FINIS The Articles of the Catholike fayth which Anthonie Coranus Spaniarde Student of Diuinitie professeth and alwayes hath professed Nowe set out in Print for their sakes which haue not bene present at his Readings To the Christian Reader 1. Pet. 1.15 THe Apostle Peter exhorteth the faythful in these words To be readie to yeelde an account of their faith Be ye always readie to answere euery man that asketh a reason of the hope that is in you with mildnesse and reuerence hauing a good conscience that they which slaunder your good conuersation in Christ may be ashamed of their misreporting of you as euil doers Beeing warned by this counsel an eight yeeres agoe when I taught at Andwerp in the French tung I wrate a confession of my fayth in the same language which by Gods grace shall within a while come foorth in Latin and Englishe also Afterwarde I wrate at London certeyne Tables concerning Gods works which were printed in fower Languages Latin Frenth Dutche and English In the short Articles of those Tables I indeuered to comprehende as it were in propositions the holy doctrine of bothe the Testamentes And I beleeue assuredly that in that writing I haue sette foorth the true the right meaning and the very pure truthe of the Christian Religion drawen oute of the fountaynes of the holye Scriptures and that in suche orderlye methode and apparante playnnesse as my conscience vpbraydeth mee not withe any errour Howe beit that soome reporte otherwise eyther peraduenture bicause they perceyue not my meaning at all or else bicause they looke but slightly vppon the articles them selues Now therefore for their sakes which haue not read those writings I will set downe certen shorte articles concerning the chief points of our christian religion which I imbrace with all my hart Farewell gentle reader and hereafter neither thinke nor speake euill of any man for the reports that are spred abrode of him but first giue him eare and heare his reasons Of Gods written worde I receyue and imbrace the Canonicall scriptures both of the olde testament and of the new and I thanke our God for raysing vp that light vnto vs that wee might haue it euer before our eyes least we should be led away to errours or fables eyther by deceiptfulnesse of men or by the wilinesse of deuils I beleeue that they be heauenly voyces whereby God hath vttred his wil vnto vs That mens minds can haue no rest but onely in them That in them as Origen Austin Chrisostome and Cyril haue taught all things are conteyned abundantly and fully which are needfull for our saluatioÌ„ That they be the power and might of God vnto saluation That they be the foundation of the Prophets Apostles whervpon Gods Church is buylded That they be the most certen rule wherunto the Churche may bee inforced if it swarue or go astray and wherevnto all the doctrine of the Churche ought to be â—alled backe And that against them there â—s no lawe no tradition no custome to be â—eard no not although Paule him selfe or an Angell from heauen should come and teache otherwise Of the mysterie of the holy Trinitie Therfore I beleeue that there is one certen nature and diuine power whiche we call God and that the same is distinguished into three equall persons the Father the sonne and the holy Ghost al of one selfe same power of one selfesame maiestie of one selfsame euerlastingnes of one selfsame Godhead of one selfsame substaunce And that althoughe those three persons be so distincte that neyther the Father is the Sonne nor the Sonne is the holy Ghoste or the father yet they bee all three one God and that the same one created heauen and earth and all thinges that are conteyned in the compasse of the heauen whether they be seene or vnseene Of Christe the Mediator betweene God and man I beleeue that Iesus Christ the onely sonne of the euerlasting father toke flesh and mans whole nature vpon him of the blessed and pure virgin when the fuâ— time was come according as had bin determined long ago before all worlds to shew vnto men the secret and hidden wiâ— of his father whiche had bin kept close from al ages and generations and to accomplish the miserie of our redemption in humane body and to nayle to hys crosse our sinnes and the handwriting that was written agaynst vs. Of the holy Ghost I beleeue that the holy Ghost whiche is the thirde person in the holy Trinity is the very true god not made not created not begotten but proceding froÌ„ both that is to wit from the father the sonâ— by an vnutterable meanes vnknowen to men and that it belongeth to him to soften the hardnes of maÌ„s hart and that when he is receiued into their brests eyther by the preaching of the gospell or by any other meane he inlighteneth them and leadeth them vnto the knowing of God into the way of all truthe into newnesse of the whole lyfe and into hope of euerlasting saluation Of the Catholike Church I beleeue that there is but one church and that the same is not now shet vp into any one corner or kingdom as it was in times past among the Iewes but that it is Catholike and vniuersall spred abrode through the whole worlde so as there is now no Nation that can iustly complayn that it is excluded and can not belong to the Church and people of god That the same Church is the kingdome the body and the bridâ—e of Christ that of that kingdome only Christ is the king that of that body only christ is the head that of that bride only Christ is the bride grome That there are diuers orders of ministerie in the Churche some Deacons some Elders some Bishops to whom the teaching of the people and the care of ordering of Religion is committed and that no one eyther is or can be ouerruler of the whole forsomuche as Christe is euer present in his church and needeth not a lieuetenante to supply his roome in the whole and no man is able to comprehend in mind the whole Churche that is to say all partes of the earth muche lesse to set them in order to rule theÌ„ rightly handsomly Thaâ— the Apostles as Cyprian sayth were aâ— of like power amoÌ„g theÌ„selues that thâ— residue were the same that Peter was 〈◊〉 That it was said alike to them all feedâ— yee That it was sayd alike to them all â–ª Go ye into the whole world That it was sayd alike to them al Teach the Gospel â–ª and that as Ierome sayth all Bishops whersoeuer they be ether at Rome or aâ— Eugubium or at Constantinople or aâ— RhegiuÌ„ are all of one desert all of onâ— Priesthood and that as Cyprian saythâ— there is but one Bishoprick that euerâ— Bishop holdeth a part of it as the whole and that according to the Councel of Niceâ— the bishop of Rome hath no more poweâ— ouer the church of Christ
vale Heros clarissime Deumque praecor Opt. Max. vt celsitudinem tuam firmissimum huic Regno praesidium diu seruiet incolumem Tuae celsitudini deditissimus Antonius Corranus TO THE RIGHT honorable and his singular good Lord the Lorde Robert Dudley Earle of Leicester Baron of Denbigh Master of the Queenes Maiesties horse of the noble order of the garter Knight and one of hir highnesse honorable priuie Counsayle c. SVche as are indetted to many men and yet haue so shorte and slender abilitie that they cannot satisfy them all are wont to lay by all meanes to cōpounde first with them to whom they owe most So I also right noble Earle hauing in maner infinite persons both here and elsewhere which haue bounde me to them by their benefites and beeing vnable to discharge my self towards them all haue thought it meete to begin cheefly at those which aboue all others haue after a sorte brought me in bondage to them by ouerloding me with their deserts In whiche number forasmuche as your Honor is not the furthest behinde as who about an eight yeeres ago at my first comming into England not onely receyued mee with singular fauour and good will but also rewarded me with very bountifull liberalitie which notwithstanding to say the truthe was the thing that I least sought for I deemed it my dutie to vtter some thankfulnesse of minde towards your Lordship There are I confesse other innumerable benefites of yours towards me since that time the reckening vp whereof in order one by one would be both tedious and peraduenture not very acceptable to your Honor who as you haue not at any time sticked to bestowe your benefites vpon all straungers and specially vpon suche as were cōmended to you for learning and Religion so beeing contented with the conscience of weldooing which is the propertie of vertue and of true bounteousnes you haue neuer required any other thanke or commendation for the same Therfore although I haue many things to say and that truly of your Honorable deserts yet notwithstanding for feare as I sayd least I might perchaunce by mine vnseasonable or ouergreat setting foorth of your prayses offend your noble mind which despiseth the things that we haue in admiration I willingly leaue all those things proceede to that which both beseemeth both your excellent noble disposition and which I haue alwayes iustly taken to be the cheefest greatest of all your benefites towards mee For you haue not onely voutsafed to fauour me in my prosperitie as the maner of the worlde is nowadayes but also shewed your selfe a moste fauourable Patrone in my cheefest distresses whiche is the propertie of singular vertue and of perfect good will and not streightwayes giuen credite to matters vnaduisedly giuen out but which was the poynt of a moste stout and wise noble man did vvith great Alexander keepe one eare for me and according to the olde sayde sawe of Athens gaue eare to both sides alike and perceyuing myne innocencie voutchsafed alwayes since to imploy your authoritie and protection to my defence By meanes whereof not onely my good name which partly through ccrtein doubtfull reportes and partly through the ouerlight belefe of some persons was falne in perill abideth whole and sound to me so farre as lay in you to do but also I haue moreouer obteyned your wel liking good fauour Of which things I make so great account as a man of my meane state ought to make of the fauour of a moste honorable and bountifull noble man And surely that dealing of yours wherby I finde my good name for the most part defended through your singular iudgement wisdome from the reproche of infamie is of so great account with me that in cōparison of that alone I take the residue which notwithstanding are very great in maner as nothing For vnto a Preacher of the doctrine of the gospell what can be more deare what can be more acceptable finally what can be greater or more to be wished in this life than a good name So that to my seeming Salomon hath sayd very rightly that a good name is better than great riches And contrariwise me thinks that christian charitie is greatly impeached not only by suche as bereeue their brothers of it by their craftie dealinges but also by suche as credite misreports vnaduisedly bicause that if there were none to be found which would admit misreportes ouerhastily all the whole pestilent kind of backbiters would fade of it owne accorde and false reportes would vtterly vanish away And truely if we were not blinder than Beetles we might perceyue euen by natures direction that a good name whiche euery good man setteth more store by than by his life can not be taken away from others without exceeding great wrong and the breach of all humanitie and moreouer the thing vvoulde come oftentimes to our remembraunce vvhich vve reade to haue bene very discretly considered euen of the Heathen namely that God the creator of all things beeing most vvise hath giuen to man but one tung not to lye or slaunder vvith but to expresse the conceiptes of his minde and hart vvhere agaynst it is placed truely playnely and meeldly and tvvo eares so fitly placed that we may vvell heare the things that are spoken to vs bothe on the right side and on the left But to the intent I may at length come to the matter right Honorable vvhen I my selfe had first vvritten this Metaphrasis of mine in Latin vpon the Epistle to the Romanes and cōmunicated the same to my hearers and aftervvarde had caused a friende of myne to translate the same into Englishe I purposed to dedicate it to your name for the manyfolde and great benefites vvherby you holde me most streightly bound vnto you that wheras I am not able to make any recompence at all to so great a Lord I might at leastwise giue him some inckling of thankfulnesse And although this present if you haue an eye but to my labour only and not to the holy Epistle of the Apostle be neither worthy of your excellencie nor of the benefits that I haue receyued no nor correspondent to my vvill yet I hope such is the noblenesse greatnesse of your mynde that in respecte not of the gift but of the giuers mynd vvhich surely is most forvvade to doo you seruice you vvill take this small vvorke of myne suche as it is in good worth By the reading wherof if you take any profite you shall thinke your selfe beholden for it alonely vnto our moste gracious and almightie God vvho by his holy spirite hath put these meditations into my minde to set them foorth to the common welfare of his Churche And if the reading of this my lyttle booke shall confirme that opinion of yours vvhich your Honor hath conceyued not vvithout cause as I hope of the purenesse of my doctrine then I make this petition to you vvherof notvvithstāding I ought not to doubt that it
amed at this marke namely to incourage and exhort my owne Countreymen to the exercises of godlynesse For of all that ten yeeres space whiche I taught in Fraunce in the Frenche tung mee thought I vvrought in another mans haruest and therefore vvoulde neuer bynde my selfe too any Churche there but executed my charge alvvayes vvyth condition tyll oportunitie vvere oflered too doe seruice too myne ovvne Countreymen surely I could not but be greeued and sorie at the harte in so sodaine chaunging of my function For I beseeche you if we haue an eye but to humayne affections what could happen more acceptable to me after so many windlasses wandrings and paynes susteined in the vprores of Fraunce and Flaunders than to haue found in Englande not only a most safe and welremoued hauen from those streames but also the readie occasion whiche I had vvished many yeeres afore namely of gathering a Church of mine owne countreymen in some place where I might both learne the pure doctrine of the Gospell by teaching it and teach it in learning it By the goodnesse of the Diuine Maiestie I obteyned the thing which I had long time and with moste earnest prayer sought and at London I gathered together my Countreymen that had forsakē the Realme of Spaine for the Gospels sake and I began to teache the doctrine of the holy Scriptures opēly not without great anguish and nipping griefe of minde to the enuious sorte but to the exceeding great ioy of the godly and to suche as mind Christes glory rather than their owne commodities and estimation This pleasure of minde and wished quietnesse I could inioy no longer thā two yeeres In which space how much comfort how much heauenly delight and how great increase of doctrine I receyued liuing right poorely in this Citie among my moste poore Countreymen none knowe but he who of his mercy bestowed those benefites vpon me I that had the experience of his goodnes But ô the craftie conueiance of the olde Serpent There wanted not enuiers of this my happie state What needeth many wordes Satan vsing his wonted slightes dyd both dissolue and put to wrecke the sayde congregation of outcaste Spanyards which had forsaken their owne Countrey for religions sake and conueyed themselues into forreine Realmes and vtterly bereeue me of the quietnesse which I had scarse tasted of with the vttermost part of my lippes Verily it stood mee in hand in this calamitie to bethinke me ageine of the Apostles precept to beare this most cruel spight with a quyet mind which thinge by the benefite of Gods grace I haue to my ioy performed so farre as mannes frayltie avoorded verely vppon assurance of mine owne innocencie For as the Poet saieth In this behalfe becomme a brasen wall And nother feare ne blush what euer fall Furthermore I could here iustly complaine of the furtherers of this deede and of the seconde causes as they terme them But I thinke it better and more discretion too passe ouer mennes vntowarde attemptes in thys behalfe with forgetfulnesse and too mount vp too the prouidence of the diuine maiestie and too beleeue that this ruine of the Spanish Church was made by his will and that the same shall peraduenture fall out too greater profit both of mee and my countreimen than mans wisedome can espie Vndowtedly for mine owne part I perceiue my selfe to haue reaped no meane fruits by this change whereof I see it is not the least that I haue tryed the intentes of them which with their mouthes doo continually pretende the spreadinge abrode of Gods glory when as by their attemptes and false accusations I will not saye deceytes they goo about too hinder it But of this matter I shal peraduenture speake more at large heareafter My specifying of these things at this time is partly too the intent that my countrimen which are absent may knowe it was not long of mee that the Spanish Church which was erected at Lōdon continewed not vnto this day partly bycause I would that this publike writing of myne should beare record both of myne innocencie also of the Gospell amonge myne owne countrimē In the meane season I beseche God that those men which too speake no rowghlier of thē haue with their wyles presumed too cast downe that building bace in deede too fleshly eyes as which is made to outwarde apparance of refuse stones but moste acceptable and beautifull in Gods sight may amende Out of this fountayne sprang also one other Crosse more which was very greeuous to me namely the alteratiō of the Language in teaching which notwithstanding I bare vvith a metely indifferent mind hovvbeit to confesse the truthe agaynst my nature Howe that came to passe I will tell you in fevve vvords I am not so forgetfull of my bringing vp as to be ignorant hovv vnable my shoulders are too beare the burthen that I haue vndertaken among you neither am I ashamed to confesse how little I haue profited bothe in the knowledge of humaine artes chiefly in the exercise of the stile and in getting the eloquence of the Latin tung neither surely vvill I fall oute vvith them that shall call mee an olde Trewand For the Lorde knovveth hovve that I acknovvledge mine ovvne dulnesse and lacke of cunning insomuch that I chalenge none other skill too me than the knovvledge of mine own vnskilfulnesse And too bee at fevve vvords no large furniture of the Romane tung no readings of many Authors layde vp in store no excellent knovvledge of Gods secretes hathe made mee to yeelde to your election For it vvas ynough and more than ynough knovven to my selfe how farre the abilitie of my vvit vvas vnmeet for the charge that I tooke in hande specially in a Realme so plentuously replenished vvith excellent learned men But vvhat shoulde I doo Whither should I turne mee You on the one side called me and I on the other side vvished some fit meanes too ridde avvay the misreportes that were spred abrode of mee euen by such as ought least to haue done it and to vvipe avvay the spottes of infamie that vvere sprinkled vpon mee Therefore being vvelneere ouervvhelmed vvith slaunders I determined both to obey your vvill and to satisfie mine ovvne desire and I chose rather to shevv hovv little I haue profited by pouring out rude and vnfiled speeche in your company thā to suffer those suspiciōs of vnpure and erronious doctrine which myne aduersaries had blazed abrode of mee both openly and priuily to take deeper roote by my silence and ceassinge from my function in the churche At one woord necessitie constrained me to followe your request In goinge through wherwith the shifting of the language was not the least part of my greefe For whereas in the Spanishe tung I coulde after a sort expresse the meaninge of my minde in the Latin tunge I am often tymes compelled too sticke too stamer and too bewray myne owne childishnesse Howbeit forasmuch as mine vnpolished speach is not vnacceptable
imbracing Gods truth with a true fayth and of expressing the beleeued truth in holy conuersation And all these thinges both generally and particularly as men terme it are taught by the Apostle in this Epistle to the Romaines the exposition whereof you haue heard of me this last yeere And bicause that in the time of my reading I haue gathered many things heere and there out of the Commentaries both of the olde and nevve Expositors vvhiche haue inlightened this Epistle vvith their vvritings I intended to set together this dialog out of that houge heape of my papers and to offer the same vnto you and that doo I for tvvo causes First that the reading of this booke may bring the thinges agayne to your remembraunce which I haue handled more at large in my Readings and secondly that there may remayne some publike vvriting among you as a record both to them that are absent and to suche as shall come after of the purenesse of my doctrine vvhich I haue taught in your coÌ„panie and how muche I abhorre the opinions of Sectaries which trouble the Churches nowadayes with their errours Also you are my witnesses after what maner I coÌ„futed the froward opinions of the Pelagians and selfe iustifiers in the discourse of IustificatioÌ„ Yee knovve also with howe great diligence I haue in the discourse of Predestination or of the calling of the Gentiles vnfolded and confuted both the madnesse of the Stoikes and chieflye the horrible blasphemies of the Manichies that by my shewing of these breakneckes you might keepe your pace in the kings high way without stumbling and imbrace the Apostles doctrine as the only rule of truth Finally to conclude I beseeche you of your gentlenesse and curtesie as to vvhome I thinke my selfe in many respects righte greatly beholden too accept this my small trauell with lyke minde as it is offered vnto you and where shall I finde anye thing in this writing that may stirre vp your minds too the loue of godlinesse thanke almightie god of it who hath imparted these things vnto me to doe you good withall And where any thing shall seeme rude and vnpolished lay that all wholly vpon mee vvho forasmuch as I am a man doo vvell knovve my selfe to be ignorant in many things and not able alwayes to expresse in fit vvordes the thinges that I knovve Wherefore I beseech you haue respect of mans vveaknesse and vvhere yee shall mislike anye thing first admonishe mee friendly of it before yee conceyue amisse of mee for it For as I confesse I may erre so I protest with good conscience that I vvill not stand in any errour Fare yee vvell And I beseeche almightie God the geuer of all good things to bee with yoâ— and to further your attemptes that â—our studies maye not onely profite â—he common Wealth to yeelde euery â—an his righte by the knovvleege of â—our Lavves but also be to the vvelâ—are of the Churche that true godlinesse and the pure doctrine of the Gospell may bee furthered by them Out of my Studie the last day of May. 1574. A generall Argument vpon all the Epistles of the Apostles THe holy Ghost hath so tempered the Epistles of the Apostles that euery of theâ— handleth a sundrie matter from other Fâ— the Epistle to the Romaines is a perfect instruction of a Christian. The two Epistles to the Corinthians do open the doubts of Churchmatters That to the Galathians breaketh thâ— strife betweene Moyses and Christ and betweene the selferighteous and the beleeuer in Christ That to the Ephesians doth moste plenteously lay forth the kingdome of Christ likâ— as that doth which is written to the Colossians The two to the Thessalonians describâ— Antichrist and the last day with the mysterie of the Resurrection and the things belonging therevnto The two vnto Timothie and the one vnto Titus doo peint out liuely the office of 〈◊〉 true shepheard and Bishop That to Philemon setteth down the profeâ— of mercie and Christian charitie That whiche was sent to the Hebrewes lyghteneth Christ by the shadowes of Moses and the Oracles of the Prophetes S. Iames correcteth the errour that sprung of the misvnderstanding of Paules doctrine and sheweth that the sauing fayth must bee liuely and frutefull Peter treateth of Christes kingdome and of the mysterie of his crosse howbeit in his owne style and peculiar gift and he sayeth the same thing that Paule dooth but not after the same maner so as yee maye perceiue them to haue had bothe one meaning but not bothe one mouth John teacheth the freendship and vnitie which wee haue with God through Christ and thervppon he vrgeth charitie and good woorkes with James Iude disclozeth the daungers of backeslyding as an vpholder of Peter and also vvill haue the feare of God taught to new-beginners and not onely his fauour and mercie least the preaching of Gods louingnesse might turne into fleshly libertie The Apocalips openeth the mysteries that shall happen in the last times Heereby it appeareth manifestly that nothing can be had or red more absolute than the new Testament For it teacheth the things that are to be knowen forwarneth things hurtfull and prophesieth both of good things and bad things to come The Argument of the Epistle of Paule the Apostle to the Romanes takeÌ„ out of the bokes of Athanasius Biship of Alexandria THey be called Paules Epistles bicause he wrote them And by them he both admonisheth and correcteth those whom he had seene and taught and also laboreth to teach them the same things whom he had not sene as they may perceiue which light vpon theÌ„ This to the Romanes he wrote from Corinth at what time he had not yet seene them but yet had herd of their faith and was desirous to see them And first of all he prayseth their faith which he herd spoken of euerywhere Then doth he them to vnderstande that he had purposed to come to theÌ„ for the good will that he bare them but hitherto could not Howbeit he frameth his Epistle after a maner of teaching informing them of the calling of the Gentiles and that circumcision serued but for a time was now abolished that Adams traÌ„sgression was discharged by Christ that the shadow of the Law was vanished away Therfore that the calling of the Gentiles was done consequently in good order he prouth in this wise He sheweth that the law is grafted in all men and that any man may know God euen of his own mother wit by the creation and state of things without the doctrine of the Law written And therefore he doth worthely first of all blame the Gentiles that wheras God hath opened the knowledge of himselfe vnto them by the works of the world and therwith also shewed them his euerlasting power which is his worde wherin and wherby he made all things They considered not by the creatures that God was the workmaster of such things but rather ascribed godhead to his creatures and worshipped them rather than the maker of
hath done me so many good turnes that I take hir as mine owne mother I beleeue also that you did my commendations to Asyncritus Phlegon Hermas Patrobas Mercurie and the brethren that are vvith them And likevvise to Philologus and Jubia to Nereus and hys syster and to Olympias and all the Saincts that are with them R. These salutations of yours were very welcome to all of vs. For as you know the Citizens of Rome lyke very well of this courteousnesse of greeting And therefore you haue wonne many mennes hartes to you by that meanes P. In dede I did at that time bethink me of this custome receyued among you but yet there vvas another cause vvhy I greeted these men by name that is to wit for that I ment to set thē foorth vnto you as patterns of true honestie and holynesse For if you liste to confesse the truthe these men are not onely worthy of honour and estimatiō but also suche as you maye set before you to follow in godlynes and religion Also I desired you to greete one another with a holy chast and right Gospellike christian kisse with the which kisse of peace the Church of Greece saluted you R. Among you Iewes kisses of peace are giuen and receyued with a holye minde and pure intente but with vs they haue muche wantonnesse and vnclennesse specially among the vnchristen sorte P. I vvas not ignoraunt of that and therefore I added the vvorde holy to the intent that your kisses should haue no resemblāce to the heathenish wicked kissings wherwith the vnchast fort are wont to shew their vnclennes But let these commendations passe I wold haue you and others to wey throughly what I admonished heere for the things are of very great importance I desired you as my brethren and my deere beloued in Christe to marke the authors of discorde and offences contrarie to the doctrine whiche you haue learned and I willed you to beware of them and to shun them R. Surely a necessarie warning and such a one as ought to make vs the more watchfull that the pure doctrine of the Gospell be not defiled with mens inuentions or rather toyes But when we red these things we marueled greatly that wheras you made so long a bederol of those whom you commende vnto vs and whom you set out with your salutations yet you poynt vs out no man heere by name whom we should shun P. It becommeth not Christes Apostles and the preachers of the gospell to deface any men by name for light causes or to bring them in suspition with the whole Churche by their writings For oftentimes it falleth out that suche open defamings do more harme than good not only to those whom we ment to warne but also to those of whom we gaue warning R. Our Church hath learned by it own experience that these things whiche you say are too true For at the beginning when the gospell was preached to vs in houses and priuately many who otherwise were none euill men would not be present at our priuie assemblies Nowe some of our company did of a good zeale soothly but yet vnaduised as I think fall to taunting and girding at them by name wherby they made a great sort of them become aduersaries to vs moste deadly enemies to the gospell whereas if they had bin handled with suche Apostolicall mildnesse as you vse heere towards these men out of doubte there was great hope of meekening them and of bringing them agayne to our companie P. Therfore take ye warning by their example to eschue this vntowarde maner of dealing and rather follow Christ who giuing to Cesar that whiche was Cesars and leauing the correction of vices vnto Magistrates did hurt no man by name wrate no reprochfull libels agaynst any man ne bronded no man with the mark of infamy but behaued himselfe with a most meeke modest mind towards all men euē though they were his enemies of set purpose It is inough for you if you keepe watch with al diligence as it were in a watch tower and spy out suche contention in your Church such as lay stumbling blocks in the way of the weaklings eyther by their lyfe or by euill and lewde persuasions contrarie to the doctrine vvhiche you haue learned And when you finde them to be suche as may do you harme by their communication or conuersation eschue them but yet in the meane while pray to God for them that he may giue them the spirite of repentaunce and a better and holyer minde I would not haue any hartburninges mislikinges disagreements or strife sowen among you and much lesse any vvritings full of rayling taunting or scorning spred abroade agaynst such as cleaue not to you peraduenture not of any euill will but bicause they yet still holde fast some remnants of the old religion which they receyued frō their tender yeeres R. O Paule you haue touched as it were the bile of our Church with your finger But to the intent we ouer shoote not our selfe in this cace by what marks may we discerne those whom you counsell vs to eschue and beware of I speake cheefly of the teachers of whome there is now a great number among vs and they inuey so sharply one against another that the sily people wot not which way to turne thē much lesse whō to beleeue so cōtrary are their sayings one to another P. Christ hath set down many marks whereby to discerne false teachers and false prophets whiche I beleeue you haue learned But here I will poynt you out some whiche in my opinion may make you ware wise inough Let the first marke be this which is of two partes When you see any teachers and preachers of the gospel which serue not the Lorde Iesus Christe but their owne bellies shun you them as moste cruell Wolues R. What call you the seruyng of Christe P. In that speech I comprehend many things whiche it were needelesse to open seuerally as now But considering the circumstance of our talke to serue Christe in the preaching of the gospell is to acknovvledge Iesus Christ to be our master and to win seruants disciples vnto him alone and not to our selues To speake more plainly when you see a teacher set vp a schole of his owne to him selfe to win scholars or disciples to him selfe and taking no care for the catholike and vniuersall church but rather labouring to purchase him selfe many friends fellowes praysers and commēders of his sermons writings him eschue you For beleeue me that teacher serueth not the Lorde Iesus Christ but himselfe he seekes not the glory of the Redemer but of himselfe and all his intent is by all meanes to prouide for his belly And by the name of Belly you must vnderstand not only feasting and all maner of deynty fare but also riches vaine glory and fame aboue other men whiche they are wont to hunt for by all meanes eyther ryght or wrong and so
they maye beare the bell and haue preheminence amonge men they passe not for the bondes of Christen charity which else they extoll with wondrous commendacions R. Call you this a seruing of the belly I promise you I thoughte nothing lesse Now I see there are not a few teachers of this stamp among vs. But you say they may be discerned by fayre speech and flattery I pray you what call you fayre speech P. I vse here two termes which paint out the nature of hipocrites and counterfets verie plainly for they be full of faire speech The Greekes call him faire spokē which promiseth much in words and performeth nothing in deede and also such a one as if you heere him you would say he is more carefull of you your welfare than of his owne when in the meane while all his seeking is but to pleasure himselfe With this vertue are these belly flatterers garnished if I may so terme them to you after the greeke fashion which are to be shunned more thā a dog or a Snake Also I vse another worde whiche signifieth wel speaking vvhich these coūterfetters are vvōt to vse to set forth the prayses of ther fauorers so as they ought not to be called teachers of the gospell but rather soothers of Princes great men By this meanes are they wont to deceiue men that otherwise are not of euill disposition and to bring them to their lures or to speake more rightly to snare thē in their nettes R. Thinke you vs to be so dulwitted that we espie not the natures and dispositions of these falspackers P. I know you be wise neuerthelesse that forewardnes of yours in hearing obeying for I vvill not terme it simplicity I say that readinesse of yours to receiue vvhatsoeuer is put vnto you is verie vvell knovven to all men Whiche vertue I make great account of so it be matched with discretion I am glad that you be indued vvith suche obedientnesse But I am vvonderfull desirous that you should be wyse and sharpwitted in good things simple harmelesse in euill thinges And although I vse these vvarninges tovvardes you by vertue of myne office yet doo I not doubt but that god the prince of peace vvill treade dovvne Satan vnder your feet that shortly as I hope For surely that moste mercyfull father hathe a care of hys children and vvill not suffer them to be led out of the path of godlinesse by the Serpentes deuices And therefore I besech God that the grace fauour and protection of our Lord Iesus Christ may be vvith you to defende you alvvayes from the snares of vvycked men Amen R. Also there are peculiar cōmendacions to vs frō Timothie that helper and workefellow of yours from Lucius Iason and Sosipater your kinsemen Furthermore Tertius your clerke and secretary which wrote this Epistle from your mouth woulde not in any wise let passe his most louing salutatiōs Moreouer there is mention made of your host Gaius and of the whole churche and finally of Erastus the chamberleine of the citie and of his brother Quartus All these we know almost by syght therfore we receyued their commendacions the wyllinglier P. This maner of dealing am I wont to vse not onely to maintaine mutuall alyance betvveene the Greeke churches and yours but also too the intent that this myne Epistle beeing confirmed with so many as it were vvryters myght beare the more sway vvith you For I make so greate account of the cōsent of my brethren in my writinges that I do also desyre to haue my doctrine allovved by their recorde and subscription For it beseemerh not the meeldnesse of an Apostle to seeke but his ovvne fame onely and as it vvere to hold skorne of his other help fellowes Hovvbeit for asmuch as there is greate peril in the right performāce of al these thinges which I desire to haue you warned of therfore I pray that the grace fauour of our god may be with you all For trust me the intents of the old serpent are very secret mans wisedome without Gods spirit is not able to serch them and much lesse to discouer them and escape them For this cause I do alwaies in my prayers besech him which is able to stablish you that he will strēgthen you accordinge to my Gospell which I preach among the Gentyles according to the vttering of Iesus christ the heauenly teacher whom the father hath giuen vs to dioselse vnto all men the secret whiche had bin vnspoken of from euerlasting but is now made manifest both by the preaching of Christ our sauiour and also by the writings of the prophets and that by the commaūdement and euerlasting ordinance of the euerliuing God which would haue that most holy mistery set forth to all men to the ende that all men should obey the faith acknowledge the onely one God the creator and imbrace hys onely begotten sonne Iesus Christ whō the most mercifull father sent into the world of purpose to set open the goodnesse and mercy of God vnto all men To this onely vvise God be euerlasting glory by the same Iesus Christ for euer and euer Amen R. Excellēt surely is this thāksgiuing of yours wherby you commend Gods power wisedome Which vertues euen as they shew themselues most wonderfully in all Gods works so shyne they forth most cheefly in the calling of vs of all the Gentyles by the preaching of the Gospel But herken when this Epistle was brought vnto vs frō Corinth by Phebe one of the ministers of the Church of Chenchrie oure Alderman Burgesses seeing so meane a messenger dd very greatly disable your Apostolicall authoritie bycause you had no better pursiuants nor more honorable messengers to sende your letters by which yee write to the Churches as our Byshops haue P. Brother all these thinges are but vvoorldly visors vvherof superstitious doctrine stands in nede bycause it hath no substantiall grounde to rest vppon But Christes Gospell needeth not the helpes of this woorlde nother doo the preachers therof seeke other cariers or ministers thā such as are indued vvith the feare of God these do they vse to spread abrode the glory of the gospell Therfore to make an end at lēgth shak ye off the statelinesse of this vncleane world imbrace ye the crosse of christ be not ashamed to be the disciples of him vvho vvhereas he was Lorde of all things made himselfe a seruāt for your sakes And I thanke you peculiarly for this your visiting of me and I pray god to increase the giftes of his spirite more morein you for this frendly courtesie which you haue shevved tovvards me If you visit me any tyme hereafter you shal be hartely vvelcome R. I will come when I can and I for my part beseche our most mercifull God lykewise to be alwaies with you in this your imprisonment and to strengthen your mind with the power of his spirit Fare you well