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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A45326	The life & death of that renowned John Fisher, Bishop of Rochester comprising the highest and hidden transactions of church and state, in the reign of King Henry the 8th, with divers morall, historicall and political animadversions upon Cardinall Wolsey, Sir Thomas Moor, Martin Luther : with a full relation of Qu. Katharines divorce / carefully selected from severall ancient records by Tho. Baily ...	Hall, Richard, 1535 or 6-1604.; Henry VIII, King of England, 1491-1547. Testamentum.; Bayly, Thomas, d. 1657?	1655 (1655)	Wing H424; ESTC R230	97,933	254

it awhile requested that he might have some tim● to consid●r upon it the Commissioners consulting with themselves awhile granted him five daies to co●sider upon it and so dismissing him for the present whence he departed to his owne house in Lambeth Marsh. During which small time of his abode there there came divers of h●s friends rather to take their leaves of th●n to v●sit him among which one Mr. Seton and Mr. Bransby Substitutes of the Masters and Fellows of the two C●l●edges to which he had shewed himself so much their friend partly to salute him in the name of the two Societies and partly to d●sire his confirmation of their Statutes under his Seale which he had drawn long before but the Bishop desired to have some further time to consider of them as he intended alas said the two G●●tlemen we fear your time is now too short to read them before you go to prison It is no matter said the B●shop then I will read them in prison that will hardly be permitted said the Trustees if you come once there then Gods will be done said the Bishop for I shall hardly be drawn to put my seale to that which I have not well considered of howsoever said he if the worst should happen there is Mr. Cowper a worthy reverend man and a Bachelour in Divinity that hath the copy of the same Statutes which I have if I do not or cannot according to my desire peruse them I will give it you under my Seale that if you like them that shall be unto you a confirmation for I am p●rswaded that one time or other those Statutes will take place and accordingly it hapned for when this Master Cowper long after the imprisonment and death of the B●shop of Rochester and the change and alteration of the times which had made Rel●gion Lords and Lawes all new commi●ted this Book of Statutes to the custody of one M. T Watson a man that afterwards came to great honor estimation for his profound learning was afterwards elected to the Mastership o● S. Iohn's Colledge and afterwards to the Bishoprick of London who as the B●shop of Rochester foretold restored them to the house who admitted them as their onely Lawes whereby they were wholy governed during the reign of Queen Mary The time being come when the good Bishop was to give an account of the Premises he presen●ed himself before the Comm●ssioners ●cqu●inting them how that he had perused the Oath with as good deliberation as he could but as they had framed it he could not with any safety to his owne conscience subscribe thereto except they would give him leave to alter it in some particulars whereby his owne conscience might be the better satisfied The King pleased and his actions rather justified and Warranted by Law To this they all made answer that the King would not in any wise permit that the Oath should admit any exceptions or alterations whatsoever and s●●d the Bishop of Canterbury you must answer directly whether you will or you will not subscribe then said the Bishop of Rochester if you will needs have me answer directly my answer is that foasmuch as my own conscience cannot be satisfied I absolutely refuse the Oath Whereupon he was immediately sent to the Tower of London which was upon Tuesday the 26. of April in the year of our Lord God 1534. and upon the 25. year of the Kings reign being the last of his reign for that year Thus the Remora to the Kings proceedings in this kind being removed the Ship went merrily along for all things being fitted for a Parliament there was a Parliament which was ●itted for all things immediately called upon the 26. year of the Kings reign and upon the 23. day of Novemb. which wrought above nine wonders lasting but fifteen daies wherein the Bishop of Rochester's imprisonment was voted lawfull and all other men their imprisonments good and lawfull that should refuse to take the foresaid Oath which authority before was wanting also another Statute was ●nacted whereby the Supremacy of the Church of England was given unto the King his Heires and Successors to have and enjoy the same as a title and stile to his imperiall Crown with all Honours Jurisdictions Authorities and Priviledges thereunto belonging with full power and authority as himselfe listeth to visit represse redresse reforme order correct restraine and amend all Heresies Abuses Errors and Offences whatsoever they were as fully and as amply as the same might or ought to be done or corrected by any spirituall authority or jurisdiction whatsoever and that without the clause or condition of quantum per legem Dei lieet which was as contrary to the Kings promise to the Convocation-house as it was answerable to what the good Bishop forewarned the Cl●rgie of whiles he 〈◊〉 amongst them And thus whiles the K●ng acted the Pope the Bishop became a Prophet This Act being once passed the King required them to passe another Act viz. That if any manner of Person whatsoever should by word or deed presume to deny the title of Supremacy that then every such person so offending should be reputed and adjudged as an high Traitour and suffer and abide such losses and paines as in ●ases of high Treason is provided CHAP. XX. 1. The King sends divers learned Bishops to perswade with the Bishop of Rochester to take the Oath 2. The Bishop of Rochester answers unto the Bishops 3. Sir Thomas Moore committed to the same prison 4. The comfort which they received in each other 5. Their lettters intercepted and the Bishops man committed to close prison therefore 6. The simple yet m●rry question which he ●ade thereupon 7. The Lord Chancelour with divers other great Lords sent by the King to perswade the Bishop BUt when that businesse came to be discussed in the Parliament-house the Commons themselves began to think it a very hard Law an● full of rigour for said they a man may chance to say such a thing by way of discourse or such a word may fall from a man negligently or unawares all of them as yet not otherwise able but to think it a strange thing that a man should die for saying the King was not the head of the Church which debate held them many daies at last the King sent them word that except it could be proved that the party spake it malitiously the Statute should not be of any force to condemn So the word MALICIOVSLY was put in and it passed currently which afterwards served to as much purpose as the words Quantum per legem Dei licet And During the Bishops hard and close imprisonment the King as he had at several other times so done sent divers of the Privi●-councel as well Bishops as others to perswade the B●shop of Rochester to take the oath of Succ●ssion after that the B●shop had suffered a great deale of Rhetorique to come from them he thus spake unto them My very good friends and

sort of people to be so like the Nature of Islanders changeable and desirous of Novelties and how Luthers Doctrine was now come from private whisperings to open proclamations whereby all authority either of Pope or Emperour King or Bishop or any superiority whatsoever was much vilified and debased a new way of Salvation found out a neerer readier and cheaper way to Heaven propounded and liberty of conscience promised to all that were Believers in his Gospell all thinking him a brave fellow and who but Luther that cared neither for Pope nor Emperour this holy Prelate began to looke about and bestir himselfe and questionlesse had out-rid the storme had not his hand been taken from the steerage and the head Pilot when the poor fishers head w●● off wilfully cast away the Ship For Hereupon this good Bishop first acts the part of a good Chancellour and set all right in that University in generall especially in those Colledges whereof he had peculiar jurisdiction where he took an occasion to provide in the Statutes that the Fellows of those Houses should so order their Studies as that the fourth part of them might be Preachers so that as soon as one was gone abroad another should be ready to succeed in his place that if it were possible the young Cubbe might be catch'd at his first arrivall Then he returned to his pastorall charge at Rochester and there setting his owne Diocesse in good order he fell to Writing and diligent Preaching procuring others whose abilities were best known unto him to doe the like but perceiving the disease to grew desp●rate as it had done in Saxony and other parts of Germany and the rest of the Physitians not so ready to set thereto their helping hands as the necessity of the cause required he not onely called for help from the King but by his perswasions and at his instance the King himselfe set upon the head of all those mischiefs and wrote a book against Luther intituled An asser●on of the seaven Sacraments against Martin Luther So learned and so worthy a piece as that thereby he worthily deserved the title of D●f●nder of the Faith Which upon that occasion was given unto him by Leo the tenth then Pope of Rome which book was supposed by divers to be written by my Lord of Rochester whereupon he obtained leave from the King that he might goe to Rome as it is conceived to take farther order concerning the settlement of those affaires and having obtained leave likewise of his Metropolitan and disposed his houshold and ready to set forward in that expedition all was dashed by reason of a Synod of Bishop● together with a Synod of the whole Cleargy which was then called by Cardinall Wolsey by reason of his power Legantine lately conferred on him by the Pope which stop to his designe he bare with lesse reluctancy because he hoped that much good to the Church might happily be wrought thereby but in the end perceiving the Synod rather to be made a concourse whereby to 〈◊〉 unto the world the great authority wherein the Cardinall was invested and that he might be seen sitting in his Pontificality than for any great good that was intended he spake as followeth Bishop Fisher his Speech in the Synod MAY it not seem displeasing to your Eminence and the rest of these Grave and Reverend Fashers of the Church that I speak a few words which I hope may not be ou● of season I had thought that when so many learned men as substitute for the Cleargy had been drawn into this body that some good matters should have been propounded for the benefit and good of the Church that the s●andals that lye so heavy upon her men and the disease which takes such hold on those advantages might have been h●reby at once removed and also remedied who hath made any the least proposition against the ambition of those men whose pride is so offensive whiles their profession is bunnility or against the incontinency of such as have vowed Chastity how are the goods of the Church wasted the Lands the Tithes and other Oblations of the devo●● an●●stors of the people to the great scandall of their posterity wasted in super sluos ri●tous expences kew can we exbort our Flo●ks to fly the pomps and vanities of this wicked world when we that are Bishops set our mindes on nothing more than that which we forbid if we should teach according to our doing how absurdly would our doctrines sound in the eares of those that should hear● 〈◊〉 and if we teach 〈◊〉 thing and doe another who believeth our report which would seem to them no otherwise than as if we should throw downe with one hand what we built with the other we prtach Humility Sobriety contempt of the world c. and the people perceive in the same m●n that preach this D●ct●ine Pride and Haughtinesse of wind● excesse in Apparrell and a resignation of our selves to all worldly pomps and vanities and what is this otherwise than to set the people in a stand whether they shall follow the sight of their owne eyes or the beli●fe of what they 〈◊〉 Excuse me reverend Fathers seeing herein I blame no man more than I doe my self for sundry times when I have setled my selfe to the care of my Flock● to visite my Diocesse to governe my Church to answer the enemies of Christ suddenly there hath come a message to me from the Court that I mu●● attend such a triumph receive 〈◊〉 an Embassadour what have we to doe with Princes Courts if we are in love with Majesty is there a greater excellence than whom we serve if we are in love with stately buildings are there higher roofes than our Cathedrals if with Apparell is there a greater ●rnament than that of Pristhood or is there better co●pany than a Communion with the Saints Truly most reverend Fathers what this vanity in temporall things may worke in ●ou I know not but sure I am that in my selfe I finde it to be a great impediment to Devotion wherefore I think it necessury and high time it is that we that are the heads should begin to give example to the inferiour Cl●argy as to these particulars whereby we may all the better be conformable to the Image of God for in this trade of life which we now leade neither can there be likelihood of perpetuity in the same state and condition wherein we now stand or safety to the Cleargy A●te● that he had uttered these and many other such like words to this effect with such a gravity as well became him they all seem'd to be astonished by their silence and the Cardinalls state to become him not so well seeingm CHAP. V. 1. Luther's rayling against the King 2. Fisher writ●th in the Kings behalfe 3. The effect of a Sermon which he preached at S. Pauls crosse 4. Occolampadius his Doctrine and beginning Fisher opposeth him 5. The King leaveth off all care of Kingly government gives

rising though as different as the two Poles between themselves both against him the one discovering the other aggravating his offences yet though sometime he had a better friend for he proved such a constant enemy to the last that he became a Martyr for the former and such a b●tter adversary sometimes to the first as he became afterwards the second 's footstoole to her Throne yet neither of them gave him thanks which rendred his venome guilty of the nature of the Spiders thus to be intangled within his own web Cardinall Campe●●●s perceiving the King disposed to discontentment takes his leave of his Maje●●y and suddenly departs the Realme after that he had made his abode here in this kingdome neere upon the space of one yeare who was no sooner gone but a sodaine rumour 〈◊〉 how that he had carried with him vast ●ummes of money of the other Cardinalls ●ut of the Realme for at that time Cardinall Wolsey wa● suspected to 〈◊〉 the Land by ●eason of the Kings displeasure insomuch that 〈…〉 after and overtaken at Callis where when they had searched 〈…〉 they scarce found so much money about him as would serve to defray his ordinary charges to Rome This the Cardinall Campeius took heavily and thereat was m●rvailously discontented which search for treas●●e was but a colour for the thing which the King aimed at was the instrument which contained the sentence of Divorce which Campeius had shewed unto the King in case he had seen cause to put the same in ex●cution which if the King had sound out it is supposed he would have made good play therewith but he was deceive● of his purpose Howsoever in the 22. yeare of the Kings reigne a Parliament was summoned to begin at London the 3. day of November and in the year of our Lord 1529. and accordingly Writs were directed to all the Counties c. but withall private Letters were sent to the most potent men directing them whom they should choose which Letters there were few or none durst disobey so that there was a Parliament filled to the Kings hearts desire And The regulations of all abuses of the Clergy were referred to the house of Commons where s●vere complaints against the whole Clergy as well as against particular Clergie-men were daily presented whereof some the house of Lord● 〈◊〉 into consideration and some they 〈◊〉 wh●ch when the Bishop of Rochester perceived he spake as followeth My Lords here are certaine Bills exhibited against the Cl●●gy wherein there are complaints made against the 〈◊〉 id●●nesse rap●ciry and cruelty of Bishops Abbots Priests and their Officialls But my Lords Are all vitious all idle all ravenous and ●ruell Priests or Bishops And for such as are such are there not laws provided alrea●y against such Is there any abuse that we do● not seek to rectifi● or can there be such a 〈◊〉 as that there shall be no 〈…〉 their owne and 〈◊〉 where they have no a●●hority to correc● If w● be not 〈◊〉 in our Lawes let each man suffer for his d●linquency or if we have not power did 〈◊〉 with your assistance and we shall 〈…〉 much the Good as the Goods of the Church that is look●d after Truly my Lords how this may sound in your 〈◊〉 I cannot tell but to me it appeares no otherwise than as if our holy Mother the Church were to become a bondmaid and new brought into servility and 〈◊〉 and by little little to be quite banished out of those dwelling places which the piety and liberality o● our forefathers as most 〈◊〉 Benefacto●s have conferred upon ●er otherwise to what tendeth these 〈◊〉 and curious Petitions of the Commons To no other intent or purpose but to bring the Clergie into contempt with the Laity that they may s●ize their Patrimony But my Lords beware of your selves and your 〈…〉 now on fire teach us to beware our own disasters where●ore my Lords I will tell you plainly what I think that except ye resist manfully by your authorit●●● this violent heap of mischiefs offered by the Commons you shall see all obedience first drawn f●om the Cle●gie and secondly from your selves 〈◊〉 if you 〈◊〉 into the true causes of all these mischiefs which reign among them you shall finde that they all arise through want of Faith This Speech p●eased and displeased divers of the house of Peeres 〈…〉 were severally inclined or adicted to ●orward or 〈◊〉 the K●ngs design●s among the which none 〈…〉 thereto but onely the 〈…〉 B●t when the Commons heard of this Speech they conceived so great displeasure against the Bishop that they forthwith sent their Speaker Mr. Audeley to complaine on him to the King and to let his Highnesse understand how grievously they thou ●h● themselves injured ther●by so as to be so highly charged for lack of Faith as if they had been Infidells or Hereticks c. The King therefore to satisfie the Commons sent for my Lord of Rochester to come before him being come the King demanded of him why he spake in such sort the Bishop answered that being in counsel he spake his minde in defence of the Church whom he saw daily injured and oppressed by the common people whose office it was not to judge of her manners much lesse to reform them and therefore he said he thought himself in conscience bound to defend her in all that lay within his power neverthelesse the King wished him to use his words more temperately and that was all which gave the Commons littl● satisfaction CHAP. XIV 1. The demand of all the small Abbies within the Land for the Kings use 2. The Bishop of Rochester opposeth the demand in the Convocation house 3. The mindes of the Clergie before ready to condescend to the proposition● altered thereupon 4. The Bishop of 〈◊〉 escaped very narrowly from being poysoned at his dinner 5. How he escaped another danger from the shot of a cannon 6. His departure from the place to Rochester IMmediately hereupon the foresaid demand for all the small Abbeys and Monasteries within the Land of the value of two hundred pound land and under to be given to the King was revived and the pretence for such demands of the Clergie was in recompence of the great charges and expences which the King was 〈◊〉 concerning the Divorce which he was put upon by the false and double dealing of the Cardinall and his Clergie and therefore it was said to be all the reason in the world that the Clergie should satisfie the King againe for the great expences he had been at and this was urged with such ●impor●unity as if the businesse had been called upon by sound of Drummes and T●umpets In conclusion they all agreed that cert●ine of the Kings Counsell should make demands hereof to the Co●vocation of the Cl●rgy which was performed with such a terrible shew of the Kings displeasure 〈◊〉 them if they y●ilded not to his 〈◊〉 that divers of the Convocation sea●●ing the Ki●gs indign●tion and

such keyes into his hands Secondly the Supreme Government of the Church consists in feeding Christs Sheep and Lambs according unto that when our Saviour performed that promise unto Peter of making him his universall Sheepherd by such unlimited jurisdiction feed my Lambs and not onely so but feed those that are the feeders of those lambes feed my sheep Now my Lords can any of us say unto the King Pasce oves God hath given unto his Church some to be Apostles some Evangelists some Pastors some Doctors that th●y might edifie the body of Christ so that you must make the King one of these before you can set him one over these and when you have made him one of these supreme Heads of the Church he must be such a Head as may be answerable to all the Members of Christs body and it is not the few Ministers of an Island that must constitute a Head over the Vniverse or at least by such example we must allow as many heads over the Church as there are soveraigne Powers within Christs Dominion and then what will become of the Supremacie every Member must have a hea● attendite vobis was not said to Kings but Bishops Secondly let us consider the inconveniences that will arise upon this Grant we cannot grant this unto the King but we must renounce our unity with the See of Rome and if there were no further matter in it than a renouncing of Clement the seventh Pope thereof then the matter were not so great but in this we do forsake the first four generall Counsells which none ever forsook we renounce all Canonicall and Ecclesiastical Laws of the Church of C●rist we renounce all other Christian Princes we renounce the Vnity of the Christian World and so leap out of Peters ship to be d●owned in the wave of all Heresies Sects Schismes and Divisions For The first and generall Counsell of Nice acknowledged Silv●ster the Bishop of Rome his authority to be over them by sending their Decrees to be ratified by him The Cou●sel of Constantinople did acknowledge Pope 〈◊〉 to be their chief by admitting him to give sentence against the Heretiques M●cidonius S●bellinus and E●nomius The Counsell of Ephesus acknowledged Pope Celestin to be their cheif Iudge by admitting his condemnati●n upon the Heretique Ne●torius The Counsell of Chalcedon acknowledged Pope Leo to be their chief Head and all generall Counsells of the World ever acknowledged the Pope of Rome onely to be the Supreme Head of the Church and now shall we acknowledge another Head or one Head to be in England and another in Rome Thirdly We deny all Canonicall and Ecclesiasticall Lawes which wholy doe depend upon the authority of the Apostolic●ll See of Rome Furthly We renounce the judgement of all other Christian Princes whether they be Protestants or Catholiques I●wes or Gentiles for by this argument Herod must have been head of the Church of the Iewes Nero must have been head of the Church of Christ the Emperour must be head of the Protestant Countreys in Germany and the Church of Christ must have had never a head till about 300. yeares after Christ. Fifthly The Kings Majesty is not sus●●ptible of this Donation Ozias for medling with the Priests office was resisted by Az●rias thrust out of the Temple and told that it belonged not to his o●●ice now if the Priest spake truth in this then is not the King to meddle in this businesse if he spoke amisse why did God plagu● the King with leprosie for this and not the Priest King David when the Ark of God was in bringing home did he place himself in the head of the Priests Order did he so much as touch the Ark or ex●cute any the least properly belonging to the 〈…〉 or did he not rather go be●ore and abase himselfe amongst the people and s●y that he would become yet more vile so that God might be glorified All goo● christi●n Emp●rours have evermore refused 〈◊〉 authority for at the first Generall counsel of Nice certaine Bills were privily brought unto Constantine to be ordered by his authority but he caused them to be burnt saying Dominus 〈◊〉 constituit c. God hath ordained you Priest● and hath given you power to be Iudges over us and therefore by right in these things we are to be ju●ged by you but you are not to be judged by me Valentine the good Emperour was required by the Bishops to be but present with them to reform the heresie of the Arians but he answered Forasmuch as I am one of the M●mbers of 〈◊〉 Lay-people it is not lawfull for me to define such controvers●●s but let the Pri●sts to whom not to separate our selves from such a one If we answer th●t the Church of Rome is not of God but a Malignant Church then it will ●ollow that we the inhabitants of this land have not as yet received the true faith of Christ seeing we have not rec●ived any other Gospel any other Do●trine any other Sacraments than what we have received from her as most evidently appears by all the E●cl●siastical Histories wherefore if she be a malignant Church we have been deceived all this while and if to renounce the common Father of Christendome all the G●nerall Counsels ●specially the first four which none renounce all the C●untr●ys of Christendome whether they be 〈…〉 Countreys or Protestant be to forsake the Vnity of the Christian world then is the granting of the Supremacy of the Ch●●ch unto the King a renouncing of the Vnity 〈◊〉 of the S●amlesse coat of Christ in 〈◊〉 a divid●ng of the Mystical body of Ch●●st 〈◊〉 Spouse limb 〈…〉 and tayle to tayle lik● 〈…〉 to set the field of Christs holy Church all on 〈◊〉 and this is it which we are about wherefore let it be said unto you in time an not too late LOOK YOV TO THAT This Sp●ech so wrought with the whole Convoc●●●on that all 〈◊〉 were laid aside and such an a●mour of resolution generally put upon the whole body there assembled that come what come would all was rej●cted and the Kings purpose for that time clearly frustrated But the King desi●ted not notwithstanding all this but sent his Orators to the Convocation-house to put them in mind of the dangers they were in and to acquaint them with the K●ngs heavy displeasure against them for denying him so reasonable a demand both which particulars they aggravated and set forth to the high●st advantage but it was answered that they were sensible enough of that which they had said and for the Kings displeasure they were very sorrowfull because they could not help it wherefore if they must they said suffer they must be contented The King having in vain thus attempted the fury of the wind in bereaving these Travellers of this upper Garm●nt of the Church he now makes triall what the policy of the Sun will do Wherefore The King sent for divers of the chief leading men of the Convocation as well Bishops as

all things did accomplish the parts and degrees of a Bishop equ●l with him Further in the same place he laudeth him highly for his great travaile and care in the education of youth especially of the young Students in the U●iversity of Cambr. for that by his onely mean and motion that noble and right vertu●us L●dy Margaret Countesse of Richmond and Derby sometimes his Mistress erected two famous Colledges in that University as before in this History hath been declared wherein young Schollers receive great comfort toward their instruction in Learning unto which number himself became also a very 〈◊〉 and Father and being after chosen by the whole consent of the University to the room of their high Chancellour he b●●ame no less carefull over them than over the slock of his Diocess All which with many other high praises this most vertuous learned and high-borne Cardinall set down very bountifully of him Likewise blessed Sir T. Moor his companion and fellow in adversity and trouble upon occasion of talk ministred unto him by his daughter Mrs. Roper about refusing the oath by my L. of Roch. himself saith in a certain Epistle to his ●●id daughter that he hath had him in such a reverend estimation as for his wisdom learning long approv'd vertue together he reckoneth in this Realme no one man to be matched or compared with him Furthermore the renouned B. of Nuceria and most el●quent Historiographer of our time P. Iovius although he lacketh no commendation of him throughout all his whole History yet in one place specially he saith that upon the acceptance of his great charge of a B●shoprick he became so vigilant over his stock the space of many years together that he was to be wondred at not onely of his owne country people at home but also of all other outward nations then he greatly reverenceth him for his constant piety in defending the Marriage between K. Hen. and his lawful wife Q. ●ath and for withstanding the Kings wilfull minde in taking upon him so absurdly the name title of supreme head of the Church for the which he did not refuse even in his old age to suffer the losse of liberty livings life and all Then weigh what is said of him by that most eloquent and learned Father Stanstau● Hosmes B●shop of Warima in Poland and Cardinall of Rome in his book of Confutation against Brentius the Heretique his words being thus Fatemur nos Br●nti c. wherein he sheweth very notably how although in all ages Heretiques have lift up themselves against the Church of God yet hath he not forsaken or left her destitute at any time Neither hath God in these our unfortunate daies failed his Church for whereas you Lutherans are broken forth and from you are sprung Zuinglius Munserans or Patimontans and a number of Hereticks mo God hath produced against you into the battell many worthy men indued with singular wit and excellent learning by whom your raging madness might be suppressed and put down Among whom especially and by name was that famous holy man Iohn Bishop of Rochester who in defence of the Faith and Catholique Church of Christ never stuck for the loss of his life and the shedding of his blood Finally whosoever shall read of Cocleus Wycelleas Eckius and others learned writings of Ger●any of the worthy Bishop and eloquent Writer Osorius of Alphonsus d● Castro and others of Spaine and Portugall besides a number of such other learned Fathers of many Nations whereof some lived in his own daies and some since shall easily perceive that he was a man for his profound learning and rare vertue highly reverenced and esteemed thoroughout all Christendome And no doubt but if his writings and doings be well compared ye shall find him most like those holy Fathers and Doctors that in the Primitive Church laid the very first ground and foundation of our belief upon the which we have since rested and stayed our selves whom to describe wholly and fully unto you according to his worthiness I will not take upon me neither am able to doe ● yea were I as elequent as Cic●ro or as witty and subtill as Aristotle as copious as Demosthenes or as profound in Philosophy as Plato such and so innumerable were his singular vertues But herein I will content my self with the generall commendation which all the famous Universities of Divinity in Europe do give this learned man by calling him blessed Martyr and alledging his works for great authority Thus much I may also say that unto Iustus his predecessor the first Bishop of Rochester he was a just and true Successor the place of his birth he doth greatly beautifie with the glorious Bishop St. Iohn of Beverly to the Country of Kent where he was Bishop he is an ornament with St. Thomas of Canterbury in gravity of his writing he is to be reverenced with St. Bede for stout defending the right and liberty of the holy Church against the power of Princes he is not inferiour to the blessed Bishop St. Ambrose and St. C●rysostome in praying for his enemies and persecutors he resembleth holy St. Stephen in constancy and stoutnesse of his Martyrdome he was a second Cyprian and in the manner of his death to Iohn the Baptist And now we shall observe the wonderfull working of Almighty God whose judgements are secret and strange in our sight much to be marked and noted in him and his adherents for as God of his own nature is patient and long suffering because he expectth the amendment of our sinfull lives so is he also just in his doings and pun●sheth grievously when no amendment is endeavoured as now may well be perceived by those perceive by those persons that were persecuters of this blessed man for they escaped not the danger of his heavy hand as shall be declared unto you As first to begin with the King himselfe In quo quis peccat in ●o punitur the Almighty commonly makes rods for our own sins wherewith he often punisheth those that offend him as here most notably it is to be observed in the three fold manner of his displeasure which accused him to be so cru●●l to this good man that nothing but the punes of Death could satisfie his ir●full indignation As first for resisting his so inord 〈…〉 of changing wives Secondly for his refusall to take the Oath of Succession and his constant disapprovement of the unlawfull cou●ses which he took to procure unto himselfe 〈◊〉 male Thirdly for withstanding his Supremacy in causes E●clesisticall These were the three causes of his displeasure which like a Trident he st●uck into the breast of Innocence whiles the three● pointed Scept●r made their severall entries within his own bo●ome for the first he that robb'd so many breasts of the poss●ssion of so great joy and happinesse in being his through his desire of change found change a robbery to his own hearts contentment in so many wives which lawfully were none