of perdition in the place of our Lord Iesu And as though Paule had spoken so in deéde can you so beastly proceéde to the confirmation of that your Babylonicall Empire with a sentence of Paule pestilently peruerted Is this the profession of a Byshop is this the Diuinitie of Osorius Downe with that Pecockes tayle away with this arrogancie be no more so collhardy and write hereafter more aduisedly and take better regard to your penne lest you bryng your name into odious contempt with all Christendome Take your pleasure in my wordes wrest them as ye list but handle Paule more discreétly But you are learnedly plentyfull in examples heaping together Iohn Husse Ierome of Prage Martin Luther and many others Who as you do affirme haue reuolted from this your Romishe Monarche of set purpose bycause beyng exempt frō his Iurisdiction they might be more freely licentious in writyng and speakyng Why doe ye coniecture so vayne Southsayer They were men of laudable conuersation voyde of all maner ryotte not culpable in any notorious or haynous crime Therefore how may they be duely charged of any suspition of dissolute behauiour that lyued alwayes discreétly and soberly But this is but a trifle with you to defame a fewe persons by name you rushe vpon all England with open mouth As though after the abolishyng your Romishe Monarche it were forthwith caried violētly into all vnbridled lust This is a false suggestion by your leaue Syr for assoone as we had shaken of the foreine yoke from our shoulders and yelded our selues to the lawfull authoritie of our souereigne Prince all thynges went better and more peacibly with vs especially in this later age of the Gospell renewed which beyng cōpared to those elder yeares wherein your Romish Prelate did insolently treade vpō triumph ouer vs may wel be adiudged to haue enioyed most blessed prosperitie Then which heauēly benefite our victorious Ilād doth most thākefully cōfesse neuer to haue receaued greater at the hands of God God for his inestimable mercy graunt that it may be permanent vnto the worldes end and that weé most humbly submittyng our selues to our naturall and liege souereigne vnited together in this most duetyfull amitie may most be estraunged from your extraordinarie Babilonicall Idoll turnyng the same ouer to you and your fraternitie for euer And now ye runne foreward with more lyes Rehearsing a rable of sectes and these you doe imagine to haue entred sithence the Banishmēt of the Pope As though in the old time were not great swarmes of sectes wherof Paul doth so oft premonish vs or as though they raged not wonderfully in the tyme of that godly Father Augustine whose hart did so boyle against them that he wrate great volumes against their pestiferous errours Or as though that sacred father Peters successour Pope Liberius were not a mainteyner of that poysoned canker of Arrius Or as though Celestine and Anastase the second were not stoute champions of that horrible Scorpion Nestorius Can you obiect sectes when as no age euer wanted some Dare you so boldly name sectes when as threé of your Romish graundsiers were mighty patrones them selues of two most pernitious errours But you affirme that these godly Fathers are maliciously belyed Call forth your own Alphonse who being a Moncke and a Spanyard borne ought to bee of some credite with you beyng a Prelate of Portingall O worthy successours of Peter O excellent pillers of Christs Church This it is forsooth to cōmit sheépe vnto Wolues This is it to deliuer the people of God to bloudy Butchers Yet you blush nothing at this to blame factions of sectes in vs whiche you reporte to exercise perpetuall warre one against an other in diuersitie of contrary opinions and the same to proceéde hereof pardy bycause they are not in seruitude to Libertines and Celestines that is to say to Arrians and Nestorians But be it so as you would haue that some contrarietie were amongest the later sort of our writers Is there or can there bee any more monstruous dissention then hath burst out amōgest your Friers and Monckes hath euer sharper stormes bene raysed then betwixt your Schoolemen brawlyng oftentymes about moates in the sunne You rush vpon Lutherans and Zuinglians by name First you doe this besides the matter bycause I do not defend them I stand for my countrey I do defende England I vndertake the cause of litle Britaine against you wherein I will abide whiles breath is in my body If you prouoke enemyes els where I doubt not but that you shall easely finde them Yet in the meane space I will recite your wordes whereby men may know the manifest iniuries that you vomite agaynst the soules of these sweéte personages and how vsually you blunder out at all aduenture whatsoeuer your franticke braynes doe imagine For this you proceéde in accusation The Zuinglians doe inueighe agaynst the Lutherans and the Anabaptistes keepe continuall warres with the Zuingliās Why do not I here thrust in also Coelestianes and Interemistes and other names of Scismes First of all there is no contradiction betwixt Luther and Zuinglius in the principall pointes of Christian Religion They doe differ in the Sacrament of the Eucharistie not in the substaunce thereof but in the maner of the presence of Christ. And yet perhaps this quarell is more about wordes then matter But you haue not onely wickedly transubstātiated to speake like a Schooleman our Sauiour Iesus Christ into bread with most monstruous deuises but also thrust vpon vs vj. hundred lyes euery one contrary to other whiles you amaze the eares and myndes of Christians with this absurde and newfangled doctrine And therfore your graund captaine of Schoolemen Peter Lōbard in this doubtfull conflict broyling and turmoyling him selfe and throughly wearied with your mockeries doth conclude at the last That Transubstantiation ought to bee inuiolable for the autenticke authoritie of the Church of Rome but that it cā not be founde in the Scriptures As for the Anabaptistes you did name them without all reasons For you are not ignoraūt that the vniuersall consent of all Churches haue condemned them vnto whom Luther and Zuinglius were as earnest enemies as your Maistershyp or any of all your brotherhoode Surely in our common wealth they can reteine no footyng nor in any other coūtrey that I know or cā heare of What maner of men those Celestianes be I would fayne learne of you of your durtie cōpanion of Angrence bycause you haue geuen that name first as farre as I can perceaue The other sortes are Interemistes by this name as I gesse notyng those men which to make a certeine qualification in Religion haue patched vp a certeine booke of peéuishe Romish dregges and haue entituled it by the name of Interim If this be true what came into your braynes to reckon two of your souldiours or graund-captaines vnder our Banner That Commentarie of Interim is yours I say your owne These were
the questions whereof ariseth our controuersie were so harde and intricate that they exceeded your capacities I would not haue entruded my selfe into your presence with this maner of persuasion but would haue referred my selfe rather to the censure of the learned But for as much as this Religion of Gods holy Gospell which we professe is so resplēdisant in the eyes and eares of all men as the bright shyning Sunne in whott Sommers day the doctrine I say wherewith we are enstructed which preacheth Repētaunce to the bruysed cōscience which agayne imputeth vnto the penitent persons free righteousnesse and deliueraunce from Sinne by fayth without workes in Christ Iesu onely which forbiddeth Idolatry which restrayneth to adde or diminish any title from the prescript rule of holy Scriptures which forbiddeth the inuocation of the dead and prayeng to straūge Goddes which acknowledgeth the humanitie of Christ the Sonne of God to be in no place but at the right hand of the Father which approueth honest and honorable estate of Wedlocke in all persons indifferently which hath made all foode and sustenaunce both fishe and flesh without choyse beyng receaued with thankesgeuyng subiect to the necessary vse of man which taketh away all confidence and affiaunce vsually ascribed vnto merites and workes which calleth vs away from the opiniō of soules health to be set in obseruation of prescribed dayes and monethes which reduceth vs from the naked elementes of the world from worshippyng of signes and outward ceremonies which I say cleareth our hartes and myndes from the bondage of mens traditions and dreames and doth ensure and establish vs in mearcy and grace which allureth all persons indifferently to the readyng of holy Scriptures which denyeth to no man the participation of the Cuppe of the new Testament in the bloud of Iesu Christ which abbridgeth all Ministers of the word from desire of all worldly superiority And to stay here frō the reckoning vpp of all the rest which are more notable and manisest then the bright shynyng Sunne in mydday what cann your Maiestie atchieue more worthy or more beseemyng your highe excellency then to admitt into the secrett closett of your soule this most euident trueth of heauenly discipline If your highnesse be not as yet made acquainted therewith or if ye know the same to be infallible and true that ye will no longer shrowde vnder your protection such pestilent errours allready disclosed and repugnaunt to the knowen veritie wherewith your grace may one day hereafter paraduenture desire to be shielded before the dreadfull Iudgemēt seate of the Lord of hostes accordyng to the promise of Iesu Christ. And the trueth sayth he shall deliuer you Iohn 8. And if your highnes shal be persuaded that this reformatiō of Religion whereof I haue treated doth not apperteigne to your estate or to the charge of seculer Princes what doth the wordes of Osori emporte thē wheras writyng of our gracious Queene Elizabeth he doth so carefully admonish her Maiestie to vouchsafe especiall regard to know what the glory of Christ meaneth what the law of the Lord teacheth how much the rule of sacred religiō doth exact of her highnes Again whereas in the same Epistle he doth very learnedly pronoūce that the speciall duty of Princely gouernemēt ought to be wholy employed to the preseruatiō of true and pure Religion Pag. 10. But els otherwise if your grace do thoroughly conceaue that is most true that the gracious restitutiō of gods holy word doth no lesse cōcerne the furtheraūce of the Gospell then the preseruatiō of your Royall estate Saluation of your subiectes I most humbly then beseech you most noble kyng by that redoubled linke of pietie wherewith you are first bounde vnto the Lord That as your Maiestie shall playnly perceaue this cause which we are entred vpon not to varye or decline any iote awrye from the true touchestone of the liuely word neuer so litle that your highnesse of your excellent clemency will vouchsafe to aduertize your Bysh. Osorius That being myndfull of his professiō he do behaue him selfe in debatyng the state of Religion in the vprightenes of iudgement so as the cause requireth and frō henceforth he desiste frō backbyting his neighbours with clamorous lyeng and slaunderous reproches who haue rather deserued well of him then in any respect offended him If he be of opinion that errours ought to be rooted out of the Church lett him first cōuince those for errours which he gaynesayth and shew him selfe abler man to make proofe by Argumēt thē to resist with onely cauillyng By such meanes will he be deemed a more profitable member of the Church and procure him selfe lesse hatred It is an easie matter for euery common rascall to vomitt out disdaynefull names of infamous persons as Protagoras Diagoras Cicloppes Blindsinckes Epicures gortellguttes and monsters But it fitteth comlyer for learned men and more profitable for the Christian congregation to lay aside distompered choler and instruct the vnlearned and reclayme the obstinate with sounde Argumentes and expresse testimonies of the Scriptures If this order be not obserued euery carter may soone by aucthoritie clayme to be a cōmon rayler An other methode of writyng was requisite in Osorius more effectuall to edifie then as he hath vttered in his bookes For this sufficeth not for him to reuile men with odious names as callyng them madd impudent childish and infaūtes and to declame whole cōmon places vsed agaynst heretiques I doe know and playnly confesse That it is most necessary to oppugne erronious sectes heresies But it is not errour forthwith that hath somewhat a bitter smatclie and is vnsauory to euery queysie stomacke neither is it allwayes trueth that is plausible to eche fonde and dotyng phantasie But wise men ought chiefly haue considered how euery mans assertiō is framed to the agreablenes of the word of God Yet now a dayes I cann not tell how the carte is sett before the horse and the preposterous frowardnes of some persons haue brought to passe that bycause men shall not be guided by the Gospell they will runne before it so mens imaginatiōs shall not obey but beare the principall Banner before But where as the right squaryer of Christian fayth hath none other sure foundation but that onely which is grounded vpon the holy Scriptures our dutie hadd bene to direct the buildyng of our Religion by this lyne and leuell and to ramme fast the wallworkes hereof with this cemente and morter But now I cann not tell how it is so come to passe that many do worke guyte contrary For they despise this well fenced order and hauyng as litle regarde to the meanyng purporte of the word they rayse to them selues a Church which they call Catholicke and the same they assigne to be the onely guide and gouernesse yet notwithstandyng they make no demonstration whether it be the Church of Christ yea or nay But measuryng the same by the onely Title of the Romish See
filthy mischieuous dennes betymes You reserue a place for the defence of your Monckes by it selfe and in drawyng their petigreé you play the Philosopher at large Wherein you are not onely to childishe and tedious but so farre estraunged frō the purpose that ye seéme rather to dreame of S. Patrickes Purgatory thē to note our Religiō Let vs marke the begynnyng which is this There be ij sortes of men say you that are empaled within the boūdes of the Churche The one whose function consisteth in generall practize of maners in a meane course of vertue and godlynes The other that desire to aduaunce thē selues in a more exquisite endeuour of heauenly discipline Behold here a new Diuinitie Two sortes of Christians are sprong vp if we beleeue my Lord Byshop where as the Scriptures haue authorized but one onely state of Christians hitherto There are diuersities of giftes yet but one spirite and there are differences of administrations yet but one Lord there are diuers maners of operations and yet but one God which worketh all in all For as the body is one and hath many members and where as also many members be of one body Euē so is Christ. For we are all Baptized into one body by one spirite whether we be Iewes or Gentiles bondmen or free and we haue all dronke of one spirite These are the wordes of S. Paule Wherfore there can not be two sortes of Christians if there be but one body of Christians nor a distinct profession bycause the spirite is one and the selfe same Will you haue this made more manifest by sillables and titles One body and one spirite euen as you are called in one hope of your callyng One Lord one Fayth one Baptisme one God Father of all which is aboue all and through all and in you all All are one and in vs all as Paule doth affirme Where is your distinction therfore There is no respect of persons with God but in euery nation hee that doth feare him and worketh righteousnesse is accepted of him So doth Peter preach whō if we admit for our Scholemaister all your distinction wherein you haue trauailed so much will lye in the durte And therefore sith our profession is but one and the same common also to all Christians out of Antioche were all called once first by this common name Christians But if you will not be satisfied with the testimonies of the Apostles Let vs heare our Lord and Sauiour Iesu Christ sendyng his eleuen Disciples abroad into the whole world speakyng vnto them in this wise All power is geuen vnto me in heauen and in earth Goe ye forth therfore and teach all nations Baptizyng them in the name of the Father and of the Sonne and of the holy Ghost teachyng them to obserue all those thynges whiche I haue commaunded you This is the pure and onely profession of Christian Religion grounded vpon the authoritie of Christ his owne wordes repeated by the preachyngs of the Apostles confirmed with the generall consent of the Catholicke and Apostolicke Church and ensealed with the bloud of the Martyrs in all ages Leaue this Religion to vs and reteine to you and your fraternitie that newfounde two horned sect whereof you can vouch no Authour besides Cicero or Aristotle But let vs pause yet a whiles vpon my Lordes diuision and consider the speciall pointes of his discreét destruction distinction I would say For after he hath enstalled two sortes of Christians hee doth geue them cognizaunces whereby they may be discerned There is one sort of them sayth hee whose function consisteth in common practize of maners and in a meane course of vertue and pietie The other desire to aduaunce them selues to a more exquisite endeuour of heauenly discipline Now I beseéche you my Lord what mediocritie of vertue and pietie do ye speake of Sithence our profession doth exact of vs a perfect and most absolute keépyng of the commaundements by expresse testimonie of both old and new Testament how oft is this sentence repeated in the old Testament Be ye holy for I am holy Wherfore we ought not to stand still in a meane but must endeuour couragiously to that perfect holynes of God This is an expresse cōmaundement I am the Lord your God you shall obserue all my ordinaūces and all my Statutes c He cōmaūdeth all maketh no exception And therfore this your newfangled meane betwixt both must bee throwen away nay rather this meane is execrable dānable our Lord God the Father thūdryng the same frō heauen If you will not harken vnto me sayth he and will not obserue all that I commaunde you I will visite you with feare with tremblyng and burnyng feauers c. The very same wordes are so oft and so manifestly repeated in Deutero That who so will diligently behold them can not but wonder at your dulnesse and ignoraunce in Scriptures God doth accurse the person that will not obserue all the preceptes of the law perfectly to doe them and all the people shall say Amen What will you aunswers to this conclusion of Moyses he commaundeth a perfection the Lord doth accurse him that doth not fulfill it yea euen by his owne mouth and all the people say Amen And you contrary to this doctrine do deuide the Christians congregation or rather disseuer it into partes practize to plante in place thereof a frame shapen meane of pietie whiche neither old nor new Testament doth acknowledge You haue heard out of the old law we will now come to the new There is also an expresse commaundement of our Lord Iesu Christ to his Apostles in these wordes Preach ye the Gospell to all creatures who soeuer beleueth and is baptized shal be saued but he that doth not beleue shal be damned Go ye forth therfore and teach all Nations Baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Sonne and of the holy Ghost teachyng them to keepe all thynges that I haue commaunded you Behold here one maner of professiō dispersed abroad ouer all Nations behold all thyngs must be obserued that are commaunded Wherefore there is but one sort of Christians not two and the same one also endeuoureth to perfection standeth not still in amediocritie Our Lord Iesus standyng vpon the mount compassed about with the people of the Iewes preached in most godly maner the chief principles of Christian Religion vnto them and amongest the rest gaue this commaundement seuerally Wherfore be ye perfect as your heauenly Father which is in heauen is perfect What impudencie is this Osorius to thrust a mediocritie into our Religion when our Lord Iesu Christ by expresse commaūdement requireth perfection But I tary to long vpon matters clearer then the Sunne And yet this our deépe Deuine doth vnderproppe his lazie Monckerie vpon these pillers whiche beyng wormeaten rotten as I haue shewed already will at length bryng all his other buildyng to ruine and
enough and is busied about heaueÌ„ly thyngs and godly coÌ„templation Truly this your speach doth not describe vnto vs any godly Moncke but either some notorius hypocrite or happely some drunkard or some one distraught of his wittes For why should his senses be ouerwhelmed at the namyng of God They should rather be liuely and ioyfull Wherfore should he fall to the ground on the deuils name if he were a true Christian he should rather rayse him selfe vp and reioyce in him from whom onely commeth all saluatioÌ„ How chaunceth this holy father that you an old man a Byshop a Deuine of so great estimation are so fallen to Fables Certes a meéte aduocate for so monishe a matter You demauÌ„de of me why we suffered our MoÌ„ckeries to escape vnpunished if there were such licentiousnes of lyfe amongest them How did they escape vnpunished good Syr we ouerthrew their durtie dennes The Brothelles them selues beyng bondslaues to all vnthriftynes we haled out of their swynestyes set a libertie we did abolish the occasioÌ„s of their treachery as much as we might not hatyng that persoÌ„s but their vyces when their vyce was rooted out what els might haue bene exacted not of you onely who blinded with malice know nothyng but of any other reasonable person To this dauÌ„ce you hauge the Uestale virgines whom the auÌ„cient Romanes reuereÌ„ced greatly so in lyke maner require our Nunnes to be honored of vs. Surely you handle this matter very kindly Salij Priestes of Mars did dauÌ„ce naked in their opeÌ„ filthy Pageantes for this was a speciall Article of their Religion why then do not you likewise beyng an old priest thinke it as seémely for you to daunce for Religion sake Herein I may seéme to scoffe ouer bytterly No truely For what can be lesse tollerable then an old grayheaded Byshop and a Deuine as he persuadeth him selfe to march with the madde superstitioÌ„s of the Romaines agaynst the veritie of the Gospell of our Lord and Sauiour Iesu Christ You turmoyle your selfe much about the vowes of widowes which doth not coÌ„cerne our disputation and argue as though virgines vowyng chastitie could not bee ioyned in lawfull mariage without great haynousnesse How can men or maydens promise single life or if they promise rashly how can they performe truly when as chastitie is the peculiar gift of God and is not in our own power Get you to S. Paule whom you produce in your behalfe touchyng the same matter These be his wordes But euery man hath his proper gift of God one after this maner and an other after that What can be alledged more manifest then this If you be not yet satisfied annexe hereunto our Sauiour Christ and withall his owne wordes touchyng Eunuches wherein you triumph so Iollylye bycause that our Lord Iesus reported that some did geld them selues for the kyngdome of heauen Is not this also added a litle before He that can take it let him take it all men can not conceaue this saying but those to whom it is geuen Wherefore if chastitie be the proper gift of God we may not assure to our selues the thyng that is the proper gift of God And if none can be chast but to whom it is geueÌ„ how can we promise to our selues that which we know not whether we shall euer attaine or no Great is the force of the truth greater then this our great Maister of Israell can coÌ„prehend And howsoeuer he lyst to iangle here he confesseth the same a litle before in expresse wordes that chastitie is the gift of God as in deéde it is And for proofe therof vrgeth the same wordes of Christ mentioned before namely All men can not compreheÌ„d this saying but vnto whom it is geuen I maruell much Osorius that you haue so quickely forgotten your selfe But I ought not maruell thereat bycause of a very greédy affection to cauill an â—rabble you rush headlong many tymes into most pestilent errours You accuse Luther Bucer Zuinglius Oecolampadius Caluin and Martyr of lust As though men liued not chastly which hold them selues within the limittes of lawfull Matrimonie or as though all the Cowled droues of Sophisters aswell of your Nation as of any part of the world els were comparable with these godly fathers in commendable conuersatioÌ„ of life or excellencie of learnyng or as though the namyng of those persons made your cause any myte that better or as though Paule whom you do wrest and peruert for the mainteynaunce of your single lyfe did not sufficiently interprete him selfe or as though there were any thyng in you besides arrogancie cauillyng and choler You moue a very saucie question of Christian libertie Whether the same appeare greater in your Cowled generations then in maryed folkes I aunswere that the pure Eunuches whom God hath endued with the gift of chastitie do enioy most excellent freédome of mynde but the question coÌ„cerneth not those persons in this place But the rest of your mocke Eunuches haue no freédome of mynde except you lift to tearme it a wicked fréedome an horrible libertie to whoredome Neither am I alone of this iudgement for that were of no credite Paule is of the same mynde Who hauyng sayd It is good for a man not to touch a wife immediatly addeth But for auoyding fornication let euery maÌ„ haue his owne wife and thereof presently rendreth this reason For better it is to marry then to burne The first part of this senteÌ„ce you vrge very stoutly Osorius but the later you doe wickedly wincke at But we may not halt so bycause as Paule sayth we goe the right way to the Gospell not haltyng as you do But halt you as ye lift dissemble still wincke still at the horrible actions of your cowled Lurdeines yet is this true yea to true alas that these hypocriticall professours of chastitie doe not burne onely but swell also and are enflamed with insaciable firebrandes of Lecherie And it is not a whiueryng voyce of a vow bloweÌ„ out in respect of gayne or idlenes that can very easely quenche suppresse in the myndes of young persons those intollerable flames of naturall corruptioÌ„ There be great droues nay rather vnmeasurable herdes of your drousie Uotaries to be so bold as to coyne a new name for a new thyng whose poysoned filthynesse hath so defiled the earth that they may with horrible feare looke for Gods iust terrible vengeaunce to bee poured vpon them with Gomorrhean and Sodomiticall brimstone and fire heauen vnlesse they repent be tymes You do reproche Luther with his Mariage and slaunderously rayle that at the celebratyng thereof Venus was President not Venus of Paphia nor Erycina but Venus the furie of hell O vncleane mouth Dare you so blasphemously rayle agaynst the estate of Matrimonie commeÌ„ded with so glorious titles as which the holy Ghost commaunded to be honorable amongest all persons whiche our Lord Iesus Christ did honor with his presence which was ordeined of God
of your side be it neuer so sauadge can with fire Fagot cōsume out of the myndes of the godly But this our new maister dispatcheth all thyngs in scoffes a petie questiōs He demaundeth of vs what is to be vnderstanded of those Sacramentes which we doe reteine First of all if we doe vse any Sacraments at all you are taken tardy for a common lyar agaynst vs especially for you rayled a litle earst that all Sacramentes were vtterly abolished by our preachers and that you haue as many witnesses of this solemne lye as England hath inhabitauntes But you proceede and would know What Sacraments be If you doe know already and will dissemble why doe you playe the foole in so earnest a matter but if you bee ignoraunt hereof what maner of Deuine will you be accoumpted that know not the first principles of Religion Nay say you I am not doubtfull of the Sacraments of Scholemen but I know not your bare and naked Images by the whiche you deny the grace of God to bee obteined How many faultes Osorius in so few wordes For first of all who euer called Sacramentes by this name Images but you alone in déede they are named signes and markes of holy thynges many tymes seales of our saluatiō many mē call them tables and so diuers men geue diuers names But your selfe are the very first that euer gaue this tearme of Images to Sacramēts But as touching wordes though you be oftētymes ouer captious we wil be more tractable with you therein and will prosecute the matter You say that our Deuines doe place naked Images in steade of Sacramentes How naked my Lord I pray you we do agrée with S. Augustine that Sacramentes are signes of holy thynges or thus that Sacramentes are visible signes of inuisible grace I trust you will permit me the same libertie of wordes which you vse to take to your selfe We do graūt that we are by Baptisme regenerate to eternall lyfe we doe also yeld that in the holy Communion our Lord Iesus is truely receiued of the faythfull in spirite by fayth Whereby it appeareth that our Deuines do not accoumpt the Sacramentes as bare naked signes but for thynges most effectuall most holy thynges most necessaryly apperteyning to our comfort they be sacred mysteries of our Religion they be assured pledges of heauenly grace And yet God the father which made vs of clay is not tyed to his workemāshyp nor bounde to his creatures But taketh mercy of whom he will haue mercy and forgeueth our sinnes for his owne sake not for the Sacraments sake Lastly Life euerlasting is the gift of God through Iesus Christ not through operation of the Sacramentes And therfore we do refuse and detest such naked falsely forged Images as dreames of your owne drousie braynes and vse the true Sacramentes as most sacred thynges as pledges of our fayth and seales of our saluation yet we do not attribute so much vnto them as though by the meanes of them the grace of God must of necessitie be poured our vpō vs by the Workes wrought as through conduct pipes This impietie we turne ouer to your Schoolemen the very first sprynges of this poyson For inheritaunce is geuen of faith accordyng to grace The Sacramentes are reuerend signes of Gods grace vnto vs are excellēt monumētes of our Religion are most perfect witnesses of our saluation If you can not be satisfied with these commendations of the Sacramēts heape you vp more vnto them at your choyse we shal be well pleased withall so that you binde not the grace of God to these signes of very necessitie For we are not saued by the receauing of these Sacramēts But if we cōfesse with our mouth our Lord Iesus Christ and with our hartes beleeue that God raysed him agayne from death this confession onely will saue vs. Iulian the Emperour was Baptized in the name of Iesus yet dyed in manifest blasphemie Iudas Iscariote did féede vpon the Sacrament of Euchariste yet immediatly after Supper hee departed to the enemyes of our Lord Iesu and betrayed innocēt bloud what néedeth many wordes Sacramētes are most precious tokens of Gods fauour but they doe not obteine Gods fauour Sacramētes are excellent monumentes of godlynes but they do not make godlynes He that will glory let him glory in the Lord not in the Sacraments For by God we are engraffed into Christ Iesu whiche was made vnto vs by God wisedome righteousnes sanctification and redemption And this much to your generall obiections framed agaynst our order of administryng the Sacramentes Now I will come to those two principall points which you séeme specially to haue culled out that in them you might braue out the nimblenes of your witte eloquence of toung Confession you name and the Sacrament of the altar as you tearme it Of Confession you draw forth a tedious talke and in the same endeauour to include the Sacrament of Repentance First of all you cast your accōptes amisse in your numbryng Osorius for if you receaue Repētaunce in the name of a Sacramēt either you must admit eight Sacramentes contrary to the old custome of your Church or els you must turne one of your other seuen Sacraments out of the doores wherein vnlesse you deale more circūspectly you will haue more fistes about your eares then your owne euen amongest your owne fraternitie But please them as well as you may and vs you shall easely winne to wincke at you which do content our selues with two Sacramentes onely to witte Baptisme and the Supper of the Lord yet do we also exercize the rest withall as matters singularly profitable and so fast knitte to the rule of true godlynesse that Christian profession can not want them When I name the rest I do not cōprehend all but Confession and yet not your hypocriticall and schoole cōfession wherof we will treate hereafter but the pure and auncient confession authorized by the Scriptures practized by the Prophetes and Apostles I adde hereunto amendement of lyfe ordination of Ministers celebration of Matrimonie and prayer although you passe by this last as a foreine straunger All these I say are in dayly vse with vs and had in great estimatiō though they reteine neither name nor nature of Sacramentes properly There be some other also wherof it is néedelesse to make any mentiō at this present for these are the chiefest which though we do not vsurpe for Sacraments as you do yet we do allow of them reuerently and religiously accordyng to the ordinaunce of the Gospell of God Whiche I thought méete to touch briefly by the way left any person vnacquainted with our orders and geuyng to much credite to Osorius may estéeme so much the lesse of our Religion Now I returne to your Cōfessiō whispered into the eares of your Priests whō though you embrace as your swéet babe and enriche with a great dower of wordes and decke with
what purpose then was this spoken Conuertyng vs O Lord thou shalt quicken vs. And agayne O God of hostes conuerte thou vs. c. And therfore the same Augustine speaketh not vnfitly in an other place GOD doth helpe them that are conuerted and forsaketh them that are forsaken but to be conuerted God him selfe helpeth c. If none be conuerted vnto God but those onely whom him selfe helpeth Hereby it appeareth playnly that they which turne theÌ„ selues away from GOD do not therfore turne away bycause they will not turne vnto him but that they will not therfore turn rather bycause God forsaketh them That is to say bycause the Lord of hostes conuertyng doth not quickeÌ„ them that they may haue will to be conuerted Albeit I will not deny in the meane whiles that vnwillyngnesse doth proceéde from men them selues from their owne Freewill yet this vnwillyngnesse notwithstandyng is not so freé of it selfe that they which are forsaken can do otherwise then they be vnwillyng of very Necessitie neither can there be any defect of this will any where but where Gods effectuall Grace was not present before For as no man is good as Augustine witnesseth that will not be good so is there no man euill but through his owne voluntary will which will being forsaken of God can neuerthelesse not do any otherwise but euill And why doth God forsake theÌ„ will you say why doth not God helpe them whom he hath created Let me moue you a counterquestion I pray you euen in as few wordes And why do they not aske it of their God if they be without why do they not knocke if they be vnbeleuyng why do they not seéke if they dwell in Sinne why do they not repent How can they say you seyng that they haue no Freewill as you say Admit the same but in whse default in Gods default but God did create maÌ„ perfect at the first and endued him with freédome was it mans fault Let them then accuse them selues not God But ye vrge agayne And why then doth he coÌ„municate his grace to some which he denyeth to others why is he not indifferently mercyfull towardes all and as inclinable to all vniuersally At the begynnyng when God created man he did then create also all the nature of man fully furnished with all integritie and freédome Afterwardes when this state of innocency freédome was lost when as also the whole â—umpe was defiled withall God might withall haue so forsaken all the same ingenerall Neuerthelesse his mercy doth not so but would rather by Election chuse some out of this abhominable corruptioÌ„ not forsakyng the other altogether in the meane tyme onely he denieth helpe vnto them vnto whom he was not bouÌ„de to geue assistauÌ„ce And what though he were not so indifferently mercyfull towardes all Yet was he iniurious to none what do you not heare what him selfe speaketh Is thine eye therefore wicked is it not lawfull to do with myne own as it pleaseth me Or at least do you not heare the Apostle O man what art thou that contendest agaynst God Whereas God doth owe theé nothyng at all doest thou therefore snarle at him bycause doyng wrong to no man he doth enlarge the richesse of his mercy towardes them whom it pleaseth him But foreward crawleth Osorius Inuectiue For as much as this is the mynde and meanyng of Paule what outragious furie is this madd man intoxicate withall that would endeuour to persuade such a coÌ„struction by Paules testimony which would both ouerthrow the state of humaine societie and withall make God guiltie of vnrighteousnesse SitheÌ„ce this is the infallible meanyng of Paule which we haue heretofore confirmed after the IudgemeÌ„t of Luther Bucer Caluine and by the testimony of the holy Scriptures chiefly which also Osorius him selfe were he neuer so sober sounde witted can neuer be able to confute to what end rendeth this so foolish and childish exclamation proceédyng from an old and grayheaded man whereunto serue these Tragicall outcryes that this Ruler of roste so ruffleth vppe of a trifle thundring out such moÌ„struous outragies and franticke exclamations Which doth ouerthrow sayth he the state of men And what kynde of estate of men is this at the leÌ„gth which Luther doth so ouerthrow If he meane the state of the coÌ„mon weale Ciuill societie herein truly are many seuerall degreés estates aswell of offices as of persouages For there be Princes there be Dukes there be Knightes of the noble order there be CitizeÌ„s there be diuers seuerall Magistrates some hygh some low vnder whoÌ„ are the meane inferiour subiectes eueÌ„ the rascall rable multitude So â—â— there also seuerall distinctions of Ages Artes handycraftes in manitary occupations some youÌ„g some old some riche some poore All these now albeit in noÌ„ber innumerable in kynde qualitie distinct are neuertheles coÌ„federate knitte together in a certeine generall vnitie mutuall coÌ„formitie of allyed leaque through a certeine Ciuill pollicie institutioÌ„ of maners are beautified with mutuall amitie are vnited linked together to God in one participation of Religion are orderly gouerned by force of lawes do exercize mutuall traffique togethers are restreined froÌ„ licenciousnes of lyfe with one maner of generall correctioÌ„ So that if they liue not in full perfectioÌ„ of vertue accordyng to the prescript rule of the lawes yet do they much lesse offende for feare of Iustice and Iudgement Now Syr in this generall Regiment state of thyngs and of persones what one Citie what one Villadge or what Family was euer made one myte the worse by Luthers doctrine either in respect of their due obedieÌ„ce to Ciuill Magistrates or in breache of domesticall tranquillitie or in their dutyfull allegiaunce to their Princes or in any other Ciuill societie One onely disorderous order of people hath entruded it selfe vpon this state of humaine societie vsurpyng a certeyne Princely superioritie I know no thy what meanes crept in at the first sure I am was neuer established by God nor by nature ne yet by any necessary institution But pressing to the pearche partly through fraude partly through oppression and chiefly through the ambitious arrogaunoy of their owne proude Prelacy not to vndertake any necessary or profitable function in the weale publique nor to ioyne in administration of office with others for the behoofe of any common weale but to hale all other gouernementes vnder their Iurisdiction and to make subiect all other estates potentates and Empires vnder their stately Superioritie by erectyng a certeine new founde and Luciferlike Monarch vpon the earth It is that Romishe Tyrannicall and Papisticall dominion which I meane and complayne vpon which through incredible subtiltie craft secrete slye vnderminynges vnder a commendable title of the Church hath by litle and litle enhaunced it selfe to so wonderfull loftynesse that all other estates and degreés beyng enforced to yeld their neckes to the yoake as it were must
to vnlose it then Haddon was we should at least stand maruelously amazed at the inscrutable ingeniousnes of the man For determinyng with him selfe to make a playne demonstration that these new Gospellers as he calleth them should not in any wise be harkened vnto but should be banished out of all common weales as common plagues and maisters of all misrule and wickednesse he frameth his Argument vpon this pointe That whereas they tooke vpon them to restore the auncient puritie of the Gospell infinite mischiefes doe reigne notwithstandyng amongest their Auditories And that these teachers do keepe Schoole no where but they make the whole couÌ„trey there the worse for theÌ„ To this Sophisticall quicke HaddoÌ„ makyng auÌ„swere affirmeth that it is neither true that Osorius fableth of that waywardnesse of this people neither yet though it were true that it is preiudiciall to the defence of the cause now in hand For the controuersie here doth concerne properly matters of Relligion to the which if the conuersations of the professours were not correspondeÌ„t or if the séedes of Christes Gospell did not fall vpon the fruitefullest grounde altogether but were choaked vppe with thornes or that the Corne were ouergrowen with Cockell and Tares the fault therof was not in the word but in the people For humane actioÌ„s had neuer so good successe in this world but that the greater sorte were alwayes delighted with the worst and the worst part many tymes preuayled beyond the best And that this came to passe long sithence not onely in the tyme of Christ and his Apostles but in the age of the holy Martyrs also and doth likewise happen by a certeine continuall order and enterchaunged course of the world dayly and hourely so that not onely the Preachers of the word but the Church of Rome it selfe neuer wanteth matter sufficient of great greéuous complaintes And albeit as the maners of men are through the caÌ„kerd peéuishnes of wayward frowardes the most sacred word of God be euill spoken of amongest the Paganes and Infidelles yet if the matter be debated amongest wise and discrete personages it will not be thought matter reasonable that the thyngs which of their own nature are good should be called in question and condemned for the naughty behauiour of naughty packes abusing the same And therfore that Osor. did amisse herein to wrest the whole state of the question to maners and euill conuersation which did onely concerne matter of Relligion Moreouer also though neuer so straight InquisitioÌ„ were made of the life and maners of the professours of the worde yet behoued not Osorius to bende him selfe so sharpely agaynst our Preachers with any accusation before he had throughly acquited or at least wise aunswered the griefes and complaintes of many others of his own Catholickes which are much more haynous and worthy of speédy reformation To these reasons of Haddon let vs heare what Osorius doth I say not dispute but with open mouth cry out first he vaunteth and triumpheth that his argument is not resolued Afterwardes this gallant glorious Thraso doth meruaile very much with what face Haddon may deny this to be trew seeing that the very poreblinde do see it and is common in euery barbours shoppe sealed with the testimony of all men yea wherewith the Siopodes are so well acquainted also as he sayth that it is merueile that any man could be so shameles to deny it to be true For what is he that doth not onely coÌ„ceaue in imagination but also not behold with hys eyes yea feele it in the whole body to the great griefe of hys hart that luste doth raunge euery where allowed vnbrydeled licenciousnesse pestereth euery corner vnpunished Sanctuaries Religious houses lye tumbling in bloâ—d that Temples and Churches be robbed and spoyled Treasons practised agaynst Princes and Gouernours Finally all places whersoeuer these doctours teach schoole to be in a tumult and vproare And forasmuch as Haddon doth not onely heare all these not by report onely and confereÌ„ce of histories but also behould the same with hys eyes openly and vsually frequented how can he say that these things were neuer done March on couragiously in this dexteritie sharpnes of witte O Benedicte But go to let vs coÌ„sider awhiles the force of this ingeniouse man Whersoeuer these new preachers sayth he do plant themselues and teache there may you see all thinges polluted with most filthy Brambles Cockell and Darnell The man hath spoken But how shall I knowe this to be true that ye speake Osorius for sooth he is past all shame that denyeth it And why so I pray you Because the matter is knowen published abroad euery where to NatioÌ„s Countryes Ilandes all people finally bruted abroad ratified by the report of all meÌ„ Behold gentle reader a very woÌ„derfull euident demonstration concluded not with arguments silogismes as men are wont to dispute in the schooles of Chrisippus Cratippus but ratified yea sealed also as oratours vse to verifie their causes before the Iudges by the testimonye of publique seales and witnesses yea and that not by the report of a few but of all maner of meÌ„ of the people of Calecute I suppose of the Massagets Antipodes men of a new world yea beyond all herring as they say So farre so wide doth this Prelates knowledge of all thinges outstretch it selfe that he can test vpon hys fingers endes what all men do euery where what they speake and what they heare what may you require to be of more credite Christian reader sithence the worlde it self and the whole compasse of the same produced is wittnesse againste these newe prophettes the Lutheranes Which if might speak altogether with one mouth woulde vse this testimony as I thinke Whatsoeuer disorders and mischiefes whatsoeuer lust and vnpunished licenciousnes whatsoeuer outragious sacrilege whatsoeuer treacherous treason and conspiracies were euer hard of amongest any people the same be chiefly and aboue all others frequented and raigne especially amongst the coÌ„mon weales of the Lutheranes through the doctrine and preaching of their Prophettes In witnesse whereof we all and euery of vs as many as liue in this world doe set to our seales Ratifie and confirme the same to be true with our handes The worlde it selfe I think if it could speake would not speake otherwise forsooth And because it cannot speake for it selfe it hath appoynted Osorius to be proctor of the cause to speake for it In a matter therefore so manifest so approued and fealed is there any so impudent an Haddon that will dare to deny this But that ye may wonder yet a great deale more at his Rhetoricall amplification he proueth it to be true not onely by the suffrages of dumme men but cyteth to witnesse agaynst Haddon himselfe his owne eyes and eares Do ye not see sayth he with your eyes what should Haddon seé with his eyes do ye ask Osorius doughtles he might seé
agayne amoÌ„gst ChristiaÌ„s or S. Paule the Apostle and should behold these our serions and toylesome triflinges in our temples these cunnyng counterfaytes Images Alters bread worshippinges and the whole face of Christian Religion so transformed into Apishe ceremonies should seé how prety holy you will shew your selues in trinckets and toyes and how retchles and vnmindefull of the principall poyntes of doctrine how niggardly skraping from relieuing the poore how vnmeasurably prodigall in buildyng of Temples in decking of Monasteries in enriching of churches in costly coapes in Iewels and plate in dawbing of walles in glyding of postes how excessiuely sumptuous In corporall exercises which are of small value how foreward and couragious but in the exercise of true pietye whiche is profitable for all things how litle or no care at all employed as that it may seéme we haue either forlorne all mercy and compassion or that pitty and mercye haue forsaken their owne intralles and vowelles Moreouer in iudging our brethren how frowardly headstrong in burning and killing how â—ooâ—cherly cruell and Sauadge If Esay the Prophet and the Apostle Paule I say did behold these thinges and withall did seé before their eyes such and so much christian blood sucked out spilt by your meanes so many thowsandes of martires murthered and sent vnder the Altar would not he most rightfully or woulde not God by the mouth of his Prophet in much more fiercenes and vehemeÌ„cy of stomack redubble the saying agaynst you more iustly then he did sometimes agaynst the Iewes I will not accept your holidayes your sabbaothes soleÌ„ne feastinges your asseÌ„blies are wicked my soule hateth your kaleÌ„ds soleÌ„nities I am greued with theÌ„ am ouerladeÌ„ with theÌ„ Why haue we fasted and thou hast not beholden vs Behold in the day of your fasting your mindes are enclined to wickednes You fast to contention and strife and oppresse your brethren cruelly wrongfully and without cause Be your washed be ye clensed remoue away the euill imaginations of your hartes out of my sight What would Paule haue added moreouer who endued you at the first with a farre other manner of doctrine if he should now behold your doctrines your rites inuocations decreés masses multitude of holidayes your ceremonies worshippinges croochings and kneélinges and the disorderous abuses of all your religion if heé should note that the coÌ„fideÌ„ce affyaunce wh he taught to be placed in Christ onely were by you transposed translated into an infinite heap of aduocates proctors rent euen in sunder by you Would he acknowledge you for ChristiaÌ„s I pray you or at least standing in great feare of you would he not exclaim agayn vpon you You obserue dayes and monethes I am afrayd of you c. But it is well Osorius doth now at length beginne to speak somewhat to the matter I do confesse in deed saith he that al those things wherof I haue made meÌ„cioÌ„ all others of the same sort which I haue omitted for I think it not needfull to rehearse al by name are not of any such great perfectioÌ„ for they be certayne principles certayne â—ecessary helpes for vs where with as yet our weake and mortall estate hath some familiarity and acquayntaunce and of this we haue good proof by dayly experience c. The loÌ„g processe therfore that you made of state feasts and other gadding holydayes in the yeare belike are of the quality then as you haue said Osor. of that wh though you seéme to haue rehearsed very many yet haue you not remembred all In deéde in this you speake the trueth For you haue ouerskipt almost an innumerable multitude besides these to witte the feastes of the Sayncts and she Saynts And first of Saynct Iohn Baptist the feastes of the Apostles Martyrs moreouer of Confessours Uirgyns Byshoppes and Abbots of the inuention and exaltation of the holy crosse of hallowing of Ashes of Gangeweéke and procession of Saincte Michael of Sainct Peters chayre Sainct George Sainct Nicholas Sainct Katherine Sainct Thomas of the assumption coÌ„ception natiuity and Annnuciation and visitation of our blessed Uirgine Mary of the patrone of the church dedication day and Relicksonday And who is able wich toung to expresse all which in such clusters are crepte into the Kalender that it might iustly haue bene feared least if the popes holines had coÌ„tinued a while longer in good credite all working dayes should haue bene turned into holydayes or euerlasting Iubilees But forasmuch as Osorius is contented to pare away these skrappes as not altogether so necessary for his commentaries we will be contented also to make as litle account of them and to returne agayne to Osor. description wherein the same also which he doth very fittely deny is not altogether true namely that the things which he rehearsed are not valuable as perfect but are certayne principles and necessarye helpes prouided for such as groaning yet vnder the burden of flesh and blood are not throughly huÌ„bled in spirite But I beseéch you good honest man what maner of speache is this what kynde of helpes be these wherof you treat is it euen so Syr to carry candles burning at hygh noone in the eyes and gaze of all men call you this a helpe for weake memoryes or rather a playne president of ridiculous superstition to worshippe the crucifixe barefooted and barelegged to fall groueling before Images to sette vp tapers and caÌ„dles burning before them to part stakes of the honour due vnto God with he Sayntes and sheé Sayntes to make vowes vnto them to craue their helpe in mishappes and misfortunes to 〈◊〉 as much to theyr merites as to Chryst himselfe to nourish thâ—â—â—norauÌ„ce of the vnlettered in an vnknowne touÌ„g to remoue the vnlearned multitude from the reading of scriptures to carry them with dumme and colde ceremonies where ye list to feéde the eares with musicke and song whose soules you ought to haue fed with the word of God and enstructed vnto fayth finally to make a greater brable and sturre for the breach of these holy dayes and neglecting those ceremonies yea to hate your brethren more deadly rack them to more tortures for these peéuish Bables more spightfully then for not performing the lawe of the Lord Will you perswade vs to account these to be principles of piety or shall we boldly call them rather mysteries of iniquity and playne blockes and lettes of true Religion What shall we thinke of this that not contented yet to haue so largely debated of the celebrating of holy daies and the manifold Fruit of the same he proceédeth further beateth the naile to this issue that he maketh now of the very same principles a very necessitie which earst he vouchsafed no place towardes the attayning of perfection So that now these shadowes and signes of holy thinges though of themselues vnperfect doe yet yeélde great helpes to perfect pietye not onely in these that are weak but seéme also very necessary
to draw once somewhat nearer to the Epilogue of his notable Oration hauyng dispatcht that part of the accusation now wherein he hath discouered whatsoeuer hath bene spoyled by the Lutheranes he bendeth his eloquence to declare by the rest of his talke what supply hath come in for that which hath bene spoyled And here our proper fine Orator takyng a through and circumspect view of all thynges I warraūt you can espy no one thing of all that is reformed any thing prayseworthy nor any thyng in any respect aunswerable to the promises of these men who promising to cure the woundes and blemishes of the Church haue brought it into farre worse case more putrified and fuller of corruption And why so Bycause they do see that not onely the professours but the hearers also of this new Gospell are not onely not made better but defiled with many more haynous offences more prouoked to troublesome diuisions to venerous lust to theeuery and murther and to all other horrible practizes This is a stale deuise and an old practize of a pratyng Rhetorician that when thou seést thy selfe confounded with truth of matter to fleé forthwith to slaunderyng scoldyng and backbyting But to aunswere you somewhat hereunto What do ye note all the professours of the word Osorius or some particuler persons I thinke neither you will nor iustly can iustifie your saying agaynst all no more can ye agaynst many of them for as much as ye know not throughly the one halfe of our conuersations But if you thinke thus of some particuler person why do ye maruell so much at this sithence the state and condition of mans life attained neuer yet so perfect a felicitie but that there was alwayes iust cause of cōplaint agaynst the maners of many men and the worst part commonly were more in nomber thē the better Yea in Paradise it selfe sithence man and woman alone beyng but two onely could not liue long together in that humaine flesh without sinne how much lesse is this to be wondered in a multitude And yet in respect of those some persons whom you note as it were with a coale I know some also and could note them by name whose commendable conuersation of life I would rather chuse then all the holynes of all your Portingalls whatsoeuer vnlesse you demeane your selues more godly at home in Portingall then some of you lately behaued your selues here in England whom notwithstandyng I will not at this present openly diffame nor speake of them all that I know concealing their names of set purpose to the end your noble Nation shall not be infamed for their lewdenes by any reporte of myne And therfore let all that be Catholick be heauenly and Angelicke also for me And in this sort also had it bene as seémely for you good Catholicke Syr not to haue rusht so rudely with your vnmanerly penne agaynst them whose maners be altogether as farre from your knowledge as their names be As touchyng report what hath bene carried vnto you or what not I do not so much esteéme which as you know carrieth lyes for the more part rather then truth But admitte that the report be true marke yet I pray you how iniurious and slaūderous you are both in respect of the persons agaynst whō you do inueighe so much in respect of the cause which you do defende For wheras they do treate vpon Relligion and doctrine onely you apply all the action to life and maners without all cōsideratiō of the differēce betwixt these two For whereas Relligion is referred to God onely and maners respect mans state and condition properly hereby it commeth to passe that in that one nothyng ought to be permitted except it be most sincere and pure and in these other nothyng at all can be founde that is in any respect perfect Now if the order and course of mans life be not in all pointes correspondent to that absolute and exact rule of doctrine which we professe yet doth this neither countenaūce your errour nor preiudice the sinceritie of the Relligion that is taught out of the Gospell Wherfore this was altogether besides the cushian Osorius to raunge so lauishly agaynst men to speake so litle of the matter and substaunce of the question which concerned not mens maners but the pointes of doctrine properly But peraduenture this place serued here to the Rhetoricall commō place of vice and vertue taken out somewhere of some Oratours booke which perhappes you would haue cleane forgotten vnlesse you had furbushed it a fresh at this present Wherein notwithstandyng I do neither disallow your diligence much nor despise your Rhetoricall florishyng and beautifieng of righteousnesse For I know and confesse that this integritie of life which you commēde so highly apperteineth much to the dignifieng of the Church But yet this great boast maketh but small roast and serueth as litle to this present cause Which in deéde is this That a playne demonstration ought to haue bene made by the testimony of the Scriptures not what is pure or what is corrupt in mens maners but in the cōtrouersies of Relligion what is true and what is false Now if you be not so well furnished with Scriptures as to be able to debate throughly of the controuersies of Relligiō and therfore would conuerte your penne to this Rhetoricall kynde of cauillyng and scoldyng thē should you haue for seéne this much that this your hideous barkyng might at the least haue resembled the barking of those dogges that were trayned vppe lōg sithence in the Capitoll of Rome not to barke at honest Citizēs walking abroad in the day tyme but to driue away theéues gadders by night and to discouer thē with their barkyng But you so frame your accusation now I know not how preposterously ouerthwartly as that ye seéme more worthy to be noted for a Sycophant thē an accuser as one who passing ouer those lazye Drones and waspes which of all others chiefly ought to haue bene beaten away farre from the Hyues of the Church ye rush onely vpō thē altogether whose worthy trauailes if you were an honest man you would thinke neuer to be able to requite with cōdigne thankefulnes And yet in this your accusation agaynst them you do so enforce the whole bent of your Inuectiue and speach as that no part thereof at all carrieth any shew of truth nor agreément in it selfe First you doe say That these men tooke vpon them this enterprise of a great courage arrogancie and boldnesse whereby they promised to reforme the corrupt maners of the Church accordyng to her former auncient beauty and to bryng this to passe they bounde them selues by solemne oathe Which I haue already declared to be most vntrue yea the whole world witnessing same though I would hold my peace Yea annexe further That many ordinaūces well established in the Church first are taken away by them and abrogated Which also hath bene disproued to be no
lesse friuolous vaine Nay rather if I should tell you as it is in deéde you should haue sayd rather That many thynges haue bene brought into the Church by your Catholickes long sithence the tyme of the Apostles and auncient Fathers so weake of them selues so friuolous and so absurde as could by no meanes endure the glisteryng Beames of the Orient Gospell but must neédes immediately at the very sounde of the Trumpet of truth fall downe of them selues to the grounde and vanish quite out of sight yea without touch of breath as they say And hereupon came it that the Seé of that Beast was darkened hereof came it that the Denne of momishe Monckes neuer founded by God were rooted cleane vppe hereof came it that their goodes and possessions were dispersed abroad their temples destroyed their Images Altares Idolles Monumentes of prophane superstition shyuered in peéces Finally whatsoeuer was repugnaunt to Christes Gospell whatsoeuer apperteined not to his glory whatsoeuer hypocrisie had heretofore builded vpon the Sandes and not vpon the Rocke Christ came all to vtter ruine And there is no doubt but that your Mytred pride Osorius together with that intollerable arrogancy and insolent hautynes of Romish Prelates their Princely trayne Lordly and ambitious Titles and all that Luciferlyke pompe of abhominable lyfe wherein they riotte and reuell in despight of Christ his Gospell shall come to the lyke ouerthrow which doth euen now by all lykely coniectures threaten your vtter subuersion I come now to the other part of your cauill which is in all respectes as vntrue and friuolous Wherein you conclude after this sort That sithence the Preachyng of this Gospell no Reformation of life hath ensued nor that the conuersation of their Auditorie is any ioate at all bettered but rather made much more worse then before But how doe you know this to be true beyng so farre distaunt frō this end of the world Reporte hath told you so Ueryly a fitte messenger for Osorius his grauitie But do you so stoughtly warraūt all your slaunders vpon heare-say good Syr and do ye thinke it enough for you to treade down the Gospell of Christ with your graue and solemne voucher of hearesay onely what can you so quickely harken vnto Reporte geue no credite or eare to Christes Gospell Is it so in deéde hath fame so bewitched your eyes that you cā discerne nothyng but that which is altogether remoued nothyng but wickednes lechery murthers and theftes tumultes and conspiracies Finally nothing reformed nor bettered with vs sithence the embracyng of this Gospell what say you to this when the people be instructed to repose all their hope and affiaunce of Saluation in Christ onely to seéke and craue of this onely patrone and Mediatour a preseruatiue for all maladies reiectyng all peltyng drugges of mens traditions to hold them selues assured in this onely vnpenetrable Rocke to lamēte bewayle all their sinnes before him finally to make a sure couenaūt with thē selues vpō an vndeceauable Faith to haue the fruition of all things apperteinyng to saluation euerlasting cōsolatiō in him by him when godly consciēces entangled before with innumerable snares do begyn to be recomforted with that gladsome Trumpe of Euangelicall Grace and to acknowledge embrace the inestimable riches of Gods glory in Christ Iesu whēas Kyngs hauing shakē frō their shoulders that intollerable yoake of seruile Popish bondage do know how to preserue their owne Seignories and right and Subiectes to yeld due obediēce to their Princes and Magistrates finally when as Idolles and Images beyng subuerted euery person is taught to open his owne cause vnto the liuyng Lord in spirite and truth and to lead his lyfe accordyng to the prescript rule of Gods ordinaūce and not after the Apish Decreés and Decretalles of the Pope and to surcease here frō many others of the same sort which beyng in number infinite almost are you onely alone so bussardly blind that can discerne none of all these can accompt all these pointes of so necessary reformation to be altogether fruitelesse and nothyng worthe But their maners remaine yet vnreformed or rather worse then they were sith this Gospell was receaued Harkē a whiles you Portingal Truly I may selfe haue heard the Iewes obbraying vs christiās with the same faults wherwith you do reproch vs now touching disordered life And it may be peraduēture that amongest the Iewes some Phariseés may lead their liues some what more precisely accordyng to the outward integritie of the law then many Christiās do now a dayes shall the Fayth therfore which the Christians do professe be esteémed any iote lesse ualuable and sounde I beseéch you Syr in what countrey liue you that cā so earnestly reproue vs for not keépyng the discipline of our profession What and if your Auditory say you be not onely not made better c. First render an accompt of your owne Auditory Osorius then make inquisition of ours afterwardes But that we may with lesse difficultie aunswere the faultes wherof you condemne vs I would fayne learne of you first who those be that you note by the name of Auditorie If you meane the Lutherans or Zuinglians surely I know no Lutheranes nor Zuingliās here For as much as we here in England do all professe to be the disciples not of Luther nor of Zuinglius ne yet of Caluine but of Christ the Sonne of the liuyng God onely But go to bycause it hath pleased you to accuse vs by the name of Sectaries thereby to teaze mē so much the more to hate vs tell vs I pray you first this one thyng whether those Lutheranes and Zuinglians be the men with whom these haynous wickednesses murthers and theftes be so ryse vnpunished Truly I do confesse this simply and truly which also I do lament hartely that there is a great nōber of people euery where not here in Englād alone that be endued with no feélyng of Religiō at all nor moued with any earnest motion of mynde to any contemplation of heauenly thynges But such do I neither recompt Lutheranes nor yet worthy to be reckoned amongest the nomber of true Christians Of this sort of people are some the multitude whereof is infinite who like Players vpō a Stage fashioyng them selues to the present tymes maners of Princes turne returne and ouerturne them selues after euery blaste of Religiō accordyng to the tyme and place where they lyue ready alway to follow any kynde of profession now this now that wherein they may best mainteine their countenaunces dignities and worship in good likyng and without perill but as for these I vouchsafe neither the name of Lutherās nor Catholicks but Newtralls a rascall most abiect people of all others And this also your selfe do cōfesse playnly in this booke namely that you know many in this our Realme constaunt vnremoueable Catholickes whom likewise you will not haue to be nombred as the Auditorie of this
assault agaynst vs as finding nothing offensiue to any man in our fayth in our Religion in our manner of worshypping nor our Church ordinaunces he presently rusheth vpon our liues and rippeth abroad the vnhonest behauiour of men and in this discourse he spendeth all his powder and shotte of slaunders lyes outcries figures and all his exclamations of accusation And therefore it behoueth me also to alter the state of my defence so that from henceforth I shall not need to aūswere for our doctrine our fayth our Sacramēts and the institution of our Churches which differ not frō the institution Apostolicke but for the liues onely and the outward conuersations and maners of our Ministers And first It is well truely and I do prayse you Osorius so do all the rest of vs likewise acknowledge our selues indebted vnto you in a whole Cartlode of thankes in this behalfe For sithence you apply all the force of your accusation to reproue our euill demeanor and corruption of maners onely hauing els no matter of reproch iustly to charge vs withall surely euen by this onely testimony of your owne mouth you doe fully acquite vs in such wise as all men may well playnely perceaue that all thinges els are well stayed and sound with vs concerning other poyntes of our doctrine and christian profession All which if you thinke may be tollerable enough amongest vs why may ye not aswell release vs of your action of heresy and schisme in so much as all hereticall waywardnesse consisteth not in conuersation of life properly but in doctrine and Religiō But if it be our doctrine that you and your Catholickes doe mislike chiefly why do you not prosequute this action agaynst vs why do ye not stay here why runne you away like a coward from your challenge wherefore do ye turne ouer all the substāce and rigor of your accusation agaynst our liues and manners leauing our doctrine in the field why are ye so lusty and frolicke in that one and so white liuered and caponlike in this other You do accuse vs of Nouelty If you charge the doctrine of our Religion with this Noueltye declare them in playne wordes in what part of Doctrine and in which one article of the commō Creéd we do vary frō the Apostolique or propheticall scriptures Nay rather what doe our Churches professe at this day that we haue not drawen taken from the Apostles the Euangelistes yea and from Christ himselfe the very author and foūder of fayth which also we mayntayne and keép very Religiously you haue tofore treated I confesse of freéwill of righteousnesse of workes and of certayne other principles somewhat but so haue you handled your selfe therein that it had bene better for you to haue bene silent and mumme for the further you roll in this puddle the more durt cleaueth to your backe and both bewrayeth where you haue bene and maketh you to loase the whole grace of your market And now perceauing your selfe destitute of ayde in this kinde of conflict you flye the field cowardly and renew your skirmish in narrow streights inuading the corruptions and escapes of maners and lyues with lyeng and slauntyng Wherein I would not so much reprehend you as though you had delt much amisse if in this behalfe you proceéded against vs with a good simple meaning and as we do all with you altogether who are no lesse agreéued with that outragious corruption of maners thē your selues are Now euē here also you shew your selfe so cold and vnprouided as that by your vnskilfull hādling of the matter you disclose rather the scabbe of your owne Fistula then minister salue to any others soare For you do not therfore so earnestly reproue our lewdenes and misdemeanour how horrible so euer it be bycause your mynde is so much agreéued thereat or bycause you haue any earnest desire to bryng vs to amendemēt but this rather is the whole scope of your scoldyng that as it were occasioned by these you might pyke out some fitt matter to whett your cursed and slaunderous toung more freély agaynst Luther and other godly Ministers and bryng them into hatred contempt conceauyng in your imagination to bryng this to passe that if the world would by your meanes but conceaue euill of the Lutheranes as that their Churches did swarme and were ouerwhelmed with abhomination of life then the credite of our doctrine should be easily crackt those godly personages which tooke vpon them to restore the sinceritie of the Gospell should be accounted for errant heretiques most execrable false Prophetes for hereunto is your whole Rhetoricke strayned Osorius But let vs seé how well this Rhetoricke doth agreé with the Rules of Logicke And bycause as your selfe say it is not sufficient for a mā to affirme what him listeth with bare wordes onely let vs behold not your vayne ianglyng but the very substaūce of your meanyng And to begyn now with the principall part of the controuersie to witte whereas in the defence of our Church Haddon had sayd as true it was in deéde that our doctrine was neither new nor did differre any iote from the Institution and discipline of the Apostles all this saying of Haddon Osorius doth vtterly deny doth Reply agaynst it that our Church hath no affinitie at all with the Institution and discipline of the Apostles nor any continuaūce in Antiquitie And who so Now marke his reasons gentle Reader and marueile a whiles at the wonderfull dexteritie of this Portingall Prelate For Haddon sayth he doth bryng no president or example of that auncient vertue Fourth a Gods name Moreouer in all that Church appeare no exāples of that heauenly vertue What vertues speake you of here good Syr Miracles What doe ye looke for such miracles in these dayes No. But luste say you raungeth in your Churches wickednes is ryfe hygh wayes and passadges are replenished with theeues treasons and conspiracies are common practizes of the people treachery and villany bringeth all thynges into perill for the simple puritie of the Gospell these fellowes haue in all cōmon weales scattered abroad horrible wickednes for concorde and charitie execrable dissentions pride in steade of modestie for Religiō Sacriledge for freedome seruile bondage for Ciuill orders outrage finally for trāquilitie and peace cruell and detestable tumultes and commotions And who be they I pray you Luther I thinke Melācthon Bucer Caluine Zuinglius Haddon and such others their like Go to is there any more yet And all these mischieues say you after the doctrine of these men tooke place were in such wise not rooted out as that they encrease rather dayly more and more amongest vs and are growen to greater heapes all which mischieues notwithstandyng if were but light or meane at the least the matter were not so great for that might haue bene pardonable in respect of the weakenesse of mans Nature But what shall we say now of that most horrible and execrable haynousnes
wherewith they haue practized the dissipation ouerthrow vtter spoyle and consumyng of all thynges both publicke and priuate with fire and sword yea the most holy thynges of the Church Be of good cheare now I suppose this whotte flamyng Rhetoricall smoake is come almost to an end Can Osorius amplification adde yet more hereunto surely these be great matters yea very great in deéde but yet you shall heare farre more haynous For whereas emongest other kynde of liuyng creatures which nature hath formed to the destruction of mankynd some do bewitche with their eyes and lookyng on some do infect with touchyng others doe kill with their teeth and some with their tayles These Lutherās do so contriue their matters that they doe not onely poyson the bodyes the soules and the lyues of men with the contagion of their wickednesse but vpon what grounde soeuer they set footyng I doe not say they defile the same with those former small faultes but wheresoeuer they tread with their feete they leaue the same lande contamined and poysoned with many more ye more execrable abhominations And why doth he not adde this also withall that what shyppe soeuer they enter into of purpose to sayle ouer Sea they do also drowne the same shipp into the bottome of the Sea with ouer burdē of their wickednes why then clappe your handes reioyce you Osorians congratulate this yonr notable Rhethoriciā who if you haue not yet learned the arte of lying and flaunderyng haue here a notable Schoolemaister whom ye may follow And so when you haue magnified this your exquisite Maister triumphauntly enough write some Epitaphe for this wretched caytife Haddon worthy his impudencie who notwithstandyng all these horrible abhominations shamed not to stand in the defence of this new doctrine agaynst this great Doctour Osorius Moreouer that the singuler excellency of this your Maister may shyne so much the more notably Behold now not the Rhetoricke but the modesty and humanitie of the man For whereas this might haue sufficed him if at least he might haue woonne this much which we can in no wise deny to witte that our maners are not correspondent to that most exact and exquisite rule of most holy and Apostlicque Religion Which thyng these new Apostles vndērtooke to bryng to passe yet the sweete man contented of his incredible courtesie to acquite vs of this quarell doth now deale with vs after this maner not to compare vs as he might of his Pontificall authoritie doe it well enough with the Apostles nor with auncient Fathers of the primitiue Church but doth referre vs to our owne forefathers and doth require this onely at our handes that we Englishmē should frame our selues to the grauitie vertue Religion and holynes of our aūcestours and by their example become like vnto them in lyke integritie of lyfe But for as much as we can not aspire to the glory and renowme of their vertues which were also by many degrees inferiour to the Apostles how much and how farre discrepant therfore is the Institutiō of our Church in this point that it may carry any resemblaunce at all of that Apostolicke institution and discipline which discipline ought to expresse it selfe not in vayne ostentation and tauntyng but in superexcellent examples of righteousnes chastitie sinceritie Religion and charitie and a life altogether vndefiled vnreproueable conuersation and a most serious desire and endeuour of heauenly vertue You haue heard godly Reader the knittyng vppe of the conclusion of this Peroratiō fetcht out of the very entrailes of all Rhethoricke Now take an Argument of the same somewhat more compendiously knitte vppe not with floorishyng figures of Rhetoricke but framed euen in the very schoole and Arte of Logicke and comprehended in fewe wordes that it may easily appeare how to Iudge of the same more certeinly and to aunswere the matter more fittely The life of the Lutheranes as he calleth them is haynous and farre vnlike the life of the Apostles and their own auncestours Ergo The doctrine that the Lutheranes do professe in their Churches is altogether discrepant from the Doctrine and Institution of the Apostles For as much as this is the whole force and Summary conclusion of your Argument Osorius It remaineth agayne that we aunswere vnto the same And what aunswere may we frame more fitte and agreable to the matter then to deny the Argumēt For I beseéch you where did you learne this Logicke to knitte such fleéyng fruitlesse moates together or where haue you learned this Diuinitie to measure mens doctrine and profession by maners and conuersation of life When Haddon debated with you of Fayth onely and Religion it behoued you to haue aunswered the same accordyngly which if seémed in your conceipt to varry from the Institution Apostolicke in any pointes the same should haue bene layd open by you the Articles shoulde haue bene noted by some speciall marke and conuinced with Scriptures those errours should haue bene refuted with lawfull Testimonies and authorities those heresies should haue bene discouered and confuted But you omittyng that part of the controuersie which belonged to doctrine skyppe away to other matters not such as are of no importaunce but such neuerthelesse as concerne the present matter nothyng at all accordyng to the old Prouerbe which is the way to Canterbury a pocke full of plummes And this much to the Conclusion of your euillfauoured clouted Argument I come now to aunswere that part of your argument wherewith you vrge vs most namely Manners albeit the same hath bene once done already but so I would aunswere you as that I would desire you to aunswere me first simply to a few questions First whereas you Rayle so franckly agaynst the maners of our people do you know this that ye write to be true by any sure argument or knowledge of your owne but how canne you attayne vnto it being so meare a straunger and so farre seuered from vs by distaunce of place Or els haue you conceaued it to be so by some coniecture of your owne head but we take you for no Proyet Or haue you beleued it vpon some vagarant tales or reports of others but talebearers may deceaue you haue deceiued many Or did you dreame of any such happely ouercharged with some wine of Creéte But the men of Creete haue bene alwayes accounted lyers Agayne euery fond dreame is not by and by a prophecy As Basile reporteth Moreouer do you inueigh against all the Lutheranes generally or agaynst some particulerly if you meane all you speake vntruely If you speake of many tell vs when did you number thē if of some perticuler persons it standeth agaynst all reason that the offence of a few dissolute persones should be a cōmon reproch to the whole order of Mynisterie Now agayne lette vs seé what kinde of offences they be wherwith you charge vs what do you meane therfore all kindes and sortes of abhominations Osorius without any exception or those small
but sturred vpp by the flaming fyrebrandes of the furyes of hell and that they applyed themselues not to teach men but to peruert men Of the discention and variable opinions of Deuines and Churches hath bene spoken of before so that it shall be but neédeles to repeate the same agayne onely I will aunswere here to the argument God is not the Author of discention but of peace I doe know this and confesse it to be most true So also is the same God the fountayn of all righteousnes and father of all consolation The same is also Author of Matrimony and of all good thinges Go to now where can you finde in all the estates courses and actions of this transitory lyfe that fulnes and absolute perfection of righteousnes of consolation or of peace yea in the most holy estate of matrimonye as may be aunswerable to that absolute patterne of perfection Lett it suffice vs to haue receaued the first fruits thereof though we possesse not the Tenthes There will come a day and a place when as no darkened cloud of discention shall ouershadow this perfect peace betwixt vs. In the meane space whiles we lyue in this vale of misery men with men we shall neuer be destitute of one thing or other that will alwayes argue vs to be men dwelling in the tabernacle of Imperfection And therefore if Osorius will be so nyce as to exact of vs so precise a knitting together of vnvariable minds as may in no poynt swarue frō ech other lett himselfe become a president hereof in his owne Coūtrey and shew himselfe an Angell emongest his owne people And what maruell is it if in so great varietie of Iudgemētes and amongest so many men two men onely dissent somewhat in matter of so small importaunce whenas in this your so vniforme a Church whereof ye boast so proudly there is no parcell of Religion almost or order in profession wherein Schoole agaynst Schoole Uniuersitie agaynst Uniuersitie Colledge agaynst Colledge Councell agaynst Councell Canon agaynst Canon doe not mainteine continuall iarryng How is it then Osorius that with shuttevppe eyes ye can so lightly ouerlooke and not looke vpon so many and so monstruous Beames ouerspreadyng your Churches and not passe ouer one litle moate in our Church without controllyng your brethren but that ye must burst out into such whotte fury of hellish firebrandes With the Spirite of God say you is no dissensiō This is most true And so it is true also that Luther Zuinglius be not taken for Gods which can not erre nor dissent eche from other in some pointes Neither doth it therfore follow hereupon that bycause they do not reteigne a mutuall constaunt cōsent of myndes in all thyngs that therfore they were not raysed vppe by God Otherwise after this Logicke how many auncient and godly Fathers will you banish out of all Churches was there neuer any iarryng betwixt Moyses and Aaron That contention betwixt Paule Peter about the mainteynyng of the libertie of the Gospell and agayne that separatyng a sunder of Paule from Barnabas is well knowen to all mē It whiles the Lord him selfe lyued vpon the earth the Disciples them selues could be at variaunce about preéminence and superioritie what maruell now if his Disciples do not so well agreé together in all pointes sithēce Christ is not present emongest them who were more familiar then Basile and Gregory Nazienzene and yet in this marueilous consent of qualities and studies wanted not a certeine offence and breache of that mutuall amitie Victor did not of all partes agreé with Policarpus How earnest a conflict deuided Iohn Byshop of Constantinople and Epiphanius Byshop of Cypres Neither did Augustine in all thynges agreé with Ierome And yet I thinke you will not say that these men were not raysed vppe by the grace and Deuine inspiration of God Well now Let vs seé what this so great dissention was betwixt them which as you say proceéded from Luther What a brable was there betwixt them say you about wordes what varietie and inconstancy of opinions how disorderly how intricately and ouerthwartly do they speake in how many sondry matters and Argumentes do they not onely not agree with others but also disagree eche from other Forsooth if you will know Osorius and sith you require the same I will shew you in few wordes what and how monstruous this cōflict was betwixt thē First they do all togethers with one voyce confesse one God they doe all with one Fayth acknowledge the Father the Sonne and the Holy Ghost They do all with one mynde agreé togethers in the Articles of the Christian Creede with the true auncient and Catholicke Fayth of the Church of Christ. Of this Church they do all acknowledge the authoritie of the Scripture to be chief next vnder Christ the second place and dignitie they do yeld to the Church to the auncient and approued Councels The godly and auncient Fathers they do all with one consent allow and yeld vnto so farreforth as euery of them is founde to agreé with the expresse word of God Heresies and false opiniōs reproued by the authoritie of holy Scripture and the sacred antiquitie of the Church they do all generally oppugne besides this authoritie of Scripture the most couenable proportion of Fayth whatsoeuer hath priuily crawled and crept in by stealth into the profession of Fayth and true worshyppyng of God they do all vtterly and worthly abhorre whatsoeuer is most aunciēt in Fayth and most approued by cōstaunt allowaunce of antiquitie the same is had amongest thē in greatest admiration In the acknowledgemēt of one onely Mediatour in heauen one onely Sacrifice for Sinnes which is resiaunt not in the earth but in heauen in confessyng one onely generall head of the vniuersall Church in all these is there no discention nor brawlyng about wordes or Sentences Moreouer in this they agreé together all be of one mynde and iudgement all namely that the Pope of Rome is the very Antichrist whereof they haue assured and vndoughted proofe by the certeine and infallible Rules and forewarnynges of the holy Scripture and by his horrible persecution of the word of God Besides this also that all Idolles and Images ought to be abolished out of the Church of God That those choppyng chaungyng of Pardons ought to be abhorred That all affiauce of righteousnes of God ought to be settled in the onely Fayth of Iesu Christ and in nothyng els That superfluous vowes and Traditions of men which do yoake fast and clogge Christian libertie and well disposed consciences ought vtterly to be abolished That Ceremonies and Constitutions which are ioyned with an opinion of righteousnesse of worshyppyng of Saluation merityng ought worthely to be banished abandonned that Priestes Concubines ought to be conuerted into lawfull Matrimony that those mōstruous vpstartes of disguised professions rules and orders ought be rooted out that all thyngs may be reduced and leuelled
vouchsafe to enlighten that ouerdarckened blindenes of your drowsy sences and new fashion the same into a more found knowldge and vnderstanding of the trueth of his Gospell Now doe you perceaue the desire and loue that we haue of your safety Osorius albeit you be not come to Purgatory as yet It is reason therfore that we lykewise vnderstād the Carity of your Charitie We doe pray vnto God say you with earnest intercessions and prayers most purely powred forth for the quick and the dead and for the sauety of our Brethren I doe behold a very godly and comfortable imagination of yours conceaued in the behalfe of the dead and do prayse the same But when doe ye this good Syr In your dayly supplications and meétings I thinke not so But at that tyme especially say you that is chosen out to be most meere to worke the most holy worke of all to witt at that tyme which we do choose to pacifie the wrath of God not with the bloud offringes of footed Beastes but with the body and bloud of Christ. what a bald deuise is this of the man how variable is the inconstancye of his doctrine For if as you sayd a litle earst Christ onely doe not performe the full price of our redēption but that Paule and many others doe dayly offer most holy Sacrifices for the dead that is to say for the saluation of the dead with what confidence dare you now presume to pacifye the wrath of God with the onely body and bloud of Christ excludyng the Sacrifices and offringes of all other or how often must the body of Christ be offred to pacifie the wrath of God If our first Father Adā was able by one onely offence to destroy and cast away the whole ofspring of posterity Is not Christ in all respectes as able by one onely oblation of his body and bloud to make amendes of the same which Adam foredidd and brought to nought And with what reason will you perswade vs that you take vpon you to reconcile the fauor of God by the bloud of Christ who professe that your Sacrifice is not a bloudly Sacrifice Moreouer whereas the Sonne of God did satisfye for all thinges with his precious bloud shedd vpon the Crosse as well the thinges in heauen as the thinges vpō the earth what one thing then hath he left to be satisfied by you Or if there remayne any thing as yet of Gods Iudgement vnreconciled and not throughly clensed euen to the vttermost and most absolute fullnes how hath he then by one onely oblation made perfect for euer all them that be sanctified how did it seéme good vnto the Father that all fullnesse should dwell in the Sonne how were all thinges sayd to be at an end and finished whiles Christ did hang vpon the Crosse with what face dare Paule teach vs that all Enimity was blotted out by Christes death on the Crosse and all hatred wipte awaye by his fleshe if Gods Maiestye must be as yet reconciled by your offringes and Sacrifices He that brake downe the wall that was betwixt vs and God was not the same able to ouerthrow rotten Walles of your paynted Purgatory he that did vtterly remoue the wrath of his Father could not the same he extinguish and quite put out the flames of Purgatory without Sainctes merites and Popish Pardons Nay rather what neéde any Pardons at all procured or imagined out of the treasure of the Church if you Catholick shauelinges doe take vpon you to reconcyle the Maiestye of God by your dayly offring of Christes body and bloud I will recyte here not a fable but a true history of Germany out of Wolgangus Musculus which happened at Haganoy in the yeare of our Lord 1517. to witt the same yeare wherein M. Luther beganne to Inueigh agaynst the Popes Bulles There was a wyfe of a certein Shoomaker who a litle before sheé dyed for a certayn number of Crownes purchased a Bull from the Pope whereby she did assure her selfe of freé deliueraunce out of Purgatory Within a whiles after this woman being dead the Husband hauing intelligence of the Bull perfourmed the obsequies and funeralls of his wyfe orderly and decently as beseémed an honest Husband to doe not regarding in the meane space Masses Dyrges Trentalls and other trincketts of the lyke Mockeries vsually exercised in the Church after the old solēne maner for the redeéming of soules departed out of this lyfe The parish Priest being not a litle greued with the matter beganne to maruell and to take in ill part the contempt of Religion and to complayne of the vnkinde behauior and impiety of the Husband towardes his wife and at the last framing a libell of the matter accuseth the Shoomaker for an heretique To be briefe The Shoomaker was arested by a Serieant the matter was pleaded before the Maior of the Cittie The Shoomaker for his defence pleaded that the cause why he did not purchase Supplications and Masses according to the olde accustomed fashion for the health of his wyues soule proceéded not of any contempt that he hadd agaynst any of the solemne ceremonyes of the Church but because he was assured that his wyues soule was already saued in heauen he thought good to abate such extraordynary and vnnecessary charges and withall taking the Popes Bull out of his bosome desireth the Maior that it might be openly readd The Maior doth deliuer the Bull to the parish Priest to read The Priest seéing the Popes Bull stood still amazed at the first and a good whiles refused to reade it at the last being constrayned by the Maior he didd reade it ouer assoone as the Bull was read ouer both the Maior and the parish Priest being throughly ashamed held their peace The Shoomaker was earnest to proceé to Iudgement vpon the aucthoritye of the Apostolick Release to make it appeare what they iudged now of the soule of his wyfe whether sheé were now in heauen or in Purgatory If sheé be in Purgatorye then the Bull doth lye but if sheé be flowen vpp into heauen according as the Pope commaunded her then was there no cause why he should hyre any hireling shaueling to say Masses or Dyrges for his wyues soule The Maior and the Priest hauing nothing to say to the contrary nor daring to condemne the Popes Pardone acquited the shoomaker of the action by a Nonesuite Masses and Sacrifices BUt I returne to Osorius agayne who if hadd bene Commissary in this case I know not what aunswere he would haue made to this shoomaker But this is out of all question that this Purgatory whereabout these Catholickes keepe such a sturre can by no meanes be of any force and power but that either the Popes Pardons or these your Sacrifices of Satisfactory Masses Shall be by that meanes doughted of and come into great perill to be vtterly discredited For if yonr Stationes of Rome the Pardons of
estimation of his speaches without yeloyng any reason or demonstration of the thynges which he vttereth in good sooth then haue you spoken enough Osorius and crackt the creditt of all the poore Lutherans vtterly as you say But if in decidyng of controuersies trueth must be tryed not with bare speéches but with substantiall matter certes either you must gett a better visor for your glorious persuation or els in my iudgement you were better hold your peace altogether You doe oppresse vs in a glorious braggery of speéch with the speéches of the Apostles and with the tradicioÌ„s of the Apostles disciples And yet out of all the Apostles writings can not any man hitherto force from you no not by violence one title so much which will auaile any ioate to the creditt of those your Assertions but will rather deface them discouer your packing Upon the neck of them you do force vpon vs also the authoritye of auncient Fathers and the generall consent of the vniuersall Church cleare from all maner of variablenes and disagreéing What a iest is this As though there were any one of those auncient Fathers euer borne as yet that euer vttered one sillable so much of purging the sinnes of the faythfull after they were once departed this lyfe or of the Popes Pardons of the Propiciatory Sacrifice of the Masse of Transubstantiation of Merite Meritorious of Merite of CoÌ„gruum and Condignum or that euer durst presume to make the Sacrifice of the Altar comparable with the Sacrifice of the Crosse or durst affirme that Christ himselfe was really in the consecrated hoast with all the dimentions and liniaments of the same body which suffred death vpon the Crosse or would euer ascribe to a pelting Priest full power to Merite and offerr Sacrifice for the quick and the dead Now if euer you haue chaunced vpon any such Doctrine in the writings of the auncient Fathers gentle Syr Byshopp why doe yoe not vouch the same boldly wherby you may seéme to haue confuted vs not with babling but with trueth and substaunce of matter But if you haue not so done as yet nor seéme euer able to doe it where is then that generall consent and agreément of the whole Church Where be these Records and Monuments of auncient Antiquitye and of all foreages Where be those inuincible Arguments Where be those irreproueable Testimonyes and vndeceiueable examples wherevpon you crake so lustely perhappes you will empart them vnto vs in your next bookes at your better leysure For hitherto as yet you haue hadd no leysure to muster that your braue guarison that you beare your selfe so stought vpon and to leade them into the fielde being otherwise surcharged with farr more weightie affaires And now to deteigne theé no longer geÌ„tle Reader thou hast heard heretofore howe this Portiugall hath powred forth his prattling Rhetorick for the vpholding of his Purgatory his Uowes his Supplications and Prayers for the safety of the dead and also of that most holy oblation of all other the Sacrifice of the body and bloud of Christ offred for the reconcilemeÌ„t of Gods wrath and displeasure There remayneth behinde the knitting vp of all this geare Wherein purposing to make an end of his whole discourse he rusheth vpon Haddon with all the bent of his Eloquence Dare you be so bold sayth he to call this holynes of Religion this ardent endeuour of Loue this comfortable oblation offred not for vs alone but for our bretheren also wherewith we are knitt together in an euerlasting amitye to be defacinges disgracements of Religion A very haynous offeÌ„ce verily to call a Boate by the name of a Boate and a Mattock by the name of a Mattock But here was one sharde left open which must neédes be slopt vp with some brambles and Bryars Is not this foolishnes Is not this vnshamefastnes Is not this Madnes For if Osorius Eloquence were not furnished with these flashing flames surely it would be very colde But how more commendable yea how much more seémely and sittingly for his personage in my conceipt should he haue done if surceasing these outragious exclamations which preuaile not to the creditt of his cause the value of a pinne he hadd discreetly and with sober reasons debated the matter first and examined thoroughly whether Haddon hadd spoken trueth or falshood If he haue vttered the trueth then is Osorius frendly dealt withall If he haue spoken any untruethes there be scriptures there be arguments meéte and couenable Reasons wherwith Osorius might easily both defend the truth of his ReligioÌ„ and preserue it from to be impeached by others Spightfull reproching Skornefull taunting Cotqueanelyke rayling Rascallyke raging and Barbarous exclaming further not the defence of his cause If Osorius be so fully settled and so throughly wedded to his Church that no persuasion will seduce him to thinke that his Churche may straye by any meanes from the right course and that in all his Religion is no wrinkle or spott that may be amended surely he is herein very much deceaued Conferr who so list the whole face shape of the Popes ReligioÌ„ to witt his adoratioÌ„ his SacrameÌ„ts his Masses his breadworshipp his Imageworshipp his Sacrifices his ApplicatioÌ„ his TransubstantiatioÌ„ his Releasing of sinnes his Merits his Ceremonyes his Pardons sixe hundreth lyke papisticall truÌ„peries with the pure cleare founteines of the sacred Scriptures with the Institution Euangelicall and the expresse rule of the doctrine Apostolique and he shall easily perceaue that Haddon did vse an ouer myld maner of speéch wheÌ„ he called theÌ„ disgracements Some other man perhappes would haue blazed abroad these dreggs with some grosser tearmes Truely if the Apostle Paul hadd heard these profound opinions and these deépe deuises of the Romish Religion and hadd seéne their decrees their Cannons their Clogges of Ceremonies snares of consciences I he liued now and beheld these obseruations of dayes Monethes times these vowes and restraintes of meÌ„ forbidding Marriage denying the lawfull vse of meates which are now dayly frequented in the Church would any man dought whether he would call these disgracements of Religion or the Doctrines of Deuils rather But because we haue spoken hereof sufficiently before It shall be lesse neédefull to take this dounghill abroad any more But Osorius goeth forward and because HaddoÌ„ shall not escape sâ—â—tfreé for naming his pontificall pilfe to be disgracements of Religion Osorius acquiteth him with the like beadroll of the Lutherans corruptions in a long raggemarow of wordes that so comparing both partes one with an other to witt Luthers nakednes and beggery with the maiestie glory of the Catholickes he may make them to grow into the greater obloquy and hatred It remaineth therefore that we geue eare a whiles vnto the gallaunt brauery and loftines of Osorius Eloquence To abaÌ„don dutifull obedieÌ„ce to the Magistrate to disturbe the auncient ordinaunces of the Church to defyle the virginitie of sacred Nunnes
With like outrage did Queéne Alfrithe kyng Edgar his wife most cruelly murther Edward the Martyr her sonne in law by meanes wherof she might place into the kyngdome her owne sonne Egelrede At the last repeÌ„tyng her of her former wickednes did erect two Abbayes in satisfactioÌ„ of her murther to witt Amesbury and Werwell about the yeare of our Lord. 979. Kyng Athelstane hauyng slayne his brother Egwyne whoÌ„ he drowned tyraÌ„nously in the Sea after the slaughter of his brother did builde two Abbayes namely Mydleton and Michelney enriched them with great reuenewes for the Redemption of his brothers soule and forgeuenes of the murther Upon the same occasioÌ„ or not much vnlike was Battell Abbay first founded which kyng William the Conquerour after he hadd wooâ—ne the fielde and slayne a great multitude of notable Souldiours did cause to be builded in the same place for the release of the soules and Sinnes of all such as were slayne in that battell I haue thought good to sett downe a brief note of these the like whereof I could haue rehearsed many more All which albeit I had rypped abroad would haue bene sufficient Presidentes that they all had one maner of begynning and one cause of foundation namely none other then which might vtterly deface the glory of Christ the assuraunce and trust of our Redemption and withall the whole Grace and comfort of Christes Gospell O holy foundation of Monckish Religion O wonderfull monumentes of maruelous holynesse O sweéte and smoathe Deuine that can so amyably persuade vs to retourne to these principles and foundations wherein he seémeth in my Iudgement to endeuour nothyng els then to bryng vs Christians in belief that forsakyng Christ and renouncyng the doctrine of the Gospell we should repose the saluation and redemption of our soules and the forgeuenes of our Sinnes not in the Sonne of God but in Monckes and Monckeries But lett vs pursue Osorius by the tracke of his foote whiles he hasteneth to the end of his booke who glauncyng away from the MouÌ„ckes at the last doth begyn to proyne his feathers and to make a shew of his proper witt to Kinges and Princes And here he rusheth vpon the poore Lutheranes with an horrible accusation of high Treason And why so I pray you whether because the life of Princes hath bene preserued by them or deâ—owred by theyr practise No. But treason hath bene conspired agaynst theyr lyues and theyr Crownes and vproares raysed As in Germany agaynst Charles the Emperour In Fraunce agaynst Henrye the Kyng in England against Edward who he doth affirme was poysoned by the Lutherans Agaynst Queene Mary In Scotland agaynst the King whom he affirmeth to be horribly murthered Yea Syr in this last you speake true indeéd but to name the Author of this murther you play mumme budgett Yea and not agaynst these Princes onely but agaynst many more prynces besides Osorius doth boldly say conspyracies to haue bene attempted by the Lutheranes And why doth he not emongest the Kynges and Princes of Germany Fraunce England and Scotland before named reckon vpp also Prynces of Turky of Scithia of Persia of India of Aethiopia with their Emperors Kinges and Potentates The great Sophye Emperour of Persia and Moskouia Prester Iohn And sithence he taketh so great a delight in lying why doth he not with as shamelesse a face exclayme that the Lutheranes haue conspired Treasons and procured poysons agaynst those persons forasmuch as hys lying therein cann beare no better countenaunce then it doth in the rest But forasmuch as these slaunders are wisely and sufficiently aunswered before by mayster Haddon in the first book it were labor lost to abuse the Readers time in refuting those vntruthes which be alreadye confounded before especiallye sithence this cause doth neither concerne the doctrine which we do professe and sithence Osorius will be proued a lyar herein by no person more easily then by the Scottish Queéne her selfe to speake nothing in the meane space of the publique and generall testimonies of Germany Fraunce and England Therefore passing ouer those Princes I will frame my selfe to the other part of his complaynt which concerneth our most gracious Queéne Elizabeth aboue all the rest And here I beseéch theé geÌ„tle Reader lett it not seéme tedious vnto theé to pawse a whyles that thou mayst perceiue how like a Deuine Osorius doth behaue himselfe For framing himselfe to discourse vpon Ecclesiasticall gouernement which he doth constantly denye is not meéte shoulde be committed to the creditte of a Temporall King much lesse to a Queéne in any respect which because the Queénes Maiesty shall not take in ill part as though he defaced any part of her honor he doth very humbly craue pardon of her grace with an honorable preface For he is not the man that will presume to extenuate any part of her honour but rather doth wishe with all hys hart that she may of all partes so abound in vertue that she may be shrined for a Saynct We do ioyfully embrace the godly modesty of this sweéte Byshopp and loe because we will not be found vnthankefull vnto him for the vertues that he doth hartely wish to our gratious Queéne we in requitall of his curtesy doe pray to GOD to endue him with as much of his heauenly grace as may conuert him from a vayneglorious papisticall Babler into a frendly follower and embracer of the infallible truth of the Gospell But lett vs returne agayne to the Ecclesiasticall supremacy of Osorius which he doth yoake so fast to the Byshopp onely that he doth vtterly exclude all other kinges and Queénes especially from all charge ecclesiasticall So that he verilye adiudgeth that there cann come no greater infamy to Religion theÌ„ that all Churches ceremonyes and all ordinaunces of the Church all priestly dignityes and holynesse should be subiect to the gouernement of a woman For these be his owne words wherein what he meaneth himselfe either he doth not sufficiently expresse in telling his tale or els my blockishnesse surely can not compreheÌ„d his deépenesse He doth so swell in hawtynesse of speéch that whiles he endeuoureth with waxed winges to fleé beyond the view of common sence aboue the bright cloudes of playne Grammer that through the heat of his skalding braynes he hath drowned himselfe in the deépe and by reaching beyond his reach he reacheth nothing at all Wherefore renouncing once at the length this curious cripsing and blazing brauery of hawtye speéch begyn once at the last to declare vnto vs in playne tearmes distinctly and playnely what your Rhetoryck meaneth by these wordes that all holynesse should be subiect to the gouernement of a woman If you meane of thinges that are of theÌ„selues holy and deuine your quarrell is altogether vntrue wherewith you charge the Queénes maiesty For where did the Queéne euer desire to gouerne or where did she euer desire to beare rule ouer all holy and sacred thinges and this holynesse whereof you make mention
that either he recreate his spirites with some other exercize or cease here after do abuse our Gracious Queéne Elizabeth specially with such kinde of trumpery wherein to tell you the truth Osorius you haue lost your labor and cost for you preuayle no whitt thereby as you seé What successe you may haue hereafter we committ vnto the Lord Certes hetherto as yet you may putt all your winninges in your eyes and seé neuer a shine the lesse as the proofe it selfe doth declare And be it say you that I preuayle nothyng herein yet wanted not sufficient testimony of a well wishyng mynde which ought not be vnthankefully taken emongest gratefull and honest personages Of your good meanyng what shall I say which how ready and inclinable it is I do easily perceaue but to what effect I beseéch you For to what other end shall we Iudge it so ready but to procure our most gracious Queéne then whose nature nothyng can be more disposed to lenitie and gentlenes to be sett on fire none otherwise then as it were some flamyng firebrand contrary to the naturall disposition engraueÌ„ within her royall brest by the finger of God to seéke the spoyle of her natiue Countrey with cruelty tormentes and destruction of her subiectes by fier and fagottes like vnto the furious persecutions and madde outrage executed in the tyme of her sister Queéne Mary For what better successe could haue bene hoped for out of those wicked mischieuous counsell of yours for lett vs suppose and imagine in our conceiptes which yet her most excellent Maiestie could neuer haue suffred to haue entred in her thought that you might haue preuailed and obteined your purpose or at least as much as you hoped for what then Could you conceaue in your mynde that the matter had bene accomplished forthwith assoone as you had entred into the Castell of fauour as though her Maiestie alone be the onely enemy to the Pope within this her dominion Beleéue not so O Solon and hereof assure your selfe that there is within this litle Island a greater nomber by many thousandes more then any man would Iudge that will rather yeld their carâ—asses to tortures then suffer theÌ„ selues to be defiled with the marke of that Beast And what thinke you will become then of the rest of the multitude whose consciences are not yet fully settled of whom there is an infinite nouÌ„ber within this Realme you will say that the Prince must vse force force them to fagotte that will not obay Is this the couÌ„sell you geue to a Queéne Herein forsooth we poore wretched Englishmen are very much beholdyng vnto your sweéte Fatherhood for your gentle reward But what if fayth will not be forced yea what if it can not be brought to yeld what if her highnes it selfe be not Queéne ouer consciences nor any worldly creature els for fayth wil be enstructed can not constrayned I say also moreouer it can not be vanquished by death but euen then rather it triumpheth most And although it may lose lyfe in this world yet will it neuer yeld to earthly creature but to God and his truth Wherefore in as much as this your whole discourse which you prosecute so earnestly is of this condition that it doth no more concerne any Christian Prince whatsoeuer then the subiectes of his Realme for what is more agreable with the maners of the people then Fayth and Religion If you haue determined with your selfe to bestow any further trauaile in the like cause by word or by writyng I iudge it best and withall do aduise you that you trouble not her Maiesty from henceforth with any such matter but proclayme forth your challenge agaynst the Byshops rather agaynst the Doctours and Deuines finally agaynst the subiectes of England and the consciences of the people whom if you be able to enduce with force of firme doctrine and pytthe of substaunciall Arguments to the direction of their consciences you shall shewe your selfe herein a very honest man But then must you frame vs some other kynde of bookes and other maner of letters For the bookes that we haue hitherto receaued from you are such kinde of ware as neither delighte the Queénes grace nor like well the subiectes For this cause therefore my good Lord Ierome I do the more willingly aduize you not to cease wrytyng henceforth Nay rather write on a Gods name paynte on deuise on and coyne on as much as ye list I will not lett you For so long shall it be lawfull for you to haue will to endite vntill at the last it will not onely repente you of the losse of your labour but withall make you ashamed of so much good tyme so wickedly employed And therefore take me not as though I would wishe you to surcease from writyng to throwe away your penne but rather I wish you to write and to endyte vntill you be hoarse withall Hereof neuerthelesse I warâ—e you before that vnlesse you mainteyne the quarrell that you haue vndertaken with better furniture you shall both come to late as I sayd and lose your labour also For what doe you thinke to gayne in this cause of Religion wherein if you hadd none other aduersary yet the Lord him selfe doth warre agaynst you with the very breathe of his mouth the whole Scriptures fight agaynst you and the authoritie of auncient Fathers haue bent their force to ouerthrow you Your purpose was to pleade for the Popes proper Chayre But he is quite abandonned not out of our Churches onely but much further banished out of mens consciences nor can possibly by mans pollicy be restored to the possession of Christian consciences in despight of Gods word It is the Lord who hath by his deuine Inspiration cast a darkened cloud ouer this proude Prelates Chayre which all Portingall can not bryng to light agayne though it lighten all the Tapers torches and waxe lightes in Portingall when the Sunne is at the highest But Osorius vpoÌ„ confidence of his Rhetoricke doth dreame vpoÌ„ some dry Sommer nothyng mistrustyng his Tackle as it seémeth which shal be more stronger then any Cable or Anker but that he shall be able to enduce our most Souereigne Lady Elizabeth to like well with his Request at the leÌ„gth maugre the bearde of thousand Haddones for after this maner writyng agaynst Haddon he sayth What sayth he doe you suppose that her witte is so rude and so vnciuill when I shall haue discouered the practizes and coÌ„spiracies of treacherous traytours by inuincible Argumentes and Reasons clearer then the Sunne in mydday when I shall paynte out vnto her view eueÌ„ before her eyes the mischieuous filthynes and wickednesse of this new fangled Religion when by manifest proofe I shall make euident the foolish and illfauored scatteryng Reasons of these heretiques wherewith they attempt the maintenaunce of their cause that she will rather allowe of that most pestilent opinion coupled with vnauoydeable perill of her
of this milde Phenix our most gracious Soueraigne a few yeares more in this life truely I doe nothing mistrust but that the whole generatiō of your Catholick Caterpillers loytering lozels shall be driuen shortlye not to the gallowes but to that howling outcries and gnashing of teéth described in the xviij Chapter of the Apocalipps which you may reade and peruse at your leysure and afterwardes aunswere vs when time and place wil serue for it But we must cōmitt all these as all other our actions successes els to the guidyng and conduct of him in whose handes are the hartes of Princes and Potentates and the order and disposition of tymes and of chaunces He is our Lord. Let him determine of vs as seémeth best in his sight whether his pleasure be of his infinite mercy to blesse vs with a continuaunce and settled stay of this quyett calme which he hath fauourably bestowed vpon vs or whether he will scourge our Sinnes with the cruell whippes of these Popish Philistines or whether he will vouchsafe accordyng to his promise after the long and greéuous afflictions of his tourmented Church to roote vpp the foundations of your Babylonicall Towres and ouerwhelme them in the deépe doungeon as it were a mylstoane in the Sea But whatsoeuer the successes shal be of our hope it can not be but most acceptable and commodious for his faythfull whatsoeuer his prouident Maiestie shall determine This one thyng I would wish from the bottom of my hart that our lyues and and conuersations were aunswerable to our publique profession and that our maners were so conformed as might no more prouoke his indignation and wrath then the doctrine that we embrace and professe doth moue him to displeasure which one Request if might preuayle with our Englishmen there were no cause then wherefore we should be afrayed of hundred Romes sixe hundred Osorianes and as many Portingall Dalmadaes Now the onely thyng of all other whereat I am dismayed most is not the force of your Argumentes not the brauery of your bookes not the crakes of your courage not the legion of your lyes Osorius but our home harmes onely our pestilent botches of pestiferous wickednesse and licentious insolency Wherein you seé Osorius how litle I doe beare with the maners of our people and how much I doe agreé with you in condemnyng their waiwardnesse whose maners you do gnawe vpon so fiercely whose Fayth and Religion neuerthelesse I can not choose but defēd agaynst your Sycophanticall barkyng with iust commendation as they do duely deserue But for as much as we haue treated largely of Queéne Elizabeth I will now come downe vnto others and will pursue the conclusion and end of your booke furious enough and full of indignation wherein you heape whole mounteynes of wordes brauely and behaue your selfe most exquisitely and artificially and besturre your stumpes lyke a sturdy pleader couragiously and launche out lyes as lustely yet herein not as Oratours vse orderly but after the Cretensian guise ouersauishely Of whom S. Paule maketh mention The men of Creete are common lyars For you say that Haddon dyd counsayle you that you should not meddle with the holy Scriptures Which coūsell as neuer entred into Haddones head so neuer raunged out of Haddons penne And out of this lye beyng as it were the coyne of the whole buildyng it is a wonder to seé how you shoulder out the matter what greéuous complaintes you doe lay to our charge which haue neither toppe nor tayle foote nor head I would wish you to peruse the place of Haddon once agayne whereat you cauill so much but with more deliberation For this was neuer any part of his meanyng to abbridge you the Readyng of one lyne so much of holy Scriptures Moreouer neither did he so couple you to the Colledge of Philosophers and Oratours as to exclude you from the noumber of Deuines as your cauillation doth sinisterly emporte without all cause of iust quarrell For what can be more conuenient for a Byshopp and a Deuine and an old man also then to be exercized in the mysteries of heauenly Philosophy night and day or what dyd Haddon euer imagine lesse then to rase your name out of the Roll and order of Deuines But when he perceaued as truth was that you did behaue your selfe much more plausibly in other causes and therefore highely commended many qualities in you to witte an excellency of style exquisite eloquence ioyned with ingenious capacitie stoare of Authours and many bookes of yours likewise and especially your booke De Nobilitate and withall did grauely consider by the conference of your bookes that you were by nature more enclined or by Arte better furnished to treate of other causes then to dispute of those controuersies of Religion wherein you seéme a meére straunger and goe groapyng lyke a blyndman wandryng altogether in Iudgement and withall a professed enemy to the Maiestie of the glorious Gospell takyng vpon him the part of an honest friendly man thought good to aduertize you friendly and louingly not that you should not employ any study or trauayle in this kynde of learnyng but surceasing that presumptuous boldnesse of rash writyng and vnaduised decyding of controuersies wherewith you were but meanely acquainted that you would with a more circumspect deliberation consider of the matters whereof you purposed to discourse and that you would not from thenceforth rush so rudely agaynst vs with such disordered Inuectiues which doe in deéde bewray nought els but your ignoraunce procure generall myslikyng and auayle nothyng at all to publique commoditie For hereunto tended the whole scope mynde and meanyng of Haddon Which you doe causelesly miscouster agaynst him euen as though he had debated with you as your Catholickes doe vsually accustome with old wemen poore badgers Carters Cobblers the meaner state of poore Christiās whom you doe prohibite with horrible manacings cruell prohibitiōs frō the reading of sacred Scriptures none otherwise then as from bookes of hygh Treason But in very deéde you doe interprete of the matter farre otherwise then euer Haddon did meane And therfore here was no place for your nyppyng Satyricall scoffe which you did pretily pyke out of Horace Uerses wherewithall he doth dally with his Damasippus and you beyng an old and meary conceited man resembling the old dottarde Silenus of Virgile do ridiculously and vnseasonably deride Haddō withall The Goddes and the Goddesses Rewarde you with a Barbour for your good counsell Nay rather keépe this Barbour in stoare for your selfe Osor and for the rascall rabble of your sinoath shauelynges who in respect of your first and second clippyng nypping shearing and shauing must neédes room dayly to the Barbours shoppes who also doe accompt it an haynous matter to weare a long bearde as is also especified in the same Satyre For you I say euen for you and those dishheaded dranes of that shauelyng and Cowled rowte who with bare scraped scalpes beyng a new fangled
smoath Scholemaster that they geue not in the meane tyme to creadulous an eare to the counterfaicte craft of his proper pack but haue allwayes in minde the pythy sentence of Epicharmus the wise 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 And withall that they take especiall care if they haue a desire to imitate his wryting not to enure themselues in any wise to his sawcy malapertnes of slaundering or cursed speakyng Then which kinde of contagion as there can be no Canker more Pestilent skattered abroad emongest the conuersations of christian men so doe I more hartely wish that the vertuous witts of studious youth may not be polluted with this crawling skabbe And I cann not wonder sufficiently to thinke what frantique fury hath whirled this Prelate into such vnmeasurable outrage of rayling penne But the matter goeth well enough on our side namely that his raunging speéch is agreable to his disordered profession and his Lauish style is coupled with his lewd doctrine for what could haue bene more fitt for this bloudy Religion then bootcherly brawlyng and currish cauilling lyke vnto lyke yet how much more commendable hadd it bene and withall how much more sitting and seémely his personage and dignitye if espying any blemish or wrinckle in mens maners or errors that might haue bene offensiue he hadd as a Priest a Deuine and a Byshopp with friendly and milde application of persuadible Scriptures enduced the ignoraunt to better regard by gentle enstruction rather then with rigorous rayling and to haue geuen a simple demonstration of the soundnesse of his fayth rather then haue bruted abroad the beastely botch of his shamelesse impudencye It is the propertye of vertuous literature and ciuill discipline so called of the ciuilytye thereof to reclayme the raunging riott of wandering wittes to mildenes of maners and to a certein comely ciuilitye of meéke modestye Certes this sauadge sawcynesse wayward wrangling whether may be found emongest tyranous Turkes I know not surely is very vnseémely for learned men much more vncomely for Deuines but altogether blameworthy in Byshopps Moreouer besides the rule of Christian Religion surely reason it selfe would haue required this much at the least that in reproching other mens faults such as can not be mindefull of their owne should reproue no more in others then such as be faultes in deéde not causelesly condēne the innocent with forged crymes and malicious cauillations This also should haue bene foreseéne as an especiall poynt of a graue Deuine that he that of sett purpose will become a prowling pickethanke of other mens eskapes should first peruse their bookes with earnest bent heédefulnes should aduisedly note the maner of the errors and make faythfull report of the same accordingly not foreiudging the thinges which he knoweth not nor carping ouer greédely the thinges that he vnderstandeth not nor corruptly deprauing the rest that is well spoken But our Osorius here doth inueigh agaynst men whom he neuer sawe doth defame their lyfe whom he neuer knew doth with his currishe Eloquence gnaw the bookes that he neuer handled condemning the cause first before both partyes be heard confuting first before he vnderstand what requireth refutation Not much swaruing from the example of some in these dayes Uenetians and Italians especially who being enflamed with canckred malice agaynst the French Hugonoughtes whom they neuer sawe being demaunded of their Paramoures and other vnskilfull young headds concerning the qualyties and disposition of those Hugonoughts doe aunswere that they be not men but certein mōstruous shapes of men hauing Dogges faces glowing eyes Boares Tuskes sprouting along their snoughtes Dragons heads fowle outstretched cheekes lowling eares from the crowne of the headd to the bottome of the shoulders Finally they doe describe them out in most vgly mishapen deformitye not because they be such kinde of people in deéde but because they may by this meanes make them to be more enuyed and more malitiously hated Not much otherwise this good man Osorius here doth besturre himselfe agaynst the Lutherans First wheresoeuer he may heare of any persons that be named Lutherans though he know not the men themselues yet doth he by by conceaue in his brayne by the very name Imagine them to be such as he hath paynted out here in his Bookes to witte Outcastes Churchrobbers Traytours Scorpions Murtherers Leacherous the firebrandes and whirlewindes of all the world Enemies of mankynde Spoylers of Princes Heretiques Scismatickes Botches of Religiō Rooters out of all vertue Finally skarsely men but vnder mens countenaūces nothing but hellhoundes raysed vp of Sathā himselfe Agayne wheresoeuer he doth heare of any mischieuous naughty packes treacherous villanyes common Barretours or any infamed persons reproched for any corruption of opinions errours sectes scysmaticall deuisions heresies or notorious for any other deteitable crime or execrable mischiefe he doth for forthwith conclude all those whatsoeuer vnder the common name of Lutheranes without exception as it were within one predicamēt euen as though there were no contradiction contrariety or diuersity of sectes people iudgemēts and factions in the world but Lutheranes onely Furthermore as though all this sufficed not to procure thē to be maligned enough he hath forged hereunto opinions false horrible blasphemous which neither entred into their thought at any time nor euer eskaped frō out their mouthes or writing which although appeare manifestly in infinite places and manifest tokens euery where yet lett this one be admitted for examples sake What sayth he shall I beleue that I shall recouer health so long as I do not feele my selfe stricken and pynched wyth any such gryefe of sicknesse that I make no force whether any medicine be applied so long as I nourish myne owne sicknesse so long as mine owne wickednesse doth delight me c. No in deéde I do not beleéue it nor doe I thinke it worthy to be beleéued And I pray you what one of all the Lutheranes did euer dreame of any such thing in his sleépe or euer taught it being awake when consciences are shakē with engines of distrust as oftentimes happeneth amongst the faithfull being in affliction whereas the whole force of the mind doth imagine all possible wayes by what meanes it may counteruayle the wrath and indignation of God The Lutheranes here haue sett downe a plaister for this soare taken out of the Phisick of Scripture namely Fayth onely and the merites of Christ Iesu On the contrary part Osor. vrgeth very stoughtly that we are not reconciled vnto God by fayth in Christ onely but by onely righteousnes of workes wherein we doe exercise our selues thorough the ayde assistaūce of grace how true this assertiō of his is I do appeale herein to the secret iudgementes of the learned In the meane space lett the godly Reader consider well with what slaunders and iniurious accusations he doth reproch godly and vertuous personages for whereas they do treate of the greéuous assaultes combates of tormented consciences properly and of sinners
not to be marueâ—led that Monckeries were so soone ouerthrowen as that they stode so long Of the holynesse of ceremonies with Osorius Luke Iohn Collos. 2. Galat. 4. Mens traditioÌ„s ceremonies are not altogether sequestred from a Christian mans lyfe How great a perill is in ceremonies Christian RelligioÌ„ almost wholy turned into ceremonies Images Crosses Altars throweÌ„ downe Ezechiah Iosiah Iozaphat Gedeon Epiphanius in an Epistle to Iohn Byshopp of Ierusalem Phillippicus Leo Isaurick CoÌ„stantine Leo 4. Greeke Emperours agaynst Images Images banished by the couÌ„cels of ConstaÌ„tinople Elibertine and francksord Out of the councell of ConstaÌ„tinople Ex Elibertino coâ—cil can 36. Lactant. instit book 2. cap. 19. ChrisostoÌ„e Amphilochius Theodore Byshopp of Ancira Portraictes Eusebius Bysh. of Pamphil. The reasoÌ„s of Bysh. alleadged in the counsell of Constantinople Deut. 20. 2. Cor. 6. A figure called contraposition betwixt the decrees of God and the Popes Math. 10. 1. Iohn 5. Out of the Decrees of the Trydentine counsel 9. Sesio Iere. 10. Abacuâ— 3. The wicked and preposterous iudgements of the Papists in worshipping of Images Osor. pag. 178. Osorius slaunder agaynst Luther touching contrition and good workes condeÌ„ned is confuted Articul 31. How this sentence that the Righteous man doth offend in euery good worke is to be taken Gregory vpon Ioh. 9. August in his 3. booke of confess cap. 7. August to Boniface 3. book ca. 7. The words of Constantine to Acesius Aug. in his 1. booke de perfectione iustitiae Aug. in his booke of the perfection of righteousnes Of the auntient ordinaunces of the Church The ordinaunces of the primitiue church taken away now by our Catholicks The complaynt of abolishing the auntieÌ„t ordinaunces of the Church appliable to none so much as to the Papists By what meanes the Romanistes haue altered al thinges in the Church Osorius pag. 178. Osor. pag. 180. An aunswere in the behalfe of the Lutheranes liues agaynst slauÌ„deryng It is one thyng to iudge of maners an other thing to iudge of doctrine Dogges in the pallace of Rome Osori pag. 180.181 The popes blynd Decrees caÌ„ not away with the light of the Gospell The cauill of Osorius agaynst the lyues of Lutherans Osori rayseth all his slaunders of hearesay The fruites of the Gospell beyng restoared Doctrine ought not to be iudged after the qualities of mens manners Osorius malice agaynst the Lutherans Many are vntruely termed Lutherans that be no Lutherans Mauy counterfets lurke in the Church vnder presence of the Gospell The approued integritye of the-ProtestaÌ„ts The lyfe of Cranmer Archb. of Cant. The marriage of CraÌ„mer defended The name of a Concubine more holy with the Papistes then the name of a wife Nichol. Ridley Byshop of London Ferrar Bish. of Saynt Dauids Iohn Hooper Bish. of Worcest Glocester Famous men martyrred vnder Queene Mary Tho. Bilney Ioh. Bradford The liues of those which were burnt in Queene Maries raigne Erasmus testimony coÌ„cerning Luther See Osorius in his 1. booke 69. Roffensis of the doctrine of Luther Luthers doctrine not other then all other true Christians The Fallax of the consequent An Argument rightly deduced froÌ„ Signes Doctrine not to be applyed to maners but maners to doctrine Osorius pag. 181. 182. Of prescription of Antiquitye Osorius doth accuse the reformed Churches of Noueltye The reformed Churches now a dayes doe not vary froÌ„ the Apostles institution in doctrine Maner of lyfe thought neuer so disorderous maketh not an heretique The cause that enflameth Osor. agaynst the Lutheranes is not the life but the state of their doctrine The foundation of the questioÌ„ is not of maners but of the principles and grouÌ„des of Religion The condition agreed vpoÌ„ concerneth the triall of antiquitie The papists exception agaynst the obscurenes of the scriptures Of an vnpier in Ecclesiasticall causes A Request to the excellent king of Portingall The Antiquity of the Romish Religion couÌ„terfaite The false accusation of Noueltie agaynst the Lutherans The law of PrescriptioÌ„ Distinct. 8. August Gregory Custome Antiquitye PrescriptioÌ„ Cyprian distinc 8. No custome may prescribe agaynst the king much lesse anye Custome may prescribe agaynst god A defence agaynst the accusation of Nouelty falsly charged vpon the reformed Churches by Osorius Of the merites of Christ. Of true coÌ„fidence Tertulian touching prescription agaynst Heretiques Exod. 20. Of inuocation worshipping c. Of Sacraments Out of Iustine Of the freedome of Mariage Heb. 13. 1. Timo. 4. The mother tongue in Churches The Communion vnder both kindes Of Images Of rightâ— and Ceremonies Of the power of free-will Of iustifiyng fayth Rom. 3. Galat. Galat. How fayth onely doth iustifie and whom Luther Caluine MelancthoÌ„ Musculus Bullinger P. Martyr Hul. Zuinglius Occolampadius Iohn Iuell Gualter Rodolfe Theodore Beza The Lutherans acquited from all reprehention of Noueltye An olde quarrell of the Catholicks touching Noueltye Of the supremacy titles of the Pope The titles of the Romaine pope Math. 23. The outragious dignitie of the pope Chrisost. ad Romanos homil 23. Gregory The supremacy was first graunted by Phocas to Boniface The fulnes of power beganne in the tyme of Hildebrand Pope Cardinalls The election of the Pope translated from the Emperour and the people of Rome vnto the Cardinalls Of the Masse and her appurtenaunces The vse of Corpes in the Church Priuate Masses The Communion of the laye people abbridged froÌ„ thrice to once in a yeare by Clement 3 Vnleauened bread One part of the CoÌ„munion taken away from the lay people Corpus Christi day Of Image Of transubstantion of Eleuation of carying abroad of the Sacrament Of marriage of priestes and choyse of meates Of the Popes decrees and decretals Extrauaga de Maiorit obed cap. vnam De maior it obedientia cap. Solitae Of MouÌ„cks Fryers Three vows of MouÌ„kerye Sixe wings of Seraphin Aemilius in his 5. booke Carthusianes Castersianes Templars Premonstratenses Gilbertines Dominicanes Franciscans Eremites Augustines Carmelites Nuns of S. Clares order Out of the Councell of Lateran Innocent 3. Cap. 13. Minorites Augustine anes Crossebeabeares Whippers Iesuites In the Romish Churche are many things new altogether nothing auncient sauoring of thapostolique Antiquitye The carnall presence of Christ no where but in heauen The carnall presence of Christ one of the Popish doctrine How the Papistes dp doe differ from the Apostles in the ministring of the communioÌ„ Priuate Masse Hebr. 9. 8 10. 1. Tim. â— The true doctrine of traÌ„substantion iuuented by the paâ—istes TransubstaÌ„tiation was neuer knowen to the Apostles Many thou sandes of Martyrs lost theyr liues for this TransubstaÌ„tiatioÌ„ The Churche of the Pope a Murtherer The papist caÌ„ reÌ„der no iust cause of spâ—llyng so much Christian bloud It is one thing to reuerence the SacrameÌ„ts an other thyng to turne Christ into a Sacrament The words of Christ. This is my body Christs wordes bespirit and lyfe Christ is called by sondry names in the Scriptures Christ is called bread in the Gospell By what similitude the