he would not labour in the publike wealth What the Popes oughte to haue before theyr eyes but bicause he vnderstode that it was no lawful vocatioÌ„ which the Popes also ought to regard He had before his eyes the law in Deut. now alledged The Pope ought also to loke vpon the words of Christ Kinges of the nations sayth the Lord bear rule ouer theyr subiectes but ye shal not do so and being demaunded who should be greatest he aunsweared that he which was lowest and which more serued others This is to gouern the church not to commaund but to serue Peter himselfe also taught ministers not to beare dominion ouer their flocke Who are in the church to â—â—uerenced aboue other And Paule hath written that Christ is set the hed of the church not men although in it they are aboue other to be much made of to be honored whych more then other profet the faythfull and are more largely endewed with good gracious giftes and as Christe required of Peter doo more depely loue him and which ar more aboundantly endewed with those qualities which Paule to Timothe and Titus requireth in bishops If we highlier honor such men in the church aboue other not as lords not as vniuersal bishops not as heads of the church but as excellent ministers thereof the authority and obedience of the word of god should therby be nothing diminished An error verye hurtful in the church But they do not so They haue fixed the exellency and dignity of the ministers of the church vnto chayres places and cities howsoeuer he be in greater price honor which sytteth in those chayres or places and what manner of man so eueâ— he be in lyfe and manners And so is there no regarde had to the graces and giftes of God but onely to the place and seate This vndoubtedly was the fountayne ofpring and beginning of al euils and superstitions Our elders thought it good that in cities which were more famous where marchandises were traded and were assemblies of men where Proconsuls or Presidentes gouerned there also the bishops should be of greater authority and iurisdiction Whereby custome obteined that those Churches and chayres were had in greater honor But as it commeth to passe ambicion crepte in and in those places byshoppes were ordeyned not alwaye suche as were more worthye but such as were better fauored of Princes And oftentimes the better learned and more holy were geuen ouer to small and abiecte bishoprikes When Augustine was Bishop of Hippouerhegium one called Aurelius gouerned the most honorable church of Carthago And who knoweth not that Augustine in doctrine maners and authoritye farre excelled Aurelius The same thinge happened vnto Gregorius Nazianzenus who was byshop in an abiect place namelye in Sassimis when as many other not to be compared with him obtayned the chief chayres After this way maner the bishop of Rome began to be preferred aboue other namelye bycause of the moste ample dignitye of the citye The cause why the bishop of Rome was preferred before other whyche cause neuerthelesse he vnderstanding that it was no firme groundsele of the honor which he had obteyned he hath fained other causes of his excellency And first he pretendeth that he had this priueledge by the councel of Nice which yet he could not proue before the fathers of Africa bicause in that Sinode the charge onelye of suburbe churches was committed vnto hym Not a charge to beare dominion but to geue counsel to admonish and if there wer any things of more waight to referre the same to the counsell As to the bishop of Alexandria the suburbe churches of Egipt and to the byshop of Antioch of the suburbe churches of the east parties And it was not geuen the bishop of Rome to be the vniuersall pastor Neyther is it possible that a weake and mortall man should feede the flocke of Christe in all countries Farthermore the bishop of Rome boasted that he was set to be the head of the church The bishop of Rome canot be hed of the whol church whych cannot be meete for any man For from the heade ar deriued mouinge and sense by the sinewes into al members as Paule very well teacheth to the Ephesians and Colossians But no man can performe that as of himselfe by closures ioynts to quickeÌ„ the meÌ„bers of the church with the sprite of god It loÌ„geth onely to christe Magistrates princes may be called heads of the people to destribute vnto his meÌ„bers spiritual mocions illustracion of the minde and eternall life Indede kings and magistrates may be called heads of the people bicause they gouerne ciuily and from them we may looke for good lawes and ciuyle mouinges but in the church men entreat not of ciuile life but of spiritual and eternall life which we cannot loke for but at gods hand neyther can any mortall men quicken the members of the church Kinges magistrates when they are godlye in my iudgemente oughte to haue the chiefe place in the church and to them it pertaineth if religion be il administred to correcte the defaultes For therfore they beare the sword to maintayne Gods honor But they cannot be heades of the churche Paule to the Romaines and to the Corinthians where he maketh rehearsal of the members of the churche putteth some to be eyes some noses eares hands and feete but he adorneth none with the dignity of the heade who yet to the Ephesians sayth this of Christe that god had geuen hym to be the head of the body of the church We must not make the church two headed Let the papistes shew writen in any other places of the holy scriptures that Christ gaue an other hed vnto the church they shall haue the victory But I know assuredly they caÌ„not For if that could haue bene done the church should be a two hedded monster But it is a sporte to heare what Iohn sometimes B. of Rochester in defendyng the Pope auÌ„swered to this To graunt two heads of the Church sayth he is not absurd for the Apostle writeth the man is the head of the womaÌ„ neuertheles euery wife hath byside her husband which is the head an other head also Wherfore he concluded that we may thus affirme of the church namely that it hath both Christ and the Pope to be head But this man faileth by a false Sillogismus of equiuocatioÌ„ For speaking now of a head as it is attributed vnto the Church he falleth to a natural head In matrimony the husband is the head of the wife not the natural hed How the husband is the hed of the wyfe but as touching aeconomical life But the natural head of the woman is the beginning of her natural life And vndoubtedly if we looke vpon the natural head in the church we shal finde that it is not one head but looke howe manye men there be in it so many heades shal there be for there is none
consecrated your handes so farre was it of that they shoulde be depriued of the holy Ministery But the Pope saith that Dauid for shedding of bloud was in the olde tyme prohibited to builde the Temple But in this place we muste marke the misterye wherin Salomon shadowed Christ the peacable king For he was by hym expressed whiche hath gathered together the Churche the true Temple of GOD without weapons vnto the true and euerlastyng peace But bloude beyng iustly and ryghtly shed Bloud shed iustly rightly restraineth not from the holy ministery restrayneth not from the holye ministery For Pinhas who was hygh Priest thrust thorough two moste vnpure whoremongers Elyas a man of the stocke of the Leuites slew with hys owne hande the Prophetes of Baal And Samuell a man of the same tribe dyd hymselfe kyll Agag the king yet neither of them both were reiected froÌ„ theyr office Neither do I therfore speake these thyngs to commend the promotyng of murtherers vnto holy orders but thys only I oppugne that euery slaughter euery murther maketh a man so irregular as these menne saye that he can not be ordeyned a Minister of the Churche What if a man haue bene a Iudge or a Magistrate or in iuste warre hath fought for hys countrey can not he therefore be ordayned a Minister of the Churche Peraduenture he hath obteyned excellent giftes of God and is endewed with singular doctrine adorned with a pure lyfe instructed with dexterity of gouernyng and godly eloquence can not the Churche as these men most absurdely thynke vse hys gyftes Vndoubtedly that was not obserued in Ambrose he was seruaunt vnto Cesar and decided matters in the lawe beyng Pretor of Millan and yet was he by violence taken to be a Byshop I knowe that Paul requireth that a Byshoppe be no striker but no manne doubteth but that that is to be vnderstande of an vniuste murther or violence But what should a man here doo all thynges are by the Papistes handled supersticiously Nowe the thirde cause why Lictores and hangemen are euyll spoken of is this bicause very many of them liue wickedlye and filthy and were before tyme noughty men Aristotle Howbeit the office defileth them not but rather by they re faulte they pollute an excellent office Aristotle in his .6 boke of Politikes the last chapter sayth that good men abhorre this kind of office namely of punishing of meÌ„ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 bycause it hath a hatred annexed vnto it For they doe oftentimes incurre the hatred of men But in my iudgement a good and godly man ought not for that cause to abhorre his administration I remeÌ„ber an aunswere of Chrisippus A saying of Chrisippus who being demauÌ„ded why he excercised not the office of a magistrate If I excercise it not rightly sayd he I shal displease god but if I do rightly I shal displease men but I wil do neither of both He semed to some to haue aunswered very prudently but me thinketh he answered folishly For he should rather haue aunswered coÌ„trarily that the publike welth ought to be gouerned and that rightly to please both God and good menne but a wise and good man muste not haue a respecte vnto wicked men By these thinges it is now manifestly shewed that Gidion in that he himselfe killed the kinges of Madian committed nothing that was not decent for him neyther that he commaunded his sonne to do any fylthy acte 22 Then the men of Israel sayd vnto Gideon Reigne thou ouer vs both thou and thy sonne and thy sonnes sonne bycause thou hast deliuered vs out of the hand of Madian 23 And Gideon aunswered them I will not raygne ouer you neither shall my chyld reigne ouer you the Lord shal raigne ouer you The people â—eceauinge a benefite at Gideons hand would haue made him king that they might not be couÌ„ted ingrate But seing gratitude is a vertue it ought to haue no vniust thing ioyned with it whiche these men obserued not For they appoynted not theyr kyngdome by the lawe of god In Deut. the .27 chap. it is written that he should be a king whom god had chosen It pertained vnto god to elect a king Neyther perteined it vnto the people to appoint a kinge whome they would Wherfore that which they doo now is not frely to geue any thing that is theyr owne but to geue the which is an other mans The right to appointe a king belonged to god and not vnto men which thyng also Gideon wysely saw neyther was Christ ignorant therof when they which were filled with bread came vnto him to create him a king Christ refused a kingdoÌ„e offred vnto hym What manner of men the olde Romayne bishops were he wayghed the maner of his vocation and for that his kingdome was not of this worlde and vnderstoode that they vsurped an other mans right and were not moued therunto By iust causes he put of from himself such a burtheÌ„ The same things happened in a maner vnto the bishops of Rome Which at the beginning were holy for very many of theÌ„ wer notable by constancy of faith martirdom Farthermore their church was kindled with feruentnes of charity towards the poore most liberal so that it sent almes euen into the east part to the Ilands and metalle places where the holy confessours of Christ liued in exile All which thinges got that chaire much fauor and grace with the faithful Gregorius Wherefore the supreame power and kingdome in the church was in a manner offred some times vnto those bishops which they like Gideon refused with a great spirite singuler modesty Of which thing also what Gregorius the b. of Rome iudged I will briefly declare In his .4 boke of Epistles in the .32.34.36.38 .39 Epistles he of that matter writeth at large both vnto Mauritius the emperor and also to Constantia Augusta likewise to the Patriarkes Alexandrinus and Antiochenus yea and to Iohn the Patriarche of Constantinople and lastlye to Anianus Deacon of the same church In the time sayth he of Pelagius my predecessor Ioannes Constantinopolitanus when he had assembled a sinode by an other pretence claymed vnto him self the title of the vniuersal supreame Patriarch which thyng Pelagius toke in euil part and therfore made the acts of that Sinode frustrate Farther he commaunded his Deacon which was his deputye whome he had with the Emperoure that he should not communicate with Iohn being so arrogant and proud Gregorye succeded Pelagius and decreed the same things writing vnto the emperor sayth Peter the chiefe amonge the Apostles neuer called himselfe vniuersall Apostle and neuerthelesse Iohn byshop of Constantinople now goeth about to cal him selfe the vniuersall Patriarch straightway he crieth out O times O maners And this reason he addeth to these things if the vniuersal head be so ordeyned of men by the ruine or corruption of such a head the church also shall perishe together Of this place
Nestorius was once bishop who beleued most wickedly of the sonne of god Macedonius had the same dignitye who beleued not that the holy ghost was god If those Patriarches had then beene vniuersall Bishops in the church the whole church had fallen also with them Let none of the papistes cry that it is no strong argument bicause it is none of ours but Gregories their father let them cry out against him who afterward addeth That he which maketh himselfe vniuersall bishop taketh away from other bishops their office for where anye man is vniuersall byshop he leaueth no office of a bishop vnto others This also is the collectiō of Gregory and not foūd out by vs. And vndoubtedly if a man at this day loke rightly and more nighly vp on the thing he shal see that the bishops of the west doe gouerne theyr churches onely by the ordre geuen them by the bishop of Rome Gregory counteth it for an absurdity that the Pope should be preferred before the Emperour Gregory afterwarde addeth that Iohn preferreth himselfe aboue the Emperor which thing Gregory coūted for an absurdity But oure men now a dayes thinke it necessarye that Cesar should be subiect to him yea they haue oftē times resisted emperors many times wearied them and sometimes moued them out of theyr place And yet Gregory theyr father detesteth and inueigheth agaynst it as a thinge vniust and not to be suffred And writing vnto Augusta he is yet more vehemēt saying that the same belongeth vnto Antechrist Wherfore let not our mē meruayle if we sometime cal the bishop of Rome Antechrist for asmuch as their Gregory calleth him by the most goodly title which wil be vniuersal bishop The sinode of Chalsedonia erred The Sinode of Calcedonia as the same Gregory sayth gaue vnto the seat of Rome this prerogatiue namely vnto Leo the first of that name Howbeit no mā vsed it because our elders being men most holy saw it was not meete for anye mortal man Onely Christ is the vniuersal hed of the church For he is the smal grayn of musterdsede whiche hath incresed into abrode and large tre that it ouerspreadeth the whole world and he is that little leauen wherwith thre peckes of meale wer leauened And the stone hewed out without handes whiche is become so great a moūt that it hath filled al thinges Wherfore Christ him self for as much as he is able to be with vs is to al vs the vniuersal hed to whom euery one of vs cleaueth as membres Moreouer Gregory admonisheth Alexandrinus and Antiochenus that they shoulde receaue no Epistles whiche had written in them a tittle of so great pride And he sayth that to receaue such a title is to fall from the fayth Now let our men go and obtrude this yoke whiche by the testimony of theyr Gregory we can not receaue except we should go back from faith Namely in attributing that to a manne which we must beleue is propre and peculiar vnto Christe Neither doubteth he to affirme that this Iohn transgressed the decrees of Christ the rules of the Apostles and Cannons of the fathers All these things sayth he hath he violated in the vsurpation of this one title And he addeth what wilt thou aunswere vnto Christ in the last day of iudgement thou that hast arrogantly takē vpon thee his office and wilt haue al his members subiect vnto thee He commaunded that we shoulde not call anye a father vnto vs vpon erth But thou commandest men to cal thee vniuersal father In what estimation therfore hast thou the wordes of the Lord An error of Gregory Howbeit in collecting of these places of Gregory I thinke there ar some thinges which ar diligently to be takē hede of namely two of the which the one is that he sayth that Peter was the chief membre of the vniuersal church Paule Andrew and Iohn were heades of singular churches This I therefore admonish you forbycause the Apostles wer not byshops of singuler churches for they wandred abrode thorough out the whole worlde they founded churches wan sondry nacions vnto the Lord and al they were members Another error of Gregory and that principal mēbres of the vniuersal church Wherfore this sētēce of Gregory is not to be admitted The other thing which I iudge is to be obserued is that Gregory doth testify that this his Iohn did fyrst vsurpe vnto himself the title of vniuersality Theodoretus which assuredly I cannot be perswaded of Forasmuch as Theodoretus in his booke de haerecibus when he writeth of Nestorius oftentimes sayth that he was made vniuersall patriarke Yea and Iustinianus in suis nouellis attributeth that title to diuerse Patriarches And to speake as the thing is I suppose that Gregorie this prety little saynt would haue had the thing or matter of an vniuersal bishop although he reprehended the name and title For as the history of those times teacheth and his epistles testify he abstained not from gouerning of other churches He shewed indeede that the name should be auoyded namely least the patriarch of Constantinople by that title should eyther preferre himselfe or be equal vnto the byshop of Rome But before these times Ciprian wythstoode the churche of Rome Cipriā resisted the church of Rome whoe sought then to clayme vnto it self some tiranny and he iudged that appellatiōs should not be brought vnto the seat of Rome but would haue Ecclesiastical causes iudged in euery singuler prouince namely that they which in any place wer condemned by the iudgement of byshops should not be restored by the ayd of the seate of Rome when as yet he chiefly reuerenced the church of Rome acknowleged it as the Matrix in these our regiōs And assuredly to haue it in great estimacion is a farre other thing then to graunt vnto it tiranny or dominion aboue al other For to the first we may after a sort agre but to the other we must not assente vnlesse we will fall from the fayth Afterwarde in Augustines time when he was present at the Sinode of Africa The counsel of Afrike resisted the church of Rome there was great and longe alteration about this thinge and at length the bishop of Rome coulde neuer proue whiche thing yet he chiefly endeuored to do that this power was geuen him in the councell of Nice that menne from all partes of the worlde mighte appeale vnto him Wherefore if it were eyther for lacke of knowlege or of some rashnes or by the people or by flaterers geuen to any byshop of Rome it should by the example of Gideon Leo and Gregory haue bene refused We must not trust vnto the inconstancy of the common people The inconstancye of the common people which is alwayes moueable now they wyll haue Gideon to raigne a litle afterwarde you shal see that they were most vngrate againste him for as the historye declareth they slew his children Gideon refuseth not the principality as though
Why was Socrates condemned at Athens The Ethnike princes had a regard vnto religion I do not now demaunde how holyly or iustly for as all men in a manner beleue Anitus and Melitus lyed agaynst hym this I speake for that he was for no other cause condemned but onely for religion as thoughe he taught newe gods and led away the youth from the olde and receaued worshyppyng of the gods and he was by a prophane Magistrate condēned Socrates was for religiō sake condemned of a prophane Magistrate Wherfore the Athenienses thought that the obseruance and care of religion pertayned vnto their Magistrate The law of God commaunded that the blasphemer should be put to death not I thinke by euery priuate mā or by the Priestes but by the Magistrates The Ethnike Emperors also in those first tymes did for no other cause rage agaynst the Christians but bycause they thought that matters of religion pertayned vnto their iudgement seat And assuredly as touching this opinion they wer not deceaued for none as Chrisostome sayth either Apostle or Prophet reproued the people Chrisostome either Iewes or Ethnikes bycause they had a care ouer Religion but they were deceaued in the knowledge of Religion bycause they defended theyr owne religion as true and condemned the Christian religion as vngodly and blasphemous Constantine and Theodosius are praysed and very many other holy princes bycause they tooke awaye Idoles and either closed vp or elles ouerthrew theyr Temples But they dyd not these thynges but for that they thought that the charge of Religion pertayned vnto them otherwise they should haue bene busy fellowes and should haue put theyr sicle into an other mannes haruest The Donatistes tooke thys in very ill parte and grieuously complayned thereof in Augustines tyme bycause the Catholique Byshoppes required ayde of the Ciuile Magistrate agaynst them Augustine But Augustine confuteth them with the selfe same argumentes whiche I haue a litle before rehearsed and addeth this moreouer Why did ye accuse Cecilianus Bishop of Carthage before Constātine if it be wicked for the Emperor to determine concerning Religion Farther there is gathered by those thynges whiche the same father wrote agaynst Petilianus and agaynst Parmenianus and also in many other his Epistles howe that the Donatistes accused Cecilianus as it is sayde before Constantine the Emperour who first sent the cause to Melchiades Bishop of Rome And when by hym they were ouercome they appealed agayne vnto the Emperor neyther reiected he their appealation from him but committed the matter vnto the Bishop of Orleance by whom they were agayne condemned Neither rested they so Constātine decideth a matter of religion but again appealed vnto the Emperor who heard thē decided their cause condemned them and by hys sentence absolued Cecilianus Where are they now which so often and so impudētly cry that there is no appealyng from the Pope and that the causes of Religion pertayne not vnto the ciuile Magistrate To whom in the olde tyme pertayned the ryght of callyng generall counsels Pertayned it not vnto the Emperors Counsels were called by Emperors As for the counsell of Nice the counsell of Constātinople of Ephesus and of Chalcedonia Emperors called them Leo. 1. of that name prayed the Emperor to cal a counsell in Italy bycause he suspected the Gretians of the error of Eutiches yet could he not obteyne it and the Byshops were called together to Chalcedonia where at the Emperor also was present as was Constantine at the counsell of Nice Neither doo I thinke that they were there present to sitte idle and to do nothing but rather to put forth vnto the Bishops what they should doo and to vrge them to define rightly Theodoretus telleth that Constantine admonished the fathers to determine all thinges by the scriptures of the Euangelistes Apostles Prophetes and Canonicall scriptures Iustinian also in the Code Iustinian Augustine wrote many Ecclesiasticall lawes of Byshoppes and Priestes and other such lyke Yea and Augustine hath taught that the Magistrate ought after the same manner to punish Idolatrers heretikes as he punisheth adulterers for as much as they cōmitte whoredome against God in mynd which is much more heynous then to committe whoredome in body And looke by what lawe murtherers are put to death by the same also Idolatrers and heretikes ought to be punished for that by them are killed not the bodies but the soules although the common people be stirred vp onely agaynst homicides bycause they see the bloud of the bodyes killed but see not the death of the soules Vndoubtedly it is profitable for the Magistrate to take vpon hym this care and by his authority to compell menne to come to holy sermons and to heare the worde of God for by that meanes it commeth to passe that by often hearyng those thyngs begyn to please whiche before displeased As Hystoryes teach that God hath oftentymes with most noble victoryes illustrate godly prynces God hath prospered princes whiche had a care vnto Religion which haue had a care vnto these thinges Farther it can not be denied but that it is the dewty of the Magistrates to defend those Cities and publique wealthes ouer whiche they are gouerners and to prouide that no hurt happen vnto them wherfore for asmuch as Idolatry is the cause of captiuity pestilence famine ouerthrowing of publique wealthes shal it not pertaine vnto the Magistrate to represse it and to kepe the true sound religion Lastly Paul teacheth fathers to instruct their children in discipline in the feare of God but a good Magistrate is a father of the countrey wherfore by the rule of the Apostle he ought to prouide that subiectes be instructed as common children But kynges and princes whiche say that these thynges pertayne not vnto thē do in the meane tyme let geue and sell Bishoprikes Abbacies and benefices to whō they thinke good neither thinke they that to be none of their office onely religion they thinke they haue nothyng to doo with and they neglect to prouide that they whom they exalte to most ample dignityes should execute theyr office rightly Wherfore this thyng onely remayneth for them euen that GOD hymselfe at the length will looke vpon these thynges and with most grieuous punishement take vengeaunce of their negligence These thynges haue I spokē the more at large by occasion of our Hystory which maketh mention twise or thrise that euilles happened in Israel bycause they had not a kyng or lawfull Magistrate ¶ The .xx. Chapter 1 THen all the children of Israell went out and the congregation was gathered together as one man from Dan euen to Beerseba and from the lande of Gilead vnto the Lord in Mizpa 2 And the corners of all the people and all the tribes of Israell assembled in the Churche of the people of God foure hundreth thousand footemen that drew sword 3 And the children of Beniamin heard that the childrē of Israell wer gone vp vnto
this his true sayeng than the godly feling of the minde We gather hereby that the lawe of rendring like for like semeth euen to the wicked by the light of nature iust right which at the length wil they or nill they are compelled to acknowledge the iudgemēts of God For they haue certein principles of that which is right and honest written in their hartes although they expresse not the same in dedes But euen as Paul hath written to the Romaines they holde the truth of God after a certeine sorte captiue in vnrighteousnesse when they knew the righteousnesse of God neither was it hidden from them that they whiche do such thinges are worthy of death yet for all that they not onely do them but also they consent to them whiche do them As I haue done so God hath done to me agayne Bycause he spake of gods iudgementes therfore in naming of god he vsed not this worde Iehouah but Elohim The name Iehouah and the name Elohim By whiche worde the scripture vseth rather to set forth the myght and iustice of god than his mercy This most cruell tyranne confesseth that he had most cruelly cut of the feete of 70. kinges and brought them to that poynte the they were faine to gather their meate vnder his table It is not to be laughed or hissed at as a lye bycause in that prouince beyng not very large were 70. kinges Euery citie in the olde tyme had their king For it may be that at that tyme that custome was in vse that euery citie had his king Neither ought the gouernment of a king to be separated from other formes of gouernmentes by largenesse or bredth of borders but in what societie or multitude of men soeuer it be Definition of a kyng Iustine where as any one mā is lawfully made gouernour so that he depend not of any other superiour power the same man may by good right be called king yea and as Iustinus writeth euery king before Ninus tyme was content with the boundes and limites of his owne citie And such a custome if I should speake the trouth I can not but greatly commende It is not profitable to haue large kyngdomes For what shall it profit kinges most amplye to dilate the territory of their empyre when as afterward they are ouerwhelmed with ouer much weight therof neither are they able to gouerne it by reason and counsell But what should man do The Monarches in these dayes are so set on fire with such great ambition that they haue not a respect how many they are able to gouerne but onely haue a regarde to this how many they may reigne ouer Neither doth this disease whiche is the more to be lamented raigne onely in worldly princes The Bishops seke to haue large diocesses but it is also most filthyly spred abroade in the Churche where Byshoppes couet by all meanes to haue most large diocesses of whiche although they neuer looke to them they may receaue most plentifull fruites But nowe I returne to the matter and aske the cause why the Israelites did cut of the thombes of the handes and feete of Adonibezek Wherfore Adonibezeb was so maymed of the Hebrues R. Leui aunswereth to this interrogation and sayth that it was therfore done that the cruell Tirant might be made altogether vnapt to do any thing and especially to make warre For they whiche are so inaymed are neither able to drawe sworde neither to take or ouercome any man in battaille Moreouer by this so sharpe punishment other princes whiche were yet remayning might easely be made affeard to lifte any weapon agaynst the Israelites These thinges are somewhat lykely but the wordes of the same tyranne teache vs that we must consider some deeper cause namely that it was so done by the prouidēce of god that cruell and bloudy princes should not at the length escape the iudgemēt of God yea rather they should haue experience on them selues of that whiche they had committed agaynst others And in that thing bycause it is good sometymes to be taught by the example of wicked men God would now also admonishe vs by this Adonibezek He teacheth vs that we should not muche staye in inferiour causes whiche are nexte vnto vs We must not staye in the inferior causes but rather cōsider the highest causes but rather by these examples strayght wayes to lift vp the eyes of the mynde to consider the wonderful and most highe iustice of the decrees of God The selfe same most cruel tyranne doth not ascribe vnto the Israelites that they had feabled hym by cutting of his handes and feete but by and by sayeth As I haue done to other so God hath done to me agayne Which same thing also Christ hath taught vs for this also was his sentēce With what measure ye meate with the same shall other meate vnto you Of this lawe of rendring like for like let the cruel tyrannes of our tyme be affeard whiche neuer make an end of killing tearing and burning of holy and innocent mē as thoughe wisedome neuer admonished them By what soeuer a man sinneth by the same also is he punished Neither haue they at any tyme heard Habakuc the holy prophet cryeng thus Why tyrannes do so cruelly rage Bycause thou hast spoyled many nations others also shall spoyle thee Those be bloudy tyrannes when they do so extremely rage being altogether vnmindful of humane chaunces neuer thincking how the same thinges may happen vnto them selues wherwith they do so cruelly afflicte others For if they would remember this they would vse them selues more mekely not only toward innocent men but also euē to them which are giltie iustly condemned by them Let vs learne in all thinges whiche shal happen what soeuer they be to consider as well the iudgementes of god as also his goodnesse and therby we shall get good matter either of repentaunce or els of thankes geuing But there is a doubt why the Israelites killed not this king by and by Why Adonibezek was not by and by slayne of the Iewes and why they brought him to Ierusalem there to die miserably I aunswere to testifie vnto all men that he being woūded was not gloriously killed in the battaille for his horrible tyrāny deserued not so famous an end of this life Neither is it to be meruealed that when he came to Ierusalē he was not holpen by the diligence and remedies of Phisitians for the Iewes did it not of cruelty but bicause they were affeard to violate the commaundement of god who commaunded that all their enemies the Chananites should be slayne euery one amongest whom this Adonibezek deserued not one death but a thousand besides that it was done that his most shameful end might be an exāple to al mē He worthily therfore being maimed and despised departed this life in a most famous citie But it semeth to be demaunded for what cause when he had so vilye maymed
the mariage of his cousin Germaine or of his sisters daughter or of his brothers daughter or of his wiues daughter lastly of al whose mariage is forbidden and condemned But that law is not in these dayes found in the Digestes neither in the booke of the Code nor in the Authentikes Which neuerthelesse Clother the king followed as it is red in the lawes of the Almaines entituled of vnlawfull mariages yea and it is confirmed by the ecclesiasticall Canons and decrees in Gracian 35. Question the second and third also by the counsel of Agathen in the 61. Canon And Gregorye the fyrst in the same place is found to be of the same opinion in the chap. Quaedam ex Romana c. This answereth to the sixth interrogation of Augustine Bishop of Cantorbury and affyrmeth that those which be ioyned by the degree of cousin Germaines ought to abstaine from contracting of matrimony one with an other Yea and long before Gregorye his time Ambrose hath in his 66. Epistle ad Paternum condemned the mariage of brethrens children he testifieth that it was forbiddē by the law of Theodosius which I haue also brought And if I should vse coniecture I thinke Theodosius did it by the persuasion of Ambrose who had a singular respecte to publique honestie Neither was that law so seuere at that time but that sometimes it might be released as he declareth in that Epistle to Paternus In that Ambrose affyrmeth there that such mariages were prohibited by Gods lawe It can be made probable to none which shall attentiuely consider the wordes of the law of god and doings of the fathers How the Romanes haue behaued themselues toward their cousins as concernyng matrimonyes in the old time this I haue obserued Ligustine sayth in the 2. booke and 5. decade of Liuy that his father gaue him his Vncles daughter to wife Cicero also writeth in hys oration for Cluentius that Cluentia had lawfully maryed her cousin Germaine M. Aurius And M. Anthonius the Philosopher tooke to wife Faustina his cousin Germaine as Iulius Capitolinus testifieth And before Rome was builded the mariages of Turnus and Lauinia were in hand which came of two sisters Howbeit Plutarch writeth in the place aboue mentioned that at the fyrst when Rome was builte it was forbidden by a lawe that they whiche were nighe of kinne shoulde not marrye together But yet he writeth that the lawe for brethren and sisters children was vppon thys occasion released bycause a certayne man beyng both honeste and also well beloued of the people of Rome when he was greuouslye oppressed with pouertye toke to wife his sisters daughter which was ryche and welthye for the whiche cause he was accused of inceste But the matter being decided he was quyted by the iudgemente of the people of Rome for he was greatly fauoured in the citye Then after that it was decreed by the consent of the people of Rome that from thence forth it shoulde be lawfull for brethren and sisters children to marry together These thinges I thought good to declare of this kinde of matrimonye both out of Gods lawes and the old new lawes of the Romanes and also out of the fathers and ecclesiasticall Canons Whereunto I will adde that there be very many Cities professing the gospell whiche do not admitte the mariages of brethren and sisters children as Surike Berna Basile Schapusin Sangallum Biema c. In the kingdome also of England when I was there that degree was excluded from matrimony Wherfore in places where the magistrate forbyddeth these mariages the faithful ought for those causes whiche I haue before declared to abstayne from them But now I will go to the present matter If Othoniel as I haue before sayd were cousin vnto Achsa he might mary her by the lawe of God but if he were her vnckle it was not lawful by the cōmō lawe But he maried her Wherfore we must nedes saye one of these two thinges either that it was a faulte for the fathers as we haue before sayd were not alwayes free from sinne or elles that god would haue this done by a priuilege or certain prerogatiue whiche we may not for all that take example by Neither is this to be forgottē that after the accustomed manner of Scriptures Kinsfolkes in scriptures are called brethren they whiche were any way of kinne together were called brethren as Loth is called the brother of Abraham the kinsfolkes of Iesus Christ the sonne of God are called in the history of the gospel his brethrē So may it also be in this place that Othoniel may be called the brother of Chaleb when as he was but only some other waye of kinne vnto him And the interpretours do vse this expositiō oftē times which I would not disallow but that I se this particle in the texte The yonger whiche is not wont to be added but when sisters and brethren in dede are compared together But now wil I go to other thinges whiche are to be considered in this history Chaleb had promised him which should cōquere the citie of Debir Whether Chalebs promisse were a rashe promisse his daughter to wife What if any wicked persone had performed that should he by the vertue of the promise haue ben made the sonne in law of Chaleb surely it semeth not For what other thing had this ben than to betraye his daughter Therfore it may appeare that he promised rashly For a wise man ought to foresee those thinges whiche might happen How be it we must consider that there were not at that tyme such wicked and flagitious men among the Israelites for as long as those elders lyued whiche gouerned the publicque wealth together with Iosua as it shal be declared in this hystory the people feared god Wherfore it followeth that they vsed to put those to death by the lawe whiche were guiltie of very grieuous crimes Therfore there was no daunger lest any such mā should conquere the citie to whom for that act Hacsah should be geuen to wife of duetye But if there remayned certaine smal and common faultes in him which had conquered it the same might be recompenced by his other vertues For there is is none so absolute and perfect but that some times he may fal Moreouer there were some hope of amendement of life And the conquerour might be so nighe of kynne as peraduēture this Othoniel was that he could not mary the daughter of Chaleb Wherfore it seemeth that at the least in that part it was a rashe promise But I do not thincke it can be accused of rashenesse A constant rule of all humane promises for as much as all promises ought among the godly so farre forth to be of force as they do agree with the word of god which thing if Iepthe had diligently considered he would neuer haue suffred hym selfe to haue committed so vnworthy thinges agaynst his daughter This cōdition surely in all couenaunts and promises ought to be counted
to be prepared Wherof is deriued that word which signifieth an harlot bycause such women are redy and setforth vnto all men or els bicause they are wont to go trimly docked and paynted Wherefore Clemens sayth Clemens that the Lacedemonians permitted harlots to weare wroughte garmentes fine apparel and golde whiche thinges were not lawfull for matrones to vse Now let vs see what followeth in Deut. And the hire of a whore shall not be brought into the sanctuary Here again the law calleth her Zanah which before is called Kadschah But thou wilt say If the law would not haue harlots suffred what neded it to haue forbiddeÌ„ their oblactes What neded this law they which say this do seme indede to speake wittely but yet they speake not sufficientlye For outwarde nacions also sente giftes for ornamentes and vses of the temple The Eunuch of the quene of Ethiope came to Ierusalem to offer in the temple The Macedonians and Romaines gaue yearelye oblations and sacrifices in the temple Wherfore the law forbiddeth that if any thing be offred by straungers that is gotten by the gayn of a harlot the same should not be admitted into the sanctuary Farther god had commaunded that there shoulde not be harlots in Israell but he knew that they would not obserue that law For when the Philistians Macedonians and Romaines raygned ouer them they had harlots Yea Christe maketh mention of harlottes and publicanes together Wherefore god doth rightwell first forbid that ther should be no whores among the Hebrewes And afterward he ordeineth that if by any chaunce there were any theyr gayn should not be admited in to the sanctuarye Whiche thing vndoubtedly he commaunded bicause of the vilenes and filthinesse of the gaine In the same place he addeth The price also of a dogge shall not be broughte into the sanctuarye bycause that beast is filthy and vncleane Caligula otherwise a filthy monster commaunded as Suetonius writeth that harlotes and baudes should be openly punished Suetonius Hostiensis Of this thing Hostiensis writeth ridiculously Harlots indede sayth he ar bound to pay and to offer but the church can not nor ought not to receaue them Yet the Glose doth much better decre in the decretals dist 90. chap. Oblationis namely that nothing at al should be offred in the church that is of the gain of an harlot But priests and monkes when they feared leaste some of their profite shoulde departe haue inuented an other reason For althoughe saye they the gaine of harlotes cannot be receaued for an oblacion The Pope doth vniustlye get gaine of harlottes yet nothing letteth but that it maye bee receaued for almes But by what meanes doth the Pope receaue the money of harlots Not vndoubtedly as an oblation because he caÌ„not not as almes bicause he is not poore Wherfore theÌ„ must he nedes receaue it as a prynce The lord would not haue this kind of money in his sanctuary but the pope will haue it in hys treasury hath it getteth a wonderfull greate gaine by it Whose vicar then is the Pope Gods vicar God refused such a gayn What is he Christs vicar Christ neuer departed from the will of his father Then must it consequently follow that he is Antichrist when as he both teacheth and doth those thinges which are expressedlye of purpose against the word of god and of Christ But he wil say that he exacteth this mony as a prince Let him then be prince But I wil demaund whither he be an euil prince or a good For a good prince it is not lawful to depart from the lawes of God Let him then be an euill prince let him also be euen Caligula Paraduenture he will aunswere that in respect he is a prince he doth according to the ciuil lawes which do not take away harlots out of the dominioÌ„ of the Romaynes yet rather they disdayne not to decree somethinge touchinge theyr price or reward In the Digestes de Condictione ob turpem causam in the law idem etsi it is decreed that there can be no requiring againe if thou geue anye thing vnto an harlot And there is a reason added bycause although a harlot do filthily in that she is a harlot yet she receaueth not filthily in that she is a harlot These wordes are darke so that they may seme to be a riddle Farther in the digests in the title de donacionibus in the law affectionis gratia it is decreed that it is lawful to geueas wel vnhonestly as honestly It is not lawfull to geue vnhonestly It is lawful honestly to geue as vnto parents kinsefolks friends c. Vnhonestly as to harlots But I would know by what license that is lawful Hath god geuen goodes vnto men to cast them vpon harlots But here they confesse there is some filthinesse for although it be lawefull to geue yet if thou haste promised anye thinge vnto an harlotte thy oblygatyon byndeth thee not neyther canne the harlotte require thy promes as it is had in the glose in the title de donacionibus in the â—awe ea quae But there is a doubt if she receaue not filthily why is it not lawfull without filthines to require it They aunswere that that followeth not bicause many thinges are taken honestly which are not required honestly And to that purpose there is cited the law .1 de variis extraordinariis cognationibus Wherfore the Pope will by the cyuill lawes not take a waye harlots but receaue monye of them which he seeth can not be suffred by the lawes of god But here I will a little reason with him Vndoubtedly he professeth that he is ruler ouer the ciuill lawes and in very dede he hath altered manye of them as thoughe he woulde amend them when as yet he hath taken away the good and for the most part hath set euill in theyr place Why hath he not amended these lawes for the suffringe of harlots when as they ar against the law of God Vndoubtedly the true cause why he hath not taken away the lawes of harlottes is this bicause it should be to muche hurtefull vnto the Popes treasorye For at Rome they measure their lawes by profite and not by honestye But by what ciuill law do they receaue mony of harlots They aunswer for tribute But why do they not rather say for baudry Assuredly What the lawes decre of baudry if we wil speake truely Popes are not as touching this thing otherwise then bawdes Let them diligently marke the ciuil lawes whereby they now go about to defende themselues and ouer which they boast that they are rulers and let them looke what they iudge of bawdry In the Digestes de ritu nuptiarum in the law palam it is thus written He which hath bondewomen for gayne and filthilye setteth them out is partaker of the gaine the same committeth bawdry Now I demaunde of these men in what condicion they count the harlottes of Rome For citizens Nothing lesse
to the Corrin he reprehended those Christians whiche pleaded causes at the iudgemente places of the Ethnikes He iustlye reproued the Corinthians bycause there were Christians amonge them which might in the church haue decided theyr causes Neyther was it conueniēt that Christians should contend with christians at the iudgemente places of the vngodly But Paul whē he appealed vnto Cesar had not to do with christians but with the Iewes president of Rome Wherfore forasmuch as he had not a faithfull magistrate neither could it otherwise be done his life also was soughte he did not il in imploringe the fayth and ayd of the cōmon magistrate although he were an Ethnike For euē as we vse the Sun Mone so also is it lawfull to vse the publike and ordinary magistrate what manner of man so euer he be The church vsed an Ethnike Magistrate The Christian church did the same thing whē there were yet no Christiā Emperors For Paulus Samosatenus was condēned as an heretike being a bishop he was displaced But bicause he would not render vp the house which longed to the bishop there was request made vnto Aurelianus the Emperor ayd obteined at his hands to cōpel him to deliuer his house vnto the new bishop Who can say that the church herein sinned bicause it vsed the publike magistrate though he were an infidel But let vs returne thither frō whence we digressed and constantly beleue that the magistrate is of god althoughe oftentimes our sins deseruing the same many things vnder him ar done wickedly vniustly Howbeit Hoseah the Prophet semeth yet to be against vs whē he saith they haue raigned but not by me How it is sayd that tirannes raign not by god But we must know that Hoseah entreated of tirans which nether regarded laws neither norished the good nor toke away the euil frō among the people therfore they raigned not by god but by theyr own lust they regarded theyr own affections not the law of god Farther they inuaded kingdomes being stirred vp by theyr own wicked desires moued by their own ambiciō not as they which felt the calling of god vnto the kingdome neither toke they vpon them the power with a wil to obey god but to satisfy theyr own ambiciō This was not to reign by god But that they were not exalted to the kingdom by the wil of god it is contrary in a manner to the whole scripture For god calleth Nebucad-Nezar his seruāt bycause he would vse his ministery to afflict the Israelites whē as yet it might haue bene said that he reigned not by god forasmuch as he foght against the Iewes by his own lust couetous desire of his mind not of a zeale to fulfil the will of god Wherfore the sentence of Hosea the prophet is nothing against vs but that we may beleue that the Magistrate is of God and that we ought to obey him Paule saith Let euerye soule be subiect vnto the higher powers The same thing is written to Titus And in the first Epistle of Peter the second chap. And Paule to Timothe addeth that we should pray for them But the Papistes and they which wil be called Ecclesiastical men Ministers of the churche are not exemted frō the ordinarye power Chrisostome wyll not heare these thinges For they cry that they are exempted from publike and ordinary powers when as yet the Apostle vsed no exception when hee sayde Let euerye soule be subiect vnto the higher powers And He whiche resisteth the power resisteth the ordinance of God Yea and Chrisostome also vpon that place saith that the Apostles Prophetes Euangelistes and Moonkes are comprehēded vnder that lawe And Chrisostome wrote these thinges of Ecclesiastical persons when as yet he was Bishop of Constantinople and there were then also Christian Emperours But it is a sporte to beare the argumentes What the false ecclesiastical mē trifle of twoo swoordes whiche these false Ecclesiasticall men vse In Etrauag de Maioritate et Obedientia chap. Vnam sanctam Bonifacius the .viii. whom they say entred in as a Foxe raigned like a Lion and dyed like a Dog saith that there are two swordes in the Church And least he should seeme to speake it rashly he citeth these woordes out of the .xxii. chap. of Luke whē I sent you without bag or scrip did ye at any time want any thing They said vnto him No. Christ added But now I saye vnto you let euerye man take his scrippe and wallet and he which hath none let him sell his coate and bye a swoord They said vnto him Behold here are two swoordes Christ answered it is sufficient Bonifacius saith Two swoordes are sufficient for the Churche namely the spiritual sword and the temporal Wherefore they whiche say that Peter had not an outward swoord do seeme not to vnderstand the woordes of Christ wherein he sayd Put vp thy swoord into the sheath Thy swoorde sayth he and not an other mans For he had a swoord of his owne although he were bidden to put it vp But there must needes be some order kept and obserued in these swoordes For what powers soeuer there be they are ordained of God For there shoulde be a great confusion if for that being two swordes in the Church the one should not be gouerned by the other Wherfore the temporal sword ought to be gouerned by the spiritual And to make this argument more plaine The church saith he hath two swoordes but it vseth them not after one and the selfe same manner For it exerciseth the spiritual swoord but the temporal sword ought to be drawen onely at the becke and suffrance of the Church This is so obscure that it may in a maner seme to be a riddle Howe be it this is his meaning The Pope maketh subiect vnto him selfe the swoorde of the Emperour that the sworde of the Emperour ought to be drawen onely at the wyll and pleasure of the Pope that when he commaundeth he must strike and by sufferance that is he must go forward in striking so long as he listeth and wil suffer it Wherfore these thinges must be in order and the order is that the temporal swoord be reduced vnto God by the spiritual For as that Dionisius saith Dionysius who is thought to be an Areopagite although he be farre an other all inferiour thinges are referred vnto the chiefest thing but yet by a meane Wherfore saith he the temporal sworde must be drawen at the becke of the Pope that by that meanes it may be referred vnto God So we see is now brought to passe For so often onelye as the most holy willeth that warre be made against the Lutherians he wil that the Emperour straightway should obey And if any Prince wil not with much submission obey him straightway are sent Legates hither and thether that al other kinges and princes should apply them selues vnto his becke and make war and vexe him which
first fruites of al their thinges Tēthes at this day ar no more ceremonies but rather rewards and stipendes But our men do in these dayes receiue tenthes But by what law Not vndoubtedly by the ceremoniall law but by the morall lawe Forasmuche as it is mete that the Mynister shoulde bee nooryshed of the people For the laborer is woorthye of hys rewarde and hee whyche serueth the Gospel it is meete that he liue of it Wherfore whither stipéds be payd vnto ministers out of lands or out of houses either in ready mony or in tenths it skilleth not so that they be not maintained filthily but honestly Indede these rewardes in some places doo retayn the olde name of tenthes But in many places they ar not called tenthes but stipendes or wages And assuredly they are in very deede rather rewards whiche are dew vnto the labours of the ministers then tenthes Stipendes are paid both to superiors and also to inferiors And as touching this foresayd argument we must vnderstand that such rewardes and stipendes are thinges indifferent bicause they are sometimes payd vnto inferiors and sometimes to superiors For tributes which are geuen vnto kinges and princes are theyr stipendes which we geue vnto them partly to norish and susteine them and partly to confesse that we are subiecte vnto them and lastly the they may haue wherwithal to defēd the publike welth and vs. And somtimes inferiors also do receaue stipendes For princes pay them vnto souldiers and yet cannot we therefore saye that the souldiours are greater then Kynges and Prynces And notwythstandynge I woulde not haue anye thynke that I speake these thinges to dimynyshe the dygnitye of the Ecclesiasticall ministerye but that men myghte vnderstande that theyr argumentes are very trifling The church which payeth the stipēd vnto the minister is greater then he Why in the church kinges are consecrated Power is geuē vnto princes of god and not of bishops Neither doubt I to affirme that the church it self whiche payeth the stipend vnto the minister is greater then the minister Wherfore if we speake of tenthes as they are at this day geuen vnto ministers they are no cause that they should be greater then those that pay them But in that kinges and Emperors are consecrated and annointed of byshops and in that they receiue the crowne and sword of them it nothinge helpeth their cause For if we speake of the ciuill power that is not geuen of the bishop but of God But this thing is ther done that after the king or Emperor is chosen of god in such manner as is agreable prayers should be made for him in the assembly of the church that god may confirm and strengthen his hart that he may encrease piety in him and instil in him a feare of his name prosper his counsels and so make fortunate his actions that they may proue profitable vnto the church and vnto the publike welth And the bishop whilest these thinges are in doing is the mouth of the church goeth before it in expressing the prayer And this function was deriued of an olde ceremony and custome of the Iewes And the the king receaueth not his power of the bishop but of God euen their owne decrees also do testifye In the dist 96. chap. Si Imperatur Gelasius saith that the Emperor hath the priueleges of his power at gods hand Why then doth Bonifacius arrogātly claim it vnto himself namely that which longeth to God onely For as Paule sayth All power is of god In the Code de Iure veteri enucleando in the lawe firste Iustiniane Iustinian declareth that his power was geuen him of the deuine maiesty And the Glose in Extrauag de maioritate obediencia in the chapter vnam sanctam toward the end saith that power is geuen vnto kings of God onely and that therfore they do indede receiue the crowne of the byshop and the sword from the aulter But let vs more narowly examine Bonifacius argumēt I sayth he do geue power vnto Emperors Therfore I am greater then Emperors Let this most blessed Thraso aunswere me who consecrated him when hee was chosen Pope Vndoubtedly the bishop Hostiensis Let vs conclude therfore that the bishop Hostiensis is greater then the Pope And if that follow not thē is the argument also of Bonifacius of no force bicause as I haue now shewed it cleaueth vnto a broken foundation For they are not bishops which geue power vnto kinges Farther All emperors were not consecrated of the Pope wer there not many Emperors whiche were neuer consecrated of bishops and yet were neuertheles for al that Emperors Neither were the old Grecian Emperors so annointed Wherfore that is a new inuētiō But what if I proue that the head bishop was somtimes consecrated of the ciuill magistrat Vndoubtedly Moses cōsecrated Aaron whē as yet as it is sayd Moses was a ciuil prince Wherfore Bonifacius laboreth in vayne about his consecration bicause he canne gather nothing thereby He boasted moreouer of the kayes Wherin the kayes of the church consyst We sayth he haue the power of binding and losing But the power of the kayes consisteth herein that ye should preach the word of god truly For he which beleueth the gospel is losed he which beleueth not is bound But when ye neither preach nor teach neither can ye binde nor lose And farther this subiection which we haue graunted is spiritual namely of fayth and of obedience and not ciuill and with dominion Afterward was Ieremy obiected vnto whom the Lord sayde I haue appointed thee ouer nacions and kingdoms c. First here I demaund what kings Ieremy deiected or whom he abrogated of theyr Empire and what new kinges he instituted They can shew of none What therefore signify these woordes I set thee ouer nacions and kingedomes Vndoubtedly nothing els then that by the sprite of prophecy word of god he should foretell what kingdomes god would ouerthrow for sinnes and what new ones he would institute Why doe not the Popes so excercise theyr power Let them sette before kinges and princes of the earth the threatninges of god Prophetes are not the efficiēt causes of the ouerthrow of kingdomes Ministers and prophetes are an occasion but not a iust cause of ruines and let them be in this manner ouer nacions and kingdomes Could Ieremy be called the cause of the ouerthrowe of kingdomes He was not properly the efficient cause but onely a certayn occasion For when he had admonished the king of Iudah and he beleued him not the prophet by his preachinge was some occasion that he shoulde be condemned and ouerthrowne So Paule sayth To some we are the sauor of life to life and to other the sauor of death to death When as yet the Apostle properlye killed no man but his preaching after a sorte broughte death vnto those whiche would not beleue It is god therefore that seperateth ouerthroweth scattereth planteth Neither disdaineth he
Germanes And this maketh not coniunction but diuision Farther of what power I praye you speaketh Paul Not vndoubtedly of Byshops or Archebishops but of that power whiche beareth the swoorde He doth not without a cause sayth he beare the swoorde He speaketh of that power to whom tribute is payd For for this cause sayth he ye pay tribute But Bishops neither beare swoorde nor exacte tributes of the people Wherfore Paul speaketh not of them And thoughe Germany Byshops beare the swoorde and do gather tributes and customes they doo not that in respect that they are Byshops but in respect that by accidens they haue the ciuile power adioyned vnto thē how rightly let them see to it But it is manifest that Paul spake of the Ciuile power vnto whiche he commaunded that euery soule should obey Neither is the interpretation of Origene probable wherin he affirmeth that Paul sayd Euery soule Origene and not euery spirite Bycause sayth he the spirituall man is moued with no affections neither possesseth he any thyng in the world Wherfore he is not subiect at all vnto the outward power Wherfore Paul commaundeth euery soule that is euery carnall man to obey the ciuile power But what Was not Christ spirituall who was more spirituall And yet he acknowledged the superior power and payd tribute What say you to the Apostles were not they spirituall And yet they neuer exempted thēselues from the ciuile power yea rather they obeyed and taught others to obey them But let vs heare what our Bonifacianes aunswere farther They say that they haue not this power ordinarily and by the right of their fruition but graunted them by priuiledges and giftes of princes And why say they is it not lawful for vs to enioye the priuiledges and liberality of princes But we ought here to haue a regard not what princes haue doone but what they ought to haue done God without all doubt hath made subiect euery soule vnto the hygher power It was neuer lawfull for any prince to breake that law Whether it wer lawful for princes to exempt Ecclesiastical men from their subiectiō Nor humane reason seeth not better then the prouidence of God what should become of the affaires of humane kynd And the euent it selfe also sufficiently hath declared how much that remission of princes hath profited For after that Bishops and false Ecclesiastical men got themselues once frō the subiection of the ciuile power they straight way became farre worse then they were before and made the people which were committed to theyr charge nothyng the better Wherfore let them cease to say that Emperours and kynges haue geuen them these thynges let them rather heare the word of god wherin they are cōmaūded to obey princes But they haue not onely withdrawen thēselues from obedience towarde princes but also haue claymed vnto thēselues an immunite or fraunches What immunity is What tribute is What custome is Vlpiane And an immunity is a liberty from doyng of homages bearyng of ciuile burthens And among burthens are numbred tributes customes Tributes are those which are payd of landes and possessions Customes are those whiche are payd of marchandises of those thinges whiche are either caried out or brought in These thynges Vlpiane calleth the sinewes of the publique wealth as without which it cā not either consist or be gouerned By what ryght therfore and reason haue these men withdrawē themselues from the publique commodity With what face do they boast of such liberality of princes whiche neither Christ neither the Apostles nor the Prophetes vsed And althoughe they haue this thing as they say Ministers of the Church ar exempted from personall burthēs and from such as are filthy Vlpianus by the gift of kings and Emperors yet must they take heede that it be not hurtfull vnto the Citezins and least whilest they are lifted vp other be aboue measure burdened And yet ar they not by priuiledges and lawes of princes exempted from all burthēs In deede they are franchised from personall burthens that not without great reason whiche euen the Ethnike princes sawe also In the digestes de Vacatione excusatione munerum in the law Praetor Vlpianus saith If a man haue gotten a benefice neither can hurt of conscience be absent from it he is acquited And Constantine the Emperor in the Code de Episcopis Clericis in the law .1 and .2 What personal burthens are Filthy burthens exempteth them from personall and filthy burthens Personall burthens are those whiche are accomplished by the industry of the mynde and labour of the body Filthy burthens are those as to burne lyme to digge sand to kepe the cundite to heate the bath and such other of like sorte From these burthens they are woorthily exempted bycause the ministery by such filthy excercises should come in contempt And they are made free from personal burthens bycause whē they should geue theyr mindes to holy thyngs they ought not to be withdrawē to other thynges Wherfore princes haue ryghtly graunted these thynges vnto Ecclesiasticall men that they should not be absent from the study of religion and that they should not be contemned of the common people But what if a man clayme hymselfe to be a Minister onely by hys apparell or garmentes and doth nothyng in the Churche is this freedome also graunted vnto hym Iustiniane No vndoubtedly Yea Iustiniane in the Code de Episcopis Clericis in the lawe generaliter sancimus sayth that he meaneth onely of those whiche diligently geue themselues to holy thynges and not of vagaboundes and idle persons which bragge onely in the name of the Ministery Moreouer Ministers are not loosed from ordinary charges althoughe they are exempted from extraordinary charges Ordinary charges Extraordinary charges Ordinary charges are those whiche are imposed alwayes by the commaundement of the lawes Extraordinary charges whiche are exacted onely for some present necessity and afterward doo cease Wherfore if Ecclesiastical men haue manors landes as other Citezins haue for them they ought to pay Why they are acquited from extraordinary charges For the Church when it taketh landes taketh them with their burthens But they are free from extraordinary tributes bycause in the olde tyme Ecclesiastical men were poore besides necessary foode and apparell had nothyng remanyng or if peraduenture there remayned any thyng all the same whatsoeuer it were was bestowed vpon the poore But nowe it is cleane contrary for both they abounde in riches and they bestow very litle vpon the poore And yet if any great necessity happened They are not exempted from all extraordinary charges they were compelled to pay also extraordinary charges As if there were any highe wayes to bee mended and any bridges to be made any shippes to be edified for to transporte an hoste as it appeareth in the Code by the lawes of the Emperour Neyther vndoubtedly doth brotherly charity suffer that when other are burdened they shoulde