to shew himselfe chiefe of the Leaguerers nor the Leaguerers which are amongst the seditious Frenchmen to rebell agaynst theyr king The first example heereof is taken from the sodayne death of the two last Popes beeing dispatched by a letter of exchange hauing adioyned vnto it the Schisme which the same Spaniard had brought into the towne of Rome where I demand that if the king of Spaine be so affectioned vnto his religion wherefore doth hee not respect him whome hee holdeth and acknowledgeth as the lieuetenant of God and to be a spirituall Father One may see then that by such workmanships he would haue vs to vnderstand that whosoeuer shall not bee in the nature of a Spaniard shal neuer be accounted a good Romish Catholike Lastly the other example commeth from the towne of Soissons the Leaguers of the which by the ordinaunce of their superiours as they call them haue chased out the ladie Abbesse from the aforesoid Soissons being the kings Aunt where she hath alwaies beene preserued both from the one and the other notwithstanding that they knowe that she is the most ancient princesse of the bloud and reputed of all for the most zealous affectionate vnto the Catholike Romane religion which is in the world An euident token that a spirit which is the author of confusion and sedition doth vrge the furies of such Leaguers not the zeale of religion Poore Catholiks vnaduised which do affect so much that tyrannicall Spanish gouernment consider here the intention and purpose of your ecclesiasticall leaguers which do so much prise and praise the Inquisition of such a climate yea euen as of brideled calues if there bee anie perseuerance in such blindnesse Assure your selues most miserable French men that the most noble the most valiant the most vertuous the most aduised the most wise the most learned the most iust and the most rich amongst you shall euermore vnder such a schoolmaster be accounted and holden as heretikes if it commeth to passe that ye bee not found in all things agreeable vnto maister Inquisitor Then ye shall vnderstand by them that the masse shall not saue you To this purpose two examples among a thousand which came vnto my knowledge a few daies sithence shall open this text It came to passe that two marchants of Gascoigne being in Spain and going by the high waie did contemplate and beholde an Image being much polished and verie faire and shining as bright as anie of their Countrie whereuppon they tooke occasion betweene themselues to demaund whether that matter whereof it was made was either of stone or wood This was inough to be sayd in Spaine they were heard by one of the Inquisitors and presently lead vnto a miserable prison wherein they remained the space of three whole yeres after notwithstanding any protestations or prooues they could make or bring for the triall of theyr being Catholiks And the other example is this A man of Poictou a great Catholike being at Lisborne seeing a great Priest beeing graue fayre and in good habite and marching accordingly this man began to saie thinking to haue praysed the Priest Beholde a Priest saith hee and not one of the durtie Priests of Poictou This being but once spoken which was inough immediatly this Poicteuni is heard vnderstood and therevpon lead presently in dome Petri into the popes prison where he was kept safe for the space of sixe moneths without knowing wherefore about the end of which tearme he was commaunded that he should not cal Priests Durtie any more There may be a whole booke composed of these tyrannies and vniust dealings These effects of the Inquisition will be found proued true and not thy conceit of anie Catholikes to bee punished by the magistrates of that religiō either in England or in Bearne as hath beene els where said Those to whome it appertayneth knowe that such offenders were punished in the quality of the seditious not as being religious From thence thou turnest for this seuententh time to leape vpon the authoritie of the Popes saying that the king is not the son of the church because he wold not kisse his pantable To the which I say againe that it hath beene proued vnto thee that it is enough for him that the Christian church is his mother that the Romish church cannot take frō him this liberty priuilege And for that thou doestalwaies feare some ecclesiasticall reformation neuer desiring any other religion than that which feedeth the belly thou threatenest the noblemen with their going to hell if they do not helpe to maintaine thy cause Hereupon harken I pray ye to the preacher I should loue it better saiest thou that ye were Huguenits so to see you fight for vs Catholiks Marke I pray ye he holdeth that the Huguenits are damned whereupon it followeth that hee should haue nothing to do with condemning of those Catholikes of whome he speaketh seeing that they should defend the kitchin his mother Behold also how he calleth the Huguenits to the same defence Thou art in thy triumph but goe to with thy Lyntill broth to the which thou doest allude To be short thou art greeued diuersly because the Noblemen which are the principall force of the realme will not vnderstand all this Thou hast bin told that they are indifferently bound aswel to defend their king as their cuntry together with their honors liberties piuiledges yea the more because they are bearded with the Spanyard an ancient enemy vnto whom ye would willingly sell htem Therefore remember thy selfe of the answer that was giuē to the robbers which pleaded against the merchantes for carrying weapons to defend themselues Thou doest heere repeat for the 70. time the difference hapned in France for religion The which here againe I say haue been moued by your clergie els where hath beene answered in so many sortes and so often that it is more than enough And now turne again thy leafe Thou dost heap vp afterwards proud maiesticall words of thine owne deuising thinking thereby the better to gette the Noblemen on thy side but thou oughtest to serue thy selfe with concluding reasons and not with affecting wordes throwne into the aire to the abandoning of all that which might happen to come after And how doest thou torment thy selfe in vaine on this side also it is to no purpose that thou doest propose vnto the aforesaide noble men the examples of the most excellent Romane knights as that of Sceuola amongst others Thou malitious blind doest thou not see that it was for the same cause of defence that Sceuola burnt his hand and that the others imploied themselues in the defence of their Countrie It is true that thou makest great account of the Iacobin that kild the last king the which thou doest produce againe as in a triumph vsing these great wordes One that was religious hath flaine the king of France hauing giuen testimonie of his zeale vnto all France O miserable
and wickednes of the same and of the way how to hinder that course Now the fourth parte of the diuision remaineth yet to be looked into which is as much to saie whether by the ministrie of the excommunications the Bishops of Rome may depriue Monarches of the benefites and rightes of this present life or not for proofe to the contrarie Luk. 20. Rom. 13 it hath bene already sayd and proued that God hauing giuen the Empires and kingdomes of the world to those whom he hath chosen from amongst men doth forbid all Bishoppes Cardinalles Monkes and Priests to disturbe or depriue them of the same If the Princes be wise they haue tallans good inough to defend themselues from such iniuries if they doo not make them their owne hurt This iniquitie of the Bishopps of Rome which vnder the pretence of ecclesiastical iurisdiction do transpose kingdomes to whō they wil shal better appeare by the conferring of the ecclesiasticall gouernment with the politike which we will also handle First of all the power of the Church is spirituall and that of the Magistrates is corporall Secondly the Church iudgeth according to the diuine lawes of the word of God and the Magistrate politikely according to the course of the worlde Thirdly the Church doth punish the rebellious spiritually in the soules with ecclesiasticall paines and the Magistrates corporally in the flesh with politike pains ouer the which the Church hath nothing to do Frō whence it foloweth that if it should be such a maner of excommunication then the ecclesiasticall persons haue nothing to do with the worldly goods of priuate men much lesse with realmes kingdomes and Empires By this conference the most blockish amongst the Antipodes may easily indge of such abuses much more then the French men If for wilfulnesse of heart they doe not picke out their eyes so that they maye not see at noone time when as the Sunne is in the highest assure your selues then my maisters that all excommunications Iohn 16. beeing abused cannot shut the gates of paradise agaynst you seeing that God doeth keepe them open for all louers of godlynesse and truth in despight of him which sayth that hee hath power to shutte them against you for which cause it is sayde in the Prouerbes that the cursing without cause will neuer come to passe Prou. 26. To conclude the Apostles did not care for the excommunications of the Scribes and Pharesies much lesse then ought the French men to care for the Italian or Romish estate because they haue lesse to doe with them than the aforesayde Scribes and Pharesies had to doo with the Disciples of our sauiour Christ Heere must not bee forgotten the titles and qualities which the Bishop of Rome doth attribute to himselfe 2. Thess 2. when as he nameth him selfe chiefe and soueraigne pastor of the Church established sayth hee in the full power of the king of kings and of Saint Peter and Saint Paule and of his owne together with his Cardinalles And I praie you what to doe Onely to root out and excommunicate if he could Henrie of Bourbon at this daie our king of France in despight of his sentence In the which wee finde a description of a pride more than deuillish for the holy scriptures doe witnesse that these diuine titles Chiefe soueraigne and soueraigne pastor of the Church doe appertayne vnto Christ God bee blessed for euer who onely is called chiefe of the Church by Saint Paule Ephe. 1.4 Col. 1.2 writing to the Ephesians in the first and fourth Chapters and vnto the Colossians in the first and second Chapters This is also hee alone which is called by Saint Peter 1. Pet 5 in his first Epistle and fifth Chapter the chiefe shepheard of our soules and in the Epistle to the Hebrewes and eighth Chapter Heb. 8 is called the soueraigne sacrificer These two Apostles whose successours the Bishoppes of Rome doe call themselues they haue great regard not to attribute to themselues such titles of diuinitie knowing that they doe belong to none but onely to Christ being onely iust thereby to distinguish him from the vniust therefore they speake simply of themselues in this sort I desire the Elders saith S. 1. Pet. 5. 1. Cor. 4. Peter which am also an Elder with them And S. Paule sayth let men esteeme of vs as of the Ministers of Christ 2. Thes 2 Hee saith in the second epistle written to the Thessalonians that it belongeth to the sonne of perdition to attribute vnto himselfe such diuine titles The primitiue church doth also giue the lie to the ambitious priest of Rome In witnes whereof amongst other the Canon of the third Councell of Carthage sayth Cap. 1 sed dist 99. that the Bishoppe of the first sea was not called prince of priests nor soueraign priest Tom. 7. homil 43. in Mat. ad Eulog li 7. c. 30 or such like and that hee cannot call himselfe vniuersall Chrisostome speaking of all Bishoppes sayth thus Whosoeuer shall desire the primacie on earth shall not be numbred amongst the disciples of Christ Finally all men knowe that Gregory hath beene a capitall enemie to this title of vniuersall Bishop so farre foorth that by the same hee sayth that hee did perceyue the nigh comming of Antichrist Wherefore hee concludeth that suche a title is prophane and that suche tytles doe declare vnto vs the insupportable pride of such a Bishop so doeth the vantage of hauing full power as Sathan saith of himselfe ouer the kingdomes of the earth giuing the lie to the prophet Daniel which attributeth it to one onely God Mat. 4. Dan. 5 Neuerthelesse I doo agree most willingly to this truth that the Pope is also established in the full power as wel of him selfe as of his Cardinals Let vs nowe ende the rest of this Article This leagall Proctor willing to let nothing passe that might serue him towards the excōmunication of his king hath shewed foorth yet another certaine Canon of Lutheran ordeining that kings shal neuer come to be sacred vntill they haue first sworne to defend the Romane Catholike religion It hath bin answered vpon the generalitie of their Canons that the ecclesiasticall persons bee it in their councels or bee it in their consistories or else where haue no cōmandement right nor calling to driue kings from their kingdomes and Lordships which it hath pleased God to giue them seeing that he will rather serue himselfe with the ministerie of them in such administration than of others Moreouer we saie that the intention of the king is to maintaine the puritie and truth of the Catholike Apostolicall and Christian religion with as good an affection as anie other king that euer raigned in France He hath vowed it and the experience will followe God helping to the contentment of al true religious Christians And as for the Romane his intention is nothing else but to let euery one loose to his owne libertie Holding it
the world without anie other knowing of the cause Tell me where hast thou learned this fashion of arguing It commeth not from the Apostles who in stead of commending the Ethnike religions by such examples did combat with and beate them downe by the authoritie of the word of God Ier. 2. True it is that in Ieremie God reasoning saith that his people are lesse constant in his truth than the idolaters are in their errours But the Prophet did not endeuor to the end to commend the perseuerance nor the obstinacie of the idolaters to the which in the meane time thou doest intend Thou takest then this fashion of arguing from the oracle of Apollo the which wicked creature did counsell the pagans in times past alwayes to reteine the religions receiued into theyr countrie from all antiquity without chaunging any thing Xenoph in his Com. Cicero dâ—â—egibus lib. 2. Knowest thou not that amongst the Pagans such examples are not concluded and much lesse amongst Diuines which do argue altogether by the worde of God Finally doest thou not knowe that the Gentiles did forsake theyr false religions by the preaching of the Gospell Thou hast done very fairely then in alleadging the Persians Greeks and Romanes in their paganisme to the ende that by their example a man should not inquire after the certaintie and assurance of the true religion Iohn 5. On our side wee see agayne the disciples of Christ with the contentes of his will written within his booke which is the worde of God which doth alwayes remaine But the religions of the Pagans Isay 40. are perished with theyr authors where it appeareth that thou shewest thy religion to bee more wicked than the Pagans did theirs for they neither would nor durst serue so much wickednes and crueltie as thou doest serue thy selfe with in that which thou callest the Romish Catholicke religion Let vs see now whether thou canst profit thy selfe any better in thy fourth Article or not But it will sooner bee found out that through a hotte disease thou wilt fall from the water into the fire The fourth Article THe summe of this may be drawn to this poynt that the Catholicks which do mayntaine the kings parte doe breake the statutes and fund mentall lawe of Fraunce For the proofe of which rupture this Doctor like vnto a mouse that hath but one wretched hoale neyther knoweth how nor can alleadge any other text or reason but a violent and bloudy statute or rather the default of a statute which the last Duke of Guize did wreste by constraint against the last king imitating beggers which doe begge almes with a two handed sworde My leaguerer then the better to fill his paper layeth foorth vnto vs here at large the vnderstanding of his pretended statute which hee calleth the fundamentall lawe of the Realme and the statute of vnyon solempnly sworne vnto by all the estates of the Towne of Bloys in the yeare of our Lorde God 1588. contayning these poyntes that is to saye that the king woulde holde sayth hee for an inuiolable lawe First that hee would lyue and dye in his Catholike Romish Religion Secondly that hee woulde imploye himselfe in good earnest by all the meanes that hee could to race our the heretikes Thirdly that all his subiectes shoulde sweare and binde themselues vnto the same condition And comming to the fourth that the king dying without children no heretike should be receyued to be either king or prince Beholde nowe the substance of the Article And first of all for aunswere It is demaunded who threwe the last king downe headlong into his last troubles The house of the Guize Who caused him shamefully and in daunger of his lyfe to come out of Paris The house of Guyze Who did afterwardes chase him from his other Towne of Chartres The Guyze Who seized himselfe of the most part of his Townes The house of Lorrayne Who mooued the Frenchmen to treason rebellion and reuolting agaynst the same king The same house Finally who constrayned the poore passengers to giue that by by force which they durst not refuse to Robbers which tooke them within Bloys Euen hee himselfe beeing guiltie of high treason a traiterous and wicked vsurper of the estate of the Lord. This was in the same time and state when the last Duke of Guyze demaunded of the last king suche an infamous and detestable raunsome The which this leagued Moonke calleth the Parliament and Statutes of Bloys and the fundamentall lawe of the Realme Patience I pray you Is there any thing more impudent more falsely named and more ridiculous than to call this rauening extortion and constraynte A Statute and a solemne and a fundamentall Lawe of a Realme Doest thou not know that in the making of a Lawe the free will of the lawgiuer is requisite And for want whereof the ordinaunce which shall bee made agaynst his will shall bee rather accounted rebellion and felonye than any iust and true Lawe If thou doest heere obiecte that the swearing of the King passed betweene in suche a Statute thou shalt bee aunswered in lyke sorte That is to saye that the swearing wherein GOD is taken to witnesse in things Deut. 2â— which in theyr owne nature ought to bee holye and iust requyreth likewise a free will that it maye bee thereby able wholesomely to foresee that it promiseth nothing vnto God but that which the conscience telleth vs must bee iustly promised and perfourmed For want whereof the swearing is not onely a nullitie but also ought to bee retracted as beeing made contrary to the institution and ordinaunce of God Whereupon it ensueth that hee which hath sworne rashly redoubleth his faulte if hee continueth and effecteth the same wicked swearing Then wilt thou replye that the King in suche a case ought not to sweare at all wherein I agree with thee but so that thou oughtest to consider that I detest and reprooue it in so much as the feare thereof dooth bring manie kinges to this passe for to sweare rather politikely in Greece than religiously in Iuda when matters doe concerne theyr estates and especially if they fall into anie apparaunt daunger of theyr liues But in such lamentable default why doest thou rather take an occasioÌ„ against the last king who was constrained through the feare of death than the Guyze who without any occasion did first shewe himselfe to bee periured towardes the king by his treason and rebellion And wherefore doest thou so narrowly search this faulte amongst kinges and Princes rather than amongst Popes which cal themselues the vicars of Christ Iesus which doe but sport or ieast at such oathes as this worthie saying doth testifie Heretico non est seruanda fides By and by hee will present a newe occasion to speake of an oath wherefore then wee saye for conclusion of the Article that euen as money beeing taken away by force by robbers theeues cannot bee called a gifte a present or an almes giuen
healed them which were curable should retourne they shoulde proue that theyr naturall remedies were of more force than the word and touching Thirdly thou canst not proue neither by text nor by example that the myracles haue bene hereditarie or tied to one house onely Fourthly it is an absurd thing to infer that God in giuing some miracles to a king dome hath distributed but one kinde Fiftly wee saie that God hath neuer giuen or graunted these miracles but for some great mysteries which come not in the vse of one onely and simple healing of corporall diseases as such as that is of the Goule If notwithstanding thou doest reply that some haue been healed so as thou doest suppose I wil answere that it should be in like sort as if one amongest a thousand of them which go to Saint Claudius or other such like places should he healed Thou in the meane time because thou wouldest not bee charged with a lie by thy neighbours doest runne into Spaine to search our witnesses saying that there hath beene founde in one onely Bishopricke moe than thirtie thousand men which haue bin miraculously healed of the Goule Thou knowest that a man dare not tell them that come from farre that they lie for which cause maister Paul Venetus returning from the Isles of the East durst saie that he found a bird of such an excessiue bignes and power that she tooke vp and carried an Elephant in the aire Behold heere a great bird many Spaniards healed of the Goule Thou shouldest do better to praie God for prosperitie of thy king Tit. 3. to the end that he may heale the realme of maladies which are of greate importance such as are Atheisme Epicurisme Wars Extortions Cruelties Iniustice and other iniquities which range vp and downe in Fraunce by the ministrie of the league to the desolation of the mother and ruine of the childen And thus let vs passe to the Article following The sixt Article THis is the sixt Article wherin this leaguerly monke saith that the Catholikes of whom he speaketh do declare themselues fautors of heretikes to the destruction of the Catholik Romane religion from whence he taketh occasion to compare the heresie to the adamāt which doth not torment it selfe but with the yron Then he sayth that all those of that religion ought to bee extinguished and raced out by the same instrument Hee sayth also that there is no obligation towards the Prince which holdeth when hee setteth himselfe against the seruice of God who commandeth to put all those to death which do turne awaie the people frō the true religion the which he proueth by two texts of Moses and in the end hee chargeth the nobles with auarice because saith he they folow the king to the end to haue some recompēce therupon he concludeth that they do leese their souls These be the whol contents of the sixt article The answere to the same The noble men of France being called by the fundamentallawe of the realme to the handfast keeping of the monarchie of France as hath bin before sayd they are and do feele themselues bound to the performance of such a dutie and for want whereof they shew themselues vnworthy such honors and priuiledges and as for the purpose of religion thou oughtest to knowe that they are not ordayned to ecclesiasticall charges and functions to resolue vpon it It is inough for them to send such disputations to a louing conference of diuines folowing the promise of the king This being here admitted to bee necessarie and according to equitie what hast thou to do to bay or barke against Gentlemen exercising their duetie Whilest that thou doest inforce thy selfe lyke a member of Satan to diuert them The rest is proued vnto thee that not to commit idolatry is no heresie nor to acknowledge the Bishop of Rome for such a one as thou doest That maketh thee say that the heresie ought to be roted out by fire sword that is to saie that your Saint Bartolwes daie must needes be celebrated from daie to daie in stead of amiable conferences euen so as the Iewes did when they cried crucify crucify by such procedings worthy such as ye are ye shew your selues as honourable and commendable as your calling but the children of God doe abhorre these thinges Forasmuch as it is written that murderers shal not inherit the kingdome of heauen Gal. 5. Christ taketh occasion to proue that the Iewes which would kill were the children of the deuill Iohn 8. And now to the two pointes which thou wouldest haue to serue for their wickednesse The first is in the thirteenth Chapter of Deutronomie Deut. 13. where it is sayd that the false Prophets and others which shoulde cause the people to turne from their seruice of God or that shoulde themselues be turned awaie from the true religion for to serue strange Gods ought to be put to death Heere a little before hath beene answered vnto such a like text for the speciall regard of which we doe heere adde that Moses doth meane by his speech the subiects and not the kings being soueraigne magistrates Secondly of a defection reuolting from God and his religion Finally such rigorous punishment in this deede ought not to haue bene done but in Israel for the reasons described in the first Article It appeareth then thou dost falsefie this text as also that which followeth out of Exodus Exo. 32. the two and thirtith Chapter where it is said that Aaron hauing forged the golden calf builded an altar before the which the people did commit idolatrie for the which Idolatrie the Lord tooke such rigorous vegeaunce that he slew three thousand men thou deceiuest thy selfe in writing of thirtie thousand This is a meruailous thing that the vehemencie and violent affection towards the hurting of his king shoulde so blind this leaged monke therby to cause him to take the aduersaries part euen to the iustifying and maintaining of his cause Behold how he doth it If there bee anie thing in the substance of religion which the king doth abhorre they are these idolatries As contrariwise this which maintaineth the fatkitchin of this slanderous deceuer is no other thing but the abuse which he imputeth to another imitating the wolfe who troubled the water himselfe and yet imputed it to the sheepe Doest thou not see that thou giuest thy enimies thy weapons to beate thy selfe with Thou hast found out the idolatrie verie wel but this is not worthy of my answere As also the reproching of the Gentlemen for following the king to the ende to gette some great rewardes These valiant hearts will answere thee that they haue not their soules infected as thine is considering that they follow and accompanie their king Tit. 3. Rom 13. according to the commandement of God and not in the qualitie or maner of mercenaries but as noble Lords who respect their duties and the charge imposed vpon them and in doing this
beholde thy second chiefe point discouered and now let vs laie open thy thirde wherewith thou doest so greatly charge thy aduersaries with brutishnes where thou saiest that the Catholiks which defend theyr king and their Countrie are more void of reason than beasts and takest the cranes eagles the hony bee to witnes which wil neuer admit anie to their king but one of the same kinde To this I saie that the example of the Crane beeing a verie dull and hurtfull bird may bee verie well applyed vnto thy selfe First because thou doest exhorte the foolish amongst the French men to be like cranes and so change their condition which is now most free into one that is most seruile and miserable imitating the asse which desireth to serue the Tanner rather than anie other maister Secondly the Cranes doo eate vp the seede from the earth and thou wouldest haue the French men to be eaten vp of the Spaniardes The examples of the Eagles is agreeable vnto the same for they are great gourmandisers of the flesh of beasts and foules which doe not liue vppon anie praie in this thy drift is shewed to bee nothing else but to haue the good people to be deuoured Furthermore the Fagles flic verie farre and so wouldest thou haue the Frenchmens libertie and the Pirence mountaines flie into Spaine Alasse then what should become of our citizens parents wiues and children From whence commeth this that in stead of imitating Bees which are profitable thou doest imitate those droue Bees or rather dragons which doe wound verie sore And if the question bee in this that thou wouldest applie the thing to the imitating of creatures that is altogether agaynst thee because the French men are more bound to follow the Prince of their owne nature and nation than a Spaniard which is their enimie of a contrarie humor to theirs But because here thou wouldest walke more warily with thy treason sale of thy Countrie thou doest heere agayne imploie the difference of religion Whereunto I aunswere that murders and massacres are not the next waies to decide and auoyde the controuersies remember that which is aforesayde and let the promise be mutually discharged without comming anie kinde of way to this madde extremitie in putting vs into the handes of the Spaniardes euen as thy councell doeth aduise beeing drawen from the dungeons of hell But beholde the mischiefe which stoppeth the passage to this ordinarie waie for you euen you doe mocke and scorne maliciouslie and against your conscience because the king doeth offer himselfe to come to that in saying that it is but fayned and altogether contrarie seeing that hee hath promised neuer to chaunge his religion and thou doest adde moreouer that there needeth not anie councell seeing that wee neede neuer call the Catholike Romish religion into anie doubt Finally thou doest conclude that there is no need to attende eppon anie councell because the king doeth nothing else but deceiue the Catholikes with such vaine attentions But because thou shouldest not go vnanswered wee saie that laying aside your lyes excuses and craftie shiftes which tend to no other purpose but to turne backwardes and flie from the listes that the Christian kinges ought to bee carefull for the wholesome religion and to procure conuocations of Synodes and Councels when as they are duely aduertised that there is anie abuse error or superstition brought into the Church Deut. 17. 1. Cor. 14. seeing that God commaundeth them to keepe the whole wordes of his lawe as beeing disposers of the same This duetie was inioyned to Dauid to distribute and giue vnto the successours of Aaron theyr right places and ordinaunces which were before refused in their charges By this same commaundement also 2. Kin. 22. Iosias commaunded Helkiah the high Priest to repayre the temple and to praie vnto the Lorde as well for the king as for the people and to the same ende hee assembled the Prophettes and the high Priestes with the aforesayde people to reade before them all the booke of the Lawe Hee also caused the Passe-ouer to bee celebrated and destroyed the idolatrie amongst the Romane Emperours Theodose the great assembled the Councell of Constantinople agaynste the heresie of the Macedonians In many other places it is apparaunt that diuerse Councells haue bene assembled for such like errour But at this daie it is a question of greate corruption beeing brought into the Church by the pride and couetousnesse of the Bishoppes of Rome in so much as one onely may nowe refuse a synodale conuocation agaynst those that can proue that the infinite nesse of errours in the same haue corrupted and falsefied the true seruice of God Oh what tyrannie and mallice is this but to feare least that your turpitude and filthinesse should be further discouered is the cause of the refusall thereof onely doe but prepare your selues to enter into conference if there bee anie neede and then shall yee finde whether there shall bee anie faining on our partes or not But yee care nothing at all to haue it following the Italian prouerbe which saith Chista ben non si inuoua He that is well let him keepe him so Yee liue at your ease in all delightes and idlenes rather making those beleeue which search out your abuses Quod sunt infideles dubii in fide That they are vnfaithfull and weake of beleefe As thou sayest whilest that in the meane time you doublie cloake your selues with crafte and subtilties for the which cause yee neither require Synode nor councell so fearefull art thou that the king will goe to masse saying that hee ought not to bee trusted although hee woulde saie so Thy English pretended Catholike companion feared likewise the same but thou hast the aunâ—were vnto it looke therein what hath beene sayd vnto him and for the rest thou shalt finde in Saint Iohn that life euerlasting consisteth in the knowledge of the onely true God and of him which hee hath sent Christ Iesus and the king most Christian-like hath protested to continue in the same profession Thou hast therefore these thirtie times shewed thy selfe to bee an impudent slanderer when as thou doest compare him vnto prophane kinges which haue abused religion in seeking vnder the coulour of the same to instal and bring in their tyrannies Now lette vs see wherefore thou doest accuse the king of periurie After that he had sworne sayest thou that hee woulde not innouate anie thing for the space of sixe moneths incontinentlie hee made a statute at Tours by the which hee dooth dispence with the regulars as concerning their obedience which they owe vnto their superiors if they will aduertise him of those things which they should vndertake against him dooth inioyne the confessors to declare the confessions of the Catholickes in the same behalfe What Diuine or Logitian I praye you is this A king commaundeth his subiectes to declare vnto him those which conspire agaynst his person or against his