had bene lefft owt And iff thos crosses haue so many significacions surely thei had great auctoritie that ordeined them chefely that making so many of them in this masse thei haue not allweies like significacions but now this now that according to the diuersitie of places where thei be made THE THIRD PART This third part of the boke is from th end of the Canon to th end of the masse which is diuided in to iiij chapters In the first is declared that the saing of the praiers in secret and to will that he shuld answer Amen that neither vnderstandeth nor heareth the praiers as it is in the masse is a folissh thing with owt reson and against that which S. Paul saith Also that the praier that is said affter the Pater noster ought not to be said in secret as it is And that the making iij. partes of thost and mingling th one of them with the wine is not conuenient The first chapter WHan the canon is ended per omnia secula seculorum is said with alowd voice that euery mā may heare and Amen is answered which wordes ought to be ioined with them that goo before which be the end of the same canon that is to say By him with him and in him and to the father all mighty in the vnitie of the holy gost be all honor and glory affter the which wordes this doth follow per omnia secula seculorum to the which is answered Amen But I aske thes men that haue ordeined that this per omnia secula seculorum shuld be said a lowd and affter Amen shuld be answered and all the rest that goith before thei will that it be said in secret that no man shuld heare it but he that saith the masse To what purpos I say will thei that all the peple which are present at the masse or the clark in steade of them and of all shuld answer Amen whan thei vnderstode nor hard no maner of thing that was said in that praier that goth before this per omnia secula seculorū How can Amen be answered by him that vnderstandeth not nor heareth that that is sayd what doth Amen meane but so be it And a how can a mā say so be it that is to say acording to that which is sayd and desyered iff he vnderstand not what the prest sayd and desyered But let vs put the case that the prest dyd blaspheme or desyred certen cur◅singes in the stede of blessinges what ā āswer shuld this be to say Amē that is to say so be it Is this a reasonable matter that the peple shuld say Amē and confirme a thing that they vnderstand not s Paul in the 1. to the Corinthians saith expressely that a man can not answer Amen 1. Co. 14. except he first vnderstand the thing that is spoken And thei care not to make a mocking stock of the poore peple I will not say of god And this is not done here only but twise besides that is to say affter the secretes that goo before the preface For the prest saith them sofftly and therfor thei be called secretes ād whan they be ended the prest sayth per omnia secula seculorum And he answereth Amen that neither vnderstode nor hard what was sayd And the like is done in the prayer that foloweth the pater noster which is sayd sofftly And whan that is ended also per omnia secula seculorum is said and Amē is answered It shuld be lesse euil that the prest who saith thes praiers in secret and who knoweth what he said iff he vnderstand the latin him selff shuld say Amen and not make him to answer that knoweth not what he said Al be it offt times it hapneth also that the prest himselff knoweth not what he hath said because he vnderstondeth not the latin and yet he saith Amen And surely the masse is not worthy any other ministers than such like that is to say Ignorant and that know not nor vnderstand not what thei them selues doo Than next affter foloweth Oremus preceptis salutaribus moniti and that the pater noster which M. Durant saith hath vij peticions for Christes vij wordes on the crosse and for the vij wordes of the blessed mother and for the vij gifftes of the holy goost for the vij beatitudes and for to flee the vij deadly sinnes I meruell that he put not in the vij planettes of heuen the vij starres and the vij spirites of the apocalipse the vij cannonicall howres the vij daies of the weeke and as many seuens as are fownd in the scriptures I shuld speake also of the vij yoyes of our lady but it is not fownd in the scripture And from whens is it gathered that for thes seuēfoldnessis Christ hath ordeined that in the pater noster shuld be vij peticions Thes are the grownd workes of the masse whā our sauior taught his disciples the pater noster had he euer any thought of thes seuenfoldnessis of the which the rationall or reason geuer withowt reason speaketh I say euen vprightly that I neuer red booke more contrary to his oWn title than this It is called the rationall or reason giuer but it is the most withowt reason and the folisshest thing that euer I saw And geueth to vnderstand that the masse is an vnreasonable composiciō and an hotchpotch ill fauoredly Iombled to gether of diuers mens fantasies Thes his reasons that he rendereth tend to no other end than to gyue auctoritie to the masse and to persuade that it is a thing full of secretis ād of diuine misteries But let him reade it that is minded to loose the time as thei do that goo to the masse Affter the Pater noster is said this praier We besech the O lord deliuer vs from all the euels past present and to come and at the request of the blessed and glorios continuall virgin mary mother of god and of the blessed apostels Peter Paul and Andrew and of all thy saintes giue vs peace in our daies to the intent that being helped by the help of thy mercy we may be both free from all sinne and sure from all troble by the same our lord Iesus Christ thy sonn who liuith and reigneth with the in the vnity of god the h. goost And this praier is said in secret and I see no caus why it shuld be said in secret The rationall or reson giuer saith that this silence signifieth the sabboth day in the which the body of the lord did rest in the graue For thā nōe did preach the faith And a fore in the title which is of the pater noster and the exposition therof he allegeth a nother cause that is that this praier is sayd sofftly in token that christ sometyme did hold his peace in his preaching O vaine reason And why can it not signifie whan he held his peace vnder Caiphas Herode ād Pilate as well as the silence in the sermon and why is it
which was entred among many ought not to make that the trueth should not preuayle and ouercome for Custome without trueth is an oldnes of errours Wherfore leauinge the errour let vs follow the trueth I will let passe a nombre of the auncient fathers as Austē Hierom Ambrose ād other who wold we should stick to the onely worde of god ād not to custome nor to ani other authoritie of mā It hath bene alwaies that the more parte of men haue bene in errour yea and euē of thē that were called the people of god Let the prophets be red and it shall apere that I say the trueth for whye were the prophets persecuted euel handeled and in the en◅ put to death yf not for because they reproued the errours and abuses of there tyme which were amōg the people whye hath Christe and his Apostles suffered persecution and in the end death y◅ not for that they reproued the false faith the vntrew worshippings and the counterfet religion of there tyme And for what cause thē shall we now maruell that the Christian people should be myred and drowned in so many abuses corruptions Idolatries and other infinit errours 2. Pet. 2. et 3. hath not Pete◅ fore tolde vs in his secōd epistle that there should come false teachers that wold bringe in deadly sects ād that in the latter dayes there sholud come begylers and deceauers 2. Thess 2. And Paule in his second to the Thessalonians doth not he declare that there should come a forsaking as I vnderstand it o◅ the faith that is to say that men should goo from the faith and that god wold send forth a mightines of gyle and deceyte so that men should beleue lyes and that because they haue not loued the trueth And to Timothi in his first Epistle doth not he say that in the latter tymes som should departe from the faith 1. Tim. 4. geuing heed to the spirits of errour and doctrines of deuels 2. Timo. 3. And in the second also he saith that in the latter dayes should be perilous tymes and men full of vyces and among other things ◅he saith that they should haue shewes of religion but in dede they should denye the might therof What hath bene preached to the people of a long tyme hetherto but onely the teachings of men some preached the Poets some Aristotle Auerroes Plato and other heathen philosophers some preached the lawes some vnproffitable questions of Scotus Alexander of Hales of Bonauentura of Thomas of Aquine the whiche as it is manifest in there doctrine and opinions the one of then gaynsayd the other in open pulpit the black against the graie the grey against the black the Augustine fryer against them both and so we may say of the rest some held one opinion some an other and and what assurednes of trew doctrine could the poore people haue in so great a diuersitie and confusion who was he that preached the holy scripture and the gospell purely And shall we then maruel that errours are entred in among the Christiā people shall we then say how can it be possible that god wold haue left his churche so long tyme in erroure Naye yf we had but a spark of witt and reason we should say quyte contrary that is how is it possible to be otherwyse but that the more parte of mē haue bene ād yet are in most grosse blindnes couered with the dark mist of innumerable errours and it could not be otherwyse There is amōg the rest one very great disorder a cause of innumerable euels that none of them to whome it belonged to teache and preach to the people hath done his office It is well knowen that the office of preaching the worde of god belongeth to the busshoppes and who was he yea we may now say who is that bisshop that doth preach and feed the flock of Christ with the word of god yea who is he that disdaineth not to preache and doo that office which the Prophets the Apostles ye and the sonne of god himself Christ Iesu god and man hath done and the godliest dewtie of all that is to say the greatest and highest which is to teach the word of god to the people these oure great lordes doo not vouchafe it but haue left it and yet do leaue it for other to do It suffiseth them to haue the title the rents and the honoure of a busshop as in effect they wold declare that they be no busshoppes as in dede they be not except onely in name and in dede yf they were trew busshoppes they wold not be ashamed to doo theire office as Austine Ambrose Ciprian Chrisostom Basile Gregory and other holy fathers were not ashamed the which taught and preached the word of god This is the trew fedinge which Christ commaunded Peter in S. Ihon the last chapter Ioan. 15.21 1. Pet. 5. and the same Peter also in his first Epistle the 5. chapter saith feede so muche as in you is that is to say so much as you can and according to youre habilitie the flock of Christ or els as the other text saith feed the flock of Christ which is in you that is to say which is committed ād geuē to you in charge Of this disorder it commeth to passe that the cleane pure and trew doctrine of the gospel and of the word of god doth want among the people and as thorow a wide and large gate be entred abuses superstitions and errours among the Christiā flock There is none thē that hath witt or reason that will say any more how is it possible that oure elders or let it be the church and so many teachers haue erred God hath suffered by his iust iudgement this horrible decay in his chyrche and it is a most singular grace of god that yet in a few albeit euell handeled of the world who be in dede the true church the faith doth remaine Yea I say that if the world in temporall gouernements had not had better rule and order then the estate called Ecclesiasticall it should haue run̄ into an vtter confusion and decaye Sew◅rly it is trew that there be many disorders in worldly princes doings but yet they doo in some parte there dewtye they minister iustice after a certein maner they chastice the fauters they punisch theft murder blaspemie and other faults they cause by there officer euery mans awne to be restored hym they geue themselues to doo right as there calling is But in the Ecclesiasticall state who hath done or yet doth his office beginning at the highest degre which is a busshopship and see how that is handeled and therebie lett the rest be iudged The bissoppes attend to euery other thing except preaching yea they hinder by all meanes they can whom so euer wold doo this office trewly that is wold declare the gospell and the word of god purely And they will not suffer it to be done but raginglye persecute the teachers
seauen in the worship of the seauen ioyes of oure ladye which â—…hings I am sory to say And to be shorte this saing â—…f the Kyrie eleeson nyne tymes vpoÌ„ so vaiâ—…e causes is superstitious and maketh vs vnderâ—…tand how feble and vaine the foundations of the Masse are Yea seing the latine is more plaine to â—…s then the greek Then next when Kyrie eleeson is said followeth the Gloria in excelsis Deo which is a goodly praise and a godly for the Aungels as Luke the Euangelist saith did sing it at Luc. 1. Christs birth those words that are ioyned to it as Laudamus te Benedicimus te vnto the end were put to as some saie by Hilariê° others say by Telesphorê° the pope aÌ„d others that thei were put to by Symacê° the pope there is nothing thereto be reproued coÌ„cerning the substaÌ„ce of the matterâ—… We deny not but that there is in the Masse certeinâ—… things agreable to gods word yea and some parte of gods words it self for there are of the saings of the psalmes of the prophets of the Apostels anâ—… of Christ himself but the matter is that these things should be placed worthely and not otherwise And also that the wicked should not be mingeled with the good This is the suteltie of Satan who vnder the shew of godly matters deceaueth the vnaduysed as we are wont to say that in theâ—… honye lyeth hidden the poison Tell me after what sort are men killed with poison It is suer that it is neauer geuen alone but mixte amonge other good meats aÌ„d after this sonâ—… it is taken and bringeth death EueÌ„ so it happeneth in this Masse for there are diuers good things as the Epistel and the gospell and other saings of the scripture but with such saings are couered many disceyts are told many vntrueths blaspemies and superstitions is taken the honoure from Christ and god and geuen to onely creatures After this sort also are men deceaued with inchauntements for â—…here is none or very few inchauntments made that haue not some words and those good of god and yet they ought not be done Then next after the Gloria certein praiers which they call collects and some of them be godly â—…nd ChristiaÌ„ like made accordinge to gods worde â—…ut there are many wicked and blaspemous as that â—…f the fourth ferie that is to saye on wednisdaye of the Ember dayes in aduent and it is the first praier â—…hat he saieth Graunt we beseche the o lord alâ—…ichtye that this solemne feast that is at hand of â—…ure redemption may help vs in this present lyfe and geue vs the rewards of euerlasting blessednes The fourth praier also the saterday which foloweth in the same Imber dayes sayth the very same in substance as it may be sene in the Masse boke The first praier also on the saterday in albis that is to say the first saterday after Easter saith thus Graunt we beseche the almightie god that we which haue kept with reuerence this feaste of Easter may bye the same deserue to come to euerlasting ioyes These prayers plainlie desyre that by the desert of the feasts that we kepe of Christmas and Easter god wold geue vs the euerlasting happines And how can this staÌ„d that by the kepinge of holy dayes we should deserue euerlasting blessednes First it is playne that in the new Testament we haue no holy day commaunded by Christ nor his Apostels those that are kept are by mans and not by gods apointment I say not for all this that it is euell to ordeine certeine proper daies or feasts that the people may come together to the preaching of gods worde to receaue the holy communion to make common praier together and also for there rest who in that week were weried and to the intent I saye that we may haue some day wherin we may quietly haue regard to the heauenly things But to do this by gods commaundement there is no more one day then an other apointed for the dayes are all a lyke nether is there one more holy then an other in it sel 〈◊〉 4. or by gods ordinaunce Paule reproued the Galathians because they did kepe daies letting them witte that such kepinge is a ieuysh and no ChristiaÌ„ like thinge Colâ—…os â—… Likewise writing to the Colossians he saith let no maÌ„ iudge you neither in meat nor drink nor in any parte of the holidaye nor of the saboth day which things are but shadowes of the things to come c. Then is there not any holliday by gods coÌ„mauÌ„demeÌ„t since Christs coÌ„ming who hath ended the ceremonial law of the which the keping of daies was a parte by gods oune I saye more ouer that although there were law holy daies coÌ„mauÌ„ded by god in the new TestameÌ„t yet we could not be saued by keping of them seing oure elders were not saued by the keping of the law commaunded by god For there is none at any tyme saued or iustified by the law as Peter saith in the acts of the Apostles Acto 15. but all be saued by the grace of oure sauioure Iesus Christ So now we euen as oure fore fathers be saued by the self same grace of Iesus Christ. How many saings of Paule could I bring forth if I wold that we be not iustified nor saued by the works of the law nor by any other worke but onely by faith whiche is as much to say as by the grace of oure lord Iesus Christ I say by his onely grace And yet the Masse boke will affirme that by the holy daies commaunded bye men god should geue vs euerlasting lyfe which he neauer did to our forefathers for the holy daies commaunded by himself nor for any other work commaunded in the law We haue before said that there is none other name in which we may be saued but that onely of Christs Acto 4. and the Masse book will that we should be saued in the name of holy daies found out and apointed by men which howe they be kept it is well knowen for that god is muche more offended and mo sundry waies out of doubt on such dayes then on any other These prayers are wicked And if it should be sayd that in such prayers is put in the end Per Christum Dominum nostrum geuinge vs to wit that we be saued by Christ I say that this is not enough because Christ onely or hiâ—… deseruings onely do saue vs and these praiers woâ—… that by the deserts of the holy dayes we should bâ—… saued geuing to the holy daies at the least in parte that which Christ onely doth and so do lesse his honoure Gods word will that Christe onelâ—… should haue this office and putteth no other companion wiht him There be many other praiers iâ—… this wicked Collects but we haue geuen an example of these few lest we should werie the reader mâ—…king the boke to great When the prayers are ended the Epistle is said and after the
declare it It is suer that this praier is wicked as well as that of the offering of the hoste The fourth Chapter HEre is examined that many praiers which they call secreats and are sayd before the preface be damnable and hold much wickednes in them as these That fasting purgeth sin̄es and maketh vs worthye of the grace of god and leadeth vs to the heauenly and euerlasting glory That by the bread and wyne god is apeased and forgeueth vs oure sinnes Then follow certein praiers and they be three which affirme the bread ād wyne to be a sacrifice of which matter because we will treate of it in the end where we will proue that nether the bread nor wyne before the consecration nor the Sacrament after the consecration can be a sacrifice albeit that the Sacrament is a remembraunce of the sacrifice We wil not now talke any farther of it least we should vnproffitably repeat one thinge often But we wil examen that which remaineth of this first parte ād chefely these praiers which they call secreats because they are sayd softly to geue more aucthoritie to the Masse And let them neuertheles alledge as many reasons as they will yet they ought to speak it a loude but this maketh not so much matter as the wicknedesses and blasphemies that are in some of them and among the rest in that of the fourth ferye of the Imber dayes in aduent which saith let oure fastings we beseche the oh lord be acceptable vnto the which by clensing vs maye make vs worthy of thy grace and bring vs to the euerlasting promesses The veri same is said also in the third serie that is to saie the tewesday after pashiō sonday And an other tyme on fryday in the Ember weke after the seauentēth sonday after whit sonday which praier in few words hath much matter that is to say thre great blasphemyes The first is that fastinges do clere purge and clense The seconde is that they make vs worthye of Gods grace The third that they bring vs to the euerlasting promesses These thre cursed wickednesses are in this litle praier who wil denye that these be not thre blasphemies First is not this a blasphemie to geue to the fastings which are oure works the clensinge of sinnes Heb. 1. which is gods worke onely by Christ Iesus thoroughe his blod and death As paule sayth 1. Ioan. 1. That Christ alone is he that purgeth sinnes And Ihon in his first Epistle saith That the blood of Iesus Christe doth clense vs from al sinne And Ihon Baptist sayth Ioan. 1. behold the lamb of god behold him that taketh awaye the sinnes of the world And Esay geueth the forgeuinge of sinnes to Christe onely thorough his passion and death Esa 53. And to be shorte the whole scripture geueth this honoure to Christe and this praier geueth it to oure fastings These be those godly sacrifices that are made beare with me you that yet know it not in this detestable Masse by which the world so long hath bene disceaued and Christ dispysed Besyd yf by oure fastings we were clensed and oure sinnes forgeuen vs Rom. 4. we should be iustified by oure oune works for so much as iustification is forgeuenes of sinnes it self or at the least is not without it and that onely iustifieth vs that forgeueth vs oure sinnes Ro. 3. 4. Gala. 2.3.4 5. Roma 3. But this doctrine is contrary to the Apostle Paule who sayth in all his Epistles and specially to the Romaines and Galath that we be not iustified by works but bye Gods grace through Christs redemption Paule saith to the Romains we be iustified by his grace that is Gods by the redemptiō that is in Christ Iesus In which place appointinge the things that perteine to iustification he alledgeth grace the redemption by Christe and faith which wholly he geueth to the grace of god by Christ and no whit to man yea rather he turneth out all the glory of man and geueth the whole honoure and glory to God Which he wold not haue done if oure works whether they be fastings or other works had pertained to iustification as any cause therof Moreouer how canne fastings purge or clense sinnes seing that we must first be losed and clensed before we can do eny work that may be thankfull to God whether it be fasting or other work How can fastings take away sinnes yf they be not thankfull to God and if they be thankfull to God it is necessary that oure sinnes should first be forgeuē vs and that we should be clensed of them Fastings therfore cannot cause forgeuenes of sinnes nether in whole nor in parte yea let thē think this before hand that yf they should be acceptable vnto god forgeuenes of sinnes must necessarylye goo before them And if it should be sayd that in the end of the praier there is Per Dominum nostrū Iesum Christū etc. Which words confesse that oure sinnes are forgeuen by Christ to this is answerd that ether they will that by Iesus Christe himself onely our sinnes should be forgeuen or els not onely by Christ but by Christ together with the fastings If they will by Christ onely why do they alledge fastings yf they will haue fastings together with Christ this is first against the scriptures which thorowout alledge Christ onely ād none other Further it is plaine that the reason before made resteth stronge that is that forgeuenes of sinnes go before fastings if they shal be thankfull to god then fasting cannot because of forgeuenes of sinnes nether with Christ nor without Christ And if thei wold say we meane not of forgeuenes of sinnes as concerning the faulte but the punishmēt to this I say that when men speak absolutely of the clensing or forgeuinge of sinne it is to be vnderstand of the faulte as of the chefe thinge in that forgeuenes and here the praier speaketh absolutely wherfore it is vnderstand of the fawt and not of the paine only Than if the fawt be forgeuen and taken away we ought not to be any more ponisshed for the cause of that fawt For take away the caus and the effect foloweth This is a generall rule where there is no fawt there ought not to be any ponisshment If god doo thorowly for gyue and take away the fawt he taketh a way also the ponisshment dewe for that fawt And this distinction which is comonly made of the forgeuenes of the paine ād of the fawt hath no maner fowndacyō in holy scriptures but is fownd owt by men And though somtymes god forgiuing the fawt doth some way ponissh as he did Dauyd and certen other yet this is not that the ponisshmēt shuld remayne as the ponisshmēt of that sin̄ but for other respecttys as to humble the man and to exercyse hym or to geue example to other that thei doo not the like and that he also may be ware in tyme to come that he fall not
wordes of the consecration and not of all the canon Innocentius in the decretallis de celebratione missarum in the chapter Cum marthe willeth and commandeth because he was pope that this canon shuld be receiued as deliuered by the apostels although it were writen at the least v. hondreth yeare affter the apostels time and but a litle before gregory the first Lib. 7. epist cap. 63. as he him selff witnesseth It was written by a certen mā named Scolasticus and is diuided in to xi partis some going before the consecraciō and some folowing Master William durāt in his Rationale diuinorum officiorum that is to say the declaration of the cause of euery thing vsed in gods seruice with great reuerēce expoundeth thes one part affter a nother as a thingful of veri great ād godly misteries And saith that euery point of this canō which we goo abowt to set owt doth very hardly appeare to be of any valewe Wherfor saith he The tong faileth The spech is vnfitt The witt is ouer come And the vnderstonding oppressed Notwithstonding I will knock at the dore that is to say I will pray god that he wil open to me thes great secrettis And yet for all thes there is not in this canon made by scolasticus so moch as one word of the holy scripture except thos of the consecration which are the least of it For the pater noster was added after by Gregory as in the place before rehersed and be christes wordes So that iff he shuld haue declared Iohns gospel or the mistery of the trinitie he wold not haue made such a furniture of wordes And he expowndeth it with so great diligence ād reuerēce as it is meruolose Thes be the worthy expownders that expownd mans wordes with more reuerence and with greater labor than gods So now expownding this canō he saith many things vaine and childish yea many thinges wicked Amongst the rest he saith that parauenture by gods foresight it is brought to passe and not procured by mans labor that the first letter of this canon shuld be T. which in hebrew is called Tau Which Tau in his shape sheweth and expresseth the signe and mistery of the crosse because god saith by Ezechiel print the Tau Ezech. 9. in the forhead of them that sorow and mourne for the abominations of Ierusalē For thes things sayth he be fullfilled by the passion of Christ ād the cross and haue their strenght And he addeth that in certen bokes that is to say massebokes the maiestie of the father ād also the Image of the crucifix is paynted to the intent that the priest might see as it were presently him that he calleth on and with whom he speaketh saing Te igitur c. And that the passion which here is represented may pearce in to the eyes of the hart And he addeth But the priest kisseth the feete of the Image of the same maiestie and is crossed in the forhead geuing vs to vnderstand that he goeth reuerently to the mistery of the redempcion Not withstonding saith he some kisse first the feete of the Image of the fathers maiestie and affter of the crucifix according to the order of the canon Other contrary wise For by the sonn men come to the father And wher hath this honest fellowe fownd that the maiestie of the father can be painted Exod. 20 Deut. 4.5 what shape hath the father who is an highe spirite that we may paint him Seing he himselff hath so straightly in the lawe commanded that there shuld be made no fasshion nor ymage of god Is not this to teach men to committ Idolatry Let no man maruel that I offten alledge William Durant For I doo it to none other end but that it may appeare of what sort the fowndacions of this masse are For this is he that yeldeth and telleth the causes and reasons of the things that are sayd and done in the masse Therfor I alledge him offten But let vs ronne ouer a litle this canon And examining it we shal see in it thes vnexpressable misteries affter master durant The first is this WE therfor O most mercifull father by Iesus Christ thy sonn our lord doo humbly pray and desire the that thow wilt accept these gyfftes these presentys and these vnspotted sacryfices And here must be made iij. crosses ouer the host and the chales likewise And he addeth First that we offer to the for thy holi catholike church which vouchsafe thow to quiet to kepe to Ioyne to gether and to gouerne in euery part of the earthes compasse to gether with thy seruant our Pope and our bisshop And here is the Pope and the bisshop of that dyocesse where the masse is said named by name Or iff thei be friars or mōkes that celebrate thei name their generall or Abbat and affter he addeth this That is to say And for all the right opinioned and kepers of the catholyke and apostolik faith This is the first of the xi partis of the canon In which it is destred that the breade and the wyne may be accepted for the church for the pope for the bisshops for the generals fryars or mōkes and for all the right opinioned and kepers of the catholik and apostolik faith And it is affirmed that that bread and that wyne not yet consecrated are holy and vndefiled sacrifices which are offered to god for the church ād for all thos that are there mencioned And here is no great hardnes for the wordes be plaine inough except that those iij. crosses which are made ouer the breade and wyne shuld betoken some very great misteries Master William durant saith here that thes iij. crosses doo betoken the iij. deliueries of Christ the first when god deliuerid his son to the world the second whē Iudas deliuerid him to the Iewes and the third whē the Iewes deliuerid him to death Iff this reason be good whi make thei not ther 4. crosses Seing that Christ hath deliuered also him selff as Peter saith 1. Pet. 2. Tradebatautem se iudicanti iuste that is he deliuered himselff to him that Iudgith Iustly Is not this Christ as mā and as priest deliuered or offered vnto god Eph. 5. a sacrifice for our sinnes And doth not S. Paul to the Ephes say that Christ deliuered himselff for the church to sāctifie it Heb. 9. ◅0 ād to the hebrews in how many places is ther made mencion Math. 20. that Christ hath offred himselff to god yea Christ him selff doth witnes that he hath geuē his life for vs. Is not this deliuery of as great importan̄ce as that of the Iewes and rather greater And why is ther not mencion made of it in thes crosses He saith also that thes iij. crosses are made in the worship of the trinitie and also in betokening the threfold vnion in the acceptacion of Christ. Also in rememberance of the threfold crucifiēg that is to say In the will
difference of dayes in thother liffe Not withstonding this is not of the canon but master Durāts And to returne to this praier of the Memento me thincketh that it is folissh and vnsauery and that it speaketh against it selff Because first it cōfesseth that the dead doo slepe in the slepe of peace and that thei rest in Christ And notwithstonding affter it desireth that god wold giue them place of comfort of light and of peace Iff thei slepe in the slepe of peace and rest in Christ haue thei not the place of peace What nede yow axe that thos that slepe in peace shuld haue the place of peace Is it not all one to slepe in peace and to haue the place of peace To rest in Christ and to haue place of comfort Iff the sowles be tormented in purgatory be thei not dead in torment How rest thei than parauenture the defenders of the canon will answer that this praier meaneth of the body whan it saith that the dead slepe and not of the sowle Let it be so For the sowle in deede slepeth not but only the body But it saith also that thei haue quietnes and rest which spech can not be conueniently vnderstand but of that part that may be trobled What rest shall that be to rest in that part that can feele no maner of thing withowt the sowle and to be trobled in that part that in deede felith and l◅ueth Whan thei say in their seruice for the deade requiescant in pace surely thei meane to speake of the sowle and not of the body For as moch as it nedeth not to pray that the body of the dead shuld rest because that of necessitie it doth rest But the sowle may as thei thinck haue troble and paine in purgatory And therfor thei pray that thei may haue rest as concerning the sowle Apoc. 14. S. Iohn in thapocalips whan he saith blessed are the deade that dye in the lord why doth the spirite say that from hens forth thei rest from their trauale will we say that he shuld speake of the rest of the deades body and not of the sowle Iff he speake of the body what prerogatiue haue the bodies of the iust vntill the day of Iudgement more than the bodies of the wicked The one and thother doo rest equally and there is no difference in this point And yet Ihon maketh a difference betwene them for he calleth them the dead in the lorde that is to say the Iust blessed And why blessed because that from hensforth thei shall rest from their trauel and be in quyet geuing to vnderstand that the other doo not rest frō their trauale but haue more thā euer thei had because thei be damned to euerlasting paine So that whan the quietnes of the Iust is spoken of it meaneth of the quietnes of the sowle and not of the body Being than thus that this praier in one part affirmeth that the iust slepe in peace and rest in Christ and in a nother part desireth that god wold geue them a place of peace and comfort appeareth that plainly it speaketh against itselff The xi and last part is this To vs sinners thy seruantes that trust in the multitude of thy mercies vouchsafe likewise to giue some part and cōpany with thy holy Apostels and martirs with Iohn Steuen Mathy Barnaba Ignatius Alexander marcellus peter felicitas perpetua Agatha Lucia Cecilia Anastasia and withall thy saintes in whos felowship we besech the admitt vs not as a regarder of desertes but as a giuer of pardon through Christ our lord Amen And thes wordes are said somwhat with an higher voice to th entent that thei shuld be somwhat hard And the prest knocketh his brest representing saith master durant the contricion of the these that rebuked thother these And Amē is not answered partly because the angels that euer be assistent doo āswer thē seluis ād partli for other causes that he him selff alledgeth See what reasōs thes be of the masse vaine and to no purpose For iff Amen be not āswered because of the assistence of the angels it foloweth that in the masse Amen shuld neuer be answered for ◅hangells as thei thinck be allweies assistent He sheweth also the cause why Steuen is put there accōpanied with Ihon before mathy ād barnabas ād whi memori is made of Ihon ād not of the other Apostels Without dowt this cannō being made and affter put in to the masse for such causes as William Durant alledgeth thei may boldly take it owt of the masse and the masse booke withowt any scrupulositie sauing thos fewe wordes of Christ that are there For the masse shall be lesse beastly althoughe it be estemed for the chefe and bewtifullest part seing that it is alltogether full of supersticions beside the multitude of iniquities and blaspemies that be in it And he that wold axe why mencion is made in this place raither of Ignacius of Alexander of Marcellinus and Peter which was a nother than Peter thapostell and so furth of thes particular holy wemen and martirs than of thother saintes men and wemen I knowe not what thei shuld answer being so many other besides thes here named It is said that certen desiered with great ernestnes of the popes to put in there in this canon s frances but it wat not granted them I thinck for this cause least thei of s Benet of s Dominik of s Austen and of other sectes shuld haue start vp and also haue desiered to put thereinto their sainctes mē and wemē as a man wold say s Peter the martir s Catarin of Siena who had the marks of Christes woundes as s francis had And iff not thes yet at the least the heades of their orders I doo not willingly tell thes things but thei be of gretter importance than some thinck There foloweth affter also in this xi part By the which that is to say by Christ create halow quicken blesse ād make thes things O lord allweyes good vnto vs. And here saing thes wordes thei make iij. crosses ouer the host and the cupp together And the cupp being vncouered and the host takē in hand there is added By him with him and in him and there is made iij. other crosses ouer the cupp and ij other betwene the cupp and him selff that sayeth the masse saing And to the god the allmighty in the vnitie of the holy goost be all honor and glory So that there are in all viij crosses in thes fewe wordes And master Durant according to his accustomed maner geueth a reason of euery thing And what reasons be thei Folissh and vaine And surely iff thei that made all this canon I say thei because it was not made all at onis but at sondry times and of sondry men were not moued by more reasonable causes than a great part of thos reasons that he rendereth thei were meruelos lightly moued For the masse shuld haue bene lesse blasphemos than it is if thei
heare it not the same prest saing it veri sofftli in such sort as none heareth it except the prest him selff Therfor to thē which heare not nor ūderstād what is done nor said it is no sacramēt A fewe yeares past Mark there was in Mantua a certē frire of a certē order the which was put in ā Irō cage becaus he had celebrated masse māi yeares ād neuer did cōsecrate So it might chāce of māy other that might doo the like who cā assertē the peple that the bread ād wine is cōsecrated neither hearing vnderstanding what is said And iff any man wold say that there may be a sacrament although the wordes of the consecration shuld neither be hard nor vnderstand seing that the childern be baptised which vnderstand not what is said To this I answer that there is diuersitie betwene childern ād thē that be of full age for the childern although thei neither heare nor vnderstand yet thei may and ought to be baptised by gods commandment And this is taken owt of the scripture But thei of full age ought not to be baptised except thei vnderstād that which is said Yea baptime in full age requireth faith and the confessiō of the same And iff at any time it shuld be done otherwise that is to say iff it shuld not be vnderstand it shuld not be vnto him trewe baptim So moch more we shall say of the sacramēt of bread and wine the which none vse butt thei of full age that thei be no sacrament if the wordes be not spoken and vnderstand with which wordes thei be consecrated that is to say appointed to an holy vse and become a sacrament For this cause in old time the wordes of the consecration were said with a lowd voice to th entēt that euery one might vnderstād what was said so that seing the sacramēt of the masse is no trewe sacrament it is no memory of a sacrifice Further more we must knowe that the sacramēt is not an absolute thing but is a thing that hath respect to a nother thing that is to say to the vse to which it is appointed And whan such vse is taken a way it can not be properly called a sacrament The trewe vse of the sacrament is that it shuld be distributed to the multitude And to this end it is consecrated that is to say appointed Let vs see how the sauior vsed it whan he instituted it It is ce◅ten that he gaue it not to one only but to all his disciples and said vnto them that thei shuld doo as he taught them and did him selff And how did he He said not only ouer the bread and wine the wordes of the consecration as the priestes doo which seme to make an inchantment but he commanded them that thei all shuld take and eate the bread and drink the wine He did all this and said that thei ought to doo as he had done It behoueth iff it shuld be a sacrament to doo all that which Christ said and commanded and not part But now the Priest beside that it is not vnderstand what he doth he doth not deale the sacrament to the peple but taketh it him selff alone and yet he saith that he doth cōmunicate And he calleth that receiuing with the mowth that is to say taking the bread and wine he calleth it cōmunion speaking and doing abusingly It is called a cōmunion whan many doo partake of one thing not whā one by him selff alone doth take the whole as is done in the priuat masse By the which thing we may truli say that that sacrament of the masse is no trew sacrament Wherfor if Paul for that disorder that the corinthians did vse as it is writton in the 1. to the same corinthians which was 1. Cho. 11. that one taried not for another and it was but a small fawt in comparison of this said that that which they did was no eating of the lordes supper what shall we say of this sacrament in the which is committed not one but so many abuses and where the whole trewe vse of the lords supper is changed Christ cōmanded that all shuld take it And here in the masse the prest eateth and drinketh vp all alone My reason standeth in this The vse of the sacramēt is of the substance of the same sacramēt And where the vse is not to which it was appointed there the sacramēt in deed is not The vse of the lords supper or of the thankes geuing is not only to say the wordes ouer the bread and the wine but it is that many shuld take it and eate the one and drink the other as Christ appointed Than where such vse is not there is no sacramēt for he said to many Eate yow ād drink yow And why is not this done in the priuate masse but rather the cleane contrary For one alone that is to say the prest doth take the host and the cupp So that than it is no trewe sacrament I will geue the example of baptim to th entent that euery one may vnderstand how the sacrament standeth in the vse And whan the vse is ceased it is no more a sacrament The water of baptim is no sacrament but for that time that it wassheth ād is put vp on the body saing thes wordes I baptise the in the name of the father the sonn and the holy goost Amen Let that water fall in to another vessel affter that the creature be baptised it is no more baptime but is as any other water this is plaine Euen so I say of the sacrament of thanksgeuing whilest that it is delt and distributed it is a sacrament but that which is lefft of the bread and wine is no more a sacrament but it may be eaten and dronken as other bread and wine becaus it is no more appointed to such vse So I say of thos crommes of breade that fall vp on the grownd that thei be no sacrament I know that of this my talk many things doo folow the which will seme inconuenient And amongst other that thes osts the which are kept in the tabernacles or pixis and in the litle closettis be no sacrament becaus that there we haue not the vse the which is of the substance of the sacrament And there doth folowe it many other But let thē folow at their will I am of Christes opinion Ther for in this I remitt my selff to the Iudgement of Christes churches I say thus becaus it semith vnto me according to gods word that it shuld be so that is to say that as whan the vse of baptime is ceased the water is no more a sacrament so whan the vse of the thankesgeuing is ceased that is to say whan it is no more taken and dealt eaten and drunck it is no more a sacrament I meane eaton and drunck in common for so moch as the lords supper is not a doing of one particular man but of many men And becaus that in the masse
glasse was lightly broken For this cause it was ordeined that thei shuld minister in siluer or in gold And iff thei could not be gotten at the least in tinne and not in any other metall becaus of the euill sauor of the other metalls Some say that pope Vrbanus the first did institute this And what meaneth it that the Apostles nor the primatiue church did not vse so gret pomp in vessels what superstitions be these How moch were to be said here But it suffiseth me to toch the abuses becaus thei wold axe to many wordes to declare them at length Also thei geue to vnderstand that that day that a man heareth masse there can no misfortutune chance vnto him And yet we doo see many haue euel lucke that day that thei haue hard the masse and die an euill death Pope victor the iij. died of poison by the cōsecrated wine that was poisoned Henry the seuinth Emperor of rome died by the ost that was poisoned and geuen vnto him by a dominicane frire in the castle bonconuento the yere of our lord 1086. A nother is that albeit the masse is mans inuencion as we haue prouid yet thei command it as though it were gods commandment This is against the expresse word of god him selff Who saith in Deutronomy doo to the lord only that that I command the Deut. 12. and thow shalt not add nor minissh And against the saing of Esay Esay 29. which offten times we haue alleged that is to say that god will not be honored with men̄s commandemēts Matth. 15. And Christ in S. Matthew saith the same alledging the Prophet A nother is that thei affirme that he who saith the masse hath greter auctoritie than the angels and also than the blessed virgin And this is becaus thei hold that in the masse is made the transsubstancion of the breade and the wine in to Christes body and blood And bileuing that Christ him selff is present bodily in the host and in the cupp the which things neither the angels nor the blessed virgin haue auctoritie to doo but the prestes only thei conclude that thos prestes haue gretter auctoritie than the angels or the blessed virgin And thei say that the same most blessed mother caused Christ to come in to hir virginlike wombe with 8. wordes that is to say Ecce ancilla domini fiat mihi secundum uerbum tuum And the pristes make him to come in to the host with v. wordes only that is to say Hoc est enim corpus meum I will leaue at this time to examen this their fals spech that the blessed mother shuld make the sonn of god to come with thos wordes as though thei shuld haue had vertew to make him take flessh that being only of gods work I will leaue as I say to speake of this and I will axe them from whens it commith that on th one part thei so moch exalt the blessed virgin that thei abase Christ and god for thei call hir quene of heauen starr of the sea our hope our life mother of mercy And thei geue hir such titles and honor as be only due to god and Christ. And here thei make hir meaner than a plaine prest sometimes as I haue said very wicked Indede I confesse that the ministery of gods word and of the sacraments is not committed to the blessed mother nor to the angels but to men Yet for this caus to goo abowt to make men that bee sinners more worthy than the angels that be withowt sinne or than the mother of god it is vnfit chefly for that the prestes be not trewe ministers of the sacraments for so moch as he that doth not minister the word ought neither to minister the sacraments Further also as we haue said before thei be not called by a trewe vocacion the which is necessary to the ministery A nother abuse is that the corporasses the challises ād the ostis may not be touched by lay mē This thei haue done to make men haue the more reuerens and deuocion to the masse This office of toching the chalises the host the patēts and the corporasses thei say belongeth only to them that be in sacris that is in holy orders and not to other But for what caus may not a thing be toched with the hand iff it be cleane and nett the which may be eaten and dronken But this sacrament is eaten that is to say the host and is dronkē that is to say the wine for what caus thā may it not be touched with the hand seing it is touched with the mowth This supersticion is against Christes ordinans and the custom of the Apostles For Christ whan he reached the bread and the cupp to his Apostlos he said vnto them that thei shuld take and thei toke th one and thother with their handes and surely thei touched them Christ did not than giue it them in their mowthes Shall we say that Christ shuld speake thes wordes that is to say Take yow Eate yow Drink yow only for the Apostles and not for other This is not soo but he spake them for all thos that weare to receiue the sacrament as also S. Paul geuith to vnderstand the which writing to the Corinthes in his first reciteth Christes wordes and teacheth not only the ministers but all the whole church what thei haue to doo Seing than this things is comon to all Christians and not belonging to pristes only why may thei not than be touched by lay men seing thei also ought to communicate and receiue the same sacramēt The old church and the Apostles deliuered the sacrament in to the handes of all them that did receiue it From whens is this newe religion come contrary to Christes Institution and to the Apostles custom Shall it be conuenient that a lay man who with a good and a clere consciens receiuith the sacrament may not touche it And a wicked prest with a blotted and a defiled consciens shall be Counted worthy to handle it A nother abuse is that the masse is said in the honor of sainctes and sainctesses This ought not to be done for so moch as that the sacrament which is the substans of the masse was instituted in rememberans of Christ who only is dead for our ransoming And it was not instituted in the honor of saintes Why than is not the masse said in rememberans of Christ and not of saintes among which no one hath redemed vs nor the sacrament was not instituted for none of them but only in Christes remembrās Christ saith doo this in my remembrans And thei will doo it in remēbrans of saintes Shuld it not be a gret abuse if the gospell shuld be preached in the honor of saints the which is Christes only Euē so is it of the sacramēt Thei handle their masses as poore ignorant men doo their praiers which will say Aue Maria in thonor of S. Christopher and the pater noster in worship of
the masse as thei think worketh thes effects And what is it to robb christ of his honor iff this be not That is to say to plucke froÌ„ him the glory of the pristhode of the intreatorship of the only sacrifice and to be short of the only redemer and sauer We haue sene how many falsedes how many supersticions wickednesses and blasphemies be therein shall it not than be a sacrilege shall it not be an abhominacion aboue all other sacrileges and abhominacions seinge it is an heape of sacrilegis aÌ„d abhominacions Yes surely shall it It is therfor clere and plaine that the masse is the gretest sacrilege and the gretest abhominacion that euer was in any world It is an easy things to proue by the things allredy spoken that it is the gret mistery of Antichrist And it foloweth necessarily that iff the masse be the gretest sacrilege and abhominacioÌ„ that euer was in the world that also it is the gret mistery of Antichrist called by Paul for the excellenci of it the mistery of iniquitie Neuertheles for more clerenes and better proffe of the thing we will say also a fewe words to this purpos It is plaine that Antichrist is the chefe child member and elect instrument of sathan 2. Thessa â—… called bi Paul the sonn of perdicion by the which the same sathan with all the meanes and weies that he can and knoweth seketh to withstaÌ„d Christ and to fight against him And this he doth chefely affter ij sortis One is openly that euery man seith The other is secretly and moch wors The open waie is with the persecucions that he doth against the seruants of Iesus Christ afflicting them tormenting them and killing them by meanes of the princes of the worlde and as it is said with the secular powr For surely thes same be no nother but the Armes of Antichrist with the which he fighteth against Christ although that the poore princes be not aware of such things but be deceiued by the Antichristians that be in their cowrtis And this maner off withstanding Christ although it be open to all men neuertheles Antichrist being full off the misteries off iniquities and off deuelissh crafftines with meruelos and most craffty pretensis and colors maketh it to seeme to be of a nother sort than it is For although this maner of persecuting Christ is all wholly wicked and Satanike yet neuertheles he geueth to vnderstand that it is a godly and a religios thing and that it is a defence of Christen religion and a keping of it persuading that Christes seruantes be heretikes and that the faithfull Christians be Lutheranes He geueth to vnderstand that he is Christes lifftenant yea that he is a God on earth and not withstanding he procureth as moch as he can that Christes doctrine shuld not come in to the light becaus it is that that discouereth him and maketh him open to the world And he wold not be knowen for him that he is that is to say for Antichrist which is as moch to say as Christes chefe aduersary Doo yow not think that this is a newe maner off making warr against a prince to serch by all meanes to beate him downe to kill all his and to ouerthrowe him vtterly And than off the other part to giue to vnderstand and make the world bileue that he workith for him that is to say to mainteine him in his state and to kepe him in his dominion What say yow Doth not this seme to be a fine art to make warr vpon one wit his most might and openly to seke to ouerthrow him vtterly and of the other side to make byleue to the world that euery thing that he doth he doth it to serue him and to doo him pleasure Euen so doth Antichrist against Christ For he withstondeth him he is his chefest and most mortal enemy and neuertheles he saith he is his LeefftenaÌ„t and doth euery thing to serue Christ and to mainteine his kingdom that is to say his church Why doo yow not now at length open your eyes Oh Christians Is it not ynough that hetherto yow haue bene so miserably and with so great losse deceiued Rise vp o God and iudge thine own caus Suffer not any longer o lord so great disorder that the peple shuld be of this sort handled Apocal. 13. Deliuer them now at length from so great a bondage from this so hard and long a tiranny The other way of making warr against Christ is more hidden and secret and is not sene as the first but it is withowt comparison moch wors and more hurtfull becaus that the first directly hurteth the bodies but this second hurteth and is deadly to the sowles For somoch as that with more craffti and secret waies he doth falsifie christes doctrine the holy gospell and the truth It taketh Gods own word geuing it fals vnderstaÌ„ding and vseth it for a weapon against Christ and the truth And this withowt feare of persecution persuadeth vnder the shewe of godlines and religion that the falsedis wickednessis and blasphemies be holy and godly things As for example that the pardons which to him that hath eies to see be an open deceite and yet he hath geuen to vnderstand that thei forgeue sinnes with bullis with visitations of churches with stacions with pilgrimagis with cordes with girdles with garmentis and such like trompery and that thes things help to euerlasting liffe And here I might haue to talck a long time and coulde iff I wold geue innumerable examples but becaus I wold not be long I haue only geuen the example of the pardons But to come to our purpos among the whole nomber of doctrines inuencions deceites craffti barterings of Antichrist there is none so wittily done with so great art and conueians as the Masse In the which Antichrist him selff hath bestowed all his witt and all his knowlege in bilding it to make it be cownted and taken for the principall worshipp of Christian religion nor one only hath not laid hand to this doing but many About the bilding off Salomons temple the which surely was done with most high wisdom the bilders were 7. yeares and than thei ended the work But abowt the bilding of the Masse how many hondreth yeares haue bene bestowed and by how many bilders One hath put to one thing a nother a nother according to the diuers Antichristes that folowe done a nother And how shuld one only euer haue bene able I will not say to make but to Imagine so great an hâ—…̄dy work Surely it coulde neuer haue bene possible And all this is done vnder color and shewe off doing a thing most choysefull and thankfull to God for the benifite off the sowles and profite off the bodies And Antichrist hath not withowt gret caus bestowed here all his whole knowlege and labor becaus that he hath well seene that principally his kingdom and rule consisteth in the same Masse as in a strong castell and in a
saith Christ of thos that offend the litle ones Math. 18. Marc. 9. Luc. 17. He that shall offend saith he one off thes litle ones the which bileue in me it were better for him that a mill stone shuld be hanged abowt his neck and that he were drowend in the depth of the sea Thirdly he hurteth the stowt and strong in faith and hurteth the Christian cause it selff becaus he maketh that the wicked men more boldlie do say euell of the trew faith doo wrong it and make it hatefull many maner of wayes Is not this daily sene that how many moo men do opēly enter in to a lye and in to an error that so moch the more falsoode is strengthned and the same lye confirmed and the trewth more downe beaten And the wicked men becom so moch the more fearce and stowt to down beate the good caus and all thos that defend it as thei see it waxe weaker He doth also against his own sowle helth For whā he goth to the Masse against his consciens he sheweth that he loueth better him selff than Christ and God and the tymed liffe more thā the euerlasting and he is condemned by Christes sentens the which saith he that loueth his sowle Iohn 12. that is to say his tēporal liffe shall lose it and he that hateth his sowl in this world shall kepe it in euerlasting liffe And in luke he saith iff any mā come to me ād hate not his father his mother his wife his childern his brethern and sisters yea ād his own life he can not be my disciple Luc. 14. Is not this well knowen that thei that haue the knowlege of the gospell and goo to the Masse goo thether for feare least thei shuld loose their goodes and be affraied least thei shuld be persecuted why folow thei not the cowncell yea the cōmandement of Christ who saith feare not thos that kill the body becaus thei cā not kill the sowle Math. 10. but rather feare him that can send the body and sowle to destructiō in to hell fire So that than thes grownd workes remaining that the going to the Masse is against the honor of God the profite of his neighbor and against his own sowle helth that goth thether It is an easy thing to answer to thos reasons or rather scusis that certen make of the which we haue spoken before Where as first thei say that thei goo to the 1. Masse to auoide the offending of the simple and weake and to th entēt that thei shuld not thinck of them that thei were despisers and mockers of religion or els heretikes and enemyes off the church iff thei goo not to the Masse And that for such respect it is good to dissemble so lōg till that such weakelings might be brought to the trewe knowlege I answer that there be 2. sortis of offences the one is called an offence geuē thother an offence taken The first offence is whan a man doth any euel work by the which he offendeth his neighbor As for example iff one shuld blasp heme or committ some thefft or els otherwise shuld expressly doo against Gods commandement This maner of offence is an offence geuē becaus that he who doth such an euell work doth surely giue occasion of offence the work being of it selff wicked and against God Or els iff the work off it selff were not wicked but might be lefft vndone withowt offendinge God and yet the man not hauing respect to his weake neighbor wold doo it to satisfie his appetite As for example there is one that hath the knowlege of the gospell and of Christ and knoweth that a Christian may at all times with thankes giuing 1. Timo. 4. vse euery meate for his neede ād shall chance somtime into the company of certen simple and ignorāt men the which shall thinck greuosly toffend iff thei shall eate flessh on the friday and he that hath the knowlege to satisfie his appetite will eate of it not hauing respect to thos poore sowles the which be offended with him for that eating This maner of mā sinneth and doith against charitie as Paul saith to the Romains Roma 14. Iff for meate thy brother be trobled thow dost not now walk according to charitie And in the 1. to the Corinthes he saith 1. Corint 8. rather than the meate shuld offend my brother I will neuer eate flessh Thes such like offences be called offencis geuen becaus in dede the man giueth such occasion of offence and sinneth But there is a nother sort of offencis the which as I haue said before are called offences taken shat is to say whan a man is offended for things for the which he ought not to be offended but taketh occasion of offence withowt iust cause as certen doo that be offended at good workes affter the maner of the Phariseis which were offended with Christ becaus he healed certen sick men on the Sabbath day or els be offended iff a man abstayne from wicked workes Now this such kind off offence is no sinne becaus the man properly doth not geue offence but other doo take it for offence the which thei ought not to doo yea thei offend esteming and cownting that to be offence which is well done The faithfull and godly man ought not to passe euen as Christ passed not though other were offended for such workes or things for so moch as that a man must cease frō well doing or els must nedes doo euel that wold auoyde such kind off offencis Euen so it is in this case Iff any will be offended that one goth not to the Masse or els that the Images be not honored a mā ought not to care for it For iff it had neded to care for such offencis it had bene fitt for the martirs that thei shuld haue worshipped the Idols For the Idolaters were offended at them becaus thei worshipped them not Yea I say that the simple and the weake haue more occasion off offence speaking of the trewe offence and be more offended iff one that hath knowlege goo to the Masse than iff he wēt not For as before I haue proued by such going thei be hurt for so moch as that thei be confirmed in their error the which is moch wors for them to be so offended than to be offended for that other offence the which is no trew offence in dede To the saing of thapostle the which saith that he did applie him selff to all men and that we ought to doo the same and to goo to the Masse with them that goo I say that thapostle Paul did applie himselff to all men in thos things that did not offend God as was in certen ceremonies and in his maner off liffe and in certen customs which were no sinne He kept company with the Iewes and liued as thei did keping their ceremonies forbearing thos meates that thei did forbeare He did eate and drinck with the
because saith he that the reasonable mīde althoughe it be made by god onelie yet not with stādīge for as muche as god hath disposed ād ordened that after the bodie of the creature be fashioned in his mothers wōbe the reasonable soule is put into the same creatures bodie ād this is a natural poinct by the reasō of gods order takē therin ād if it were otherwise it shuld be a gainst the order of nature Euen so seinge that god hath ordeined that the withcōmes shuld be grownded in the substance as soone as the withcommes of the bread and the wine be corrupted immediatly by the natural order that he hath geuē to things doth creat the matter ād doth put it vnder thother withcommes newlie brought in of the which matter the wormes be after engendered Some other say that a norishinge matter may be engēdered in the priests stomake the whiche with the sacramēt receaued may easely norishe although the formes that is to say the withcommes of the bread and the wine of them selfes should not norishe Certein other haue said that euen as god by miracle hath made that the withcomes of bread and wine should be without subiect as though they were substances so he geueth them the nature of the substāces of the bread and wine that is to say that the wormes may be engēdered of the withcommes and so we must say that by miracle substances may be engendered of things whiche be no substances although such a matter be imposible by nature But what dreames what imaginacions and let them pardō me what mōsters be these who maketh thē fuer that it is so as for example frō whence gathereth Innocentius that the substance of the bread should miraculously returne And Egidius Romanus that god should creat new matter and should put it vnder the withcōmes newly brought in and vnder the shape of a thinge newly engēdred And those other that a norishinge matter should be engendered in the stomake And finally the last of all that by gods might a substance should be engendered of the withcommes If in a matter of our faith we wil after this sorte dallie ād gesse at a vēture without the holy scripture we may thēn settforth and affirme al that we list as thoughe it were trew ād tel as many phātasies and fables I will not say follies as shall come in oure head We ought not to dresse vp gods things after oure maner ād as toies come in our braine but we must handle them with fear and reuerence ād with gods words and walk suerly not accordinge to oure owne phātasies Without doubt this Imaginatiō of the chaunginge of the substance of the bread and wine into Christs bodie ād blode and that the onely withcomes of the bread and the wine remaine is false but the substances of the bread and wine remaine for if they should not remaine these euident and open effectes could not be wrought that is to saie the norishinge ād new ēgēderinge which be made The cause whie they speak thus that is to say without ani maner of groundeworke ād be forced to graunt to mani incōueniences is because they defend an euell and an vniust cause and therfore they must graunte many inconueniences And in dede as it is commenly said they wote not what they fishe for beare with me you readers seing I tell the trueth Another reason is this The fift reason God is not wont to work miracles but for to cōfirme the faith of the beleuers ād his doctrine as it is writtē in sainct mark in the end of his gospell Marci 16. And the miracles that Christ worketh for to confirme his word and the faith of the beleuers be seealbe thinges as it is manifest lokinge thorow all the miracles that Christ and the Apostels wrought as geuing sight to the blinde clensinge the leepers makinge the domme to speak the lame to go healing the feuered and the other sick reising the dead walking on the water of the sea cōmaūdinge the wīds chaunging the water into wine driuing awaie the deuels satisfyng with a few loaues ād certeine fishes many thousand persons All these miracles were seen and therfore did confirme the doctrine of the holy gospell but if they had bene secret that none had seene them they had helped nothing to that matter that is to saie to confirme the faith of any Seing it is thus then that god therfore worketh miracles to confirme his doctrine and the faith of the beleuers and the miracles could not work such effects if they were not openly seen to what purpose then shuld Iesus Christ as great and as thick as he was vpon the wood of the crosse and as he is preasently in heauen be hidden whole vnder a small cake and a litle wyne much lesse without comparison then his bodye is and all his blood To what purpose were it to work this most great miracle that it should not be seen when it were ones done to what purpose were it to work that other that Christ should be whole in the whole sacrament and whole in euery parte of the sacrament as though he were a spirite to what purpose were it to work that Christ should be bodely in heauen and in earth here ād on all the aultars where the masse is saide to what purpose were it that the bread and the wine should be turned into Christs body and blood To what purpose were it that the withcommes of the bread and the wine should abide without a subiect as thoughe they were substances All these most great and stonishinge myracles and greater then euer Christ wrought or that euer were hard of must nenedes be if Chist himself should be inclosed bodelie within that sacramēt ād yet not with standing no one of these miracles were euer seene as they are not nor can be possibly seene Seing then that such miracles cannot be seen to what end to what proffit or to what purpose should they be wrought when they are not hable nother to confirme Christs doctrine nor oure faith shall we saie that Christ wold work miracles and such miracles as were neauer the greater without any maner of profit suerly no if We wold not make god now lesse wise than men the which if thei haue reason will neauer do a thing that they be not perswaded is to purpose and profit for some end We must then saie that Christ is not bodely present in the sacrament but he is in heauen where he sitteth on the right hand of the father from whence he must come at the latter day to iudge the liuing and the dead And this may be another reason to proue that Christ The sixt reason in as muche as he is man is not personally in the sacramēt because the article of oure faith saith that he is ascēded īto heauē frō whence he shall come to iudge the liuing ād dead If Christ were really ī the sacramēt what should he nede on the latter