as moch as thei are feared by pomisshment / thei offend now stil more against the lawe than thei ded before Now such are vnrecouerable and damnable persons past all amendment for thei commit sinne wickednes as oft as any occasyon of sinning is nffred There be other some / which are blynd / and boast extolle theÌ„ selues / supposing that thei can saue them selues thorow their own pour streÌ„ght / thinking them selues able to kepe And performe the lawe as is before said of the schole dyuynes or Sunses And by such meanes / become thei hypocrites and only colored saintes / holy outwardly only But the chefe office effect of the lawe is this / to shewe and declare original sinne aÌ„d to teach man how sore his nature is infect or poisoned / And that it is altogether corrupt / vnto whom the lawe saith that he honoreth not god but contemneth him honoreth strange false goddes which thiÌ„g before the lawe taught him it / he did in no wise bileue it to be true Now man being put in feare humbleth him self / abiecteth and abateth his hart and vtterly despaireth / and desiereth feruently to haue some help and beiÌ„g dismazed that he can not tel whether to turn him / he beginneth to be aÌ„gry with god and to murmur against him And this it is that is spoken in the iij. to the romanes / The lawe worketh wrath againe in the v. to the romanes / the lawe entred in / that sinne shuld be more abundant Of penance This office and work of the lawe is kept reteined in the newe testament / and it is also exercised as S. Paul saith the .i. to the roma saing the wrath of god from heauen is declared mamifestly against all wickednes and vnright wisnes of men Item the iij. to the Roma the whole world is gilty to god Item no flessh shal be iustifyed in his sight by the workes of the lawe Item Iohan the xvi The holy gost shal reproue the world of sinne This is the thoÌ„der of god wherby he doth ouerthrowe and clerely condeÌ„ne not only manifest sinners but eueÌ„ hypocrytes also / and he bringeth them in to fear and desperacyon / This is the hammer wherof Ieremy speketh saing / My word is an hanmer that beateth flynt stonys in to pouder This is no actyue or procured contricyon but it is a passyne or a suffring contricyon and breaking / for it is a tru or ernest heuynesse of the hart / a very passyon / felyng vnd tast of death And this is to begynne a repentance or a newe life and man is compelled to heare such a sentence as this Ye are all condemned and confounded / whether ye be open sinners or hypocrytes / ye must alter your lyues and be newe men And ye must lyue other wise than ye lyue now For how gret / wise / mighty holy so euer ye be / yet there is none of yoâ—… iust c. But now vnto this office and coÌ„demnacion of the lawe / the newe testament bringeth a comfortable promes of grace and mercy thorow the gospel / which ê“mes we ought to receiue by faith as christ saith March the .i. So penance and byleue the gospel that is to say / turne amend and lyue better and byleue my promes And before christes coming Iohan was called the preacher of penance / but yet vnto the remissyon of sinnes that is to say / it was Iohans office to reproue all men and to teach them that thei all were sinners / that thei might knnoch what maner of men thei were before god and grant themselues to be damnable sinners that so thei might be prepared to the lord to embrace his and mercy for their comfort / and to byleue and trust to receiue remissyon of their sinnes of christ And so saith Christ him selfe in the last chap. of Luke / penance and remission of sinnes must be preached in my name among all nacions Now if the lawe shuld doo his offyce frely alone and the gospel remoued / we shuld se nothing but deth and hell redy to deuoure us / and there were no remedy but all men shuld be compelled to despayre as Saul Iudas did / lyke as S. Paul saith The lawe thorow sinne doth kil But the gospel again / bringeth coÌ„fort remissyon of sinnes / not one way only but dyuers / as thorow the word of god / thorow the sacramentes such other ways as we shal heare here after that thorow him we may haur a plentuos and a rich redempcyoÌ„ as the cxxx Psalme saith against the gret captiuyte and thraldom of sinne But we must now compare the false penance of the popissh dunses sophisters With the true penance that thei both may the better be known Of the false penance of the papistes It was impossible that euer the papistes shuld teach preach truly of penance / seiÌ„g thei vnderstode not â—inne truly For / as is before sayd / thei haue no right iudgement or knoulege of original sinne / but thei teach that the natural strength of man hath euer remayned perfight / pure vncorrupt / that mans reason caÌ„ teach rightly And that his wil can perfihhtly obey this right reason / aÌ„d again that god doth surely gyue his grace and mercy whan a man doth oÌ„ly so moch as he is able to do by his own fre wil. Wherfor it must nedes folowe that thei did penance repent only for actual sinnes for the corrupt affeccyons of the hart / as lust and concupiscens are no sinnes with them but thei repute those only for sinnes / which be outward actual workes springing of their fre wil. And of this penance thei haue made 3. partes / Contricyon / Confession Satisfaccion with this comfort promes annexed therunto that if a man shuld do true penance / confesse himself perâ—…gâ—…y and make true satiâ—faccyon / than â—huâ—d he meryte deâ—erue remissyon of his sinnes and make a perfite satisfaccyon beford god for all his sinnes Thus in their penance thei taught meÌ„ to trust in their own workes And hereupon spraÌ„g vp that which thei vse to blowe out in the pulpets as oft as thei make mencyon of the comon confessyon to the peple saing O lord god kepe preâ—erue my life vntil I haue done penaÌ„ce for my sinnes and amended my life Here is neuer a word of christ nor of faith but euery man bileueth to wipe a way and dispatch his sinnes before god thorov his own workes And for this purpose haue many made them felues pristes and monkes that thei might so resist and witstond sinne As for contricyon this hath euer bene the maner order therof for as moch as no man could remember all his sinnes particularly specially all and euery one that he had committed the whole yeare / thus thei trifled and dalyd therwith / that if any secret preuy sinnes shuld afterward come to his rememberance / he must do
goldyn yeare What nede I to make many wordes Soules were so good cheape that a man might bye as many as he wold for ij pens or a grote the pece And yet all this was not sufficient neither for the pope although he taught commanded men to put all their trust of saluacyon in his pardons / yet not with stonding he made this way dout ful vncerten also for he wrote thus in his bullys that who so euer wold be partaker of his pardon of his goldyn yeare he must both doo penance for all his sinnes and confesse them also pay some mony But we haue sayd before that the popissh contricyon and confession also is both doutful / vncerten and also very hypocrisy And beside this / no man did know what soule was in purgatory / and if there were any yet it was vnknowne which had true contricyoÌ„ was rightly coÌ„fessed which not Here the pope toke moÌ„y bad them trust in his penance pardons yet not with stonding he sent them agayn to their own doutful vncerten workes Now if there were any / which thought them selues free froÌ„ all actual sinnes / euel affeccyoÌ„s / wicked wordes dedes / thei wold make theÌ„ selues moÌ„kes / fryres pristes in monasterys / collegys and felouships thei wold resist euel desyres / with fasting / watchiÌ„g at midnight / prayer / sayng of masses / hard clothiÌ„g and hard lodgiÌ„g thus they went about to be saued by force violence whether god wold or no. But yet the original or byrth sinne that was in theÌ„ did sometime paraueÌ„ture exercise his streÌ„ght while thei were a slepe / as S. AusteÌ„ S. Bierom with other do graÌ„t And yet these did think iudge amoÌ„g theÌ„ selues that there were some so holy as thei also taught that thei were with out all sinne ful of god workes / in so moch that thorow this hope trust thei delt sold vnto other meÌ„ their good workes which were suê‘fluos for theÌ„ selues to right wisnes This is true / for the seales / writiÌ„gs tokens therof be yet to shewe Such had no nede of penaÌ„cc them selues for how could thei repeÌ„t for any sinne whaÌ„ thei neuer coÌ„sented to any wicked cogitacioÌ„s or thoughtes And again what coÌ„fessyoÌ„ could thei make seing thei eschewed to speake one to another / for thei were sworn to syleÌ„ce And finally for what thiÌ„g shuld thei make satisfaccyoÌ„ seiÌ„g thei were gilty of no sinnes Euen such saintes were the pharises scrybes in christes tyme But than immediatly came the fyery Angel messenger S. Iohan / the preacher of true penance stroke them both at one clap with one thonder bolt / saing / do penance Now the one sort of theÌ„ though thus / we haue done penance al ready And the other thought thus / we nede not do any penance But S. Iohan saith to theÌ„ both doo penaÌ„ce both ij of yow haue euer yet done any true penance in your life dayes / but ye be hypocrytes and both of yow haue nede of remissioÌ„ of sines becouse ye both be ignorant / as yet / what sinne is properly / moch lesse can yow either do any penaÌ„ce for your sinne / or els auoyde sinne There is none of yow good / ye be all ful of vnfaithfulnes / of blyndnes of the ignoraÌ„ce both of god of his wil also But now is he preseÌ„t of whose pleÌ„ty we all must receiue grace for grace and with out hym can no maÌ„ be iustifyed before god Wherfor if ye wil do penaÌ„ce / do it rightly truly for your penaÌ„ce which haue nede of no penaÌ„ce / ye generacyoÌ„s of serpeÌ„tes / who haue told yow that ye might auoide the wrath damnacyoÌ„ to come c S. Paul also preacheth like wise to the romanes in the .iij. chapter / saing There is none that hath any knoulege / there is none that seketh god there is none that doth god no not one All are beconne vnprofitable haue swarued out of the right way And agaiÌ„ in the 16 of the actes Now doth god preach vnto all men that all shuld ameÌ„d their lyues Marke he sa it / all meÌ„ / none except / that is a maÌ„ This penance which Iohan Paul do preach / teacheth us to knoulege our sinne / to grant that we are all daÌ„ned of our own nature / that there is no goodnes iÌ„ us / that we must nedys be renewed / altered made newe meÌ„ This penaÌ„ce is not unperfight / as is that which is done for actual sinnes only Neither is it doutful or incerteÌ„ as that is for it disputeth not which is sinne chhich is not sinne / but it condeÌ„neth all to gether saith there is nothiÌ„g in yow but sinne What nede we thaÌ„ to make any nouÌ„brynh / differeÌ„ce or diuysyoÌ„ Wherfor this coÌ„tricyon also is no vncerteÌ„ thiÌ„g for there is nothiÌ„g left in us by this coÌ„tricyon wherby we caÌ„ so moch as thiÌ„k any thing that is good wher with we caÌ„ satifye make a meÌ„des for our siÌ„nes but oÌ„ ly very bare manifest desê‘acyoÌ„ of all thiÌ„gs which we know / thiÌ„k speake or doo Lykewise coÌ„fessyon after this maner caÌ„ not be false / vncerteÌ„ vnperfight for who so euer coÌ„fesseth that there is no thiÌ„g in him but sinne he coÌ„preheÌ„deth all maner of sinnes leaueth / excludeth or forgetteth none finally such a satisfaccyoÌ„ caÌ„ not be vncerteÌ„ neither for it is not our vncerteÌ„ vnpure worke / but it is the passyoÌ„ blode of the pure innoceÌ„t lambe of god which taketh a way the sinnes of the world Of this penaÌ„ce did S. Iohn after ward christ himself in the gospel / preach And of such a penaÌ„ce do we preach also And by this penance do we refuse the pope all things what so euer is bylded vp our own workes for all such things steÌ„d vp on an vncleane / feble yea a vayne fouÌ„dacyoÌ„ a vayne work or lawe / be it neuer so good for weaknes / infirmyte imê‘feccyon remayneth in all god workes no maÌ„ fulfilleth the lawe as christ saith Ioh. the 8. but all meÌ„ do traÌ„sgresse it Wherfor this bildyng is nothiÌ„g but lying / falshode hipocrisy eueÌ„ whaÌ„ it is most holy sheweth best of all But the penaÌ„ce that we speke of / endureth with all christeÌ„ men eueÌ„ til their death / it fighteth with the reÌ„nantes of sinne which remayne in the flessh / as long as thei lyue / as S. Paul witnesseth the 7. to the Romanes saing that he him self warreth against the laue of his meÌ„bres / that not with his own ê“per pour or streÌ„gth / but with the gift grace of the holy gost which euer cuÌ„penyth goeth together with remissyoÌ„ of sinnes This grace pourgeth dryueth out dayly the reÌ„naÌ„ts of sinne it coÌ„tendeth or laboreth to make maÌ„ iust pure holy Of this
to iudge the quict the dead c. as the comon crede of the apostles / the crede song in the masse / and the crede of athanasius do teach Of these articles there is no controuersy contencyon for both partes do confesse all these things / wherfor it were but foly to entreate more largely of them The second part conteineth the articles of the office worke of Iesu Christ and of our redeÌ„pcyon / and of all his bemifights actes which he hath done for us In this article this is the first principal some that Iesus Christ our god lord suffred death foâ— our sinnys rose againe to saue us / Roma 4. Item that he is the oÌ„ly special lamb of god / which taketh a way the sinnes of the world IohaÌ„ the i. And that god hath layd the iniquyte of al man kind vpon his back / Esai 53. furthermore all peple haue synned and thei are made rightuos agayn / or saued / frely by the mere grace mercy of god thorow the redempcyon of Iesus Christ thorow his blode Roma 3. And for as moch as this grace mercy must be receiued by faith for no maÌ„ can obteine it by any worck not yet by the lawe nor by any merite therfor it is certen manifest that we be iustifyed by faith as holy paul testifieth rhe 3. to the roma sayng we suppose maÌ„ to be iustifyed by fayth without the workes of the lawe Item that he migh be iust the iustifyer of him which bileueth in Iesus c. From this article can we not moue one hearbreade / thogh se hauen erth shuld falle and all the world goo to gether to wrack / for there is no nother name vnder heanen where by we can be saued / Actu 4. Item / Esay 59. we are healed thorow his stripes This article is the whole foundacion ground both of all that we teach and also lyue against the pope / the deuel and the world wherfor we ought in no wise to dowte of this article Els all together were done / and at a point / and the pope / the deuel with his whole rable shuld haue the victory of us and tryumph couer us The second article The masse that is comonly vsed in the papistry is the highest most horrible abhominacion that euer was / and it is as coÌ„trary to the principal article of the faith as heaueÌ„ is to hell although among all the popisch Idolaters it is the most precios / daiÌ„â—… and bringeth most lucre to the purse for all men haue bileued surely that the sacrifice work of the masse though it were done of the most rascal scull you in the world / yet it shuld deliuer meÌ„ from all their sinnes both iÌ„ this life and also after this life iÌ„ purgatory / which thing can no thing doo not performe saue the only lamb of god as is before said Wheâ—for we wil geue no place in this article / nor graÌ„t any part therof And if any man chance vpoÌ„ some reasonable papist / let him axe him gentylly / for what cause thei labor to mainteine the masse so obstinatly / specially seing itâ— is nothing els than a mans inuencyon and no ordinance of god And it is lauful to neglect and breake mans tradicyons / as christ saith Math. 15. thei honor serue me in vayne teaching the doctrines / tradicions commandmeÌ„tes of men And again it is a thing of no necessite and it may be left welmough with out any sinne or perel Thirdly The sacrameÌ„t may be receiued after a better mor profitable and a more holsom way / acording to the institucion of christ which way is only profitable none but it wheâ—fore why shuld we bring the world in to so heuy a misery danger for a fansy of mans braine / and a trifel of naught Let the peple be taught in comon sermoÌ„s / that the masse being an imaginacyon of mans brayne may be taken a way disamulled with out any sinne / and that it is a matter of no daÌ„nacyon to despise the masse / for a man may obteine euerlasting saluacyoÌ„ with out the masse / and after a better way than bi it Now if the peple were thus taght / there were no dowte but that it shuld come in to contempt alone of it self without any labor / not only amoÌ„g the simple peple / but also among all good / wise vertuos men And this thing might be brought to passe the better / if thei were instruct / that the masse is a perlos a dangeros thing / imagyned of mans brayn with out any commandment or wil of god Forthly for as moch as there haue bene an infinyte nomber of most detestable abusis thorow out the whole world by the reason of bying and selling of masses / it is a lauful a sufficient cause wherfore all masses ought to be disanulled forbidden / though it were for no nother cause than this only that those abuses might so be remoued / although there were some goodnes or vtilyte in them as there is none at all And thei ought rather to be abolisshed that these abuses might be forbidden / specially seing such masses be vnprofitable / vnnecessary / and ful of perel and danger / and agaime all things both more necessary more profitable also more certen / may be obteined / though there were nâ— such masse Fifly / the masse neither is nor caÌ„ be / nothyng els than a worck of men as the old canon and all old bokeâ— doo also testifye yea and inuented by most wicked rascals / for this purpose that euery maÌ„ might recoÌ„cile both hiÌ„ selfe and other vnto god and both obteine merite remissi of his sinnes and the fauor of god thorow he ariÌ„g / saiÌ„g or causing it to be sayd for whaÌ„ it is done / sayd or hard euen most holyly / it is done said and hard for no other end than a fore rehersed for vnto what other vse or vtilite can it serue wherfor it must nedes be condemned and takeÌ„ a way / for it is against tpe principal article of our redempcion / which saith that no maner of prest or shaueling noither good nor bad / nor no maner of worke or sacrifice / can take away our sinnes / saue only the lamb of God / the soÌ„ of God further more if any prist wil vse this excuse / cloke preteÌ„se to say that he ministreth the sacrameÌ„t to hym self alone / for this purpose that he may the more perfightly with better diligeÌ„ce reuereÌ„ce receiue it / let hiÌ„ know that this is no ernest but a preteÌ„sed excuse for who so euer wil vse this supper perfightly and reuerently to confirme his faith to haue any profight therby / must receyue it in the true sacrament ministred / acording to the institucyon of Christ But for a prist to minister the sacrament to him self alone /
the vniuersal CHRISTEN church by the lawe of god wherupon it must nedes folow that he coÌ„pareth yea preferreth him self vnto christ first he called hym selfe head of the church after that / lord of the church / thirdly supreme lord of the vniuersal world / and finally the god of the erth / in as moch as at length he weÌ„t about to coÌ„mand the angels of heauen And if the doctrine of the pope be tryed by the the scrspture wer coÌ„pared therwith / we shal proue and fynd that his doctrine euen whereas it if best / was taken out of the cyuil and heathnissh lawe / aÌ„d that it geueth lawes aÌ„d perceptes of ciuyl matters and of cyuyl iudgemeÌ„ts as his own decretals do testifye After ward his doctrine teacheth certen ceremomonys of temples / of garmentes / of choyse of meates / of difference betwene pristes and lay men and of such folissh things / iugglyng soteltys and fantastical trifles an infinyte nomber And in all these things there is no word nor mencyon of christ / of faithâ— or of the coÌ„mandments of god Insummaâ— there is nothing in his doctrine but deuelisshnes / and his lyes of masses / purgatory / monasterys / workes and ceremonys all which be the very papistry he coÌ„tendeth to set aboue christ god and against god / condemnyng / kyllyng / and persecuting al christen meÌ„ which wil not extoll honor this his abhomynable wickednesse aboue all things in heauen and erth for the which canse life as we can not fynd in our hartes to bowe to the deuel to honor him for our lord god Euen so life wise can we not suffre his Apostle the Pope / or Antichrist the supreme head lord in his kingdome For to lye to murder / and te destroy the soule with the body be the very natural propertys of the popys kingdome Now the councel shal fynd haue inough in these iiij articles / to condemne for thei neither can nor wil grant us the least part or poynt of them Of this thing we ought to dowt nothing at all / yea we must rather comfort our hartes with this hope and trust that Ihesus christ wil fight against his emnys and persecute them both with his spirite and also with his coming which thing god grant / Amen As for vs let us not loke that we shal not be suffred to stand before the emperor or any ciuyl iudge rueler / as we did at augspurg where the emperor did heare our cause and matter fauorably / But we must stand before the pope and the deuel him self which wil not heare any thing at all / But with out any cause wil iudge us condemne us to death / and compel us to Idolatry whether we wil or no / wherfor we wil neuer in our life kisse his fete nor say you arre my good and gracios lord / but we wil say as the Angel sait to the deuel in Zachary god pomissh the Satan / thou aduersary of god The third part of the articles Of the articles that folow it were better for us to entreat of them with lerned and wise reasonable men / or among our selues than with the pope which with his whole sect and faccyon with hym but riches / honor / poÌ„pe powr are only in reputacyon with hym Of sinne In this article we are coÌ„pelled to grant with S. Paul the v. to the romanes / that sinne entred in to the world by one maÌ„ Adam / thorow whose disobedience all men are made sinners and subiect to death and to the deuel Now the operacyons of this sinne / are euel workes such as be forbidden in the .x. commandmeÌ„tes / as be these distrust in god / false faith / Idolatry / to be with out all feare of god / presumpcyon / desperacyon / blyndnes of hart / and to conclude in a somme / the ignorance and contempt of god After these / to lye / to sweare by the name of not to pray / not to call vp on god / to dispise or neglect the word of god / to be disobedient to parentes Item murder / flesshly lust / theft falshode This original sinne is so gret a corrupcyon of nature / that no maner of reason can see perceiue it / and therfor it must be byleued by the reuelacyon of the holy scripture / Psalm 51. Roma v. Exodi xxxiij Gene. iiij Wherfor it is a manifest error and a blyndnes repugnyng with this article / to say as the schole dyuynes or duÌ„sys haue taught first that after the fall of Adam all the natural strengh of man doth remayne perfight vncorrupt And that man hath naturally a right reason and free wil / that he may satisfye fulfyll the lawe of god Secondorly That man hath free wil so that he may doo all good and eschewe all euel agayne on the contrary part / leaue that which is good and folow the euel Thirdly That a man by the proper strengthe of his own nature may satisfye and fulfill the whole lawe of god Fortly That a man of his own natural strenth can loue god aboue all thing / and his neihbor as him selfe Fiftly That if a man do performe so moch as he is able to doo / than shal he surely obteine gods fauor Sextly That it is not necessary for him that wil receyue the sacrament / to haue a purpose to lyue wel afterward But that it is â—ufficient if he haue not an obstynate and wicked purprse to sinne so good is our nature of it self / and so such efficacyte is the vertu of the saâ—rament Seuently That it is not taught in the scripture that it is necessary for him that wil do any good worke / to haue the holy gost with his grace These such like errors haue sprong vp of blindnes and ignorance / because thei were ignorant both of sinne / also of christ our sauyor and thei be very heathnissh opinyoÌ„s which we can not suffer nor abyde for if thei were tue thaÌ„ did christ dye in vaine / for as moch as ther is no corrupcyon nor sinne in man after their opynyon for the which christ nedyd to haue dyed Or els he must haue dyed for the body only not for the sowle / for the sowle is vncorrupt and the body only subiect to death after this opynyon Of the lawe In this article our iudgement is that the lawe was geuen by god to bridle refrayne us froÌ„ sinnyng partly with threatniÌ„gs and with feare of ponisshment / partly with promises of grace / fauor and other benifites But all these do help but litle by reason of the corrupcyon and wickednes which sinne doth engender in man for hereby some which are emnys of the lawe are made worse for as moch as thei desyre more feruently to doo such thiÌ„gs as thei are forbidden to do by the lawe / and thei do not gladly such things as thei are commanded to do And thus in