and lyued in Cyrilles tyme was in the counsell kept at Ephesus and CalceÌ„donie and was estemed for a man of excellent learnyng and a man of wonderfull eloquence And where as in the counsell holden at Ephesus there be fell a variaunce betwixte Iohn the Patriarke of Antioche and Cyrill the Byshop of Alexandria Thys Theodoritus semed to leaue to the Patriarke of Antioche but that variaunce was taken vp and pacified and set at an ende euen in that counsell And then afterwarde at the counsell of Calcedonie the sayde Theodoritus was acknowledged and demed aÌ„ maâ— singulerly well learned and an holy membre of Christes churche Yea and in the bookes whyche he wrote Nestorius an heritike he dothe of sette purpose resiste Nestorius and writeth agaynste him by name The boke was printed at Rome And the Papistes for as much as they haue espied that he is moste playnelye agaynste transubstanciation they haue excused him two waies Fyrste that the churche had not as yet in his time determined this matter as thoughe we did searche what the Pope with hys Cardinals haue decreed either at Constaunce or in the counsell where Beringatius was condempned and not rather what was bothe preached and taught also beleued in the olde church Secondelye they excuse Theodoritus and saye that in writing against the heritikes whan he traicted of mysteries he leaned some what to muche the other waye agaynste transubstantiation to thys intent and purpose that hys aduersaries mighte the better and the more effectuallye be confuted But howe triflynge an excuse thys is it maye very well appeare of the whole sequell of thys wryters processe in hys wrytynge where as one maye â—â—e not the scape of a word or twaine but the whole argumente and pythe of the mattier to be fette and to be taken oute of the nature of a Sacramente so that if ye mengle transubstanciation therewyth all the matter canne be broughte to no conclusion on hys parte but contrarywyse the heritykes should wynne the whole victorye They alledge furthermore that he speaketh sumetime verye honourablye and reuerentelye of the sacramente in thys same boke But if ye loke it all thorowoute he neuer speaketh so honourablye or so reuerentelye of it that he is anye thyng agaynste thys sentenâ—e whiche we do here holde Hys boke is a disputation agaynst suche persons as denye that Christe had a true bodye and do saye that hys bodye in the tyme of hys ascention was all togyther chaunged into a diuine nature Firste he bringeth in for his purpose the prophecy of the aunciente Patriarke Iacob out of the .xlix. Chapter of Genesis to the ende that he might therby make him selfe awaye to bringe his argumentes oute of the sacramentes And his wordes ben these But for the better and more plainer declaration of the matter I the translatour haue thought necessarie to admonish the good christian reader to vnderstand to note yâ— the purpose of Theodoritus is to proue that the body of Christ as it is nowe in heauen raignynge in the glorye of hys father is hys verye true and naturall bodye and the same bodye whyche he hadde whan he was conuersaunte here on earth in hys manhoode and that the same bodye remaynethe euen styll and euer shall do in the same his verye true nature of manhoode that it than hadde and is not chaunged into the nature and substaunce of hys godheade For euen at those dayes some heritiques did beginne to deuise and to write of Christe that after hys resurrection and ascention hys manhoode was now chaunged into his godhead and was no longer a natural bodye so that he was not now both god man sayde they but God onelye for as muche as by rysynge frome deathe to lyfe and by ascending into heauen he hadde ouercomed al corruptebilitie and hadde cast of all earthlinesse of hys natural body and of his manhoode And the wordes are written in Theodoritus in maner and forme of a dialoge betwene a good Christian maÌ„ beyng of right opinioÌ„s in matters of religioÌ„ whoÌ„ we shal here at thys tyme cal by the name of Orthodoxus as the auctoure doeth and a Compaigâ—ion of hys beynge as it were an Heritique or miscreaunte whome wee shall here for thys presente call by the name of Aduersaries to the trueth and thus do they talke togyther Theodoritus as hereafter foloweth he washed hys stole in wyne and hys garmente in the bloude of the grape Ortho. Doest thou know that God called bread his own body Ad. Yea I know it very wel Ortho. Dost thou know also that in an other place againe he called his body wheat corne Aduer Yea I knowe that too euen verye well For I haue heard that he sayde The houre is come that the sonne of man muste be glorified And except the wheate corne being caste downe into the earth do there dye it remayneth it self alone but if it dye it bringeth forth muche frute Orthod Trulye in the very geuing and deliuerynge of the mysteries he called the breade hys body and the cup he called hys bloud Aduer In dede so did he name it Orthod But euen a body after nature too that is to saye hys owne bodye his bloude might it haue bene so called Aduer It is a playne matter to graunte Orthod Yea and trulye our sauiour hym selfe chaunged the names and gaue to hys bodye the name of the sygne and to the sygne the name of hys bodye And in the same maner whan he hadde called him selfe a vyne he called the verye sygne by the name of hys bloude Aduersa In dede that worde hath thou spoken verye truly And I woulde fayne learne the cause too whye he so chaunged the names Ortho. That is an open marke to knowe vnto all suche as are entred to be partakers of oure holy sacramentes For his wyll was that suche as wer partakers of the heauenly mysteriesâ— should not haue respect to the nature of the thynges whiche thei see but that by the chaungyng of the names thei should beleue the alteracion whiche is made through grace For the same Christe whiche called his naturall bodye a wheate corne and breade also named hymself a vyne the selfe same Christ honoured the visible â—ignes with the name of his bodye aâ—d bloude not chaungyng the nature of the thynges but geuyng grace vnto the nature of them Aduers In dede the mysâ—icall thynges wer mystically spoken And now hath it been of thee clerely expouned and opened that is not knowen to all folkes Orthodoâ— Forasmuche therfore as he openly protesteth the Lordes bodye to be called of the Patriarche Iacob in the olde testamente both a stoole and a garmente and we are now entred into a talke of the heauenly mysteries Tell me plainly and truely whereof thynkest thou that same most holy meate to be a signe and a figure whether of the verai godhead of Christe our Lorde or els rather of his body and bloud Aduer Truly of these same verai
and yet maye be chaunged into an other thynge too Hierome vpon Mathewe sayeth playnlye Hierome that the bodye and bloude of Christe is represented by the breade and by the wyne Chrisostome vpon the second epistle to the Corhinthians sayeth Châ—isostom that not onely that thyng is Christes bodye whych is sette before the Christians at the lordes table but also that the pore folcke are hys bodye to whome we are bounde to shewe and to minister the worckes of charitye For euen the same Christe whyche sayde thys is my bodye sayde also by his worde that he was in nede and necessitie whan poore folcke lacked and that he had kyndenes and benefyte shewed to hym selfe whan they receyued our almesdedes The same Chrisostome in the eleuenth homelie vpon Mathewe in the worcke whyche is intituled Imperfectum sayeth thus It is not christes bodye and christes bloude whyche is contayned in the holye vesels Sed misterium corporis et sanguinis Christi that is to say But it is the mistery of Christes body bloude The same Chrisostome in the .xxvii. homelie vpon the eleuenth chapitur of the second epistle to the Corinthyans For as christe bothe in the breade and also in the cuppe sayde Do ye thys in remembraunce of me as often as ye shal eate of thys bread and drynke of thys cuppe c. The same vpon the .xxii. psalme Thou hast prepared an eatynge table in my syght that he might shew forth daily to vs in the sacrameÌ„t bread and wyne accordynge to the order or fashyon vsed of Melchisedek for a similitude of christes body blud Emisenus And Emisenus whome they cite or alledge oute of the canon lawe in the title De consecratione and in the seconde distinction where he semeth to putte a chaunge of the symboles or sygnes and matter of the Sacramente euen the same manne maketh mention of oure chaungynge into christe Austen Austen hathe manye testimonies of thys mattier fyrst vpon the .lxxxix. psalme Ye shal not eate this body which you see with your eye neither shal ye drinke the same very blud whych the Iewes wil shede forth vpon the crosse But the thinge which I speake vnto you is a mysterie and an highe secrete poynte whiche if it be spirituallye vnderstanded shall quicken you to life Also in the thyrde booke de trinitate Panis ad hoc factus in sacramento accipiendo consumitur that is to saye the breade whyche was made for this purpose is coÌ„sumed awaye whan the sacrament is receyued Neither is there anye tytle or reason why Fysher late bishope of Rochester shuld so haue gone aboute to racke thys sentence and to apply it to the shewe breades of the olde lawe whyche were called Panes prepositionis For we haue before this declared and by diuerse reasons proued that hys declaration doth not ne canne bee agreable to serue for that matter Firste bicause that if thou folowe the easye and plaine sence of the wordes and that sence of the letter whiche offereth it selfe and commeth to thy minde at the fyrste syght or readinge thou shalte see plainelye that Austen there speaketh of Eucharistia whyche is thys Sacramente of thankes geuynge as is afore sayde And it is a worde muche vsed to signyfye the Sacramente of Christes bodye c. And Erasmus in the worckes of Austen whiche he corrected and sette forthe of newe when he commeth to the wordes aboue cited â—â—asmus hath for a note in the margente of the booke directlye agaynste the sayde clause sette thys worde Eucharistia to signifye that the sayde clause is mente of thys Sacramente of Christes bodye and bloude Moreouer the sayde Austen a little after in the same Chapitur and whyle he yet treateth vppon the same matter dothe so plainly make mention of Eucharistia that the verye aduersarie canne not denye it nor saye againste it And he hadde wrytten of the same Eucharistia before in the fourthe chapitur of the selfe same boke whan he beganne to treate of the same matter Ye maye adde to thys also that the word SacrameÌ„t is of purpose expreslie mente and playnelye named in these wordes of Austen whych we haue now in haÌ„d For if he woulde thys worde Sacramente to be taken coÌ„munely it myght euen as well in euery behalfe haue bene applyed to those other thynges which Austen in that place had rehearsed before as for example to the brasen serpente and to the stone that was erected vp by Iacob as it myghte be applied or referred to the loues of propositioÌ„ or the shewe breades afore mentioned But Austen whan he spake and treated of those other thynges dyd not make any expresse mention of thys worde Sacramente whyche worde afterward in thys clause he woulde in no wise leaue oute bicause he woulde vs to vnderstande hym directlye to speake of Eucharistia Fynallye to coÌ„clude the very wordes of Austen are these The bread whiche was made for this purpose is cousumed in receyuynge of the sacramente or whan the Sacramente is receyued whyche thynge doeth in no wyse agree nor can not be applyed to the shewe breades of the olde Testamente For the lawes of the shewe bread were not made to any such vse or ende that they shoulde be eaten but that they beynge sette vpon a table shoulde remayne there before the Lorde and so continue from tyme to tyme in that place for the whyche cause they were called in the Hebrue tonge Panim Paâ—im Afterwardes by a lyttle chaunce as ye woulde say and of an other occation it came to passe that they were eaten for thys cause doubtelesse to auoyde leste they shoulde putrefye before the Lorde And for that cause were they chaunged weakelye And whan they were once offered dedicated to God he would haue thys honoure geuen to theim that they shoulde be eaten of the priestes But the breade of oure sacramente of Eucharistia is made verily for this onely purpose and ende that it shoulde be eaten and spente in receyuinge of the sacramente And to the argumentes that I haue alreadie made I adde and ioygne thys one more also whiche is of more force For saynte Austen speaketh by the presente tense and sayeth it is spente and not it was spente whych oughte to haue bene sayde if he hadde spoken of the fygure and ceremonye of the olde Testamente In the ninteenth chapitur of hys boke entitled De side that is to saye of fayeth to one Peter he callethe it the Sacramente of bread and wyne He doeth enstrucâ—e the sayd Peter in the feithe of the memorie of Christ of his death eueÌ„ at large but yet of this transubstanciacion the whiche these men doe now at this daie so earnestly harpe vpon and labour to bring in he speaketh not so muche as one worde In the twentieth booke against Faustus and the one twentieth chapitur he declareth that the fleashe and bloude of Christ was promised to vs in the olde testament vnder the
knolege and a token of his owne propre nature because they be two distincte natures and vnconfounded forlyke as before yâ— bread is sanctifyed we call it breade but whan the diuine grace hath sanctified it the priest beeyng minister it is deliuered from the name of bread and is couÌ„pted worthy the name of the Lordes bodye althoughe the nature of bread hath styl remained in it and it is called not two bodies but one body of the sonne in lykewise this diuine constitution the nature of the bodye adioyned the two bothe together make on sonne and one persone Hesechius in the twentieth booke vpon the eighte chapitur of Leuitici commaundyng fleashe sayth he for this cause to be â—aten with breade Hesechius that we might vnderstandeâ— that he meaned that mysterie whiche is bothe breade and fleashe Gelasius Gelasius ageynst Entichetes wryteth that the substance and nature of breade and wyne doeth not ceasse to bee in the sacrament of the Lordes supper called Eucharistia and he maketh a comparison of this sacramente with Christe in whome remayneth the diuine and humain nature both the natures beyng hole and perfect as in this Sacrament do remaine the nature of breade and the bodye of Christe Gregorius Gregorie in his registre sayeth as well whan we receyue vnleauened breade as leauened we bee made one body of the Lorde our Sauiour Bertram Bartram in his booke of the bodye and bloude of the Lorde sayeth of the nature of the signes Looke what they wer as concernyng the substaunce of the creatures before the consecration the same they continue also afterwardes Bernarde in his sermon of the supper of the Lord Bernarde doeth make a manifeste similitude of a ringe whereby a manne doeth receyue either the promesse of Matrimonie or the possession of any dignitie as it is vsed in makyng of Byshoppes whereas the ryng or croasier staffe or Rotchet be signes or tokens of the thinges whiche are geuen or graunted and yet thei bee no vayne signes for thei do moste surely bringe with them the thynges that they signifie the whiche same thynge also he declareth to be dooen in the Sacramentes Nowe muste we answere to the argumentes of these menne where with thei gooe aboute to proue their transubstantiation And as concernyng the first we aunswere that Christ did promisse vs his fleashe or his bodye and bloude to be our meate and dryncke and that in the sixth Chapitur of Ihon whiche thing he dooeth as ofte as we dooe truelye beleue that he dyed for vs he dyd also perfourme the same whan at his laste Supper he ordeyned this Sacramente for he ioygned the sygnes to that spirituall eatyng But they dyd most chiefelye and principally laye agaynste vs this sentence This is my bodye aboute the veritie of whiche sayinge is nowe all oure controuersie but all oure contencion consisteth in this onelye poyncte howe and in what mannier it is his bodye for bothe partes that is to weete as well oure aduersaries as we dooe holde that it is a true proposicion or sentence And all oure contencion and striefe is onelye aboute the sense or meanynge of it Thei saye it is a playne sentence we on the other syde put them in remembraunce of that whiche Augustine teacheth in his booke entitled de doctrina Christiana that is of ChristiaÌ„ doctrine Where he saieth that one place must not be so expouned that it be contrarie to manye other but rather so as it agree with manye others Neither muste we euermore allege the plainenes of the sentence and stande altogether vpon the woordes for than where it is sayed Leate vs make man after our Image and lykenesse The heritiques named Anthropomorphita Anthropomorphitae A kinde of heritiques that affirmed god to haue a bodely substauÌ„ce or beeing shape as we haueâ— do by by aryse and make an argumente that God hathe a bodye and a soule and other membres as we se to be in mans bodye Thou sayest in thys behalfe that this similitude or lykenes of maÌ„ to God the image of god muste be referred to the mynd or soule of man wherby man hath rule ouer all other Creatures lyke vnto God but the sayde heritiques wyll saye againe that these thynges are there in playne wordes wrytten of manye and that thou doest in vayne go about to applye that whyche is written of the whole man to the one parte onelye that is to wete to the soule or mind Thou alledgeste agayne that Gâ—d is a spirite and that a spirite hath no fleshe bones and â—o thou gathereste the sence of thys one place oâ—te of other places of scripture In lyke maner the Arians sayde that they hadde the playne and cleare sence of thys place of scripture Some senteÌ„ce in scripture whiche seme moste playne in woordes muste not alwayes be vnderstaÌ„ded without soÌ„e interpretacion My father is greater then I Thou dost apply this saying onely to the humayne nature of Christ bycause that in other places of the scripture the godheade of Christe is declared and playnelye taught as in the fyrste chapter of Iohn in the ninthe chapter of the epistle to the Romains and in the fyrst Chapter of the first epistle of sainte Iohn Also Christ sayeth In expouning of one place aâ— eie must be had vnto other places of scripâ—ure He that hath no swerd let hym bye him one in whyche wordes it semeth that he prouoketh men to auengemente But if ye haue an eye to other places ye shall see that it is figuratelye spoken Saincte Paule hath this sayinge Pray ye without intercession or ceassing And anone ther started vp a kynde of heritiques called Euchite Euchitae a kinde of heritiques coÌ„cerninge prayer whyche thought that we ought to vse continual prayers neuer ceasyng to murmure then wher as yet it is sayde in an other place He that hathe not care of them that belonge to hym specially of such as be of hys houshold hath renounced the fayth is worsse then an infidell And againe Let al thinges be done in ordre in an other place he that laboureth not let him not eate Also a certeine secte of Heretiques named Chiliastae that is to say Chiliastae a kinde of Heretiques a certaine secte that taught how Christ should reigne a thousand yeares This secte thought that they had the moste euident word of god that coulde bee for theyr opinion in the Reuelacion of Ihon in the twentieth chapitur of these thousande yeares in the whiche Christe should reigne with his And the SabelliaÌ„s did hold that there was no difference of personnes betwene the father and the soonne Sabellians another sect of Heretiâ—ues and that same thei did of this place I and the father bee one and also of this place Philip he that seeth me seeth the father also And againe As I doe remayne in the father so doeth the father remaine in me these places thei said wer plain places sayinges
ignoraunt that there be many ill folke which in the scripture be called fleshe bloud of whom neuertheles we be molested and vered haue a continual conflicte or wresting with the same But Paules menyng was of that same chiefe and especiall contâ—â—cion or striuyng from the which all these other striuinges take their begynnyng Paule sayed also in another place that there is in Christe neither he nor she neither bondeman nor free man c. Yet neuerthelesse these offices and these sortes of people are not reiected or put awaye from Christe or from the congregacion of Christians yea and commaundementes and rules of ordre wrytten in scripture seuerally of the sayde sortes of people But Paule ment that these thynges be not in Christe as touchyng regeneracion in Christ as touching forgeuenesse of synnes and as touchyng the obteynynge of euerlastyng lyfe which thynges are the highest and chiefest pointes in the profession of Christe And in distributing of the sayd thinges Christ hath not any parciall respecte to these states to these degrees of men The same Apostle wryteth these woordes The kyngdome of God is not in woordes and yet he would not for that cause bannyshe out of the congregaâ—ion or put awaye exhortacions admonicions and readynges whiche bee dooen with woordes but he had oâ—elye a respecte to that chiefe strength efficace of the holy ghostâ— whereby al thinges ought to bee ruled or gouerned in the congregacion And euen after thissame manier dooe the fathers and olde wryters speake whan they denye that the same nature or substaunce of the signes dooe styll remayne in the sacrament which thing as we haue said is not to bee vnderstanded as the plain wordes â—oune without any ferther addicion circumstaunce or consideracion but as touching our feith and as touching our thynkyng whiche our feith and thoughtes ought not ouer muche to leane or cleaue to the sayed signes or tokens Aman may ferther saye The seueÌ„th rule or vnderstanding of the Dâ—â—tours that feith is of suche vertue strength and efficacie that it can make thynges to be presente yet not onely really or in substaunce but spiritually For feyth doeth veraily comprehend suche thynges And in this sence or meanyng the Apostle sayd that Christe was crucified euen before the eyes of the Galathians The presence that feith causeth And after the same manier was Abraham sayed to haue sene the daye of the Lorde And after thesame manier the olde aunciente fathers of the olde testament had the same Christe in theyr sacramentes that we haue nowe in ours And thus ye see that to this presence it is not requisite that thynges dooen in their naturall constituâ—ion and beyng shoulde chauÌ„ge their place and come from place to place or that they should be present before our yies with all their materiall and naturall qualitees states condicions and all other appurtenaunces It is also to be obserued and marked The eighte reason how to vnderstaÌ„d the writinges of the fathers that thinges maie bee so spoken by alternacion that is to saye for the respect of a certayne enterchaungeablenesse of the propretee whiche is after suche sorte that such thinges as do properly belong to his godhead are some tyme applyed to the humanitie and contrarye wyse those thynges that belong to his humanitie are sometymes applyed and referred to his godhead and this I call alternacion and communicating of propretees and by this alternacion because the deitee or godhead of Christe is moste truely present with vs thesame self thyng maye be made commune to his humanitie also As when Christe beyng vpon earthe saide that the sonne of manne was in heauen and in so saying he applyed that thinge to his humanitie or manhoode which belonged to his deitie or godhead And after this fashion of speache I wold graunte that Christes manhode is present to vs when we receyue his body Albeit I wold than expoune it that it wer by the fore sayde communication of alternation of propretees Finally why the fathers dooe somtymes speak more then the truth is vsyâ—g the fygure Hiperbole yf you demaund why old wryters vsed suche maners of speche as some vnpossible it was for these causes partly that they wold folow the phrase or maner of speche read in scripture and partlye that they might moue mennes myndes with a greater zeale and also that they might declare that this signification of sacramentes was not like to thynges signifyed in a comediâ— or tragedie For in suche enterludes any of the players beyng disguised in his players apparell maye represente the persone of 〈◊〉 or Priamus but than getteth he thereby 〈◊〉 or nothynge els to speake of but whan he hathe placed his parte he is thesame man that he was before But in the receiâ—yng of Christes body the thyng beynge represented with the strength of the holy ghost is both geueÌ„ and emprinted in our hertes and our solles through faith and many giftes graces do folow and specially a secrete and an vnspeakeable knittinge and vnion of vs with Christe doeth folowe so that we are made one thing with Christ. The reasoÌ„s auoyded yâ— was broght for transuâ—â—â—anciacionâ—â—ut of the doctours Nowe the fyrste obiection was broughte out of Ireneus whiche sayeth that yearthly breade when it hath receiued another name is not common bread but it is made Eucharistia that is to saye a sacrament of thaÌ„kes geuyng We gladli graunt this to be true for we do not hold yâ— it is prophan and coÌ„mon bread suche as we vse daily to eate but that it is an holy breade and a breade appointed to an holy vse and purpose whiche at the receiuing of Chrystes bodye is made as Irenens saied Eucharistia but all the wordes that folow in Ireneus do muche make for our part For he wryteth that Eucharistia doeth consist of twoo partes that is to wete of an heauenly thyng and of an yearthely thyng And he did nat saie that it is made of the accideÌ„tes of an yearthely thynge and after wardes he wryteth our bodyes receyuyng the sacramente of Eucharistia to bee on thys condicion not corruptible if the same haue hope of resurrection And in case that so great a chaunge bee graunted and putte of hym to bee in oure bodyes that he made it equal with the chaunge of the breade for as that breade sayeth he is no longer CoÌ„mon bread so our bodies be no longer corruptible what nede shall it be to sette vp thys transubstanciatyon seyng he maketh the twoo chaungeynges on bothe sydes equall And a playne mattier it is that the substaunces of oure bodyes bee notte tratysubstancyated Secondartyly Tertullian was alleged Tertullian aunswer vnto And he also bryngeth a declaraâ—ion wyth hym to shew what he meneth for Tertullyan dooeth not onely speake in thys manyer Oure lorde tooke breade and made it hys bodye whan he sayed thys is my bodye but also Tertullyan putteth thus muche more to it to declare it and sayeth id est
he might conclude that the sonne of God also is naturally ioyned to the father in very substaunce The prouing therfore of Hilarius coÌ„clusioÌ„ renneth thus If the sonne of God did truly verily take the nature or substaunce of man vpoÌ„ hym he agreeth with vs naturally in his fleshe we bee sayed to abide in him be cause he hath oure nature in hym And agayn for the other side when we receyue the meate which was instituted of Christe yf we dooe truely and veraily receyue his fleshe we are partakers with hym naturally and he doeth trulye and veraily abide in vs. And thus doeth Hilarius take and frame his argumente of the veritee and trueth of the sacramentes whiche veritee or to bee in the sacramentes we dooe not denye And this was a common custome emong the auncient wryters to fetche the grounde of theyr argumentes out of the Sacramentes as thinges most perfitly knoweÌ„ to al ChristeÌ„ meÌ„ And of al these thinges there is not one iote that is contrary to our sentence and determinacion For it is no part of Hilarius entente to proue that Christes fleashe lieth hidden vnder the accidentes of bread or in this sacrament but he maketh proufe onely and so concludeth that we bee truely and verayly ioyned vnto Christes fleshe whan we receyue the sacrament which thing we do not deny nor say agaynst But ye that make so muche a do for transubstanciacion marke me this poinct that the same self Hilarius a litle before these wordes whiche he writeth of Eucharistia doeth say the very same thinge of baptisme that through baptisme we be ioyned vnto Christ euery onâ— of vs to other not only by an vnion of consent agreyng to gether in minde will but also in an vnitie of nature substaunce Wherfore it the same thinge so be than are ye coÌ„pelled driuen of force to putte a traÌ„substanciacion in Baptisme too yf ye beeyng a transubstanciacion into the sacrament of Eucharistia for the respect aboue mencioned Chrisostome doeth not muche varie from this custome of framing his argumentes out of the sacramentes For in his eightie eighte Homelie vpon the ghospell of Mathew he sayeth as we alledged before that these bee the signes or Sacramentes of oure Lorde Iesus with the whiche wee do both brydle and stop the mouthes of Heretiques For they oftentimes saie howe did Christe suffer And we on oure side obiecte agaynst them again If Christ had not verai true natural fleash in dede thaÌ„ are these signes but vain thinges whych thing foloweth veray well For els the sacramentes shoulde signifye and represente vnto vs feigned thynges And thus the mouthes of the Manichees of the Marcionites and of suche other pernicious heretiques wer stopped of Chrisostome and suche others as he was As touchyng Leo byshope of Rome An auÌ„swere to Leo Bysshoppe of Rome there is no cause why to take muche caâ—e or peine to aunswer him For he in the sentence and determinacion of the sacramentes that is layd vnto vs doth both grauÌ„t a mystycal dystribucyon of it to mo then one and also dooeth putte a spirytuall nourishyng and an heauenly vertue and affyrmeth that we bee transfourmed and chaunged into Chrystes fleashe as he tooke our fleashe and nature vpon him They bryng Emisenus againste vs whose woordes bee reade in the tytle De consecratione that is to saye Emisenus aunswered vnto of consecration and in the second distinction But ther if thou looke well thou shalt finde these woordes Mente attingas et manu cordis accipias corpus Christiâ— that is to saye touche thou Chrystes bodye wyth thy mynde and take thou his bodye wyth the hande of thy herte In the whyche woordes it is plain that he dooeth affyrme and holde that we dooe eate Chrystes bodye spirytually when we receue the sacrament And he moreouer byndeth earnestly as the other olde wryters dooe vpon the chaungeyng of vs into Chryst whych chauÌ„geinge neuerthelesse is doen as we see without any transubstancyatynge of vs. I knowe that many men maye meruaile why we so often times dooe matche that same chaungeing whyche the olde wryters seme to speake of in the sygnes or sacramentes wyth the chaungyng of vs into Chryst whyche they all dooe graunte and constauntly affyrme And some men dooe imagin that there is another manier of ioygnynge betwene Chrystes bodye and the sacramente then there is betwene vs and Chrystes bodye and that therefore thys proporcion and comparisoÌ„ hath no place in this matier although the old wryters affirme avouche both chaunginges To suche persones we aunswer and saye that oure argumente is moste pithie and strong For the reason dooeth argue as the Logicyans termes be a maiore ad minus that is to saye from the more necessarye requisyte to the lesse and that regatiuely that is to saye in the waye of denyinge a thing to bee so or so For ther is a greater coniunction and couplyng together of Chryste vnto vs and to suche as dooe receyue the communion then there is of Chryste wyth these outwarde signes of the sacramente For somuche therfore as in vs to bee knitte vnto Christ and to bee made one wyth hym there is no transubstanciacion required muche lesse is there any suche transubstanciacion requyred in the sayd outward sygnes of the sacrameÌ„te And that we be more nere ioygned and knitte vnto Chryste then the outeward signes of the sacramente we are more nere ioyned â—o Chrisâ— theÌ„ the signes it is manifestli proued by this reason that the ioynyng of Christe with the sayde sygnes was first inuented deuised and wrought to none other ende but the we might be ioigned to Christ made one with hym as aforsaid Morouer yâ— wordes of holi scripture pronouÌ„ce before the receyuyng of the Sacramentâ— the holy spirite by which two thinges the signes be coÌ„secrated do much lesse appertaine belong to the sayde said signes then they do appertaine be long to man that receyueth yâ— signes And as touchyng Theophylactus we saie that he is but a newe wryter and a man that wrote but of late dayes Theophilactus aunswered vnto and paraduenture that chaunced to lyue in those daies whan many doubtes and disputacions be gonne to bee moued aboute thys transubstanciacyon that is to wete Nycolas the byshop of Rome at what tyme Ranfrancke and Berengarius were alyue Morouer Theophylactus was a man of no great iudgemente as it maie full well appere by hys declaracyon and exposicyon of the thyrde chapytur of the ghospell of Iohn towardes the later ende of the chapytur where he châ—cketh expressely by name the latin Churche concernynge the procedynge of the holy Ghoste because the latin Churche hade determined that the procedinge of the holy Ghoste is from the father and the soonne Therfore we wyll not thinke nor repute his aucthoritye to be of so greate weight that it ought to bee preiudicyall to the trueth Yet neuerthelesse leat vs ponder weighe his woordes he
saieth that the bread is not a signe of Christes body this he sayeth vpon Mathewes Ghospell which thyng is well spoken if he mene that yâ— bread is not an emptye figure or a vain figure void of al streÌ„gth efficacy Neither do we saie that the bred is suche a signe or figure And we do nothiÌ„g doubt but yâ— this was his interpretacioÌ„ mening in dede for because that vpoÌ„ Markes gospel he saith that the bread is not a figure not onely For els if he shoulde vtterly denye that the bread is a signe or a figure of Christes bodi he should be contrary to the rest of the fathers and olde writers whom we haue alredy plainly declared to graunte and putte bothe a sygne and a fygure to bee heere in this sacramente He saieth also that the bread is transformed conuerted and chaunged from the elemente and matier that it was afore into an other Whiche maniers of speaking if he vnderstande and mene Sacramentally we dooe not abhorre from them For the breade and wyne become sacramentes they passe bee chaunged into elementes that is to saye matyers of heauenly thynges and they putte on as it were a newe garmente and shape to bee nowe the sygnes and tokens of an higher matier But saye they thys Theophylactus wryteth that the fleashe and the bloude for thys cause bee not seen leste oure stomackes shoulde stande agaynste the receyuynge of it But if thou what soeuer thou bee wilt so eagrely and so sore bynde vpon these woordes we for oure parte laye agaynst the agayne the wordes that the same Theophylactus wryteth vpon Markes ghospell whyche are that the kyndes or symylitudes of breade and wyne bee turned into the vertue or strength of the lordes bodye and bloud That if thou wilt allege that the sayd Theophylactus dooeth in all other places not saye into the vertue c. But into Christes boddye and bloud The kindes and similitudes of breade and wine coÌ„uerted into the vertue of Christes body bloude we aunswere that the interpretacion of these wordes is that these sygnes take vnto them the vertue of the thynges whyche they signyfye by reason of the whyche vertue the sacramentes bee of no lesse effecte then if the vâ—raithyng self wer there present And as I haue sayed the yrkesomnes and abhorrynge of it is taken away yf we putte that the chaunge is made not into the thinge but in to the vertue of the thing Hys other sentence semeth to bee somewhat more violeÌ„te and of some more force vehemencyeâ— whych he wroote vpon the sixth chapytur of Ihons ghospell where he thus sayeth As the breade that Chryste did eate whyles he lyued here in yearthe was chaunged into his fleashe by a naturall transubstanciation or chaungeyng after the common rate of foode and nourishement in mannes bodye so is this breade chaunged into Christes body here in the Sacramente Yet this similitude and comparison we graunte also to bee true yf it bee generally taken For in this sacrament also we dooe not denye but there is a chaunge Sacramentall that is to saye suche as in a Sacrament is required That if thou saye thou wylte nedes take this similitude euen plainly as it is made and as it souneth whiche is that the breade bee as verayly chaunged in the Sacramente of Eucharistia as breade was turned into Christes fleshe at suche tymes as he eate it whiles he here lyued than wyll there folowe an inconuenience cleane contrary to thyne owne sentence and determination For it wyll folowe that the accidentes of the signes cannot remayne or be reserued still in the Sacramente of Eucharistia For in thee foode and sustenaunce that Christe tooke frome time to tyme whiles he liued the acâ—identes did not remayne Besydes the premisses I wyll here allege for our purpose the woordes of the same selfe expositour vpon the sixth chapitur of Iohns gospell vpon these woordes he that eateth my fleashe and drynketh my bloude abideth in me and I in hym c. Upon whiche woordes Theophylactus expounyng them in the persone of Christ saith that this thyng is dooen whiles the partie is quodammodo that is to saye in a manier mingled and ioygned vnto me and is chaunged ouer into me Where thou seest agayne that Theophilactus holdeth as the reste of the fathers and wryters dooe holde that there is so great a chaungeyng of vs into Christe that he wryteth vs to bee chaunged ouer and dooe passe into Christe And thus muche I saye at this present for aunswere of that that was broughte in and allegedde agaynste vs out of Theophylactus Of the later wryters they bryng Anselmus and Hugo Anselmus and Hugo aunswered vnto and Rycharde whiche were in the tyme of Uictor But foraâ—muche as in the tyme of these menne the doctrine of transubstanciacion was now already perforce thrust into the lappe of the churche and the people compelled to receyue it the sayde wryters in suche woorkes as they made didde accordyng to the tyme so that the newe inuencion of suche ougâ—te not to haue place to the preiudice of the mooste aunciente opynyon of the churche and of the determinacion of the olde auncient fathers Iohn Damascene auÌ„swered vnto But one maÌ„ emong all others they seme to haue most highe in price and this is Iohn Damascene who in the fourthe booke and fowerteenthe chapitur of his worke of the right feith Hath verai largely wryteÌ„ of this matier But I fynd that this Damascene liueth vnder the Greke Emperour Leo Isanricus so that betwene the tyme of Gregorius Magnus bishop of Rome and thissame Ihon Damascene it was a full nye hundred and twentie yeares space at the leaste The time of Damascene whan he liâ—ed And wheras now alreadye in the tyme of Gregorie many poinctes of supersticion and manye thynges of maÌ„nes inuencioÌ„ wer come by heapes into the Churche the matier did euery daye from that tyme forward renue still headlong to wurse wurse By reason wherof it is no meruaile at al if this Damascene stumbled vpon many pointes that wer both vntru and also ful of supersticion The iugemeÌ„t of Damascene in diuerse Articles of docâ—trine And as for his iudgement how good and how great it was as well in arcticles and pointes of doctrine as also in expounyng of the holy scriptures we haue a sample good enough For he is a wonderous great fauourer of Images and susteyned both great and sore daungiers mo then one for vpholdynge and maynteining of them yea and in this selfsame fourth booke he wrote a seuerall chapitur of a sette purpose concernyng the same matier of Images where his mynde sentence is that Images not onelye are to bee made but also to be honoured and wurshypped Besides this he so highly estemed the reliques of sainctes and holy men whiche are now in rest that he appointed vnto them also a certayne chapitur for the nonce in whiche he feared not to
call the sayed reliques the fountaynes and welles of the giftes of God And he is so bold there as to saye that we are bound to worshyp the Sainctes with feith whiche is a pointe vntollerable forsomuche as feyth is due onelye to God and to his wordes He hath also a sermon concerninge purgatorie in which his opinion is that Traianus the Emperour of Rome who had liued bothe an Idolater also a persecutour of Martyrs was deliuâ—red from the punishment of hell at the prayers and intercession of Gregorie And that one Falconilla a woman beyng in hir lyfe tyme altogether geuen to the wurshipping of Idolles was at the praiers of an other certayne man deliuered from damnacion after that she was now allreadye deade and had lyen faste holden and kept in the peynes of hell He ferthâ—r bryngeth in a fable of one Macarius howe that he talked with a dead mannes skulle of whome he heard that duryng the tyme whyle Masse was in saying the solles of the deade whiche endure tormentes are eased released of theyr peynes that same whole Sermon dooeth he poudre with suche lyke feygned tales as these Now as touching the exposition of scriptures the self same Damascen whan he wryteth of the resurreccion he laboureth to proue it by a place in the booke of Genesis Gen. ix where it is red that the lord saied to Noe. Fleashe with the bloude shalte thou not eate for I shall requyre your solles at the handes of the beastes He wyll require them saieth Damascene at the resurrectioÌ„ For the beastes dooe not dye for mannes sake Wherein he appereth to be ignoraunt of the law that was made of god in the boke of Exodus and in the boke of Deuteronomye where it is commaunded that the Oxe whiche renneth at menne with his hornes and sleagheth anye bodye shall bee stoned to death The same Damascene also in his booke De Virginitate that is saye of virginitie writeth in this manier If Adam had not synned man and womanâ—e should not haue been coupled to gether in Matrimonie to bryâ—g foorth issue And because he seeth the sentence and determinacion of God to bee agaynste hym in these woordes Grow ye and be ye multiplyed he sayeth that it was perhaps possible that menne shoulde haue multiplyed and gotten issue oute of some other parte of the bodye There is not one of the schoole diuines that would thus haue sayd Thesame Damascene also wresteth and raketh Basilius Damascene wresâ—eth basilius For because he seeth Basilius to affirme that the breade the wyne are as it wer the countrepaynes or paternes of Christes body he expouneth Basilius to mene that same before the consecratyon Whiche is a pointe without all ryme or reason For the breade and the wyne before consecracyon haue nothynge at all in them more then other common meates haue And in case the bread and wyne shoulde in suche wyse sygnyfye the bodye and bloude of Chryste than shoulde they bee nowe alreadye Sacramentes before the pronouncing of the Lordes woordes Besydes this in the Masse of the Greke Churche they dooe after the consecracion in moste open and playne woordes praye that the breade maye be made the bodye and bloude of Christe And namely in the masse of Basilius the matyer so renneth that the sayd woordes are sette after the consecracyon Yea and in our Canon also that was vsed in the olde masse yf it bee well loked vpon it is named bread after the consecracion But now are hys argumentes to be consydered and examined The fyrste of them is grounded vpon the power of god for seeynge that god was of power to create bothe heauen and yearth by hys woorde and by the same woorde to brynge foorthe plantes and trees beastes foules and fysshes why shoulde he not bee of power to make hys owne bodye of breade But thys kynde of argumente is of the weakeste and febleste sorte that can beâ— Neyther dooe we now traicte or despute of the power of god For we dooe not denye that god is hable to turne breade into fleashe But all oure varyaunce is whether he wyll so dooe or not Another argumenâ—e of hys is taken framed out of Chrystes manier of speaking For saieth Damascene it was not sayed of the lorde Thys is the fygure or sygnes of my bodye but is called the veray bodye of the lorde But vnto thys argumente we haue alreadye made aunswere afore And in case thys man whan he denyeth the sacramente to bee a fygure of the lordes bodye dooeth vnderstande it absolutelye and euen as the woordes soune wythout any ferther addycyon or interpretacion he hath in manier all the auncyente fathers and olde wryters agaynste hym who euerye one of them dooe heere in thys matyer acknowlege a fygure But in case he vnderstande it to bee not a figure onely that is to saie a vaine a voyd signe We our selfes also dooe wyllingly graunte so muche vnto him Albeit he dooeth here there in hys wrytynges entre lace certain wordes in whiche he maie appere not to haue been of so grosse an opinioÌ„ concernyng the sacramente as he maketh for For in one place he hath these wordes The bread of the coÌ„munioÌ„ is not simple bare breade onely but it hath a godly vertu ioygned vnto it Whiche poynte we shal wythout any great stickyng admitte forasmuche as we saye not that the breade is in thys case common breade or mere breade but that it is now a breade halowed and turned into the nature of a sacramente And godly vertue maye for thys cause bee sayed to bee ioygned vnto it because that the holy ghoste dooeth vse thesame as an instrumente towardes our saluation Besides the premisses he maketh a comparison betwene thys sacramente and baptisme in whyche coÌ„parison he sayeth that god hath customably vsed to coÌ„descende vnto our vsage and to our familiar facions that we are acquainted withall and because that men are woont to bee washed wyth water and to bee enoynâ—ted wyth oyle therefore god hath ioygned and geuen hys grace vnto these thynges and hys spirite vnto baptisme And in lyke manier forasmuche as it is the custome and vsage of men to eate breade and to drynke wyne he gaue and ioygned hys godhed vnto these thynges But now after the transubstaÌ„tiacyons god should not haue ioygned hys godly power or hys godhed vnto these thynges but he shuld clene haue put away these other natures of breade and wyne And the reason and circumstaunce of the sayed comâ—parison dooeth require that lyke as the ioygnyng of baptesme wyth grace and wyth the holy ghoste doeth not put awaye nor destruye the nature of the water euen so the thynges of thys sacramentes should not destruye or cast awaye the beeyng and the true nature of the signes Damascene sayeth morouer that god did so condescende vnto our custome vsage that by meane of suche thynges as are familiarly vsed emoÌ„g vs and are within the ordre and
thys manier The solle sometymes whyle it foloweth the appetite of the fleashe is called carnal and fleashely not yâ— it is chaunged into the nature of fleashe euen so the bodye is called spiritual not because it is chaunged into the nature of the spirite but because it wyll bee altogether obedient to the spirite to fulfille the desire wille of the spirite And Hierome in an epistle to Pammachius whyche epistle was made in defense of the trueth agaynst Ihon the bishop of Hierusalem who sayeth that the solles of suche as arose had euery one of theÌ„ a bodye of ayer whiche was not subiect neyther to touchyng nor to the syght and Hierome I saye in thys epystle dooeth by all possible meanes contente to proue that Christe after hys resurrection had a veray true bodye in dede and the same also visible And Hierome aunswereth to an obiection whyche obiectioÌ„ was thys If Christes bodye after hys resurrection was in suche sorte visible and was the same veray bodye that he had whan he was aliue afore Luke xxiiii Wherefore was it not knoweâ— at what tyme he shewed hymself lyke a pilgryme to the two disciples goyng to the castle of Emaus To this doeth Hierome thus make aunswer Because theyr yies wer holden that they should not knowe hym as if he should haue sayed as touchyng the nature of hys bodye it was bothe visible myght haue been knowen but the lette that was was in thesame veray epistle to the CorinthiaÌ„s Yet neuerthelesse our sacramentes haue many prerogatiues and many poyntes of dignite aboue the sacramentes of the olde lawe For fyrst and formoste they bee firme and stable and shall no more bee chaunged vnto the worldes ende secondly they dooe not shewe of a thyng that is to bee dooen and yet to come but of a thyng dooen alreadie Our sacramentes also bee more simple and plain and they perteine to a larger and a greatter noumbre of people And forasmuche as they bee more clere open then the olde sacramentes they stiere vp in vs a greatter feith and therof foloweth a more plenteous aboundance of the spirite And that they bee more clere and open dooeth not procede as the aduersaries imagyn to theymselfes in theyr braines of the outward prefiguracion of the â—ignes because that the same is more euident then the old was but of the nature of the woordes that are there ê“nounced For by the said woordes our redeÌ„ptioÌ„ is shewed to bee perfeict it is shewed with more clere more open wordes then the common sorte of people emong the fathers of the old lawe did vnderstaÌ„de Than if the thyng bee more clere expouned and declared in woordes the outward represeÌ„tacion is not so greatly to bee regarded Whâ—â—eâ— the Churche made â—awe been leaft in anecdout our of god Besides this they made it a matier of woondre how it might bee possible that the Churche should bee so long in an errour and that no light nor small errour if it should so bee as we saye Whiche thyng for all that they would not so greatly meruaill at if they would thynk on the woordes that Christe sâ—ake of hys last commyng Thynkest thou sayeth Christe that whan the sonne of man shall come he shall fynde feith vpon the yearth He doeth alâ—o shewe that there â—â—aâ— in tyme to come bee so great an errour in the Churche that if it bee possible euen the veray elect and chosen shall bee deceiued to and seduced And leat these men I beseche you tell vs what manier of Churche and in what state did Christe fynde the churche at hys fyrst coÌ„myng Had not the Scribes the Pharisees the Priestes and the Bishops corrupted all together had they not peruerted all true religion wyth theyr tradicioÌ„s Yet is it not to bee thought that the Churche hath at any time been vtterly forsakeÌ„ or leaft in errour For there hath been euermore from tyme to tyme many good people whâ— this geare hath muche myslyked that haue openly cryed out against it And lyke as at hys fyrst coÌ„myng there was SymeoÌ„ Anne the wedowe Ioseph and the virgin Marie Elizabeth Ihon the Baptiste whiche wer godly folkes deuout and had special good opinion of god so that the Churche could not bee saied to bee vtterly forsakeÌ„ euen so hath it been dooen in these last tymes For the wholle vniuersal Curche is not leauened wyth tradicions of men They saye morouer that as touchyng that it is ordeined but to signifie betokeÌ„ the selfsame betokenyng maye bee dooen by breade and wyne at al meates whan men dyne and suppe and therefore no cause to bee why we should so hyghly esteme the sacrament of Eucharistia But thys argumente is as weake and as feble an argumente as is possible to bee For at coÌ„mon repastes there is not the lordes institucion there is no ordeinaunce of a sacramente there is not heard the lordes woordes nor there is not there any promisse of god therefore bee not these twoo to bee compared together Lastely there was an argument brought of the vertue and efficacie of goddes woorde whyche as Algerius citeth and allegeth in the seuenth chapitur of his first booke is called of Ambrose uerbum operatorium as if ye should saye in englishe a word of workyng of operacioÌ„ as by the whiche worde the breade wyne whiche remaine stil in their natures are yet neuerthelesse chaunged into another thyng But as touchyng the woordes of Ambrose we accepte them with good wille For we also putte that the breade the wyne dooe remaine stil in their owne natures not as the traÌ„substaÌ„ciatours affirme as touchyng the accideÌ„tes or the lykenesses fourmes of breade wyne so that the chauÌ„ge is made by alteracioÌ„ remouyng away of the substaunce but that we affirme aduouche the propre natures of breade wyne to bee kept still the haungyng to bee onely sacramental through grace And in thys our assercion we dooe nothyng derogate or diminishe froÌ„ the efficacie of the lordes woordes but yet we dooe not thynke that it is to attributed vnto them as to a kynde of enchauntimente or coniuâ—yng that how soeuer or in what soeuer place they bee pronounced by a prieste or ministre ouer breade wine wyth a mynde and intencion to consecrate they shal by and by haue that effecte For the wholle matier depeÌ„deth of the lordes institucioÌ„ of the action or workyng of the holy ghoste Now as for Algerius he is a man not muche to bee passed on for he was after the tyme of Berengarius maketh mencion of Berengarius â—ecantacion in hys wrytyng Than morouer of what a great and good iudgemente he was it is manifest of a certain argumente that he maketh For in the one and twenteeth chapitur of hys fyrst boke he wyllyng and labouryng to proue that aswel the godly as the vngodly dooe receiue Christes bodye in the sacramente whyche in dede foloweth necessaryly if there wer
feithfull forasmuche as they haue it not of theymselfes nor yet by the procreation of Adam they doe chalenge take it of Christ whaÌ„ thei are incorporated into him by the sacramentes and by feith Thus than there happeneth a certain slidynge and issuynge of Chryste into vs The issuing of Christe in to vs. and a certain spirytuall touchynge whyche Paule considered wel weighed whan he sayd to the Galathians I lyue yet not I but Chyste lyueth in me Neyther it is necessarye that for these thynges Chryste shoulde bee dyspersed and scattered aboute throughoute infinyte places For all that euer we dooe here teache is spirituall And yet is it not a feygned thynge nor phantasticall For phantasies idolles or thynges imagined and feigned dooe not fede the solle as it is certayn that it is dooen herein this sacramente For we haue saied and dooe confyrme that these materiall sygnes dooe moste truely sygnyfye represente and exhibite vnto vs the bodye of Chryste to bee eaten howebeit it is spiritually that is wyth the mouth of the solle to bee eaten and not of the bodye If ye demaunde howe the fathers of the olde lawe coulde haue the selfe same thynge in theyr sacramentes that we haue the aunswer is easy to bee made For we haue concluded that in thys sacramente the matier is not dooen corporallye but spiritually And it is read in the Apocalypse that the lambe was offred froÌ„ the beginniÌ„g of the world The fathers of the old law awaited for thinges to come we remembre the thinges that now alreadie past Finally this onâ—ly thing we shewe and declare necessarie to bee taken hede vnto whyche is that the same whyche we dooe alwayes adde of the spirituall manier of receyuyng taken to bee preiudicyall or deâ—ogatiâ—e vnto the trueth For Austen saied vpon the fiftie fowerth psalme that the lordes bodye is in a certain and determinate place that is to wete in heauen but the trueth of the lordes bodye is euerye where For wheresoeuer the faithfull bee they conceyue and beleue that Chryste had a true bodye in dede whyche was geuen for vs and by feith thei eate thesame Thus haue I said my minde what ought to be dooen accordyng to the scriptures in this matier of the sacramente Whiche thinges I woulde wyshe the godly reader well to examine and pondre thesame to take in good paâ—te God of his goodnesse graunt that the Churche of Chryst maie once obteine to come to the truth and also to a concord peace concernynge thys sacrament Whyche twoo thinges I dooe for thys cause wishe and desire for that I considre the sacramente of Eucharistia wherof we treacte to haue ben hitherto ouerwhelmed buried deformed with lyes deceyptes and supersticions that it might bee rather estemed any other thynge then that whiche the lorde in his supper did institute Whiche churche to the entent we should not haue easely or soone pourged the deuil beyng a most greuous enemie to all peace and trueth hath sowen so many opinions contencions debates Heresies and battailes in manier euen to bloudshed manslaughter that an vniforme and reasonable consent and agrement therin suche as is mete for Christen people to haue semeth in a manier vnpossible to be hoped for Howebeit alas we suffre these thynges not without desert for the that we haue dishonoured this sacramente two manier of wayes partely in that that of this so excellent and so singuler a gifte of Christe we haue erected and sette vp an execrable Idoll and partly for that we haue vsurped these holye mysteries with an vnclene feith with a conscience polluted with moste greuous synnes without any due profe or examinacion of our selues Wherfore I beseche almighty god that he wil take pitie vpon this great calamitie that he vouchesafe once to restore vnto his Churche the Sacramente of Eucharistia truelye receiued and restored and I beseche hym that he wyl graunt vs the right vse thereof through Iesus Christ oure Lorde Amen Finis ¶ Imprinted at London by Robert Stoughton dwellinge within Ludgate at the signe of the Bysshoppes Miter for Nycolas Udall Cum priuilegio ad imprimendum solum