Moyses quando caeperunt audiri tonitrua micare fulgura nubes densissima operire montem When thunderinges began to be heard lyghtnings to flashe a thicke darke cloude to couer the Mounte Nowe are you called vnto Mounte Thabor where in-ioyeinge his glorye whose terroure you haue alreadye sustayned You maye saye with S. Peter Bonum est nos hic esse It is good for vs to be here The haruest of the Churche wherof the Spouse speaketh in the Canticles Messui mirrham meam cuÌ„ aromatibus I haue reaped my mirrhe with my spyces is not yet donne You are growne vpp in this fielde and are part of the croppe that by martirdome must be reaped to be layde vp in Gods barne You are the mirhe to enbalme not the deade bodies but the dead soules of heretickes You are Spyce to seasone by the example of your constancy the bitter griefes and passions of poore Catholickes Remember howe often you haue bene with Christe at his Supper and reasone nowe requireth you shold folowe him to Gethsemanie not to sleepe with S. Peeter but with him to sweate bloode Your lyfe is a warfare your weapons patience your Captayne Christe your standerd the Crosse. Now is the larum sounded and the warre proclaymed dye you must to winn the fielde Neyther is this newes to you that haue professed to be Christs champions seeinge the Captaynes generall of his armye I meane the Apostles and all the most famous Soldiers since their tyme haue esteemed this the moste soueraygne victorye by yelding to subdue by dyeing to reuiue by sheddinge bloode and leesinge lyfe to winne the goale of eternall felicity Elyas must not thinke much to let fall the worthlesse Mantle of his fleshe to be caryed to Paradyse in a fyery chariot Gedeon maye willingly breake his eartheÌ„ flagons to shewe the lyght that must put to flyght his enemyes Ioseph must leaue his cloake in the strumpets hands rather then consent vnto her lewd entysements the yonge maÌ„ of Gethsemani rather ruÌ„ne away naked theÌ„ for sauing his Sindon to fall into the Sinagoges captiuity The Beuers when they are hunted see theÌ„ selues strayted haue this propertye they byte of their owne stones for whiche by kinde they knowe themselues to be chieflye pursued that the hunter hauinge his desyre maye cease to folowe them anye farther Now if nature hath taught these brute thinges to saue theÌ„selues with so paynful a meanes from bodilye daunger howe muche more oughte reason and Faythe to teache vs willinglye to forgoe not onlye lybertye and lyuinge but euen our verye lyfe to purchase therby the lyfe of our soules and deliuer our selues from eternall perdition You haue euerye daye in your prayers sayd Adueniat regnum tuum lett thy kingdome come Now is the tyme come to obteyne your petition The Kingdome of this worlde is in the wayning and the age thereof beginneth to threaten ruine The forerunners of Anti-christ are in the pryde of their course and therfore S. Cyprian sayeth Qui cernimus iam caepisse graâ—ia scimus imminere grauiora Lucrum maximum computemus si istinc velocius recedamus We that see alreadye greate myseryes and foresee greater to be at hande let vs account it tyme happilye gayned if we maye quicklye departe to preuente their comminge Neyther is the winter so full of showers to water the earthe nor sommer so hot to ripen the corne nor the springe so temperate to prosper young growthe nor Autumn so full of rype fruite as heretofore it hath bene The hilles tyered with diggynge yelde not such store of marble the wearyed mynes yelde not so great plenty of precious mettall the scante vaynes waxe daylye shorter In the Sea decayeth the maryner in the tentes the souldier Innocencie in courtes Iustice in iudgementes agreement in friendshippe cunning in artes and disciplyne in maÌ„ners The hot Sunne geueth not so cleere lighte the Moone declineth from her accustomed brightnesse the fountaynes yelde lesse aboundance of waters Men are not of so perfytt hearing so swift running so sharpe sighted so well forced nor so bygge and strong lymmed as heretofore We see graye heades in children the heare falleth before it be full groune neither dothe our tyme ende in olde age but with age it beginneth and euen in our verye vprist our natiuitye hasteneth to the ende Fynallye euerye thing is so impayred and so fast falleth awaye that happye he may seeme that dyeth quicklye least he be oppressed with the ruynes of the dyinge worlde Lett them make account of this lyfe that esteeme the world their frende and are not onlye in the worlde but also of it As for you the world hateth you and therfore how can you loue it being hated of it We are here Pilgrimes straungers how can we but willinglye imbrace the death that assigneth vs to our last home and deliuering vs out of these worldlye snares restoreth vs to paradyse and the kingdome of heauen Our countrye is heauen our parentes the Patryarkes why doe we not hasten to come speedylye to our countrye and to salute these parentes There a greate number of our friendes exspecteth vs a huge multitude desyreth our comminge secure and certayne of they re owne saluation and onlye carefull of ours What vnspeakeable comforte is it to come to the syghte and imbracing of them How great is the contentment of theire aboade without feare of dyinge and with eternytye of lyuinge There is the glorious quire of Apostles a number of reioycing Prophetes the innumerable multytude of Martyres crowned for the victorye of theyr bloodye frayes and passions There are the troupes of fayre Virgyns that with the vertue of chastity haue subdued the rebellions of flesh and bloode There are the companyes of all Gods Saynctes that bathe in eternall felicytye hauing happelye passed ouer the daungerous voyage through this wicked worlde There is the center of our repose the onlye seate of vnfaylyng securitye and who can be so vnnaturall an enemye to himselfe as to eschewe death being the bridge to so vnspeakeable contentmeÌ„t Seeinge therfore there is so lytle cause ether to loue lyfe or to feare deathe and so greate motyues to lamente that oure inhabitance is prolonged oure decease adiourned Lett not their threatninges appall vs who can onlye kille the bodye and haue nothinge to doe with the soule Whose greatest spyte worketh our profitt and whoe when they thinke to haue geuen vs and our cause the greatest wounde then haue they deeplyest wounded themselues procured our hyghest aduancemente They vnarme vs of blunte and bending weapons they stryppe vs of slyght and paper harnesse and agaynst they re willes they arme vs with more sharpe prycking swordes and with armoure that yeeldeth to no kinde of vyolence When they thinke to haue rydde vs from encounteringe theire wicked endeuoures they doe but a better our habilitye to resiste and vanquish them altering vs from earthlye souldiers to heauenlye warriers
reuiueth that sores salue that bloode washeth that sorow solaceth that an Eclipse lighteth that the fast nayled guydeth the thirsty giueth drincke the wearye refresheth the diseased cureth the dead bringeth forth Which albeit they be principally the proper effectes of Christes onlye Passion yet are they through the merites therof now experienced to followe also the martirdomes of Christes seruauntes to whom all crosses are coÌ„fortable and their bodilye death cause of many a soules spirituall lyfe So that now we may trulye interprete Sampsons ridle De comedente exiuit cibus de forti egressa est dulcedo Out of the deuourer there came meate out of the stronge issued sweetnesse For since that our sinnes lyke fierce Sampsons most cruellye murdered that Lion of the tribe of Iuda if our repentant thoughts like bees sucke at the flowers of his Passion they maye worke a delicious combe of honye and not onlye we our selues taste the sweetnesse therof but by our example moue others to feede willingly of the same shewinge them by our experience that the eysell and gall of our tribulations in this Lions mouth hath bene altered from the wonted bitternesse to sweetnesse the lionishe rage of persecutors accustomed to deuour so manye soules doth now rather minister to gods seruauntes a most pleasant viand yea those rigorous iudgmentes of god which haue heretofore bene so terrible vnto vs are now become Desiderabilia super aurum lapidem pretiosum â—ultum dulciora super melet fauum More to be desired then golde pretious stone more sweete then honye and the honicombe Bitter were the waters of tribulatioÌ„ so vntoothsome to mans taste that few could endure the annoyance therof and our queysie stomackes were rather contented to wante health then to procure it by such vnsauery lothsome phisicke And for this did our heauenlye Phisician strayne this bitter medicine through the nectared cloth of his sacrede humanitye and lefte therin such a taste of sweetnesse that it hath bene since egrelye thirsted which was before so warilye eschewed We need not now to crye Mors in olla Death is in the pott because the Prophet hath seasoned it not with a litle flower or meale but with his owne bloode We neede not murmur at the waters of Mara that is of ghostlye discomforte as vnable to be droncke or feare to sincke in the teÌ„pesteous poole of bodilye vexation for our Moyses hath sweetned the one with the sacred woode of his Crosse since our Elizeus cast into the other the wood of lyfe that is his blessed bodye our Iron began to swimme where before it had soncke the desolate that sayd Infixus sum in limo profundi non est substantia I am sett fast in the depth of the mudd and can fynd on stedye footing maye beginne to singe Eduxit me de lacu miseriae de luto faecis et super aquam refectionis educauit me He hath ledd me out of the lake of miserye the myre of filth and hath brought me vppon the waters of refection Let vs not therfore be afrayde to saye now to Christe Domine iube me venire ad te super aguas O Lorde commaunde me to come vnto thee vppon the waters For be the surges neuer so boystrous the waters neuer so deepe the stormye windes neuer so outragious if we runne vpon them towardes Christ they will eyther yelde drye passage by diuidynge them selues as the redd sea did to the Israelites or they will vpholde vs from perishinge as the waues did S. Peter Fidelis enim deus qui non patietur vos tentari supra id quod potestis For faythfull is god who will not suffer you to be tempted more theÌ„ you are able to beare And surelye now is the time that we are called by Christ through fyer and water and now with open voyce doth he renue his olde proclamation Whosoeuer loueth father mother wyfe children house or liuinges more then me is not worthye of me and he that taketh not vpp his crosse and that euery daye can not be my disciple We must not now seeke Christ as our Ladye did inter cognatos notos amongest her kinsefolke and acquaintance nor as the spouse did that sayed In lcctulo meo per noctes quaesiui quem diligit anima mea In my bed haue I in the nights sought whom my hart best loued Nor as the Israelites did of whome O see speaketh In gregibus suis et in armeÌ„tis vadent ad quaerendum dominuÌ„ In their flockes and herdes shall they goe to seeke our Lorde For as S. Anselme well noteth Non cubat in delitijs splendidi cubilis nec inuenitur in terrasuauiter viuentium He lyeth not in the delicacye of a gorgeous bedd neyther is he found in the lande of daynty liuers Moyses did see him in the deserte amid dest the fyer and thornes in the mount amongest lighteninges thunderinges and mistes Daniel sawe him in a fierye throne amongest fierye wheles with a swifte fierye sludd runninge before him And shall we thincke to be more priuileged then our aunciente fathers Thincke we to fynde in doune deyntinesse him that to them appeared so terrible and fearfull Doe we thincke that his rigor and iustice signified by these terrible semblances is so relented that he shoulde shew him selfe vnto vs only in amiable louelye countenances Surelye we are greatlye deceyued if we feede our selues with this vayne persuasion For albeit the new testament be fuller of grace yet is it no lesse full of agonyes Though Christes seruice be sweete and lighte yet is it a yoake and a burden and though our champions be of more courage and our foes more enfeebled since our redemption yet doth the Kingdome of heauen still suffer violence and the violent beare it awaye and none shall be crowned but they that haue lawfullye foughte for it If Christe was seene transfigured in Mounte Thabor in glorious maner he was also at the same time heard talkinge de excessu of his bitter passion And euen he that allured with glorye cryed bonum est nos hic esse It is good for vs to be here affrighted with the voyce Cecidit in faciem suam timuit valde fell vppon his face and was in a greate feare If he were in pompe and triumphe at his entrance into Hierusalem his pompe was of smale pleasure and his triumph not without teares and as fast as the children on the one side did sett forth his prayses so fast did the Pharises on the other side repyne and murmur agaynste him There is no reason that Christe shoulde shew him selfe more fauorable to vs that haue bene his enemyes then to his owne bodye neyther can we iustlye complayne if ere we find him he giue vs a sipp of that bitter chalice of which for our sakes he was contente
expanges vngulae fodiant cruces suspendant ignes lambant gladij guttura detruncent bestiae insiliant Paratus est ad omne supplicium ipse habitus orantis Christiani Whyle we are thus prayinge with our armes spread abroade lett the hookes digge vs the Gibbetes hang vs the fyers consume vs the swordes cutt our throates the beastes flye vppon vs the verye behauiour of a Christian in prayer sheweth him readye to all kynde of tormentes A wyse shipmaister when he setteth forth from the shore and goeth to sea layinge asyde the remembrance of wyfe children house and familye employeth his bodye and mynd onlye to the due performance of his office in auoydinge the daungers and directinge his shippe to a gaynfull hauen You are now lanched out of the porte of worldlye prosperitye into the sea of temporall discomforte in Gods cause and therefore it behoueth you to vncomber your selues of all earthlye cares You must displaye the sayle of your soule vppon the mast of Christes Crosse betake you to the tacklinge of vertue keepe your hande vppon the sterne of good order and discipline and beinge aparted from earth lifte vp your eyes towarde heauen You must directe your course by the motion of the starres and planettes that is by the example of former Saintes that so hauinge Christ for your Pilott the inspirations of the holy Ghost for your gale you maye goe through the stormes of persecution ouercome the surges of worldlye pleasure passe the shelfes of alluringe occasions auoyde the shipwracke of deadlye offence and finallye safelye arryue to the porte of lyfe and perfitt repose Now is the tyme wherof the spouse in person of the Churche sayde Surge Aquilo veni Auster perfla hortum meum et fluant aromata illius Arise north and come southwynde blowe my gardeyne and lett the spice therof flow downe These windes now blow it is now tyme that the spice fall the vertues constant examples of Saints that laye hidden and couered amongst the leaues be with this persecution shaken from them and layde open for euery one to gather We must now ascend ad Montem mirrhae to the mounte of mirrhe which is in taste bitter and Ad collem Thuris to the hill of frankincense that giueth no sweete sauour but whē it is by fyer resolued Our heauenly smith hath now brought vs into the forge of triall and kyndled the coales of persecution to proue whether we be pure golde and fitt to be layde vp in his trea surye Now whyle this winde is stirring commeth the winnoer with his fanne to see who is blowen awaye lyke lyghte chaffe and who resisteth to the blastes lyke massye wheate That which lyeth hidd in the younge blade of corne is displayed in the ripe eare that which is concealed in the flower is vttered in the fruite Many beleeuers are deemed aequall whome triall prooueth of vnequall fayth the tribunall sheweth what was couered in the budd agreeablye to that sayinge by theire fruite you shall knowe them Manye flowers promise a multitude of fruite but when they are once putt to the proofe by stormes of wynde verye few perseuer to the full grouth So manye seeme faythfull in the calme of the Churche but when the blastes of aduersitye bluster agaynst them few are founde in the fruite of martirdome The conninge of the Pilott is not knowne till the tempest riseth nor the Captaynes courage till the warre beginneth nor the Catholickes constancye till the Persecutor rageth Persecution as Tertullian noteth is Pala quae Dominicam aream purgat scilicet ecclesiam confusum aceruum fidelium euentilans discernens frumentum martirum paleas negatorum The shulue which purgeth our Lordes floore that is the Church fāning the confused heape of the faithfull and seueringe the corne of Martirs from the chaffe of deniers This is the ladder which Iacob dreamed of which shewed to some the waye into heauen and to others the descent into hell This is the water of contradiction by which Gods seruauntes are proued according to that Probasti in tentatione iudicasti ad aquas contradictionis Thou hast taken triall by tentation and iudged vs at the waters of contradiction This is the water at which our heauenlye Gedeon trieth who are fitt soldiers to assist him agaynst the Madianites and he seuereth such as fall on theire knees for greedines and thirst of worldly vanityes from those that reach with their hande so much onlye as their necessity requireth Of whome God sayeth in tre centis viris qui lambuerunt aquas liberabo vos In those three hundred men that haue licked the waters will I deliuer you S. Chrisostome reporteth that the shepherdes of Capadocia for the care they haue of their flockes many times lye three dayes together couered with snow and they of Libia are contented whole monethes to wander after their flockes in those desertes that are full of cruell wilde beastes preferring the care of their catell before their owne daungers How much more are the Pastores yea al the Catholikes of this time boud to endure the pinchinge and freesinge colde of what aduersitye soeuer yea and the hazardes of cruell persecutors that lyke wylde beastes haue turned this vinevard of our contrye into a bar ren desert rather thē to suffer so much as in vs lyeth Christes flocke ether to be scandalized by our example or destitute of our necessarye endeuours For as in a serious earnest battayle wher vppon the state of the common welth depended and the King him selfe were in cōplet harnesse with his weapons ready in person to fight for his kingdōe If anye of his nobles should come into the fielde with a fanne of fethers in steed of a buckler and a poesye of flow ers in steede of a sworde and in euerye other respect more like a carpet knight then a man of armes The Kinge could not but take it in verye euill parte So surelye must Christ if in this spirituall warre agaynst his Churche for which he fought in person and receyued so manye woundes we should looke on more lyke worldly wantones then true soldiers and not be as readye as our Kinge Capteyne to venture our liues in the same quarell Now therefore is the tyme that it standeth vs vppon to shew proofe of our selues Now must it be knowne whether we be vasa in honorem or contumeliam Vessels of honour or reproch whether we be signed with the name of the lambe or touched with the marke of the beast Antichriste whether we be of the wheate or of the cockle and finallye whether we belong to the flocke of Christ or to the herd of Beliall Cap. 8. And a thousande tymes happye are you whose prisons are proofes whose cheynes are pledges of your future immortallitye A thousand tymes happye I saye whose estate is both glorious here a sure waye to an vnspeak able glorye of the worlde to come For as S.
Ciprian sayeth Longo temporum ductu glorias vestras non subtrahitis sed augetis tot vestras laudes quot dies quot mentium curricula tot incrementa meritorum By the longe tract of tyme you diminishe not your glorye but increase it So manye are your prayses as dayes so many encreases of merites as courses of monethes Of you there is no doubt whether you be for the barne or for the fyer for you being there layde vpp lyke cleane wheate and precious corne Hospitium carceris horreum computatis Your lodginge of the prison you accounte your barne For though the prisons be in them selues foldes of Satan to harbour his lewde flocke yett when the cause ennobleth the name of a prisoner the prisoner abolisheth the dishonour of the place What thing of olde more odious then the Crosse what place more abhorred then the mounte Caluarie what roomes more reprochefull then the Criptes grottes and dungeons of Saintes Yett now what thing more honorable then the holye Crosse what place more reuerenced then the foresayde mounte what sanctuaries more desired then the dungeons of Saintes So doth God defeate the Deuill of his vsuall hauntes and of kenels ordeyned for the couching of his hell houndes frameth mansions of greate merite portes of saluation for his owne seruaunts A reprochefull thing it is to be cheyned in sinne gyued in wickednesse and shutt vpp in the deadlye prison of mortall offence A miserable thing it is to be enthralled in the vassalage of the deuill in the seruile subiection to our lawlesse appetites and in the slauishe bondage of worldlye vanityes But O pedes faeliciter vincti qui itinere salutari ad Paradisum dirrigantur O pedes compedibus trauersarijs interim cunctabundi sed celeriter ad patriam glorioso itinere cursuri O feete happelye cheyned which are directed a safe waye to paradyse O feete for a tyme foreslowed with fetters and boltes but shall hereafter with a glorious iorneye swiftelye runne vnto their contrye Honorable it is in Gods quarell to be abridged of bodilye libertye for mainteyning the true libertye and freedome of our soule The birdes beinge vsed and naturallye delighted with the full scope of the ayre though they be neuer so well fedd in the Cage yett are they all wayes pooringe at euery cranie to see whether they maye escape For why they vnderstand not that in the Cage they are both surer from the kyte hauke and fouler then abroade neyther marke they the benefitt of theire assured repayre from harde weather and worse foode But for a reasonable creature and withall a Christian Catholicke so much to affecte a daungerous libertye as not to accounte of the benefitt of his prison in so good a cause it can not but be thought an imperfection especiallye consideringe how manye perils of our soule are cutt of and how highlye our spirituall welfare is aduaunced Lett vs not in this be lyke the senselesse byrdes but rather imitate them in an other propertye which is that in the cage they not onlye singe their naturall note both sweetlyer and oftener then abroade but learne also diuerse other farre more pleasant and delightsome So we both keepe and oftener practise our wonted deuotions and besydes learne new exercises of vertue both for our owne comfort and example of other And when might you so freelye range emongest the quires of Angels as when you are sequestred from the distractions of vaine companye when could you take a fuller repast of the sweete fruites of prayer and contemplation then when the onions garlicke and fleshe pottes of Egipt are farthest out of sent and sight Your eyes are not to much troubled with impious and wicked sightes your eares not annoyed with bloodye outcryes and heynous blasphemies You are quitt from many scandals and seuered from occasion of diuers tentations Finallye thincke not of the name of a prison and you shall finde it a retyringe place fittest to serue God If it restrayne you of temporall comfortes your bootye is gainfull that by losse of transitorye deserue eternall If your bodye be chastised your soule is cherished and the pyninge of the one is the pamperinge of the other You forsake a paradyse of of poysening delightes for a place that yeldeth cause of grounded and true solaces Yea and as Tertullian noteth if you way from whence you came and where you are you shall fynd that you are rather deliuered out then committed into prison Greater darknesse hath the worlde which inueigleth and blindeth not onlye the eyes but the hartes of men Heuyer cheynes and shackles doth the worlde lay on vs which doe fetter and entangle our verye soules Farr worse ordure and stenche doth the worlde breath out I meane ribaldrye carnallitye and all kynde of brutishe behauiour Finallye more prisoners guiltye persons hath the worlde the whole generation of mankynde not to be iudged by the vmpiershippe of anye earthlye magistrate but by the censure and verdicte of almighty God Happye therfore are you if you can recken your selues translated out of prison into a place of preseruation which if it be combred with darcknesse your selues are lampes to light it If it charge you with gyues yett are you loose and vnbound towardes God If you be pestered with vnsauery smell you are frankincense and sauour of sweetnesse If it affright you with expectatiō of iudges Your selues hereafter shall iudge nations and rule ouer peoples With this saying of Tertullian doth S. Ciprian agree O blessed prison sayeth he which your presence hath honored O blessed prison that sendeth the men of God to heauen O darknesse brighter then the sunnne it selfe and more cleere then the light of this worlde where the temples of God are now placed and your members sanctified with your diuine confessions of your fayth Lett them complayne of the difficultyes of the prison that haue fastened their affection vpon worldlye vanityes A Christian Catholicke euen out of prison hath renounced the worlde in his baptisme and it litle importeth in what place he be in the world who by promise and profession hath vowed neuer to be of it Lett them complayne of the prison that knowe not the glorye and soueraigne prerogatiue of that place but for a Catholike that hath Christ for his auctor the Apostles for his witnesses all former Saintes for testimonyes howe honorable it is to suffer in Gods quarell It is a greate shame not to thincke worthilye and reuerentlye therof One that knoweth not the vertue of herbes when he walketh in the fieldes or hils without any regard treadeth vnderfoote whatsoeuer groweth in his waye making no more accounte of one herbe then of an other but if he come into a Phisicians house where he seeth manye not onlye holsome herbes but to his thinckinge stronge and vnsauerye weedes he neuerthelesse conceyueth that there is in them some secrett vertue to cure diseases And if he see the experience of theire operation muche more accounteth
greate is the force of martyrdome that therby euen he is forced to beleene with thee that was readye to kill thee But to proue this though for the present disgracefull yet in the sequell a more gloryous tryumph euen heare on earth then euer anye the Romans had Lett vs consider the gloryous shewes ther be to sett it forth The martyrs for their tryumphall charyots haue most sūptuous and statlye Churches For the applause of the people the prayers and prayses of al true Christians For their musycke the solemne quires and instrumentes vsuall in the Church For their triumphall arches most riche shrynes and altars For the banners of theyr foyled enemyes the Armes and honours of Prynces conuerted by their meanes For theyr captyues Kinges Emperoures and Monarches For their spoyles and pryses the Empyre Kingdomes common wealthes Finallye for their pompe the reuerend maiestye of the Catholike Churche Loe now whether our tryumphe though base in the eye be not in effecte most gloryous and whether any conqueroures euer wann more by killinge others then the martirs haue done by being killed themselues Quid infirmius Sayth S. Cyprian quā vinciri dam nari caedi cruciari occidi et cum ad arbitriū carnificis collum praebetur Haec species inter dum misericordiam mouet etiam saeuissimis tyrannis verum vbi iam ad monumenta martyrum pelluntur morbi rugiūt Daemones terrentur monarchae coruscant miracula concidunt idola tunc apparet quam sit efficax potens martyrum sanguis What argueth more impotencye then to be bounde cōdemned whipped tormēted killed and to laye the head on the blocke at the hange-mans pleasure This sighte somtyme stirreth mercye euen in the moste cruell tyrantes But when at the martyrs tombes disseases are cured the diuels rore the monarches tremble miracles are wrought Idols fall doune then appeereth it howe forcible the blood of martirs is While the golde is yet mingled with earth in the mines men treade it vnder foote as they dyd the earth But when it is tryed with the fyre depured by the artyficers hand Kinges them selues thinke it a greate honour to weare it on theire heades and so the martyres while they were alyue enwrapped in that masse of earth I meane their corruptible bodyes they were contemned and troaden on as the refuse of the world but when their golde was seuered from drosse that is their soule from their body by vyolent death in Gods cause ther is no Catholycke Prynce so hautye but that with bowed knee and stooping head is readye to adore them and accounte their very ashes as cheefe ornamētes of hys crowne and succoures of his realme They are not therfore subdued that ouercome their enemyes yea and theyr victorye is moste gloryous for the vnusuall manner You shall dye lyke men sayeth Dauid and lyke one of the princes shall you fall You shall dye lyke men because your death shall seeme full of humane myserye but in deede lyke one of the Prynces shall you fall that is like one of the Princes of Gods people Or you shall dye not as the sensuall worldlynge who is compared to the foolishe beastes and is become lyke vnto them but lyke mē iudging it in reason good for your fayth to dye in hope of a better lyfe Yea not onlye as men but as Prynces amongest men whose successours neuer faile whose tombes are glorious whose memorye is perpetuall Nolite me considerare quia fusca sum Regard you not how blacke I am for though I be black yet am I the fayre daughter of Hierusalē Of all the partes of a tree the roote is to the sight the foulest and most vglye and therfore semeth nature to haue hyd it from the eye that it might be no disgrace to the beauty of the other partes But yf you consider the fayre flower the sweete fruite the pleasant leaues the goodlye braunches the verye lyfe and sappe of the whole tree you shall fynd that all proceedeth frō that shaplesse vnseemely roote and therfore it ought of all other partes to be cheeflye prysed So is it with the martyres they seeme in theyr torments the most myserable of all other men couered with disgrace infamy and reproch But if we cōsider the beauty of virgins the fruite of the confessors the leaues of temporall commodityes the braunches of all nations yea the verye lyfe grace of the Churche of God we shall fynd that for all these we maye thanke the blood of Martyrs Well may they be called the neat or kine of the church whose teates serue it of necessary milke For as the neate at all seasons euen in the foulest weather ranging in the medowes fieldes pastures and feeding vppon grasse and wilde hearbes vnfitt for mans eatinge by vertue of they re inwarde heate turne them into sweete mylke and suffer the same quietlye to be drawen out of them for the benefitt of mankinde So the Martyrs euen in the most stormye tyme of persecution are contented to feede vppon the sower and bitter paynes of they re enemies rage and disgestinge all they re crueltie with the inwarde heate of charitye and zeale turne they re owne afflyctions to our instruction and spirituall nurture and suffer their bloode to be drawen from them the vertue wherof hath more force to fortifye our soules thē sweetest milke to strengthen oure bodyes This is Vinum germinans virgines wyne that breedeth virgins sanguis vuae mori acuens Elephantos in bellum the bloode of the grape and mulberye sharpeninge the Elephantes that is Christians to spirituall battell This is the pledge that gott the priuyledge Iudicabunt nationes dominabuntur populis they shall iudge nations and rule ouer peoples And as Tertullian sayeth Tota clauis paradisi est sanguis martyrum The blood of Martyres is the very keye of Paradise So that we maye euen of the earthlye crowne vnderstande that sayinge of S. Hierome Persecutionibus creuit ecclesia martyriis coronata est The church encreased by persecutions and was crowned by martirdomes For when was that veryfied Erunt reges nutritii tui et reginae nutrices tuae Kinges shal be thy foster fathers and Queenes thy Nurces but after the death of infinite martyrs whose very ashes afterwardes the Kinges and Monarches haue honored doing as it were due homage and acknowledginge them as captaynes by whome they were conquered Whiche also in the same place Esaye fore shewed in the wordes following Vultu in terra demisso adorabunt te puluerem pedum tuorum lingent With a lowly countenance they shall worship thee and shall lycke the verye duste of thy feete And whoe are the feete of the Churche but onlye the Martyrs Apostles and Pastoures that Vpholde it and carye it still forward through out all nations of whom it is sayde Quam speciosi pedes euangelizan tium pacem uos estis qui portabitis nomen meū antereges