proue by a law of Theodosius and Arcades Emperours of Rome made to forbid men vnder paine of leesing their right not to seeke to recouer possession of their own by violence force Wherunto I answere you that graunt vs so much which of right you must and for all your tale and penall Statute of Theodosius and Arcades we shall be to good for you For first what other Iudges sentence were wee to expect but theirs that we had on our side alreadie Secondly there hath beene no such tumultuous or disorderly violence vsed by vs as I haue shewed before as their lawe forbiddeth to recouer our owne from you and then you must vnderstand that these Emperours prescribe their lawe to bridle men and not to binde God from recouering his inheritance to the vse of his seruants from the hands of Antichristian vsurpers euen by force and violence if otherwise they will not yeeld To proue therefore that God would haue called in our commission though he had graunted it rather then hee would haue suffred vs to execute it in violent driuing you out of possession to recouer our owne right you had neede to haue vsed a stronger reason then taken from the edict of Emperours If these thinges had beene well coÌ„sidered before of you you might haue spared your iest wherewith you conclude this Chapter well enough and so rather haue staied your pipes your selfe then in such sorte as you haue blowen so ioyfully in token of triumph before any likelihoode of victory The vanity and falshoode of your bragge for the continuance of your religion aboue one thousand yeares before we were borne not onely throughout France but also throughout all Christendome I haue fully and at large discouered in the later ende of the preface in my answer to your 4.16 39. ca. therfore in this place I haue saied no more then I haue referring the reader for a full answere thereuÌ„to both here and wheresoeuer else it is repeated by you vnto these places And though S. Augustine say as you write that liberty and licence of conscience to doe euil is the death of the soule yet that toucheth vs nothing at al for doing what we may by lawfull ordinary means to dispossesse your AntichristiaÌ„ prelats of the places of gouernment ouer Christs Church and of the maintenance due to his true faithful pastors For so to deale is but orderly to recouer Gods inheritance out of the hands of his enemies to possesse them thereof to whom it is due and therefore in so doing there is neither liberty nor licence to doe euil practised But rather you in crauing the restoring of you thereunto and quiet continuance therein still craue both liberty licence without controlement to go on in sacrilegious enioying that which at no hand appertaines to such as you be The XVI Chapter FOR a This is vntrue for wee alleage both our lawful calling shew the right that we not you haue to those places and maintenaÌ„ce for they were appointed for true Pastours and not for wolues foxes as your Prelates haue beene a great while your defence you alleage no other reason but your good zeale and your ardent Apostolicall affection the which hath mooued you to sowe this seede of sedition You saie that the fielde is great and there are few good reapers but if you marke that that doeth followe afterward and to take the counsaile of the wise Christ doeth not commaunde therefore that euerie one should take his sickle and go and cut downe other mens corne But he saieth * b Mat. 15. b Mat. 9. It is but your ill luck scarce to quote one of ten rightly Pray the master of the worke to the end that he sende more workemen to his vine He doeth teach vs that if we see anie estate out of order we should praie to God to redresse it And in the meane time we ought to correct and amend our owne liues for if euerie man were for himselfe God would bee for vs all c That is a good means but doth it thereupoÌ„ follow that no other meanes is good and lawfull to that ende and in that case Yet notwithstanding this it is not reasonable that vnder the colour of a good zeale a seruant shoulde take in hand an act of so great importaunce without expresse commandement of his master as it is saied But now that wee are come to talke of your good zeale if it please you let vs knovv d Neither haue we if those ardent flames of charitie haue so inflamed you that you haue ouerthrowen the chaires of the negligent Pastours and Bishops and in their roomes ye haue collocated your ministers in euerie place where yee could beare anie swaie as it doeth appeare in manie townes and Cities in this Realme I doe not doubt but that you vvill doe the best that yee can to doe the like with the rest e This is but a malitious surmise enforced to make vs odious contrary both to your coÌ„science and experience but indeede it is plaine by proofe that thus you deaâ—e with Kings and Queenes if they be â—oâ— of your sect and humor I meane as vvell temporall as spirituall For euen as God of whom yee speake so often doeth make no exception of persons euen so you that call your selues his Lieutenants will make no difference betweene the euill estates the good Euerie one doeth know that the administration of iustice is verie honourable before God and that there be manie in this vocation that would not for anie thing doe anie wrong vnto the widow and fatherlesse childe yet we see and know by experience that there are manie others that without anie conscience doe take bribes and offer wrong both to the fatherlesse to the widow the which crimes are no lesse in that estate then the carelesse liuing of the Bishops and Pastors So that I thinke by this that he that hath giueÌ„ you charge power to turne the Bishops out of their seats the Curats out of their benefices and the Monkes and Abbots out of their Abbeys because of their euill liuings would likewise extende your commission to put downe Lordes Knightes Iudges and Gentlemen because of the corrupt liues of manie of them And to make an ende of the reformation your holie Ghost and those zealous flames of the spirit woulde mooue you to go a little higher for there is nothing done but the spirit may amend it Against the great trees striue the great windes and against great dignities great abuses It is not vnknown to al meÌ„ that ther are good and godly Catholicke Princes and Kings which are surelie to the people the great giftes of God but likewise one cannot denie but that there hath beene and are diuers ill Princes that doe gouerne their people careleslie without iustice And if by chance your Gospell should fall into some kingdom where the Prince were not so sage nor so
traditions because they wil not stand with the plaine scriptures themselues we reiect Otherwise we are ready alwaies to proue our sence thereof to agree with the ancient Church her doctours better then yours can And as for the variety amongst vs of interpretatioÌ„s which you charge vs withal sure we are it wil neuer proue so great as hath beene and is amongst you or as is betwixt your interpretation and that which was of them 900. yeares ago and therefore for any thing you haue yet saied you your selues are the rouing sheepe froÌ„ the ancient sheepfold you are they which whiles men slept haue sowed cares amongst the good corne and which are the sheepe sicke in religion as well as in maners and not we And therefore they that haue ioined with you whosoeuer they haue beene are like at the day of iudgement to smart for nothing more then for taking part with you And so to conclude this Chapter whatsoeuer hitherto you haue gained at the handes of the simple by these your vaine and swelling wordes you shall hereafter loose ten times as much amongst them that are wise thereby The XL. Chapter I Know wel that you will take this confession of mine to your aduantage saying that for feare of being infected with our superstitious diseases you haue seperated your selues froÌ„ the coÌ„mon flocke but if you doe consider my first words they haue barred you al maner of waies to reply iustly for I haue already saied that although wee be sickely weake sheepe as touching our doings or maners yet in regarde of our faith thaÌ„kes be to God we are safe sound keeping stil a Indeede you haue saied and saied it againe againe but yet you haue neuer proued â—t nor 〈◊〉 that integritie of religion that by succession of pastors we haue receiued froÌ„ the Apostles without adding or diminishing any thing to the ground of our Catholicke beliefe for as for ceremonies the Church hath vsed the euer as touching the time the place to the honour of God edification of our neighbours b Your antichristian religion is that that hath caused vs to separate ourselues from you as wee are biddeÌ„ Reue. 18. vers 4. therfore if you did seperate your selues froÌ„ our kinde of liuing to lead a holy solitarie life as the holie Heremites Saints haue done in times past forsaking the coÌ„uersation of the coÌ„mon people to liue in coÌ„teÌ„plation without seperating theÌ„ selues froÌ„ the coÌ„munioÌ„ of the Church in the which they haue beene baptised had receiued their faith your doings had beene as much worthie of praise in that respect as now they are daÌ„nable considering how you forsake the coÌ„moÌ„ tabernacle within the which both you we haue receiued the sacraments of regeneration our spiritual food altogither And to the ende that no body run astraie froÌ„ the right path that he should follow the good ChristiaÌ„ ought to fixe in his minde this resolution I meane to serue God to liue in the catholicke faith coÌ„monlie or priuatelie for wheÌ„ there is any questioÌ„ put as touching the life the coÌ„moÌ„n are c This is a right popish glosse that is a plaine peruerting of Christs meaning as * Mat. 7. Christ doth say doth lead one to perdition the narrow waie doeth guide vnto the part of saluation But if one speake of religion the contrarie is verified for the coÌ„mon way is the waies of health the priuate waie is the path of damnation d And this is an other The Prophet Dauid in the 24 Psalme had a regard to this when he praied God to teach him his waies by the religion his pathes by the maners and customes The XL. Chapter YOu were deceiued in thinking that we would pretend your euil maners or your difference in ceremonies for the defence of our seperation from you For we haue alwaies protested that it was especially your Antichristian doctrine that hath caused vs to accouÌ„t that Reuelations 18.4 Go out of her my people that ye be not pertakers in her sins and that yee receiue not of her plagues directly spoken to vs concerning your Romish Synagogue and religioÌ„ And therfore is it that we haue so seperated our selues from you as we haue because we find that you are apostataes long haue bene from the ancient Catholicke Church of Christ and from the truly coÌ„mended ancient Roman Church it selfe with whom we cannot growe in common vnlesse we had forsaken your fellowship And this kinde of seperation of our selues from you we know was more necessarie and is more coÌ„mendable then al the seperation of Heremites or any other of your caged birdes howsoeuer you could haue allowed that better then this of ours But you would seeme to haue bound vs to haue continued with you because that we receiued many of vs baptisme at your hands What I trust you are not so meane a diuine as to thinke it alwaies best for men to continue communion with them in all things that haue baptised them You know I am sure that the Arrian heretickes their heresie spreading it selfe so broad as it did and continuing diuers 100 yeares and other heretiques as well as they baptised many and yet I hope you wil not thinke that they might not after forsake their heresies to turne to the truth You know many did forsake them and came to the trueth yet it was counted an heresie to baptise them againe The better yet to shew that we should not haue departed from you you tel vs that you haue continued without adding and diminishing in that doctrine which was taught by the Apostles first and since from hand to hand in all integrity hath bene by the succession of faithful pastors conueighed downe vnto you and so we had both baptisme and all our other spirituall foode with you These are but wordes the euidence of the thing is to the contrary as I haue sufficiently made demonstration before Proue this indeed and we will repent vs of our departing from you most ioifully willingly wil wee ioyne with you againe I like very well your counsell that euery good Christian should fully resolue and determine to serue God and to liue and die in the Catholicke faith but then I adde that he had need well and throughlie to bee resolued what and which is that true Catholicke Faith For his direction in this behalfe how to discerne which is the right way to heauen and which not and consequentlie which is the true catholicke faith which is not you teach him that when there is any question put as touching life then the common way as Christ doeth say Mat. 7. doeth lead to perdition and the narrow to saluation but in religion it is contrary whereunto you saie Dauid alluded Psal 24. saying shew me thy waies O Lorde and teach me thy pathes by waies meaning religion and by pathes maners Where learned you this diuinity If you looke vpon Christs
wordes well you shall finde that hee counted the waie to heauen straight as well in respect of religion as life and that there is nothing more vsuall with Dauid then indifferently without any such nice distinction to vse these wordes waies and pathes both in respecte of the one and the other you might easily perceiue if you were anie thing conuersant in his Psalmes looke vpon Christs time whereunto he had an especiall eie when hee vsed these wordes and you shall finde that true religion was a thing more geyson and rare then in the worlde and had fewer followers then an holy and a vertuous life For eueÌ„ many of the Pharisees and Philosophers made great shew of that that therefore to leade vs rather to thinke that in respect of Religion then maners he had vttered those wordes immediately thereupon he addeth beware of false Prophets And as for Dauid if your argument be grounded vpon that that he placeth the word waies in the first place and pathes in the later if you marke him well you shall oftentimes finde him to inuert that order in the Psalmes And Psalme 109. because you should plainly see that he referreth waies as wel to maners as to ReligioÌ„ he saieth take from me the way of lying and teach me the way of thy statutes And considering that you cannot be ignorant that Idolatry and Paganisme in Christs time was more common then Christs Religion therefore had 10000. that tooke it for true religion in comparison of one that tooke Christs so I wonder that you euer durst thus expound Christs wordes For by your expositioÌ„ he tolde them that it was better for them to embrace paganisme then his Religion for that was the common beaten way and his was but a small bie-path Againe in Liberius his time when it was an hard matter to finde one true Catholique for an 100. Arrians insomuch that Constantine saied vnto Liberius that he alone fauoured Athanasius Theodor. Eccles Hist lib. 2. cap. 16. by your rule Liberius did well in that seeing Arrianisme to be the common waie and his ancient Religion that then was but as a bie-path wherein few walked that he yeelded his subscriptioÌ„ to Arrianisme Indeede it should seem that this Pope Liberius was of your minde so long you care not I am sure as that you may haue a Pope on your side Wel yet if you had but remembred that the Turkish religioÌ„ is at this day hath beene a long time coÌ„mon to moe then your owne religioÌ„ is or euer was it might haue staied you froÌ„ teaching meÌ„ to measure religion by the coÌ„monnes of it or multitude of followers least you should haue so persuaded them to Turcisme But it may be you had rather haue it so seeing in coÌ„parisoÌ„ therof ours is but a narrow path wherein few doe walke then that they should follow vs. If your skil in interpreting of the scriptures in prescribing rules for the direction of men be no better then you haue shewed in this you may very well be a Doctour and great master in your blinde and ignorant kingdome of Popery but in the kingdome of Christ there is little hope that there will euer any great reckoning be made of you The XLI Chapter NOw to turne to the partition that we haue vpon the 34. and 37. of Ezechiel and vpon the tenth of Iohn it is plaine that we are the flockes of weake and sickelie sheepe and your disciples are the sheepe that runne this waie and that waie astraie those that are our a Howsoeuer that title is due vnto them they take it not vnto theÌ„ ill Prelats take vpon them the title of Mercenarii pastoris but vnto your ministers the titles of deuouring wolues may be applied b Onely of such as haue made shipwracke of conscience without anie scrupulositie of coÌ„science for you watch to none other intent but to make the sheepe runne out of the folde and to deuour them because that our pastours haue not taken care to keepe them And although they be not excusable aswell for their silence as for their naughty liues I see not your Patriarchs zealous manifesters amende much themselues the faults that they finde in vs for besides the true and certaine experience that wee haue had by the triall that we haue seene to our cost in this Realme within these fiue or six yeares c Penned then by such that had taught their peÌ„s to write lies I haue read full many a golden Legend of your sacred martyrs and holie Bishops which doe not altogither redound to the honour of your pretended reformed Church And among others Theodore de Beza Caluins successour in the Pontificate seat of the holy city of Geneua of whom such things are preached abroad that if the one halfe of them be true d Neither wil â—e nor any of vs so compare our selues he is scant so good a man as S. Iohn Baptist And because I would not haue you to mislike theÌ„ for their religioÌ„ I wil not alleage to verify this any Catholick author but soÌ„e of Luthers successors your first fouÌ„der who taught you to write so learnedly I would say railingly against the church of Rome Tilemanus Heshusius a minister of the LutheraÌ„s in the * Jn his booke of the true body of Christ in the sacrif writen in Latin book that I haue alreadie noted doeth openlie accuse the saied Beza of great infamy that he did not onlie content e Heat of conteÌ„tion made the man too credulous and so beleeued your malitious parasites that most impudently and falsly haue forged these things of him the fancie of his mind with leading a luxurious a liceÌ„tious life to staine his vow with a bilt of adulterous loue but that that is worse hee himselfe hath set forth in writing all his lasciuious acts the which saieth hee f His lasciuious songs and Epigrams he made and published whiles he was yours whereof he hath publickly in printe testified his repentance mislike since he was ours he hath song in sacrilegerime to the Instrument to manifest his sinne to the whole sight of the worlde And in that verie booke hee doeth say that Beza who as I haue tolde you is a Bishop of the holie Cittie of Geneua is an infamous monster whose naughtie life any man may reade set forth by him selfe in his owne Epigrams and notwithstanding saieth he to heare him speake you would thinke hee vvere Saint Iohn Baptist for he can talke of nothing but of his holie life This same very minister in the booke where he writeth these things he doeth laie to g The more shame for him for it is a monstrous and notorious slander Bezaes charge that he tooke with him to Geneua another mans wife without the knowledge of her husband whose name was Candida h Will an argument from one to al follow with papists and yet this one not proued such an one neither