¶ A godly wil and confession of the Christian faythe made by Rychard Brasier late Auditour to the kinges maiesti in Ireland whiche he dydde most constantly cleaue vnto during the time that he lyued worthy to be read of all Christians ¶ To the Christian Reader HEre hast thou gentle reder the true copy of the last wil and testament of Richard Brasier late Auditour for the kyngs maiesty in Ireland wherin is briefly but yet clearely declared the fayth in Christ which the said Richard did professe in hys life time constantly cleaue vnto in the tyme of hys departyng oute of this lyfe Whych hys last wil and confessioÌ„ of the Christian faith the sayd Rychard wylled to be openly declared in a Sermon made at his funeral in the church of S. Patrike in Diuelyn wher he lyeth buryed to the entent that the mouthes of such slaunderers as do commonly imagine the recaÌ„tacion of faythful Christians at the time of their departing out of this world myght be stopped And because the report of this confession of fayth is not yet beleued of manye superstitious meÌ„ that would al ChristeÌ„ meÌ„ shuld in their last houre recant their assured hope of saluation through Christ only without any our deseruinges it hath bene thought good to such as the said Richard put in trust to se his wil fulfilled to cause this the very true copy hereof to be imprinted that al meÌ„ might se iudge Beseching the to read remeÌ„ber what ChristeÌ„ faith Richard Brasiar stode vnto in the end what euery true meÌ„ber of Christ must coÌ„fesse stand vnto The merciful goodnes of the lord preserue the to the ende that thou maiest be salfe So be it In the name of God Amen I Richard Brasyer the Kynges maiesties Auditour of his gracees Realme of Ireland beynge of a hole and perfect memorye do make my testament last wyll the fyfth day of Iune the .iiii. yere of the raygne of our souerayne Lord kyng Edwarde the syxte by the grace of God king of England FrauÌ„ce and Ireland defendour of the fayth and of the church of England and also of IrelaÌ„de in earth the supreme head in maner forme as hereafter followeth Fyrst and before al other thynges I commyt me vnto God the eternall Father and to hys excedyng great mercy trusting with out any dour or mistrust that by the merites of hys most deare and best beloued son that most innocent and immaculate lambe that pure and vndefyled lambe whych taketh a way the synnes of the world our only sauiour Redemer Mediatour Iustyfyer Iesus Christe for whose sake God the father is pacifyed satisfyed and sette at one wyth man and by vertue of hys most bytter but yet hys most precious deathe and passyon and hys gloryous resurreccion I haue and shal haue free remission and forgyuenes of my synnes and that in the last daye I shall ryse agayne both body and soule according as it is wrytten in Iob the .xix. câ—â—p I beleue that mi redemer liueth and that in the last day I â—â—al ryse out of the earthe and in my flesh shal se my Sauiour Iesus Christe And I beleâ—e that I shal se the almyghtye goodnes and maiesty of God in the land of the lyuyng and that I shall be a Citizen in the Celestiall and heauenlye Ierusalem in the company of many thousandes of Aungels in ioy inexplycable and thys my hope is laid vp in the bosome of my hart by faith Althoughe I confesse and knowledge that I haue bene and am a miserable and wretched synner whych haue not kepte anye of the commaundementes of God but haue resysted hys wyl many wayes An euyl tree am I that haue broughte foorthe no good fruit for by nature I am the child of wrath in all that maye be named be it secrete or open dooe I knowledge my selfe gyltye hauyng hereof repentaunce and am sorye for it euen from the very bottome of my harte besechyng the almyghty Lord God heaueÌ„ly father that it wyl please hym not to suffer me to stycke in the depth of my synnes neither impute theÌ„ vnto me but graciously to delyuer me from theym throughe Iesus Christ hys sonne and our Lord. Also forasmuch as it hath pleased God of hys vnmesurable bounty and infinite great mercy to cal me vnto the knowledge of the veritye truth of hys most holy word and gospel eueÌ„ out of the bothomlesse pyt of hell wherinto I had cast my selfe by my own iniquity and synce that tyme that I haue knowen that infallyble truth and verity I haue vtterlye refused and forsaken the moste detestable abhominable vyces of idolatry as offeryng to idols and goyng of pilgrimages and hearing of pestiferous popysh masses supersticion and ipocrisy wyth all the tradicions execrable cerymonyes inuented by byshops of Rome theyr wycked adherentes wherwith both I and all the hole world besydes hath bene blynded and seduced and yet for the more part are I praye God amende the same at hys good pleasure and haue wholy geuen ouer my selfe to the sayd truthe of Gods most holye woorde and haue mayntayned the same to the best of my power although the same was but very smal euen so do I now trust by the abundaunte grace of God to end my lyfe in the same And to the intent that after my departure oute of thys lyfe the wycked worldlynges and papistes whych hath a world of wyckednes in theyr tonges shal not detracte backbite slaunder me saying that I haue forsaken those opinions fayth trust and belieâ—e in the mercyes and promyses of God throughe hys word neyther touchynge my belefe nor my opinion of the two reuerend and holy misteries sacramentes sygnes tokens or sealed obligacions and commemoracions whych I haue mayntayned now in my lyfe accordyng to Gods word that is to say of Baptyme and of the holy Supper of the worde I wyll bryefely declare my opynyon in the same hereafter followyng Fyrst as touchyng my fayth and belefe I beleue in God the Father almyghty maker of heauen earth And in Iesus Christe hys only sonne our Lord whyche was conceyued by the holy Ghost and borne of the vyrgyn Mary Suffered vnder Ponce Pylate crucifyed dead and buryed descended into hel and rose agayne the thyrd day froÌ„ the dead ascended vnto heaueÌ„ and sytteth on the ryghte hande of God the Father almyghty and from thence shal come againe to iudge the quycke and the deade I beleue in the holy Gost and that ther is an holy vnyuersal Catholyke church whyche is the congregacion and felowshyp of sayntes remission and forgyuenes of syns The resurreccion of the flesh and euerlastyng lyfe At the fyrst I beleue in one God father of our Lord Iesus Christ the whyche is the Lorde of heauen and earthe and Creatoure of all creatures yea he is father of vs all whych hath elected vs to be hys childreÌ„ thorow Iesu Christ and therfore shall we hym alonly worshyp and beside
the last trumpet The trumpet saith Paule shal blow and the dead shall ryse vncorruptible and we shal be chaunged for thys corruptyble body muste put on vncorrupcion and thys mortal body must put on immortality At the last is ther also an euerlastynge lyfe whyche al they shall receyue that beleue on Iesus Christ and stedfastlye abyde in good workes sekyng prayse honour and immortality in the lyfe to come Thys is the sūme of my fayth and belefe through the whyche fayth al the ryghtuous lyue and wythoute the which beliefe no man may please God Therefore the euerlastynge God be blessed that oute of hys vnmeasurable mercye and grace hath giuen me thys faythe throughe Iesus Christ our Lord. Now foloweth my fayth and opinion of the sacramental token of baptisme Baptysme is a sacramentall token the whyche is gyuen vs of Christe and is at the fyrst an entryng into the Christian congregacion as Paule sayeth we are baptised in one spirite to be one body i. Cor. xii Secondarely Baptysme is a fountayne of regeneraciō as Paul witnesseth Tit. iii. saying that Christ hath saued vs bi the foūteine of the newe byrthe and renuing of the holy ghost not that the water doth saue vs for nothyng can saue vs but only God Esa xliii but seynge that our Lord Iesu Christ hath spoken that he that beleueth is baptysed shall be saued Marc. xvi And goddes word is verity and truth Ihon. xvii And his promyses may not fayle Psal cxlvii Therfore must baptyme nedes brynge saluation vnto them that in beleue are baptysed not for the workes sake but for gods word and promyses Deu. viii Thirdly baptime is a couenant of a good conscyence to God first of Pete iii. namely that he that in beleue is baptysed byndeth hym self or maketh a couenaunt with god that from thenceforth he wil liue after his wil. And on this couenauntes behalfe whiche muste be done oute of a cleane faythfull heart hath the baptyme power and not for the water sake wherewith the filthinesse of the flesh is washed away but withoute it be that the hearts of them that are baptised be cleansed Actes xv Through goddes word Ihon. xv The water can not cleanse them wherwyth it is also proued that baptysme wythoute faythe maye in no wyse bee alowed Foorthelye baptysme sygnyfyeth an offerynge of the fleshe and a resurreccion into a newe lyfe as we haue to the Romaynes vi Knowe ye not saythe Saynte Paule that all we whyche are baptysed in the name of Iesu Christ are baptysed to die wyth hym therfore are we buried wyth him by baptysme for to dye that lykewyse as Christ was raised vp frō death to lyfe by the glory of the father euē so we shuld walke in a newe lyfe Thys is nowe shortly expressed what baptisme is and what it signifyeth But for asmuch as all the former scriptures are spoken of them onlye that be of yeres of discression before they receiue the faythe of Christ it is not altering of the institucion word of Christ to baptise the innocents in fātes For as in circumcisiō of the old law the faith of the parents sufficed to make the child one of the chosen people of God not wythstanding that the circumcision of the flesh is not circumcision as Paul writeth to the Ro. ii but the circumcision of the hert euen so the baptisme of our infants not withstandinge that the washynge of the bodye in water is not baptysme but the washynge of the soule in the bloude of Christe by faythe yet shall the faythe of the parentes be accepted of God And theyr chyldren made members of the churche of Christ thereby And also I beleue that god dothe moue the heartes of the infantes that be hys wyth the holye ghost If any require witnesses of the scripture for thys assercyon that chyldrene or infantes be made members of the church of Christe by the faythe of they re parentes Lette hym reade and consyder well the story of Sampson and Samuel wyth other lyke storyes of the old testamēt wherin may easely be perceyued how God dyd then accept the children for the parents fayth Let hym consyder also the storyes of the Gospel wherin appeareth how Christ wold not haue the children kept from hym whē theyr parentes brought thē to hym that he might lay hys hand vpon them and how certayne chyldren were cured and healed of diseases euen for the fayth that was found in theyr parentes And last of al it is euydent both in the Actes of the Apostles and in the Epystles of certaine of them that when certaine men receiued the Gospell both they theyr whole houshold were baptysed Where it is not to be thought that the infantes wer reiected because they could not vnderstād the Apostles preachyng For S. Paule writing to the Corinthians sayd .i. Corin. vii As cōcernyng the chyldren begotten betwene an Heathen man and a faithful woman or betwene a Heathenish woman and a faithful man the children are cleane by reason that one of his parentes is faithful And what other thing shuld he meane thereby but that God accepteth those children for members of his church whō the faithfull parentes do willingly bring to the fountain of regeneracion therto receiue the signe of the euerlasting couenant betwene God and vs. Thys is with the shortest my faythe and opinion of baptysme Nowe foloweth lykewyse my fayth and opinion of the supper of the Lord The supper of the Lorde is a memoryall token of the sufferinge and deathe of Iesu Christ is instituted of Christ for this cause that the faythfull congregacyon of Iesu Christ shulde come together for to shew the deathe of Iesu Christe and hys benefytes lauddynge and thankynge hym magnyfyinge hys holye name and then also eate of thys breade and dryncke of thys wyne to a remembraunce that Christ hathe geuen hys body and shed his bloud for vs. Math. xxvi And because that it is a comen vse that a token of remembraunce hath the name of the thinge that is remembred by it Therefore hath Christ called the breade his bodye and the wyne hys bloud not that hys substance is in the breade and wyne but that we shuld remember him therby Likewise as the Easter lambe was called the passynge by and yet was it not in it self the very passyng by seinge nowe that the Easter lambe hath the name of the thynge that the Israelytes remembred by it and wherby they might euerlastinglye keepe in remembraunce the benefites of God right conuenient is it that Christ hath called the bread his body and the wine his bloude because that we shuld remember therby his death and passion yea the only sacrifice of his body which he hath suffered to be brokē and his bloud to be shed for vs. Neuertheles how be it that the materiall body of Christ is not in the breade nor his bloude in the wine yet neuertheles is the supper of the Lord a partaking but spiritually of the
bodye and bloude of Christe as Paule saieth Is not the cuppe of thankesgeuing wherwith we geue thankes a partakynge of the bloude of Christ And the bread that we breake is it not the partaking of the bodi of Christ These wordes of Paule do witnes clearely that the faithful eate the body of Christ spiritually vnder the breade and wine Yea likewise as a Bryde receiueth her husband with a ringe euen so receiue the faithful Christ to be theyr owne and euerlastinge saluacion but that some men wil haue that the bodely presence shoulde be in the breade is a greate misse vnderstandinge of the godlye woorde yea it is an Antichristes doctryne whych is contrary both to our faith to al hole scripture for I beleue and holy scripture beareth witnes that Christ after his resurreccion is ascended vp into heauen and sitteth vppon the right hand of his almighty father Rom. viii And bydeth there as concerninge his bodely presence but spiritually he hath promysed to abide with vs to the end of the worlde in his woorde Math. xxviii And seinge that nowe Christe as concerning hys bodely presence abideth at the righthand of God hys father Heb. x. so may not the body of Christ be in the breade And againe it is againste al truth that Christ at one time hath bene in many or diuerse places as touchinge his body Furthermore we do daily se the dredeful idolatry is sprong out of the carnal vnderstandynge of these wordes of Christ This is my body yet daily springeth to the great abhominable slaunder of the honor of god so the mē worship a piece of bread for their god yea hold that to be their maker And the papists locke him in gold and siluer not remēbring what Paule Stephen witnes saying The most highest wil not dwell in temples made with mans hands Act. vii and .xvii O blind mē that are so be witched of the whore that ye can not nor wil not beleue the manifest truth O blindnes and great presumptuousnes of the papistes that wil take vpon thē to teach Iesu Christe oute of heauen into a piece of bread which is consumable as we clearly se by experience that it shulde be worshipped for God which is euerlasting and vnchangeable Now what remedy for I cānot help it therfore must I do as the Lord Iesu Christ spake vnto his Apostels of the Phariseis saying Let thē go for thei are blind leaders of the blynde when one blind leadeth an other so fal they both into the ditche Mat. xv but the lord must be thanked that out of his vnmeasurable grace hath opened our eies that we can se and know wherfore we shal take the bread and the wine in the supper namely for a memorial and token of the suffering and death of Iesu Christ yea for the body bloud of Christe but that for the hye names sake not of the material thinges behalfe as is aboue rehearsed of the Easter Lambe Furthermore the supper of the Lord is also a ioining togither of the Christen congregaciō in loue And also the congregaciō that wil hold this supper must be wel apointed ioined together in brotherlye loue yea they must stād in one spirit soul Ph. i. Hauing a burning loue for Paule saithe we many are one bred one body in asmuch as we ar partakers of one bread likewise as the mēbers of one body ar not in strife one against another but in a charitable vniti seruīg one a nother i. Cor. xii So may there no strife nor debate be foūd in the cōgregaciō of god i. Cor. i. So that ani man shuld only care take thought for him self not care nor loke vpon his brothers lacke but the one must helpe care for the other in al things necessary wher he can or may Gal. vi And no mā must seke that that is his but euery one the other welth Phi. ii And likewise as of the grains of corn cānot be baken bread but through fyre euē so can not the cōgregacion be a right spiritual lofe wherof Paul speaketh but through burning loue and charity so ought the christian cōgregacion to be one lofe i. Co. x. for likewise as many graines are sowen to the intent that bread shuld be baked of it so soweth the great father of houshold his precious wheate into the aker or groūd of this world to the entēt that they al shuld become one lofe breake the supper of the lord rightly after the words of Paul We many are al one bread one bodye in as muche as we are partakers of one bread i. Cor. x. And wher so euer the congregacion is not so apointed and the bread broken in this maner there is the breade eaten and the wine dronken to their dampnacion from the which god the merciful father wyl defend kepe al diligēt louers of the euerlastinge truth through his vnexpressable goodnes mercy Thus haue I breifly expressed and set forth mi faith and beleue in god the father and god the son god the holy ghost iii distinct persons one in the godhead coequall in substance also my fayth beleue agreing with the true word of god of the sacraments or rather significaciōs of baptism and the holy supper of our Lorde Furthermore as touching the burying of my bodi which is nothing but a peice of vile flesh dōg earth dust ashes it auaileth me not wher it be buried for asmuch as I knowe do faithfully beleue that according to the saying of saint Paul i. Tess iiii when the Lord him self shal come doun frō heauē with a shoute and voyce of the archaūgel with the trumpe of god And those that slepe in Iesus Christ shal arise first before those which remain thē vpon the earth shal be caught vp also with them in the cloudes to mete the Lord in the ayr so shal we euer be with the Lord wherfore I am cōforted and satisfied with these words And therfore I remit referre the burying of my body vnto the discression of Iane my wife who is a christian woman and whō I only make my executrix And as touching the distribucion of my tēperal goodes which are but smal although they are more a thousand times then I was worthy of for that I receiued the same at the hands of god honour praise thankes be to him for it and hath cōmaūded me as a faithful wise steward to bestow the same according to his wil. I haue partly in my life time albeit I might haue done much more dystributed the same And that that is remaining at this present aswel moueable as vnmoueable I gyue them aswell heare in Ireland as England holy vnto Iane my wyfe And also I geue vnto her my leace of the personage Tymolynge begge my lease of my house that I nowe dwel in my lease of the personage of Wyckelowe my Custodia of much Cabragh and Pylletteston of the which I trust the lord deputy of Ireland that shal be next and the counsel of the same wil graūt vnto her a further leace for .xxi. yeares Also I geue bequeath vnto her al such debtes other sommes of monye as are due vnto me aswell at the kynges maiesties handes or at anye other personnes Also I geue vnto her suche somes of mony or lande as shal please the kinges maiestie to giue me for my recompence of my seruyce doone heare to paye my debtes withal In witnesse of al the premises I the sayed Richarde Brasier haue subscrybed thys my laste wyl the daye and yeare aboue wrytten Thys my Testamente is of George my seruauntes hande and myne Per me Richarde Brasier ¶ Imprinted at London by Ihon Day dwelling ouer Aldersgate beneth S. Martins