Timothie was it holds in others also for if the Scripture be so profitable for such and such uâ—eâ— that thereby it perfects a Divine much more an ordinary Christian that which can peâ—fit the teacher is sufficient for the learner PA. Doe you disclaime all Traditions PRO. We acknowledge Traditions concerning Discipline and the Rites and Ceremonies of the Church but not concerning the doctrine or matter of faith Religion You equalize unwritten traditions to holy Scripture receiving them saith your Trent Councell with equall reverence and religious affection as you receive the holy Scriptures themselves we daâ—e not doe so but such traditions as we râ—ceive we hold and esteeme farre inferiour Concerning the Scriptuâ—e Canon the Trent Councell accurseth such as receive not the Bookes of Machabees Ecclesiasticus â—oby Iudith Baruch Wisdome for Canonical Scriptuâ—e Now wee retaine the same Canon which Christ and his Apostles held and received from the Iewes unto whom were committed the Oracles of God being as Saint Augustine speakes The Christians Library-keepers Now the Iewes never received these Bookes which wee terme Apocryphall into their Canon yea Christ himselfe divided the Canon into three severall rankes iâ—to the Law the Prophets and the Psalmes now the Apocryphal come not within this reckoning Indeed as S. Hierome saith The Church reades these Bookes for example of life and instruction of manners but yet it doth not apply them to stablish any Doctrine Of Comunion under both kindes and the number of Sacraments If any shall say The Church was not induced for just causes to communâ—caâ—e the â—ay people under one kinde vâ—z of bread onely and shall say they â—rred in so doing let him bee accursed saith the Trent Councell Now our Chuâ—ch holds That both the parts of the Lords Sacrament ought to bâ—e ministred to all Gods people so thaâ— according to us In the publâ—kâ— celebraâ—ion of â—he Eâ—chaâ—ist Communion in boâ—h kinds ouâ—ht to bee given to all sorts of Câ—riâ—â—ians righâ—ly disposed and prepared and this oâ—â— Tenet is agâ—eâ—able to Christes Institution and Precept who saith exprâ—sly and liâ—erally Drink yee all of this It agrees aâ—so with Saint Pauls precept and with the practice of the holy Apostleâ— and the priâ—ative Church Dionysius Arcopagita who as you say was Saint Pauls Scholler and Disciple relates the practice of the Church in his time on this manner After the Priest hath prayed that hee may hoâ—â—ly distribute and that all they that are to partake of the Sacrament may receiue it worthyly he breakes the Bread into many pieces and divides one Cup among all Ignatius who was Scholler to Saint Iohn the Evangelist saith That one Bread is broken unto all and one Cup destributed unto all PA. Bellarmine saith the words of Ignatius are not as you alleage them There is one Cup distributed unto all but there is one Cup of the whole Church and though the Greeke Copies reade as you doe yet he saith That much credit is not to be given to them PROT. Shall we give more credit to a Translâ—tion then to the Originall If the Well-head and Spring bee corâ—upted how shall the Brooke or Streame runne cleare It may be indeed that divers errors are crept both into the Greeke Latine Copies but for the place alleagâ—d there is no colour of corruption in asmuch as the same that Ignatius spake of the Bread the same are repeated of the Cup according to Christs Institution and howsoever Bellarmine may produce some Latine Copie that translateth the words of Ignatius as Bellarmine sets them downe Vnus Calix totius Ecclesiae yet as D. Featly observes in the Grand Sacriledge of the Romish Church Vitlemius and divers other Latin Copies following the originall verbatim render them thus Vnus Calix omnibus distributus that is One Cup distributed unto all and not as Bellarmine and Baronius ad Ann. 109 sect 25. would have it as if Ignatius had said that one Cup was distributed not 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 omnibus but 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 pro omnibus not to all but for all that is for the behoofe and benefit of all Howsoever they wrest it Ignatius tels us of one Cup and this not the Priests Cup but the Churches Cup and this Cup was distributed But now adaies in the Masse there is no distribution of the Cup. PA. Christ spake these words Drinke yee all of this only to the Apostles as they were Priests and not to the Laitie PRO. By this meanes you might take away the Bread as well as the Cup from the Lay-people for when Christ administred the Sacrament none were present for ought we know but onely the Apostles Besides the Apostles were not yet fully ordained Priests though they had beene once sent to Preach Christ after his Resurrection breathed on them the holy Ghost and fully endued them with Priestly power Iohn 20.22 Againe the Apostles at this Supper were Communicants not Ministers of the Sacrament Christ was then the onely Minister in that Action Now Christ delivered them the Cup as well as the Bread saying to the same persons at the same time and in the same respect Drinke yee all of this to whom hee had said before Take and Eate giving both alike in charge so that you must either barre the people from both or admit them to both now if neither precept of eating or drinking belong to the Laitie the Laitie are not at all bound to receive the Sacrament PA. Although it be said of Drinking the Cup Doe this in remembrance of me Yet the Words Doe this are spoken Absolutely of the Bread and but Conditionally of the Cup namely as often as yee shall drinke it 1 Cor. 11.25 So that these Words Doe this in remembrance of me inferre not any Commandement of receiving in both kindes PRO. According to your Tenet our Saviour saith not Doe this as often as you Lay men communicate but whensoever you receive the Cup and drinke then doe it in remembrance of me as much as to say as often as you Lay people drinke which needeth never be done by you according to Romish Divinitie Doe this nothing in remembrance of mee Besides as there is a Quotiescunque as often set before the Cup As oft as you drinke so there is a Quotiescunque set before the Bread As often as you shall eate this Bread vers 26. so that quotiâ—scunque biberitis as often as you Drinke cannot make the Precept Conditionall in respect of the Cup more than of the Bread it being alike referred to the Bread and to the Cup. PA. We wrong not the Laitie ministring unto them under one kinde onely they receiving the same benefit by one that they should doe by both Christs body and bloud being whole in each so that the people receive the bloud together with the Host by a Concomitancy PRO. In vaine have you devised Concomitance to
saw the evill that came upon the place Besides these learned Trium virs there lived in this age Theodoret bishop of Cyrus a towne in Syria Cyrill bishop of Alexandria Leo the great and Gelasius bishops of Rome Vincentius Lirinensis a great impugner of Heresies as also Sedulius of Scotland whose Collections are extant upon Saint Pauls Epistlâ—s and his testimonies frequently cited by the learned L. Primate Doctour Vsher in his Trâ—atise of the ancient Irish Religion Oâ— the Scâ—iptures sufficiencie Saint Augustine saith In those things which are layd downe plainely in the Scriptures all those things are found which appertaine to faith and direction of life Bellarmine would shift off this place by saying That Austine meant that in Scripture are contayned all such points as are simply necessary for all to wit the Creed and the Commandements but beside these other things necessary for Bishops and Pastors were delivered by tradition but this stands not with Austines drift for in the Treatise alleadged de Doctrinâ— Christianâ hee purposely instructeth not the people but Christian Doctors and Teachers so that where he saith In the Scriptures are plainely set downe all things which containe Faith Hope and Charity he meaneth as elsewhere hee expresseth himselfe all things which are necessarily to bee believed or done not onely of the Lay people but even of Ecclesiastickes In like sort the same father saith Those things which seemed sufficient to the salvation of believers were chosen to bee written Vincentius Lirinensis saith that the Canon or Rule of Scripture is perfect abundantly sufficent in it selfe for all things yea more than sufficient neither is this a false supposall as a Iesuit pretends it to be but a grounded truth and the Authors doctrine Liâ—inensis indeed maketh first one generall sufficient Rule for all things the sacred Scriptures Secondly another usefull in some cases onely yet never to be used in those cases without Scriptures which is the Tradition of the Vniversall Church and generall consent of Fathers The first was used by the ancient Church from the worth that is in it selfe the other is used to avoyd the jarring interpretations of pervâ—rse Heretikeâ— that many times abuse the sacred Rule Standard of the Scripture Now we admit the Churches Interpretation as ministeriall to holy Scripture so it be conformable thereunto And wee say with the learned Rejoynder to the Iesuit Malounes Reply Bring us now one Scripture expounded according to Lirinensis his Rule by the Vniversall consent of the Primitive Church to prove Prayer to Saints Image worship in your sense and we will receive it Saint Cyril saith that All things which Christ did are not written but so much as holy writers judged sufficient both for good manners and Godly faith And in another place he saith The holy Scripture is sufficient to make them which are brought uâ— in it wise and most approved and furnished with most sufficient understanding Saint Hierome reasoneth Negatively from the Scriptures saying As we deny not those things that are written so we refuse those things that are not written That God was borne of a Virgin we believe because we reade it That Mary did marry after shee was delivered we beleeve not because we reade it not Saint Chrysostome saith that All those things that are in holy writ are right and cleere that Whatsoever is necessarie is manifest therein yea he calleth the Scripture The most exact Balance Square and Rule of Divine veritie This was the Fathers Rule of Faith of old and the same a perfect one but the Papists now adayes make it but a part of a Rule halfe a Rule and piece it with Tradition Of the Scripture Canon Saint Hierome who was well skilled in the tongues travailed much and saw the choycest Monuments of Antiquitie as also the best Libraries that the Easterne Parts could afford and was therefore likely to meete with the best Canon nameth all the Bookes which we admit and afterwards addeth Whatsoever is besides these is to be put amongst the Apocrypha and that therfore the Booke of Wisedome of Iesus the Sonne of Syrach of Iudith Tobias and Pastor are not in the Canon The same Hierome having mentioned the Booke of Wisedome and Ecclesiasticus and delivered his opinion that it is untruly called the Wisedome of Salomon and attributed to him then addeth That as the Church readeth Iudith Tobias and the Maccabees but receiveth them not â—or Canonicall Scriptures so these two Bookes â—amely the Wisedome of Salâ—mon and Iesus the Sonne of Syrach doth the Church reade for the edification of the pâ—ople not to confirme the authority of any doctrine in the Church Objection The Carthaginian Councel received those Books which you account Apocryphall Answer They received them in Canonem Morum not in Canonem Fidei It is true indâ—ed that Saint Austine and the African Bishops of his time and some other in that Age finding these Bookes which Hierome and others rejâ—ct as Apocryphall to be joyned with the other and together read with them in the Church seeme to account them to be Canonicall but they received them onely into the Ecclesiasticke Canon serving for Example of life and instruction of manners and not into any part of the Rule of Faith or Divine Canon as Saint Austine speaking of the Bookes of the Maccabees distinguisheth saying This reckoning is not found in the Canonicall Scriptures but in other Bookes as in the Maccabees plainely distinguishing betweene the Canonicall Scriptures and the Bookes of the Maccabees Wherein saith he There may be something found worthy to be joyned with the number of those miracles yet hereof will we have no care for that we intend the miracles Divini Canonis which are received in the Divine Canon Of the booke of Iudith he tels us The Iewes never received it into the Canon of Scriptures and withall there he professeth That the Canon of the â—ewes was most Authenticall Touching the bookes of Wisedome and Ecclesiasticus he tels us that They were called Salomons onely for some likâ—nâ—sse of Stile but the Learned doubt whether they bâ—e his Lastly the Councel of Carthage whereat Saint Austine was present Prescribing that no bookes should be read in the Church as Canonicall but such as indeed are Canonicall leaveth out the booke of Maccabees as it appeareth by the Greeke Edition though they have shuffled them into the Latine which argueth suspicion of a forged Canon Now to this ancient evidence of Hierome and Austine the Papists make but a poore Reply Canus saith that Hierome is no rule of Faith and that the matter was not then sufficiently sifièd Bellarmine saith I admit that Hierome was of that opinion because as yet a Generall Councel had decreed nothing touching those bookes and Saint Austin might likewise doubt thereof so that by Bellarmines confession Hierome
Dinooch the Abbot of Bangor a learned man made it appearâ— by divers arguments when Austine required the Bishops to be subject unto him that they ought him no subjection yea they farther added That they had an Arch-bishop of their owne him they ought and would obey but they would not be subject to any forraigne Bishop For such an one belike they held the Pope to be Neither can it bee truly alleadged that they refused his jurisdiction not his religion for Bede saith That they withstood him in all that ever he sayd now surely hee sayd somewhat else besides his Arch-bishopricke and his Pall or else he had beene a very ambitious man Besides in the dayes of Laurentius Austines successour Bishop Daganus denied all Communion And refused to eate bread in the same Inne wherein the Romish Prelates lodged belike then they differed in matters of weight PA. Wherein stood the difference what doe you hence inferre whether were you not beholden to our Austine PRO. The Romans kept their Easter in memorie of Christs Resurrection upon the first Sunday after the full Moone of March the Britanes kept theirs in memory of Christs Passion upon the fourteenth day of the Moone of March on what day of the weeke soever it fell this they did after the example of the Easterne Churches in Asia grounded on a tradition received from Saint Iohn whereby it seemeth the British Church rather followed the custome of the East Church in Asia planted by Saint Iohn and his disciples than the Romane which yet had they been of the Romish jurisdiction they would in all likelyhood have followed now since they followed the Easterne custome it is probable that our first conversion to Christianitie came from the Converted Iewes or Grecians and not from the Romanes and that Britaine was not under their jurisdiction But whencesoever our Conversion were wee blesse God for it Now concerning Austine and the Britaines we acknowledge to Gods glory that howsoever the superfluitie of Ceremonies which Austine brought in might well have been spared yet Austine and his Assistants Iustus Iohn and Melitus converted many to the Faith Neither can we excuse the Britaines for refusing to joyne with Austine in the conversion of the Pagan Saxons yet withall we must needs say they had just reason to refuse to put their necks under his yoke and surely if Austine had not had a proud spirit he would onely have requested their helpe for the worke of the Lord and not have sought dominion over them which makes it very probable that his obtruding the Popes jurisdiction over the Britaines occasioned that lamentable slaughter of the Britaines For when as Austine solicited the Britaines to obey the See of Rome and they denied it then did Ethelbert a Saxon Prince lately converted by Austine stirre up Edelfred the Wild the Pagan King of Northumberland against the Britaines whereupon the Infidel Saxon Souldiers made a most lamentable slaughter of the Britaines assembled at Westchester and that not onely on the Souldiers prepared to fight but on the Monks of Bangor assembled for prayer of whom they slew twelue hundred together with Dinooch their Abbot all which as Ieffery Monmouth saith being that day honoured with Martyrdome obtained a seat in the Kingdome of Heaven And this was the wofull issue of their stickling for jurisdiction over other Churches PA. Baronius calleth the Britaines Schismaticks for not yeelding to the Pope PRO. The Britaine Church had anciently a Patriarke or Primate of her owne like other Provinces to him the other Bishops of his Church were subject and not to the Romane PA. The Nicâ—n Councel condemned the Quartadecimans and in them your Britaines for Hereticks saith Parsons PRO. To his testimonie we oppose the Iudgement of a Frier minorite who expressely calleth them Catholikes Besides had that famous Councell of Sardice held our British Bishops for Hereticks they had never admitted them to give sentence in that Councel as they did for by name Restitutus Bishop of London subscribed thereunto and was likewise pâ—esent at the Synod of Arles in France as Parsons reporteth out of Athanasius Againe those who kept Easter on the fourteenth day precisely were of two sorts Some as Polycrates and other Bishops in Asia kept it so meerely in imitation of Saint Iohn the Evangelist as an ancient but yet an indifferent and mutable rite or tradition and these were condemned for Hereticks and such were our Britaines Others kept the fourteenth day even eo nomine and by vertue of the Mosaicall law holding a necessity of observing that peremptory day as appointed by Mosesâ— now this was the meanes to bring Iudaisme which quite abolisheth Christ and evacuateth the whole Gospel like those who amongst the Galathians urged Circumcision to whom Saint Paul professeth that Christ should profit them nothing And this was it was condemned in the Quarta-decimans but of this the Britaine 's were cleere They should indeed have conformed themselves to the Councels decree yet because that decree was not a decree of Faith no farther then it condemned the Necessitie of observing the fourteenth day and therein condemned the Quartaâ—decimans but a decree of Order discipline and uniformity in the Church when it was once knowne and evident that any particular Church condemned the necessitie of that fourteenth day the Church by a connivencie permitted and did not censure the bare observing of that day The same Councel decreed that on every Lords day from Easter to Whitsâ—ntide none should pray kneeling but standing wherein the Church notwithstanding the decree useth the like connivence not strictly binding every particular Church to doe so so long as there is unitie and agreement in the doctrines of Faith the Church useth not to bee rigorous with particular Churches which are her children for the varietie and difference in outward rites though commanded by her selfe as my learned kinsman Doctor Crakanthorpe hath well observed PA. This odds about keeping Easter was but of small weight PRO. It was so if we consider our Christian libertie in the observation of times yâ—t was it held a matter of that consequence that Pope Victor Excommunicated all the Churches of Asia which differed from him in the observation thereof PA. What conclude you from your Britaines Faith PRO. Vpon the Premises it followeth that seeing the doctrine of the Popes Supremacie over all Churches was no part of the Britaines Faith when Austine came therefore neither was it any part of their Faith in Eleutherius dayes no nor in the Apostles time neither since as Mathew of Westminster saith The Britaines Faith never failed Againe seeing the Britaines Faith as Parsons truly affirmeth was then to wit at Austines comming the same which the Romanes and all Catholike Churches embraced it further followeth that the Popes Supremacie was no materiall part of the Romane Faith or of any Catholikes either in Pope
which their Generall Zisca built as a Ciâ—ie of refuge for his men These Thaborites disâ—ented more from the Church of Rome aâ—d came indeed neerer to the puritie of the Gospell then the rest of the Hussites There is in Cochleus a confession of faith made by one Iohn Pezibram a Bohemian who speaking of these Thaborites recordeth these following to have beene some of their tenets namely That materiall Bread remaines in the Sacrament and herein they were very confident insomuch as Procopius one of their Governours saidâ— That if an hundred Doctors should hold the contrary hee would tâ—ll them to their face they were all mistaken Thâ—y held That the Saints now triumphant are not to be prayed unto Hâ—sse his schollers after his death brake downe Images in Churches and Monasteries Prateolus saith They denied Purgatory and by consequent Prayer for the dead They maintained Communion in both kinds to be administred to the Lay-people They held That Christ is the head of the Church and not the Pope as also that the Pope might erre and that divers Popes had beene Heretikes They held The holy Scriptures to bee the Iudge in point of controversie Lastly Husse was condemned by the Councell of Constance for holding That the Congregation of the Predestinates and Elect were the Church of God which yet was the selâ—e same doctrine which Gregory the Great taught For hee held the Church of God to consist of right Beleevers saying That Christ according to the grace of his fore knowledge hath built his holy Church of Saints which shall continue for ever and that All the Elect are contained within the compasse and circuit of the Church and all the Reprobates are without because they doe but only in outward shew come â—o the kingdome of grace So that Gregory saith as well as Husse That the Elect onely are of the Church Now as learned Doctor Field saith This was the meaning of Wickliffe Husse aâ—d others who say that the Elect only are of the Church defining the Church to bee the multitude of the Elect not for that they thinke them only to pertaine to the Church and no others but because they onely pertaine unto it principally fully effectually and finally and in them onely is found that which the calling of grace whence the Church hath all her being intendeth to wit such a conversion to God as is joyned with finall perseverance whereof others failing and comming short they are only in an inferiour and more imperfect sort said to bee of the Church PA. Did the doctrine of Husse and his followers continue any long time PRO. It continneth even unto this day for Cochleus in the yeare 1â—34 Wisheth that he may see the remainders of the Hussites to râ—turne to the Church and the Germans to cast out all nâ—w sâ—cts whereby it is cleere that Husses doctrine was sensibly and apparantly continued not onely unto the dayes of Luthâ—r who began not to show himselfe till the yeare 1517 but even after his time also PA. Had the Hussites any Bishops or Priests of their owne lawfully calleâ— PRO. Hussâ— and Hâ—erome were Priests themselves and whiles they lived they had Priests and Preachers and after their death theâ—r follower Got them a Bishop who was Suffâ—agan to the Archbishop of Prague and by him thâ—y put iâ—to holy Orders as many Clerkes as they would which thing the Archbishop tooke so ill that hâ—e suspended his Sâ—ffragan But it was not long afâ—er that Conradus the Archbishop himselfe became a follower of Husse likewise and under this Conrad President of the Convocation the Hussites held a Councel at Prague and there they compileda Confâ—ssion of their Faith which the said Archbishop and divers Barons of Bohemia did afterwards resoluâ—ely maintaine Besides Sigismund the Emperour in a treaty with the Bohemians Granted that the Bishops should promote to holy Orders the Bohemians even Hussites which were of the Vniversitie of Prague PA. Were there many that followed Husse and were they of the better sort or onely some meane persons PRO. They were neither few nor base had they beene few what needed the Pope call the great Councâ—l of Constance against them What needed Pope Martâ—n the fift publish and proclaime a Croysado against them promising remission of sinne to all such as did either fight against them or contributed towards the warres Our rich Cardinal Henry Beaufort was sent into Germany by the Pope in the yeare 1429 to raise forces against the Hussites in Bohemia Cochleus saith There were forty thousand German Horsemen gathered together to destroy them but upon their approach the Germans turned their backes and fled not without some secret judgement of God as he thinkes Sylviusâ—aith â—aith There were three severall Armies levied against the Hussites entring Bohemia in three places but as thâ— story saith Non visum hostem fugerunt they â—led before they did see the enemie and againe the second timâ— Priusquam hostis ullus daretur in conspectus foedissima coepta fuga they fled away with shame before any enemy came to fight and left their Tents to the Bohemians insomuch as Iulian Cardinal of Saint Angelo marvailes exceedingly at this their sodaine feare and shamefull flight When Pope Eugenius had sent the same Cardinal Iulian his Legate to the Councel of Basil and presently after sent him commandment to dissolve it Iulian laied open unto him by letters how great an injurie he should doe himselfe and brought many reasons against it among others this that the Bohemians who had beene called thither would by good right say Is not heere the finger of God to bee seene Behold Armies have so often fled from before them and now the Vniversall Church also flâ—â—th behold they can neither be overcome with Armes nor by Lâ—arning this must needs appeare a miracle wrought by God to declare that their opinion is true and ours false Neithâ—r were the Hussites any such meane persons for eâ—en the Nobles of Bohemia sent two solemne Ambasâ—ages to the Councel of Constance in the behalfe of Husse and when the Councell neglected their request and dealt ill with them burning their Pastour Husse notwithstanding his safe conduct given him by the Empâ—rour then indeed they defended themselves undâ—r thâ— conduct of Iohn Zâ—scay their Geâ—erall who at one time led foâ—â—â— thoâ—sand â—ouldiers into the field and had such successe in his enterpâ—ises that Aeneas Sylvius reports of him That eleven times in fought battailes hee returned Conquerour out of the field Yea Cochleus wondereth at the strange successe he had saying That scant any historie of the Greekes or Latins or Hebrewes doth mention such a Generall a Zisca was Now for thâ—ir visible Congregations there needes no other Testimonie than this when the Councel of Constance had robbed them of their Minister Husse and nimmed from them the blessed Cup of
affection as the Scriptures are to be reverenced Is not this to minglâ— water with wine base mettall with good Bullion and so indeed a corrupting of Scripture Besides you have which is fearefull detracted from Gods Word thaâ— which was written with his owne finger to wit the second Commandement against the worship of Images and because the words thereof are sharpe and rip up the heart-strings of your Idolatrie you have therefore omitted them in your Catechismes Prayer bookes and in your Office of the blessed Virgin set foorth by commaund of Pius Quintus and to salve up the matter lest thereby wee should have no more then nine Commaundements you have cut the tenth into two You might well have left the words â—here that Gods people might know there was such a Commandement howsoever they had counted it the first or the second Now as you have detracted so you have added to the rule of Faith by thrusting into the Canon the Apocryphall bookes which Hierome the best languaged of all the Father rejected Lastly you doe not only allow but impose on others a corrupt translation of Scripture to wit the vulgar Latine Edition whereas wee referre our selves to the Originals Now surely wee may better trust an originall Record than a Copie extracted thence and it is more wholesome to drinke at the well-head than at a corrupt and muddie streame Now the Latine Edition which you follow and preferre before all others it is but a Translation it selfe but the Hebrew and Greeke which wee follow are the Well-springs and Originalls Is not this now a manifest corrupting of Scripture to bind all men as your Trent Councell doth that none dare presume to reject this Translation which by your owne men is confessed not to be Saint Hierâ—mes and already showne to be a corrupt one by the learned of our side PA. I looke to have your Professors named PRO. Restore us entire our Evidence which you have marred and made away returne us our Witnesses which you have chained up in your Vatican Library and elsewhere and wee accept your challenge But doe you indeed looke to have our professors named and why so the true Church of God may bee visible though the names of her visible professors from time to time can not be shewed there might be thousands of professors in former ages and yet happily no particular authentick Record of their names now extant or if extant yet so as we cannot come by them Neverthelesse to answere you at your owne weapon I hope to make it cleare that God hath dealt so graciously with his Church as that he hath continually preserved sufficient testimonies of his truth that are ready to be deposed on our side and that successively from age to age so that I may say as Saint Ambrose did in the like case You may well blot out our Letters but our Faith you shall never abolish Papists may conceale our evidence and wipe out the names of our Professors out of the Records but when all is done the Protestants faith is perpetuall Now in that we yeeld thus farre to their importunitie we doe not this as if it were simply necessary for the Demonstration of our Church to produce such a Catalogue of visible Professors in all Ages but onely out of the confidence of the truth of our cause and partly to stop the mouth of our clamorous adveâ—saries For it is Tertullians Rule that A Church is to bee accounted Apostolike if it hold Consanguinitie of Doctrine with the Apostles Now what though we could noâ— successively name such as taught as we doe yet because God hath promised there should be alwaies in the world a true Church having either a larger or smaller number of Prosessors it sufficeth that we are able out of Scripture to demonstrate that we maintaine the same Faith and Religion which the holy Apostles taught and Christ would have to be perpetuall this I say sufficeth to manifest our Succession although all Histories were silent of the names of our Professors Now that I am to speake of the Church in her severall and successive Centuries and Ages to give the Reader some Character and touch thereof I will beginne with the fiâ—st 600. yeares next after Christ wherein ten severall times during the fiâ—st three Centuries the Church was persecuted by Tyrants and almost continually assaulted by Heretikes yet in the end Truth prevailed against Error and Patience overcame her Persâ—cutors This is the time wherein our learned Bishop Iewell challenged the Papists to shew any Orthodoxe Father Councell or Doctor that for the space of those 600 Yeares taught as the present Church of Rome did the like challenge was lately renued by my deare friend that worthy Divine Doctor Featly of Oxford challenging the Iesuits to produce out of good Authors any Citie Parish or Hamlet within 500. yeares next after Christ wherein there was any visible assembly that maintained in generall the Articles of the Trent Councell or such and such points of Popery as at the Conference hee named in particular Now of this period the first 300. yeares thereof were the very flower of the Primitive Church because that in theâ—e dayes the truth of the Gospell was infallibly taught by Christ and his Apostles and that in their owne persons as also by otheâ—s that lived to heare see and converse with those blessed Apostles and disciples of Christ Iesus and this haply made Egesippus an ancient Authour call the Church of those dayes an uncorrupt and virgin Church and yet was this virgin Church ill intreated by such a sowed the tares of errour which yet the carefull husbandman in time weeded up neither indeed for the space of these first 300 could those Tenets of Poperie get any footing their Papall Indulgences were yet unhatched their purgatory fire was yet unkindled it made not as afterwards their pot boyle and their kitchin smoake the Masse was yet unmoulded Transubstantiation was yet unbaked the treasury of Merits was yet unminted the Popes transcendent power was uncreated Ecclesiastickes were unexempted and deposing of Kings yet undreamed of the Lay-people were not yet couzned of the cup Communion under one kinde was not yet in kinde it was not then knowne that Liturgies and prayers were usually and publikely made in a tongue unknowne they did not then worship and adore any wooden or breaden god they worshipt that which they knew and that in Spirit and truth and they called on him in whom they beleeved so did they and so doe wee In a word in the former ages of the Church Satan was bound after the thousandth yeare hee was loosed and after the middle of the second Millenary about the yeare 1370 hee was bound anew Concerning the Churches estate in the next five hundred yeares it grew very corrupt so that of these times we may say as Winefridus borne at Kirton in Devonshire after surnamed Boniface was
they do meane the Pope for the time being Now to this height the Pope came under pretence of the Churches government the Churches discipline racking the spirituall censure to a civill punishment by the Church solemnities in crowning Emperors by his Excommunications Absolutions and Dispensations he rose to his greatnesse of state by the doctrine of workes meritorious Iubilees Pardons and Indulgences hee maintained his State And now I come to shew out of good Authors that in nine severall weighty poynts of Religion the best guides of Gods Church for the space of 1500 yeares have taught as the Church of England doth THE FIRST CENTVRIE From the first yeare of Grace unto the yeare One Hundred Christ Iesus and his Apostles the Protestants Founders PAPIST WHom doe you name in this first Age that taught the Protestant Faith PROTESTANT I name our blessed Saviour Christ Iesus and his Apostles Saint Paul and his Schollers Titus and Timothie together with the Churches which they planted as that of the Romanes Corinthians and the rest These I name for our first Founders and top of our kin as also Ioseph of Arimathea that buried Christs body a speciall Benefactor to the Religion planted in this land These taught for substance and in the positive grounds of religion as we doe in our Articles Liturgies Homilies and Apologies by publike authoritie established in our Church of England Besides these there were but few Writers in this age whose undoubted Works have come to our hands yet for instance sake I name that blessed Martyr of Christ Ignatius Bishop of Antioch who for the name of Iesus was sentenced to bee dâ—voured of wild beasts which hee patiently indured saying I am the Wheat or graine to bee ground with the teeth of beasts that I may be pure Bread for my Masters tooth let fire rackes pulleys yea and all the torments of Hell come on mee so I may winne Christ. Here also according to the Roman Register I might place Dionysius Areopagita whom they usually place in this first Age as if hee were that Denys mentioned in the Actes whereas indeed hee is a post natus and in all likelihood lived about the fourth Age and not in this first for Denys saith That the Christians had solemne Temples like the Iewes and the Chancell severed with such and such sanctification from the rest of the Church whereas the Christians in this fiâ—st age made their assemblies to prayer both in such private places and with such simplicitie as the Apostles did and as the times of persecution suffered them Againe Denys tells us that when hee wrote Monkes were risen and they of credit in the Churches and many Ceremonies to hallow them whereas in the Apostles time when the true Dionysius lived Monkes were not heard of yea Chrysostome saith That when Paul wrote his Epistle to the Hebrewes there was not then so much as any footstep of a Monke PA. I challenge Saint Denys for ours hee was as our Rhemists say all for the Catholikes PRO. Take him as he is and as he comes to our hands hee is not wholly yours but in some things cleane contrary to you as namely in the Sacrament of the Lords Supper wherein you vary from us most Besides hee hath not your sole receiving of the Priest nor ministring under one kind to them who receive nor Exhortations Lessons Prayers in a tongue which the people understand not he hath not your Invocation of Saints noâ— adoration of creatures nor sacrificing of Christ to God nor praying for the soules in purgatory so that in things of substance and not of ceremony onely he is ours and not yours as I hope will appeare by his Writings for we will for the time suppose him to be a Father of this first age although the bookes which beare Saint Denys his name seeme to bee written in the fourth or fifth age after Christ. PAP Can you proove that Christ and his Apostles taught as you doe PRO. Wee have cleare testimonies of Scripture which appoint Gods people to receive the blessed Cup in the Sacrament and to be present at such a divine service as themselves understand wee have expresse command forbidding Image-worship against Invocation of Saints it is said that Abraham knoweth us not and Isaac is ignorant of us and the blessed Angel refused all religious honour and Adoration Likewise against Merit of workes and workes of Super-erogation it is said that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall bee revealed in us and that wee are unproâ—itable servants when we have done all that was commanded us we have but done that which was our dutie to doe and the like PA. You alleadge Scripture and so doe wee yea in some things the Scripture is plaine for us as where it is said This is my Bodie PRO. What though it make for you in shew so doth it for the Anabaptists where it is said that the Christians had all things common you will not hence inferre that because in such an extremitie their charitie for the reliefe of others made things common concerning the use that therefore we should have no property in the goods that God hath given us It is not the shew and semblance of words but the sense thereof that imports the truth Saint Paul sayes of his Corinths Ye are the body of Christ yet not meaning any Transubstantiation of substance but hâ—reof anon in his due place PA. The Scriptures make not for you but as you have translated them PRO. For any point we hold we referre our selves to the Originalls yea wee say further let the indifferent Christian Reader who hath but tollerable understanding of the Latine Tongue compare our English translations with those which your owne men Pagnine Arias Montanus and others have published and they will finde but little countenance for Poperie and namely for Communion in one kind and Service in a strange Tongue which as is already proved hath bene decreed directly contrary to Gods expresse word but let us come to the particulars Of the Scriptures sufficiency and Canon The Church of England holds that Holy Scripture containeth all things necessary to salvation so that theâ—e is no doctrine necessary for our everlasting salvation but that is or may bee drawne out of that Fountaine of truth as being either expressely therein contained or such as by sound inference may bee deduced from thence and this is witnessed by Saint Paul saying that they are able to make us wise unto salvation that the man of God may bee perfited and throughly furnished unto all good workes which they should not bee able to doe if they contained not a perfect doctrine of all such poynts of faith as we are bound to bâ—leeve and duties to bee practised And if it be said that S. Paul speakes of the man of God such an one as
for us Now though Christs Body is not according to his materiall substance wholly and intirely under the outward elements yet the Bread may bee truly termed Christs Body because of a Relative and Sacramentall union and donation of the thing signified together with the Signes worthily received PA. What reason have you to interpret these words figuratively this is my body that is this bread is a signe of my body and not plainely and literally as they sound PRO. Figurative speeches are oftentimes plaine speeches now there be no other Figures or Tropes in the Lords Supper but such as are and alwaies were usuall in Sacraments and familiarly knowne to the Church Now Sacraments must bee expounded Sacramentally and accordingly the words alledged must not bee taken literally but figuratively Christ taking bread and breaking bread said of the same This is my body now this cannot bee properly taken therefore for the right expounding of these words we are necessarily to have recourse to a figurative interpretation and the reason hereof is that common Maxime Disparatum de disparato non propriè praedicatur that is nothing can bee properly and literally affirmed joyntly of another thing which is of a different nature By this rule bread and Christs body cannot bee properly affirmed one of another bread being of a different nature from flesh can no more possibly be called the flâ—sh or body of Christ literally than lead can be called wood and this makes us interpret the words figuratively and wee have in Scripture most manifest places which proove these woâ—ds This is my body to be figuratively taken and understood because in Scripture whensoever the signe as the Bread being called Christ's body hath the name appellation of the thing signified the speech is alwayes tropicall and figurative And this agreâ—th with S. Austiâ—s Rule Sacraments bee signes which often doe take the names of those things which they doe signifie and represent therefore doe they carry the names of the things themselves thus is the signe of the Passeover the Lambe called the Passeover Math. 26.17 Exod. 12.11 27. the Rocke the signe of Christ in his passion is called Christ and the Rocke was Christ 1. Cor. 10 4. Circmmcision the signe of the Covenant called the Covenant and Bapâ—isme the signe of Christs buriall called Christs buriall for so saith S. Augustine that as Baptisme is called Christs buriall so is the Sacrament of the Body of Christ callâ—d his Body Now this shew or semblance of words concludes not that Christ or the Lambe were really the Rocke the Passeover but that these things are meant figuratively it being usuall in Scripture specially in such Sacramentally speeches as this is we are now about to give the name of the thing to that which it betokeneth and so to call Circumcision the Covenant because it is a signe thâ—t betokneth the Covenant and so of the rest Besides the other part of the Sâ—crament to wit This Cup is the New Testament in my blood Luke 22.20 is figurativâ— and not to be literally taken for you your selves sâ—y that Calix or the Cup is there taken for that which is iâ— the cup so that your sâ—lves admit a trope in the institution of this Sacrament PAP If these figurative speâ—ches were true yet I cannot see what argument you can draw from hence or how you can hence prove any thing against our Tenet saith our â—nglish Baron for it is a rule in Divinitie that Theologia Symbolica non est aâ—gumentativa that figurative speeches affoord no certaine proofe in matters of Faith PRO. The zeâ—lous Reverend and learned L. Bishop of Durâ—sme Doctor Morton tells your Baron and his Suggester that upon the no-pâ—oper sense of the words This is my body it must follow that there is no Transubstantiation in your Romish Masse no Corporall presence no râ—all Sacrifice no proper eating no lawfull divine adoration therof and as for the rule that Symbolicall arguments mâ—ke no necessary Conclusions the said learned and reveâ—end Father saith That this makes not against us touching the fiâ—urative woâ—ds of Christ This is my body the position maketh onely against them who extract either a liteâ—all sense out of a parabolicall and figurative speech as Origen did when having râ—ad that scriptureâ— Thâ—re bee some that castrate thâ—msâ—lves for the kingdome of God whâ—ch was but a pâ—rabolicall speech hee did really and thereforâ— fâ—â—lishly castrate himselfe or else when men tâ—râ—e the words of Scripture properly and literally spoken intâ—â— figurative meaningâ— as when Pope Innoâ—ent thâ— third tâ— pâ—oove that his Papall authoritie was above thâ— Impâ—riall aâ—lâ—dged that Scripture Gen. 1. God made two great lights the Sun and the Moone as if the Imperiall like the Moone had borrowed its authoritie from the Papall as from the Sun or as Pope Boniface 8 from those words Luk. 22. Behold here are two swords argued that both the temporall and spirituall sword are in the Pope as he is Vicar of Christ. Now such kinde of Symbolicall reasoning is indeed of no force â—ut by that position was it never forbid whensoever in Scripture the name of the thing signified is attributed to the symbol or signe that then the Symbolicall and Sacramental speech should be judged tropicall But this kind of exposition was alwayes approved of Christ and by his Church so here Christ taking bread and breaking bread which was the symbol and signe of Christs body and saying of the same Bread This is my body the sense cannot possibly bee literall but alâ—ogether figuâ—ative as hath bin shewne by divers â—xamples in Scripture to wit the signe of the passing over called the Passeover the Rock but a signe of Christ called Christ In each onâ— of these the Symbols being a Signe and Figuâ—e the speech must infallibly bee Figurative And therefore Bread being a Figure of Christs Body is called Christs body Figuratively And thus farre our learned Bishop of Duresme Of Images and Prayer to Saints The Church of Rome holds that Images are to bee had and retained and that due honour worship and veneration is to bee given to them The Church of England holds that the Romish doctrine of Adoration of Images and Reliques and also of Invocation of Saints is grounded upon no warraâ—tie of Scripture but rather repâ—gnant to the word of God And so indeed we finde that the Lord in his Morall law hath condemned in gâ—nerall all Imaâ—eâ— and Idols devised by man for worshâ—p and adoration And this Precept being a part of his Morall law it binds us in the state of the new Testament as it did the Israelites of old for in all the Apostles doctrine wee doe not finde that ever this prâ—câ—pt was abâ—ogated so that it bindes Israelites Christians and all PA. If all worship of Images be forbidden Exod. 20. ver 4 5. then all making of them is forbidden for the same precept which saith thou shalt not bow downe
God would receive our prayers Thus he in his mystagogicall Catechismes Answer The learned doe thinke that Cyril of Hierusalem was not Author thereof but one Iohn Bishop of Hierusalem who lived about the yeare 767 a great advocate of Images and indeed it may seeme so by some idle stuffe we find in them as namely where it is said That the wood of the Crosse did increase and multiply in such sort that the earth was full thereof But be it Cyrils of Hierusalem it makes not for the Romists All he saith is this in effect he supposeth that those holy ones with God doe continually pray unto God which prayers he desires God would mercifully heare and grant unto them for the good of his servants here on earth Lastly he sayth mentionem facimus and so did the ancients in their Commemorations mention the Godly Saints deceased and yet without any direct invoking of them And so Saint Austin saith That the Martyrs were named at the Communion Table but yet not invocated by the Priest Saint Austin flatly opposeth invocantur to nominantur nominantur sed non invocantur so that they might be nominated and mentioned as Cyril speakes and yet not at all invocated Objection Saint Hilary saith that by reason of our infirmitie we stand in need of the intercession of Angels and the like he hath upon the 124 Psalme Answer Hilary speakes onely of Angelicall intercession not a word touching invocation or intercession of Saints And if any intercession be intended it is that in generall for the whole Church In the other place upon the 124 Psalme Hilary speaks neither of Saints praying for us nor of praying to them but sayth That the Church hath no small ayde in the Apostles Prophets and Patriarkes or rather in the Angels which hedge and compasse the Church round about with a certaine guard the ayde therefore he meaneth is the example and doctrine of the Saints departed and the ministerie of the Angels Objection The Emperour Theodosius went in Procession with his Clergy and Laity to the Oratories and Chappels and lying prostrate before the Shrines and Monuments of the Apostles and Martyrs he required ayde to himselfe by the faithfull intercession of the Saints Answer The Emperour did not invocate any Saint or Saints at all onely upon that exigent of the rebellion of Eugenius and his complices he repayres to the Shrines and Chappels of the Apostles Martyrs and other holy Saints there he made his prayers unto God in Christ not unto them desiring God to ayde him against his enemies and the rather upon the prayers and intercession of the Saints on his behalfe now invocation followes not presently upon intercession Reply Sozomen telleth us that the Emperour before he joyned battaile he earnestly intreated to be assisted by Saint Iohn Baptist. Rejoynder The learned Bishop Bishop Mountague answereth that the credit of this story may â—e questioned for Socrates and Thâ—odoret elder than Sozomen have it not and Sozomen himselfe hath no greater warrant for iâ— then heaâ—e say 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the report is but who the Author was whaâ— credit it was of is not related But supposing the truth of the story Ruffinus hath the very forme of the Prayer which the Emperour made and there is no mention therein of invocating either Saint or Angâ—l Socrates saith that the Emperor implored Gods assistance and had his desire Theodoret saith that the Eâ—perour prayed to God so that the Emperour had repayre unto God alone without any mediation at all I have consulted with the Originall and there indeed I find that the Emperour being in Saint Iohn Baptist's Church which Theodosius himsâ—lfe had built He called to have Saint Iohn Baptist's assistance in the battaile he did not directly call upon S. Iohn Baptist but he called upon God that he would appoint the Baptist for to aâ—d him But be it that he called upon the Baptist indeed yet this was done in the second place after he had first immediatly called upon God himsâ—lfe Objection Athanasius in his Sermon upon the Annunciation of blessâ—d Virgin sayth to the Virgin Mary Incline thine cares to our prayers and forget not thy people Answer Indeed this speakes home but it is not the true Athanâ—sius but some counterfeits bearing his name and this is confessed by the two Arch pillars of Poperie Bellarmine and Baronius for howsoever Bellarmine to make up his number produce Athanâ—sius for proofe of Saintly invocation yet the same Bâ—llarmine when he is out of the heat of his controversies and is not tied to maintaine â—he invocation of Saints but treateth of other matters then in his Catalogue of Ecclesiasticall wriâ—ers he is of another judgement and saith that this Sermon of Athanasius of the Annunciation of the blessed Virgin seemeth not to be Athanasiusses but some later writeâ—s who lived afâ—er the sixâ—h generall Councel Baronius also is of the same judgement and indeed he that shall consider and wâ—iâ—h what the true Athanasius writes to wit That God onely is to be worshipped that the creature is not to fall downe and worship or supplicate the creature nor to make the Saints being but creatures no creators speciall helpers and opitulators he I say that shall duely weigh these things will easily conceive when he reads this Sermon of the Annunciation that either Athanasius was not constant to his own doctrine which is not to bee imagined or that this Homily alleadged is none of the true Athanasiusses it is so farre different from his other doctrine Objection Bellarmine for proofe of Saintly invocation alleadgeth a place out of Eusebius the testimonie speaketh thus as there it standeth reported out of the thirteenth Booke and seaventh Chapter of his Evangelicall Preparation This we daily doe we honour those heavenly Souldiers as Gods friends we approach unto their Monuments and pray unto them as unto Holy men by whose intercession we professe our selves to be much holpâ—n Answer Eusebius speakes not of particular invocation for particular intercession but of generall mediation of the Saints in heaveÌ„ who pray for Saints on earth in general according to the nature of Communion of Saints without any intercession used to theÌ„ or invocation of them by that other moity of the Church Militant oâ— earth Secondly Eusebiuâ— doth not enlarge his speech to all the Saints departed but unto Martyrs onely whom he calleâ—h Heavenly Souldiers Now the case of Martyrs and other Saints is not equall for in the opinion of the Ancients that of Martyrs was faâ—re above all other depaâ—ted with God as enjoying moâ—e priviledge from God with Christ in glory by some specially enlarged dispensation than they the other holy Saints did as Saint Augustine teacheth 3. Thirdly the place alleadged is taken out of a corrupt translation made by Trapezuntius and afterwards followed by Dadroeus a Doctour of Paris
sonne to doe him the uttermost of his service My good deeds saith Austin are thy ordinances and thy gifts my evill onesâ— are my sinnes and thy judgements Theodoret saith The Crownes doe excell the Fights the rewards are not to be comparâ—d with the labours for the labour is small and the gaine great that is hoped for and therefore tâ—e Apostle called those things that are looked for not wages but glory Rom. 8.18 not wages but grace Rom. 6.23 The same Theodoret saith That things eternall doe not answer temporâ—ll labours in equall poyze Saint Hierome saith If wee consider our owne merits we must despaire And againe When the day of judgement or death shall come all hands shall faile because no worke shall bee found worthy of the justice of God Saint Chrysostome speakes very pathetically Etsi millies moriamur Although saith hee wee die a thousand deaths although wee did performe all vertuous actions yet should wee come short by farre of rendring any thing worthy of those honours which are conferred upon us by God Indeed the Lord rewards good workes but this is out of his bounty free favour and grace and not as of desert Rom. 4.4 In giving the Crowne of Immortality as our reward God crowneth not our merits but his owne gifts and when God crowneth our merits that is good deeds hee crowneth nothing else but his own gifts saith Saint Augustine So that God indeed is become our debtour not by our deservingâ— but by his owne gracious promise God is faithfull who hath made himselfe our debtour saith Austin not by receiving any thing from us but by promising so great things to us whatsoever he promised hee promised to them that were unworthy In a word though hee give heaven propter promissum for his promise sake and because hee will bee as good as his word yet it is not propter commissum for any performance of ours This was the doctrine of old but the Rhemists have taken out a new lesson saying That good works are meritorious and the very cause of salvation so farre that God should be unjust if hee rendred not heaven for the same Now by this that hath beene alleadged the Reader may perceive that besides diverse other worthies of these times S. Augustine the honor of this Age agreeth with us in diverse weighty poynts of religion as also in the matter of Gods free grace and justification insomuch as Sixtus Senensis saith Whil'st Saint Austin doth contend earnestly against the Pelagians for the defence of divine grace he doth seeme to fall into another pit and sometimes attributeth too little to Free-will And Stapleton saith tâ—at Austin haply in his disputation against the Pelagians went beyond all goâ—d measure PA. Saint Austin prayed for the dead to wit for his mother Monica desiring God not to enter into judgement with her PRO. What though hee did so the Examples of Christians which sometimes slip into superstition are no rule for to ordâ—r our life or devotion thereby Besides if hee prayed for eternall rest and remission of sinnes to his deceased mother this was not for that hee doubted shee injoyed them not or that he feared shee indured any Purgatory paines but hee sued for the continuation accomplishment and manifestation thereof at the generall resurrection Yea even then when he prayed so hee saith hee believes that the Lord had granted his request to wit that his mother was out of paine and that God had forgiven her her sinnes Which argueth that it was rather a wish than a Prayer proceeding more out of affection to her than any necessity to helpe her by his Prayers who was then as he perswaded himselfe in a blessed estate so that howsoever Saint Austin at first made a kind of prayer for his mother yet a little after as it were repressing himselfe he saith he believeth that shee is in a blessed state The Letters of Charles the great unto our Off a King of Mercia are yet extant wherein he wisheth That intercessions should be made for Pope Adrian then lately deceased not having any doubt at all saith he but that his blessed soule is at rest but that wee may shew our faithfulnesse and love to our most deare friend In a word Saint Austin's prayer was not as Popish prayers now a dayes are made with reference to Purgatory and therefore it makes nothing against us PAP Did not Saint Austine hold Purgatory PRO. That some such thing should be after this life it is not saith he incredâ—ble and whether it be so it may be iâ—quired and either be found or remaine hidden In another place he leaveth it uncertaine Whether onely in this life men suffer or whether there follow some such temporall judgements after this life so that Saint Austine saith it is not incredible and it may be disputed whether it bee so and perhaps it is so words of doubting and not of asleveration but in other places he gives such reasons as overthrow it The Catholike Faith saith he resting upon divine authority believes the first place the kingdome of heaven and the second hell a third wee are wholly ignorant of yea wee shall finde in the Scriptures that it is not Neither speakes he onely of places eternall that are to continue for ever besides he there purposely disputes against Limbus Pucrorum and rejects all temporary places not acknowledging any other third place and elsewhere he saith There is no middle place hee must needes bee with the devill that is not with Christ and againe Where every man 's owne last day finds him therein the world's last day wâ—ll hold him Thus farre Saint Austine according to the Scriptures which acknowledges but two sorts of people Children of the kingdome and children of the wicked faithfull and unfaithfull Mâ—th 13.38 And accordingly two places after this life Heaven and Hell Luke 16.23 Mark 16.16 Neither doth the Scripâ—ure any where mention any temporary fire after this life the fire it speakes of is everlasting and unquenchable and so doth Austine take it and as for that fiâ—e which Saint Paul mentions It is not a Purgatory but a Probatorie fire PA. Master Brerely hath set forth Saint Austines Religion agreeble to ours PRO. The Learned on our side have confuted him and have prooved out of Saint Austines undoubted writings that he agreed with the Church of England in the maine poynts of Faith and Doctrine And so I come from Fathers to Councels and first to the sixth African Councel held at Carthage and another at Milevis both which denied Appeales to Rome Now the case was this Apiarius a Priest of Africa was for his scandalous life excommunicated by Vrban his Diocâ—san and by an African Synod Apiarius thus censured fled to Pope Zozimus who restored him to his place absolved him this he did pretending that some Canon of the Nicen Councell had established Appeales
the Protestants PRO. Master Bedel answereth Master Wadesworth that had it pleased God to have opened his eyes as hee did Elisha's servants hee might have seene that there were more on our side than against us Besides as Master Bedel saith the Romane Doctors may bring in whole armies of witnesses on their side when they change the question and prove what no body denyes as when the question is whether the Pope have a monarchy over all Christians an uncontrollable jurisdiction and infallibility of judgement Bellarmine alleadgeth a number of Fathers Greek and Latine to prove onely that Saint Peter had a primacie of honour and authority which is farre short of that supremacie which the Popes now claime and which is the question So also to prove the verity of Christs body and blood in the Lords Supper Bellarmine spends the whole booke in citing the Fathers of severall Ages To what purpose when the question is not of the truth of the presence but of the manner whether it bee to the teeth or belly which hee in a manner denyes or to the soule and faith of the receiver So also Bellarmine for the proofe of Purgatory alleadgeth a number of Fathers as Ambrose Hilarie Origen Basil Lactantius Ierome but farre from the purpose of the question and quite beside their meaning for they spake of the fire at the end of the world as Sixtus Senensis saith and Bellarmine cites them for the fire of Purgatory before the end In like sort for proofe of Saintly invocation Bellarmine musters up thirty Fathers of the Greeke and Latine Church now here is an army of ancients able to fright some untrained souldiers but it is but like the army that troubled the Burgundians Who lying neere to Paris and looking for the battaile supposed great Thistles to have beene Launces held upright or like those souldiers mentioned by Plutarch in the life of Agesilaus who bombasted and embossed out their coates with great quarters to make them seeme bigge and terrible to the enemy but after they were overthrowne and slaine in the field Agesilaus caused them to be stript and bid his souldiers behold their slender and weerish bodies of which they stood so much in feare whiles they looked so big upon their enemies the like may be sayd of Bellarmine's forces they keepe a great quarter but when they come to joyne issue for it they are soone defeated For of the Fathers alleadged by Bellarmine thâ—re be as is already showne in the fifth Age seven of the thirty which bee no Fathers but post-nati punies to primitive Antiquity Eight of them bee justly suspected not to bee men of that credite as that their depositions may bee taken Two or three of them are wrong cited by a writ of errour being either ignorantly or wilfully mis-translated Seven others of them speake like Poets Oratours Panegyrists not dogmatically but figuratively with rhetoricall compellations expressing their votes and desires The other sixe that remaine they speake of Intercession in generall not of Invocation in paâ—ticular of some few pâ—oples private practice but not of the Chuâ—ches Office Agend or Doctrine generally taught practised and established Besides as Master Moulin saith among so many Authours as might fill a house it is an easie matter to finde somewhat to wrest to a mans owne advantage and never to bee perceived because few men have these bookes and of them that have them few doe reade them and of those that reade them fewest of all doe understand them But that wee may the better conceive the meaning of the testimonies and allegations of the Fathers let us observe such cautions as the learned have set downe for our helpe herein The Fathers writings bee either Dogmaticall Polemicall or Popular In their Dogmaticall and Doctrinall wherein they set downe positive Divinity they are usually very circumspect in their Polemickes and Agonistickes earnest and resolute in their Homilies and popular discourse free and plaine In their conâ—roversall writings it fall's out sometimes that through heat of disputation whiles they oppose one errour they slâ—p inâ—o the opposite like one that labouring to make a crooked thing straight bends it the quite contrary way thus Hierome whâ—les he affronts such aâ— impugn'd virginity himselfe quarrels at lawfull Matrimony otherwise the Fathers in their Polemiques whiles they keepe themselves close to the question in hand their tenets are ever most sound and direct In their Homilies and exhortations to the people they stâ—ive to move affections so that they runne forth into figuâ—es of Rhetorick and keepe not themselves close to points of doctrine Of this kind of speech Sixtus Senensis gives a good Rule to wit that Their sayings are not to be urged in the rigour because that Orator like they speake Hyperbolically and in excesse and he gives instance in Chysostome as well he might for in the point of the Sacrament he used such Rhetoricall straines as hath beene noted in the fifth Centurie and Hierome saith of himselfe I have played the Oratour in manner of a declamation to wit by way of amplification and exaggeration Saint Hierome observes That before that Southerne Devill Arius arose at Alexandria the ancients spake certaine things in simplicitie and not so warily Saint Austine makes the like observation touching Pelagius how that the Fathers ante mota certamina Pelagiana extended the power of Free-will above measure having then no cause to feare there being no Pelagius then risen up in the world an enemie of grace and advancer of nature Vntill the Pelagians beganne to wrangle the Fathers saith Saint Austine and he gives instance in Saint Chrysostome tooke lesse hâ—ed to their speeches to wit in the poynt of Originall sinne and free-will but after that the Pelagian heresie arose it made us saith the same Austine Multò vigilantiores diligentioresque much more diligent and vigilant in scanning of this point In like sort the Doctors that lived in the middle ages what time Popery was not yet growne to his height they spoke not so warily in the poynt of justification and grace yet they left not the truth of God without a witnesse 1 Tim. 6.12 We must not take up such customes as were sometimâ—s used in the Church and make presidents of them as if they had beene warranted by the Church and the Faâ—hers then living for the Fathers being taken up wiâ—h weightier matters winked at other faults and were driven to beare with what they could not redresse Saint Austine complaineth of the superstition of certaine Christians that in Church yards did kneele before the Tombes of the Martyrs and before the painted Histories of their sufferings I know many saith he who worship Sepulchers and Pictures I know many who drinke most excessively over the dead The good Bishops saw these malladies in their flocks and desired to reforme them but they feared lest the rude people should hinder
a thing remarkable in Scotus although he doth not approve the same Cassander saith It is sufficiently manifest that the Vniversall Church of Christ untill this day and the Westerne or Romane Church for more then a thousand yeares aftâ—r Christ did exhibit the Sacrament in both kinds to all the members of Christs Church at least in publike as it is most evident by innumerable testimonies both of Greeke and Latine Fathers So that the barring of the Lay-people of the Cup came not into the Church by any publike decree till the Councel of Constance which was held in the yeare 1414 some two hundred yeares agoe Fisher Bishop of Rochester saith that of Purgatorie there is very little or no mention amongst the ancient and that the Grecians doe not believe it to this day In like sort their Latine service which Pope Vitalian brought in is not of Primitive antiquitie for it was not generally put upon the Church until the yeare 666. which is the number of the name of the beast mentioned in the Apocalypse Revel 13.18 and found out by Irenaeus to arise out of the numerall letters of the word Lateinos now this name 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 wel suites with the Pope whose Faith and Church is the Romish or Latine Church and his publike Service in Latine and his translation of Scripture in Latine Now touching prayer to Saints It is true that such as had lapsed and fallen in time of persecution were wont to implore the prayers of Maâ—tyrs and Confessours imprisoned for the Gospel that by their interceding for thâ—m they might procure some ease or relaxation of such canonicall censures as were enjoyned them by the Church Cyprian was of opinion that the Saints aftâ—r death remembred theiâ— old friends here as having takâ—n fresh and particular notice of their severall states votes and necessities and hence grew that compact betwixt Cyprian and Cornelius that whether of them went to heaven before the other he should pray for his surviving friend Now this soliciting of Martyrs before their deaths brought in the next Age a custome to call upon them after their deaths yet so as they did not directly invote them For so it was for the better preservation of the memory of Saints and Martyrs they had their Commemoration dayes and were wont to meet at the Tombes and Monuments of Martyrs where they kept their anniversary and yearely solemnities and made speeches in their praise and commendations and in these their orations they spoke to the deceased as if they had beene living and present there but these were onely straines of rhetoricke Figures and Apostrophee's rather Declamationes rhetorum flowers of rhetoricke than Definitiones Theologorum decisions of Divines In this kind Gregorie Nazianzene saith Heare O thou soule of great Conâ—â—antius if thou hast any understanding of these things and as many soules of the Kings before him as loved Christ. The like he hath in his funerall oration which he made upon his Sister Gorgonia where he speakes thus unto her If thou hast any care of the things done by us and holy soules receive this honour from God that they have any feeling of such things as these receive this oration of ours in stead of many and before many funerall obsequies He speakes doubtfully and faintly If thou hast any sense or apprehension hereof and if you be affected with these things it seemeth hee thought that the defunct had not ordinarily notice of things done on earth neither will it serve to say as Bellarmine doth that Si is not dubitantis but affirmantis not a terme of doubting but of asseveration as that of Saint Paul If thou count me therefore a partner receive him as my selfe For there is no man but if he reade these places unpartially Heare if there be any sense and Heare if God grant it as a priviledge to soules deceased to have sense of these things but he will conceive that Si is not put for For or quoniam or as a note of affirming but as a note of doubt at least in the parties that spake it Hitherto the Saints were rather Vocati called unto as comprecants to joyne their prayers with the living than Invocati Directly called upon or prayed unto yet in processe of time the prayers made to God to heare the Intercessions of the Saints were changed into prayers to the Saints to heare our intercessions themselves For wee deny not but that among the ancient writers there are some places found which speake of the Intercession of the Saints there are also wishes found that were made by living men that the Saints would pray for them but this is not the difference betwixt us whether the Saints pray for us but whether wee must pray unto and call upon them for wee grant that the Saints in heaven doe pray for Saints on earth in generall according to the nature of communion of Saints but their intercession for us in generall will not inferre our invocation of them in particular There are also in ancient Writers pâ—rticular examples to bee found of some that ouâ— of their owne private devotion have called upon Saints but thiâ— cannot raise up a tenet in Religion to bind the Church either for doctrine or practice for what one or two shall doe carried away with their owne devout affection having zeale hap'ly not according to knowledge is not straight way a Ruâ—e of the Church nor one of the Churches Agends The thing wee stand upon is this that there were not any Collects nor set formes nor any diâ—ect Invocation of Saints put into the Common-service and publicke Liturgie of the Westerne Church untill the dayes of Gregory the Great or there abouts sixe hundred yeares after Christ so that their Saint-invocation is not so ancient as they would beare the world in hand In a word there is much difference betweene the ancients and moderne Romists herein for in the compellations which the ancients used they pleaded onely Christs merits making the Saints high in Gods favour competitioners to the throne of grace with the Saints living on earth but not content herewith the Schooles afterwards held meritorious Invocation of Saints wherein the Saints owne merits were brought in and pleaded Wee pray unto the Saints saith the Master of the Sentences That they may intercede for us that is to say That their merits may helpe us and Biel speakes to the same effect THE SIXTH CENTVRIE From the yeare of Grace 500. to 600. PAPIST WWhat say you of this sixth age PROTESTANT Quod dies â—egat dies dabit what one age affords not another doth and dies dedit I trust wee have got the day in the two last justly stiled the learned Ages The Reader is not now in the close of the first 600 yeares to expect so full and frequent Testimonies as formerly such as wee find wee produce For God hath not left himselfe without witnesse Of
Eleutherius time or in the Apostles dayes for had it beene so the Britaines who changed not their Faith but kept still the substantiall grounds thereof would likewise have held the Popes Supremacie yea doubtlesse those Catholike Bishops of Britaine had they but knowne and believed as now it is given out the Pope to be Iure divinâ— by divine right and Gods appointment the Monarch of the whole Church they would have yeelded obedience to Austine and in him to the Pope but they opposed it as being urged by those of the Romish faction so that it was not then as now it is made one of the chiefe heads of the Romish Faith for now a dayes men are made to believe that out of the Communion of the Romane Church nothing but hell can be looked for and subjection to the Bishop of Rome as to the visible Head of the Vniversall Church Is required as a matter necessary to salvation But this was no part nor Article of the ancient Britaines Creed and therefore they withstood it and if it were no Article of Faith them surely it is none now a dayes To close up this point hereby is overthrowne the maine Article of the Romane Creed For if as the Papists say and sweare there be no salvation out of the Romane Communion then is the case like to goe hard with the one thousand two hundred British Monks of Bangor stiled Saints and Martyrs that died out of the Roman Communion and yet within the Communion of Saints But this Grand Imposture of the now Romane Church is notably discovered by the learned and zealous Bishop of Coventrie and Lichfield Doctor Morton now Lord Bishop of Durham My conclusion shall be this out of the holy Catholike Church of the Creede there is no salvation but out of the fellowship of the Romane Church there hath beene and is salvation as appeares in the case of these our British Martyrs therefore the present Romane Church is not as it is pretended the Catholike Church of the old Creede but a particular of the new Trent Creede THE SEVENTH CENTVRIE From the yeare of Grace 600. to 700. PAPIST PRoceede to name your men PROTESTANT I name Gregory the great whom Bellarmine usually placeth in this seventh Age for that hee lived unto the yeare 605 what time as Trithemius saith he dyed Now also lived his Scholler Isidore Bishop of Sivil in Spaine usually termed Isidore the younger Now also by Bellarmine's account though others make him much ancienter lived Hesychius Bishop of Hierusalem with other Worthies as namely the Britaines of Wales as also Saint Aidan and Finan now also was held the sixth Generall Councell PA. I challenge Saint Gregory hee is ours PRO. Gregorie indeed lived in a troublesome time whiles the Goths and Vandals overranne Italie and Rome was besieged by the Lombards There was then also great decay in knowledge and scarcity of able men to furnish the Church withall and few in Italie as Baronius saith that were skilled both in Greeke and Latine Yea Gregory himselfe proâ—esseth that hee was ignorant of the Greeke tongue yet was he stâ—led the great and yet not so great as godly and modest It is commonly said of him That he was the last of the good Bishops of Rome and the first of the bad ones That he was the first Pope and leader of the Pontifician companies and the last Bishop of Rome Hee was supeâ—stitious in diverse things hee lived in a declining age and as in time so in some truths came short of his predecessours yet he taught not as your Trent Papists doe but joyned with us in diverse weighty poynts of Religion Of the Scriptures sufficiencie and Canon Gregory held the Scriptures sufficiencie saying Whatsoever serveth for edification is contayned in the volume of the Scriptures wherein are all resolutions of doubts fully and plentifully to be found they being like a full Spring that cannot be drawne drye Hee approved the vulgar use of the Scriptures exhorting a Lay-man to study them because saith hee they bee as it were Gods Letter or Epistle to his Creature wherein he reveales his whole minde to him And lest any complaine of the difficulty of the Scriptures he compares them to a River wherein there are as well shallow Foords for Lambes to wade in as depths for the Elephant to swim in And Isidore saith that the Scripture is common to petty Schollers and to Proficients And whereas Heretickes use to alleadge Scripture for themselves Gregory saith they may bee confuted by Scripture it selfe even as Goliath was slaine with his owne sword Gregory held the bookes of Maccabees Apocryphall Wee doe not amisse saith he if wee produce a testimony out of the booke of Maccabees though not Canonicall yet published for the iâ—struction of the Church And Occham accordingly reports Gregories judgement saying The booke of Iudith Tobias the Maccabees Ecclesiasticus and Wisedom are not to bee received for the confirmation of any doctrine of Faith Isidore saith In these Apocryphall although there be some truth to be found yet by reason of the many errours therein they are not of Canonicall authâ—rity Of Communion under both kindes and number of Sacraments Saint Gregory in his Dialogues if they be his tells us of some that were going to Sea some whereof happily were Lay-men carryed with them the consecratâ—d body and bloud of the Lord in the Ship and there received it And againe His body is there recâ—ived his flesh is there divided for the peoples salvation his bloud is not now powred out upon the hands of Infidels but into the mouth of the Faithfull Hee speakes expressely of the Faithfull and of the people And in his Homily touching the Passeover he saith What is meant by the bloud of Christ you have now learned not by hearing of it but by drinking of it which bloud is then put on both posts when it is drawne in both by the mouth of the body and of the heart Herein Gregory resembles the partaking of Christ's bloud in the Eucharist to the bloud of the Paschall Lambe in the twelfth of Exodus striken upon both poâ—ts of the doore thereby noting the mouth and the heart each whereof after their manner receive Christ for with the mouth and corporally wee receive the wine which is the Sacrament of his bloud and with our heart and by faith we receive the thing Sacramentall the bloud it selfe Besides hee speakes expressely of drinking and the termes hee useth hauritur and perfunditur That Christ's bloud is shed and taken as a draught demonstrate that he speaks not of partaking Christ's bloud as it is joyned to his body and inclosed in his veines but as severed from it as my worthy and learned friend Doctor Featly hath observed Isidore saiâ—h The fourth prayer is brought in for the kisse of Peace that all bâ—ing reconciled by charity may
taught the same doctrine in other books also to wit De Nativitate Christi and de Animâ which are to be seene in the Libraries of the Cathedrall Church of Sarisburie and Bennet Colledge in Cambridge as the same Bishop Vsher observes PA. Was Bertram a learned man and of a good liâ—e PRO. Trithemius the Abbot gives him a large commendation For his excellent learning in Scripture his godly life his worthy Bookes and by name this of the Body and Bloud of Christ. Clodius de Sanctes â—aith Hee is put in the Catologue of Ecclesiasticall Writers for one Catholike in life and doctrine and your Brerely saith That ancient Catholike Writers doubt not to honour Bertram for a holy Martyr of their Church Now are wee come to our famous countrey-man Scotus much what of Bertrams standing and both of them in favour with Charles unto whom as Bertram Dedicated his Treatise of the Sacrament so also Ioannes Scotus wrot of the same argument and to the same effect that Bertram had done Bellarmine saith That Scotus was the first who in the Latine Church wrot doubtâ—fully of the reall presence It is indeed their fault that we have not his Booke yet may wee presume that he wrot positively neither doe we any where find that his booke of the Sacrament was condemned before the dayes of Lanfrancke who was the first that leavened the Church of England with this corrupt doctrine of the carnall presence so that all this while to wit from the yeare 876 to 1050 he passed for a good Catholike PA. Was Scotus a man of that note PRO. He was as Possevine saith Scholler to Bede Fellow-pupill with Alcuinus and accounted one of the founders of the Vniversitie of Paris and in the end dyed like a Martyr For after that he came into England and was publike Reader in Oxford by the favour of King Alfred he retired himselfe into Malmsbury Abbey and was there by his owne Schollers stabbed to death with Pen-knives and this was done saith Bale and others Fortassis non sine Monachorum impulsâ— haply not without the Monks procurement being murdered by his Schollers whiles he opposed the carnall presence which then some private persons began to set on foot By his birth he was one of the Scottish or Irish nation and is sometime called Erigena sometime Scotigena He was sirnamed Scotus the Wise and for his extraordinary learning in great account with our King Alfred and familiarly entertained by Charles the Great to whom he wrote divers letters In a word there is an old homely Epitaph which speakes what this Scotus was Clauditur hoc tumulo Sanctus Sophista Ioannes Qui ditatus erat jà m vivens dogmate miro Martyrio tandem Christi conscendere regnum Quoâ— meruit sancti regnant per saecula cuncti Vnder this stone Lyes Sophister Iohn Who living had store Of singular Lore At length he did merit Heaven to inherit A Martyr blest Where all Saints rest Or thus Here lyes interr'd Scotus the Sage A Saint and Martyr of this Age. Of Images and Prayer to Saints Ionas Bishop of Orleance who wrote against Claudius bishop of Turin in the defence of Images holds that The Images of Saintâ— and Stories of divine things may bâ—e painted in the Church not to be worshipped but to be an oâ—nament and to bring into the minds of simple people things done and past But to adore the Creature or to give it any part of divine honour we count it saith he a vile wickednesse detesting the doâ—r thereof as worthy to be accursed It is flâ—t impiete saith the same Ionas out of Origen to adore any save the Father Sonne and Holy Ghost Agobardus bishop of Lyons saith That the Ancients they had the pictures of the Saints but it was for historie sake and not for adoration and that none of thâ— ancient Catholicks haply thought that Images are to be worshipped or adored And the Orthodoxe Fathers for avoiding of superstition did carefully provide that no pictures should bee set up in Churches lest that which is worshipped should be painted on the walls Rhemigius saith That neither Images nor Angels are to be adored and Walasfridus Strabo would not have divine honour given to ought that is made by us or any other Creature Now what say the Papists to these Testimonies Baronius yeelds us Walafridus Strabo Ionas bishop of Orâ—leance Hincmarus Archbishop of Rhemes and saith That they foâ—sooke the received opinion of the Church and yet they were ever held sound Catholicks Bellarmine saith That Ionas was overtaken with Agobard his errour and other bishops of France in that Age and therefore puts in a Caveat that Ionas must bee read warily So that by their owne confession the learnedst and famousest men of this Age stand for us in this point this makes them seeke to suppresse such testimonies as are given of them Papirius Massonus set forth this booke of Agobards and delivers the argument therof to be this Detecting most manifestly the errours of the Greciâ—ns touching images pictures he to wit bishop Agobard denies tâ—at they ought to be worshipped which opinion all we Catholicks do allow and follow the testimony of Gregory the great concerning them Now this passage the Spanish Inquisitors in their expurgatorie Index Commanded tâ— bee blotted out and this is accordingly performed by the Divines of Collen in their late corrupt Edition of the great Bibliothek of the ancienâ— Fathers To close up this poynt Charles the Great was seconded by his Sonne Lewis the Godly for by his appointment the Doctors of France assembled at Paris in the yeare 842 and there condemned the adoration of Images It is not strange saith Ambrose Ansberâ—us that our prayers and teares are not offered up unto God by us but by our High Priest since that Saint Paul exhorts us to offer up the Sacrifiâ—e of Praise unto God Haymo upon those words of Isay 〈◊〉 enim Pater noster Thou O Lord art our Father Isay. 6â— ver 16. â—aith Et rectè solum invocamus ac dâ—p ecamur te And we doe right onely to invocate thee and to make our supplication to thee Of Faith and Merit Claudius Scotus saith that Faith alone saveth us because by the works of the Law no man shall be justified yet he addeth withall this caution Not as if the works of the Law should be contemned and without them a simple faith so he calleth that solitary faith which is a simple faith indeed should bee desired but that the works themselves should be adorned with the Faith of Christ. Rhemigius saith That in truth those onely are happy who are freely justified of grace and not of merit Haymo saith Wee are saved by Gods grace and not our owne merits for we have no merits at all Ambros. Ansbertus expounding that place Revel 19.
answere God forbid it should be so God forbid it should bee so you have judged well once said the Roode and to change that againe is not good Now this Oracle made for Saint Dunstan and against the Priests who said this was but a subtile tricke of the Monks in placing behind the wall a man of their owne who through â— Tâ—unke uttered those words in the mouth of the Roode the matter therefore came againe to sâ—anning the Prelats and the States met at Cleve in Wiltshire where after hot and sharpe Disputation on either side a heavie mischance fell out for whether through the weakenesse of the Foundation or the overpresse of weight or both The upper Lâ—ft where the Councell sate fell downe and many of the People were hurt and some slaine outright But Dunstan the Monkes Prolocutor remained unhurt For the Post whereon his Chaire stood remained safe By this fall fell the cause of the Secular Priests and they of Dunstans side thought these rotten joysts foundation enough whreon to build their Prohibition of Marriage But Henrie Archdeacon of Huntington interprets this casualtie more probably To be a signe from God that by their Treason and murder of their King who was slaine the yeare after they should fall from Gods favour and be crushed by other Nations as in the event it prooved And thus did Dunstan by his fayned Miracles seduce King Edgar to drive out the Secular Priests whâ—re yet Dunstan haply thought not to thrust married men out of the Clergie but to thrust married Clergie men out of Cathedrall Churches because they â—equired a daily attendance as the Learned bishop Doctor Hall hath observed Howsoever it fell out it is worth the observing that the Clergy pleaded Praescription for themselves for so their owne Monke of Malmesbury hath recorded their plea they alleadged saith he That it was a great shâ—me that these upstart Monks should thrust oâ—t the ancient possessors of those places that this was neither pleasing to God who gave them that long continued habitation nor yet to any good man who might justly feare the same hard mâ—asure which was offered to them Mathew of Westminster speaking of Pope Gregorie the seaventh saith that He râ—moved married Priests from their function a new example and as many thought inconsiderately prejudicialâ— against the judgement of the holy Fathers And Henrie of Huntington saith Archbishop Anselme held a Synod at London wherein hee forbad wives to the Priests of England before not forbidden Was not this now an Innovation Besides we find that in King Edmunds reigne a West Saxon Prince before the dayes of Edgar or Dunâ—tan bishop Osulphus with Athelme and Vlricke Laicks thrust out the Monks of Evesham and placed Canons married Priests in their roome And afteâ—wards when not onely the meaner sort but the Nobles and great ones â—ided even then also Alferus a Mercian Duke favouring the cause of married Priests cast out the Monks and restored againe the ancient revenewes to the Clerks and it seemes they were the ancient owners and others but incommers inasmuch as divers Cathedrall Churches originally were founded in married Cleargy-men and afterwards translated from them to Monks as appeares by that which the Monks of Worcester wrote under their Oswald Archbishop of Yorke Per me fundatus Fuit ex Clericis Monachatus That is By me were Monks first founded out of Cleâ—ks So that the Monks were not the first possessors but came in by such as Dunstan who wrought with that good King Edgar by dreames visions and miracles mostly tending to Monkery as namely that When the Devill in the likenesse of a faire woman tempted Dunstan to lâ—st he caught him by the nose with an hot paire of tongs and made him roare out for mercie that Eastwardâ— That Dunstans harpe hanging upon the wall played by 〈◊〉 selfe the tune of the Anthem Gaudent in coelis animae Sanctorum By the meanes of this Dunstan and his Cousins Athelwold and Oswald King Edgar was set on worke for the building of religious houses wherein he surpasâ—ed Charles the Great for whereas he built as many as there be letters in the Alphabet or A. B. C. King Edgar as appâ—ares by the Chartâ—r of the foundation of Worcester Church he built almost as many as there be Sundayes in the yeare I have made saith he 47 Monasteries and I intend if God grant life to make them up fiftie which seemes to be the number that Dunstan set him for his penance THE ELEVENTH CENTVRIE From the yeare of Grace 1000. to 1100. PAPIST YOu said of the last Age that Satan was let loose was he bound in this PROTESTANT Hee that brake loose in the former tyrannâ—zed in this for now those two great Enemies of the Church the Pope and the Turke the one in the East and the other in the West began to rise to their greatnesse about the yâ—are 1075 lived Pope Hildebrand who forbad marriage and deposed Kings from their lâ—wfull thrones so that for his doctrine the Churches did ring of him for an Antichrist In their Sermons saith Aventine boâ—n about the yeare 1466 they declared him to be Antichâ—ist that under the title of Christ he playd the part of Antichrist That he sits in Babylon in the Temple of God and is advanced above all that is called God as if he were God he glorifieth that he cannot erre This fine man denyes those Priests which have lawfull wives to be Priests at all in the meane time he admits to the Altar Whoremongers Adulterers Incestuous persons and afterwards Everard Bishop of Saltzburg in Germanie in an assembly at Regenspurge spake thus of the Pope Hildebrand under colour of Religion layd the foundation of Antichrist's kingdome thus doth that child of perdition whom they use to call Antichrist in whose forehead is written the name of blasphemie Revel 13.2 I am God I cannot erre he sits in the Temple of God and beareth rule far and neere Now began the Croisier staffe to beate downe Crownes and Scepters when Hildebrand deposed the Emperour Henry the fourth and yet this fact of his was opposed and condemned by divers worthy Councels Bishops and Historians both in France and Germany and the like Papall Vsurpations Appeales and Investitures were also resisted in England Hubert your Legate saith William the Conquerour in his letter to Gregory the seventh came unto me warning me from your Holinesse that I should doe fealty to you and your successors as for fealty I neither would doe it to you neither will I because I neither promised it my selfe nor doe I find that my predecessors have done that to your predecessors When Anselme an Italian was chosen Archbishop of Canterbury he craved leave of king William the second to goe to Rome to receive his Pall of Pope Vrban wherewith the King greatly offended answered That no Archbishop nor bishop in
his realm was subject to the Court of Rome or the Pope and that he had that libertie in his realme that the Emperour had in his Empire Anselme therefore was accused of high treason and being still desirous to goe to Rome the King told him That if hee would promise and sweare neither to goe nor Appeale to Rome for any affaires whatsoever he should then well and peaceably enjoy his Bishopricke if not that it should be free for him to passe the Seas but never to returne as the Monke of Saint Albans reports the matter Now also there arose great contention about the carnall presence of Christ in the Sacrament under Pope Victor and Nicholas the second Hildebrand being the brand that kindled it making Berengarius subscribe to their Tenet That all the faithfull in the Sacrament doe really teare with their teeth the body of Christ which position neverthelesse in these dayes is with them accounted hereticall And to say the truth they really teare the body of Christ who by their ambition doe miserably teare in pieces the Church of Christ. Now to proceede there lived in this Age Fulbertus bishop of Chartres Anselme of Laon Author of the Interlineall Glosse Theophylact Archbishop of the Bulgarians a great follower of Chrysostome and indeed his Epitomizer or Abbreviator and our Anselme Archbishop of Canterbury a man of speciall note in this Age. For as the Monke of Malmsbury reports in the Councel at Barre when the Greekes disputed against Pope Vrban so eagerly against the procession of the Holy Ghost that the Pope was at a Non plus remembring himselfe that Anselme was in the Councel he cried aloud before the whole Councel Pater Magister Anselme ubi es Oh my Father and Master Anselme where are you come now and defend your Mother the Church and when theâ— brought him in presence among them Pope Vrban said Includamus hunc in orbe nostro quasi alterius orbis papam Let us inclose him in our Circle as the Pope of the other world Now also lived Oecumenius Radulphus Ardens and Berengarius And now let us see what these good men and â—â—ue Catholâ—cke witnesses can say to the matter in quâ—stion Of the Scriptures suâ—ficiencie and Canon Saâ—nt Paul saith of the Scriptures that They are able to make us wise unto salvation that the man of God may bee peâ—fited thorowly furnished unto all good workes That the man of God saith Oâ—cumenius may bee not onely partaker after a vulgar manner of every good worke but perfect and compleate by the doctrine of the Scripâ—uâ—e And Anselme in his Commentarie upon this place saith They are able to make thee sufficiently learned to obtaine eternall salvation Petrus Cluniacensis Abbot of Clugin abutting on these times for he was saith Bellarmine of the same standing with Saint Bernard who was borne in this Age â—ut flourished about the yeare 1130 after the recitall of the canonicall bookes saith that There are besides the Authenticall bookes â—ixe others not to be rejected as namely Iudith Tobias Wisdome Ecclesiasticus and the two bookes of Maccabees which though they attaine not tâ— the high dignitie of the former yet they are received of the Church as containing necessary and profitable doctrine Of Communion under both and number of Sacraments Theophylact sharply reproves those who delighted in drinking alone and quaffing by themselves saying to such How dost thou take thy cup alone considering that the dreadfull Chalice is alike delivered unto all The Normans saith Mathew Paris thâ— morning before they fought with Harald strengthned themselves with the body and bloud of Christ. Hildebert B. of Mans â—â—lates and approves that Canon of the Councel of Brachara which condemneth the delivering of the bread sopt in the wine to the Laitie for the whole CoÌ„munion It is the manner saith Hildebert in your monasteries to give the Sacramentall bread to none but dipt in the wine which custome we find is not taken either from the Lords institution nor out of authencall constitutions Now they that misliked the receiving of the bread dipt in wine how would they have beene pleased with a dry feast for of the two it is better to receive the bread dipt in wine than the bread and no wine at all Fulbertus shewes us the way of Christian Religion Is to believe the Trinitie and veritie of the Deitie and to know the cause of his Baptisme and in whom duo vitae Sacramenta the two Sacraments of our life are contained Anselme mentions but two Sacraments common to us under the Gospâ—l as the other were to the Iewes under the law they two and we two two and no more Of the Eucharist In the year 1608 there were published at Paris certaine works of Fulbertus pertaining as wel to the refuting of the heresies of this time for so saith the Inscription as to the clearing of the history of the French Among these things that appertain to the confutatioâ—â—f the heresies of this time there is one specially fol. 168. laid down in these words Vnlesse saith Christ ye eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his bloud ye shall not have life in you he seemeth to command an outrage or wickednesse It is therefore a figure will the Heretick say requiring us only to communicate with the Lords passion and sweetly and profitably to lay up in our memory that his flâ—sh was crucified wounded for us He that put in these words Dicet Haereticus thought he had notably met with the Hereticks of this time but was not aware that therby he made S. Austin an Hereticke for company for the words alleadged are S. Austins de doctrinâ Christianâ lib. 3. cap. 16. Which some belike having put the publisher in mind of he was glad to put this among his Errata to confesse that these two words Dicet Haereticus were not to be found in the Manuscript copie which he had from Pâ—tavius buâ— telleth us not what we are to think of him that for the countenancing of the Popish cause ventured so shamefully to abuse S. Austin as both the learned Archbishop of Armagh Doctor Vsher and Master Moulin have observed PA. Here is much a doe about a mistake of two words saith our Iâ—suit Maloune PRO. There hath been much a doe ere this about one word the word Deipara whether the blessed Virgin Maâ—y were to be called the mother of God or no great difference raised in the Church touching the Sacrament and all about three prepositions Trans Con and Sub and the greatest stirre that ever was in Gods Church was about one letter it was but one little Iota whilst the Arriansâ—eld â—eld Christ to bee 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of the like substance with the Father but denied him to bee 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Consubstantiall of the same substance with the Father Besides was it
examining them The like may be sayd of Bede Gregorie and others that holding Christ the foundation a right and groaning under the weight of mens Traditions humane satisfactions and the like popish trash they by unfained repentaÌ„ce for their errours lapses knowne and unknowne and by an assured faith in their Saviour did finde favour with the Lord these and the like we hold to be Gods servants and propter meliorem saniorem partem by reason of their better and sounder part to be with us lively members of the true Church though in some things they were mistaken and that they may be termed professours of our faith inasmuch as the denomination is to be taken from the better part and not alwayes from the greater For example sake there is much water and little wine mixed in a glasse yet it is called a glasse of wine so say we of professors S. Bernard and such like there is in them some bad parts some superstition and Poperie and some good in that they hold Christ Iesus the foundation aright in this case they may in respect of their better part be termed and denominated true professors and therefore you must give us againe Saint Bernard with others to whoÌ„ you have no right or claime unlesse it be to their errours which they suckt in from the corrupt breasts of some of your side and so I proceed to the severall points in question Of the Scriptures Sufficiencie and Canon Saint Bernard as wee heard approveth such a Councell wherein the Traditions of men are not obstinately defended but the revealed will of God enquired after for that this is all in all Claudius Seyssel Archbishop of Turin in Piedmont one that was Neighbour to the Waldenses and laboured to enforme himselfe touching their positions and also to confute them saith that they admitted onely the text of the old and new Testaments so that they denyed unwritten traditions to be the Rule of Faith Petrus Cluniacensis after he had reckoned up the canonicall bookes saith There are besides the authenticall bookes sixe other not to be rejected as namely Iudith Tobias Wisedome Ecclesiasticus and the two bookes of Macchabees which though they attaine not to the high dignitie of the former yet they are received of the Church as containing necessary and profitable doctrine Hugo de Sancto victore saith All the Canonicall bookes of the old Testament are twentie two there are other bookes also as namely the Wisedome of Salomon the booke of Iesus the sonne of Syrach the bookes of Iudith Tobias and the Machabees which are read but not written in the Canon The Bible was translated into English some hundred yeares as it is probably conjectured before Wickliffs translation came forth a coppie of which auncient translation my selfe have seene in our Queenes Colledge Librarie in Oxford in the praeface whereof it may be seene that the translatour held the controverted bookes for Apocrypha for thus he saith what ever booke of the Old Testament is out of these he maketh the same â—anon with us twentie five before sayd shall be set among Apocrypha that is without authoritie of beleefe Therefore the booke of Wisedome Ecclesiasticus Iudith and Tobie bee not of beleefe Hierome saith all this sentence in the prologue on the first booke of Kings now if at that time the above sayd bookes had beene accounted Authenticall by the Church and of beleefe he would have sayd but this opinion of Hieromes is not approved by the Church as Doctor Iames hath well observed Of Communion under both kinds and number of Sacraments HVgo de Sancto victore giveth a reason of the entire communicating in both kinds Therefore saith he the Sacrament is taken in both kindes that thereby a double effect might be signified For it hath force as S. Ambrose saith to preserve both body and soule Gratian rehearseth many ancient Canons and constitutions for communicating in both kinds Saint Bernard in his third Sermon on Palme Sunday maketh the Sacrament of Christs body and blood the Christians foode Touching the Sacrament of Christs body and blood saith he there is no man who knoweth not that this so singular a food was on that day first exhibited on that day coÌ„mended and coÌ„manded to be frequently received Saint Bernards words have reference to the Institution of Christ now at our Saviours last Supper there was Wine as well as Bread and Bernard treating thereof saith it was commanded to be frequently received now if the whole Church were enjoyned so to doe then also is every particular beleever who is of age fitted thereunto enjoyned to receive it accordingly The precise number of seaven Sacraments was not held for catholike doctrine no not in the Church of Rome untill more than a thousand yeares after Christ this is ingenuously confessed by Cassander Vntill the dayes of Peter Lombard who lived about the yeere 1145 you shall scarce finde any authour saith their Cassander who set downe any certaine and definite number of Sacraments neither did all the schoolemen call all those sâ—ven proper Sacraments but this is without all controversie saith the same Cassander that there are two chiefe Sacraments of our Salvation that is to say Baptisme and the Lords Supper and so speake Rupertus and Hugo de Sancto victore and he saith true for Rupertus putteth the question and asketh Which be the chiefe sacraments of our salvation and hee answereth Baptisme and the Supper of the Lord. Of the Eucharist IN this age â—ratian the Monke affoordeth us a notable testimony against transubstaÌ„tiatioÌ„ his coÌ„parison is thus drawne This holy bread is after its manner called the body of Christ as the offering thereof by the hands of the Priest is called Christs passion now the Priests oblation is not properly and literally in strict termes and sence the passion of Christ but as the Glosse hath it the Sacrament representing the body of Christ is therefore called Christ's flesh not in verity of the thing but in a mystery namely as the representation of Christ therein is called his Passion Gratians words are these As the heavenly bread which is Christ's flesh after a sort is called Christ's body whereas indeed it is the Sacrament of his body and the sacrificing of the flesh of Christ which is done by the Priest's hands is sayd to be his passion not in the truth of the thing but in a signifying mistery Iâ—annes Semeca who was the first that glossed upon Gratians decrees telleth us how this comparison is to be meant This Sacrament saith the Glosse because it doth represent the flesh of Christ is called the Body of Christ but improperly not in the truth of the thing but in the mysticall sence to wit it is called the Body of â—hrist that is it signifieth his Body From these premisses we inferre that after consecration the Sacrament is not in truth Christ's Body but onely in a
and he giveth a reason hereof because all merits are Gods gifts and so man is rather a debter to God for them than God to men for what are all merits to so great a glory Bernard indeed elsewhere telleth us of his owne merit but it is the Lords mercy which he calleth his merit Therefore my merit is the mercy of the Lord I am not poore in merit so long as he is not poore in mercy and if the mercies of the Lord be many my merits also are many THE THIRTEENTH CENTVRIE from the yeere of Grace one thousand two hundred to one thousand three hundred PAPIST WHat say you of this Age PROTESTANT In this age Sophistrie began to encroach upon Divinitie Aristotle and the Philoâ—ophers were as much studied as Saint Pauls Epistles Gratian and Lombard were as oft mentioned in the Schooles as the holy Scriptures and hence came so many Summes Sentences Quodlibets Legends Rules Decretals and Decrees for now by the example of Peter Lumbard many devised subtile and intricate disputations calling almost every thing into doubt after the manner of the Skeptiques or Academiques and leaving the plaine and wholesome food of the holy Scripture they began to gnaw on the bones of a controversie doting about questions and strife of words 1 Timoth. 6.4 and yet in this curious and scholastique age when men had almost lost themselves in the maze and mist of distinctions the Lord raised â—â—â—â—ch plaine witnesses as served to testifie his trutâ—â— though not in the words which the wisâ—dome of man teacheth yet in such as the Holy Ghost teachâ—th In this age lived William Bishop of Paris Gulielmus Altâ—ssiodorensis Hugo Cardinalis who made the first Concordance upon the Bible Honorius Augustodunnensis who composed the summe of historie Alexander of Hales an Englishman brought up in Paris he was stiled the Irrefragable Doctor and was tutour to Bonaventure of whom he used to say that He was of such a godly life and behaviour as Adam might seeme not to have sinned in him Now also lived Iohâ— Duns called Scotus because hee was descended of Scottish blood hee was from the subtilitie of his wit stiled the Subtile Doctorâ— he was borne at Emildon in Northumberland and being brought up in Merton Colledge in Oxford as also having heard Alexander Hales reade and professe in the Vniversitie of Paris he became wonderfull well learned in Logicke and in that crabbed and intricate divinitie of those dâ—yes yet as one still doubtfull and unresolved he did overcast the truth of religion with mists of obscurity and with so profound and admirable subtility in a daâ—ke and rude stile he wrote many workes that he deserved the title of the Subtile Doctor and after his owne name erected a new sect of the Scotists That he was boâ—ne here in England is vouched out of his owne Manuscript workes in the Libraâ—ie of Merton Colledge in Oxford which my selfe have seene which concludeth in this manner explicit Lectura c. that is Thus enâ—eth the Lecture of the subtile Doctor in the Vnâ—versity of Paris Iohn Duns borne in a certaine little Village or hamlet within the Parish of Emildon called Dunston in the County of Northumberland pertâ—ining to the house of the Schollers of Merton Hall in Oxford The famousest of all the schoolemen was Saint Thomas of Aquine entitled the Angelique Doctor In this age lived Robert Grosted Doctor of Divinitie in Oxford and Bishop of Lincolne he was termed the Maull and Hammer of the Romanists he wrote a famous letter to the Pope extant in Mathew Paris wherein he proved the Pope by his abhominable soule-murthering actions to be an heritike worthy of death yea to be Antichrist and to sit in the chaire of Pestilence as next to Lucifer himselfe Herewith the Pope was so incensed that he swore by Saint Peter and Paul he could finde in his heart to make the doating Prelate a mirrour of confusion to all the world for his saucinesse but some of the wiser Cardinals disswaded him from such courses telling him that it was true which he sayd that he was holier than any of themselvesâ— and therefore it was best to hush the matter and not to stirre the coales specially sith it was knowne that at length there would be a departure from their Church he prophecied that the Church would never be set free from her Agyptian bondage but by the edge of the sword which we have seene in part accomplished In this age flourished those two learned men Gerardus disciple to Sagarel us of Parma and Dulcinus disciple to one Novarius Hermannus these held and preached that the Pope was Antichrist and the Church of Rome Babilon some thirty of their followers came into England and were there persecuted for preaching that and the like doctrine It is like â—hat this Dulcinus had many followers for Cocâ—lâ—us saith that Iohn Hus coâ—mitted spirituall fornication with the Wiclevists and with the Dulcinists Bergomensis the Chronologer saith that there were some sixe thousand people that foâ—lowed Dulcinus and that in his time the remainders of this profession were living about Trent now he continued his Chronologie unto the yeare of Grace 1503. Prateolus saith that the remainder of the Dulcinists had in his time revived and renewed their opinions in divers places of France and Germanie Platina saith they were called Fratricelli or the Brethren and that Pope Clement the fifth sent out an armie against them into the Alpes where he famished and starved divers of them Nicholas Eymericus in his Directory for the Inquisitours saith that they filled the whole land of Lombardie with their opinions which he calleth erroneous Petrus de vincis Chancellour to Fredericke the Emperour in his letters to the Christian Princes feareth not to call the Pope an Apostata and the Beast rising out of the Sea full of names of blasphemie and like unto a Leopard and againe the Court of Rome may be called non curia sed cura marcam desideraus plusquam Marcum more desirous of a marke of silver than of S. Markes Gospell or of taking of Salmons than of reading of Salomon About this time lived Arnold de nova villa a Spanyard who taught that Satan had then seduced a great part of the world that the faith then taught was but such a faith as the devils might have who beleeve and tremble meaning belike a historicall and not a saving justifying faith as also that the Pope led men to hell that he and his Clergie did falsifie the doctrine of Christ that masses were not to be said for the dead In this age there were great odds betweene William of Saint Amour a Doctor of Paris and the Friers Mendicants or Iacobins he accused them for troubling the peace of the Church in that they preached in Churches against the will of the ordinary Pastours and heard confessions sleighting the parish Priests as men
of weake abilities and also for that they had made a booke which they called the everlasting Gospell whereunto they said Christs Gospell was not to be compared Pope Alexander the fourth was content upon complaint made unto him that the Friers booke should be burned provided that it were done covertly and secretly and so as the Friers should not be discredited thereby and as for William of Saint Amour hee dealt sharply with him commanding his booke to be burnt as also he suspended from their benefices and promotions all such as either by word or writing had opposed the Friers untill such time as they should revoke and recant all such speeches and writings at Paris or other places appointed so tender was his holines over the Friers credit and reputation knowing belike what service might be done to him and his successours by these newly errected orders of â—riers I call them newly erected for in the time of Pope Innocent the third about the yeare 1198 the Iacobites an order of preaching Friers were instituted by Saint Dominicke and about the beginning of this age the order of Franciscans preaching Friers Minors was instituted by Saint Francis borne at Assise a towne in Italy Of the Scriptures sufficiencie and Canon SCoâ—us saith that supernaturall knowledge as much as is necessarie for a wayfaring man is sufficiently delivered in sacred Sâ—ripture Thomas Aquinas in his commentary upon that place of Saint Paul the Scriptures are able to make one wise unto salvation that the man of God may be perfect 2 Timoth. 3.15.17 saith that the Scriptures doe not qualifie a man aâ—ter an ordinarie sort but they perfit him so that nothing is wanting to make him happy And accordingly Bonaventure saith The beneâ—it of sâ—ripture is not ordinarie but such as is able to make a man fully blessed and happy Hugo Cardinalis speaking of the bookes rejected by us saith These bookes are not received by the Church for proofe of doctrine but for information of manners Of Communion under both kindes and nâ—mber of Sacraments ALexander Hales howsoever he some way incline to that opinion that it is sufficient to receive the Sacrament in one kind yet he confesseth that there is more merit and devotion and compleatnesse and efficacie in receiving in both Againe hee saith Whole Christ is not sacramentally conteined under each forme because the bread signifieth the body and not the blood the wine signifieth the blood and not the body Concerning the Churches practise wee doe not finde that the lay people were as yet barred of the cup in the holy Sacrament for our Countrey-man Alexander Hales who flourished about the yeare of Grace 1240. saith that we may receive the body of Christ under the forme of bread onely sicut fere ubique fit à Laicis in ecclesiâ as it is almost every where done of the Laiety in the Church it was almost done every where but it was not done every where Concerning the Sacraments the Schoolemen of this age can hardly agree amongst themselves that there be seaven Sacraments properly so called Alexander of Hales saith that there are onely â—oure which are in any sort properly to be sayd Sacraments of the new Law that the other three supposed Sacraments had their being before but received some addition by Christ manifested in the flesh that amongst them which began with the new Covenant onely Baptisme and the Eucharist were instituted immediately by Christ received their formes from him and flowed out of his wounded side Touching Confirmation the same Alexander of Hales saith the Sacrament of Confirmation as it is a Sacrament was not ordained either by Christ or by the Apostles but afterwards was ordained by the Councell of Meldain France Touching extreame unction Suarez saith that both Hugo of Saint Victor in Paris and Peter Lombard and Bonaventure and Alexander of Hales and Altissidorus the cheefe schoolemen of their time denyed this Sacrament to be instituted by Christ and by plaine consequence saith he it was no true Sacrament though they were of opinion that a Sacrament might be instituted by the Apostles and therefore admitted not of this consequence Of the Eucharist COncerning the Eucharist Scotus saith that it was not in the beginning so manifestly beleeved as concerning this coversion But principally this seemeth to move us to hold Transubstantiation because concerning the Saraments we are to hold as the Church of Rome doth And hee addeth wee must say the Church in the Creed of the Lateran councell under Innocent the third which begins with these words Firmiter credimus declared this sence concerning Transubstantiation to belong to the veritie of our faith And if you demaund why would the Church make choice of so difficult a sence of this Article when the words of the Scripture This is my Body might be upholden after an easie sence and in appearance more true I say the Scriptures were expounded by the same spirit that made them and so it is to be supposed that the catholike Church expounded them by the same spirit whereby the faith was delivered us namely being taught by the spirit of truth and therefore it chose this sence because it was true thus farre Scotus Let us now see what Bellarmie saith Scotus tells us saith he that before the Councell of Lateran which was held in the yeare one thousand two hundred and fifteene transubstantiation was not beleeved as a point of faith this is confessed by Bellarmine to be the opinion of Scotus onely he would avoyd his testimonie with a minime probandum est Scotus indeed saith so but I cannot allow of it and then hee taxeth Scotus with want of reading as if this learned and subtile Doctor had not seene as many Councels and read as many Fathers for his time as Bellarmine The same Bellarmine saith that Scotus held that there was no one place of scripture so expresse which without the declaration of the Church would evidently compell a man to admit of Transubstantiation and this saith the Cardinall is not altogether improbable It is not altogether improbable that there is no expresse place of Scripture to proove Transubstantiation without the declaration of the Church as Scotus sayd for although the Scriptures seeme to us so plaine that they may compell any but a refractary man to beleeve them yet it may justly be doubted whether the Text be cleare enough to enforce it seeing the most acute and learned men such as Scotus was have thought the contrary thus farre Bellarmine unto whom I will adde the testimonie of Cuthbert Tonstall the learned Bishop of Durham His words are these Of the manner and meanes of the Reall presence either by Transubstantiation or otherwise perhaps it had beene better to leave every man that would be curious to his owne conjecture as before the councell of Lateran it was left and Master Bernard Gilpin a man most holy and
knowledge of Letters and study of Tongues specially the Greeke Latin began to spread abâ—â—ad thorow divers parts of the West Of this number were Emanuel Chrysoloras of Constantinople Theodorus Gaza of Thessalonica Georgius Trapezuntius Cardinall Bessarion and others in like sort also afterwards Iohn Capâ—io brought the use of the Greeke and Hebrew tongues into Germany as Faber Stapulensis observeth And in the beginning of this age Hebrew was first taught in Oxford as our accurat Chronologer Mr. Isaacson hath observed Now also lived Nicholas de Lyra a converted Iew who commented on all the Bible In this age there were divers both of the Greeke and Latin Church who stood for Regall Iurisdiction against Papall usurpation and namely Barlaam the Monke Nilus Archbishop of Thessalonica Marsilius Patavinus Michael Cesenas Generall of the gray Friers Dante the Italian Poet and William Ockam the English man sometime fellow of Merton Colledge in Oxford surnamed the Invincible Doctor and Scholler to Scotus the subtile Doctor Now also lived Durand de S. Porciano Nilus alleadgeth divers passages out of the generall Councels against the Popes supremacy and thence inferreth as followeth That Rome can not challenge preheminence over other Seas because Rome is named in order before them for by the same reason Constantinople should have the preheminence over Alexandria which yet she hath not From the severall and distinct boundaries of the Patriarchall Seas he argueth that neither is Rome set over other Seas nor others subject to Rome That whereas Rome stands upon the priviledge that other places appeale to Rome he saith That so others appeale to Constantinople which yet hath not thereby Iurisdiction over other places That whereas it is said the Bishop of Rome judgeth others and himselfe is not judged of any other he saith That St. Peter whose successour he pretends himselfe to be suffred himselfe to be reproved by S. Paul and yet the Pope tyrant-like will not have any enquire after his doings Barlaam prooveth out of the Chalcedon Councell Canon 28. That the Pope had not any primacy over other Bishops from Christ or S. Peter but many ages after the Apostles by the gift of holy Fathers and Emperours if the Bishop of Rome sayth hee had anciently the supremacy and that S. Peter had appointed him to be the Pastour of the whole Church what needed those godly Emperours decree the same as a thing within the verge of their owne power and jurisdiction Marsilius Patavinus wrote a booke called Defensor Pacis on the behalfe of Lewis Duke of Baviere and Emperour against the Pope for challenging power to invest and depose Kings Hee held that Christ hath excluded and purposed to exclude himselfe and his Apostles from principality or contentious jurisdiction or regiment or any coactive judgement in this world His other Tenets are reported to be these 1 That the Pope is not superiour to other Bishops much lesse to the Emperour 2. That things are to be decided by Scripture 3. That learned men of the Laiety are to have voyces in Councels 4. That the Cleargy and the Pope himselfe are to be subject to Magistrates 5. That the Church is the whole coÌ„pany of the faithfull 6. That Christ is the Head of the Church and appointâ—d none to be his Vicar 7. That Priests may marry 8. That St. Peter was never at Rome 9. That the popish â—ynagogue is a denne of theeves 10. That the Popes doctrine is not to be followed With this Marsilius of Pâ—dua there joyned in opinioÌ„ Iohn of Gandune and they both held that Clerkes are and should be subject to secular powers both in payment of Tribute and in iudgâ—ments specially not Ecclesiasticall so that they stood against the Exemption of Clerkes Michael Cesenas Generall of the Order of Franciscans stood up in the same quarrell and was therefore deprived of his dignities by Pope Iohn the two and twentieth from whom he appealed to the Catholicke universâ—ll Church and to the next generall Councell About this time also lived the noble Florentine Poet Dante a learned Philosopher and Divine who wrote a booke against the Pope concerning the Monarchy of the Emperour but for taking part with him the Pope banished him But of all the rest our Countrey-man Ockam stucke close to the Emperour to whom he sayd that if he would defend him with the sword he againe would defend him with the Word Ockam argueth the case and inclineth to this opinion that in temporall matters the Pope ought to be subject to the Emperour in as much as Christ himselfe as he was man professeth that Pilate had power to judge him given of God as also that neither Peter nor any of the Apostles had temporall power given them by Christ and hereof he gives testimony from Bernard and Gregory Ockams writings were so displeasing to the Pope as that he excommunicated him for his labour and caused his treatise or worke of ninety dayes as also his Dialogues to be put into the blacke bill of bookes prohibited and forbidden It is true indeed that Ockam submitted his writings to the censure and judgement of the Church but as hee saith to the judgement of the Church Catholike not of the Church malignant The same Ockam spoke excellently in the point of generall Councels Hee held that Councels are not called generall because they are congregated by the authority of the Romane Pope and that if Princes and Lay-men please they may be present have to deale with matters treated in general Councels That a generall Councell or that congregation which is commonly reputed a generall Councell by the world may erre in matters of faith and in case such a generall Councell should erre yet God would not leave his Church destitute of all meanes of saving truth but would raise up spirituall children to Abraham out of the rubbish of the Laiety despised Christians and dispersed Catholikes Wee have heard the judgement of the learned abroad touching Iurisdiction Regall and Papall let us now see the practice of our owne Church and State In the Reigne of King Edward the third sundry expresse Statutes were made that if any procured any Provisions from Rome of any Abbeyes Priories or Benefices in England in destruction of the Realme and holy Religion if any man sued any Processe out of the Court of Rome or procured any personall Citation from Rome upon causes whose cognisance and finall discussion pertained to the Kings Court that they should be put out of the Kings protection and their lands goods and chattels forfeited to the King In the Reigne of King Richard the second it was enacted That no Appeale should thenceforth be made to the Sea of Rome upon the penalty of a Praemunire which extended to perpetuall banishment and losse of all their lands and goods the words of the statute are If any purchase or pursue
' argomento fin che virtute al suo marito piacque The Evangelist meetes with you well You Romish Pastours when he doth tell How he did see the woman which Sits on the waters that foule witch To play the whore with Kings that Beast That borne was with seaven hornes at least And had the signe of some ten more T' appease her husband by their powre The Authour alludes to that in the Revelation of the great whore that sitteh on many waters Reuelat. 17.1 and of the beast that beareth her which hath seaven heads and ten hornes vers 7. with whom the Kings of the earth commit fornication Chap. 18. v. 3. Francis Petrarch the Laureat Poet and Archdeacon of Parma a man excellently skilled in the Scriptures and one who as Trithemius saith Revived learning after it had beene a long time decayed speakes more fully saying Del ' empia Babylonia ond ' è fugitta Ogni vergogna ond ' ogni bene è fuori Albergo di dolor madre d' errori Son fugiâ—t ' â—o per allongar la vita Out of wicked Babylon By Gods helpe at length I am gone From which all shame is banished From which all good is vanished The Lodge of griefe and misery The Mother of all Heresie And elsewhere he speakes as roundly Fontana di dolore albergo d' ira Scola d errori e tempiod heresia Gia Roma hor Babylonia falsa e ria Per cui tanto si piagne e si sospira O fucina d' inganni o prigion d' ira Ove ' I ben more e ' i mal si nutre e cria Di vivi inferno un gran mira col fia Se Christo teco al fine non sad ira Well-spring of griefe and fierce wraths Hospitall The Schoole of errour temple of Heresie Once Rome now Babylon most wicked all With sighes and teares bewayle thy pitteous fall Thou Mother of deceit bulwarke of Tyranny Truths persecuter nurse of iniquity The Living's Hell a miracle it will be If Christ in fury come not against thee Most shamelesse whoore These sayings of Petrarch did so gall the Pope that Pius Quintus hath caused three Sonnets to be razed out of Petrarch and so indeed I found in the Petrarch which used Mancano tre sonnetti that three Sonnets were wanting but that which I have alleadged is found in the Basil edition PAP Bellarmine sayth that Petrarch spoke thus of the Court of Rome and not of the Church of Rome of Romes corruption in manners not in doctrine PROT. This answer will not serve for though Petrarch might meane the Court by the name of Babylon and by imputing to it Covetousnesse and Licentiousnesse yet when he charges Rome with Idolatry and cals it the Temple of Heresie can this be intended of the Court of Rome or of corruption onely in point of life Besides if any should thinke that Petrarch spoke thus onely in a Poeticall veine he is the same man in Prose in his Latin Epistles for therein addressing his speech to the Sea of Rome he saith Thou art that famous or rather inâ—amous hâ—rlot which committest fornication with the Kings of the earth the selfe sâ—me strumpet thou art which the sacred Evangelist saw in the spirit the selfe sâ—me I say thou art and no other having thy seâ—t upon many waters then he speakes of her doome saying What other end doest thou expect but the same prophesied by Iohn Great Babylon is fallen is fallen and made an habitation for divels But thou my deare friend with the same Apostle heare another voice speaking from Heaven Come out of her my people and be not partakers of her iniquities that so you may receive none of her stripes To these two Italians to make up a Triumvirate of famous Poets we may ioyne our English Laureat Sir Geoffry Chaucer This noble Knight who by marriage was brother in law to Iohn of Gaunt Duke of Lancaster found fault with the Faith as well as the manners of the Romanists in his dayes as may appeare by these instances following of St. Peters successour he sayth in the â—â—owmans tale Peter was never so grâ—at a foole To leave hâ—s Key with such a Lorrell Or take sâ—ch cursâ—d such a toole He was advisâ—d nothing well I trow they have the key of hell Their Master is of that place Marshall For there they dressen them to dwell And with false Lucifer there to fall They beene as proud as Lucifer As angry and as envious From good faith they beene full farre In covetize they beene curious This and much more doth he utter in the person of a simple Ploughman implying thereby that the meanest Countryâ—body in those dayes could out of Gods Word tell what was right and religious and what otherwise yea and taxe the wickednesse and blindnesse of the Romanists in those dayes Touching their Shrift Reliques Pardons and merit of workes he sayth as followeth Full sweetly heard he Confession And plâ—asant was his Absolution He was an easie man to give pennance Thâ—re as he wâ—st to hâ—ve a good pittance For unto a poore ordâ—r for to give Is signe that a man is well yshrive For many a man is so hard of heart That he may not weepe though him smart Therefore in stead of weeping and of prayers Men mote give silver to the poore Friers Touching the pardoner he sayth Ne was there such another Pardoner For in his male had he a pillowbere Which as he sayd was our Ladyes vayle He sayd he had a gobbet of the sayle That Saint Peter had when that he went Vpon the Sea till Iesu Christ him shent In the Pardoners tale he sayth Myn holy pardon may you all warish So that yee offer nobles or sterlings Other â—lsâ— silver spoones brooches or rings Boweth your head under this Bull Commeth up â—e wives and offereth of your wooll Your names hâ—re I entâ—r in my rolle anon Into the blâ—sse of Heaven shâ—ll yee all gon I you assoile by mine high power Yee that offeren as cleane and eke cleere As yee were borne And elsâ—where he sayth The cleannesse and the fasting of us Freers Maketh that Christ accepteth our prayers In the Romant of the Rose he appliâ—th the name of Antichrist to that Sea saying Of Antichrist's men am I Of which that Christ sayth openly They have habite of holinesse And living in such wickednesse Take now a taste of the questions which in the person of Iacke Vpland he mooves to the Frier Frier saith he Why make yee men beleeve that your golden Trâ—ntals sung of you to take therefore five or ten â—hillings at the lâ—ast wole bring soules out of purgatory if this be sooth certes yee might bring all soules out of paine and that will yee nought and then yee be out of charity Freere what charity is this to prease upon a rich man and to entice him to die
old time against one Prophet of God there were found eight hundred and fifty Prophets of Baal So at this day in this cause how many O Lord doe now sight with Pelagius for freewill against thy free grace and against Paul the spirituall Champion of grace how many at this day reject free grace and onely declare free-will to be sufficient unto Salvation for the whole world almost is gone after Pelagius into errour Arise therefore O Lord and judge thine owne cause Now also lived that famous Preacher Taulerus at Strasbrough in Germany Bellarmine tells us that Eckius Luthers great Antagonist suspected Taulerus that he was not a sound Catholike but Lewes Blosius hath notably defended him the truth is his judgement was reasonable cleare considering the time wherein he lived For instance sake hee saith There be many and theÌ„ of the religious sort that have forsaken the fountaine of living waters and digged themselves pits that can hold no water Ierem. 2.13 and these saith hee are wholly addicted to their owne Iâ—stitutes orders und outward exercises now though they performe many and great workes in appearance yet it is not their going on procession and pilgrimage to procure pardons and indulgences as they call them it is not all their Orizons their knocking on their breast their gazing on curious pictures and images and their bowing of the knee before them all this saith he will not make their service acceptable to God and why because that in doing this they direct not their affections and intentions unto God but divert them to the Creature He saith There be many that goe under the name of Religious who take great paines in set Fasts wakes and vigils orizons and frequent shrift and thinke they shal be saved and justified by these bodily exercises but it can not be so for God requireth the heart Hee saith alleadging the Prophet Esay 64.6 that all our righteousnesse is as filthy elouts and that therefore we must not put our trust or repose our conâ—â—dence in any thing that is ours be it our words or workes but in God He commends unto us the practise of the woman of Canaan and farther saith hee knew a Virgin who tooke the like course and obtained her request Now we know the practise of the woman of Canaan of whom S. Chrysostome long before him observed that shee intreated not Iames nor Iohn nor came to Saint Peter but breaking through the whole company of them sayd I have no neede of a mediatour but taking repentance with me for a spokesman I come to the fountaine it selfe By that which hath beene said we see what Taulerus thought touching humane traditions mans merits and Saintly invocation In this age also lived Gregorius Ariminensis whom Vega stiles The most able and carefull defender of St. Augustine This learned Schoole-man in his booke upon the Sentences hath diligently confuted divers tenets which are now holden by the Church of Rome touching Predestination Originall sinne Free-will the merite of workes and other points PAP You have produced divers witnesses but Mr. Briereley excepteth against them and namely against Nilus as erroneous touching the proceeding of the holy Ghost as also a professed adversary to the Roman Church insomuch as his booke is put in the Catalogue of bookes forbidden And as for Iohn de Rupe scissa William of St. Amour Petrus Blesensis Ockam and Scotus they were such as onely reprooved the life and manners of the Clergy PROT. If you barre Nilus from witnessing on our behalfe because hee erred in the point mentioned by the like reason may we challenge Damascen whom you usually produce on your behalfe as also others of the Greeke Church Neither can you disable his testimony because he wrote against the Popes primacy and purgatory hee had no personall quarrell with the Bishop of Rome for ought we know he might give his judgement on these points and be unpartiall if the Pope forbad his booke there be other good men that approove it and that for the proofes and reasons which he brings Touching the other exception for the preventing â—hereof I have purposely given instance in this Catalogue in points of faith and sparingly alleadged such as onely taxed Romish corruptions in life and manners which yet is oft-times accompanied with errour in judgement for as Ockam saith Because evill manners blind the judgement therefore every assembly which may erre notoriously in manners may erre against the Faith Besides William of St. Amour as hath beene sayd opposed their Monkish vowes which is a Doctrinal point Ockam opposed the Popes supremacy which is a Dogmaticall point Peter of Bloix and Iohn de Rupe-scissa held the Pope to be Antichrist and Ockam and Scotus held with us in divers doctrinall points And now having cleared this coast I come to speake of our countrey-man Iohn Wickliffe he was borne in the North where there is neare to the place where I live an ancient and worshipfull house bearing the name of Wickliffe of Wickliffe Hee flourished about the yeere 1371. was Fellow of Merton-colledge Master of Balioll-colledge in Oxford where he commenced Doctour and was chosen Reader in Divinity In his publique Lectures at Oxford he shewed himselfe a learned Schoole-man in his ordinary Sermons a faithfull Pastour of the Church for whose use and benefit he translated the whole Bible into the vulgar tongue one Copy whereof written with his owne hand is extant in St. Iohn Baptist Colledge in Oxford In his writings hee spoke and taught against the then corrupred doctrine of the Church of Rome and specially against the order of the begging Friers exhibiting a complaint to rhe King and Parliament against the Orders of Friers which thing created him the hatred of divers Prelats but many good men fauoured him PAP Were there many that tooke part with Wickliffe and followed his doctrine and were those of the better ranke or onely some meane persons PROT. He was highly favoured of the Nobility the City of London and the Vniversity of Oxford Hee was publiquely borne out as Parsons confesseth by Iohn of Gant and Lord Henry Percy the one of them Duke of Lancaster the other Marshall of England And Walsingham saith That when Wickliffe personally appeared before the Prelates who purposed to put the Popes Mandate in execution Lewis Clifford came with a Prohibition from the Queene charging them not to give sentence against him whereupon they were sore frighted and desisted In like sort another time hee escaped their hands by the meanes of the Citizens Burgesses and Commons of London as the same Walsingham saith and indeed the Londoners favoured him so much that in all likelyhood it stayed the Prelats from farther proceeding against him But that which Walsingham most admires is this that Wickliffes opinions were not onely entertained in Cities and Townes but even in the Vniversity of Oxford it selfe where was as hee saith the very height and
top of wisedome and learning Neither did some young Students onely follow him but even the chiefe of the Vniversity Master Robert Rigge Vice-chancellour and the two Proctors tooke part with him as also Nicholas Herford Iohn Ashton of Mâ—rton-Colledge Iohn Ashwarby of Oriel-Colledge Pastour of St. Maries Church these being preachers and Bachelours of Divinity ioyned with him and were questioned on that behalfe Thomas Walsingham specially notes that when the Archbishop of Canterbury had sent Wickliffes condemnation to Robert Rigge Chancellour of the Vniversity of Oxford to be divulged hee appointed them to preach that day whom hee knew to be most zealous followers of Wickliffe and among others hee ordained one Philip Repington a Chanon of Leycester to preach on Corpus Christi day who concluded his Sermon with these words for speculative doctrine saith hee such as the point of the Sacrament of the Altar is I will set a barre on my lips while God hath otherwise instructed or illuminated the hearts of the Cleargy And afterwards when Bulles came thicke from Rome from the two Gregories the eleventh and twelfth against Wickliffe and his doctrine the whole Vniversity gave a testimony in favour of him under their seale in their Congregation house in these words among others God forbid that our Prelats should have condemned a man of suâ—h honesty for an Heretique but there is nothing that may more amply testifie the spreading of his Doctrine than an Act of Parliament in the dayes of King Richard the second where it is related that there were divers preaching dayly not onely in Churches and Church-yards but also in Markets Faires and other open places where a great congregation of people is divers Sermons contayning heresies and notorious errours for so they pleased to stile it in those dayes PAP Was Wickliffes doctrine followed after his death PROT. That which Wickliffe taught was neither borne with him nor died with him indeed if either the strength or policy of man could have made it away it had not continued as it doth to this day for in the yeere 1378. Pope Gregory the eleventh directed his Bull to the Vniversity of Oxford against the doctrine and Articles of that learned man even Rome it selfe ringing of his opinions in that Vniversity and Walsingam sayth that the Pope taxed the Heads of the Vniversity for the sleight care they tooke in the suppressing of Wickliffes doctrine and the same Walsingham complaines that those of the Vniversity were long time in suspence whether they should receive the Popes Bull with honour or rejeâ—t it with reproach Afterwards Gregory the twelfth directed another Bull to Oxford against Wickliffe Thomas Arundell Archbishop of Canterbury held a Councell at Oxford and procured a visitation and sharpe Inquisition against the Heads of Colledges Halls and others suspected of Wicklevisme or Lollardy and this Constitution is to be seene in Linwood Now this was but a Provinciall Constitution in comes the Councell of Constance and condemnes Wickliffe causing his bones to be taken up and burned forty yeares after his death and buriall and this mandate of the Popes was executed by Richard Flemming Bishop of Lincolne as Linwood testifieth who lived at the time when this was done to wit in the yeere 1428. and thus was the canonicall censure passed upon Wickliffe and his adherents now the secular power joyned with them for in the dayes of King Henry the fourth and fifth there was made the Statute de Haeretico comburendo whereby the Wicklevists and Lollards were adjudged to be burned After this King Edward the fourth sent mandatory letters to the Governours in Oxford to make search for Wickliffes bookes and to burne them and accordingly the Masters and Doctours did Here is now both his bones and his bookes burnt they thought belike to make sure worke and never to heare more of the man againe but so it was that out of his ashes as it were there arose another Phoenix and generation of Wicklevists which renued his memory doctrine belike then there were many that followed his Doctrine or else why made they so much adoe what needed so many Statutes Letters and Proclamations so many Bulles Councels and Constitutions Indeede there were many in Oxford and else-where and them of good note who imbraced Wickliffes opinions after his decease as namely Lawrence Redman master of Arts David Sawtree a Divine William Iones Thomas Brightwell William Haulam a Civilian Raphe Greenhurst Fellow of New-colledge as also one Walter Bruite a Layman mentioned by one William Wideford a great Papist this Wideford writing against Wickliffe mentions a booke of his owne sent to the Bishop of Hereford in confutation of the booke of Walter Bruite In a word Wickliffes doctrine was not contained within England onely but it gave light to other countries also insomuch as one Peter Paine who was Wickliffes Scholler and was sent with other Legats to the Councell at Basil went into Bohemia whither he carried with him some of Wickliffes bookes some part where of Iohn Hussâ— translated into his mothers tongue as Cochleus saith who also reports how one of the Bishops wrote to him out of England that he had two Volumes of Wickliffes which were almost as large as Saint Austins workes PAP What taught Wickliffe taught he as you doe PROT. Hee taught the same in substance that we doe as may appeare by a Treatise of Wickliffes Conformity with the now Church of England both in doctrine and discipline Besides we may take a taste of his Tenets out of his Treatise against the orders of Friers wherein he saith as followeth First Friars seyen that their Religion founden on sinfull men is more perfit than that Religion or order which Christ himselfe made Friars pursuen true Priests and letten them to preach the Gospell They pursuen Priests for they reproven their sins as God bids both to burne them and the Gospell of â—hrist written in English to most learning of our nation Friars send out Ideots full of covetise to preach not the Gospell but Chronicles fables and leasings to please the people and to rob them Friars by letters of Fraternity deceiven the people in Faith robben them of temporall goods and maken the people to trust more in dead parchment sealed with leasings and in vaine prayers of Hypocrites than in the helpe of God Friars perverten the right faith of the Sacrament of the Auter and bringen a new heresie they say it is an Accident withouten subjeâ—t which heresie came never into the Church till the foule feende Satanas was unbounden after a thousand yeeres Friars being made Bishops robben men by extortion as in punishing of sinne for money and suffren men to lie in sin getten of Antichrist false exemption Friars teachen Lords and namely Ladies that if they dyen in Francis habit they shall never come in hell for the vertue thereof Men sayen
kind that is Sacramentaliter figuraliter by way of SacrameÌ„t figuratively to wit as Saint Iohn Baptist figuratively was Helias and not personally So he saith of the coÌ„secrated hoast that it was Christs body in figure and true bread in nature or which is all one true bread naturally and Christs body figuratively And Wickliffe is very confident in his opinion for he saith that the third part of the Cleargy of England would be ready to defend the same upon paine of losing of their lives cum non fuerit materia martyrij plus laudanda there being no better cause of Martyrdome Of Images and Prayer to Saints TO speake properly saith Durand a the same reverence and respect which is due unto the Samplar or person represented is not to be given to the Image signe or Representee neither ought the imagâ— to be adored with Latria or divine worship for any reference or relation it hath to the thing represented thereby Holcot also a principall Schooleman saith No adoration is due to an Image neither is it lawfull to worship any image and his reason is this Latria or divine worship is due onely unto God But the image of God is not God therefore Latria or divine worship is not due unto an Image Otherwise saith he The Creator and the creature should both be adored with one honour By this wee see the Tenet of Thomas Aquinas controlled who taught that the Crucifixe and Image of Christ was to be worshipped and adored with the selfe-same honour to wit of Latria that Christ Iesus himselfe was to be honoured with Durand also held that it was utterly unlawfull to picture or represent the Trinity or God otherwise than as in Christ he tooke our flesh and was found among us as man Wickliffe was of opinion that it were better to banish Images cleane out of the Church and to this purpose he alleadgeth that noted saying of Epiphanius and according to his doctrine not long after William Nâ—vill Lâ—wis Clifford Thomas Latimer and Iohn Montague turned out Images out of certaine Chappels within their Iurisdictions Concerning prayer to Saints whereas wee hold it vaine to pray to the Saints deceased unlesse we might be assured that they heard and understood our prayers and beheld the secret thoughts of our heart some have conceited the glasse of the Trinity according to that of Gregory He that seeth God who seeth all things cannot but see all things in him but this saying is rejected by Hugo de S. Victore as wee heard in the last age as also by Occham Scotus and sundry other excellent men It is true indeede that they see God face to face 1. Corinth 13.12 yet this Faciall vision maketh not the blessed Saints to know all things Every one which beholdeth the Sunne doth not behold every thing which the Sunne effecteth and enlightneth The Saints know according to the capacity of creatures and so farre forth onely as it pleaseth God and is sufficient for their happinesse so that this glasse of the Trinity doth not represent things according to the manner of a Naturall Glasse but as Speculum voluntarium such a Glasse as maketh reflection of such notices as God is pleased to manifest more or lesse when in what manner and to what persons himselfe pleaseth Gregorius Ariminensis resolveth peremptorily that neither Saints nor Angels know the secrets of our hearts but that this is reserved as peculiar to God alone Besides there wanted not some who in this darke age of the Papacy held it superfluous to pray to the Saints insomuch that Iohn Sharpe in the Vniversity of Oxford publikely disputed these two questions of praying to Saints and of praying for the dead especially because it was esteemed by some famous men and not without probability that such suffrages and prayers were superfluous in the Church of God although some other wise men thought the contrary Wickliffe also is noted by Bellarmine for one that opposed Invocation of Saints Wickliffe indeede saith as followeth It seemeth to be a very great folly to leave the fountaine which is at hand and fetch water a farre off out of a muddy poole Who would make a Scurra or vaine fellow his spokesman to procure him accesse and audience in the Kings Court the King himselfe being more courteous and easilier to be intreated than the mediatour whom the petitioner used where Bellarmine bids us by the way observe how Wickliffeâ— compared the Saints deceased to scurrilous persons and troubled waters this indeed is a shrewd imputation but Wickliffe presently expresseth his owne meaning saying The Saints in Heaven although they be no scurrilous persons but incorporated into Christ by the free mercy of their Saviour yet they are lesse in comparison of him than any meane Groome â—ester or Paraâ—ite is in comparison of an earthly King Now what great harme is there in this comparison Iob compared man Yea a righteous man to a worme even the sonne of man which is but a worme Iob 25. v. 6. Yea but the word Scurra is an odious terme so it is indeed as now adayes it is used The vulgar Interpreter used the word Scurra and Lyra expounds it de vilibus perfonis of meane persons and our English translates it vaine fellowes Wehn David daunced before the Arke Michal sayd to him The King uncovered himselfe to day in the eyes of his servants as one of the vaine fellowes openly uncovereth himselfe Howsoever were it that Wickliffe used the Latine word Scurra in a mollified sence or the word Knave in the English Time we know is the Emperour of words and in processe thereof some of them degenerate from their first institution Idiota at first was used for a private man now we take it for a foole for an Ideot The Wise-men that came from the East were called Magi Math. 2.1 Now wee may not terme them Magicians for that were to call them Sorcerers if one should call a King a Tyrant it were treason or a Wise woman Saga hee would be hardly thought of so among the Latines Fur a Theefe when before it was a Servant Quid faciant Domini audent cùm talia Fures When Slaves thus saucy are What will their Masters dare In like sort the word knave sounded not formerly so odiously as now adayes it doth for Chaucer used it for a Servant Goe up quoth he unto his knave Cleape at his doore and knocke fast with a stone And in the same sence it is used by Sir Philip Sidney in his Arcadia If that my man must praises hâ—ve What then must I that keepe the knave Now to proceede Wicliffe in the other comparison alludes to that of the Prophet They have forsaken me the fountaine of living waters and hewed them out Cisterns broken â—esternes that can hold no water and so indeed are the purest creatures in
to the ancient custome of the Primitive Church and could not bee induced simply and absolutely to condemne the Articles of Wickliffe but thought many of them might carry a good sense and that the Author of them was a man that carried a good mind howsoever hee might faile in some things and for these and the like tenets and reproofes they were burnt at Constance contrary to the publike faith and safe conduct given by the Emperour yea Aeneas Sylvius afterwards Pope Pius the second saith expresly It was thought good by the perswasion of Sigismund the Emperour that Iohn and Hierome should bee called to the Councell of Constance so that they came not of their owne accord nor yet without their warrantie and safe conduct but the Fathers of the Counsell dealt ill with them breaking the faith of the Emperour and dispencing with the breach of his safe-conduct as being of no force without theirs because forsooth faith was not to bee kept with Heretikes as thâ—y vainely alleadged therefore these poore men must have no priviledge of their Passe-port the Emperour saith Campian in a flourish of his Sealed their Passe but the Christian world to wit the Councell of Constance greater than Caesar brake up the seale and voided the Imperiall warranâ— notwithstanding the Emperour had both called the Councell and in a Citie of his ownâ— where hee onely had authority and Wenceslaus King of Bohemia at the request of the Councell sent thither Iohn Hus under the safe-conduct of the Emperour Now what Master Hus his learning was his workes yet remaining doe testiâ—ie Besides hee translated the Scriptures into the Bohâ—mian tongue which occasioned as Cochleus saith Artisans and Tradesmen to reade them insomuch as they could dispute with the Priests yea their women were so skilled as one oâ— them made a booke and the Priests of the Thabâ—rites were so skilled in arguing out of the Scripture that one of them named Rokyzana who had beene present at the Counsell at Basil undertooke to dispute with Capistranus a great and learned Papist touching Communion in both kinds and that out of the holy Scriptures the ancient Doctors and the Churches Canons and Constitutions as also from the force of naturall reason Aenâ—as Sylvius saith That Hus was an eloquent man and that in the worlds estimation hee had gained a great opinion of holinesse Hierome was a man of that admirable eloquence learning and memory that Poghius the Florentine Historian and Oratour admired his good parts and the same Poghius being an eye-witnesse of his triall at the Councell of Constance saith He was a man worthy of eternall memory that there was no just cause of death in him that hee spake nothing in all his triall unworthy of a good man yea hee doubteth whether the things objected against him were true or no. Besides he was so resolute at his death that when the Tormentor kindled the fire behind his backe he bid him make it in his sight For if I had feared the fire said he I had never come hither and so whiles the fire was a making hee sung Psalmes and went cheerefully to his death The like resolution was in Iohn Husse at his death for whereas his enemies made a crowne of paper with three ugly devils painted therein and this title Arch-heretike set over when Iohn Husse saw it he said My Lord Iesus Christ for my sake were a Crowne of thornes why should not I then for his sake weare this light Crowne bee it never so shamefull I will doe it and that willingly and so hee died constantly and so indeed the storie reports that they went to the stake as cheerefully as it had beene to a banquet Iohn Husse may seeme to have had some propheticall inspiration for at his death hee prophesied saying You roast the Goose now but a Swan shall câ—me after mee and hee shall escape your fire Now Husse in the Bohemian tongue signifieth a Goose and Luther a Swan and this Swâ—n succeeded him just an hundred yeares after foâ— so these two blessed servants of God prophesied saying Wee cite you all to make answer aâ—d after an hundred yeares to give an account of this your doing unâ—o God and accoâ—diâ—gly as they foretold it came to passe for they suffered martyrdome in the yeare 1416. and just an hundred yeares afâ—er to wit in the yeaâ—e 1516. the Lord raysed up Luther who indâ—ed called the Pope and his doctrine to a reckoning Vpon this propheticall speech of Iohn Husse there was money coined iâ— Bohemia with this inscripâ—ion in Latine on the one side Cintum revolutis annis Deo respondebitis et mihi anno 1416 Hie onymus condemnatus that is After an hundred yeares you shall answer to God and to me and on the oâ—her side of the plate was engraven Credo unam â—ssâ— sanctam Ecclesiam Catholicam anno 1415. Io. Husse I beleeve one holy Catholike Church PA Did Husse and his followers teach as you doe PRO For substance of doctrine they taught as wee doe their enemies indeed misreported their doctrine and charged them with that they never held insomuch as Husse solemnely protested even at the point of death That hee never held those Articles which the false witnesses deposed against him but held and taught and wrote the contraâ—y taking it upon his death that hee taught nothing but the truth of the Gospell which hee would then seale with his blood Now touching their doctrine we are driven to takâ— the scaâ—tling of their opinions from the pens of tâ—eir advâ—rsaries by whom wee perceive that it is very pâ—obâ—ble 〈◊〉 Hussiâ—es were instructed and much helped by Wicklâ—â—ss bookes and accordingly wee find that both Aenâ—â—s Sylvius and Cochleus report that the meanes wheâ—â—by â—he Bohemiâ—ns came to know the doctrine of Wicklâ—ffe was for that a certaine noble man studying in Oxford carried thence with hiâ— into Bohemia Wiâ—klifs bookes de Realibus universalibus As if it had beene some rare jewell and Cochleus saith That as a Bohemian brought first into Bohemia Wickliffes bookes de Realibus uniâ—erâ—alibus So there was afterwards one Peter Paineâ— a Scholler of Wickliffes who after the death of his Master came â—lso into Bohemia and brought with him Wâ—â—kliffes bookes which were in quantity as great as Saint Auâ—â—ines Workes many of which bookes Husse did aftâ—rwards translate into their mother tongue Bellarmine jâ—ynes the Hussitesâ— and Waldenses together as holding the same points of doctrine and reproving the same abuses of Rome And Platina saith that Hâ—sse and Hierome were condemned in the Councell of Constance as being followers of Wickliffe Aeneas Silvius saith the Hussites embraced the pâ—ofession of the Waldenses Now wee have already showne the tenets of the Waldenses and Wickliffe But to come to particulars bâ—sides the Hussites there were others also of his disciples which were called Thaborites of the place Thabor
in all matters of Religion he agreed fully with the Catholike Roman Church PRO. What his Religion was let his owne workes testifie Guicciâ—rdine saith that amongâ—â— other things hâ—e was charged That his doctrine was not fully Catholike hee meaneth Roman Catholike and Comminees saith That one of the Frier Minorites his professed adversary charged him to be an Heretike so that in his opinion he was not in each point a Roman Catholike And to take the Popes procesâ—e which was published against him as wee find it in Guicciardine Therein it is given out that Savonarola had a holy desire that by his meanes a Generall Councell might be called wherein the corrupt customes of the Clergy might bee reformed and the estate of the Church of God so farre wandred and gone astray might bee reduced so farre forth as was possible to the likenesse of that it was in the Apostles time or those that were neerest unto them and if he could bring so great and so profitable a worke to effect hee would thinke it a farre greater glory then to obtaine the Pope-dome it sâ—lfe in the same Processe it is contained how hee despised the Popes commandements and returned publikely to his olâ— office of preaching affirming that the Popâ—s censures published against him were unjust and of no force as also that the matters by him prophesiâ—d were not pronounced by divine revelation but by his proper opinion grounded upon the doctrine and observation of holy Scripture And now let the Reader consider by that which Guicciardine reports of Savonarola and namely touching the opinion he had of the Popes authoritie and his excommunications touching generall Councels and the deformitie and degeneration of the Churches state in respect of antiquitie as also what Comminees saith of his preaching of the Reformation of the Church and that by the Sword as formerly our Grosthead Bishop of Lincolne foretold and then let him judge of what profession he was likely to be Now for the poynt of faction and sedition It is true indeâ—d that there was a great faction in Florence not onely amongst the Laity but the Spiritualty alâ—o but it doth not appeare that Hierome was the Author or nourisher of this discord or that he had any hand in that tumult wherein Francisco Valori a principall favourer of Savonarola was slaine When Saint Paul preached the Gospel in Asia the whole Citty of Ephâ—sus was full of confusion and they rushed into the Common place and caught Gajus and Aristarchus Pauls companions of his journey Act. 19. ver 29. Was Paul or his companions the occasion of this tumult Savonarola preached the word of God in Florence his adversaries tooke Armes entred the Monasterie of Saint Marke where hee was and drew him and two of his brethren Dominick and Silvester out of the Covent and put them into the common prisons upon occasion of a mutinie in the Citie but Hierome and his fâ—llowes occasioned not this tumult It was indeed pâ—â—tended thaâ— he sided with the one faction in Florence but Philip de Comminees who knew him better than Paâ—sons toucheth that which brought the Frâ—er to the sâ—ake namâ—ly In that hee prophâ—sied and that so vehemently and freely of the comming in of forraine forces and of a King that by force of Armes should reforme the corrupt state of the Church and chastise the Tyrants of Italy this was it saith he which made the Pope and the state of Florence hate him Thus have we heard of his life and death there remaineth nothing now but his Epiâ—aph wherewith Flaminius a famous Poet of Italy hath honoured him And thus it is Dum fera flaâ—ma tuos Hieronyme pascitur artus Religio flevit dilaniâ—ta comas Flevit et ô dixit crudeles parcite flammae Paâ—ite sunt isto viscera nostra rogo That is Whiles Hiâ—rome to the firy stake was led Religion tore her haire and wept and said You cruell flames oh spare this tender heart For whiles he burns Religion feels the smart And so I proceed to the severall points in question Of the Scriptures Sufficiencie and Canon Geâ—son makes the word of Christ the sole authenticall ground of faith and the onely infallible rule to decide controvâ—rsies The Scriptures saith he is given unto us as a sufficient and infallible Rule for the governement of the whole body of â—he Church and each part thereof unto the end of the world What evill saith the same Gerson hath followed upon the contempt of holy Scripture which doubtlesse is sufficient for the government of the Church for otherwise Christ had beene an unperfect Law giveâ— experâ—eâ—ce will teach That Wickliffe affirmeth that nâ—ither Friers nor Prelates may define aâ—y thing in matters of faith unlesse they have the auâ—hority of sacred Scripture or some speciall revelation I dislikâ— not saith Waldensis but his waywardnesse and craft I condemne and thinke it necessary lest wee wrest the Scâ—â—ptures and erre in the interpretation of them to follow the â—radition of the Church expounding them unto us and not to trust to our own private singular conceits This is that which Vincentius Lirinensis long since delivered Alphonsus Tostatus saith Although the bookes in question bee received of the Church yet are thâ—y not of any solide auâ—hority and thâ—refore they are improfitable to prove and confirme those things which are called in question according to Saint Hierome Thomas Waldensis cites out of Hierome the Canâ—n of the old Testament in these words As there are twâ—nty two letters by which we write in Hebrew all that we speake so there are accounted twenty two bookes by which as letters wee are instructed in the doctrine of God and withall addeth That the whole Canonicall Scripture is contained in the two and twenty bookes Dionysius Carthusiâ—nus in writing upon Ecclesiasticus saith That booke is not of the Conon that is amongst the Canonicall Scriptures although there be no doubt made of the truth of that booke This is likewise confessed by Pererius the Iesuite saying Dionysius Carthusianus and Lyra doe not deny the History of Susanna to be true but they deny the bookes of Iudith Tobit and the Maccabees to apertaine to the Cononicall Scriptures And the like observation touching Lyra is made by Picus Mirandula and Picus himselfe would have us note that many things which in the Decrees are reckoned for Apocryphall and so accounted by Hierome are neverthelesse read in the Divine Service and many things also which some hold not to bee truâ— Of Communion under both kinds and number of Sacraments The Councel of Constance did not simply forbid the ministring of the Sacrament in both kinds but the teaching of the people that of necessity it must be so ministred for so we find in the thirteenth Session of the said Councel That if any should obstinately maintaine that it was unlawfull or â—rronious to receive in one kind he ought to be punished
and driven out as an Hereticke Gerson howsoever he thought that the Church might lawfully prescribe the communicating in one kind alone wherein we cannot excuse him yet hee acknowledgeth That the Communion in both kinds was anciently used The Councel of Basil permitted the Bohemians to continue the use of the Communion in both kinds upon condition That they should not find fault with the contrary use nor sever themselves from the Catholicke Church Iacobellus Misvensis a Preacher of Prague being admonished by Petrus Dresdensis after he had searched into the writings of the ancient Doctors and by name Dionysius and Saint Cyprian and finding in them the communicating of the Cup to the Laity commanded hee thenceforth exhorted the people by no meanes to neglect or omit the receiving the Communion of the Cup. Cardinal Bessarion Bishop of Tusculum professeth in expresse termes Wee reade onely of two Sacraments which were plainely delivered in the Gospel Of the Eucharist Waldensis saith That some supposed the Conversion that is in the Sacrament to be in that the bread and wine are assumed into the unitie of Christs person some thought it to be by way of Impanation and some by way of Figurative and Tropical appellation The first and second of those opinions found the better entertainement in some mens mindes because they grant the essentiall preseâ—ce of Christs body and yet deny not the presence of the bread still remaining to sustaine the appearing Accidents These opinions he reports to have beene very acceptable to many not without sighes wishing the Church had Decreed That men should follow one of them Whereupon Iohn Paris writeth That this way of Impanation so pleased Guido the Carmelite sometime Reader of the Holy Palace that he professed if hee had beene Pope he would have prescribed and commanded the embracing of it Petrus de Alliaco the Cardinal professâ—th that for ought he can see the substantiall Conversion of the Sacramental elements into the body and bloud of Christ cannot be proved either out of scripture or any determination of the universal Church maketh it but a matter of opinion inclining rather to the other opinion of Consubstantiation His words are these That manner or meaning which supposeth the substance of bread to remaine still is possible neither is it contrary to reason or to the authoritie of the Scriptures nay it is more easie and more reasonaâ—ble to conceive than that which sayes the Substance doth leave the Accidents And of this opinion no inconvenience doth seeme to ensue if it could accord with the Churches determination And hee addes That the opinion which holdeth the substance of bread to remaine doth not â—vidently follow of the Scripture nor in his seeming of the Churches determination Biel saith It is not expressed in the Canon of the Bible how the body of Christ is in the Sacrament and hereof anciently there have beene divers opinions Cajetaâ— saith that secluding the Churches authoritie there is no written word of God sufficient to enforce a Christian to receive this doctrine of Transubstantiation Saurez the Iesuit ingeniously professeth that Cardinal Cajetan in his Commentâ—rie upon this Article did aâ—â—irme that those words of Christ. This is my Body doe not of themselves sufficiently prove Transubstantiation without the Churches authoritie and therefore by the Commandment of Pius Quintus that part of his Commentarie is left out in the Roman Edition By this it appeares that their learned Councel of Schoolemen who lived in this Age were not fully agreed upon the poynt Of Images and Prayer to Saints Abulensis was so farre from allowing the worship of Images as that he held it a thing unlawfull in it selfe Deut. 4.16 secluding Adoration to make any visible Image or representation of God according to his deâ—ty for hence saith hee these two inconveniences will follow First The Perill of Idolaâ—rie in case the Image it selfe should come to be adored and Secondly Errour and Heresie whiles one shall asâ—ribe to God such bodily shapes and formes as the Trinity â—s usually pictured withall Now that Abulensis with othâ—rs held it unlawfull to picture or represâ—nt the Trinâ—tie is acknowledged by Bellarmine saying It is Calvins opinion in the first booke of his Institutions cap 11. that it is an abhominable sinne to make a â—â—sible and bodâ—ly Image of the invisible and incorporeall God and this opinion of Calvins is also the opinion of some Catholicke Doctors as Abulensiâ— upon 4. Deut. quest 5. and Durand upon 3. dist 9. qu. 2. and Peresius in his booke of â—raditions Gerson condemned all mâ—king of an Image or portraiture appointed or accommodaâ—ed to worship and aadorationâ— saying Thou shalt â—ot adore thâ—m nor worship them which are thus to bâ— distinguished Thou shalt not adore them that is With any bodily reverence or bowing or kneeling to them Thou shalt not worship them with any devotion of mind Images therefore are prohibited to bee either adored or Worshipped The same Gerson disliked the varietie of pictures and Images in Churches occasioning Idolatry in the simple If Christians were in no peâ—ill of Idolatry by worshipping Images why doth Gerson complaineâ— that Superstition had infected Christian Religion anâ— that people like Iewesâ— did onely sâ—eke after Signes and yeeld Divine honour to Images Cassander writeth in this manner The opinion of Thomas Aquinas who holdeth that Images are to be woâ—shipped as their Samplers is disliked by soundâ—r Scâ—oolemen amongst whom is Durand Holcot and Gabriel â—iel Biel reporteth the opinion of them which say that an Image neither as it is considered in it selfe materâ—ally nor yâ—t according to the nature of a Signe or Image is to bee worshipped And he saith well that this opinion of Thomas was disliked of others for besides those already mentioned this was one of the Problems which Picus Mirandula proposed to be maintained by him at Rome namely that Neither the Crosse nor any other Image was to be worshipped with Latria or Divine worship no not in that sense as Thomas would have it And when otheâ—s carped at this and other his Assertions touching â—he Sacrament of the Eucharist himselfe made his owne Apologie and defence Touching Invocation of Saints though Gerson did not absolutely condemne it yet hee reprehendeth the abuses and sâ—persâ—iâ—ious observations then prevailing in the worshiâ—ping of Sâ—ints veâ—y bitterly For in his Consolatoâ—y tract of Rectifying the Heart amongst many oâ—her considâ—rations he complaineth That â—hâ—re is incollerable â—uperstitioÌ„ in the worshipping of Saints innumerable observations without all ground of reason vaine credulitie in beleeving things concerning the Saints reported in the uncertaine Legends of their lives superstitious opinions of obtaining Pardon and remission of sinnes by saying so many Pater nosters in such a Church before such an Image as if in the Scriptures and Authenticall writings of holy men there were not sufficient direction for all
acts of pietie and devotion without these frivolous Additions Gabriel Biel in his Lectures upon the Canon of the Masse saith That the Saints in Heaven by their naturall knowledge which is the knowledge of things in their proper kinde know no Prayers of ours that are here upon earth neither mentall nor vocall by reason of the immoderate distance that is betwixt us and them Secondly That it is no part of their essentiall beatitude that they should see our prayers or our other actions in the eternall word and thirdly That it is not altogether certaine whether it doe appertaine to their accidentall felicity to see our Prayers At length he concludeth That it may seeme Probable that although it doe not follow necessarily upon the Saints beatitude that they should heare our Prayers of congruitie yet it may seeme probable that God revealeth unto them all those suits which men present unto them By this we see that for the maine Gabriel concludeth that the Saints with God doe not by any power of their owne by any naturall or evening knowledge whatsoever understand our prayers mentall or vocall they and we are dâ—sparted so farre asunder as there can not bee that relation betweene us so that wee might haply call and they not bee Idonei auditores not at hand to heare us Now as learned Master Mountague now Lord Bishop of Chichester saith The Saints their naturall or evening knowledge onely is that which wee must trust unto as being a lonely in their power to use and to dispose and of ordinary dispensation In a word Peter Lombard saith It is not incredible that the soules of Saints heare the prayers of the suppliants Biel saith as we have heard That it is not certaine but it may seeme probable that God reveleth unto Saints all those suits which men present unto them here is nothing but probability and uncertainâ—y nothing whereon to ground our praying to Saints Of Iustification and Merits Trithemius the Abbot who lived in this age complaines that Aristotle and the heathen Philosophers were oftner alleadged in the Pulpit than Saint Peter and Saint Paul and therefore hee disswades his friend Kymolanus from too much study of profane sciences Let us saith hee seeke after true and heavenly wisedome which consisteth in faith onely in our Lord Iesus Christ working by love Cardinall Cusanus in a treatise of his De pace fidei brings in Dialogue-wise Saint Peter and Saint Paul instructing the severall nations of the world Greekes and Arabians the French and the Almanies Tartarians and Armenians and there in that conference hee laboureth to bring them to an agreement In pace fidei in the unity of faith and amongst other things he proves at large That wee are justified only by faith in Christ and not by any merit of our owne workes The doctriâ—e of free Iustification is excellently handled by Savonarola in his meditations upon the fiftieth Psalme which Possevine acknowledgeth to be composed by him whiles hee was in durance the day before hee was led to the stake Vpon occasion of those woâ—ds of the Psalmist They gat not the land in possâ—ssion through their owne sword neither was it their oâ—ne arme that helped them but thy right hand and thine arme and the light of thy countenance because thou hadst a favour unto them Psalm 4â— ver 3.4 â—e sweetly commâ—nteth on this sort Thou â—avâ—uredst them that iâ— they were not saved by their owne merits or workes lâ—st they should glory thâ—â—ein but even because of thy goâ—d will and pleâ—sure Vpon occasion of that Petition of the Lords prayer Forgive as our trespasses hee renounceth all merit of his owne workes and professeth in the words of the Pâ—ophet Esay That all our righteousnesse is as the rags of a menstruous woman Picus Mirandula treating on the same Petition saith it is certaine that wee are not saved for our owne merits but by the onely meâ—cy of our God Gerson taught that wee are not justified by the perfection of any inherent qualitie that all our inherent righteousnesse is imperfect yea that it is like the polluted rags of a menstruous woman that it cannot endure the triall of Gods severe judgement even Esay himselfe with the rest became vile in his owne eyes and pronounceth this lowly confession all our righteousnesse is as filthy rags The Cardinall of Cambray proveth by many reasons and authorities of Scripâ—uâ—e That no act of ours from how great charity soever it proceed can merit eternall life of condignity And whereas God is said to give the kingdome of hâ—aven for good merits or good workes the Cardinall for clearing hereof delivereth us this distinction That the word Propter or for is not to be taken Causally as if good workes were the efficient cause of the reward as fire is the cause of heate but improperly and by way of consequence noting thâ— order of oâ—e thing following oâ— another signifying that the reward is given after the good worke and not but after it yet noâ— for it so that a meritorious act is said to be a cause in respect of the rewâ—rd as Causa sine quâ— non also is said to be a caâ—se though it be no cause properly Thomas Walden professeth plainely his dislike of that saying That a man by his merits is worthy of the kingdome of heaven of this grace or that glory hoâ—sâ—ever certaine schoole-men that they might so spâ—ake had invented the termes of Condignity and Congruity But I repute him saith he the sounder Divine the more faithfull Catholike and more consonant with the holy Scriptures who doth simply deny such merit and with the qualification of the Apostle and of the Scriptures confesseth that simply no man meriteth the kingdome of heaven but by the grace of God or will of the Giver as all the former Saints untill the late Schoole-men and the Vniversall Church hath written Out of which words of Waldens wee may further observe saith the learned and Right Reverend Doctor Vsher Arch-bishop of Armagâ— both the time when and the persons by whom this innovation was made in these later dayes of the Church namely that the late Schoole-men were they that corrupted the ancient doctrine of the Church and to that end devised their new termes of the merit of Congruity and Condignity Paulus Burgensis expounding those words of David Psal. 36.5 Thy mercy O Lord is in heaven or reacheth unto the heavens writeth thus No man according to the common Law can merit by condignity the glory of heaven Whence the Apostle saith in the 8. to the Romans that the sufferings of this time are not worthy to be compared with the future glory which shall be revealed in us And so it is manifest that in heaven most of all the mercy of God shineth forth in the blessed I will close up this point as also this age with that memorable
saying of Ernestus Arch-bishop of Magdeburg lying on his death-bed some five yeares befoâ—e Luther shewed himselfe It is witnessed by Clement Schaâ— Chaplaine to the said Arch-bishop and one who was present at his death that a Frier Minor used this speech to the Archbishop Take a good heart most worthy Prince wee communicate to your excellencie all the good workes not onely of our selves but our whole order of Frier Minors and therefore doubt not but you receiving them shall appeare before the tribunall Seate of God righteous and blessed Whereunto the Arch-bishop replyed By no meanes will I trust upon my owne workes or yours but the workes of Christ Iesus alone shall suffice upon them will I repose my selfe THE SIXTEENTH CENTVRIE From the yeare of Grace 1500. to 1600. Of Martin Luther PAPIST WHat say you of this sixteenth Age PROTESTANT We are now by Gods assistance come to the period of time which was agreed upon in the beginning of our conference to wit to the dayes of Martin Luther for about the yeare of Grace 1517 hee beganne to teach and Preach against Indulgences And withall I have produced a Catalogue of our professours unto this present sixteenth Centurie PA. Stay your selfe you must saith Master Brerely show us your professours during the twentie yeares next before Luther PRO. It is done already for besides our English Martyrs we have produced Trithemius the Abbot and Savonarola both which lived within the time mentioned and held with us the Article of free Iustification and Savonarola howsoever the matter be otherwise coloured was burnt for Religion in the yeare 1498. Besides there have beene in all Ages and in the time mentioned such as held the substantiall Articles of our Religion both in the Roman and Greeke Church and by name the Grecians in common with us have openly denyed the Popes Supremacie Purgatorie private Masses Sacrifices for the dead and defended the lawfulnesse of Priests marriage Likewise in this Westerne part of the world the Schollers of Wickliffe called Lollards in England the Taboâ—ites in Bohemia and Waldenses in France maintained the same doctrine in substance with our moderne Protestants as appeareth by a Confession of the Waldensian Faith set forth about the yeare of Grace 1508 which was within the time prefixed Neither did these whom we have produced dissemble their Religion but made open profession thereof by their Writings Confessions and Martyrdomes as also their just Apologies are extant to cleere them from the Adversaries imputation PA. I thought Luther had beene the first founder of your Religion for there bee some of your men who call him the first Apostle of the reformed doctrine PRO. Luther broached not a new Religion he onely drained and refined it from the Lees and dregs of superstition he did not forme or found a new Church which was not in being but onely reformed and purged that which he found from the soilâ— of errours and disorders When Hilkiah the Priest in Iosiah's time found out the booke of God he was thereby a meanes to bring to light what the wicked proceedings of Manasses Amon and others had for a season smothered and so did Luther he was the instrument whom God used for the farther enlightning his Church and yet hereupon it no more followeth that he was the first that preached our Religion than upon the former that Hiâ—kiah first preached the Law The Protestants Church by Luthers meanes began no otherwise in Germanie than health begins to be in a body that was formerly sicke and overcharged and now recovered So that in respect of doctrine necessary to salvation the Church in her Firme members as Saint Austine speakes was the same before Luther and afterwards and it began to be by his meanes onely according to a greaâ—er measure of knowledge and freedome from such corruptions as formerly like ill humours oppressed it and oveâ—charged it The Proâ—estants Church then is the same with all good and sound Christians that lived before them and succeedeth the sound members of the visible Chuâ—ch that kept the life of true Religion in the substantiall matters of Faith and Godlinesse though otherwise those times were daâ—kened with a thicke mist of errours Now whereas some call Luther the first Apostle of the reformed doctrine they did not therâ—by intend that he was the fiâ—st that ever preached the dâ—ctrine of the râ—formed Churches for they could not be ignorant that after Christ and his Apostles and the Fathers of the first five Ages Bertram and Aâ—lfricke and Berenger Peter Bruis and Henry of Tholouse Dulcinus and Anâ—ldus and Lollardus Wickliffe Husse Hierome of Pragâ—e and others stood for the same truth which we professe but their meaning was that Luther was the first who in their Age and memorie publickly and succesfully set on foot a generall reformation of the Church in these Westerne parts And thus in a tollerable sense Luther may bee called the first Apostle of the Reformation though not simply the first that preached the Protestants doctrine Americus Vesputius is reported to have discovered the West Indies or America and withall beares the name thereof and yet Christopher Columbus discovered it before him Bishop Iewell saith that in Luthers dayes in the midst of the darknesse of that Age there first began to shine some glimmeâ—ing beame of truth his meaning is not that the truth was then first revealed but that by Luthers mâ—anes it was manifested in a fuller measure and degree of lâ—ght and knowledge than it was in the fâ—rmer and daâ—ker times of Poperie yea he giveth pâ—rticular instance of true professours that were before Luther namely Saint Hilarie Gregory Bernard Pauperes de Lugduno the â—ishops of Greece and Asia as also Valla Marsilius Petrarch Savonarola and others PA. Did Luther himselfe acknowledge he had any predecessors or fore-runners PRO. I answer with my worthy and learned friend Doctor Featly that Luther acknowledged the Waldenses termâ—d fratres Pigardi as appeares by his Preface before the Waldension Confession I found saith hee in these men a miracle almost unheard of in the Popish Church to wit that these men leaving the doctrines of men to the utmost of their endeavour meditated in the Law of God day and night and were very ready and skilfull in the Scriptures whereas in the Papacie the greatest Clerkes uâ—terly neglected the Scriptures I could not but congratulate both them and us that wee were together brought into one sheepfold Of Iohn Husse and Hiâ—rome of Prague he saith They burned Iohn Husse and Hierome both Catholike men they being themselves Heretikes and Apostates and in his third Preface hee saith hee hath heard from men of credit that Maximilian the Emperour was wont to say of Iohn Husse Alas alas they did that good man wrong And Erasmus Roterodam in the first bookes which hee printed lying yet by me writeth That Husse indeed was condemned and burned but not convicted PA. To
what Church did Luther joyne himselfe and why left hee the Roman Church PRO. Hee joyned himselfe in point of faith to the ancient Primitive and Apostolicke Church that went before him and for his present Communion to that sound part of the Roman Church which then with him hated the corruptions which the Romish faction for the maintenance of their pompe and profit had upheld In particular hee joyned himselfe to those honourable personages the Dukes of Saxony and Wittenberge and the Earle of Mansfield and to such Châ—istian congregations as within their territories began to abandon Poperie and reforme themselves He received Ordination in the Church of Rome this ordination for substance was good and by vertue thereof hee preached tâ—e word and brought the people to see and detest not the Church of Rome but her corruptions from whence hee severed himselfe to wit from the Roman Court and faction therein so that hee leapt not out of the Church hee kept himselfe still within the barne-floore thereof onely he leapt out of the huske of popish errours Now this his separation and ours from errour â—s warranted by Gods word since Gods people are commanded and that upon a grievous penalty to depart out of Babylon and spirituaâ—l Sodome and this we â—ake to be Rome since your owne Iesuites that have commented on the Revelation call Rome Babylon and that this is to be understood not onely of heathâ—n Rome but of Rome Christian after that it had forsaken heaâ—henisme and had received the faith of Christ and turned againe from that unto Antichristianisme PA. If any Protestant Church were in being before or at Luthers appearing then would they upon his preaching have acknowledgâ—d him and joyned themsâ—lves to him but as Bellâ—rmine saâ—th they did not PRO. Alphoâ—sus de Casiro saith Neither did Luther in this age come â—orth alone but accompanied with a grâ—at troope as with a Guard waiting for Lâ—tâ—er as for tâ—eir Captaine and Leader such were Philip Melanchton Conradus Pâ—llicanâ—s â—ambert Fabricius Capito â—siâ—â—der Stuâ—mius aâ—d Maâ—tin Bucer and thâ—se saith he seemed to have â—xpectâ—d him bâ—fore hee came and upon his comming dâ—lclâ—aâ—e unto him so that hee wanted noâ— such as gave him the right hands of fellowship Galat. 2.9 Carolus Miâ—titius being sent from Pope Leo to Frederike professed That all the way as he came having sâ—undâ—d mâ—ns affâ—ctions hee found three to favour Luthâ—r for one that favoured the Pope And Lutâ—er professeth that the applause of the world did much support him most men being weary of the frauds and wicked pâ—actices of the Romanists Neither are these penurious examples to give instance in Melanchton Pellican Bucer and others as Brereley scornefully calleth iâ— for they were as great schollâ—rs as that age affâ—â—ded Pâ—llican was one who made great helpe for râ—viving tâ—e Hebrew tongue and was Luthers ancient and so was Ioâ—n Capnio or Reuchlin who brought Greeke and Hebrew into Germany Now bâ—sides his câ—evals and contemporaries the Waldâ—nâ—es as also Iohn Hâ—sse bare a torch before Luther and shâ—wed him his way PA. Master Brereley saith That Melanchton Pâ—lican and Bucer were originally Catholikes and followed Luthers example in revolting from the Catholike Church PRO. Saint Paul was originally a Pharisee and yet hee did well to forsake the leaven of their traditions and embrace the doctrine of the Gospell And so did Saint Austin the errour of the Manichees and Pelagians and embraced the truth of the Gospell Besides they left not the Catholike but the Roman Church nor that altogether but the faction that was therein to wit the papacie PA. Schlusselburg saith It is impudencie to say that many learned men in Germany did hold the doctrine of the Gospell before Luther PRO. Schlusselburgs words are these Vtenhovius writes impudently that he heard Pellican affirme that many learned men in Germany held the doctrine of the Gospel before Luther appeaâ—ed and that Pellican himselfe impugned the popish purgatory before the name of Luther was heard of Now why may wee not beleeve Vtenhovius and Pellican affirmâ—ng the same and being honest men as well as Schlusselburg denying it Besides admit there were not any in Germany yet there might be elsewhere many thousands as in Bohemia France and England and other parts who bâ—fore Luthers time embraced the doctrine of the Gospell PA. Master Brereley saith out of Luthers workes that upon a conference had with the Devill Luther gave over the Masse and changed his Religion PRO. Suppose this Conference were extant in all the Dutch copies of Luthers workes which yet some make doubt of yet might this conference bee onely imaginary even a strong spirituall 〈◊〉 and not â—ny personall or reall conference now from such a spiâ—ituall conflict dreame or appâ—â—ition you cannot draw any sound proofe But supposing the truth of this conference had not Christ a conâ—â—â—â—nce with Sathan and Saint Bernarâ— a combat with him is theiâ— religion ere a whit â—he worse to be liked Your Romish Saints were very familiar with the Devill Saint Oswald wrestled with him Saint Dunstane tooke him by the nose Christopher in the Legend is said to have served the Devill and Saint Xavier was usually vexed with him after Dinner Supper Recreation and saying of Masse insomuch as the Devill oft times put him into a cold sweat as Hâ—ssenmullerus reporteth of him from Turrian the Iesuite PA. The Devill brought arguments against saying of Masse and disputed against it therefore the Masse is good or else the Devill would not have found fault with it PRO. This followeth not for every thing the Devill mislikes is not therefore good neither is all he moves one unto therefore bad For instance sake he came in the habit of Saint Vrsula and moved one to enter into the Order of Nunnes will you say therefore veiling of Nunnes is bad PA. Luther used the selfe-same arguments against the Masse which Satan did now how could they bee good proofes that were brought in by Satan or why would Luther beleeve him PRO. Luther shewes onely how Satan tempted hâ—m to despaire for that he had beene a Masse-monger which Luther knew to be naught without the Devils prompting Besides all that the Devill speakes is not devillish the Devils that possessed the men confessed and sayd Thou art Christ the Sonne of the living God afterwards they entred into the Heard of Swine now the Heardmen they came into the Citty and told what was done and sayd now what though the Hâ—ard-men told how the Devils confessed this Article of the Christian Faith That Christ was the Sonne of the living God was not this a true confession though the Heard-men had fiâ—st heard it from the Devils and likewise reported it from them Luther heard such and such arguments against the Masse might not those arguments be true though Luther heaâ—d them from Satan Gods Ape It is true indeed that the Devill in telling truth
amisse and not to prosecute Luther but this Councel was not followed wherupon divers parts according to Gersons Councel began this worke of Reformation so much desired by all good men howsoever opposed by the pope and his adherents PA. A Reformation presupposeth that things were amisse will you charge the Catholicke Church with errour PRO. Wee say that particular Churches and such is that of Rome may erre and divers have erred Sixtus Senensis reckons up many Fathers that held the Millenary errour mistaking that place in the Revelation 20.5 They said that there should be two Resurrections the first of the godly to live with Christ a thousand yeares on earth in all wordly happinesse before the wicked should awake out of the sleepe of death and after that thousand yeares the second Resurrection of the wicked should bee to eternall death and the godly should ascend to eternall life this errour continued almost two hundred yeares after it began before it was condemned for an heresie and was held by so many Church-men of great account and Martyrs that Saint Augustine and Ierome did very modestly dissent saith the same Senensis The opinion of the necessity of Infants receiving the Sacrament of the Lords body and blood as well as Baptisme did possesse the minds of many in the Church for certaine hundreds of yeares as appeareth by that which Saint Austine writeth of it in his time and Hugo de Sancto victoâ—e many hundred of yeares after him Were there not also superstition and abuses in the primitive Churches did not a Councell forbid those night vigils which some Christians then used at the graves of the Martyrs in honour of the deceased Saints and are not these Vigils now abolished Doth not Saint Aâ—stine confesse there were certaine Adoratores sepulchrâ—rum â—t picturarum worshippers of tombes and pictures in the Church in his time and doth not the same Father taxe them for it To come to later times Thomas Bradwardine complayned That the whole world almoâ—t was gone after Pelagius into errour arise therefore O Lord saith hee and judge thine owne cause Gregorius Ariminensis saith That to affirme that man by his naturall strength without the speciall helpe of God can doe any vertuous action or morally good is one of the damned heresies of Pelagius or if in any thing it differ from his heresie it is further from truth The same Gregory saith The heresies of Pelagius were taught in the Church and that not by a few or them meane men but so many and of so great place that hee almost feared to follow the doctrine of the Fathers and oppose himselfe against them therein Cardinall Contaren saith That there were some who pretended to be Catholikes and opposite to Luther who whiles they laboured to advance free-will too high they detracted too much from the free-grace of God and so became adversaries to the greatest lights of the Church and friends to Pelagius It is not strange then that weâ— say there hath beene a defection not onely of Heretikes from the Câ—urch and faithâ— but also in the Church of her owne children from the sincerity of faiâ—h dâ—livered by Christ and his Apostles not for that all or the whole Church at any time did forsake the true faith but for that many fell from it according to that of Saint Paul 1. Tim. 4.1 In the last times some shall depart from the faith attâ—nding to spirits of errour Besides such a famine of the word as fell out in these later times must needs have brought in corruption in doctrine and this was it that called for Reformation For in sundry ages last past the Roman Church hath behaved her selfe more like a step-dame then a naturall mother insomuch as shee hath deprived her children of a principall portion of the food of life the word of God her publike readings and service were in an unknowne tongue the holy Scriptures were closed up that people might not cast their eyes upon them fabulous Legends were read and preached insteed of Gods word but as Claudius Espencaeus a Doctor of Paris a bitter enemy to Bâ—za and therefore more worthy of credit in this bâ—halfe saith Our Ancestors as devoutly affâ—cted to the Saints as we thought is not fit that the rehearsall of the Saints lives should shoulder out the bookes of the old and new Testament and the reading thereof And hereby it came to passe as one of their owne Authors saiâ—h That the greater number of people understood no more concerning God and things divine in particular and distinct notions then Infidels or heathen people And here in England there was such a dearth of the word in these later times of popeâ—y that some gave five markes some more some lesse for an English booke some gave a load of hay for a few Chapters of Saint Iames or of Saint Paul in English Was it not now high time to reforme these things but Rome would neither acknowledge her errours nor reâ—orme them but rather sought to defend them persecuting such as by authority established laboured this reformation How easie and safe had it beene for Rome had shee tendered the peace of Christendome to have according as the truth required permitted the uâ—e of the Cup as sometime the Councell of Basil allowed it to the Bohemians and the publike service of God in a knowne language as was sometimes granted to the Slavons as also to have abolished the worship of Imâ—ges and the like without which the Church wâ—s and that very well for a long time But Rome would not yeeld in one point lest shee should bee suspected to have erred in the rest and therely the Infallibility of the Roman Oracle the Pope bee called in question PA. That which is reformed remaines the same in substance that it was before And therefore the Catholike Religion and the substantiall exercise thereof should have remayned in England upon the Reformation but you have set up another Religion PRO. We doe not say that the Catholike Religion is reformed for that cannot bee amended but that wee have reformed Religion in that we have purged it from certaine devises and corruptions which had crept into it Before this reformation Religion was like to a certaine lumpâ— or masâ—e consisting partly of gold aâ—d partly of other refuse mettall and drosse to a sicke body wherein besides the flesh blood and bones and vitall spirits there were also divers naughty humours that had surprised the body our reformation tooke not away your gold to wit those fundamentall truths wherein you agree with us but purged it from the drosse it drew not the good blood from the body but onely purged out the pestilent humour so that we have retained whatsoever was sound Catholike and primitively ancient onely those things that were patched to the ground-soles of Religion that wee have pared away as superfluous wee have not removed the ancient land-markes
but only cast downe some encroachments and improvements of poperie wee have no more erâ—cted a new faith in respect of the substance and essentials thereof than that zealous reformer Iosia built a new materiall Temple when hee cast out the Idols and Idolatrous worship out of the Lords house There is no other difference betwixt the Reformed and the Romish Church then betwixt a field well weeded and the same field formeâ—ly overgrowne with weeds or betwixt a heape of corne now well winnowed and the same heape lately mixed with chaffe And if it be a vaine and frivolous thing to say it is not the same field or the same corne as vaine and frivolous is it to say the Church is not the same it was or in the same place after it is swept and cleansed of the filth and dust or to say the Churches of Corinth and Galatia after their reformation occasioned by Saint Pauls writing were new Churches and not the same they were before because that in them before the Resurrection was denied Circumcision practisâ—d discipline neglected and Châ—isâ—s Apostles contemned which things now are not found in them or to say Naaman was not still the same person because before hee was a Leper and now is cleansed PA. If our Romane Church were so corrupt whence then had you the truth what you had you received from us PRO. Saint Austine saith that the Iewes were to the Christians Library-keepers of the bookes of the Law and the Prophets and might not the Romanists performe the like office to the Protestants The Iewish Church what time it was unsound preserved the Scriptureâ—Canon and by transcribingâ— and reading the same delivered the whole text therof trâ—ly to others And thus the Roman Church though in many things unsound preserved the bookes of holy Scripture and taught the Apostles Câ—eed with sundry parts of divine truth gathered from the same and by these principles of Christianitie preserved in that Church judicious and godly men might with study and diligence finde out what was the first delivered Christian doctâ—ine in such things as were necessary to salvation And herein was Gods gracious providence sâ—ene that even that Church wherein Luther himselfe received his Christianitie Ordination and power of Ministerie should for the benefit of Gods children preserve the Word and Sacraments and deliver them over to us though somewhat corruptly by their adding more Sacraments than ever Christ ordained and abusing those which we retaine with divers unwarrantable rites and Ceremonies In a word we received from you some truth mingled with errour wee have pared away your corruption as a worme out of an Apple and retained the wholsome and substantiall truth PA. Was there any Chucrh in being save our Roman Catholick in thâ— Ages next before Luther if so show uâ— where it was and with whom it held Communion PRO. When Christ came first into the World the Iewish Church was corrupted both in doctrine and manners this Church had in it Scribes and Pharisees as well as Zachary and Elizabeth Ioseph and Mary Simeon and Anna with others these were all of the same outward Communion with the Priesthood for they resorted to the Temple there they prayed and performed such holy rites as God himselfe enjoyned untill they heard farther of the Gospel by Christs manifestation Now I demand were not Ioseph and Mary and such good people â—ound members of Gods Church although the Scribes and Pharisees bore all the sway in the Church and had the Priesthood the word and Sacraments in their dispensing yet even then God had a Remnant of holy people which made up his Church though others went under the name thereof and exceeded them in number Now with these the sound part kept an outward Communion yet did not partake in all their erronious doctrines but condemned their grosser errours In like sort we were all of one outward Communion of one Church wherin salvation was and yet we shared not in those errours which a faction in the Church like the Pharisees of old maintained For as learned Dr. Field saith The errours which wee condemne at this day whereupon the difference groweth betweene us and the Romish faction were never generally received nor constantly delivered as the doctrines of the Church but doubtfully disputed and proposed as the opinions of some men in the Church not as the resolved determinations of the whole Church For had they beene the undoubted doctrines and determinations of the Church all men would have holden them entirely and constantly as they held the doctriâ—e of the Trinity and other Articles of the Faith And I have already showne from age to age that the errours condemned by us never found generall allowance and constant consent in the dayes of our fathers but that some worthy guides of Gods Church ever opposed them And thus was our Church preserved under the Papacie as wheaâ—e is among tares for wee were formerly mingled together like corne and chaffe in one heape until the time of Reformation came and winnowed our wheat from the chaffe of Poperie So that howsoever divers under the Papacie not brooknig Reformation maintained sundry erronious opinions Yet there were other worthies who living within that Communitie were not equally poysoned with errour but firmely beleeved all fundamentall truth and delivered the maine Articles of Christianitie over unto others For Answer then to the Question Where had our Church her being in the Ages next before Luther we say It was both within the Romane Church and without it For as learned Doctor Chaloner saith Our Church had in those dayes a twofold Subsisâ—encie â—he one Separate from the Church of Rome the other Mixt and conjoyneâ— with it Separate so it was in the Albâ—genses and Waldenses a peâ—ple whoâ— so soone as the Chuâ—ch of Rome had inteâ—preted her selfe touching sundry of those maine poynts of dâ—ffâ—rence betweene us and that a man could no lâ—nger Communicate with her in the publicke worship of God by reâ—son of soâ—e Idolatrous rites and customes which shâ— had establishâ—dâ— arose in France Savâ—y and the places neere adjoyning and professed the same substantiall Negatives and Affirmatives which we doe in a state Sepaâ—atâ— from the Church of Rome having Pastours and Congregations apart to themselves even unto this day From these descended the Wicklefisâ—s in England and the Hussites in Germanie and oâ—hers in other Countries who Maâ—gre the â—urie of fire and Sword maintained the same doctrine as they did The state of the Church mixt and conjoyned with the Church of Rome it selfe consisted of those who making no visible separation from the Roman profession as not perceiving the mysterie of iniquity which wrought in it did yet mislike the grosser errours and desired a Reformation To answer then the quâ—stion directly where was the Prâ—testants Church before Luthers time that is where was any Church in the world that taught that doctrine which the Protestants now teach â—
Masses wherein the Pâ—iests alone doth Communicatâ— without the pâ—ople it is contraâ—y to â—he Canon of â—he Mâ—sse saying in the â—lurall number Sumpsimus we have â—ecâ—ived anâ— Quoâ—quot ex hoc altaris participatione c. That all wee which in â—he participatâ—on of the Altar have receivâ—d the sacred body and bloud of tâ—y Sonneâ— c. Iohn Hossmeâ—ster a learned man expounding the prayers of thâ— Massâ— hath these wâ—rds The thing it sâ—lfe proclaimeth it thâ—t as wâ—ll in the Greâ—ke as Latine Church not onely the Priest which sacrifâ—â—eth but the other Priests and Deacons also yea and the people or at leâ—st some part of them did Commuâ—icateâ— which custome how it grew out of use I know not but surely wee should labour to bring it in againe By this it appeares that the Priests receiving alone and the neglecting or excluding the communicating of others as noâ— much necâ—ssâ—ry is indeed a poynt of Romish Religion but conâ—rary to the words of the Canon and â—he ancient custome of the Church it proceeded from the iâ—devotion of the people or rather â—he neglâ—gâ—nce or errour of the guides of â—he Church that either failed to stirre them up to the performâ—nce of such a duty or made them belâ—eve their Act wâ—s sufficient to comâ—unicate the benefits of Christs passion to thâ—m but this course was misliked by them of the betâ—er sort Concerning Communion in one kind that is another poynt of Romish Religion supposed to be conteined in the Masse which yet wanâ—s the liking and approbation of the best and woâ—thiest guides of Gods Church then living Cassander saith It is sufficiently manifest that the â—niversall Church of Christ untill this day and the Westerne or Romane Church for more than a thousand yeares after Christ did minister the Sacrament in both kinds to all the members of Christs Church at least in publicke as it is most evident by innumâ—rable testimonies both of Greâ—ke and Latine Fathers It is true indeed â—hat in case of necessiâ—ie as when children or such as were sicke and weake were to â—eceive the Communion thâ—y used to â—ip the mysticall bread into the consecrated wine under preâ—enâ—e of Caâ—efull avoiding the danger of spilling it and greater reverence toâ—ards the holy Sacrament from this customâ— whâ—â—â— yet was â—islâ—ked as appeares by Hildebeâ—◠〈…〉 some proceedâ—d farther and began to teach the people that seeing the body and blood of Christ cannot be separated in that they partake of the 〈◊〉 they partake of the other also and that therefore it was sufficient to receive in one kind alone Nâ—â—thâ—r yâ—t could this give satisfaction for howsoever the custome of communicating under one kind prevailed yet there wanted not such as sufficiently expressed their judgement that communicating in both kinds as Christ first did institute and the Church for a long time observed was fit and convenient perfect and compleat and of more efficacie and cleerer representation than the other under one kind alone Come to another maine point the proper and propitiatory sacrifice for the quicke and the dead and see whether at Luthers appearing before and after all that used that Liturgy had such an opinion of a sacrifice Saint Ambrose and Saint Chrysostome by way of correction say Wee offer the same sacrifice or rather the remembrance thereof Peter Lombard proposing the question whether that which the Priest doth may properly be named a Sacrifice or Immolation answereth that Christ was only once truely and properly offered in sacrifice and that hâ—e is not properly immolated or sacrifised but in Sacrament and Representation onely Lyra saith that If thou say the Sacrifice of the Altar is daily offered in the Church it must be answered that thâ—re is no reiteration of the sacrifice but a daily commemoration of that sacrifice that was once offered on the Crosse. Georgius Wiâ—elius a man much honoured by the Emperours Ferdinand and Maximilian defines the Masse to be a Sacrifice Rememorative and of prayse and thankesgiving where many give thankes for the price of their Redemption The Author of the Enchiridion of Christian Religion publishâ—d in the provinciall Coâ—ncell of Colen saith In that the Church doth offer the true body and blood of Christ to God the Father it is meerely a representative sacrifice and all that is donâ— is but the commemorating and representing of that sacrifice which was once offered on the Crosse. By that which hath beene said it is cleare that the best and worthiest guides of Gods Church both before and after Luthers time taught not any new reall offering of Christ to God the Father as a propitiatory sacrifice to take away sinnes but in effect as wee doe namely that the sacrifice of the Altar is only the sacrifice of praise and thankesgiving and a meere representation and commemoration of the sacrifice once offered upon the Crosse his being the reall sacrifice on the Crosse ours only the Sacramentall Representation Commemoration and Application thereof so that Christ is not newly offered any otherwise than in that hee is offered in the view of God nor any otherwise sacrifised than in that his sacrifice on the Crosse is commemorated and represented And thus the Fathers terme the holy Eucharist an unbloody Sacrifice not because Christ is properly and in his substance offered therein but because his bloody sacrifice upon the Crosse is by this unbloody commemoration represented called to remembrance and applyed Besides these points mentioned I have already produced witnesses in all ages and in all parts of the world rejecting those bookes as Apâ—cryphall that wee doe and showne that even untill Luthers time the Church did not admit the Canon of Scripture which the Romanists now doe nor ever accounted those bookes canonicall which wee thinke to bee Apocryphall and by these instances it may appeare That all were not Papists who held with the Masse Thâ— thing then we say is this that though the Masse was generally in uâ—e at â—nd bâ—fore Luthers timeâ— yet diverâ— poynts belonging thâ—reunto were not beleeved by tâ—e worthieâ—t guides in God Church at and before Luthers time though indeed there were some in the Chuâ—ch â—hat so coâ—ceived of them as the Romanists now doe and the reason hereof is this They were not generally received by all mâ—n nor as the undâ—ubted determinations of the Church not as Dogmata fidei but Dogmata scholae controverted and diveâ—sly disputed among the learned holden with great libertie of Iudgement by the greatest Doctors as appeares by their owne bookes of controversies written by Bellarmine Suaâ—ez Azorius and others which confute their owne writers almost as much as they doe Proâ—estants Besides had they beene the undoubted doctrines and determinations of the Church all men would have holden them uniformly entirely and constantly as they held the doctrine of the Trinity the Creation the Incarnation of the Sonne of God and other Articles of the Faith Objection If these points
Ministers to marry In divers other points also many of your side say the same with the Protestants as it is already shown in this treaâ—ise And therefore if you will force the Argument to make that the safest way of salvation which differing parts agree upon why doe you not joyne with uâ— since for the Positive and Affirmative Articles of our Religion noâ— onâ—ly the mâ—st but alâ— Prâ—tâ—stant and Papâ—â—â— agâ—eâ— therein For example sâ—ke Wee agree on boâ—h sides the Scripâ—ures to be the Râ—le of Faith the bookes of the old Testamâ—nt written in Hebrew to bee Canonicall that wee are justified by Faith that God hath made two Receptaclâ—s for mens sâ—â—les aftâ—r death Heaven and Hell that God may â—e woâ—shipped in spirit wiâ—hout an Image thaâ— we are â—o pray unto God by Christ that there bee two Sacramâ—nâ—s that Christ is really recâ—ived in the Lords Suâ—per that Christ made one oblation of himselfe upon the Crosse for the Redemption Propiâ—iation and Satisfaction for the sinnes of the whole world In a word where they take the Negative part as in with-holding the Cup from the Laiâ—ie foâ—bidding the administration of the Sacraments in the vulgar tongue and restraining the marriage oâ— Pâ—iests yet even in thâ—se they condescend unto uâ— for tâ—e lawfulnesse of the thingâ— in themselves and in respâ—ct of the law of God anâ— oâ—pose them onely in regaâ—d of their conveniencie and for that the Church of Rome hath otherwise ordaâ—ned But see our â—ffiâ—mations content them not To the Scriptures theâ— addâ— and equalize unwritâ—en Traditions to â—he Hebrâ—w Canon the Apocrypha to Faith in the act of Iuâ—â—ification works to Heaven and Hell Purgaâ—oâ—ie Limbus Patrum and Limbus Pueroâ—um to the woâ—ship of God in spirit Images to Prayer to God by Chriâ—t Iâ—vocation and Intercession of Sâ—inâ—s to Bapâ—isme and â—he Lords Supper five other Sacramâ—nts to the Realiâ—ie of Christ in the Sacramenâ— his Coâ—porall presence to tâ—e Sacrifice of Châ—ist upon the Crosâ—e â—he Sacrifice in tâ—e Masse witâ— other like and these wee deny as beâ—ng Corrupt Additions to the Faith These be our grounds wherein we enter-common with them and these be their additions and improvements which they have raised and enclosed upon the Lords Freehold Let us briâ—fely survey them both Bellâ—â—mâ—ne is confidâ—nt that The Apostles never used to Preach openly to the people other things than the Articles of the Apostles Creâ—dâ— the ten Commanâ—â—mâ—nts and some of the Sacraments because saith he these are simply necessary and profitable for all men the rest besides such as that a man may be saved without them If one worship God without an Image they will not deny but that this spirituall worship is acceptable to God If one call upon God alone by the onely mediation of Christ they will not say that this dâ—votion is fruitlesse If one say the Lords Prayer or other devotions in the vulgar tongue they will not deny but that such Prayers as aâ—e made with understanding and in a knowne languagâ— may be fruitfull and effectuall For Lyra saith that If the people understand the prayer of the Priest they are better brought to the knowledge of God and they answâ—r Amen with greater devotion Cardinal Cajetan who had often performed the publike service in an unknowne tongue in the Church yet contrary to his practice professeth It is better by Saint Pauls doctrine for the â—difying of the Church that publike prayers were made in a vulgar tongue to bee understood indifferently by Priâ—sts and people â—han in Latine If a man receive the Sacâ—ament in both kinds they will not I suppose deny but that it is very comfortable to receive boâ—h pâ—rts oâ— the Eucharist Alexander of Hales the first and greatest of all the Schoole mâ—n prâ—fesseâ—h that Though the order of receiving in one kiâ—d bâ— sufâ—icient yet the order of both kinds is of morâ— merit for incâ—ease of devotion and faith If oâ—e peâ—forme the best woâ—kes hee can which wee also require and stand not upon the point of meâ—it but only upon the mercy of God as we doe this likewise serves to justiâ—ie our doctrine for they themselves hold it a Mans safest course not to trust to his owne merits but wholly and solely to cast himselfe on the mâ—rcy of God in Iesus Christ. Now this justifies our Religion and shewes that it is suâ—â—icient to salvation in as much as the grounds thereof setting aside the matters in question betweene us are fully able to instruct a man in all points necessary to his salvation both how to live religiously and to die comfortably Hence also it followeth that by their owne confâ—ssion the controveâ—ted points are unnecessary and superfluous in as much as a man may bee saved who neither knowes nor beleeves nor practises these additions and excesses of theirs Object You talke of our excesses and conceale your owne defects now as the Arch-bishop of Spalato saith Heresie consists in the defect not in the excesse of beleeving and he is an Heretike who falleth short in his faith by not belâ—eving something that is written and not hee that abounds in his faith by beleeving more than is written now you faile in that you scant the measure of your faith Answer The Analogie and integrity of faith is hurt and broken by Addition as well as Subtraction by Diseases as well as by Maimes We are forbidden under the same pâ—naltie either to adde or diminish ought from Gods word Faith is of the nature of a rule or certaine measure to which if any thing be added or taken from it it ceaseth to be that Rule Faith saith Tertullian Is contained in a Rule to know nothing beyond it is to know all thâ—ngs And a little before This first of all wee beleeve that no more ought to be bâ—leeved as necessary to all Vâ—rtue is in the meanâ— vice as well in the excesâ—e as in the defect in our body the superabundance of humours is as dangerous as lacke of them as many dye of Plethories as of Consumptions a hand or foote which hath more fingers or toes than ordinary is alike monstrous as that which wanteth the due number A foundation may bee as well overthrowne by laying on it more than it will beare as by taking away that which is necessary to support the building Errours of addition are dangerous as appeares by these instances following The Samaritanes feared the Lord and served their owne Gods 2. King 17.33 The Galathians beleeved the Gospell yet retained also and observed the legall Ceremonies Galath 4.9 Helvidiuâ— held that blessed Mary had other children unto Ioseph her husband after her sonne Iesus here was an excesse of beliefe for hee beleeved more than was revealed this opinion of Helvidius although it be not denied in the Scripture yet it is erroneous in as much as it is not therein affirmed neither can it bee thence deduced by any good consequence and therefore the
Church holding that shee was a pure Virgin both before the birth of Christ and that shee also continued a Virgin all her life after condemned Helvidius for an Heretike now why were the Helvidians adjudged Heretikes surely because they beleeved more than was reveled in the word and would have thrust that on the Church for an Article of faith which had no ground at all And this is your case you over-â—each in your beliefe as the Helvidian Heretikes did witnesse your tenets of Transubstantiation adoration of Images Invocation of Saints Purgatory the Popes supremacie and the like wherein your faith is monstrous like the Gâ—ant of Gath who had on every hand sixe fingers and on every foote sixe toes and so it is with you who in the new Creed of Pope Pius the fourth have shuffled in more Articles of faith than ever God and his Catholike Church made Neither doe wee fall short in our beliefe for wee measure our faith by the standard and rule of Gods written wordâ— now since it jumpeth with the rule it neither faileth in defect nor over-reacheth in excesse Now by this time I hope I have performed the taske which I undertooke PA. You have indeed given in a Catalogue of visible Professors in some part of Christendome but what is this to the whole universall Church PRO. Very much for these particular congregations serve to make up the whole state of Christ his Church militant here on earth now this Church farre and wide dispersed hath in her particular members for substance of doctrine taught as wee doe To begin with the Easterne Church amongst the Grecians and Armenians The Grecians held that the Romane Church had not any Supremacie of Iurisdiction authoritie and grace above or over all other Churches They celebrated the Sacrament of the Eucharist in both kinds as we doe They denied that there was any Purgatorie fire They denied Extreame unction to bee a Sacrament properly so called They reject the Religious use of Massie Images or Statues admitting yet Pictures or plaine Images in their Churches The Armenians denie the true body of Christ to be really in the Sacrament of the Eucharist under the Species of Bread and Wine They denie the vertue of conferring grace to belong to the Sacraments Ex Opere operato They denie the Popes Supremacie and are subject to two of their owne Patriarches whom they call Catholicks They reject Purgatorie They have their publicke Service in their vulgar language The North-east Church amongst the Russians and Muscovites as they were converted to Christianitie by the Grecians so have they ever since continued of the Greeke Communion and Religion They have their divine Service in their owne vulgar language They reject Purgatorie They communicate in both kinds They denie the spirituall efficacie of Extreame unction To proceede now to the South-Church amongst the Habassines or mid land Aethiopians the Character of their Religion is this as I find it in Maâ—hew Dresser who reports it from Francis Alvarez a Portugal Priest and sometimes Legat into Aethiopia They communicate in both kinds They use no Extreame unction They reverence the Saints but they pray not unto them they doe much honour the mother of Christ but they neither adore her nor crave her mediation They have their Liturgie or Church Service in their owne vulgar language They have a Patriarcke of their owne who is confirmed and consecrated by the Patriarcke of Alexandria on which See they depend and not on the Romane In the Westerne Church we have the consent of the Waldenses in France the Wicklevists in England commonly called Lollards and Thaborites in Bohemia Here be then the Greeke and Latine Church the Churches in the the East West North and South all of them teaching for substance of doctrine as we doe I know indeed that Bellarmine sleighteth these Churches of Graecia Armenia Russia and Aethiopia saying We are no more moved with their examples than with the examples of Lutherans and Calvinists for they bee either Hereticks or Schismaticks So that all Churches be they never so Catholicke and ancient if they subscribe not to the now Romanâ— Faith are either Schismaticall or Hâ—reticall But we may not be so uncharitable to these afflicted Churches For as learned Bishop Vsher saith if wee should take a survey of these Churches and put by the points wherein they did differ one from another and gather into one body the rest of the Articles wherein they all did generally agree we should find that in those propositions which without all controveâ—sie are universally â—eceived in the whole Christian world so much truth is conâ—eined as being joyned with holy obedience may be sufficient to bring a man unto everlasting salvation Object I except against the Greeke Church for that it denieth the procession of the Holy Ghost from the Son of God Answer Every errour denieth not Christ the foundation Indeed it would have grated the foundation if they had so denied the procession of the Holy Ghost from the Sonne as that they had made an inequalitie betweene the Persons but since their forme of speech is that the Holy Ghost proceedeth from the Father by the Sonne and is the spirit of the Sonne and since as the Master of the Sentences saith Non est aliud It is not another thing to say the Holy Ghost is the Spirit of the Father and the Sonne then that he is or proceeds from the Father and the Sonne in this they seeme to agree with us In eandem fidei sententiam upon the same sentence of Faith though they differ in words Since I say they thus expresse themselves they may continue to bee a true Church though erronious in the point mentioned In like sort Scotus following his Master Lombard saith that The difference betweene the Greekes and the Latines in this point is rather Verball in the manner of speech than Reall and materiall Besides it seemes by the same Scotus that the Greeks held no other Heresie then Saint Basil and Gregory Nazianzene held whom yet no man durst ever yet call Hereticks so that you must give us the famous Greeke Church againe PA. I have yet divers exceptions to take at your Catalogue as also at your English Martyrologie for you have named out of Foxe some for Martyrs who were very meane persons namely Iohn Claydon a Curriar of Leather Richard Howden a Wooll-winder as also some by name Thomas Bagley for a Martyr who was a married Priest PRO. What though some of them were tradesmen did not Peter stay divers daies in Ioppa with one Simon a Tanner Act. 9.43 Was not that godly convert Lydia a seller of Purple Act. 16.14 Hath not God chosen the base things of the world to confound the mighty 1 Cor. 1.27 c. Besides they were no such base people for among others I produced
and differed from you so that they cannot belong to the same Church PRO. Concerning Wickliffâ— Husse and the rest if they have any of them borne record to the truth and resisted any innovation of corrupt Teachers in their times even to blood they are justly to be termed Martyrs yea albeit they saw not all corruptions but in some were themselves carried away with the streame of error Else if because they erred in some things they be no Martyrs or because we dissent from them in some things we are not of the same Church both you and we must quit all claime to Saint Cyprian Iustin Martyr and many more whom we count our ancients and predecessors and bereave them also of the honour of martyrdome which so long they have enjoyed Irenaus and Iustin Martyr held the error of the Millenaries Cyprian many others held Rebaptization necessary for such as were baptized by heretikes S Austin and the greatest part of the Church for sixe hundred yeares held a necessitie of the Eucharist to Infants and in other things differed one from another and from the Church in the aftertimes correcting their errors yet because they all entirely and stedfâ—stly held all the necessary fundamentall principles which these errors did not infringe neither held they these errors obstinatly but only for want of better information they were of the same Church and Religion whereof we are S. Austin saith There be some things in which the most Learned and best Defenders of the Catholike Rule the bond of faith preserved do sometimes not agree among themselves and one in some one thing saith righter than anoher Now if the different opinions of the Fathers in some points hindred not their union in substance of the faith and their being members all of the same Church why should the like or lesser differences now among the Protestants hinder their union in substance of the same faith and their being members all of the same Chuch both among themselves and with the Fathers yea but Wickliffe and Husse with others mentioned in our Catalogue they erred in point of faith it is true but yet their error was not joyned with pertinacy they errâ—d not incorrigibly buâ— for want of better information they erred in that doctrine of faith wherein the truth was not fully scanned declared and confirmed by a Plenary Councell as S. Austin speaketh had it beene we may well thinke the very same of all those holy men which Austin most charitably saith of Saint Cyprian Without doubt they would have yeelded to the truth being manifested unto them by the authority of the whole Church Object We are at vnity but your Protestants are at ods and namely your Lutherans and Calvinists in the point of the Sacrament the one holding Consubstantiation and the other opposing it Answer The Protestants especially we of the Church of England are at unity as appeares by the Harmony of our confessions as also by our joynt subscriptions to the Articles of Râ—ligion established And for the point mentioned the difference is nothing so great as you would have it thought for as the moâ—t learned and judicious Zanchius observeth and our Doctor Field out of him In all necessary points both the parties agree and dissent in one unnecessary which by right understanding one another might easily be compounded Both sides saith Zanchius doe agree that the elements of bread and wine are not abolished in their substance but onely changed in their use which is not onely to signifie but also to exhibit and communicate unto us the very body and blood of Christ with all the gracious working and fruits thereof Both parties agree that the very body and blood of Christ are truely present in the Sacrament and by the faithfull truely and really received Thus farre all parties agree that is in the whole necessary and sufficient substance of the doctrine of this Sacrament for the other matter wherein they differ de modo of the manner how Christ is present in the Sacrament seeing it is not expressed in the Scriptures in the judgement of Zanchius it might well be omitted and they themselves confesse when they have gone as farre as they can to determine it still it is ineffable and not possible to be fully understood It is enough for us saith the same Zanchius to beleeve the body and blood are there though how and in what manner wee cannot define So then in this maine controversie betweene them about Consubstantiation which as Zanchius saith did afterwards occasion that other of ubiquity in both these controversies the main truth on both sides is out of controversie that Christ is really truly exhibited to each faithfull Communicant and that in his whole person he is every where the doubt is onely in the manner how he is in the Symbols and how in heaven and earth Now for other ods amongst us they be but in Ceremonies or at worst in points of no absolute consequence whereas the differences amongst Papists concerne the life of Religion They differ concerning the Supreame authoritie of the Church whether it be in the Pope or in the Generall Councel The Councels of Constance and Basil determined that a Generall Councel was above the Pope the Councel of Florence decreed the Pope to be above a Generall Councel They differ concerning the manner of the conception of the Virgin Mary The Dominican Friers following the Thomists hold that she was conceived in Originall sinne the Franciscans hold the contrary The moderne Popes disâ—gree with the ancient concerning the dignitie of universall Bishop adoration of Images Transubstantiation Communion in both kinds and the Merit of good workes as is already showne in the fifth and seaventh Centurie of this treatise So cleere is it that some doctrines of the later Roman Church were opposed by the ancient Roman Bishops thâ—mselves to wit adoration of Images as also the dignity and title of universal Bishop by Gregorie the Great coÌ„munion in one kind â— as also the merit of good works by Leo the first TransubstantiatioÌ„ by Gelasius the first Besides the Iesuits and Dominicans differ at this day concerning the weighty point of Free-will and Grace The truth is the Popish Faith varieth not onely with their persons but according to time and place so that they can exchange their tenets upon occasion advance or cry downe their opinions at their pleasure as may best serve for their advantage For as Azorius the Iesuit saith It falls out often that that which was not the common opinion a few yeares since now is And that which is the common opinion of Divines in one Country is not so in another As in Spaine and Italy it is the common opinion that Latreia or divine worship is due to the Crosse which in France and Germaâ—y is not so but some inferior kind of worship due thereunto And Navarrus the Casuist sayes
That at Rome no man may say that the Councel is above the Pope nor at Paris that the Pope is above the Councel In a word the Papists are at great odds but they cunningly conceale them insomuch as it is observed that some of them would say to their friends in privat Thus or thus I would say in the schooles and openly Sed maneat inâ—er nos diversum sentio but keepe my counsel I thinke the contrarie PA. We may haply be at ods in some Scholasticke points but not in matters defined by the Pope and a Generall Councel PRO. You would have us beleeve that at the sound of the Popâ—s sentence like frogs in a marish at the falling in of a great log or stone you are all hushed and silenced but it is not so for since the Trent decrees were published divers of your side are divided about the sense thereof iâ—somuch as they differ in the maine points thereof which in your account are fundamental and the deniers therof reputed Hereticks This may appeare by these instances The Pope in the Councels of Trent and Florence decreed the Apocrypha to bee Canonicall Scripture yet since that decree Driedo and Sixtus Senensis have called them in question and rejected them The Pope in the last Councelâ— is decreed to be above a Councel and yet since that time Alphonsus à Castro hath writ the contrarie The Trent Councel teacheth Sess. 6. Iustification by Inherent righteousnes condemning those that beleeve the imputation of Christs Righteousnesse and yet Albertus Pighius defendeth imputed â—ighteousnesse so doth Cardinal Contaren in his treatise of Iustification Again the Pope decreed against the certainty of grace salvation defining Sess. 6. that no man should beleeve these things of himselfe yet Catharinus defended the contrary holding that a man might have the certainty of Faith touching these thingsâ— and when the Trent Councels authority was objected against him he eluded it by divers sleight distinctions The truth is the Papists have a kind of unitie to wit a superstitious and hypocriticall crouching to the popes chayreâ— for so long as they agree to go to mass swear to the popes supremacy other things are tollerated although they coÌ„sent like harp harrow And surely were it not for the great profit and riches which knit the parts of this body together like twinnes that have different heads but tied together by the belly we should see this great body of the papacy would soon be divided scattered and dispersed Howsoever for any differences amongst the Protestants we may thankefully acknowledge that it was the wonderfull Providence of God that so many severall Countries Kingdomes and States abandoning the abuses of the Church or rather Court of Rome and making particular reformation in their owne dominions without generall meetings and consents should have no more nor greater differences than are found amongst them Object It is usuall with you in your Catalogue to say such and such as namely S. Bernard or the like taught for substance as you doe agreeing only with you in some fundamentall points but this will not serve to make them members of your Church for by the like reason the Quartadecimanes Novatians Donatists and Pelagians might pretend to the Catholike Church in as much as they agreed therewith in some fundamentall truths Answer 1 Agreement in one or more fundamentals maketh not a man a Catholike Christian tho disagreement in any one fundamentall joyned with obstinacie makes a man an Heretike 2 To make a man actually a member of the true Church more is required than agreement in the profession of the same fundamentall points of faith for not only heresie but schisme also excludeth a man from Communion with the true Catholike Church 3 Fundamentall points as well conceâ—ne life and manners as faith and he that impugneth the doctrine of the Decalogue is as well an Heretike as he that impugneth the doctrine of the Creed Nicholas directly impugned the one and by evident consequence the other by maintaining his impure communion or rather community of wives 4 The Quarta decimanes who kept Easter on the fourteenth day precisely were of two sorts Some as Polycrates and other Bishops of Asia kept it so meerely in imitation of S. Iohn the Evangelist and those were never condemned for Heretikes Others kept the fourteenth day by vertue of the Mosaicall Law and these by consequent destroyed the foundation as those did among the Galathians who urged Circumcision to whom S. Paul there professeth That Christ should not profit them and that they were fallen from grace 5 Novatians erred in a fundamentall point concerning Repentance and by consequent overthrew that Article of the Creed Credo remissionem peccatorum 6 The Donatists were rather Schismatikes than Heretikes and rather made a rent in the Church then were excluded from it Saint Austin in his seventh tome every where calleth it Schisma Donati in the end they grew to bee heretikes and denied in effect that fundamentall Article Credo Ecclesiam Catholicam 7 The Pelagians erred in divers fundamentall points concerning originall sinnâ— and the necessity of Grace For farther answer we say that the Authors we produce against the Romanists are of two sorts 1 Some we alleadge onely as Testes veritatis in such or such a point or points of faith 2 Others wee produce as members of our reformed Church and fore-runners of Luther Of the first sort is Bernard very orthodoxe in all points against the Pelagians but otherwise tainted and an open enemy to the Albigenses Of the second sort are the Waldenses Wicklifists and Hussites who as appeares by their confessions of faith extant in Orthuinus Gratius and the History of the Waldenses agree with uâ— in all Fundamentals not onely in some as the Heretikes above mentioned agreed with the Church Objection What though Saint Hierome Bernard and others agree with you in some generall truths men of contrarie religions may have divers materials of doctrine common to both now this is but a genericall agreement which is no more than the agreement betweene a man and a beast Answer 1 Saint Hierome and Bernard are not well rancked together Saint Hierome was a through Papist in no point Bernard was in some living in a corrupt age seaven hundred yeeres after Saint Hierome 2 Besides we answer that Waldo Wickliffe and Husse with others agree with us not onely Generically in the common grounds of Christianitie but Specifically in those formall points which we hold at this day against the Romane Church and as for such calumnies as are cast upon them they are already confuted in this treatise neither will any indifferent person regard them for when once that infamous name of Hereticke was fastned upon a man nothing was too heavie for such an one any thing was beleeved of that man and from thence it is without question that we find so many so absurd so senselesse opinions imputed to them
at Aâ—twerpe Anno 1576. at Paris Anno 1586. at Coleine Ann. 1616. but no such place was there to be found the Divines of Lovaine had taken a course with them and suppressed these testimonies but by good hap I met with them in the Basil Edition Anno 1569. Object Those whom you have named in your Catalogue were originally Catholikes and not Protestants Wickliâ—fe and Husse were Catholike Priests and Luther was an Augustine Frier you cannot name such as were Protestants originally they came forth of our Church Answer Whence I pray you sprang Christs Apostles were they not taken out of the Iewish Church at that time much corrupted S. Paul speaking of himselfe and the service of his God saith Whom I doe serve from my progenitors meaning Abraham Isaac and Iacob the first Fathers of the faithfull for as for S. Pauls immediate predecessors it is likely that they relished of the leven of the Pharisees It can be no more prejudice to our Church that Luther Wickliffe aâ—d Husse were originally Papists than to S. Paul that he was originally a Pharisee or to S. Austine that he was orinally a Manichee or to our Ancestors at the first conversion of our land that they were originally heathen or to all true Converts that they were originally unregenerate For as Tertullian saith Fiunt non nascuntur Christiani We are not borne Christians but we become Christians Neither is it true that wee can name none of our Church that were not originally Papists For Farellus and the Waldensian Ministers for more than 400. yeares were not originally Papists though Waldo himselfe was Besides the Fathers for 600 yeares and the Monkes in Britaine at Augustines comming were not originally Papists In the Greeke Church from 700. to 700 afterwards many thousands held as wee doe in all fundamentals who never were originally Papists nor millions of others in the Easterne Churches and namely in the Greeke Church there have bene from 700. to 700. afterwards many thousands which held as we doe in all fundamentals and never were originally Papists Lastly the like argument might be urged against all that embraced Reformation in Iosias dayes that they originally were involved in the common errors and Idolatry of the Iewish Church Likewise that Zachary and Elizabeth and Simeon and Anna and the Apostles were originally deduced from that Church which held many errors concerning the temporall kingdome of the Messias and divorces for other causes than adultery c. Which errors Christ and his Apostles reproved In England and most parts of the world the first Christians were originally Paynims and Idolaters what prejudice is that to Christianity or advantage to Heathenisme Object Your Churches professors mentioned in your Catalogue wanted lawfull succession Answer There is a two-fold succession the one lineall and locall the other doctrinall this of doctrine is the life and soule of the other Irenaeus describeth those which have true succession from the Apostles To bee such as with the succession of the Episcopall office have received the câ—rtâ—ine grace of tâ—uth and this kind of succession hee calleâ—h the principâ—ll succession Gregory Nazianzen having said that Atâ—anasius succeeded Saint Marke in godlinesse addeth That this succession in godlinesse is properly to be accounted succâ—ssion for he that holdeth the same doctrine is also pâ—rtaker of the same throne but he that is against the doctrine must be reputed an adversary even while hâ—e sitteth in the throâ—e but the former hath the thing it selfe and the truth so that according to Irenaeus and Nazianzâ—n succession in doctrinâ— suâ—ficeth yea Nazianzen as we have heard makes it all one 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 so that he which holds the same truth of doctrinâ— may bee said to sit in the same Chaire of succession Besides wee are able to shew succession also in place for â—ive hundred yeares in most parts of Christendome and since that in the Greeke Church untill this day and in the Latine Church from the time of Waldo in France Bohemia and other places And for the Church of England the lineall succession of her Bishops is showne particularly by Mr. Francis Mason de ministerio Anglicano Mr. Goodwin in his Catalogue of the Bishops of England and Mr. Isaacson in his Chronologicall Table of the succession of the Bishops of England PA. Name in the space of a thousand yeares next before Luther three knowne and confessed Protestant Bishops succeeding each to other and if you had such expresse their agreement with you in the maine points controverted betweene us PRO. This demand was eagerly pressed upon me by a Romish Priest but the Stone which he hurled at mee not comming forth of Davids sling recoiles upon himselfe like the stone that Achilles flung at a dead skull which â—ebounded backe and strucke out the slingers eyeâ— Redijt lapis ultor ab osse Actorisque suifrontem oculâ—squè petit For I would in like manner demand of him to name three knowne and confessed Popish Bishops succeeding each other who maintained the worship of Images before the second Councell of Nice or that beleeved Transubstantiation before the Roman Councell under Pope Nicholasâ— or that avowed the dry and halfe Communion before the Councell at Constance under Martin the fift or that held the effect of the Sacraments to depend upon the Priests intention before the Councell at Florence or defined the Pope to be above a Generall Councell before the Councell of Lateran under Leo the tenth or that determined the twelve new Articles of Pius the fourth his Creed to be all de Fide and necessary to salvation before the Councell of Trent Besides there is no necessitie of naming three Bishops succeeding each other and opposing Poperie It sufficeth to name such as opposed it tho they sate not successively in the same Chaire for all Romish errors and superstitions rushed not in at once into the Church but by degrees now such as held the fundamentals with us and opposed any one error or more when they were first espied to creepe into the Church they were Protestants though they went not then under that name Now according to this account of Protestants wee can produce many more than three Bishops succeeding each other who in their times made head against Romish usurpations and superstitions for instance sake S. Austine and with him two hundred and seventeene Bishops of Africa and their successors for a hundred yeares together if their owne Records be true opposed the Popes supremacie in point of Appeales To speake nothing of the innumerable Bishops in the Easterne Churches and the Habassines and Muscovites and elsewhere succeeding each the other for many hundred yeares differing in no fundamentall point from Protestants and keeping no quarter at all with the Pope or See of Rome when Austine the Monke was sent into England by Gregory the Great the most ancient British and Irish Bishops withstood the Popes authority and ordinances stifly adhering to the Churches
of Asia in their celebration of Easter and tho they were cut off from the Popes Communion yet they sleighted it and persisted in their former opinions and customes as I have already showne in the sixth Centurie In the later ages Rainerius the Popish Inquisitour makes mention of two famous Bishops of the Waldenses one Balazinanza of Verona and one Iohn de Lugio about the yeare 1250. And I have showne in the twelfth age out of Mathew Paris about the yeare of Grace 1223 that amongst the Albigenses there was one Bartholomew who ordered and governed the Churches in Bulgaria Croatia Dalmatia Hungaria and appointed Ministers insomuch as the Bishop of Portuense the Popes Legate in those parts complained thereof And in the fifteenth age I have showne out of Cochleus in his Historie of the Hussites knowne and confessed Protestants how Conâ—adus Arch-bishop of Prague became an Hussite and held a Councel at Prague in the yeare 1421 and there compiled a Confession of their Faith agreeable to the doctrine of the Reformed Churches Now those who succeeded the forenamed Bishops among the Waldenses and Albigenses as also the Hussites although they carried not the titles of Bishops yet they exercised Episcopall authoritie in ordaining Priests the Catalogue of whom is extant in the historie of the Waldenses and Albigenses And thus they have in Germany those whom they call Superintendents and generall Superintendents and where these are not as in the French Churches yet There are saith Zanchius usually certaine chiefe men that doe in a manner beare all the sway as if order it selfe and necessitie led them to this course And what are these but Bishops in effect unlesse wee shall wrangle about names which for reason of State those Churches were to abstaine from PA. Since you impute so many errours to the Church of Rome which you pretend to have reformed tell us when those corruptions came in for doubtlesse some histories would note them some learned men oppose them for in every great and notorious change there may be observed the Authour time and place with the like Circumstances as Bellarmine saith PRO. By the like reason it would follow that a Tenant who had long dwelt he and his Ancestors in a decayed house should not bee bound to repayre it unlesse his Land-lord could tell him in what yeare or month every rafter or wall began to decay a sick patient should not purge out an ill humour unlesse hee or his Physician could name the time when his first mis-diet had bred this humour so Naaman because hee was once cleane and could not tell the very time meanes and degrees of the comming of his Leprosie might be proved to bee cleane still and neede neither the Prophet nor the washing 2 King 5. Errours and abuses are not all of one sort there were some heresies such as the Arrian and Nestorian which strucke at the very head the one at the divinitie of Christ the other at the divinity of the Holy Ghost and these being notorious were soone discerned and opposed and herein Bellarmines reason many take place but Poperie like that mysterie of iniquitie 2 Thes. 2.7 works closely it creeps and spreads abroad like a Cancker or Gangreene 2. Tim. 2.17 it is like the Cockatrices Egge a long time in the shell before the Cockatrice it selfe appeare Now these kinde of corruptions creepe into the Church secretly and insensibly and are best knowne by their differences from their first pure doctrine so that if we can shew the present doctrines of Rome refused by us disagree from the Primitive it is enough to shew there hath beene a change though wee cannot point out the time wheÌ„ every point began to be changed Tertullian saith The very doctrine it selfe being compared with the apostolicke by the diversity contrarietie thereof will pronounce that it â—ad â—or Authour neither any Apostle nor any Apostolicall man If from the beginning it was not so and now it is so there is a change All dranke of that Cup now all must not all then prayed in knowne tongues with understanding and all publike service done to edification now the custome is altered though wee know not when this change began Besides they that call upon us to show the time place and persons of such and such changes in Religion cannot theâ—selves performe the like Gregory de Valentia a learned Iesuite confesseth that the use of receiving the Sacrament in one kind began first in some Churches and grew to be a generall custome in the Latine Church not much before the Councel of Constance in which at last to wit about two hundred yeares agon this custome was made a law But if they put the question to him as they doe to us and aske him When did that custome first get fâ—oting in some Churches he returnes this for Answer Minimè constat it is more than he can tell Doctor Fisher bishop of Rochester and Cardinal Cajetan grant that of Indulgences no certainty can be had what their Originall was or by whom they were first brought in Doctor Fisher addeth that Of Purgatorie in the ancient Fathers there is no mention at all or very rare that thâ— Latines did not all at once but by little and little receive it that tâ—e Grecians beleeve it not to this day and that Purgatorie being so long unknowne it is not to be marveiled that in the first times of the Church there was no use of Indulgences for they had their beginning after that men had a while beene scared with the torments of Purgatorie which as the same Râ—ffensis saith was but Sero cognitum lately knowne and discovered The Originall of their private Masses wherein the Priest receiveth the Sacrament alone and none of the people communicate with him but are all lookers on Doctor Harding fetcheth from no other ground than Lacke of devotion on the peoples part now let them tell us in what Popes dayes the people fell from their devotion and then we may haply tell them when their private Masses began Bellarmine saith that The worship and Invocation of Saints was brought into the Church rather by custome than any precept Concerning prayer in an unknowne tongue It is to be wondred how the Church altered in this point saith Erasmus but the precise time he cannot tell So little reason have they to think that al such changes must be made by any one certaine author it being confessed that some of them may come in pedetentim as B. Fisher saith of purgatory by litle and little not so very easie to be discerned some may come in by the silent coÌ„sent of many grow after into a generall custome the beginning whereof is past mans memorie as the abstaining from the cup some may arise of the undiscreet devotion of the multitude as those of Purgatorie and Indulgences and some from the want of devotion in the people as