that you came of curtesie to see me I must thanke you and am right sorye my leisure did not serue me to haue further speches with you You deliuered vnto me two Propositions as the grounde-worke of your opinion the one that the principles of your doctrine are grounded firmelie vpon the catholike Church which antiquitie vniuersalitie and consent doe plainelie make manifest vnto you The other that the signes giuen of a true Church by theÌ„ of the reformed religion which are the sincere preaching of the worde the right administration of the sacraments religious prayers holesome discipline are no true signes of a true Church but so to affirme them is an error in Logique for that the Church is a signe of them and not they of the Church For your first proposition that the errors thereof may better appeare I will brieflie handle these 3. points First that neither the Catholike Church nor the doctrine antiquity vniuersality or consent thereof can otherwise be knowne then by the scriptures Secondly that sundry principles of your religion are not at all grounded vpon the catholike Church Thirdly that the Romaine Church vpon the which your principles are grounded is neither the Catholike Church nor a sounde member of the catholike church For your 2. proposition that the errors thereof may likewise be seene I will in few words deale with â—â—â—se three points First that of a particuler Church no better iudgement can be giuen whether it be sounde or vnsound or of two particuler Churches which is the sounder then by the worde and doctrine that they preach by the sacraments that they minister by the praiers that they vse and by the discipline that they exercise for where these are moste pureliest and perfectliest done that Church is to be thought the purest and perfectest member of the Catholike Church Where these are impurest and corruptest that Church is to be iudged the impurest and corruptest member where these are not at all there is to bee accompted no visible Church to be at all Thus to affirme is an error in Logike but a truth in diuinitie Secondly that of the truth of the doctrine of the right administration of the sacraments of the sinceritie and puritie of the praiers of the godly exercise of the discipline in any Church the onelye perfecte absolute and true touchstone is the holy scripture which ought diligently to be read of all men Thirdlie that for the true vnderstanding of the Scripture in those things that are necessarie the circumstance of the place the conference of other places the proportion of the doctrine the summary of our faith and the holy Ghost working in our harts doe sufficiently enable and enlighten vs. The holy Catholike Church wee define to bee the congregation companie and societie of all those that haue beleeued in Christ from the beginning of the world to this present time all that nowe beleeue in him and all that from henceforth shall beleue in him to the end of the world It is called Sancta holy because it is sanctified hallowed by the holy ghost it is called Catholica catholike or vniuersall because it conteyneth all ages all places al persons that beleeue it is called Ecclesia because it is a calling out or euocation of people out of ignorance and error vnto the faith and knowledge of God This Church is the misticall body of Christ who is the true and onely heade of it which gouerneth it in omnipoteÌ„cie and is ioyned vnto it in charitie Saint Augustine vpon the 56. psalme confirmeth this our definition of the Church Corpus Christi est Ecclesia non autem ista aut illa sed toto orbe diffusa nec ea quae nunc est in hominibus qui praesentem vitam agunt sed ad eam pertinentibus etiam ijs qui fuerunt ante nos ijs qui futuri sunt post nos vsque in finem soeculi tota enim Ecclesia constans ex omnibus fidelibus quia fideles omnes sunt membra Christi habet illud caput positum in coelestibus quod gubernat corpus suum si seperatum est a visione annectitur Charitate The body of Christ is the church yet not this church or that but that whiche is dispersed throughout the whole world neither yet that alone which is in men that liue at this present but that vnto which they likewise appertayned that haue bene before vs and that are to come after vs vnto the worlds end For the whole church consisteth of all the faithfull for all the faithfull are members of Christ hauing that head placed in the heauenly places which gouerneth his bodye though it be separate from the sight it is adioyned in charitie It is deuided into two parts the militant and triumphant the triumphant already in blisse and glory ineffable the militant hoping for the like happinesse and in the meane time vnder the banner of Christ Iesus warfaring heere on earth against the world the flesh and the Diuell This church for antiquitie so auncient for number so great for estate so diuers for situation so vniuersall no mans age coulde serue to knowe no mans knowledge were able to conceiue no mans conceit were of sufficieÌ„cy to comprehend if the holy Scriptures wherein the spirit of God hath deliuered these thinges for our instruction were not extant amongst vs. In them we are taught that the churche began in Adam that the first Martyr was Abel the first persecutor Cain that by the Breach of Gods commaundement mankinde fell into that miserable and corrupt estate that it was not able to performe that Law of perfect obedience and righteousnesse that GOD had giuen and grauen in the hartes and mindes of men by the accomplishment whereof they were to haue life and by the impeachment whereof they were to haue death eternall and that then GOD in his infinite goodnesse and mercie graunted a remedie for vs in the promised seed which should restore mankinde and treade down the serpents head which was the first preaching of the Gospell published by God himselfe apprehended by faithe beleeued by Adam Afterward of God reiterated to the holye Patriarches by them imbraced and taught to their children and families preached and foretolde by the Prophetes shadowed out in the Lawe written in the Leuitical ceremonies performed in Christ testified and published by the Apostles confirmed with signes and miracles beleeued of al nations maligned by the Deuill persecuted by the wicked in all ages and yet continued to the end of the worlde by Gods especiall grace prouidence These things wee plainely see conteyned from the first of Genesis to the last of the Reuelation which otherwise coulde neuer haue come to our knowledge In them wee may see the beginning increasing continuance and perpetuation of the church the estate and condition of it in tyme past at this present in time to come the doctrine deliuered by the holy Ghost to the Patriarches to the Prophets to
the Apostles and the faith imbraced by the children of God in all ages there may we obserue the antiquitie that yeeldeth to no nouelties there may we see the vniuersalitie that giueth place to no schisme or diuision there may we finde that consent that grounded in veritye is polluted with no error or iniquity Therefore S. Augustine rightly iudgeth that the catholike church is to be sought in the Scriptures his words are these contra Petiliani Donat epist Si autem Christi Ecclesia Canonicarum Scripturarum diuinis certissimis testimonijs in omnibus gentibus designata est quicquid attulerint vndicunque recitauerint qui dicunt ecce hic Christus ecce illic audiamus potius si ouer eius sumus vocem Pastoris nostri dicentis Nolite credere Illae quippe singulae in multis gentibus vbi ista est non inueniuntur Haec autem quae vbique est etiam vbi illae sunt inuenitur ergo in Scripturis sanctis eam Ecclesiam scilicet requiramus If the church of Christ throughout all nations be discerned by the diuine and infallible testimonies of the Canonicall scriptures whatsoeuer they shall bring and whencesoeuer they wil alledge which saye Lo heere is Christ Lo there is Christ Let vs heare rather if we bee his sheepe the voice of our shepheard saying Doe not beleue them for al those in many nations where the same is are not founde but this same which is euery where is also founde where they are therefore let vs seeke the same church in the holy scriptures And in his treatise de vnitate Eccles cap. 16. Ecclesiam in scripturis sanctis Canonicis debemus agnoscere non in varijs hominum rumoribus opinionibus factis dictis visis inquirere We are to acknowledge the church in the holye canonicall scriptures and not to seeke it in the sundrie rumors opinions doings sayings conceits of men And againe in his 166. epistle In Scripturis didicimus Christum in Scripturis didicimus Ecclesiam has scripturas communiter habemus quare non in ijs Christum Ecclesiam communiter retineamus In the Scriptures we haue learned Christ in the Scripturs we haue learned the church this scripture we haue common amongst vs wherefore doe wee not in them likewise reteine Christ and the Church Hereunto also accordeth Chrysostome in his 49. homily vpon Math Antea multis modis ostendebatur quae esset Ecclesia Christi nunc autem nullo modocognoscitur nisi per Scripturas Before by many means was it shewed whiche was the churche of Christ but nowe by no meanes is it knowne but by the Scriptures Thus by the iudgement of these Fathers and by the nature of the catholike church it selfe we see that the knowledge of it is to be deriued from the scriptures which so being what can be more cleare then that neither prayers for the dead nor inuocation of Saintes nor worshipping of images nor the Popes primacie ouer the church nor his superiority ouer princes and kingdomes nor his doctrine of Purgatorie nor his power there to release soules nor transubstantiation nor the halfe communion nor monastical vowes nor forbidding of marriage nor meritorious fastes nor workes of desert and supererogation nor sacrificing Christ euerie daye nor releasing subiects of their othes of allegiance nor dispencing with Princes for periuries and incest nor sale of pardons nor offering vnto reliques nor a thousand other doctrines practises and ceremonies of the Papisticall religion were euer grounded vpon the catholike church Let the whole volume of the scriptures be pervsed you shall see none of these thinges taught beleeued practized vsed or imbraced by the catholike church examine the faith doctrine writings and documentes of the patriarches the Prophets the Apostles Christ himselfe you shall finde these things either not conteyned in them or contraried by them Try them by antiquitye you shall proue them far younger then the time of the Apostles try them by vniuersalitie you shal perceiue that neither the church before the Lawe nor the church vnder the Law nor the purest churches vnder grace did euer embrace them trye them by consent you shall finde that neither the patriarches nor the Prophets nor the Apostles nor the faithfull by them taught in sundrie churches did euer agree in them or once beleeue them it must needes bee then that they are not grounded in the catholike church but are some later inuentions and doctrine of a particuler church from whose errors and corruptions they haue proceded which particuler church is the Church of Rome which we will briefly shewe neither to be the catholike church nor to haue beene for many yeeres any sounde member of the catholike church The catholike church as we before rehearsed conteyneth all them that haue beleeued doe beleeue or shall heereafter beleeue in Christ Iesus to the end of the world The church of Rome conteyneth not all those that haue beleeued for in the dayes of many of them it had no beeing at all nor all them that doe beleeue nor all them that shall beleeue Therefore the church of Rome is not the catholike church The catholike church conteineth all partes both of the church triumphant and militant The churche of Rome conteyneth no parte of the church triumphant nor all partes of the churche militant Therefore the church of Rome is not the catholicke church Within the catholike church Christ was borne and of a blessed member of the catholike church Christ was not borne in the church of Rome nor of any member of the church of Rome Therfore the church of Rome is not the catholike church The catholike church alloweth not the adoration or deuine worshipping of any creature The churche of Rome alloweth the adoration and deuine worshipping of creatures Therefore the church of Rome is not the catholicke church The maior is the expresse sentence of S. Aug in his 2. booke de moribus ecclesiae cath cap. 30. it is also the expresse doctrine of Christ in the 4. of Mathew 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Him onely thou shalt worship And of the Angell in the 19. of the Reuelat. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Before God shalt thou fall downe The minor is proued by the Nicene councel which teacheth that the image of the Trinity and the crosse are to be adored worshipped with the same kinde of adoration and worship that the trinitye Christ himselfe are to be worshipped with and by Thomas of Aquine an approued Doctor of the Romain church in his third booke of sentences the second distinction by Nauclautus Clugiensis whose words are these Non solum fatendum est fideles in Ecclesia adorare coram imaginibus vt nonnulli ad cautelam forte loquūtur sed adorare imaginem sine quo volueris scrupulo quin eo illā venerari cultu quo Prototipon eius It is not onely to be yeelded vnto that the faithfull in the church do worship before images as some happely speak for a cautell
godly deuout and cōmendable If the discipline be according to the Law of God according to the direction of godly Magistrates according to the councel and commandements of the Apostles and according to the vse and practise of the purest churches whereof the holy scriptures are true records vnto vs we iustly may accompt it good and sincere Therefore hath God commaunded and all good men commended the studie search reading meditation of the scriptures In the 6. of Deuteronomie wee read Sunto verba ista in corde tuo eaque acutè ingerito filijs tuis ac loquitor de ijs cum sedes domi tuae cum ambulas per viam cum cubas cum surgis alligato ea in signum manui tuae inscribito ea postibus domus tuae portis tuis Let these wordes be in thy harte the same diligently teach vnto thy children and talke of them when thou sittest in thy house and when thou walkest by the way when thou lyest downe and when thou risest vpp binde them for a signe vppon thine hand write them vppon the postes of thine house and vpon thy gate And of the worde of God it is saide in the 4. of Deuteronomie Haec est sapientia vestra ante oculos populorum This is your wisedome before the eyes of the people Abraham saith Habent Mosen Prophetas audiant eos They haue Moses and the Prophets let them heare them Christ saith Scrutamini scripturas search the scriptures S. Paule saith Tota Scriptura diuinitus inspirata vtilis est ad docendum ad arguendum ad corrigendum ad erudiendum in iustitia vt perfectus sit homo Dei ad omne opus bonum instructus The whole scripture inspired of God is profitable to teach to improue to correct and to instruct in righteousnesse that the man of God may be perfecte instructed vnto euery good worke Irenaeus in his thirde booke the first chap. Euangelium in Scripturis Apostoli nobis tradiderunt columnam firmamentum fidei nostrae futurum The Apostles haue deliuered vnto vs the gospell in the scriptures to be the piller and vpholder of our faith Saint Augustin de Ciuitate Dei his 3 booke and first chapter Ciuitatem Dei dicimus cuius Scriptura testis est We call that the citie of God wherof the Scripture is witnesse Saint Ambrose vpon Luke Si qua est Ecclesia quae fidem respuat nec Apostolicae praedicationis fundamenta possideat deserenda est If there bee any church which reiecteth the faithe or possesseth not the foundation of the Apostolike preaching it is to be forsaken Saint Chrysostome vpon the 2. to the Thessalonians the third homely Omnia clara plana sunt in scripturis diuinis quaecunque necessaria sunt manifesta sunt All thinges are cleare and playne in the holie scriptures what thinges soeuer bee necessary are manifest Saint Augustine in his thirde epistle Sacra Scriptura ea quae aperta continet quasi amicus familiaris sine fuco ad cor loquitur indoctorum atque doctorum the holy scripture speaketh those things which it plainelye conteineth like a familiar freind without guile to the hart both of the learned and of the vnlearned And in his booke de vnitate Ecclesiae the 13. chapter Vtrum ipsi Ecclesiam teneant non nisi diuinarum scripturarum canonicis libris ostendant quia nec nos propterea dicimus nobis credere oportere quod in Ecclesia Christi sumus quia ipsam quà m tenemus commendauit Optatus vel Ambrosius vel alij innumerabiles Episcopi aut quia nostrorum Collegarum consilijs ipsa praedicata est aut quia tanta mirabilia fiunt aut quia ille somnium vidit ille spiritu assumptus audiuit Whether they holde the church let them not showe but by the canonicall bookes of the holy scriptures for neither do wee therefore say that we ought to be beleeued because that we are in the church of Christ because Optatus or Ambrosius or other innumerable Bishops haue commended the same which we holde or because it is praised in the counsel of our fellowes or because so great strange things are wrought or because such a one hath sene a dreame or suche a one taken vp in the spirite hath heard Saint Paule writing to the Colossians doth admonish them diligently to reade the scriptures Sermo Christi habitet in vobis copiosè in omni sapientia Let the worde of God dwell in you aboundantly in all wisedome Saint Chrysostome in his 19. homely thereuppon Audite quotquot estis seculares vxori ac liberis praeestis quemadmodum vobis det in mandatis maxime scripturas legere nec leuiter negligenter sed magno studio Heare you as manie as are seculer and haue gouernment ouer wife and children how he giueth you in charge chiefly to reade the scriptures not lightly and carelesly but with great studie Ierome vpon the same place Hic ostenditur verbum Christi non sufficienter sed abundanter etiam Laicos habere debere docere se inuicem vel monere Here it is showed that the laye men also ought to haue the word of Christ not sufficientlye but aboundantly to teach or warne one another Origen vpon Esay the 2. homely Vtinam omnes faceremus illud quod scriptum est Scrutamini Scripturas Would to God we all did that is written searche the scriptures S. Chrysostome vpon Iohn the 13. homely Admoneo maiorem in modum rogo vt libros comparemus I warne and in earnest sort request that we get bookes And in an other place vpon the epistle to the Colossians the 9. homely Audite obsecro seculares omnes comparate vobis biblia animae pharmaca si nihil aliud vultis vel nouum testamentum acquirite Heare I praye you all the seculer prouide vnto your selues the bible the preseruatiue of the soule or the new testament if ye will nothing els And hom 3. de Lazaro Semper hortor hortari non desinam vt non hic tantum attendat is ijs quae dicuntur verum etiam cum domi fueris assiduè divinarum scripturarum lectioni vacetis quod quidem qui priuatim mecum ingressi sunt non destiti inculcare I stil exhorte and will not cease to exhorte that not onelye you attend heere vnto those thinges whiche are spoken but also when you shall bee at home that you would continually apply the reading of holy scriptures which thing I haue not lefte to exhorte those which haue professed themselues with me And againe Ne negligamus nobis parare libros Let vs not despise to get vs bookes And further Sume librum in manus lege historiam omnem quae not a sunt memoria te nens quae obscura sunt parumque manifesta frequenter percurre Take the book in thy hand reade al the historie and keeping in memory those thinges whiche are euident peruse often those that are obscure and lesse euident Of the
ita se ad diuinae legis studia conuertit Quis nostrum it a operam dedit quis tāto studio ac labore diuina quaerit studia quanto quaesiuit humana Et quid conquerimur si quod non discimus ignoramus aliqui vestrum vt recitari audierint quae leguntur statim discedunt nulla ex his quae dicta sunt inquisitio ad inuicem nulla collatio which of vs doth so addict himselfe to the studie of the lawe of God what one of vs geueth such diligence who with so great studie and labor followeth diuine meditations and studies as wherewith he hath sought after humane things And why then do we complaine sithence we remain yet ignorant of that which we will not or els neglecte to learne Some of you so sone as ye heare some things recited which are reade doe immediately depart so farre is it off that any inquisition and examination is made of those things which are vttered or any conference vsed or collation The proportion of the doctrine we call that vniformitie and conformitie that is betweene the faith embraced by the Patriarches by the Prophets by the Apostles and by the faithfull of all ages whereof the holy scriptures are witnesses vnto vs that doctrine of God in all pointes absolute in nothing contrarie to it self wil soone discouer anie erronious doctrine that shall be produced if wee carrie the true modell of it in our minds as in the scriptures it is expressed and set foorth Hereof S. Ierome notably ad normam omnia diriguntur vtrum praua rectaue sint cum regula apposita fuerit arguuntur ita doctrina Dei quaedam quasi norma sermonis est quae inter iusta iudicat iniusta quam qui secutus fuerit habebit pacem in semetipso quae superat omnem sensum post pacem misericordiam quae praecipua est in Deo Israel All thinges are directed and ordered according to rule and whether in deede they bee euill or good crooked or straight when the rule or line is applied vnto them they are prooued and found out In like manner also the doctrine of God is as it were an exact rule and perfect square of speech which iudgeth and discerneth betweene those things which are iust and those which are vniust which whosoeuer truely followeth and cleaueth vnto hee shall haue peace in himselfe which surmounteth and exceedeth all vnderstanding and consequently after this peace of conscience mercie which is most chiefe in the God of Israel S. Augustine of the bodie of the doctrine hic prius per Prophetas deinde per seipsum postea per Apostolos quantum satis esse Iudicauit locutus etiam scripturam condidit quae Canonica nominatur eminentissimae autoritatis cui fidem habemus de ijs rebus quas ignorare non expedit nec per nos ipsos nosce idonei sumus He first by his Prophetes then by himselfe afterwarde by his Apostles speaking so much as he knewe to be sufficient hath framed and made the Scripture which is named Canonicall being of most excellent and effectuall force and authoritie vnto the which we giue credite concerning those thinges which it is not expedient that we be ignorant of neither are we apt or able of our selues to know and conceaue The summarie of our faith and that which faith requireth we call the Apostolicke Creede the tenne Commandements and the Lordes prayer wherein a certaine rule or methode is deliuered vs how to beleeue how to liue howe to pray this also will well lighten our vnderstanding that it fall not vnto vndecent vncharitable monstrous conceits whereof S. Augustine verie well Si preceptiua locutio est aut flagitium aut facinus vetans aut vtilitatem beneficentiam iubens non est figurata Si autem flagitium aut facinus videtur iubere aut vtilitatem aut beneficentiam vetare figurata est nisi manducaueritis inquit carnē filij hominis sanguinem biberitis non habebitis vitam in vobis facinus vel flagitium videtur Iubere figura est ergo precipiens passioni Domini esse communicandum suauiter atque vtiliter recondendum in memoria quod pro nobis caro eius crucifixa vulnerata sit If it be a precept forbidding wickednesse and enormitie or commanding vertue and goodnesse it is no figuratiue speech But if it seemeth to command a wicked deede and enormitie or to forbid goodnesse and vertue it is figuratiue Except you eate saith he the flesh of the sonne of man and drinke his bloud you shall not haue life in you He seemeth to commaund a wicked enormitie it is figuratiue Therefore commaunding vs to communicate to the passion of the Lorde and profitably to call to remembrance that his flesh was crucified and wounded for vs. Had the Romish Church obserued this rule it had neuer fallen to that blasphemous doctrine of transubstantiation which contrarieth the articles of our Creede wherefore we may rightly say with S. Augustine In principio cauendum est ne figuratam locutionem ad literam accipias ad hoc enim pertinet quod ait Apostolus litera occidit spiritus autem viuificat Cum enim figurate dictum sic accipitur tanquam proprie dictum sit carnaliter sapitur neque vlla mors animae congruentius appellatur ea demum est miserabilis animae seruitus signa pro rebus accipere supra creaturam corpoream oculum mentis ad hauriendum eternum lumen leuare non posse First heede is to be taken that thou shalt not take a figuratiue speech according to the letter For to that pertaineth it which the Apostle sayth the letter killeth but the spirite geueth life For when the figuratiue speech is so taken as though it were properly spoken it tasteth of the flesh neither can anie thing be more fitly called the death of the soule To be short it is a miserable bondage of the soule to take the signes for the thinges signified and not to be able to lift vp the eye of the soule aboue the bodily creature to receaue the eternall light Of prayer and meditation we reade in Origen Ostenditur non studium solum nobis adhibendum esse ad discendas literas sacras Verum supplicandum Domino diebus ac noctibus obsecrandum vt veniat agnus ex tribu Iuda ipse accipiens librum signatum dignetur aperire It is shewed that not onely study is to be vsed for to learne the holy scriptures But also wee ought to pray to God and to craue day and night that the lambe of the tribe of Iuda will come that he taking in hand the booke sealed will vouchsafe to open it And in Saint Hillarie non ergo ex nobis est quod intelligimus sed ex eo qui quae innoscibilia erant fecit intelligi Itaque ab eo speranda intelligentia est qui pulsantibus aperiet querentibus demonstrabit petentibus
is interpreted Nego And beeing accompted according to the greeke letters beeing all numerall make vppe the iust number of sixe hundred sixtie and sixe the accompt falleth out euen Α 1 Ρ 100 Π50 Ο 70 Υ 400 Μ 40 Ε 9 666 But the worde thus written hardly receueth that interpretation Wherefore I take it rather to bee the three first sillabls of the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which signifieth Negans The misterie wherof S. Iohn expoundeth vnto vs in his first epistle the second chapter the 23. verse 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Quis est mendax nisi qui neg at Iesum esse Christum hic est Antichristus Who is a lyar but hee that denieth Iesus to be Christ he is Antichrist Our Lord Iesus is tearmed Christ that is to saye the annointed in two respects the one for that he is the chiefe prince the other for that hee is the cheefe preist and Prophet As chiefe prince he sitteth at the right hande of the father till his enemies be made his footestoole gouerning the godly with his spirit and the wicked with a rod of iron As chiefe preist he is a preist for euer after the order of Melchisedech hauing nether successor nor coadiutor who needeth not often to offer himselfe as the highpreist of the Iewes who went yeerlye to the sanctuary with other blood for with one oblation hath hee consecrated for euer those that are sanctified whiche sanctification wee haue by the oblatiō of the body of Christ once made which sacrifice for sinnes being offered he sitteth for euer at the right hand of God In respect of which sacrifice God promiseth that he wil forgiue vs our sins and put our iniquities out of his remembrance Now where remission of sinnes is there is no more offering for sinnes and so consequentlye no sacrificing preisthoode that function hauing bene absolutelye performed by Christ Iesus But the Bishop of Rome establishing a sacrificing preisthoode and an offering for all actual sins by the sacrifice of the masse denyeth Iesus to be that annointed and eternall preist according to the order of Melchisedech Who by one sacrifice vppon the aultar of the crosse hath obtayned such a perfect remission of sinnes aswell actuall as originall that there may be no farther or future oblation or sacrifice for sinnes For to repeate the saying of the Apostle in his epistle to the Hebrewes the tenth chapter Where remission of sinnes is there may bee no more offering for sinne And againe when they teache these two propositions the one deuised by Pope Boniface the other by Pope Sixtus Deus assumpsit Petrum in consortium indiuiduae trinitatis atque ab eo tanquam a capite dona sua omnia in corpus transfundit God hath assumed Peter into the fellowship of the indiuisible trinitie and from him as from a head powreth all his giftes into the bodie and that Diuus Petrus habitat in Pontifice Romano Sainct Peter dwelleth in the Romain byshop By reason whereof hee is that Melchisedech for he is the head of all byshops whose preisthoode none other is to compare with from whom they all growe as members doe grow from the heade and of whose fulnesse they all receaue And moreouer affirme Ecclesiam esse vnam non propter Christum sed propter Papam qui eam conseruat vnam That the church is one not in respect of Christ but in respect of the Pope that keepeth it in one Do they not vtterly ouerthrow al that in them lyeth the functions of Christs annointing who is both the cheife preist and prince of his church Being the head thereof as of a misticall bodie which receaueth frō him by the influence of his grace spirituall life and vigor His mercie wisedome and prouidence spreading themselues both generally throughout the whole and particulerly into euery member thereof Wherby both the vnitie felicity therof is wrought and established But they that deny vnto him or attribut vnto any other the functions of his annointing deny him to be Christ By this therefore we may see who is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Who is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Who is Antichrist Gensericos saith Haymo signifieth in the Gothicke tongue Gentium seductor the seducer of the gentils in eo est Antichristus christo contrarius quod iste seductor ille vero dicitur gentium saluator And in this is antichrist contrary vnto Christ That the one is the seducer the other is the sauiour of the gentils This woorde he reconeth in Greeke letters and so maketh it vp the number of 666. thus Γ 3 Ε 5 Π50 Σ 200 Η 8 Π100 Ι 10 Κ 20 Ο 70 Σ 200 666 Who this seducer of the Gentiles is wee maye well perceaue by that which is said before no doubt it is he of whom the Prophet Zachary speaketh Immediatly after the passion of Christ when as the Gentils had receaued the faith and the sinagogue was dissolued Ecce ego suscītabo Pastorem in terra succisa non visitabit aetate tenerum non quaeret contritum non sanabit stantem non sustentabit carnem pinguis comedet vn gulas eorum abrumpet Vae pastori vano derelictori pecoris gladius super brachium eius super oculum dextrum eius brachium eius arescendo arescet oculus dexter eius caligando caligabit Forlo saith the Lord I will raise vp a shepheard in the land which shal not looke for the thing that is loste nor seeke the tender lambes nor heale that that is hurt nor sustaine that that standeth vp but he shall eate the fleshe of the fatte and teare their clawes in pieces Oh idle shephearde that leaueth the flock The swoord shal bee vppon his arme and vppon his right eye his arme shall be clean dried vp his right eye shal be vtterly darkened This is Gensericos gentium seductor the seducer an Idoll shepheard of the Gentiles The Latine wordes DIC LVX that is say light as it is noted by Haymo containe also the same number of sixe hundred sixty and sixe and are not voide of especiall demonstration D 500 I 1 C 100 L 50 V 5 X 10 666 For the Pope although his kingdome and religion be nothing els then darkenesse and ignorance yet wil he haue men to beleeue and professe that with him and his is the truth and the light And though men see it to bee darkenesse yet say it to bee light Yea and that hee is the sunne that shineth in the firmament of the Churche and the Lampe that giueth light vnto men Therefore Cornelius Byshop of Bitonto wel acquainted as it seameth with the Popes humor heerein in an oration of his at the laste councell of Trent vsed this speach Papa lux venit in mundum sed dilexerunt homines tenebras magis quam lucem The Pope beeing the light came into the world but men loued the darkenesse better then the light It seameth he had learned this