apparition And some of their saddest Diuines haue eased them thus much in any such perplexitie that to worship the diuell himselfe in such a forme with opinion that it were God is not Idolatry not onely for these inconueniences but euen for a generall infamy and suspition that these apparitions which begot Purgatorie haue in them the more moderate sort of Catholiques haue declined from any great approuing of them 7 Yea Serarius though of that order that hath lost all ingenuity confesses from Baronius and Villa Vincentius that in these legends in their Histories there are vaine and vitious relations and that the pictures of those Saints are but Symbolicall And Sedulius acknowledges that that storie in the booke of Conformities that S. Francis was seene to goe out of the wound in Christs side with a banner and a great Armie is but figuratiue Of which sayes he there are many so highly mysterious that it is not fit to discouer and explicate them to the wicked So that these Mirabilarij Mythologistes of that Church wil solemnly reserue these their Arcana Ecclesiae to themselues and shall without any enuie from vs. 8 And yet I denie not but that in sober antiquitie and in the grauest Fathers there are some impressions which occasioned this error of purifying soules after this life As Bellarmine sayes truly that for the most part lies haue their foundation vpon some truth For it was very long in the Church of God before the state of the soule after our death was cleare and constant and vniforme the Fathers being diuided in their opinions whether our soules enioyed perfect happinesse presently or expected and attended it till the generall iudgement And the phrase and language in which sometimes they spoke of the last consummation of our happinesse in the re-vnion of the body and soule being obscure and various gaue occasion of doubting that they reserued and adiourn'd all our happinesse till that time And that which they meant of that perfect and consummate happinesse not to bee enioyed till then hath beene mis-vnderstood or detorted to the soule alone And by such irresolution in some and perplexity in collating their opinions and misapplying their words haue been imprinted indelible characters of Purgatorie and of prayer for the dead of whose condition in the next worlde they were not tâ—roughly assured 9 If any of the Fathers haue strayed farther then so to speak doubtfully of some such thing as Purgatorie Wee will not say as you doe Let vs excuse it or extenuate it or denie it by some deuise or faine some other conuenient sense when it is opposed in Disputation Nor dare we obtrude a contrarie exposition as you doe when you make Pope Telesphorus instituting the Quinquagâ—sima for the Clergy by his worde Statuimus to meane Abrogamus Or when Pope Innocent writes to Decentius a Bishop that it is not reade that in all Italie France Spaine Affrique and the Ilands there was Alius Apostolus praeâ—er Petrum to make him meane by Alius Contrarius which the glosse vpon the glosse in the Margine mis-likes because no Apostle was contrarie to Peter and therefore makes the Pope to meane that there was no other Apostle in those places then Peter or such as he sent We dare not correct so boldly as to make Bertram who for 800. yeares together had said Visibiliter now to say Inuisibiliter Wee dare not hope to scape with such a small insertion as Non which you haue intruded to the destruction of Didacus Stellaes sense in his Commentarie vppon Saint Luke and in Eucherius his Commentarie vppon Genesis Wee dare not steale out that little particle to alter the whole intention of him that hath it as Bellarmine hath done out of a sentence cited by Gratian out of Leo by which Mariage is no Sacrament if Non be admitted Wee will not be so vnnaturall to the Fathers as Bellarmine makes the Pope to be when being pressed by Nilus to followe in the question of the Primacie the opinion of the Fathers sayes that the Pope hath no Fathers in the Church but that they are all his Sonnes Nor can wee exceede Bellarmine in dis-esteeming the Fathers who hath called in question some bookes of almost euerie one of them as Clement Anicetus Cyprian Tertullian Ambrose Augustine Hierome Damasus Damascen Basil Iustine Nyssene Honorius Eusebius Chrysostome and others And when Damascene cites out of Palladius That a dead scull beeing asked whether our Prayers did them any good in hell aunswered that it brought them some ease and relaxation Bellarmine sayes This is false and Apocryphall and that there is no such thing in Paladius So ill a Patrone is hee of Damascenes credite heerein Nor doth hee onely indefinitely say of the Fathers That it is euident that some of the chiefest of them haue grieuously erred but as of Tertullian who imputes Montanisme to Pope Zephirine hee sayes There is no faith at all to be giuen to him And in another place somewhat more sharply Wee doe not reckon Tertullian amongst the Catholiques So doth he to very many of the other Fathers boldly impute such errours as would vitiate any Author not to haue but obserued them and for touching whereof the Centuriators are by him accounted prophane and blasphemous So also doth Medina say That Hierome Ambrose Augustine Sedulius Primasius Chrysostome Theodoret Oecumenius Theophilact and others were of the same opinion as Aerius was and the Waldenses and Wickliffe 10 But as Gratian preferred Hierome before a Councell because hee had Scripture on his side And as your Expurgatorie Index which I cite so often because no booke of equall authoritie doth shew so well your corrupt doctrine that is what you cannot endure to heare and your indirect practise to make Authors speake your words addes to one Author in the Margine Wee must giue no credit to these words of Eusebius and after This opinion of Iustin and of Epiphanius is not true So if for the defence of Purgatorie in the full sense of the Trent Councell you obtrude any Father which yet I professe that I haue neuer seene if that Father be destitute of the support of Scripture you must allow vs some of that libertie which you take since we are more modest in the vse thereof then you are 11 For we need not euen by your frequent examples binde our selues to that seruility which your Azorius subiects himselfe vnto who disputing of the immolation of Iepthes daughter confessing That it is not euident that she was killed nor likely nor that she could be comprehended in that vow any more then any vncleane thing which might haue met him and That the contrarie is more Analogall to the other places of Scripture and that the Rabbines Lyra and some other Catholiques denie her death yet saies he because we are bound that is by the oath of the Trent
drowne him did in the feruor of obedience obey it God should reueale That in that acte he accomplished Abrahams worke 16 Are these wholsome instructions That it is a greater pride to doe a good worke against the Superiours commaund then a bad because they are vices vnder pretence of vertue or this That it is better to sinne against God then our spirituall Father because he can reconcile vs to God but no body to him Which doctrine it seemes Heli had not accepted when he said If one man sinne against another the Iudge shall iudge it bu if a man sinne against the Lord who will pleade for him How many greaâ—er matters must they of necessity leaue vndiscussed that professe such tendernâ—sse and scrupuâ—osity of conscience as the late Iesuit Gonzaga wâ—o doubted that when hee had said he would goe Ad Domum professorum he had sinned in an idle word since he might haue beene vnderstood well enough though he hâ—d left out the last wordes or that he had sinned in answering affirmatiuely to his Sâ—periours question whether he would go to a certaine place because he ought to haue left it all to his Superiours will without any affirmation Was it due and necessaâ—y obedience when desirous to be instructed in that point of Predestination and his Superiour turning to a place in S. Augustine and bidding him read there being come to the end of the page but not of the sentence he durst not turne ouer the leafe because he was bid to read there 17 Sedulius seemes glad that he had examples enough to furnish a Chapter De simplicitaâ—e Minoritarum and hee seemes to haue much comfort that he is of the same order as Friar Ruffin was who out of simplicity cut off a liuing Hoâ—ges foote to dresse for a sicke bodie and â—odde his Birds in the feathers who also out of his humility desired that he might stinke when he was dâ—ad and that he might be eaten with dogges And he saies that Friar Iuniper was so simple that a Doemoniaque possessed man ranne seuen miles from him because the diuell could not abide Patientiam Iuniperi 18 Was it not Prodigium Obedientiae as Sedulius iustly calles it in Fryar Ruffin to go preach naked And were there not some degrees of spirituall pride in Gonzaga who is praised because he had a paire of patched hose in Delicijs and that he refused to put on a paire of old bootes because a worshipfull man had worne them and that when his handes did cleaue with colde he would put on no gloues Was there not some measure of stupid insensiblenesse in him when he durst not spit in any necessity at his praiers and that he knew not how many brothers he had And of desperate prouocation when he heard of a plague likely to be in those parts to make a vow to visit those which were infected And of murmuring when he grudged and grieued That he could find out no veniall sinne in himselfe And of Inhumanity when he was sorry if any body loued him And of a sear'd and shamelesse Stubornenesse when he therefore desiâ—'d to speake in publicke because hee had an vngâ—acious and ridiculous imperfection in pronouncing the letter R. And ask'd leaue E suggestu dicere which I thinke is to Preach in Spanish because he was sure to be laugh'd at by that meanes being imperfect in that language And doeth it not taste of an vnnaturall Indolencie in him to say no more at the newes of his Fathers death but that nowe nothing hindered him from saying OVR FATHER WHICH ART IN HEAVEN As if it had troubled his conscience to say so before 19 Who would not haue beene glad that such a Preacher should giue ouer as when Friar Giles a Lay man call'd to him Hold your peace Master for now I will Preach gaue him his place Who would wish S. Henrie the Dane any health that had seene him When wormes crawled out of a corrupted Vlcer in his Knee put them in againe Or who would haue consented to the Christian buriall of that Monke which Dorotheus speakes off if he had died of that Poyson which hee saw his Seruant mistake for Honie and put it into his Brothe and neuer reprehended him before nor after he had eaten the Soppes But when his Seruant apprehended it and was much mooued the master pacified him with this If God would haue had me eate Honie either thou shouldest haue taken the Honie or hee would haue changed the Poyson into Honie Who would euer haue kept companie with the Iesuite Barcena after he haâ— told him as â—e told another Iesuite That when the diuell appeard to him one night out of his profound humilitie hee rose to meete him and prayd him to sit in his Chaire because he was more worthy to sit there then he Who would wish Father Peter aliue againe since being dead he is so afraid of disquieting his fellowes that he will giue ouer doing of Miracles for their ease Or who would not wish them all dead who possessing and filling all good places in their life will bee content to giue some roome after their death as Friar Raynold who hauing beene three yeres dead when another Holy man was brought to be buried in the same Vault rose vp and went to the Wall and stood vpright there that the other might haue roome enough 20 This is that Obedience by which they say If a man were dignified so much as to talke with Angels if his Superiour call'd him he must come away Yea one of them Being in discourse with our Lady when an inferiour Friar call'd him vnmannerly quitted her And of this Obedience is Ignatius himselfe especially carefâ—ll Least sayes he that famous simplicitie of blind Obedience should decay But this Obedience and all other are subordinate to that naturall Obedience to your Prince as Soueraigne controller of all For in all Obligations the Authoritie of the Superiour is euer excepted 21 And this Obedience must not be so blind but that it may both looke vpward what God in his Lieuetenant appoints to bee done and also round about to see wherein they may relieue others and receiue from them They may be circumspect though they must not be curious For Abbayes at first institution were not all Chappels but Schooles of Sciences and Shops of manufactures Now they are come to that that they cannot worke Quia Officia longa They haue indeede so many Offices and so many Officers that they neede not worke But this strict obedience was impos'd vpon them then because they were great confluences of men of diuers Nations Dispositions Breedings Ages and Employments and they could be tied together in no knoâ— so strongly nor meete in any one Center so concurrently and vniformely as in the Obedience to one Superiour And what this Obedience was and
him to be a Saint And so it seemes doth that Catholique Priest who hath lately published a History of English Martyres For that which in the Title he calls Martyrologe in his Aduertisement he calles Sanctiloge And therefore it becomes both our Religion and Discretion to consider thoroughly the circumstances of their History whom we admit to the honour of Martyrdome 7 All Titles to martyrdome seeme to me to be grounded vpon one of these three pretences and claymes The first is to seale with our bloode the profession of some morall Truth which though it be not directly of the body of the Christian faith nor expressed in the Articles thereof yet it is some of those workes which a Christian man is bound to doe The second is to haue maintained with losse of life the Integrity of the Christian faith and not to suffer any part thereof to perish or corrupt The third is to endeuour by the same meanes to preserue the liberties and immunities of the Church 8 By the first way they entitle S. Iohn Baptist because he died for reprehending a fault against a morall Truth and that truth being resisted the Authour of truth is despised And therefore all truth is not matter conuenient for the exercise of this vertue as the conclusions of Artes and Sciences though perfectly and demonstratiuely true are not but it must be such a truth as is conuersant about Christian piety and by which God may be glorified which cannot be except he might be iniured by the denying thereof So the Euangelist when our Sauiour spake of S. Peters Martyrdome saies He signified by what death hee should glorifie God For all Martyredome workes to that end And this first occasion of martyrdome seldome fals out in Christian Countries because in Christ the great Mirrour of all these truthes we see them distinctly and euidently But sometimes with Heathen Princes before they arriue to this rich and pregnant knowledge men which labour their conuersion begin or touch by the way some of these Morall dueties and if they grow odious and suffer for that they are perfect Martyrs dying for a morall Trueth and in the way to Christ. 9 By the second claime which is the Integritie of Catholicke Religion the professors of any Christian Church will make a specious and apparant Title if they suffer persecution in any other Christian Church For the Church of Rome will call the whole totall body and bulke of the points of their profession Integritie of Religion and the Reformed Churches call soundnesse puritie and incorruptnesse integritie The Roman thinkes Integritie hurt by nothing but Maimes and we by Diseases And one will prooue by his death that too little is professed and the other that too much But this aduantage we haue that by confession of our aduersaries all that wee affirme is True and Necessarie and vpon good ground we assure our selues that nothing else is so and we thinke that a propensenesse to die for profession of those points which are not necessarie will not constitute a Martyrdome in such a person especially as is of necessarie vse 10 Amongst other things which our Blessed Sauiour warnes his followers this is one That none of them suffer as a busie body in other mens matters but if he suffer as a Christian let him not be ashamed but glorifie God And in another place hee cals them blessed If others say all maner of euill of them falsely and for his sake So that the prohibition forbids vs to suffer for those things which doe not certainely appertaine to vs And the instruction ties the reward to these conditions That the imputations be false That they be imputed for Christs sake that is to dishonour him and that we suffer because we are Christians 11 Since therefore some of you at your Executions and in other conferences haue added this to your comfoâ—t and glory of Martyrdome That because the Kings mercie hath beene offred you if you would take the Oath therefore you died for refusing the same Though your Assertion cannot lay that vpon the State who hath two discharges One that you were condemn'd for other Treasons before that offâ—r The other that the Oath hath no such Capitall clause in it yet since as I said you take it vpon your Consciences to bee so Let vs Examine whether your refusall of the Oath bee a iust cause to Die vpon this point of Integritie of Faith by that measure which our Sauiour gaue in his Prohibition and in his Instruction 12 Is it then any of your matters or doeth it belong to you by your Doctrine and by your Example in refusing the Oath to determine against Princes Titles or Subiects Alleageance If this be any of your matters then you are not sent onely to doe Priestly functions And if it be not then you suffer as busie bodies in other mens matters if you suffer for the Oath 13 And then what is imputed to you which is false which is another condition required by Christ if you be called traytors then when after apparant transgressing of such lawes as make you Traytors you confirme to vs a perseuerance in that Trayterous disposition by refusing to sweare Temporall Alleageance Wherein are you lesse subiect to that name then those Priestes which were in Actuall plots since mentall Treason denominates a man as well as mentall heresie You neither can nor will condemne any thing in them but that they did their treason before any Resolution of the Church and haue you any resolution of the Church for this That the King may be deposed when he is excommunicated If you haue you are in a better forwardnesse then they and you may vndertake any thing as soone as you will that is as soone as you can For you haue as good opinions already and as strong authorities That a King of another Religion then Romane is in the state of an excommunicate person before Sentence as you haue for this That an Excommunicate King may be deposed And would you thinke it a iust cause of Martyrdome to auerre that the King is already vnder excommunication 14 And to proceede farther in Christs Instruction are these things said of you for Christs sake Are you if you be called Traytors for refusing the Oath reproued for anie part of his Commandements If it were for exercising your Priestlie functions you might haue some colour since all your Catholique Religion must bee the onely Christian Religion But can that state which labours watchfullie and zealouslie for the promouing of Christs glorie in all other things bee saide to oppose Christ or persecute him in his Members for imputing trayterous inclinations to them who abhorre to confirme their Alleageance by a iust Oath 15 Lastly can you say you suffer as Christians that is as Christ there intended for Christian faith which is principally the matter of Martyrdome Aquinas cites this out of Maximus The Catholique faith is the mother of martyrdome And he explicates
hee doth positiuely teach the iust contrarie to Gratian in matter of faith as in the Doctrine of perplexities which wee noted before 19 How dangerous therfore it is to confide in Gratian we see already may haue further light by obseruing That Ballarmine saies that in a main point of Canonicall Scriptures Gratian was deceiued by trusting a false copie of Saint Augustines workes And as Bellarmine saies hereâ— that Gratian was deceiued so Gratian deceiued him for in that Canon which we cyted before of the exemption of Clergy men either Bellarmine was a direct falsifier of the Councel or an indiscreet credulous swallower of Gratians errours which in his Recognition he refuseth not to confesse in another matter wheÌ„ he retracts some things which he spoke vpon the credit of Gratian there repents recaÌ„ts theÌ„ 20 But you and Bellarmine may easily be misled by him since euen a Pope himselfe was brought into a false perswasion by his errour For till of late all the copies of the Decretum in that famous Canon Sancta Romana which distinguishes Canonicall fâ—om Apocryphall writings in stead of the wordes Sedulij opus Heroicis versibus descriptum had these wordes Hereticis versibus Which saies a Catholique authour induced not onely many wise men but euen pope Adrian 6. to a perswasion that al Poetry was Hereticall since Gelasius a Pope and Author of that Canon though he praised Sedulius his worke in that place yet because it was writ in verse he câ—ls them Hereticos versus 21 Of them therfore which will binde their faith to the Canons and aduentuâ—e these dangers for that faith as the Canonists say that Saterday and Sunday is all one fictione Canonica so wee may say thaâ— they are but Martyres fictione Canonica and that not onely a Martyr and a Selfe-murderer but a Martyr and a Traytor may be all one Fictione Canonica And by such fiction that English Priest Bridgewater which cals himselfe Aquipontanus ouerturning and reâ—enuersing his name with hâ—â— conscience may be beleeued when he saies That those Priests which were executed vnder Queene Elizabeth died pro inficiatione pontificatus faeminei But their malice was not because she would haue bin a Priest but because she would not be a Sacrifice to their Idolatry nor Ambition nor open her heart to their inchantments nor her throate and sides to their poisons and swords 22 The next limme in this great body of the Canon law after the Decretum is the Decretall set out by Gregoâ—y the ninth who was Pope about the yeare one thousand two hundred thirty And as the Decretum pretends to bring to all purposes sentences of Fathers anâ— Canons of Counsells So this pretends principally the Rescripts and Deâ—retall letters of Popes So also doe all tâ—e other bookes which were set out after in supplement of this as that which is called Sextus set forth by Boniface the eight who was Pope An. one thousand three hundred and the Clementines which Clement the fift set out who was Pope within sixe yeares afterâ— and those Extrauagants which beaâ—e the name of Iohn the two and twenty within ten yeares of Clement and those which are called common Extrauagants because they come from diuers Popes and to these is added not long since the booke called Septimus Decretalium 23 And thus this fat law for so Ciuilians say of that that it is Crassa aequitas which is a praise beyond desert though rhey speake it in diminution scorn grows daily so fast that as any corruption can get entertainment in a grosse body so I doubt not but this or the next age shall see in their Octaues and future Volumes not onely many of their letters yet for shame coÌ„cealed but at Henry the thirds death canonized in the body of this law For though they haue denied it with some-earnestnesse yet they haue also confest that if it were such as it is said to be it admits a good interpretation 24 But for these bookes though they haue more credit with them then the Decretum hath I will ease my selfe of that labour which I tooke in that booke in presenting particular defects and infirmities both because we haue Bellarmines confession That there are many things in the Decretall Epistles which doe not make a matter to be De fide but onely doe declare what the opinions of the Popes were in those causes and because a Catholique authour of whom we spake before hath obserued that the compiler of the Decâ—etals by leauing out a word in a Canon of a Councell of Carâ—hage hath occasion'd the Church euer since to doe directly aganst the purpose of that Councell in shauing the heads of Priests For whereas the Councell is cited by him Clerici nec Comam Nutriant nec barbam by occasion whereof many subsequent orders were brought in for Shauing and transgressors seuerely punish'd it appeares that he left out in the end the word Radant which vtterly changed the precept into the contrary These Canons therefore of so sickely and weake a constitution that any thing deiects them cannot preuaile so much vpon our consciences as to imprint and worke such a confidence in them and irremoueablenesse from them as to maintaine them with the same maner of testimonie as we would doe the words of God himselfe 25 For howsoeuer they depart from them and seeme somewhat negligent of the Canons when we make vse of them to our aduantage against them yet they affright and enthrall the tender consciences of their owne Disciples with nothing more then the name of Canons to which promiscuously they ascribe all reuerence and assent without distinguishing to them which are Gratians and which are opinionate and which Decretall for all together are approoued and confirmed And therefore the Canons themselues not only inflict an Anatheme vpâ—on any â—ay-maâ— which shall so much as dispute vpon the text or any one Iod oâ— the Epistle of Pope Leo which is in the Canons but also prâ—nounce it blasphemy against the holy Ghost to violaâ—e a Canon willingly becauâ—e â—hey are made by the hyol Ghost And Bellarmine also writing against a Doctor which had defended the Venetian caâ—se against the Popes Censures saies That it is a gâ—ieuous rashnesse not to be lefâ— vnpunished that he should say â—he Canons as being but Humane lawes cannot haue equall authority with Diuine For this saies Bellarmine is a contempt of the Canons as though they were not made by the direction of the holy Ghost And yet these Canons which that Doctor intimated were but two and cyâ—ed but by Gratian and concerned onely Exempâ—ion of Clergie men from seculâ—r â—udges 26 And so â—arsons when he is to maâ—e hâ—s aduantage of any Sentence in Gratian vses to dignifie it thus That it is translated by the Popes into the Corps of the Canon law and so not onely allowed and admitted