was there anie signe thereof in all the worlde the yeare before that Martin Luther begaÌ„ to preach his gospel When I call youre coÌ„gregation scattered and vnknoweÌ„ I haue relatioÌ„ to that time in which you first shewed your selues to the world For that you now brag that the pope and his haue both more knowledge and feling also of your coÌ„gration theÌ„ liking that is coÌ„mon to you seing you will nedes holde in coÌ„mon with the ArriaÌ„s Whose heresies were as famouse in the world as yours are and yeat coulde neuer by time so grow in credite God be praised therfore that their first beginning bewrayed them not to the worlde as youres doth you Might you not be ashamed M. Nowell if there were anie shame in you to goe about to persuade meÌ„ that Christes churche after fiftene hundred yeares shoulde be now in her enfancy yea within these fifty yeares not borne at all Ihon Caluin youre late maister in a litle treatise that he made against Michael Seruetus whome for his heresies he put to deathe in Geneua disputeth thus against him Ecclesiam fingit ab annis mille ducentis sexaginta fugatam Caluins opinion of the churche a mundo fuisse vt coelum illi exilium fuerit Nos certé é splendidis aedibus eiectam fuisse fatemur sed it a vt electas a se reliquias admirablili gratia seruauerit dominus Alioqui mentitus foret qui semper aliquem sibi populum in terra fore promisit quaÌ„diu Sol Luna in coelo fulgebunt Scimus quid passim de aeterno Christi regno testentur prophetae An eius sedem in coelis locant Imò fore praedicunt vt sceptrum eius é Sion procul dominus ostendat quo dominetur ab ortu vsque ad oâ—casum eius haereditas sit terraruÌ„ orbis Nunc ergo populo eum priuare qui nomeÌ„ eius celebret est ac si abscissa eius parte ipsum in coelo multilum includere tentemus Seruetus saieth Caluin feineth the churche these 12. hundred and thre score yeares to haue bene chased oute of the world so that it must be in banishement in heauen We trulie confesse that she hath bene cast out of glittring and shining palaces but yeat so that the lorde hathe preserued his chosen remenaÌ„tes by his merueilouse grace Otherwise he shoulde haue lyed who euer promised to him selfe some people in the earthe so long as the sonne and mone shoulde shine in the firmament We knowe what the prophetes doe in euerie place witnesse of the aeternal kingdom of Christe Doe they place his throne in heauen Yea trulie they prophecy that it shoulde come to passe that the lorde shoulde showe a far of his sceptre out of Sion with the which he shall rule froÌ„ the easte vnto the west and his enheritaunce shall be the whole worlde Now therefore to depriue him of his people which shoulde glorifie his name it is euen as though cutting of a parte of him we woulde assaie to include him mangled in heauen Thus farre Caluin touching the church And therfore you may not blame me M. Nowell if I reason as youre maister dothe nor maie not thinke your selfe well excused if after fiftie yeares you shewe a fewe remenantes of youre church which at the beginning thereof 51. yeares ago coulde not shewe in all the worlde one man that might be as a stone thereof so secrete so scattred so hidden and vnknowen was it Yow are not headlesse you saye yow haue Christe in heauen and youre prince vnder him c. you haue the rules and groundes Nowell fol. 39. b. 3 of goddes worde You are not headlesse if so manie bishoppes as you haue so manie heads you be vnder But you ioyne in no one head Dorman in earthe for which cause onelie I call you headlesse Your prince in earthe for now youre minde is changed and being past the places of S. Cyprian which made so muche for the auctoritie of priestes and bishoppes yow crie that the prince is youre heade can not make you haue a heade in earthe in so muche as youre whole congregation whereof I trowe yow will confesse youre selues in Englande to be membres is not vnder any one prince â–ª Yow haue not the rules and groundes of goddes worde to staye vpon forasmoche as you reiect the certeine meanes and waies to vnderstande goddes word by And therfore you knowe not whither to goe nor whereupon to rest That S. Hierom was of the minde that there ought to be one chiefe bishop in Christes churche Dialog aduersus Lucifer The 13. Chapter Yow graunt M. Nowell that saint Cyprian and saint Hierome fol. 30. b. 23. fol.
by and by to be confounded as one in truthe and nature the names whereof be confounded Otherwise because the Apostles are in the gospell called disciples an Apostle and a disciple are all one which is well knowen not to be so Likewise though the termes of prieste and bishop were common yeat the thinges were neuer one in so muche that S. Austen making mention of the heresie of Aerius saieth Dicebat etiam praesbiterum ab episcopo nulla differentia secerni debere He saide Ad quod vult Deum haeres 57. also that a prieste ought to be distinguished from a bishop by no difference But what meane you here M. Nowell to talcke so much of the equalitie of bishoppes and priestes being a matter in this place nothing to oure purpose Or if it were seing it might be saide that euen as the olde canons as I declared before in that equalitie which is in priestehode vsed yeat In the 6. chapitre fol. 33. b. the worde Archipraesbiter chiefe prieste and ordeined suche a dignitie in the churche so there is nothing that letteth why in the equalitie of bishoppes and priestes while no one is more bishop or prieste then an other there maie How one bishop is equall to an other not be degrees notwithstanding of superioritie allthough not in the sacrament of ordres which is common to them all yeat in the execution of that power that is conferred thereby But perhappes you be of the opinion youre selfe that there ought to be no difference betwene a bishop and a prieste and therefore are the gladder to snatche occasion by all meanes direct or indirect to vtter youre minde therin Nowe foloweth vpon this grounde laied that bishoppes and priestes be by the first institution and the lawe of God one youre conclusion whereby you will make it appeare that you haue not without cause made mention of this equalitie of bishoppes and priestes So that all bishoppes which be the successours of the Apostles Nowell b. 24. be also praesbiteri that is to saie elders or priestes Whereof it foloweth also that there is an equalitie emongest all bishoppes by goddes lawe as the equall successours of the Apostles And that this is S. Hieromes minde in that place all learned men who haue reade the saide epistle doe well knowe This was not the minde of S. Hierome but is an idle Dorman phantasy of youre owne The learned knowe and to their iudgement I appeale that his minde was here to compare together the state of a prieste and a bishop in the sacrament of holie ordres common aswell to the one as to the other that so he might refell the better the errour of those who helde that deacons ought to be equall to priestes as appeareth by these wordes of his in the beginning of the epistle In this epistle ad Euagri◠Nam quum Apostolus c. For whereas the Apostle teacheth manifestly that priestes and bishoppes be one what eyleth the seruaūt * He meaneth deacons of widowes and tables arrogātly to extoll him selfe aboue them at whose praiers the bodie and bloud of Christe is made Doth not this example put in the consecrating of the bodie and bloude off Christe the whiche the poorest prieste that is hathe as good auctoritie to doe giuen hym in the sacrament of holie ordres as the pope him selfe declare that S. Hieromes minde was no otherwise to make priestes equall to bishoppes but in the only ordre of priestehode common to bothe Yea but yow will saie that the Apostles were equall in all respectes for if you saie not so you can not conclude absolutely as yow doe that all bishoppes their successours be so equall If yow saie so that is but your bare Lib. 1. contra Iouinianum saing only not by the auctoritie of S. Hierome confirmed but most plainly by the same impugned Who in one place saieth that emongest the twelue there was a heade chosen Peter by name and in an other place that Christ made Peter In cap. Marci 14. Note the cause of appointing one heade the maister of his house THAT VNDER ONE SHEPHERD THERE MAY BE ONE FAITH Which is directly against the equalitie that you build vpō But let it be graunted vnto you that the apostles were equal yeat shall not your cōclusion folow for all that For it is to be considered that in the Apostles there is a double respect which is to be weighed nowe of vs. Either we considre them as they were all Apostles or as they were bishoppes As they were Apostles they How the Apostles were all equall were all equall they had all like power to preache and teache thorough out the whole worlde As they were bishoppes and rulers of particuler churches they were all subiect to Petre the chiefe bishop of all As they were Apostles that is to saye generall legates to plante Christes faithe thorough out all the world to founde churchs to preach the word of God finally to gouerne vniuersally in all places where their should come they trāsmitted this right none of thē to their successours but only Peter who was the generall shepherd of all Which is the cause that some of the fathers namely S. Austē saie that the power giuen to Peter was giuē to him In psalm 208. in the persone of the church because it was not giuē to him alone but to all his successours to cōtinue for euer As the Apostles were bishops of particuler places their auctoritie ended not with them but wēt further to the whole church to cōtinue for euer Now to applye this to our purpose howe doe the bishoppes that now are succede the Apostles They succede them as bishoppes not as Apostles For if they succeded them so who seeth not that as the Apostles made lawes absolued excommunicated and ruled thorough out all How bisshoppes be the successours of the Apostles the worlde where so euer they came so might the bishoppes that nowe succede thē doe the like The which thing seing we finde by no recordes sith the apostles time that euer it was practised in the church and if it should it were the nexte waie to disquiet al the worlde and to fill the churche full of schismes and heresies reason it selfe dothe conuince that the ordre taken emongest the Apostles was but by speciall priuileage not appointed to continue for euer or to derogate anie thing from the generall ordre begonne in Peter and appointed to be perpetuall as long as the church shoulde endure To conclude therfore I graunte to you M. Nowell that the Apostles were equall as they were all the generall legates of Christe but not as they had their speciall bishoprikes and charges limited vnto them In which latter sense because the bishoppes that are nowe succede the Apostles in which pointe they were not equall it foloweth against you that all bishoppes be not equall Iff yow will saye that the Apostles were also equall euen in that that
the bishop had only this power more then a prieste that yow speake of Might not the meanest prieste in his diocesse for all this imagine and sowe emongest the people what lewde opinions he list and tell the bishop to his face if he shoulde reproue him therefore that he passeth the boundes of his office who hathe nothing elles to doe but to confirme suche as were lately baptised If this be true M. Nowell where is nowe Vnus ad tempus index vice Christi one iudge for the time Lib. 1. epistol 3. in the steede of Christe mentioned before by S. Cyprian and acknowledged by youre selfe to be the bishop in his diocesse If he be the iudge in Christes stede ouer al the rest then his power extendeth further I trowe then to confirmation For what iudiciall acte is there done in the ministring thereof Thus it appeareth howe shamefully you haue beelied S. Hierom how lewdely you haue abused his wordes to suche a foolishe sense as no learned or wise eares can abide Nowe to youre thinking that if a prieste by S. Hieromes minde may doe as much as a bishop that then one bisshop maie doe as muche by Goddes lawe as an other Isaye S. Hierom beelyed againe 30. that I thinke not but I knowe and beleue that you lye vpon S. Hierome who saieth not nor is of that minde that a prieste maye doe asmuche as a bishop For in this epistle to Euagrius he excepteth the power of making priestes in the dialogue against the Luciferians the auctoritie of ordinary confirming and in bothe the places he graunteth to one which must nedes be the bishop a peerelesse power aboue all the rest for the auoiding of schismes So that this being true you shoulde rather haue thought that one bisshop might doe as muche as an other certeine thinges excepted or elles you shoulde haue bene better ocupied to haue thought vpon some other matter I maruell M. Nowell that you harpe so muche vpon this string of making bisshoppes and priestes equall whereunto if youre Archebishoppes and bishoppes loke not in time I thinke those goodfelowe ministres shoemakers weuers tinkers broomemen coweherdes fidlers etc whome youre bishoppes haue made equall to you that be â–ª inferiour ministers yow of youre goodnes will shortly make equall to youre bishoppes and archebishoppes You procede and saye Further seing this one afterwarde chosen to rule the rest was Nowell fo 43. b. â—â— chosen as well at Alexandria as at Rome orolles where c It must nedes fall out that these wordes one chosen to rule the rest either make for no supremacie of any one bishop ouer all the churche as apperteining to euery bishop in his owne diocesse or if M. Dorman will nedes inforce a supremacie by the saide wordes he shal be inforced to confesse the saide supremacie to be common to the B. of Alexandria where S. Hierome saieth this one was chosen to rule the rest with the B. of Rome as by the other place last alleaged by M. Dorman out of S. Cyprian the saide Supremacie shoulde apperteine to the B. of Carthage c. I haue shewed so often before howe I inforce vpon these Dorman wordes a supremacie ouer the whole churche to wit not directly but by an ineuitable consequent that it is needelesse to repeate my wordes againe And therefore in thus applieng this place to my purpose there is no feare of bringing the generall gouernement ouer the whole churche to Charthage or Alexandria If yow haue no other thing to trouble yow then that yow maye be quiet and take youre rest As for that that yow saye that Christe is as muche A sclaunderouse lie 31. blasphemed at Rome as he is either at Alexandria or Carthage that is one of youre sclaunderouse lyes as they can well tell who trauailing thither heretikes and finding there more feruent deuotion then elles where with all thinges contrarie to youre sclaunderouse reportes made at home in youre sermones and writinges haue returned God be praised therefore good and perfect catholikes Of the true religion vsed in the which place as if it were not impertinent here I coulde saie muche so one thing written by S. Hierome in the praise of Rome which I doubte not but yow count emongest those blasphemies that are there you saie vsed against God I caÌ„ in no wise omitte Vbi saieth he alibi tanto studio frequenâ—ia ad ecclesias ad martyrum sâ—pulcra Hieron in proaemio 2. epist. ad Galatas concurritur Where in anie other place is there suche concourse with suche affection and nombre to the churches and sepulchres of martirs Seing that this a praise and token of deuotion for so saieth S. Hierome in this place is more in the Romaines where this frequeting of churches visiting of martyrs is so muche vsed then in other places where it is lesse yea nothing at all as at Carthage and Alexandria if there were nothing elles this alone woulde proue you a lier For euen at this daie the same deuotioÌ„ is as muche vsed at Rome as in S. Hieromes time it was and in Carthage and Alexandria where Machometans now dwel as muche frequented as it is with you and youre felowes in England S. Hierome saith expressely that all bishoppes be equall and Nowell fo 44. a. 3 none superiour and inferiour to another by goddes lawe S. Hierome saith that all bishoppes be of one priestehod Dorman and merite that is to saie no one more a bishop then an other That no one is in iurisdiction aboue or beneathe the other that he hathe in no place And yeat is this the thing that yow shoulde proue It hurteth not oure cause in case that we graunte that this place Nowell do the apperteine to the Apostles and that one was chosen emongest the Apostles them selues to haue the chiefe place that is to speake first to moderate other to staye contention and to remedie schismes Naie it maketh with vs directly who doe graunte that as emongest those 12. one was so chosen to be ruler so it is good that in euery competent nombre of priestes and cleargie 〈◊〉 be chosen likewise to be ruler If yow will be liberall M. Nowell be liberall as yow Dorman shoulde be and marre not all with a little pelting If yow will at the length yealde to the truthe that Petre was heade Lib. 1. contra IouiniaÌ„ of the other apostles confesse also with S. Hierome that it was not the Apostles doing to choose him emongest them â–ª selues Note but that it was magister bonus their good maister who chose Peter to be the heade for the auoiding of schismes Confesse that this maketh not with yow but directly against yow who mainteine that all bishoppes be equall in iurisdiction and no one aboue the other For yow deceiue youre selfe and other toe when you saie that as emongest the 12. apostles there was one aboue the rest so in euerie competent
leane vnto so notable a lie The first exception against this testimonie of Leo is this Nowell b. 13. No man maie be witnesse in his owne cause nor iudge Therefore Leo his testimonie brought furthe for the preeminence of his own See is not to be admitted c. This exception of youres yow proue by reason by scripture by lawe First to answere youre reason if reason theire maie be in Dorman anie so vncharitable a iudgement I saie it is false that the holiest and best men be lightly partiall in their owne matters He is neither holie nor good much lesse to be accounted amongest the holiest and best that for the bettring off his owne cause will swarue from the truthe Youre testimonie alleaged out of the ghospell is not to the purpose Ioan. 5. For that place proueth not that allwaies the testimonie that a man giueth of himselfe is false but that when a man hath to doe with aduersaries that will not otherwise beleue him as the Phariseis woulde not Christ then he must vse the testimonie of other theÌ„ him selfe Which as Leo in such case you maie be suer did so wheÌ„ the matter was so farre froÌ„ being by anie aduersarie gainesaide that he made his commission B. 25. to the bishop of Thessalonica to be in his steade thorough out Grecia and other countries adioning as he did here what nede had he there to bring anie proufes where there was at all no doubte If yow will saie that I defending the auctoritie of the pope bring Leo against yow which are the aduersaries and that therefore nowe becawse you are against Christes vicair as the Phariseis were against Christe him selfe for so doe yow confesse that you M. Nowell confesseth him selfe to reason against Leo as the phariseis dyd against Christ reason as they did although perhappes yow woulde haue bene angrie with an other that should haue saide so much so I must bring other witnesse then him except I will take the foile To that I answere that you come nowe to late with that exception if it had no other faulte For to answere you who dispute so depely oute of the lawe like one that is not alltogether ignorant therein conclusum est in causa M. Nowell sententia transijt in rem iudicataÌ„ I nede not to expounde these termes vnto you who haue the marow of the glose euen at youre fingres endes For other men who haue not atteined to such knowledge I saie that seing in Leo his time when he appointed in this epistle the bishop of Thessalonica in his steade thorough out Grecia and other countries adioining in an other place the B. of Orleance or some other thorough out Fraunce Hormisdas bishop of Hispalis to be his vicair in Spaine the churches that theÌ„ were and in to whose power the churches of this time succede excepted nothing against these doinges of his in his owne cause as you surmise but suffered theÌ„ to passe till our time the space of 1100. yeares and odde I answere I saye for replie to youre exception that had this testimonie bene being vrged by the rigour of the lawe insufficient that yeat forasmoche as the churche from that time hetherto accepted it for sufficient you come now to late to propose matter against it To make the matter by example more plaine if my auncestor a hundred yeares past in a contention betwene him and some other aboute a piece of landes woulde vpon trust of the vpright conscience of some neare kinsman of his aduersaries admit him to be a witnesse or iudge in the matter whome he might laufullie repell might I if sentence were giuen against my auncestor by the meanes of this iudge or witnesse come after the 100. yeares and excepte against the witnesse or iudge Leo speaketh not nowe M. Nowell he gaue this testimonie that the giueth 1100. yeares agoe The whole churche iustified his persone then to be bothe holie and blessed It is to late and to muche shame also for yow to starte vp now and saye the contrary Thus muche might be saied if it were true that Leo had bene witnesse or iudge in his own cause But the truthe is it is not his cause it is the cause of Christes church and of the whole ordre of priesthod For he pronouÌ„ceth for that seate vnde vnitas sacerdotalis exorta est froÌ„ whence priestly vnitie Cipr. li. 4. Epis 9. â—libi came Neither is Leo in this place more to be reiected for mainteining the supremacie of Peters seate wherein he theÌ„ sate then are the testimonies of S. CipriaÌ„ mainteining the iurisdiction of his owne bishoprike against stubborne rebelles Shall S. Hieromes auctoritie against deacons who woulde be equall with priestes be of no auctoritie because him selfe was a prieste This is not the meaning M. Nowell of the glose as greate a gloser as you be The glose meaneth that in priuate matters that concerne the pope as he is likewise How the glose brought by M. Nowell is to be vnderstande a priuate maÌ„ he shal not him selfe be iudge but in those thinges which concerne the whole bodie of the church and beloÌ„g to the ordre therof and haue no other iudge in earth it taketh not away the power of being witnesse or iudge Pighius you saye alleaged beside the decree of the pope the councell Nowell fol. 46. a. 1 of Vienna lest anie man might estemethe auctoritie the lesse as proceding from the pope in his owne case And by this yow saye it maye seeme that he thinketh the popes onelie testimonie in his owne cause not to be sufficient Pighius was neuer of that minde that you would haue him seme to be When he spake these wordes he touched Dorman the humour and noted the fashion of heretikes and therfore ex abundanti he cast in the mention of the councell of Vienna which I coulde doe also if that woulde helpe the matter and for Vienna giue yow Calcedon for 300. bringe yow 630. bishoppes that called Leo the kepar of Christes vineyard vniuersal bishop with other termes to that effect I forbare to alleage I confesse so muche in one place off a 28. my boke the notable testimonies of Clemens Anacletus Euaristus Alexander Xistus Telesphorus Pius Victor Fabianus and suche other onely because the gainesaiers might happelie haue excepted against them that because they were bishoppes of Rome they were not in that cause which was there owne indifferent witnesses How saye you M. Nowell what gather you hereof That you might laufullye take exception to them as not indifferent If you gather so you wrangle with me My wordes that went before in whiche to iustifie their persones and to shewe how vnlaufullie you shoulde doe it I called them martirs and in the whole course of their liues verie apostles doe witnesse with me the contrarie Yeat saide I that you might doe it de facto not de iure as you maie kill a man in dede but
Italie or Rome it selfe for his wordes haue euidentlie that relation and that none thinke the auctoritie of one bishop to be lesse then the auctoritie an other but a few wicked and desperate men You were driuē to the wall M. Nowell when you were forced Dorman for a pore shift to say that Leo said as he did because he wolde haue bene lord and heade ouer the church S. Cipriā saith that euerie bishop hath his seuerall portion The same saieth Leo. Leo saieth that the charge of the vniuersall church must Lib. 1. ep 3 haue recourse to Peters chaire S. Ciprian saieth not the cōtrarie Yea so saieth S. Ciprian toe calling Rome matricem the mother church And whither should children I pray you haue recourse for succour but to their mother He saith not that the subiecte of one bishop may not appeale to an other Lyes that is one lie He saieth not that the cause determined by one bishop may be called before no other that is an other lie He maketh no comparison as you say he doth betwene the bishoppes of Afrike Italie and Rome behold the third lye He saieth not that none but a fewe wicked and desperate men thinke the auctoritie of one bishop to be lesse then the auctoritie of an other which if he shoulde youre selfe were like by that meanes to be of the nombre of such desperate and wicked men who before acknowledged chiefe prelates a worde that presupposeth other that be inferiour and fol. 32. 2. be cōtrarie to him selfe as I proued before by his writing to Steuen the pope wherby he required him to take ordre by his lettres for the remouing from his bishoprike Martianus the B. of Arles and by that that him selfe sent to Rome to Cornelius to trie the matter before him with those euill mē that complained vpon him there by his excepting againste the sentence giuen by the pope for the restitution of Basilides for no other cause but because it was obteined by false information All which exāples doe not only proue that he was not of the minde that no one bishop was aboue an other but this also that the B. of Rome was of greater auctoritie then the bishoppes of Fraunce Spaine or Afrike Hetherto of the disagrement betwene S. Ciprian and Leo which by this time all men I trust perceiue to be no suche as you vaunted it was yea to be none at all but suche consent rather as in diuerse wordes there can not be greater It foloweth that we examine how Hierome and Leo agree S Hierome yow saye hath that all churches worshipping one Nowell fo 51. a. 10 Borowed out of Caluin Inst. lib. 4 cap. 7. Sect. 3. Christe and obseruing one rule of truthe are equall with the churche of Rome that all bishoppes be the successours of the Apostles and of one priestehod and of the same merite and dignitie But Leo saieth contrarie that it was giuen to one to be aboue all the rest and that they who be in greater diocesses or cities haue more care and auctoritie and that the onelie see of Peter hath charge of the vniuersall churche and is heade thereof Yow belye S. Hierome He saieth not that all the churches Dorman A lye 38. in the worlde be equall If he did he shoulde saie contrarie to Irinaeus who saieth that the churche of Rome hath potentiorem principalitatem greater souereintie then other churches haue contrary to S. Cipriā who calleth Rome the Li. 1. cap. 3 Lib. 1. ep 3. mother churche the roote and principall churche and contrarie to S. Austen who calleth it the churche in the which the principalitie of the apostolicall see hath allwaies florished Epist 162. He saieth that Christes church is not diuided * Nec altera Romanae vrbis ecclesia altera totius orbis existimanda as thoghe Rome were one and the whole worlde an other As for that that he saieth that all bishoppes be the successours off the apostles those wordes make merueilously for the opinion of Leo against you For vpon that proposition of S. Hierome I reason thus All bishoppes be the successours of the Apostles but the Apostles were not all equal because as S Hierom saith Peter was their head Ergo by S. Hieromes minde all bishoppes who be their successours be not equall but haue the successour of Peter their heade Againe Peter was heade of the Apostles and made because there shoulde arise no schisme emongest them Ergo the B. off Rome who is Peters successour must be heade of his felowe bishoppes for the same cause These two propositions that there was emongest the Apostles one heade and that that was Peter be S. Hieromes owne in his first boke against Iouinian The wordes although I rehersed before yeat because they perteine not onelie to this matter but to shewe also how these thre Ciprian Hierome and Leo mete and knit as it were together in this sentence that Christ appointed ouer his church one generall heade I will recite once againe The wordes therfore of S. Hierō to Iouiniā be these At dicis super Petrum fundatur ecclesia licet idipsum in alio loco super omnes apostolos fiat cuncti claues regni coelorum accipiant ex aequo super eos ecclesiae fortitudo solidetur tamen propterea inter duodecim vnus eligitur vt capite constituto schismatis tollatur occasio That is to saie But thou saiest The churche is builded vpon Peter although the same in an other place be done vpon all the Apostles and all of them receiue the keyes of heauen and equallye is the strength of the churche grounded vpon them yeat for all that is there one chosen emongest the twelue that by making a heade emongest them occasion of schisme maye be taken awaye See yow not nowe by this place of S. Hierome M. Nowell howe the equalitie of power that S. Cyprian speaketh of the similitude of honour and equalitie of calling that Leo remembreth the building of the churche in one place vpon all the Apostles indifferentlie that S. Hierome mentioneth notwithstanding they all three conclude in one maner with this worde tamen notwithstanding that the churche was builded vpon one that there was one heade that there was one preferred before the reste This place of S. Hierome as it vtterly stoppeth their mouthes who reason that the Apostles were absolutely in all pointes equall so confirmeth it moste strongly the answere made before to the place of S. Ciprian that the Apostles were all of equall power and auctority that that was true at the first but Ioan. 20. that after oure Lorde last before his ascension gaue the Ioan. 21. chiefe auctoritie to one in respecte as one was chosen from the rest vpon whome the churche shoulde be builded S. Hierome saieth that al bishoppes are of one priesthode and of the same merite you plaie the falsefier and adde of youre owne and of the same dignitie The gentlewoman
that translated a. 24. S. Hierom falsefied by adding the word dignitie whiche is not in him the Apologie hath preeminence whiche maketh me to thinke that you borowed this patche of her as liking better to be a folower of her falsehoode then of his simplicitie that translating Caluins institutions translated the place truly Nowe for further answere to this place of S. Hierome it is to be vnderstande that he speaketh here of the custome which was in Rome that at the testimonie off deacons priestes were promoted to ordres The whiche when he saieth he speaketh not of the B. of Rome him selfe and his auctoritie but of the vse and custome of that one citie Nowe is this a thing moste certeine that neither dothe the pope requier nor euer did that all churches shoulde folowe the priuate customes of his churche And therefore saieth S. Hierome that the custome of the citie of Rome is not the custome of the worlde Yea in suche a case if the custome came to be tried the pope him selfe woulde saie Si auctoritas quaeritur orbis est maior vrbe If you seke to mainteine this custome by auctoritie the worlde is greater then is a citie Againe where as you woulde persuade men that all bishoppes be equall because S. Hierome saieth that they be of equall merite and priesthode So were the Apostles toe yeat was one aboue the reste for all that as Hierome him selfe confesseth calling Peter the heade appointed by Christe You haue hearde good readers and I trust in parte vnderstode what shamefull shiftes M. Nowell hathe made howe busilie the man hathe bestirred him selfe with false additions wrong translations hacking hewing and dismembring of sentences howe he hath spared no vilanouse wordes or impudent lies to deface this vertuouse and learned father Leo. To shewe him selfe no changling he concludeth with a conclusion lyke to his premisses that he thinketh that fier and water are not of a more contrarie nature then are S. Nowell a. 31. b. 13. Cyprian and S. Hierome contrarie to this epistle alleaged as Leo the popes epistle beside S. Augustine and 200. and mo bishoppes agreing with them against this Leo. He repeteth againe his exceptions that Leo in his owne cause is to be suspected that it is to be doubted whether it be Leo his epistle in dede or an others vnder his name that the wordes of his testimonie be eather manifestly falsefied or at the least in diuerse copies not onelye diuerse but cleane contrarie And here his tendre harte coulde not suffer him anie longer to refreine him selfe but needes he fol. 52. a. 2. must burst oute and lament as it were the case off the pope and poperie that is brought nowe to suche miserie as that being forsaken of all men almoste learned and graue it coulde finde no other patrones but suche as I am Allthoughe for that he confesseth that all suche as are godly and loue the truthe haue cause to thanke almightie God Howe contrarie Leo is to S. Cyprian and S. Hierome Dorman let the learned iudge how S. Augustine and the other bisshoppes make for you the next chapitre because it dependeth vpon the historie of Zozimus shall make euident To the being witnes in his owne cawse to the doubte of the worcke whether it be Leo his or no hathe bene answered before Allthough to certifie yow further in the last point albeit reason woulde yow shoulde haue showed some better cause of youre doubte then yow haue lest by that meanes euerie auctoritie brought against yow maie be called in to controuersie if it please yow to doubte therof I doe note to yow here in the margent other places out of the same Sermon 1. 2. 3. In die Aniuers assumpt suae ad Pontificat Leo his worckes no epistles but certeine sermons of his where yow shall finde that Peter into whose place he saieth that he vnworthily succeded had the same right ouer the vniuersall churche that here in this epistle he chalengeth For the wordes that they be not falsified in this epistle I alleaged before a copie printed at Coleine which readeth as I doe But then you saie that the wordes be cleane contrarie and so that it is impossible that bothe shoulde be true Nowell B. 22. I am content M. Nowell to yow that yow take the Dorman place of Leo how yow will and reade either as some copies haue without non or as other haue with non and when yow haue done all shall come to one sense For allthough non being but a little sillable be notwithstanding of greate importaunce generallie yeat here by reason of the worde ordo which is ambiguouse and signifieth either a corporation and bodie as we vse to saie the honorable knightes off the ordre or proportiō in aray as when the herauld telleth euerie Lord what ordre he shall kepe in their solēne processions or other assemblies where this word is taken in an other significatiō and also of the word dignitas which being in like manner ambiguouse signifieth either the dignitie of the state of bishoppes or superioritie in that state it maketh no diuersitie at all When we reade thus Quibus etsi dignitas non sit communisest tamen ordo generalis To whome all though there be not one dignitie common yeat is there one ordre generall we vnderstande by this worde order the whole order of bishoppes emongest whome allthough there be diuersitie of dignities yeat because bishoppes archebishoppes primates patriarches popes be all bishoppes we saie that that order of being bishop is common to them all Likewise in this reading we take dignitas for superioritie in that ordre As contrariewise in the other reading Quibus etsi dignitas sit communis non est tamen ordo generalis we vnderstand that dignitas dothe signifie that whiche ordo did before and ordo signifieth that which dignitas did that is superioritie and preeminence in that vocation We were not blinde you see M. Nowell and I trust will beare vs witnes I thinke we sawe more then yow woulde we shoulde haue done As for my parte by whose taking this cawse in hande yow iudge that the matter shoulde be brought to greate extremitie I confesse God is my witnes that had I knowen that he had minded to haue written therein who dyd that I thinke I shoulde neuer haue taken pen in hande to haue written nor when I had done and ended my laboure and knewe howe muche how learnedlye had bene sayde for the defence thereof should euer haue suffered the same to goe in to the knowleadge off men had I not folowed the iudgement off my betters therein To which good meaning of myne at the firste and readie obedience to my superiours at the last seing that it hath pleased almightie God to giue suche successe as that M. Nowell hauing vttred all his eloquence and spent all his other store in awnswering of 143. leaues to onelye 15. hathe not yeat answered trulye
innocencie by the scriptures as yowe youre doctrine thereby Except yow so ment to wrest my example to youre meaning or to suppose a thing that can not be as that an offendour worthy to dye by the lawes shoulde finde scripture for his defence either it lacketh to saie no worse policie or honestie And thus I let this parable passe That whiche foloweth of Sardanapalus Nero Heliogabalus fo 77. b. 4 Ventriloqui and suche like is but a twang of youre harpe whiche hathe nowe so often sounded vpon one string that yowe make vs beleue that yowe haue no more varitie in harping then hathe the cuckow shift of descant in singing It is a world to see how here yow lash owt the gospell in B. 26. the margent of youre boke against pardons masses soule masses trentalles diriges how yow defende the cause of Math. 21. 23. Marc. 12. the pore widowe that had her onelie cowe yowe wote not where taken awaie As though S. Mathewe and S. Marcke had expressely made mention of these thinges the widowes cowe and all whereas there is no suche thing in them to be founde sauing that there is mention of suche as robbe widdowes housen and in an other place of the castinge of the byers and sellers owte of the temple which if yowe thinke yow maie applie to such pore priestes emongest vs as were rewarded with a grote after they had saide masse for a soule departed this worlde what Marchandise is it I praie yowe that youre ministres make in taking a marcke ten shillinges a noble at the leaste for euerie funerall sermon I will not matche with you in Plautus termes in whome fo 78. a. ◠it appeareth you haue bestowed more time then in S. Austen or an other good doctour of the church and perhappes I might adde haue better borne awaie suche Plautine periphrases then oute of the scripture good Christian lessons Yeat this I must nedes marueile at M. Nowell how you be so sodenly fallen out with pore priestes lasshing at them so cruelly with youre Plautine periphrases To the whole ordre of whome in king Edwardes daies you pretended either for feare or flattry to beare so muche good will that whereas the auctor of the comoedy called Andrisca had feined a prieste to haue misused him selfe withe a curriers wife you exhibiting the same comoedy before the reuerend father in God the B. that then was of westminstre turned the prieste whome nowe it pleaseth yow to call by a plautine periphrasis trifur trifurcifer in to a souldior whome yow named Trisimachus At this sodeine change I saye of minde I can not choose but maruell and of the same can finde no cause excepte it be that from a sobre and modest scholemaister you be transformed into a lewde and Ruffianly souldiour as by the warlike phrases in youre booke and gonneshot of terrible threateninges and boasting bragges so common to yow in youre sermones yow giue men iust cause to thinke Of this argument of the Protestants Christe is heade of the churche Ergo the Pope is not Ergo there is no other The 22. Chapitre FIRST where as you saie that I made a wōdring before fo 73. b. 22. that Christe shoulde be heade of the churche I neuer wondered thereat but saide we founde no faulte therewith but confessed the same oure selues You beely me therefore As A lye 68. for your argument surely it shall neuer be worth a pypt nutte Yes saye you the argument is good Because the Apologie taketh the worde churche for the Vniuersall Nowell churche which hath not nor can possibly haue anie earthelie heade ouer it to gouerne it as hath bene often at large heretofore declared Wheresoeuer you haue declared anie thing before touching Dorman See the 11. Chapitre before and the. 12. this impossibilitie of one heade ouer Christes churche there haue I answered yow thither I refer the reader Yow might declare the good affection that yow haue to proue it and therfore yow saide circunspectly that you had declared for surely yow neuer proued it hetherto I saide that youre argument did not holde whereby yow reasoned that there could be no other heade of Christes vniuersall churche because Christe was him selfe no more then if one woulde saie that the prieste did not baptise forgiue sinnes c. because Christ do the these thinges by the meanes of his ministres To this yow saie that these examples make rather againste me then with me But why M. Nowell I praie yow Youre reason foloweth For one chiefe heade hath diuerse vndreministres in diuerse Nowell fo 79. a. 1. seruices and places vsually but what perteineth that to proue that there must be one heade ouer all places and seruices ecclesiasticall thorough out the whole worlde which is vnpossible to be These examples were neuer brought M. Nowel to proue Dorman that there must be one heade ouer the whole churche but to remoue the foolishe argument made against that one heade now they make not for one heade saye yow ergo they make rather against me Neither can youre scholasticall distinction of caput absolutum and Nowell ministeriale helpe the matter nor yeat Hosius declaration tending to the same ende how bishoppes be bothe seruantes and lordes can in this case any thing furder you For there can not possibly be one only heade ouer all the church more then there can be one vniuersall ciuile heade absolute in earth ouer all the worlde it selfe What a blinde harpar is this that harpeth allwayes vpon one string and giueth allwaies one solutiō to all argumentes and yeat neuer giueth other reason to fortifie that common solutiō grounded vpon Gods not omnipotency but impotency and lacke of power then that sory and seely reason which nedeth as muche to be vnderpropped as the other and betwene which two comparisons the difference hath bene manifestly showed before allreadie of gouerning the whole worlde by one vniuersall ciuile heade He neuer proueth but euer repeateth It is impossible it is impossible there shoulde be one heade thinking that at the leaste by often repeting and stoute bearing out the matter he shall make it at the length to seme right well proued to the reader I knowe M. Dorman dothe so qualifie this the popes supremacye Nowell 22. a. terming him caput ministeriale the ministeriall heade for that Christe is the absolute heade of all But yeat in respecte off the whole churche as being vnder the Pope he will haue hym called caput the heade But I woulde haue hym to make that relation of caput and these wordes seruus seruorum to agree and to be bothe caput and seruus or minister respectu eiusdem the head and the seruaunt in one respecte especiallye claiming suche a * M. Nowells terme capitalitye as dothe the Pope which can not agree with the humble ecclesiasticall ministerie c. Belike you woulde haue apposed Christe if it had bene Dorman youre chaunce to be
is not necessarie that thinges compared should be one in all pointes They agree in this that kinges and bishoppes are bothe heades and gouernours the pointe where in the comparison was made Nowe whereas to this that I saie that the B. of Cauntorbury is heade off the bishoprike and diocesse of London as he is of all the bishoprikes within his prouince and that yeat a man can not infer vpon this that therefore the bishopp of London is not heade of that his diocesse as yow doe in saing that because Christe is heade of the whole churche therfore there is no other vnder him whereas I saie to this yow answere that youre bishoppes take it for theire chiefe honour to be and to be called gods ministres in his churche so doe oure bishoppes to M. Nowell and vsed no other titles then those whiche your false bishoppes hauing falsely vsurped vse and abuse at this daie but what is that to the matter that we entreate of Well be bolde man and blushe not coffe owt that tuffe fleaume that lieth in youre throte and saie that the archebishop is of no more power then the bishop If yow had saide thus then had yow answered yeat some thing whereas nowe yowe haue answered nothinge Except this maie stande for youre answere when yow proue it that neither Archebishop nor bishop maie be called heades of the churches fo 81. a. 6. that they gouerne but rather kinges and princes Whiche opinion because yowe see that it is contrarie to all M. Nowell laboureth to helpe his owne contradiction by a folishe shift that yow saied before touching the places of S. Cyprian and S. Hierome where yowe confessed so often that euerie bishop was heade of his owne diocesse to salue that sore yow saie Yeat I denie not but that bishoppes maie be and haue bene Nowell a. 17. though improprely named heades euen by good writers as the scholemaister of a prince in that the prince is his scholer is his heade c. Surely bishoppes are muche beholden vnto yowe that Dorman yow graunte them so muche auctoritie ouer their flocke as yow had ouer your scholers when yow were scholemaister of Westminstre But I praie you M. Nowell cal to your remēbraunce that S. Ciprian saieth of the bishop that he is in the diocesse where he ruleth the iudge in Christes stede that S. Hierom calleth him the high prieste that he must he saieth haue pearelesse auctoritie aboue all other that schismes rise by not obeing him and iudge with your selfe what a handsome comparison you haue made But admitting euen youre owne similitude you shall see how muche you haue saide for the auctoritie of bishoppes against that vnlaufull othe which you exact of all men Euē as the scholemaistre is in his schole the heade of his scholers allthough they be princes so be bishoppes the heades of suche as be in their seuerall bishoprikes all though they be princes but the scholemaister in his schoole is the supreme gouernour in all thinges and causes belonging to the schole his scholers allthough princes hauing in those thinges no power to commaunde Ergo the bishoppes are euery one in his churche the supreme gouernours in all thinges ecclesiasticall and princes haue no auctoritie to entremedle therein The which conclusion deduced M. nowell from your comparison as youre selfe with honestie can not mislike so I trust it shall displease no prince considering that as S. Ambrose saieth there can be nothing more honorable for Epist 32. ad Valent. the Emperour then to be called the sonne of the churche For a good Emperour saieth he is within the churche not aboue the churche But because this sentence is become nowe in Englande by the meanes of certeine clawbackes to be odioufe I will in defence of M. Nowell if anie perhappes woulde quarell with him for giuing to bishoppes so greate auctoritie adde out of Chrisostome of hūdreds of places that might be brought to that effect only one which is this Quanquā nobis admirandus videtur thronus regius ob gēmas affixas Homil. 5. de Esaiae verbis vidi Dominū The power of the prince and of the priest aurū quo obcinctus est tamen rerum terrenarū administrationē sortitus est nec vltra potestatem hanc preterea quicquā habet auctoritatis verum sacerdoti thronus in coelis collocatus est de coelestibus negotijs pronunciandi habet auctoritatem That is to saye Allthough the kinges throne seme to vs merueilouse for the pretiouse stones and golde wherewith it is garnished yeat hath he only the administration of earthly thinges and aboue this power he hathe no auctoritie but the priest hathe his throne in heauen and auctoritie to pronounce of heauenly affaires And thus muche by occasion of the auctoritie that you giue to bishoppes as greate ouer their diocesse as schoolemaisters haue ouer their schooles I woulde furder if it were not for troubling you haue desired you to haue named some good auctor to iustifie this saing of youres that bishoppes when they be called heades are so called improperly But I refer that to youre good discretion and to your better laisour Whether Christe nede to haue one to gouerne his churche vnder him and howe The 23. Chapitre IT IS true the Apologie and we all likewise saye that neither Nowell a. 30. b. 1. hathe Christe nede of anie suche one only heade vicair ouer all his churche which M. Dorman a little before dothe confesse him selfe neither is it Christes will to haue any suche heade vicair For though M. Dorman affirme that he so woulde yeat shall he neuer by the holie scripture wherein Christes will is declared be able to prome it Thirdly it is impossible for anie earthely man to haue and to execute anie suche office c. For the proufe of the first of these thre pointes yow Dorman bring my selfe for a witnes in my boke fo 9. b. Where I haue no such thing but onelie this that Christe had as little nede to gouerne his churche in the olde lawe by the helpe of one heade as he hath nowe I denied not then but he had nede nowe Therefore you continue youre accustomed wont of beelieng me If you aske me how he hath nede A lye 69. which is God I answere that as he neded the witnesse of men as appeareth by this There was a man sent from God Ioan. 1. whose name was Iohn to beare witnes of the light And againe Ioan. 15. Yow shall beare witnes of me because yow haue ben withe me from the beginning for the infirmities sake of men not for him selfe so for vs which can not commodiously be gouerned Howe God nedeth a heade to gouerne his churche nor well kept in orde without one heade a man as we are oureselues to whome in all controuersies we might haue recourse God hath nede of suche a heade Thus take I neede now taking it in youre
therefore they be no parties thereto Whereas yowe promise so largely on the diuelles behalfe yow maie be bolde for as muche as he is hable to doe he is at youre commaundement To youre conclusion that the worde of God is the true B. 13. iudge in all controuersies and doubtes of religion I saie as I saide before that when the church hathe giuen sentence of the meaning and right vnderstanding of the scripture that then in that sense and no otherwise the scripture is the true iudge in all controuersies otherwise I saie that the worde of God lieng yeat in the lettre as it were in the huske is an vncerteine iudge to determine controuersies what so euer Luther Caluin or their adherentes the rest of that blacke garde do saye to the contrarie or be M. Nowell neuer so angry therewith Whereas I declared before what starting holes the Arrians Fol. 105. a ▪ 23. rians Anabaptistes Lutherans Caluinistes and other heretikes haue founde out for the mainteinaunce of their religion and that vpon the same groundes and principles anye desperate heretike that is maie mainteine anye heresie yow take occasion of that worde desperate heretike to reherce once againe a place of S. Cyprian where he calleth by the same name yowe saie all suche as thinke one bishop inferiour to an other as I and all other papistes Cap. 11. sub finem doe but the contrarie to that I haue showed before And surely to thinke thus if it be to be a desperate heretike M. Nowell contrarie to him selfe or a desperate heretike and papist by his owne confessiō or a papist either I praie yowe what be yowe M. Nowell that in youre boke fol. 32. a confesse that in euerie prouince there be certeine chiefe prelates Doeth not the worde chiefe import that there be other inferiour prelates Which worde if yow will nowe reuoke againe if youre bishop will not I trust youre pretensed Archebishop will call yow to a count for it That whiche foloweth fol. 105. b. and. 106. a. because it conteineth but vaine wordes and hathe bene in diuerse other places handled I will here passe ouer Of the place of S. Hierome taken out of his epistle to Damasus and that it hathe bene alleaged to the purpose without wresting or falsifieng The 28. chapiter PROSEcuting this controuersie whether the scripture as we haue it written were hable alone without other meanes to determine all controuersies the whiche the heretike seeth being proued that it can not it will nedes folowe that there must be some other iudge to supplie that office I saide that S. Hierome notwithstanding his greate and excellent knowledge in the tongues woulde not take vpon him to leane in the discussing of doubtes to that rule of theirs to laie and confer together one texte with an other but referred him selfe to the see of Rome c. whose example I exhorted also other to folowe To this M. Nowell answereth as foloweth S. Hierome saieth no where that he would enot compare the Nowell fol. 106. a. 23. scripture together for the discussing of doubtes as M. Dorman woulde beare vs in hande and S Austen saieth he woulde doe it and exhorteth other to doe the same Where doe I beare yowe in hande that S. Hierome Dorman saide that he woulde not not compare the scriptures together A lye 81 ▪ for the discussing of doubtes Why noted you not here the leafe and side I denie not but that it is a necessarie and verie proffitable waie of reading the scriptures to conferre the places together And so doubte I not but that S. Hierome aswell as S. Augustine vsed to doe The whiche maketh verye muche for the Catholique opinion that all questions can not be discussed by thys conference off scripture For iff they coulde what neded S. Hierome so well learned as he was in this controuersie betwene the Catholikes and the Arrians to write so far out of the wildrenes of Syria to Damasus the pope a man allthough singulerly well learned yeat not comparable with him for learning to be resolued at his mouthe what parte to take whereas he had with him the scriptures of God by the whiche by youre saing if he had diligently conferred them together he might haue bene fully instructed in al pointes What ment he elles that he vsed not nowe his accustomed maner of conference but that he sawe that this was a question that coulde not so be tried and therefore he woulde consulte Damasus who being he persuaded him selfe the successour of Peter shoulde be able sufficiently by the grace giuen to that office to resolue him in that which by all his owne labour and diligence he were not at all or not so soone and certeinly hable to finde out S. Hieromes wordes to Damasus Bishop of Rome make nothing Nowell against vs nor with M. Dorman For what merueile is it if that S. Hierome borne in a coast of Italy christened at Rome brought vp at Rome and made prieste at Rome woulde in the faithe of the blessed Trinitie rather ioyne him selfe in communion with Damasus bishop of Rome a learned and godly mā then with Vitalis and Meletius whome M. Dorman calleth Miletus and Paulinus who were Antiochiā bishoppes and therfore strangiers to him and also not cleere from the Arrian heresie That you reporte of S. Hierome that he was borne in a Dorman The place of S. Hieto me to Damasus Tom. 2. epist ad Damasum examined Lib. de ecclesiastie scriptorib coast of Italie it is vntrue For he was as he writeth him selfe borne in a towne called Stridon in the borders of Dalmatia and Pannonia whereas Italie it is well knowen neuer reached so farre or if it had neuer did the peculier prouince of the bishop of Rome extende thither for whiche respect Damasus might be accounted his bisshop But supposing this to be as true as the rest that he was Christened at Rome c. Yeat the causes whiche S. Hierome addeth why he ioyned him selfe to him rather then to anie other maie euidently make faithe that neither because he was borne in a coaste of Italie neither because he was christened brought vp or made prieste in Rome but because he was the successour of Peter he ioyned him selfe to hym in communion rather then to anie other For that ment he by these wordes Beatitudinituae id est cathedrae Petri communione consocior To youre holinesse that is to saye to Peters chaire am I ioyned in communion Tell vs if you can what there neded here anie mention of Peters chaire to be made but that he woulde declare therby the only respect of his communicating with him to be because he was the successour of Peter An other cause which yeat might trulier be called a cause or reason of the first cause why he ioyned him selfe to him that sate in Peters chaire your selfe woulde seme to haue founde out in these wordes folowing But will M. Dorman saye S. Hierome
addeth a cause whiche is Nowell fol. 107. a 10. the pyth of the matter saing thus Super illam petram aedificatem ecclesiam scio I knowe that vpon that rocke Peters chaire the churche is builded which is the cause why S. Hierome ioyned with Damasus will he saye Will you see what a perilouse brained man M. Nowell is Dorman He hathe readen my answere allready and can tell what it shall be before I vtter it the seconde time But you must giue him leaue sometimes to scoure his Rhetorike lest it wax rustye and therfore here vpon a brauery he setteth a lusty countenance vpon the matter and that which he knoweth can not be passed ouer in silence because it hathe bene moued allready he will so bring furthe the seconde time as though suche a pore catholike as I am had not had suche an obiection in store without I had first receiued it by his liberalitie euen as it were in the waye of all moise Yeat this I can not but mislike that as sone as he had giuen it it semeth that he wished that he had kepte it in his purse still for it foloweth But he maye be ashamed had he anie shame at all thus shamefully Nowell 14. by a false Parenthesis to intremingle these wordes Peters chaire in this sentence of S. Hierome and so to falsifie it as though S. Hierome had saide or ment in this place that the popes chaire is the rocke whereon the church is builded Well these be but wordes M. Nowell how proue yow Dorman that this is a false Parenthesis that S. Hierome ment not that the popes chaire as it is S. Peters chaire is the rocke whereō the churche is builded You re reasons to proue it folowe after that you haue charged me withe mangling of the sentence of S. Hierome in this wise For he did see that S. Hierome admonishing Damasus of humilitie Nowell b. 20. and withall professing him selfe to folowe no chiefe or heade but Christe not excepting Damasus case but rather affirming him not to be primum the chiefe maketh cleerely with vs who in this controuersie of the popes vsurped supremacy saie the same c. furthermore he did see that the wordes of S. Hierome folowing vpon this rocke I knowe the churche to be builded might and ought to be referred to Christe mentioned fol. 108. a. 1. by S. Hierome so nere before and by Petre confessed to be that rocke whereon the churche is builded and therefore M. Dorman left out of S. Hieromes sentence the mention of Christe that he might moste falsely and blasphemously refer the rocke to Peters chaire as though Peters rotten chaire or ruinouse Rome were the rocke whereon the churche of oure Sauioure Christe is builded You re proufes that this Parenthesis is false conteined Dorman in these wordes are two First because Hierome professed him selfe to folowe no chiefe or heade but Christe not excepting Damasus nexte because these wordes Vpon this rocke I knowe the churche to be builded ought to be referred to Christe c. as before To the firste I answere that you haue M. Nowell falsifieth S. Hierome in translating not delt honestlie and sincerely in translating the wordes nullum primum no chiefe or heade as though S. Hierome had bene of that opinion that he woulde professe him selfe to folow no other heade in earthe vnder Christe whiche if it had bene so howe agreeth this with youre owne He is contrary to him selfe wordes in this place that Damasus was S. Hieromes owne bishoppe If he were his bishop he was his chiefe or heade If he were his heade you will not I trust make him to mende youre owne cause a rebelliouse membre One of these two will folowe that either S. Hierome if youre translation were true condemneth all heades in earthe but onelye Christe or that he will obeye them as far as he list him selfe Is not this sincere handling trowe you of the fathers writinges Is not this wholesom doctrine that you woulde make them to be patrones of But I praie you that translate this worde nullum primum so diuersly three maner of waies in little more then the cōpasse of one leafe first interpreting it no chiefe or heade fol. 107. b. 5. lyne then in the same side 15. no chiefe heade Last of all fol. 108. b. 21. no heade tel vs when you write nexte to whiche of these interpretations you will stande For the second interpretation a man might graunte to you and without preiudice to vs or gaine to you For it is true in dede that in respecte of Christ there is no absolute chiefe heade but he the pope is but chiefe and supreme heade nexte vnder Christe Although this were not in this place the meaning of S. Hierome but only to signifie that nexte after Christe he ioyned him selfe to Peters chaire and that he folowed nullum primum nisi Christum none first but Christ as muche to saie as Christ first and Damasus of all other next after Youre nexte proufe that the worde rocke shoulde be referred to Christe and not to Peters chaire because Christe is mentioned so nere before and by Petre confessed to be that rocke whereon the churche is builded leaneth to a verie fickle and weake grounde and maketh me to thinke that at the leaste you nodded M. Nowell if you slepte not downe right when you wrote this For if you take the boke waking into youre hande once againe you shall I dare M. Nowell ouer throwen by his owne reason assure you finde that the worde Peters chaire is nearer to the worde rocke then is Christe so that by youre owne argument and reason it foloweth that the worde rocke shoulde be referred to Peters chaire placed so neare before Whereas you saye that Petre confessed Christe to be that rocke whereon the churche is builded where hathe Petre those wordes Note the place in youre nexte writing elles will it be thought that you make and coine scripture at your pleasure We denye not notwithstanding but that Christe is the rocke whereon the churche is builded although in Sainte Petre those words be not so to be found Yeat foloweth it not that therefore Peters chaire or Petre for bothe is here taken for one is not also the rocke whereon it is builded For Christe is Fundamentum primum maximum the chiefe and greatest fundation as witnesseth S. Augustine reconciling together these places of the scripture no man can In psalm 86. 1. Cor 3. Ephes 2. laye an other fundation then that which is layed which is Christe Iesus and this Builded vpon the fundation of the Apostles and prophetes and Petre is also a foundation nexte after Christe As to make the matter plaine by example if a man woulde builde a house vpon a rocke that rocke were the How Christ is the rocke and howe Peter chiefe and principall foundation for it hathe soliditie and strength of it selfe not of
fundamenta confirmet That is to saie Yow haue hearde often times that Petre him selfe is called by oure Lorde a rocke as where he saieth Thow arte Peter and vpō this rocke will I builde my churche If therefore Petre be the rocke vpon the whiche the churche is builded he did well firste to heale the feete that as in the churche he conteineth the fundation of faithe so he shoulde in this man strengthen the fundations of his membres I might here alleage diuerse other places of S. Austen to this sense * As in Psalm 30. alijs multis locis but these two here vouched and that other whiche he mentioneth him selfe in his Retractations to be in his writinges against Donatus maie be sufficient to teache that if he thought not fullie of this pointe as we doe as by these three places for one brought by yow it should seme he did he was yeat indifferent and not against vs. But what if S. Austen had bene moste earnestlie against vs Yeat could you not so presse vs with his auctoritie M. Nowell by being greater then Erasmus equall with S. Hierome aboue all papistes in credite and auctoritie that he should be aboue Clement Tertullian Ciprian Basile Hilarius Ambrose Hierome Cirill Leo who all with one voice agree in this interpretation that the church was founded vpon Petre. a Epist 1. ad Iacob fratr domini Clement saieth of him that by the merite of true faithe he was determined to be the fundation of the churche b Lib. de praescrip haeret Tertullian afketh whether any thing coulde be hidden from Petre called the rocke of the churche to be builded Sainte Cyprian libro 1. epist 12. libro 4. epist 9. Lib. de habit virgin Lib. de bono pat epist ad Iubaian and epist ad Quintum in all these places affirmeth that the churche was builded vpon Petre. d Lib. 2. aduers Eunoni S. Basile because that Petre excelled in faithe to ke therfore he saieth the building of the church vpon him e In cap. Math. 16. Hilarie the B. of Poictiers in Fraunce calleth Petre Felix ecclesiae fundamentum the happy fundation of the church f Sermon 47. S. Ambrose hath that Petre was called of Christe ecclesiarum petra the rocke of churches S. Hierome emongest manie other places expounding the verie wordes of Christe Thow art Petre c. Math. 16. giueth this sense Aedificabo ecclesiam meam super te I will builde my church vpon the. g Lib. 2. in Ioannem cap. 12. Serm. 3. in Anniuersario assumptionis suae ad ponificatum Ciril saieth that Christe in the giuing to Petre his newe name signified therby that in him as in a rocke and moste strong stone he woulde builde his churche Leo to make an ende bringeth in Christe speaking of Petre after this sorte Ego tibi dico hoc est sicut pater meus tibi manifestauit diuinitatem meam ita ego tibi notam facio excellentiam tuam Quia tu es Petrus id est quum ego sim inuiolabilis petra ego lapis angularis qui facio vtraque vnum tamen tu quoque petra es quia mea virtute solidaris vt quae mihi potestate sunt propria tibi sint mecum participatione communia super hanc petram aedificabo ecclesiam meam c. that is to saye I tell the as my father hathe made manifest to the his diuinitie so doe I declare to the thy excellencie that thow arte Petre that is Note how Christe is the rocke and how Petre. to saie whereas I am the inuiolable rocke and corner stone which make bothe one the fundation beside the whiche no man can laye anie other yeat arte thow also a rocke because by my strength thow arte made sounde and massiff that those thinges which are propre to my selfe by power maye be common betwene vs by participation and vpon this rocke will I builde my churche You haue hearde M. Nowell for one place brought by you out of S. Austen to confirme youre purpose three other euen taken from the same man to the contrarie Yow In his bookes of Retractations haue hearde that in that verie booke where withe better iudgement he ouerloketh and correcteth all his former doinges he maketh it a matter indifferent to thinke either the one waye or the other Last of all you haue hearde the iudgemēt of nyne of the moste learned fathers in Christes churche agreing all in one sentence against you Go youre waies nowe and boaste of S. Austen being against all these fathers and him selfe to if he shoulde be of the minde that you would haue him to be I trust you shall neuer be hable to bring the wise or learned in to such a fooles paradise as to make them leauing the whole consent of so manie learned doctours to folowe youre interpretation grounded vpon one not muche liking the same him selfe You gather of this place of S. Austen an argument against fol. 110. ◠17. religiouse men You moued it before and there the reader shall finde it answered Yeat this to saye of the Augustiniās of whome warily you forbare to make anie mention before the reason that you make here why they shoulde not be of S. Augustines institution is false and vntrue For neither the Dominicanes bearing the name of S. Dominike nor the Franciscanes of sainte Frauncis neither yeat these Augustinians of sainte Augustine doe beare these names in suche sorte as the Corinthians did claime to holde of suche as baptised them How they did it appeareth by these wordes of sainte Austen here in this place by you alleaged Apostolus autē Paulus vbi cognouit se eligi Christum contemni diuisus est inquit Christus The Apostle Paule when he perceiued that he was chosen and Christe contemned why saieth he is Christe diuided In this wise M. Nowell because the Augustinians neither builde vpon sainte Austen nor are called after his name there is no cause yeat shewed why they maie not be well inough of his institution as that they are Richardus Cenomanus in his learned censure vpon sainte Austens rule hathe againste Erasmus moste euidently proued As for youre other witnesses that you can ioyne to Erasmus that popes haue bene heretikes if that could be proued A. 24. by a hundred witnesses yeat till you be hable to proue that they had erred in defining anye matter iudicially and deliuering the same to the whole churche of Christe yowe haue proued nothing against this See that there is not the rocke With like fraude did M. Dorman leaue also that whiche nexte Nowell b. 17. foloweth in S. Hierome of the house without the whiche he that eateth the paschall lambe is a prophane or vnholy man and the arke of Noe withoute the whiche all that be perishe by the floude For though in that place it might seeme to make for M. Dormans purpose concerning the supremacy of the B.
Dorman to alleage it for S. Augustines Beholde I praie the good Reader in what credite Erasmus is nowe sodenly with M. Nowell whome before noting S. Hierome to be of the minde that all churches shoulde be subiect to the See of Rome he estemed so little Then he was no body nowe hauing wonne M. Nowelles fauour againe he is so extolled that to denie that whiche he shall affirme or contrarywise is extreme impudency so greate a matter is it to be in his good grace But I praie you M. Nowell in what case then are those shamefull shamefast and modest maisters I woulde haue saide the compilers of youre Apologie who notwithstanding his iudgement vpon S. Austens libri Hypognosticon haue yeat with to much impudency for anie man but onelye for them alleaged them against purgatory What case are yow in youre selfe who notwithstandinge Erasmus iudgement vpon that worcke taken for Chrisostomes vpon the ghospell of S. Mathewe were not ashamed as modest as yow woulde seme Opus imperfectum to be to alleage it against vs I will not be so malapert as to compare withe youre Apologie but surely me thinketh of reason I might as well vse anie thing in this worcke of S. Austens as yow in that of Chrisostome If the difference betwene oure two cases be that yowe handle the matter rhetorically calling the auctor an auncient auctor printed withe Chrisostome and of longe time taken for him whereas I giuing no suche credite nor reuerence neither to Erasmus iudgemente of the true or countrefeite writinges of the olde doctours like a plaine blunt felowe alleage the place as I finde it I will sone mende that faulte if it be one and by imitation saie as yow doe an auncient auctor printed withe S. Augustin and of long time taken for him And nowe what saie yow to this auncient auctor First yow saie that the greatest parte of these wordes alleaged Nowell by me be not to be founde in the place by me noted I graunte nor it is not necessary for I doe not so alleage Dorman the place as though euerie worde shoulde be there I doe allude only to S. Austens wordes It is enough that there is there sufficient to proue youre chaire a chaire of pestilence and youre bodie a bodie without a heade Make of it then a tronck or what yowe list elles For the better declaration herof I will reporte here the wordes of S. Austen or rather this auncient auctor that I misse not my termes printed withe S. Austen and of longe time taken for him whiche are these Quoniam cathedram pestilentiae non esse de August in ques◠veter noui test q. 110. dei ordinatione asseuer auimus etiam eorum qui extra ecclesiam vel contra ecclesiam sedes sibi instituerunt cathedram pestilentiae esse dicimus Qui enim inconcessa praesumit reus est quanto magis si corrumpat traditionem eius cuius sedem vsurpat Nam ordinem ab Apostolo Petro coeptū vsque ad hoc tempus per traducem succedentiū episcoporū seruatū perturbant ordinem sibi sine origine vendicantes hoc est corpus sine capite profitentes vnde congruit etiam eorum sedem cathedram pestilentiae appellare That is to saye for as moche as we affirmed that the chaire of pestilence was not of gods ordinaunce euen their chaire also we call the chaire of pestilence who haue made them selues sees without or against the churche For he that presumeth vpon that which he ought not is guilty how much more if he also corrupte the tradition of him whose seate he vsurpeth For they trouble the ordre begonne of Petre the Apostle and kepte to this time by the continuance of bishoppes succeding chalenging to them selues ordre without beginning that is to saye professing a bodie without a heade * These wordes M. Nowell trāslated falsely thus wherefore it is agreable their seate allso to appeare to be the chaire of pestilence Wherefore it is agreable to call their seate also the chaire of pestilence Hetherto S. Austen or c Of whose wordes I reason thus who so euer make them selues sees against the churche or out of the churche whiche hath continuall succession of bishoppes from S. Peter sit in the chaire of pestilence But oure counterfeit bishoppes of England doe so ergo their chaire is the chaire of pestilence The maior is proued by this auncient auctor the minor allso by him because they trouble the ordre begonne of Petre and continued by the succession of bishoppes to their time They trouble this ordre because they chalenge to them selues ordre without beginning as they who deriue it not from S. Petre the chiefe rocke after Christe and are a bodie without a heade The which thing if you denie M. Nowell thē let vs loke to the ordre begōne of Petre. what was that Let S. Cyprian tel you who in his boke de simplicitate praelatorū or rather De vnitate ecclesiae witnesseth that God by his auctoritie disposed the beginning of vnitie to begin of one that was Petre. If this were the ordre begonne of Petre who seeth not who be the troublers of this ordre We that for vnities sake admitte but one chiefe heade bishop vnder Christe and no other but suche as be deriued from him or yow that will haue manie heades without suche ordinary deriuation Hath not this ordre bene kepte in the church euer since by the continuance of bishoppes without interruption till youre vnhappy time Peruse if you list the ordre in oure churche of England of the bishoppes of Cauntorburie for example beginning at william Warham the last catholike bishop before heresie founde first entreteinement there and so ascende by degrees till you come to sainte Austen oure English Apostle In all this succession the space of allmoste a thousande yeares this ordre hathe bene continued in Englande so that you are not able to shewe for youre liues anie one of all those bishoppes that continued not this ordre begonne of S. Petre. Nowe staye not here but from S. Austen the first bishoppe of Cauntorburie go to him from whence he receiued that ordre to Gregory the bishop of Rome from Gregory to Pelagius from him to Benedictus and so in ordre to S. Petre and name if you can one of them in whom this ordre was not kepte This being most true where began nowe your ordre Who was the auctor thereof but frier Luther From whom conueighed he this ordre but from Sathan the father of all disordre and lorde of all misrule If it be not so proue the contrary If you doe not disturbe the ordre begonne of S. Petre then acknowledge one heade bishop ouer the reast and kicke not against Gods ordonaunce who hath so disposed that the vnitie of the churche shoulde begin of one that is of Petre. Confesse that the cause during still why as saieth saint Hierome sainte
currebant ego non mittebam Nowe seing the canon lawe helpeth Hier. cap. 23. you not yea seing it maketh directly against you as the whiche accounteth them headlesse that appointe heades to them selfe without the popes approbation seing at the lawes of the realme you finde as I heare saie as little grace seing that by the scriptures you are condemned for running not being sent what remaineth but to saye that the obeing of your Idoll bishoppes can not excuse you from being headlesse All this a doe hathe M. Dorman made nowe by the space of more Nowell fol. 114. a. 1. Clem. li. 3. Tit. 13. de censib exact cap. cum sit lib. 5. de verb. sig Tit. 10. ca. 1. Ex frequentib Dorman then three leaues to deface scripture as no fitte iudge in controuersies and to persuade vs that the pope like an other Pithagoras by his only bare worde maie and ought to satisfie all men heretikes and others and that it shal be sufficient for him only to saye without reason of scripture why he so saieth sauing this reason only papae est pro ratione voluntas with the pope will standeth for reason as is mentioned in the boke of his owne canon lawe c. Not to deface the scripture M. Nowel haue I made al this a doe there you belye me but to deface heretikes while by this meanes it shall not be laufull for thē to peruert and corrupte it with their false and vntrue expositions The places that you bring out of the canon lawe to proue that it is sufficient for the pope to saye without reason of scripture why he so saieth are two but in neither of those places is that which you saye The first place speaketh of certeine priuileges which the pope for causes and considerations will not haue extendid to monasteries and churches after a certeine time Here saieth the glose vpon this place that the popes will in this case standeth for reason Againe in the seconde place which is not there where you falsely note it here in the margent to be but in the title de sententia excommunicat cap. si summus pontifex of the pope absoluing one excommunicate it saieth as muche but no where in the popes lawe is this odiouse saing of youres founde Loke therfore better bothe vpon the texte and the glose and learne to vnderstande them before you bring them nexte An answere to 8. demaundes made by M. Nowell touching the pope The 30. Chapitre THE FIRST what if there be two or three popes at once Is it not to be doubted which of them shall be this certeine iudge in cōtrouersies Nowell And is not the popish churche in this case in daunger to be a liue monstre as hauing manie heades If there shoulde be so manie popes at once as truly popes Dorman as you professe to haue of your church manie heades at once then should the church be not only in daunger but in deede a liue monstre as youre schismaticall churche is But whereas in truthe there is but one laufull pope it is in no suche daunger as yow fantasy not if there were ten that pretended euery of them right to the papacy If any suche chaunce happen we knowe it chaunceth by Goddes permission who as he hath hetherto so guided his churche that when the like hathe happened it neuer susteined thereby anie detriment in faithe so are we by his promise assured who promised neuer to forsake his churche that he will in no wise permitte in this doubtefull time anye such cōtrouersie to be moued as that maye not withoute the detriment of his church remaine in suspense vntil suche time as God haue reuealed the right iudge and true pope What if there be neuer a pope at all Shall all oure doubtes lye Nowell b. 25. therewhile vndiscussed for lacke of a iudge and youre popishe church so longe two or three yeares together lye as a dead troncke for lacke of an heade If your doubtes be suche as the vsage of the churche the Dorman consent of all nations be not able to explicate then is there no other remedie but by praier to desire allmightye God to kepe from vs no longre this necessarie meane appointed by him in earthe to signifie to vs his holye will and pleasure The churche is not in the meane season a deade troncke no more then one of youre particuler churches is when the bishop dieth For euen as there although not in all thinges the Chapitre supplieth the lacke of the bishop in many so the See of Rome being voide by deathe hathe a graue Senate that supplieth althoughe not in defining of controuersies yeat in manie thinges that want of the heade I trust when the generall heade of the church of England in earthe dieth you will not call your church a deade troncke VVhat if the pope sitte not at Rome in Italie May we not doubt Nowell of the certeintie of the iudge not sitting in the chaire whereof he hath all his certeintie The pope hathe not his certeintie of Peters materiall Dorman chaire but of the auctoritie and power giuen to Petre the signe whereof the chaire is And therefore you nede not to trouble youre selfe with that care whether he sitte in the verye same chaire that Petre did or in some other whether he sit at Auinion in Fraunce or Toletum in Spaine he is allwaies bishoppe of Rome and successour to Petre. And as we saie where the kinge is there is the courte so where the pope sitteth there is Peters chaire to saye Petres auctoritye VVhat if he doe erre VVhat if he be an heretike Nowell The pope maye haue his priuate and personall errours Dorman it can not be denied God onely and not man is priuileaged that he can not so erre But in determining any matter of faithe or deliuering any doctrine to the whole churche he that is the chiefe heade of his churche will neuer suffer him so to erre And therefore I saye with S. Augustine that August epist 165. his misdoinges doe not preiudice the churche If it woulde please you M. Nowell to become scholer to those that you call my maisters as for anie greate learning that you haue showen in this Reproufe of youres it might beseeme you well enough Pighius and Hosius in them shoulde you learne Lib. 4. eccles hierarch cap. 8. Lib. 2. contra Brent folio 83. sequent that all youre companions be not hable to conuince so muche as one pope emongest so manie as haue bene to be an heretike But let that be as doubtefull as this is moste certeine that there was neuer yeat anye pope that gaue in any matter of faithe an hereticall sentence And therfore you are much to blame to conceiue of Goddes prouidence for his churche any such dispaire not being hable for all the time past to shewe so muche as one example of that whiche you captiously demaunde VVhat if
there is no nede to write or saye anye thinge because I haue no ennemie at all And therefore he addeth For M. Dorman can not be ignorant that we in all oure Sermones Nowell fol. 123. a. 25. and writinges of suche matters doe make a moste cleere and euident difference betwene the functions and offices of princes ciuile magistrates and priestes ecclesiasticall ministres and neither did we euer teache that princes ought neither did they euer desire to execute the offices ecclesiasticall off ministring the Sacramentes preaching excommunicating absoluing and suche like I am not ignorant in deede of this qualification of youres Dorman inuented the rather to intice some seely soules to the taking of youre othe Whome in deede I maye well call seely that will therby any thing the soner be moued For youreselfe are not ignoraunt I trowe M. Nowell that the causes why we stande with you in this matter are not onelye for ministring the Sacramentes for preaching excommunicating absoluing but as I tolde yow and you here guilefully conceale this power extendeth farder to the giuing and making of lawes for the churche to auctoritie to iudge of doctrine wherewith the meÌ„bres must be fedde whether it be souÌ„de or otherwise for these be offices that beloÌ„g to the heade not to the membres excepte you will saie that the sheepe ought to iudge what meate is conuenient for them not the shepherde Againe to appease schismes is the office not of inferiour meÌ„bres but of the heade it selfe and yeat belongeth as youre selfe haue graunted to the chiefe prelaces of euery prouince Finally to be heade of the churche is to haue the gouernement of so manye soules as be in that churche whiche because no laye man c. can haue in Note this reason particuler bishoprickes it foloweth that none can haue ouer the whole churches of a realme vnited Of the whiche matter Chrisostome saieth At quum de ecclesiae praefectura Lib. 2. de Sacerdotio de credenda huit vel illi tam multarum animarum cura agitur vniuersa quidem muliebris natura functionis istius moli ac magnitudini coedat oportet itemque bona viroruÌ„ pars But when the question is of the gouernement of the churche of the committing to this man or that the charge of so many soules then must all the kinde of women giue place to the burden and greatenes of this office yea and a greate parte of men also You bring the examples of king Dauid Salomon c. who you saye had auctoritie in gouerning of the cleargie and churche matters though they might not execute all ecclesiasticall functions and offices This matter is answered in my first booke fol. 31. sequ Thither I referre the Reader What though oure moste graciouse souereigne ladye being a Nowell woman haue not so greate skill in feates of warre as haue her capitaines haue not so good knowledge in the lawes of her realme as her Iustices and other learned men in the lawes haue thoughe she haue in al good learning and in the scriptures toe more knowledge then had anie of youre popes these seuen hundred yeares I beleue and therfore no lette in that pointe but she maie be heade of the whole churche aswell and rather then the pope What if she fitte not in publike iudgement nor determine controuersies as doe her Iustices c. what I saie if she can not execute all ciuile offices in her owne persone woulde yow therfore take from her her ciuile principalitie c Surely yow maie with as good reason doe it as yow would take awaie her superioritie ouer her cleargie from her for that she can not maie not nor will not execute ecclesiasticall functions Your comparison is false M. Nowell For there is no lawe Dorman neither of goddes nor mannes that forbiddeth a Quene although a woman to sitte in iudgemeÌ„t or to be present with her armye in battaile as Delbora did both So that the not Iudic. cap. 5. doing herof procedeth not of lacke of habilitie or power as contrarywise it doth that the prince meddleth not with ecclesiasticall matters whose condition in that that he is a laie man maketh him vnhable for that function Wheras M. Nowell noteth the Quenes maiestie to haue more knowledge in all good learning and in the scriptures toe then had anye pope these seuen hundred yeares as I am not he that would abase those her maiesties rare giftes of excellent learning and princely qualities farre more plentifully by the goodnesse of God bestowed vpon her then anie other so noble prince man or woman that this daie liueth but as my bounden dutie is rendre moste humble thanckes to almighty God therefore so can I in no wise but abhorre this moste impudent parasite good Reader who vpon his beelefe as though he had made neuer a lye in all this booke before A lye 82. addeth this of all other the moste shamefull Whiche I nothing doubte but her graces moste rare modestie can so euill abide to here that longe ere this she hathe iudged him in her princely harte to be as he is a vaine lyer and shamelesse parasite Whome if her grace shoulde commaunde to An Emperours rewarde for a flatterer be rewarded for his labour as Sigismunde the emperour rewarded one of the same profession whome praising him aboue measure he buffeted as fast answering him when he asked why beatest thow me Emperour why bitest thow me flatterer as the rewarde were princely for suche a gift so were the facte worthy so mightie a prince But nowe AEneas Siluius li. 2. Com. de reb gest Alphonsi to the good Reader what cause haste thowe to trust hereafter this mans beliefe in anie matter touching the pope the learning considered of Innocentius the thirde Aeneas Siluius called Pius the 2. Adrianus 6. Marcelâ—us 2. Paulus 4. and Pius 4. that nowe is and diuerse other within that compasse as to the Learned is not vnknowen This parasite staieth not here but going farder sayeth Though the Quenes maiestie haue not that vnderstanding of Nowell fol. 124. a. 1. all the affaires of her realme that experience in all thinges that actiuitie in executing them that hathe the whole bodye of her moste honorable councel yeat dothe the whole bodye of her councell though moste honorable humbly acknowledge her to be their heade only proude priestes because some thinges are incideÌ„t to their office which the prince maye not * VVhat if the prince listed nor list not to doe refuse their Souereigne to be their supreme gouernour You beely all priestes M. Nowell and maye be ashamed to make the bishoppes only councellors in religion whom Dorman before you confessed by S. Cyprians minde to be iudges in earthe in Christes steede whereas you would here make them no iudges or iudges in the princes steede You deale vntruly to sclaundre the cleargie as you doe In whose defence I wil saye as S. Ambrose
did to those that obiected to Lib. 5. ep 32. him the Emperours auctoritie in matters of religion Soluimus quae sunt Caesaris Caesari quae sunt dei deo Tributuâ— Caesaris est non negatur Ecclesia dei est Caesari vtique non debet addici quia ius Caesaris esse non potest templum dei Quod cum honorificentiâ— Imperatoris nemo dictum potest negare Quid enim honorificeÌ„tius quaÌ„ vt imperator ecclesiae filius esse dicatur Quod sine peccato dicitur cum gratia dicitur Imperator enim bonus inâ—ra ecclesiam non supra ecclâ—siam est We paye to Cesar that which is his and to God that whiche belongeth to God Tribute is due to Cesar it is not denied him The churche is goddes it maye not apperteine to Cesar because the temple of God can not be Caesars right The whiche no man can denie to be saied but with the Emperours honour For what is more honorable then for the Emperour to be called the sonne of the churche The whiche when it is said it is spoken with fauour without offence For a good Emperour is within the church not aboue the churche Thus muche S. Ambrose a prowde prieste by youre iudgement because he acknowledged not the Emperour to be his supreme gouernour in causes ecclesiasticall But because you thinke M. Nowell and saye also that I haue lewdely abused my selfe in confuting that whiche no man holdeth I will make it appeare that you haue lewdely done in so saing and that I went not about to proue that the heade is not the heade because it can not or list not doe all offices of all the principall meÌ„bres of the bodie which you saie vntruly is the effecte of all my seconde long treaty but that temporall princes can not be the heades because they can not doe the office of the heade The whiche to proue I will alleage youre owne wordes wherein the parte of a heade you saye consisteth They are these To commaunde thinges aswell ecclesiasticall as ciuile to be done Nowell to see them done to commende and rewarde all well doers of them to correct and punishe all euill doers of them or negligent in their office is the parte of a heade or supreame gouernour to doe thinges commaunded is the office of inferiour membres and obedient subiectes We haue now good Reader M. Nowels owne limitatioÌ„ Dorman wherein the office of the heade of the church consisteth I praie the coÌ„sidre when I alleaged scripture that the gouernemeÌ„t Act. 20. of the church was coÌ„mitted to bishoppes and priestes that they must be obeied which watche for oure soules spoken also of priestes Hebr. 13. when I alleaged the blessed martyr Ignatus bidding vs Epist. ad SmirneÌ„â—es first to honour God nexte the bishop as bearing his image and then after that the king willing all the people to obeye Epist ad Piladelphenses Lib. 10. cap. 2 eccl histor Ambros lib. 5. epi. 32. the Emperour the Emperour to obey the bisshop the bisshop Christe c. wheÌ„ I alleaged the exaÌ„ple of ConstaÌ„tine the first Christian Emperour refusing to iudge ouer bisshoppes because God had giuen them power to iudge him when I alleaged these wordes of S. Ambrose to the Emperour Quando audisti clementissime imperator in causa fidei laicos de episcopo iudicasse Ita ergo quadaÌ„ adulatione curuamur vt sacerdotalis iuris simus immemores quod deus donauit mihi hoc ipse putem alijs esse credendum Si docendus est episcopus a laico quid sequitur Laicus ergo disputet episcopus audiat episcopus discat a laico At certe si velscripturaruÌ„ seriem diuinaruÌ„ vel vetera tempora retractemus quis est qui abnuat in causa fidei in causa inquam fidei episcopos solerede imperatoribus non imperatores de episcopis iudicare Eris deo fauente etiam senectutis maturitate prouectior tunc de hoc censebis qualis ille episcopus sit qui laicis ius sacerdotale substernit That is to saye when haue you hearde moste gentle Emperour that laye men haue iudged of the bishop Be we therefore so crookened withe flattrye that we shoulde forget the priestly right and that whiche God gaue to me I shoulde thinke to be to be commited to other If the bishop be to be taught of the Laye man what will folowe Let the laye man then dispute and the bishoppe be a hearer let the bishoppe learne off the laye man But truly if we will loke to the course of the Note holy scripture or call to memorye the times past who can denye that in a cause of faithe a matter I saie of faithe the bishoppes were wont to iudge of Christian Emperours not Emperours of bishoppes Yow shall be God willing youre selfe one daye of more ripe age and then you shall iudge what maner of bishoppe he is whiche bringeth the right of priesthode in subiection to lay men Thus farre the wordes of Sainte Ambrose to Valentinian the Emperoure taking vpon him by euell councell to entremedle in ecclesiasticall iurisdiction When to these places I added the notable testimonies out of Athanasius where the Emperour In epist ad Solitar vitam agent is bidden not to entremedle nor commaunde in ecclesiasticall matters He is called Antichriste for making him selfe chiefe of the bishoppes for ruling in ecclesiasticall iudgementes for making his palace the consistory of ecclesiasticall matters Finally when I brought Caluin him selfe against this opinion of making temporall princes the heades in ecclesiasticall matters did I fight with mine owne shadowe Did I laboure in confuting that whiche no man holdeth Are not these auctorities directly against the commaunding of princes in ecclesiasticall thinges against the taking vpon them to correcte or iudge bishoppes in matters of faithe wherein the office M. Nowell saieth of the heade dothe consiste You maye therefore nowe perceiue good Readers that it was but a pretended cause of M. Nowelles parte that he here alleageth to shift of that to M. Iuell at the least from him selfe whiche he was suer he shoulde neuer be able to answere Wherefore nowe to conclude with you M. Nowell I will giue you this frendely councell for a farewell to striue no longre against priestes lest it happen to you that the blessed Martyr S. Cyprian saieth was reuealed to him Qui Lib. 4. epist 9. Christo non credit sacerdotem facienti postea credere in ipiet sacerdotem vindicaÌ„ti He that beleueth not Christ appointing the prieste shall after begin to beleue him reueâ—ging the prieste Struggle no longer against the See of Rome of the A singulier testimonie â—or the churche of Rome It maye be added be fore fol. 192. b. Psal contra paâ—em Donati which S. Augustine saieth Ipsa est sedes Petri quam non vincunt superbae inferorum portae That See is the rocke whiche the proude gates of hell shall not ouercome For iff you doe you are like to leese youre labour as you see except a lymme you thinke be able to doe more then the wide gates off the diuells palace ¿ Deo Gratias Quandoquidem Liber iste perlectus approbatus est a viris Sacrae Theologiae linguae Anglicanae peritissimis iudico eum suto posse imprimi euulgari Ita testor iudico Cunerus Petri pastor Sancti Petri Louaniensis 16. Octobris Anno. 1561.