few yeares by certaine abbottes which thinkyng therby to vpholde their false religions wrought moued or els consented to insurrection within diuerse parties of the realme And yet was the same their wisdome a cause that haisted their owne destructiō And euen so now by youre printinge of the saide protestaciō ye haue brought it so to pas that the thinge whiche ye feared is come to light Thus can god pull downe his enemies houses with their owne hondes Certainlie like as I neuer heard that ther was any copie therof till I sawe it in youre boke so am I credibly enfourmed that it was neuer in printe afore Where as ye saie that it is an erroneous and traiterous protestaciō it is sooner saide then proued nether maketh it greately for youre honestie to knowe many secrete embracers of heresie and treason and not to utter them But ye maie twise saie it afore ye be ones beleued onely they that are of god wil whan thei haue tried and examined al thinges kepe that which is good and eschuethe contrary Standish BVt I trust in allmightie god yf it please you to rede this litle treatise with a louyng zele toward oure mother the holy church et cetera Couerdale Here do ye manifestly declare what zele moued you to write against D. Barnes protestacion Namely not any iust zele or loue toward gods worde or his people but euen because ye feare lest your mother shulde come to shame yf the trueth were knowne therfore to shew youre mother a pleasure ye thoughte to do youre best in defending her Nether helpeth it your pretēce anie thinge at all though ye call hir holy for euery such secte as ye be of hath a sundrie holinesse which commeth not of the sprete that sanctifieth Now like as your owne acte came of that zele which ye beare toward the church of the wicked so wolde ye haue youre treatise red with the same zele to the intent that the readers might smell heresie and treason where none is and be poysoned with such a corrupte iudgment as ye be of youre selfe Agayne how are ye or all men lyuinge able to proue that this protestacion of D. Barnes doth smell and sauoure nothinge but heresie and treason Is it heresie and treason to teach no erroneous doctrine to teach onely those thinges that scripture leadeth vnto to manteyne no erroure to moue no insurrection to be falsly slaundred to confute the false opinion of the Anabaptistes to deteste and abhorre all such sectes to set forth the glory of god obedience to the hyer powers and the true religion of Christ Doth it smell and sauoure nothinge but heresie and treason to beleue in the holy and blessed trenite to beleue the incarnacion passiō death and resurrection of oure lorde and sauiour Iesus Christ Is it heresye and treason for a synner to desire god to forgeue him to trust onely in the death of Christ to set forth good workes to beleue that ther is a holy church to beleue a life after this to speake reuerently of saintes to call oure lady a virgin immaculate and vndefiled to knowlege a Christen beleue concerning the body and bloude of oure lorde to ascribe vnto saintes the honoure that scripture willeth them to haue to praie for the Kyng and his counsaill et cete Do such thinges smell and sauoure nothinge but heresie and treason Wo vnto thē that call good euell and euell good darknesse light and light darknesse swete sower and sower swete Though ye do also esteme them to be heretikes and traitours that take parte with D. Barnes protestacion yet doth not youre estimacion or iudgment discorage me in this behalfe Nether is it my minde or will to medle with his offence yf he cōmitted anie against the Kyng nether to defende this his protestaciō with anie hand or weapen of man but by the scriptures to beare recorde vnto the trueth and to reproue youre peruerse and straunge doctrine which ye do teach against the same Standish FOr surely such as do improue them et cete Couerdale This youre saienge proueth not the cōtrary but that seinge ye resist the trueth I maie tell you your faute and enfourme you better acording to the Apostles doctrine yf god at any tyme will graunt you repentaunce for to know the trueth and to turne from the snare of the deuell et cete If I can vnderstonde that thorow this enfourmacion ye will geue place to the open and manifest trueth godschall haue the praise and I shall thincke my laboure well bestowed Yf the trueth can haue no place in you by faire meanes but he wil stil resiste it obstinately and belye it as ye do here in this youre treatise then verely ye maie be sure to be afterward so handled as the lymites and boundes of gods holy scripture wil suffre I beseche god acordinge to his good pleasure that ye maie haue eies to se eares to heare and an hert to vnderstonde his holy worde to consente vnto the same and in all pointes to liue therafter Amen Here foloweth the protestacion of S. Robert Barnes Barnes I Am come hither to be burned as an heretike and you shall heare my belefe wherby ye shal perceaue what erroneous opynions I holde Standishe I am sory to se the obstinate blindnesse and finall induracion in this his protestacion which wolde clere iustifie and excuse himself by colour and disceate Couerdale Christ oure sauioure makyng mencion of his owne death afore he was hanged apon the crosse saide these wordes Beholde we go vp to Hierusalem and the sonne of man shalbe betraied condemned mocked scourged crucified et cetera Whan a true man commeth to be hanged on the galowes Is it obstinate blindnesse and finall induracion for him so to saie Peraduenture ye will saie vnto me Take ye D. Barnes then for a true man I answere Verely these his wordes proue him no false man for he saide that he came to be brent And sure I am that he came not to the fire to be made a bisshoppe Morouer D. Barnes tolde the people that they shulde heare his beleue et cet And ye laie to his charge for his so doinge that he wolde cleare iustifie and excuse himselfe with coloure and disceate As though he iustified himself with colour and disceate which acordinge to S. Peters doctrine is ready allwaie to geue answere vnto euery man that asketh him a reason of the hope which is in him Was not D. Barnes instantly required to shew his faith and to open his minde in sondrie thinges Againe though he or anie man els wolde clere himfelse from such thinges as are wrongfully laied to his charge did he euell therin Yf it be so then did holy S. Paul leaue us a shrewd ensample in the Actes Standishe Which ought to haue accused condemned and utterly forsaken all that he had offended in si nos ipsos iudicaremus non utique diiudicaremur a domino
do and renne at riote with your doctryne Awaye from us ye wicked the commaundementes of our god will we kepe and not yours Standish Which toke oure synnes on him penam pro peccatis j. Pet. ij et cet Couerdale Ye taught afore wresting many scriptures for your purpose that euery man must satisfie for the punishment belonginge vnto sinne and now ye graunt that Christ toke the paine vpō him therfore As much hold is there at your doctryne as at an elys tale Standish But we haue moo meanes concernyng intercession et cet Couerdale The scripture is manifest that euery one of us in this life is boūd to praie for another and dailie occasions haue we of such peticions and exhortacions as appertayne to oure estate As for praiēg to saintes that be out of this life Ye haue myne answere allready Barnes NOtwithstonding whether they praye for us or no that I referre to god Standish A good Christē man wold haue gone no further then the congregacion of Christes church that is to saie in this region the kinges maiesty with his lerned counsaill Couerdale Like as your vnreuerent handling of the holy scriptures afore rehearced and your wicked doctrine against the same declareth you to be none of Christes church vnlesse ye repent and turne so do ye here exempte youre selfe from that holy congregacion Maruaill not therfore though whan I se you folowe your vnholy mother and not Christes deare spouse I call you now and then her owne whyte sonne In this region of England ye saie the congregaciō of Christes church is the Kynges Maiestie with his lerned counsaill But is this a sufficient diffinicion what a comforte is this now for so many of the Kynges subiectes both lerned and vnlerned to heare that they are not of Christes congregacion Is it a greate consolacion for the foote to be none of the body Ye repute D. Barnes no good Christen man because he wolde not define whether sayntes praie for us or no but referred that vnto god and not to the Kynges maiestie and his lerned counsaill What will ye make of the Kynges grace A prince that had rather haue secrete thinges referred vnto him then vnto god the onely knower of all secretes Or do ye esteme the Kynges lerned counsaill to be such men as will geue iudgment in thinges that be not euident Or thinke ye them to be ignoraunt of the scripture which forbyddeth men to search out or to medle with secrete thinges that god hath not commaunded Barnes ANd yf saintes do praie for you thē I trust within this halfe hour to praie for you M. sheriffe and for euery Christē man liuing in the faith of Christ and dyenge in the same as a saynt Wherfore yf the deed maye praye for the quicke then I will surely praye for you Standishe O damnable presumpcion et cetera Couerdale Because this man trusted thorow the onely mercy of god in Christ to passe from this death vnto life ye note damnable presumpcion arrogaunt presumpcion and presumptuous arrogaūcy in him And because ye maye seme to haue scripture to proue that D. Barnes wolde temerously appoynte and determyne the tyme himselfe for his so sayeng ye bringe in quod pater posuit in sua potestate as right as a rammes horne and as nye to the purpose as Pauls steple and mount Falcon. At the tyme of the ascension of oure sauyoure whan the Apostles were come together they asked him and sayde Lord shalt thou at this tyme set vp the kyngdome of Israel agayne He sayd vnto them It belongeth not vnto you to knowe the tymes and seasons which the father hath kepte in his awne power et cetera A like answere to such another question geueth he in another place and saieth Of that daye and houre knoweth no man no not the angels of heauen but the father onely What maketh this now to proue that he which acordinge to Christes promes trusteth to pas from this death to life doth temerously appoynt and determine the same time daye or season which our Sauyoure there speaketh of Or that he is either presumptuous or arrogaunt which acording to the ensample of holy scripture is certaine and sure that after the destruction of his body he hath an euerlastinge dwelling in heauen Haue ye not now alledged the scripture well to the purpose Ye wold haue men beleue as it appeareth by you doctrine that whan they departe hence they shall go from the hall in to the kytchen or els in to the whole kylle of your purgatory Standish Loke what case he is in that thus ended his life et cet Couerdale To proue here that saintes praie for us in heauen ye make a long disputacion and with the scriptures ye do as ye were wont They haue loue yet ye saie and therfore they praye for us and are our aduocates I answere The same places of scripture that ye bringe in your selfe are moost against you for they declare manifestly that it is the office of Christ to make intercession for us and that he is with the father oure aduocate which opteineth grace for our sinnes The saintes then that be in heauen knowinge this eternall will of god loue us not so that they desyre to be nether can they be against it It is a token that your doctryne hath but a weake foundacion whan ye go aboute to proue it by a dreame yee and that out of such a boke as serueth not for the confirmacion of the doctryne of Christes church for though it be red among the stories of other bokes yet dyd not the church receaue it among the Canonical scriptures in S. Hieroms tyme. Nether can ye proue that boke laufull by anye sayeng of Christ for thorow out all the new Testament he maketh mencion of none but of the lawe the Prophetes and the Psalmes and byddeth not search anye other scriptures but such as beare recorde and testimonye of him The xv of Ieremy proueth as doth also the vij the xj the xiiij of his boke that god will not be intreated where his worde is troden vnder foote and where men will nedes spurne agaynst it And verely in all the scripture could ye not haue brought in a more manifest place to cōfute your owne doctrine if it be compared to the xiiij of Ezechiel The xvj of Luke proueth nothing for your purpose in that Abraham praied not to god whan he was desired But like as it proueth that ther is no redempcion in hell ner time of acceptable repentaunce and forgyuenesse after this life So proueth it euidently that we ought to holde us to the onely word and scripture of god and not to loke for other doctrynes visions dreames or reuelacions The place Apoca. vj. proueth that the voyce of Abels bloude and of such as are slayne for the worde of god cryeth vengeaunce from the erth and vnder the altare as S.
Iohn saieth in his vision and that all such as are malicious persecuters therof are giltie of the righteous bloude that is shed vpon erth S. Peters shadowe proueth your doctrine but weakly excepte ye can make us beleue that ther be shadowes in heauen Nomore doth S. Pauls napkyn vnlesse ye can proue that he hath not yet left wiping of his nose But where lerne ye to belye the word of god Where finde ye in the scripture that Peters shadowe or Pauls napkyng could heale the sicke doth the text saie so Because the people brought their sicke in to Peters shadow did it therfore heale them Peter confesseth him selfe that it was not his owne power which made the lame man hole S. Luke also reporteth that god wrought no small miracles by the handes of Paul And as Christ our sauioure himselfe witnesseth that it was not his vesture but the womans faith which made her whole though she touched it so saieth S. Marke that the lord wrought with the Apostles and confirmed the word with tokens folowinge Morouer where as S. Paul desired to be lowsed and to be present with Christ what proueth that the praieng to saintes He saied in the same place that it were more nedefull for them to haue him yet lyuing among them Which thinge were not so yf this your article were so necessary as ye make it But Pauls wordes shalbe true still for greate nede haue we of many such as he was yf it were for nothing els but to preach with his mouth as he hath done in his Epistles agaynst youre and all other such false doctrines Standishe Nonne confortatus est principatus eorum Psal cxxxviij Couerdale Like as that scripture maketh no mencion of anie such article as ye ymagen so doth the content of thē Psalme set forth the wonderfull care and prouision that god maketh for us and teacheth us that gods secrete counsails and thoughtes are to hie for oure capacite Standish Hinc Iero. aduersus vigilantium et cet Couerdale S. Ambrose saieth Christ is oure mouth by the which we speake vnto the father Oure eye by the which we se the father oure right hand by the which we offre vnto the father Without whose intercession nether we ner all sayntes haue any thing with god Standish Yf you saie saintes do not heare us et cete Couerdale What knowlege the saintes haue it is trulye aboue my capacite but well I wote that the scripture of the olde testament ascribeth onely vnto god the knowlege of mens hartes Wherof the gospells also beare recorde sufficient and so doth the first of the Actes Now is it manifest likewise that as the praier which commeth from the harte is most acceptable so doth our Sauyoure byd us praye vnto our father in secrete Where as ye bring in the ensample of Abraham and the worke of god shewed vnto him in this life for to serue youre present purpose It proueth that ye are an vnreuerent handler of gods worde for the texte is plaine that god dyd there shewe vnto Abraham being yet in this life the destruction of the Sodomites of his onely accustomate goodnesse and mercy because Abraham was vnder his couenaunt and did faithfully cleue to his promes and because he knew that Abraham wolde cōmaunde his childrē and housholde to kepe the waie of the lorde et ce To affirme your purpose then by this place is euen as much as to go aboute to proue that saintes in heauē haue children yet and housholdes to teach in the waie of the lorde Standish Where as the leest of them qui minor est et cetera Couerdale Like as of a comparatiue degree ye make a superlatiue and wrest the wordes to Abraham that oure Sauioure spake of Iohn the baptist Euen so to the estate that saintes be now in applye ye those wordes which S. Iohn speaketh of the estate that gods electe shall haue at the seconde appearinge of Christ euen whan they shalbe like him whan their bodies shall ryse vncorruptible as his is rysen and whan he shall chaunge their vile body that it maie be like fashioned vnto his glorious body Agayne ye sayde afore that there were no sayntes in heauen afore Christes ascension And now to proue that the leest of the sayntes in heauē is more entyerlye beloued of god then Abraham was in this life ye alledge the wordes that were spoken long afore the death of Christ Qui minor est in regno et cet Remembre your selfe wel what a clarklye parte ye plaie with that text As for sanctorum communionem it is the declaraciō of the holy catholike or vniuersall church of Christ that they are a company or felashippe of all such as be sanctified in Christes bloude and are partakers of his merites and membres one of another But no probacion is it that sayntes in heauen do praye for us yf ye note well the descripcion therof by S. Pauls doctryne Now yf ye will proue youre purpose by the angels offices then must ye proue that sayntes are mynistring spretes sent for their sakes which shal be heyres of saluacion But that will be hard for you to do Nether doth the twentieth chapter of luke helpe your matter anye thinge at al for though ye choppe vp the text at your pleasure with the shortest these are our Sauiours wordes The children of this world do mary and be maried but they that shalbe counted worthy of yonder world and the resurrection from the deed shall nether mary ner be maried for they can die nomore for they are like vnto the angels et cet This answere now of our Sauiour to the Saducees as it confuteth their heresie so doth it proue that the children of god in heauen be like the aungels in life in immortalite and in that they are as fre from the necessite of mariage as the angels be but it proueth not that they are like angels in all thinges for thē shuld they haue no bodies to be raised vp at the generall resurrection Standish But also that their merites do profit us as by example we do reade Gene. xxvj et cetera Couerdale Where as allmightie god saieth vnto Isaac Vnto thy sede will I geue all this land et cet because Abraham was obedient vnto my voyce et cet Vpon this are ye not ashamed to saye that the cause is onely thorow the merites of his father Abraham Now saieth not the text so but thus Vnto the and thy sede will I geue all this lande and wil perfourme mine ooth that I sware to thy father Abraham et cet This scripture then like as it proueth acording to S. Pauls wordes that they which are of faith are blessed with faithfull Abraham so declareth it manifestly that this same blessing commeth of gods promes in and thorow the sede of Abraham and Isaac that is euen thorow Christ But
stroke to ypocrisye then euer his life coulde haue bene Yf he was falsly accused to the Kynges highnesse and so put to death woo shall come to those accusers yf they repent not by tymes And yf D. Barnes in his hert mouth and dede committed no worse thinge towarde the Kynges highnesse then he committed agaynst god in these his wordes at his death he is like at the later daye to be a iudge ouer them that were cause of his death yf they do not amende Now indifferent reader to the intent that thou mayest the more clearly discerne light frō darknesse and knowe gods true worde from false docrine I shall whan I haue sayde somwhat to Standish preface rehearce vnto the. D. Barnes wordes Secondly though I rehearce not vnto the all Standish wordes lest I shuld make to greate a boke I shall poynte the to the begynning of his sentence requyring the yf thou wilt to reade out the rest thy selfe in his treatise Thirdly though he hath desserued to be roughly handled yet do I purpose by gods onely grace to deale more gently with him beynge alyue then he doth with the deed This interpryse now as I take in hand agaynst Standishe in this behalfe so am I ready to do the same agaynst the greate graundsire and captaine of false teachers I meane greate Goliath of Rome and his weapen-bearer That is agaynst all such as are enemies to Kynge Dauid oure lorde Iesus Christ for whose moost confortable sprete gentle reader I beseche the to praie with me vnto our moost deare father in heauen whose name be praysid whose kyngdome come whose onely wyll be fulfilled now and euer Amen Here Foloweth the Preface of Iohn Standish to the reader Standish TO se the most victoryous and noble Prynce oure soueraigne lorde the kyng labourynge and watchinge contynually wyth all diligent studye to expulse and dryue out I maye saye to pourge and clense this his catholike regyon etce Couerdale Though ye abuse youre termes in reporting that the Kyng goeth about to expell and dryue out his catholike region I will impute those youre wordes to the weaknesse of youre brayne and to the seacenesse of honest eloquence therin But yf the Kynges laboure watching and diligent studye in pourging and clensyng his realme from all heresies and scismes be occasion sufficient as it is in dede to compell euery true subiecte to helpe vnto the same why haue ye then bene so slack therin all this while Youre owne wordes bring yo in to a shrewd suspicion For ye knowe and haue sene with your eyes that the kyng hath these many yeares bene labouring and busie in abolishing out of his realme the vsurped power of the. B. of Rome his manifolde sectes of false religions his worshipping of ymages his disceatfull pardons his ydolatrye and pilgremages etc. Were not all these great heresies and scismes Or can ye excuse your selfe of ignoraunce that ye haue not sene how the Kyng hath laboured in putting downe the same Yf ye then be a writer against heresies and scismes why haue ye written agaynst none of these all this while Thus euery man which readeth your wordes maye se that ye haue bewraied your selfe to be a fauourer of such thinges Standish Wherfore maruayll not gentle reader etc. Couerdale Contrary now to your request wil euery man maruail at you not onely because ye declare your selfe to haue borne all this whyle no ryght loue toward gods word to the saluacion of mens soules ner to the dewtye that ye owe to your prynce but also because that now thorow the occasion of a poore mans deeth ye first starte vp to wryte as though the Kyng had put downe no heresies afore D. Barnes dyed Is this the zele that ye bear toward gods word and towarde his people Such a zele had they of whom the Apostle speaketh to the Galathians sayenge They haue no good zele vnto you but wolde thrust you out namely from the trueth that ye might be feruent to them ward Where as ye write the daye and yeare of D. Barnes death it increaseth your owne confusion and shall be a cleare testimonye agaynst youre selfe for resistinge those good wordes of his protestacion yf ye forsake not youre heresye in tyme. Yee euen by youre owne penne haue ye brought it to pas that it shall not be forgotten till the worldes ende what a Christen testament and last will D. Barnes made at his death and how paciently he forsoke this life Standish FOr in his protestacion is both conteyned heresye and treason Couerdale For saie ye in his protestaciō et cet Is that the cause why ye do enterpryse and take in hande to wryte agaynst it Then verely declare ye youre selfe not onely to be parcial but also a fauourer of heresye and treason knowinge so many to haue bene attaynted therof within these seuen yeares Standish ALlbeit do not thynke that I wryte this thorow anye malyce toward him that is burned etc. Couerdale He that compareth youre wordes to your dede shall soone perceaue that ye haue cast milk in youre owne face and that for all youre holy pretence some spice of Cainish stomake hath made you now do more then all the Kynges noble actes in abolishinge the saide abuses coulde make you do many yeares afore though the same yf ye were a true subiecte were by youre owne confession sufficient cause for you so to do Howbeit it is not I that go aboute to laye malice to youre charge youre awne acte is not your best frende I praye god your conscience accuse you not therof But why take ye god to recorde in a false matter Do ye not confesse yourselfe that the Kynges graces laboure watchinge and diligent studie is the thinge that causeth and compelleth you to write against D. Barnes protestacion and that thorow the loue and feruent zele ye beare towarde gods word and the saluacion of mens soules et cete And now take ye god to recorde that ye do it for feare lest the people schulde be infecte 〈◊〉 the multitude of copies of the saide protestacion Against the which feare I knowe none other comforte for you as longe as ye will not harken vnto gods worde but that wisdome it selfe geueth you in Salomons Prouerbes Namely that the thing which ye feare shal come vpon you and euen it that ye are afrayed of shall fall in sodenly amonge you This am I certified of not onely by the same place of scripture but euen by this youre present acte in putting forth youre treatise to be printed with and against the saide protestaciō For yf ye feare the great infection of the people thorow the multitude of copies therof why caused ye it to be printed or any man els for you Is the printing of the saide protestacion the nexte waie to kepe copies therof from the people Ye maie well haue witte but sure ye lacke policie Such a like wise waie was takē in England within these
be tryed by bloude Couerdale Ye are to blame to be so malaperte as to entre so presumptuously in to a mans thought and so to iudge it For his very death declareth that he meant not to fight nor to hurt anye mans bloude nether to set men together by the eares for anye article of his beleue But that they which are of the trueth must in the cause therof suffre their bloude to be shed and be content to dye for the name of Christ yf they be called ther vnto Standishe· What call you this but geuyng occasion of insurrection Couerdale Yf this be insurrection then dyd the Apostles send out two sedicious men Paul and Barnabas for in their Epistle they testifye of them that they ioperded their lyues for the name of oure lorde Iesus Christ And yet their weapōs were not carnall as S. Paul saieth Yf it be insurrection therfore whan a man offreth himselfe to dye in the cause of Christ then dyd he himselfe preach insurrection whan he sayde he that looseth his life for my sake shall fynde it Whosoeuer looseth his life for my sake and the gospell shall saue it I saie vnto you my frendes Be not afrayed of them which kyll the body and afterwarde haue nomore that they can do But I will shew you whom ye shall feare Feare him which after he hath kylled hath power to cast in to hell Yee I saye vnto you Feare him D. Barnes therfore offeringe himselfe to dye in the cause of Cyrist and his gospell shameth you and all youre affinite as ye call it which will not ioperde to put youre litle fyngre where he hath suffred his whole body to be brent for the triall of the trueth Standishe He sayeth he neuer called oure lady a saffron bagg whether the dyd or no I wote not but I herd him at Barkyn two yeare and more before he was burnt in declaring the canticle Magnificat slaunderously speake of her Couerdale Oure lady hath but a faynt frende of you that hearinge one slaundre her in his sermon coulde not fynde in youre hart by the space of two yeare and more to se him openly rebuked for it but now like a cowarde to stand vp whan he is deed and to accuse him that can not answere for himselfe Verely like as he what so euer he be that slaundreth oure lady is worthy of open punishment to the ensample of other euen so seing that by youre owne confession ye heard him slaundre her so lōg afore his death and complained not of it ye make youre selfe giltye of the crime by the same texte that ye alledge out of the Romaynes in the later ende of youre preface Nether can I beleue that anie of the Kynges counsaill hearing of anie such inconuenience and hauinge sufficient profe therof wolde differre the punishment solonge Standishe Makynge her no better then another woman ▪ et cetera Couerdale In dede it was not D. Barnes ner anie other creature that made her better then other women but euen the holy and blessed trenite whose good pleasure it was to chose her afore all other to be the worthie mother of oure sauioure Iesus Christ in whom all faithfull shulde be blessed But yf ye saye that he in his sermons reputed her no better then another woman then declare ye youre selfe to be a very malicious slaunderer of the deed agaynst whom like as ye proue nothinge so were not onely his sermons gathered at his mouth in wrytinge but also the lerned mē that heard him preach and were then present at Barkyng do testifie and reporte that in their life they neuer heard man speake more reuerently of the blessed virgyn Mary then he dyd in that place Barnes ANd in dede in this place there hath bene burnt some of them whom I neuer fauoured ner mainteyned Standishe· Here he saieth that he doth deteste and abhorre some that hath bene burnyd in Smythfelde wherby we man se that in all thinges heretikes do not agree among them selues et cet Couerdale By the same collectiō shulde ye haue inferred also than an heretike agreeth not with himselfe and haue proued it whan ye haue done as ye do wel fauouredly in that youre treatise where whan ye haue said one thing in one place ye affirme the cōtrary in another as I shall shew more planely afterward Barnes BVt with all diligence euermore dyd I studye to set forth the glory of god the obedience to oure soueraigne lorde the kynge and the true and syncere relygion of Christ Couerdale Here gentle readers note well and forget not that to these wordes of D. Barnes Iohn Standish saieth nothinge wher by it appeareth that he can not denie but that D. Barnes was a diligent setter forth of gods glory of due obedience and Christes religion which thre thinges who so doth is in my mynde no heynous heretike Barnes ANd now harken to my faith ▪ I beleue in the holy and blessed trenyte that created and made all the world and that this blessed trenyte sent downe the seconde person Iesus Christ in to the wombe of the blessed and most puryst virgin Mary And here beare me recorde that I do utterly cōdemne that abhominable and detestable opynion of the Anabaptistes which saye that Christ toke no flesh of the blessed virgin For I beleue that without the cōsent of mans will or power he was conceaued by the holy goost and toke flesh of her and that he suffred honger thirst colde and other passions of oure body synne excepte acordinge to the sayenge of S. Peter he was made in all thinges like to his brethren excepte synne And I beleue that he lyued here amonge us and after he had preached and taught his fathers will he suffred the most cruell and bytter death for me and all mankynde And I do beleue that this his death and passion was the sufficient pryce and rawnsome for the synne of all the worlde And I beleue that thorow his death he ouercame the deuell synne death and hell Standish This is well saide but marke the deuel and Peter the one Matth. xvj the other Marke v. et ce Couerdale What are ye so forgetfull of your selfe Saide ye not in your preface that the protestacion of D. Barnes doth smell and sauoure nothinge but heresie and treason And now ye cōfesse that in these fore rehearced wordes he saide well which coulde not be yf they smelled either of heresie or treason Thus are ye become not onely contrary to youre selfe but also a defendoure of D. Barnes protestacion and approue the same And in this do ye proue the sentence true that I spake of afore namely that he which is geuen to false doctrine agreeth not with himselfe after the ensample of you which teach one thinge in one place and denie the same in another Where as ye compare the confession of D. Barnes to the confession of the deuell we will trye youre doctryne by the texte
whether Paul and you agree and whether ye haue iugled with the texte or no. For I feare me we shall fynd that ye haue played another false cast euen with this same poore texte The wordes of the Apostle are these Yf we wolde iudge or reproue oure selues we shulde not be iudged But whyle we are iudged we are chastened of the lorde lest we shulde be damned with this worlde These are S. Pauls wordes Afore in another place of youre treatise ye bring in this texte for another purpose namely to proue that D. Barnes ought to haue accused and condemned himselfe And now forgetfull what ye sayd afore or els wilfull blind as it semeth ye alledge the same text to proue that euery man must satisfye for the punishment belonginge vnto sinne Thus make ye of gods holy scripture a shipmans hose wresting and wringing it to what purpose ye will Verely such peruerting of the scripture can ye not vse without your awne damnacion excepte ye amende yf S. Peter be true The Apostle shewing the Corinthians the true institucion of oure lordes holy supper and the right vse therof cōcludeth with these wordes sayenge Let a man examen himselfe and so let him eate of this bred and drinke of this cuppe For he that eateth and drinketh vnworthely eateth and drinketh his owne damnacion because he discerneth not the lordes body from other meates Therfore are many weake and sick amonge you and many slepe For yf we iudged oure selues we shulde not be iudged But whyle we be iudged we are chastened of the lord lest we shuld be damned with this worlde Wherfore my brethren whan ye come together to eate tary one for another et cet By the circumstaunce then of this chapter it is euident that these wordes of the Apostle extende to the right vse of the holy sacrament teachinge us that afore we come to the lordes boorde we ought first to iudge to trie to proue and to examen oure selues in what case we stonde towarde god and oure neghboure consideringe that it is no childish playe ner a thing lightly to be regarded but a most waightie and ernest matter concernynge oure saluacion the glory of god and edifienge of the worlde And whan we haue duely and vnfaynedly tryed oure selues by cōparinge oure whole conuersacion both inward and outward to the iust commaundementes of god and by occasion therof haue hartely knowleged and confessed oure synnes beynge sory and penitent for them beleuynge stedfastly in the promises of god receaued the absolucion of his worde entred in to true repentaunce and ernest amendment of oure liuinge beinge reconciled and at one with all men purposinge without fayle so to contynue till oure lyfes ende Then to come and suppe with the lorde This is now the thing that S. Paul teacheth in this chapter and proueth here no such article as ye go aboute Therfore do ye wrong to the texte in wrestinge it to this sense that euery man must satisfye for the punishment belonginge vnto synne By the which youre doctrine like as ye robbe Christ of his worshippe deface the merites and frute of his death and set euery man in Christes rowme Euen so doth your saide article cōdemne euery man For like as Christ onely satisfied his heauēly father for oure sinnes and for the punishmēt due to the same Euen so yf we shulde not auoide the eternall paine of hel which is the second death and rewarde of sin̄e till we made satisfactiō for it oure selues we shulde contynue still in the wrath of god and so be damned for euer Standishe And to proue this satisfaction the wordes of I baptist Matth. iij. be very stronge et cete Couerdale Be these wordes bringe forth the worthy frutes of pennaūce asmuch to say as Ye must satisfye for the punishment due vnto synne Prately well expounded of you O shamelesse controllers of the holy goost Will ye make Iohn the baptist contrary to himselfe Doth he not saie manifestly in another place Who so beleueth on the sonne of god hath euerlastinge life And what is it els to haue euerlasting life but to escape the eternall and seconde death euen euerlasting damnacion and punishment due vnto synne Which as ye confesse youre selfe we do auoyde thorow Christ Why do ye then wrest the scripture to your awne purpose But one question will I aske you who speaketh the wordes which are written in the Prophet Osee saienge From the hand of death will I deliuer them from death will I redeme them O death I will be thy death O hell I wilbe thy stinge Finde me now anie creature in heauen or in erth that maie of himselfe verefie and pronounce these wordes of Christes personne and I shall graunt that he maie make satisfaction for the punishment due vnto sinne which as this text declareth is eternall death and hell Els yf there be but one Iesus one sauyoure one destroyer of damnacion and hell then shall he verely haue my poore voyce to be called also as he is in dede the onely satisfier for the punishment due vnto synne aswell as he is the satisfier for sinne it selfe As for the wordes of Iohn the baptist they proue euydently that whan men conuerte vnto god as those Pharises pretended to do at the baptime of Iohn then shall do it vnfainedly and not to be ypocrites still ner to leane to their olde leuē but to bringe forth the worthy frutes of repentaunce wherof he nameth parte in the thirde of Luke to the people and speaketh of no such satisfactiō as you fayne But Remembre that ye haue named fasting prayer and allmes dedes to be the frutes of pennaunce for I feare me ye will denye it agayne anone whan we come to Cornelius the captaine Standishe Fructus .ii. dignus penitentia est opus restaurans ea et cet Couerdale There are some of you that call us English doctours for writinge so much in English as though in the vnderstondinge of other tonges we were inferiours to you but now ye make us youre English interpreters for putting us to the payne to English the wordes which ye wrappe vp in latyn from the vnderstondinge of the people For the worthy frute of pennaunce saie ye is a worke amendinge those thinges wherof the pennaunce is that is repayringe such thinges as it repenteth us to haue left vndone or to haue committed and this is it that we call satisfaction for sinnes That to bringe forth the worthy frutes of pennaunce is asmuch as to amende wherin so euer we haue thought or done amisse I graunt for the scripture aloweth the same But where as ye call that the satisfaction to god for sinnes ye speake it not out of the mouth of the lorde Againe Ye saide afore that no man can satisfie for the offence and now ye call the frute of pennaunce the satisfactiō for sinnes Is not euery offence sinne Lord god what hold is
verely as ye saie your selfe the propertye of an heretike and this propertye lerne ye of the father of all heresye euen father Satan Who by angelis suis mandauit et cete wolde proue that a man maye tempte his lord god But like as Satan wrestyng that place of scripture which made moost against him was cōmaunded by oure Sauioure to auoyde so be ye sure that your false doctryne can not stand Dawlbe your wall and spare not for Ezechiel telleth you planely that god wyll sende such a shower of rayne among all lyeng prophetes as shall ouerthrowe it Your laboure is but lost so long as ye dawlbe your wall with vntempred morter Standish Also where he saieth that he hath euer spoken reuerently of sayntes et cet Couerdale Ye graūted afore his wordes to be true whan he sayde that all such as for confessyng Christes name and for his sake do suffre death are sayntes in heauen This reuerent talkynge and praysinge of sayntes dyd ye alowe afore And now contrary to your awne wordes ye saye that ye wote not whether he euer spake reuerently of them or no Yet confesse ye that ye haue heard him fortye tymes Who will now trust you that are so double in your wordes Barnes ANd that oure lady I saye she was a virgyn immaculate and vndefyled and that she is the moost purest virgyn that euer god created and a vessell electe of god of whom Iesus Christe shulde be borne Standish Here yet ignorauntly et cete he goeth forther then the scripture speaketh et cet Couerdale Be these his wordes out of the boundes of scripture or not acording to the scripture Reade them ouer agayne Standishe He wolde neuer willingly graunt anye thynge but that is in scripture Couerdale Then like as ye proue him to haue bene a true messaunger of god in grauntinge to the holy scripture which by your owne cōfession is gods very worde so declare ye that yf he reuoked anie thing that is in it or graunted ought cōtrary vnto it It was done agaynst his will Haue ye not now a great cause to make such tryumphinge of reuocacions in your sermons Standish Albeit here with the church he doth professe that oure lady did continue a virgin still et cete Couerdale Doth not the scripture affirme this doctryne that the mother of oure Sauyoure is the purest virgin that euer god created Will not the Prophecies of Christes birth the perfourmaūce of the same and the practises of the holy goost in Christes blessed mother alowe this doctrine Haue ye noted the worke of god in her no better Yf she had anye nede of you ye shew her but a faynte frendshippe in reportynge that her most pure virginite hath none other grounde but the auctorite of your church Verely such your doting doctrine wil make both you and your church be lesse set by Standish Deus n tantam eam fecit inquit quidam et ce Couerdale Is not your doctryne now well sealed with butter Whan ye haue presumed to cōtroll gods word and to call the blessed mother of Christ with other names then the holy goost geueth her Now to ratifye and cōfirme your false matter ye bring in an heretike to helpe you Can not Christes worthy mother kepe still the gracious names that the holy trenite hath geuen her but she must now haue a sorte of hereticall Ruffyans to become new godfathers vnto her Call her as gods worde teacheth you full of grace blessed immaculate virgin et cete Praye to god that ye maye folowe the fote steppes of her constant faith her feruent charite and godly loue her moost meke and humble behaueoure her vnfained trueth et ce And whan ye talke in matters of Christes religion bring forth playne and manifest wordes of his scripture and no Romysh heretike ner a text out of frame to proue youre purpose withall Barnes THen saide M. Sheriffe You haue sayd well of her before And he beynge afrayed that M. Sheriffe had bene or shulde be agreued with any thing that he shulde saye sayd M. Sheriffe Yf I speak any thing that you will me not do nomore but beckē me with your hand and I wil straight waie holde my peace For I will not be dishobedient in anie thing but will obeye Standishe Now as he faineth he wold gyue no slaunder or offence Sed sero sapiunt Phriges Couerdale At this poynt ye are with D. Barnes that though he be out of this life yet what so euer he sayd in this protestacion or dyd at the tyme therof ye iudge him to the worst and slaunder him But your owne prouerbe that ye bring in doth admonishe you that it is to laite for though ye belye him and slaunder him neuer so much it can not hurt him Standishe Now he saieth he is afraied to displease irep◠dauerunt timore vbi non erat timor et cete Couerdale Like as ye referre to him the wordes which are not his owne so reporte ye of him that he was afrayed where no feare was But was there no feare at the fyre syde The manhode of our sauioure Christ feared death and so dyd that holy Kynge Ezechias As for you ye must nedes be of some bolde and stowte kynde that can kyll a deed man But how serueth those wordes of the Psalme to this youre purpose The holy goost speaketh of such wicked workers as eat vp gods people like bred call not vpon god are afraied to se god stande on ryghteous mens syde and mocke poore mē for putting their trust in god How maketh this scripture now to proue that ther is no feare where a man seyth death present before his eyes O wicked mockers with gods holy worde Standish Now se I praye you how obedient he saieth he will be which before tyme was euer dishobedient et cete Couerdale Ye saye much and proue litle touching this man whose present protestacion and his boke written afore declareth planely his obedience toward his prynce whose wholsome commaundement yf he haue at anye tyme disobeyed contrary to this his doctryne and example I am the more sory But yet haue ye not proued it to be so Touchinge bishoppes which are to be estemed acordinge to their estate I wote not what dishobedience ye haue to proue against him Such bishoppes as laboure in the worde of god and in the doctryne therof are to be counted worthye of double honoure therfore in herkenyng vnto such he dyd well and yf he dispysed such he despysed Christ But yf he folowed S. Iohns bydding and dyd not receaue such false Apostles as bring not the doctryne of Christ then can ye not iustly blame him Barnes AFter this ther was one that asked him what he saide of the sacrament of the altare Then sayde he vnto M. Pope which was there present M. Pope ye know and. M. Ryche yf ye be alyue that ther was one accused before my lord