Letter in defence of the Kings Proceedings in this matter to Reginald soon after Cardinal Pool from these writings and the Sermons preached by some Bishops at this time with other Authentick pieces I have Extracted the Substance of the Arguments upon which they grounded their Laws which I shall divide in two heads The one of the reasons for rejecting the Popes pretended Power The other for setting up the Kings Supremacy with the Explanations and Limitations of it First of the Popes Power they declared that they found no ground for it in the Scripture All the Apostles were made equal by Christ when he committed the Church to their care in Common And he did often declare there was no Superiority of one above another St. Paul claimed an equality with the chief Apostles both Peter Iames and Iohn and when he thought St. Peter blame-worthy he withstood him to his face But whatsoever Preheminence St. Peter might have that was only Personal and there was no reason to affix it to his Chair at Rome more than at Antioch But if any See be to be preferred before another it should be Ierusalem where Christ dyed and out of which the Faith was propagated over all Nations Christ commanding his Disciples to begin their Preaching in it so that it was truly the Mother Church and is so called by St. Paul whereas in the Scripture Rome is called Babylon according to Tertullian and St. Ierome For the places brought from Scripture in favor of the Papacy they judged that they did not prove any thing for it That Thou art Peter and upon this Rock I will build my Church if it prove any thing in this matter would prove too much even that the Church was founded on St. Peter as he was a private person and so on the Popes in their Personal Capacity But both St. Ambrose St. Ierome and St. Austin think that by the Rock the Confession he had made was only to be meant Others of the Fathers thought by the Rock Christ himself was meant who is the only true Foundation of the Church though in another sense all the Apostles are also called Foundations by St. Paul That Tell the Church is thought by Gerson and Aeneas Silvius afterwards Pope Pius the 2d rather to make against the Pope and for a General Council And the Fathers have generally followed St. Chrysostome and St. Austin who thought that the giving of the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven and the Charge Feed my Sheep were addressed to St. Peter in behalf of all the rest of the Apostles And that I have prayed for thee that thy Faith sail not was only Personal and related to his Fall which was then Imminent It is also clear by St. Paul that every Apostle had his peculiar Province beyond which he was not to Stretch himself and St. Peters Province was the Circumcision and his the Uncircumcision in which he plainly declares his Equality with him This was also clear from the constant Tradition of the Church St. Cyprian was against Appeals to Rome and would not submit to P. Stephens definition in the point of Re-baptizing of Hereticks and expresly says That all the Apostles were equal in Power and that all the Bishops were also equal since the whole Office and Episcopate was one entire thing of which every Bishop had a compleat and equall share And though some places are brought out of him concerning the Unity of the Roman Church and of other Churches with it yet those places have no relation to any Authority that the Roman Church had over other Churches but were occasioned by a Schism that Novatian had made there at Rome being Elected in opposition to the Bishop that was rightly chosen and of that unity only St. Cyprian writes in those places But from all his Epistles to the Bishops of Rome it is visible he look't on himself as their Equal since he calls them Brother Collegue and Fellow-Bishop And whatsoever is said by any Ancient Writer of St. Peters Chair is to be understood of the pure Gospel which he delivered as St. Austin observes that by Moses Chair is to be understood The delivering of Moses Law But though St. Peter sate there the succeeding Popes have no more right to pretend to such Authority than the Kings of Spain to claim the Roman Empire because he that is now their King is Emperor When Constantine turned Christian the Dignity of the chief City of the Empire made Rome to be accounted the first See but by the General Council of Nice it was declared that the Patriarches of Alexandria and Antioch had the same Authority over the Countries round about them that he of Rome had over those that lay about that City It is true at thaâ— time the Arrian Heresie having spread Generally over the Eastern Churches from which the Western were free the oppressed Catholick Bishops of the East made Appeals to Rome and extolled that See by a natural Maxime in all men who magnifie that from which they have Protection But the Second general Council took care that that should not grow a President for they Decreed that every Province should be governed by its own Synod and that Bishops when they were accused must first be judged by the Bishops of their own Province and from them they might appeal to the Bishops of the Diocess but no higher appeal was allowed and by that Council it appears what was the Foundation of the greatness of the Bishop of Rome for when Constantinople was made the Seat of the Empire and New Rome it had the same Privileges that Old Rome had and was set next to it in order and dignity In a Council at Milevi in which St. Austin sate they appointed that every Clerk that should appeal to any Bishop beyond the Sea should be excommunicated And when Faustianus was sent by the Pope to the African Churches to claim the Right of receiving appeals and pretended a Canon of the Council of Nice for it the Pretension was rejected by the Afâ—ican Fathers who acknowledged no such Right and had never heard of that Canon Upon which they sent to the Eastâ—rn Churches and search was every-where made for the Copies of the Canons of that Council but it was found that it was a Forgery From whence two things were observable The one that the Church in that Age had no Tradition of any Divine Institution for the Authority of that See since as the Popes who claimed it never pretended to any such thing so the African Bishops by their rejecting that Power shew that they knew nothing of any Divine Warrant all the Contest being only about a Canon of the Church It also appeared how early the Church of Rome aspired to Power and did not stick at making use of Forged writings to support it But Pope Agatho more modestly writing to the Emperor in his own name and in the name of all the Synods that were Subject to his See calls
whole World that receive the Faith of Christ who ought to hold an unity of Love and Brotherly agreement together by which they become members of the Catholick Church Upon which a long excursion is made to shew the unjustice and unreasonableness of the plea of the Church of Rome who place the unity of the Catholick Church in a submission to the Bishop of their City without any ground from Scripture or the Ancient writers From that they proceeded to Examine the seven Sacraments And here fell in stiff debates which remain in some Authentick Writings that give a great light to their proceedings The method which they followed was this First the whole business they were to consider was divided into so many heads which were proposed as Queries and these were given out to so many Bishops and Divines And at a prefixed time every one brought his opinion in writing upon all the Queries So concerning the sâ—ven Sacraments the Queries were given out to the two Arch-Bishops the Bishops of London Rochester and Carlisle though the last was not in the Commission And to the Bishops of Duresm Hereford and St. Davids For though the Bishop of Winchâ—ster was in this Commission yet he did nothing in this particular but I Imagine that he was gone out of Town and that the Bishop of Carlisle was appointed to supply his absence The Queries were also given to Doctor Thirleby then Bishop Elect of Westminster to Doctor Robertson Day Redmayn Cox Leighton though not in the Commission Symmonds Tresham Coren though not in the Commission Edgeworth Oglethorp Crayford Wilson and Robins When their answers were given in two were appointed to compare them and draw an Extract of the particulars in which they agreed or disagreed which the one did in Latine and the other in English only those who compared them it seems doing it for the Arch-Bishop of Canterbury took no notice of his Opinions in the Extract they made And of these the Original answers of the two Arch-Bishops the Bishops of London Rochester and Carlisle and these Doctors Day Robertson Redmayn Cox Leighton Symmonds Tresham Coren Edgeworth and Oglethorp are yet extant But the Papers given in by the Bishops of Duresm Hereford and St. Davids and the Elect of Westminster and Doctors Crayford Wilson and Robins though they are mentioned in the Extracts made out of them yet are lost This the Reader will find in the Collection which though it be somewhat large yet I thought such pieces were of too great Importance not to be communicated to the World since it is perhaps as great an Evidence of the ripeness of their proceedings as can be shewed in any Church or any Age of it And though other Papers of this sort do not occur in this Kings Reign yet I have reason to conclude from this Instance that they proceeded with the same maturity in the rest of their deliberations In which I am the more confirmed because I find another instance like this in the Reformation that was further carried on in the succeeding Reign of Edward the 6th of many Bishops and Divines giving in their opinions under their hands upon some heads then examined and changed In Cranmers Paper some singular opinions of his about the nature of Ecclesiastical Offices will be found but as they are delivered by him with all possible modesty so they were not established as the Doctrine of the Church but laid aside as particular conceits of his own and it seems that afterwards he changed his opinion For he Subscribed the Book that was soon after set out which is directly contrary to those opinions set down in these Papers Cranmer was for reducing the Sacraments to two but the Popish party was then prevalent so the old number of seven waâ— agreed to Baptism was explained in the same manner that had been done three years before in the Articles then set out only the matter of Original Sin was more enlarged on Secondly Pennance was formally placed in the absolution of the Priest which by the former Articles was only declared a thing desirable and not to be contemned if it might be had yet all merit of good works was rejected though they were declared necessary and sinners were taught to depend wholly on the Sufferings of Christ with other good directions about Repentance Thirdly In the Explanation of the Eucharist Transubstantiation was fully asserted as also the Concomitancy of the Blood with the Flesh so that Communion in both kinds was not necessary The use of hearing Mass though one did not Communicate was also asserted To which were added verâ— good Rules about the disposition of mind that ought to accompany this Sacrament Fourthly Matrimony was said to be Instituted of God and Sanctified by Christ The degrees in the Mosaical Law were declared obligatory and none else and the Bond of Marriage was declared not separable on any account Fifthly Orders were to be administred in the Church according to the New-Testament but the particular forms of Nominating Electing Presenting or appointing Ecclesiastical Ministers was left to the Laws of every Countrey to be made by the assent of the Prince The Office of Church-men was to Preach Administer the Sacraments to bind and loose and to pray for the whole Flock But they must execute these with such limitation as was allowed by the Laws of every Kingdom The Scripture they said made express mention only of the two Orders of Priests and Deacons To these the Primitive Church had added some Inferior degrees which were also not to be contemned But no Bishop had any Authority over other Bishops by the Law of God Upon which followed a long Digression confuting the pretensions of the Bishops of Rome with an Explanation of the Kings Authority in Ecclesiastical matters which was before hand set down in another place to shew what they understood by the Kings being Supream Head of the Church Sixthly Confirmation was said to have been used in the Primitive Church in Imitation of the Apostles who by laying on their hands conferred the Holy-Ghost in an extraordinary manner And therefore was of great advantage but not necessary to Salvation Seventhly Extream-unction was said to have been derived from the practice of the Apostles mentioned by St. Iames for the health both of Body and Soul And though the sick person was not always recovered of his bodily sickness by it yet remission of sins was obtained by it and that which God knew to be best for our bodily condition to whose will we ought always to submit But this Sacrament was only fruitful to those who by pennance were restored to the State of Grace Then followed an Explanation of the Ten Commandements which contains many good rules of Morality drawn from every one of them The 2d Commandment Gardiner had a minde to have shortned and to cast it into the first Cranmer was for setting it down as it was in the Law of Moses But a
be Senator Capitane Patrician Governour or Officer of Rome none shall be elected or pointed without the express license and special consent of the See of Rome De Electione Electi proprietate Venerabilem It appertaineth to the Bishop of Rome to judg which Oaths ought to be kept and which not De jurejurand Si vero 15. q. 6. Authoritatem And he may absolve Subjects from their Oath of Fidelity and absolve from other Oaths that ought to be kept De foro competent Ex tenore De donat inter virum Vxorem dependentia Qui Filii sunt legittime per venerabilem De Elect. Electi proprietate Fundamenta Extravag de Majorit Obedient unam Sanctam De judiciis Novit The Bishop of Rome is judg in temporal things and hath two Swords Spiritual and Temporal De Haereticis multorum The Bishop of Rome may give Authority to arrest Men and imprison them in Mannacles and Fetters Extrav de Consuetudine super gentes The Bishop of Rome may compel Princes to receive his Legats De Truga pace Trugas It belongeth also to him to appoint and command Peace and Truce to be observed and kept or not De Praebend dig dilectus li. 6. licet The Collation of all Spiritual Promotions appertain to the Bishop of Rome De Excessibus praelatorum Siâ—ut unire The Bishop of Rome may unite Bishopricks together and put one under another at his pleasure Li. 6. de paenis Felicum In the Chapter Felicis li. 6. de poenis is the most partial and unreasonable Decree made by Bonifacius 8. that ever was read or heard against them that be Adversaries to any Cardinal of Rome or to any Clerk or Religious Man of the Bishop of Rome's Family Dist. 28. Consulendum Dist. 96. Si. Imperator 11. q. 1. Ex Clericus Nemo nullus Clericum c. q. 2. Si vero de sentent Excommunication Si judex q. 2. q. 5. Si quis foro competent Nullus Si quibus Ex transmissa de foro compet in 6 Seculares Lay-men may not be Judges to any of the Clergy nor compel them to pay their undoubted Debts but the Bishops only must be their Judges De foro Competent Cum sit licet Rectors of Churches may convent such as do them wrong whither they will before a Spiritual Judg or a Temporal Idem ex parte Dilecti A Lay-man being spoiled may convent his Adversaries before a Spiritual Judg whether the Lords of the Feod consent thereto or not Ibidem Significasti 11. q. 1. placuit A Lay-man may commit his Cause to a Spiritual Judg but one of the Clergy may not commit his Cause to a Temporal Judg without the consent of the Bishop Ne Clerici vel Monachi Secundum Lay-men may have no Benefices to farm De Summa Excommunicationis Nom. extra de pecuniis Remiss c. si All they that make or write any Statutes contrary to the Liberties of the Church and all Princes Rulers and Counsellors where such Statutes be made or such Customs observed and all the Judges and others that put the same in execution and where such Statutes and Customs have been made and observed of old time all they that put them not out of their Books be excommunicate and that so grievously that they cannot be assoiled but only by the Bishop of Rome De Immunitate Ecclesiae Non minus ad usus Quia Quum in 6. Clericis The Clergy to the relief of any common necessity can nothing confer without the consent of the Bishop of Rome nor it is not lawful for any Lay-man to lay any Imposition of Taxes Subsidies or any charges upon the Clergy Dist. 97. Hoc capitulo 63. Nullus quae sequitur Non aliae Cum Laic Lay-men may not meddle with Elections of the Clergy nor with any other thing that belongeth unto them De jurejurando Nimis The Clergy ought to give no Oath of Fidelity to their Temporal Governors except they have Temporalities of them Dist. 96. Bene Quidem 12. q. 2. Apostolicos Quisquis The Goods of the Church may in no wise be alienated but whosoever receiveth or buyeth them is bound to restitution and if the Church have any Ground which is little or nothing worth yet it shall not be given to the Prince and if the Prince will needs buy it the Sale shall be void and of no strength 13. q. 2. Non liceat It is not lawful for the Bishop of Rome to alienate or mortgage any Lands of the Church for every manner of necessity except it be Houses in Cities which be very chargeable to support and maintain Dist. 96. Quis nunquam 3. q. 6. Accusatio 11. q. 1. Continua nullus Testimonium Relatum Experientiae Si quisquis Si quae Sicut Statuimus nullus de persona Si quis Princes ought to obey Bishops and the Decrees of the Church and to submit their Heads unto the Bishops and not to be judg over the Bishops for the Bishops ought to be forborn and to be judged of no Lay-man De Major obedien solite Kings and Princes ought not to set Bishops beneath them but reverently to rise against them and to assign them an honourable Seat by them 11. q. 1. Quicunque Relatum Si qui omnes volumus Placuit All manner of Causes whatsoever they be Spiritual or Temporal ought to be determined and judged by the Clergy Ibidem Omnes No judg ought to refuse the Witness of one Bishop altho he be but alone De Haereticis ad abolendam in Clementini ut officium Whosoever teacheth or thinketh of the Sacraments otherwise than the See of Rome doth teach and observe and all they that the same See doth judg Hereticks be Excommunicate And the Bishop of Rome may compel by an Oath all Rulers and other People to observe and cause to be observed whatsoever the See of Rome shall ordain concerning Heresy and the Fautors thereof and who will not obey he may deprive them of their Dignities Clement de reliq venerat Sanctorum Si Dominus extravag de reliq venerat Sanctorum Cum per excelsa de poenitent remiss antiquorum Clemen unigenitus Quemadmodum We obtain Remission of Sin by observing of certain Feasts and certain Pilgrimages in the Jubilee and other prescribed times by virtue of the Bishop of Rome's Pardons De praemiis remissionibus extravag ca. 3. Et si Dominici Whosoever offendeth the Liberties of the Church or doth violate any Interdiction that cometh from Rome or conspireth against the Person or Statute of the Bishop or See of Rome or by any ways offendeth disobeyeth or rebelleth against the said Bishop or See or that killeth a Priest or offendeth personally against a Bishop or other Prelate or invadeth spoileth withholdeth or wasteth Lands belonging to the Church of Rome or to any other Church immediatly subject to the same or whosoever invadeth any Pilgrims that go to
Carnalis Copula But in this perhaps is left out and 't is plainly said That they had Consummated their Marriage This the King's Council who suspected that the Breve was forged made great use of when the Question was argued whether Prince Arthur knew her or not Though at this time 't was said the Spaniards did put it in on design knowing it was like to be proved that the former Marriage was Consummated which they intended to throw out of the debate since by this it appeared that the Pope did certainly know that and yet granted the Breve and that therefore there was to be no more enquiry to be made into that which was already confessed so that all that was now to be debated was the Popes power of granting such a Dispensation in which they had good reason to expect a favourable Decision at Rome But there appeared great grounds to reject this Breve as a forged writing It was neither in the Records of England nor Spain but said to be found among the Papers of D. de Puebla that had been the Spanish Ambassador in England at the time of concluding the Match So that if he only had it it must have been cassated otherwise the Parties concerned would have got it into their hands Or else it was forged since Many of the names were written false which was a presumption that it was lately made by some Spaniards who knew not how to write the names true For Sigismund who was Secretary when it was pretended to have been Signed was an exact man and no such errors were found in Breves at that time But that which shewed it a manifest Forgery was that it bore date the 26th of December Anno 1503. on the same day that the Bull was granted It was not to be imagined that in the same day a Bull and a Breve should have been expedited in the same business with such material differences in them And the stile of the Court of Rome had this singularity in it That in all their Breves they reckon the beginning of the year from Christmas-day which being the Nativity of our Lord they count the year to begin then But in their Bulls they reckon the year to begin at the Feast of the Annunciation So that a Breve dated the 26th of December 1503. was in the vulgar account in the year 1502. therefore it must be false for neither was Iulius the 2d who granted it then Pope nor was the Treaty of the Marriage so far advanced at that time as to admit of a Breve so soon But allowing the Breve to be true they had many of the same Exceptions to it that they had to the Bull since it bore that the King desired the Marriage to avoid a Breach between the Crowns which was false It likewise bore that the Marriage had been Consummated between the Queen and Prince Arthur which the Queen denied was ever done so that the suggestion in her name being as she said false it could have no force though it were granted to be a true Breve And they said it was plain the Imperialists were convinced the Bull was of no force since they betook themselves to such arts to fortifie their Cause When Cardinal Campegio came to England he was received with the publick Solemnities ordinary in such a case and in his speech at his first Audience he called the King the Deliverer of the Pope and of the City of Rome with the highest complements that the occasion did require But when he was admitted to a private Conference with the King and the Cardinal he used many arguments to diswade the King from prosecuting the matter any further This the King took very ill as if his errand had been rather to confirm than annul his Marriage and complained that the Pope had broken his word to him But the Legate studied to qualifie him and shewed the Decretal Bull by which he might see that though the Pope wished rather that the business might come to a more friendly conclusion yet if the King could not be brought to that he was empowered to grant him all that he desired But he could not be brought to part with the DecretalBull out of his hands or to leave it for a minute either with the King or the Cardinal saying That it was demanded on these terms that no other person should see it and that Gardiner and the Ambassador had only moved to have it expedited and sent by the Legate to let the King see how well the Pope was affected to him With all this the King was much dissatisfied but to encourage him again the Legate told him he was to speak to the Queen in the Popes name to induce her to enter into a Religious life and to make the Vows But when he proposed that to her she answered him modestly that she could not dispose of her self but by the advice of her Nephews Of all this the Cardinal of York advertised the Cassalies and ordered them to use all possible endeavours that the Bull might be showen to some of the Kings Council Upon that Sir Gregory being then out of Rome the Proto-Notary went to the Pope and complained that Campegio had disswaded the Divorce The Pope justified him in it and said He did as he had ordered him He next complained that the Legate would not proceed to execute the Legantine Commission The Pope denied that he had any order from him to delay his proceedings but that by vertue of his Commission they might go on and pass Sentence Then the Proto-Notary pressed him for leave to shew the Bull to some of the Kings Council complaining of Campegio's stiffness in refusing it and that he would not trust it to the Cardinal of York who was his equal in the Commission To this the Pope answered in passion That he could shew the Cardinals Letter in which he assures him that the Bull should only be shewed to the King and himself and that if it were not granted he was ruined therefore to preserve him he had sent it but had ordered it to be burnt when it was once shewed He wished he had never sent it saying he would gladly lose a Finger to recover it again and expressed great grief for granting it and said They had got him to send it and now would have it showed to which he would never consent for then he was undone for ever Upon this the Proto-Notary laid before him the danger of losing the King and the Kingdom of England of ruining the Cardinal of York and of the undoing of their Family whose hopes depended on the Cardinal and that by these means Heresie would prevail in England which if it once had great footing there would not be so easily rooted out That all persons judged the Kings Cause right but though it were not so some things that were not good must be born with to avoid greater evils And at last he fell