God but by his propre will and operation yea and whensoeuer men labour to do well that then they sinne deadly Of this tre haue growen all mischef fornication aduoutrie ryot dronknes extorsions robberies rebellion periuries deceites lies all contempt of honesty and vertu procliuite to all vice beside blasphemies of Gods holy name backbiting slaundering reproches iniuries and all kinde of wickednes frely and without grudge of coÌ„science practised Be not these noble and faire frutes of Luthers ghospell May not well the rule of Christ here take place By their frutes ye shall knowe them For looke what the tre is such is the frute and looke what the frute is such is thetre Although therefore we can not denie but amonge vs Catholikes much enormite is and much euill life yet no man can saie that we teache and allow these vices or that our doctrine is the cause off oure naughty liuing no man I saye can charge the Catholike doctrine to prescribe any thing against holy scripture against ciuill policie or publike magistrates as the newe forged ghospell of Luther doth Exacting therefore the Lutherans vnto this rule of Christ we worthely iudge them of their frutes to be false prophets and daungerous deceiuers The like they caÌ„ not do of vs for that the euill frutes that are in vs procede of oure selues not of our doctrine of swaruing from the precepts and godly constitutions off our faith not of obseruing them But the Lutherans naughty life procedeth euen of their doctrine as we haue in some certain pointes for example before declared Yet as touching the life of spirituall teachers and rulers god hath prescribed to the laitie and common people a perfit and absolute rule to discerne true doctrine from the false saying The scribes and Pharises sit in the Chaire of Moyses Do as they commaunde you to do not as they do theÌ„ selues in the which saying of Christ euery Christen man that regardeth his soule helth ought diligently waie two pointes First to know which is the lawfull chaire of Moyses and which is not then how the laye and common sort of people ought to beare them selues towardes the euill life of the clergy Let vs then first speake of the first point Sithen the time that these newe doctrines of Luther hath ben putin the peoples heads and so many diuers and contrary opinions hathe ben taught that the simple and vnlerned know not all most which waie to turne them selues many are brouht to that point that they reiect all religion at ones and think oure Christen faith to be but prety policies of mens inuention or rather olde wyues tales to feare childreÌ„ and with this imagination are become worldly Epicures terming their felicite in present pleasure as a great number do nowe in Germany Whereof truly we haue great cause to feare vnles these cursed heresies be spedely extinguished that almightie God of his dreadfull iustice will sturre vp the Turke or some cruell tiraÌ„ to rippe vp the belies of these fleshely swine and gredy gloutons destroying also with the wicked whiche God of his tender mercie forbid the good and vertuous But to thentent that all good and vertuous people may beware of such infidelite and wiâ—ked cogitations despering vtterly of all religion S. Paule hathe forewarned his scholer Timothe and in him vs all writing All scripture inspired froÌ„ God is profitable to teach to improue to amend and to instruct in righteousnes that the man of God may be perfit and prepared vnto all good workes These are not mens imaginations but the very wordes of God pronounced by the holy ghoste in the mouthe of the Apostle And this is an expres commaundement of God that we beleue vndoubtedly in holy scripture that we seke our saluation therein walking and continuing vprightly in the pathes of that holy write not swaruing either on the right hande either on the left But that we maye so do it behoueth vs not only to reade the bare and literall text of holy scripture but to enquire also for the true and right vnderstanding of the same For the letter killeth but the Spirit geueth life Wherefore our Lorde speaking to the Iewes saieth Searche the scriptures for in them ye thinke to haue eternall life But it is one thinge to reade another to serche They are therefore much deceaued which crie now a daies that nothing must be receiued but holy scripture that all other interpretations being but the imaginations of man are not to be beleued If the protestants speake herein as they thinke I woÌ„der why the Lutherans and the Zuinglians haue writen so many and so large interpretations vpon the olde and newe testament and caused them to be printed abrode yea why make they suche continuall sermons to the people wherein they recite not allwaies expresse scripture but talke much beside the text adding their interpretations and expositions vnto it commaunding also and charging the people to take those their interpretations for the very worde of God And is not this a maruailous impudent and proude presumption of these protestant preachers When we on our part alleage the expositions of the holy fathers vpon holy scripture they as if it were in a rage crie out incontinently The holy fathers were but men the church hath erred in many pointes the expositions of those fathers are but their imaginations and deuises not the worde off God And therefore we nede not geue any credit vnto them But when they them selues preache vnto the people the commauÌ„de and persuade the people that if they tender their soule health they must vndoubtedly beleue that which is there preached vnto them and the interpretation of holy scripture which they bring is the pure and sincere worde of God the ghospell it selfe Is not this as I saied a a maruailous impudent and proude presumption of these protestant preachers Is it not an horrible arrogancie to terme their owne fantasies holy scripture their imaginations the ghospell the meaning and sens of their owne inuention the very worde off God condemning withall and reiecting the vniforme true and receaued interpretations of all olde holy fathers and writers approued hitherto in the Church of Christ by whom the same church hath ben from time to time gouuerned directed and instructed in all truthe sens the time of the Apostles this thowsand fiue hundred yeares and more vnder whose doctrine and godly instructions so many blessed martirs holy confessours and infinit thousands of other Christen soules haue attained to euerlasting life Whereas contrary wise by the expositions and interpretations of these newe preachers horrible schismes diuers and hainous heresies dissolute and licentious liuing strifes contentions and rebellions haue spronge vp and all most ouergrowen the garden off Christes church well planted before and tended by the holy fathers rulers thereof what can be more impudently and arrogantly presumed Yet these newe preachers to wrappe and entrappe the people more and
more in their former snare they patche on an other dangerous deceit vsing this guile with them You must good people in dede beleue the only writen worde of god but to the expositions of the preachers ye ought so farre to beleue as their expositions agreeth with the writen worde that is that the simple and vnlerned people must iudg of their owne faith and be able to trie whether their preachers teache false or no whether their expositions agre so iust with the worde of God that they may be bolde to beleue them euen as the very worde of God Yf this be true that the poeple must nowe iudge their preachers and teachers then was S. Paule to blame describing the prouidence of Christ toward his church to saie these wordes Christ ascending on high lead captiuite captiue and gaue giftes vnto men These giftes were vndoubtedly his holy worde and to make it out of doubt what maner of giftes he meaneth it foloweth strait vppon And he hath geuen some Apostles some prophets and some Euangelistes For by these thre sortes of men by the prophets the Apostles the Euangelistes inspired of the holy ghost holy scripture was writen but bicause in the writen worde many mysteries lye hidden therefore Christ left not to his church only Prophets Apostles and Euangelistes but as it foloweth in S. Paule He gaue pastours and doctours shepeards and teachers which should fede the people with the true intelligence of the holy write and teache them the true vnderstāding of the same Now then either the Shepeardes and teachers must instructe the people and interpret holy scripture vnto thē as S. Paule prescribeth or els the people him self must take vppon him the person of a iudge ouer his shepeards and teachers as the protestants will haue it Chose here good reader whom thou list to folow Surely I must nedes obey and beleue the blessed Apostle whatsoeuer these men bable Therefore I saie againe the people ought to lerne not to teache They ought to obey those that haue charge off their soules their sheaperdes and teachers not to iudge or instruct them in matters of religion Contrary wise the pastours and teachers ougth diligently to instruct their flocke and expounde vnto them the right meaning of holy scripture that they may with the kaye off truthe binde and loose the sinnes of the people accordingly Nowe whereas in cytes Mayres and scholemasters in villages the gentlemen and in the courtes of princes the Chauncellers prescribe and appoint vnto their parish prestes and vicars the maner of interpreting holy scripture the order of ministring the sacramēts the forme of common prayer at the pleasure of euery laie magistrat and Temporall Lorde what will become of this straunge fashions the time will ones declare For nothing is so preuy but that it will ones come to light Euery wise man may easely cast what is likely to folowe when euery magistrat or secular ruler vtterly vnlerned and but of meane abilite yet do at their pleasure appoint ministres and put downe prescribing what docrine they liste to the poore people or what secte liketh them best hereof it happeneth that if the Mayre scholemaster or gentleman be a Suenckseldian then the preacher of that parish must folow onely the doctrine of Suenck feldius or if he be a Zuinglian an Osiandrin an Anabaptiste an Illyrican a Wittenberger a Maiorist or of any other secte the poore simple people must lerne the newe faith of the Maire scholemaster or gentleman and vtterly renounce his olde nor may not be so bolde as to hush to the cōtrary When this newe straunge order was first taken in hande that all spirituall Magistrates constitutions and ordonaunces should be disannulled some there were that thought it not reason that men should be forced to embrace this opinion or that but it shoulde be left free to euery man to beleue whatsoeuer the sprit moued him vnto without any let to the cōtrary So wrote Luther in his booke De Christiana libertate and in an other De capti uitate Babilonica in the which bookes he so embrued the hartes of men with the loue of licentious libertie that al Christen constitutions lawes aud decrees of the church were vtterly abolished and trode vnder foote Out of these bookes also Thomas Munzer toke occasion to make the insurrection of the commons in Germany wherein perished more then a hundred thousand off our dere countremen as Sleidan noteth in the fifte booke of his story Of this licentious doctrine off Luther also one Bernard Rotmā begā the heresy of the Anabaptistes and that by these wordes of Luther that no man could be compelled to any faith that al Christen men are free and taught of God him selfe immediatly that there nedeth no interpretation of scripture but it is al plaine and perspicuous that a simple man of the countre can more readily expounde and vnderstande holy scripture then any Doctour in diuinite But after that Luther espied this vntoward course of his doctrine and that now his owne scholers Mūtzer Rotman Carolstadius Zuinglius and diuers other bette him with his owne rodde he inuented strait a new shift or rather succoured him selfe with the olde practise of the Catholike churche as the folowers of Melanchthon and Brentius do now a daies who seing the people caryed away daily in to newe sectes by other ghospellers leauing their former new masters do call their felowes renagates and apostatas compelling them by ecclesiasticall censure and force off pretended excommunication to returne home again When Luther first began to write and set forthe bookes his scholers murmured and saied it was against the Christian liberte that Christen men might not frely reade what bookes they listed But nowe when the Lutherās them selues do swarue from their master and write one against an other they runne to the refuge of the Catholike churche and make inhibitions forbidding all such bookes as their felowes write against them to be read or solde banishing out of their townes and countres with all the power they can all such ministres and preachers as dissent from them so it is now true amonge these heretikes that Athanasius and Tertullian wrote of the olde heretikes of their time that is what they approue to daie they reproue tomorowe What they preache as the worde of God this yeare they condemne as hereticall nexte yeare wauering like the rede with the winde and framing their faith as occasion serueth Melanchthon seing that the licentious liberte planted by Luther gaue occasiō of much suaruing and departing of one from an other amonge them selues he put a newe cote vpon his religion and whereas before he acknowledged but two Sacraments Baptim and the Supper of our Lorde nowe he addeth two more Penaunce and holy Ordre Penaunce he added to bring againe in order the dissolut consciences off his brethern to set vp excommunication and to erect in
example of Canonicall scri pture yow admit nothing where finde you in all the corps of the Canonical Scripture from the beginning of the Genesis to the ende of S. Iohns ReuelatioÌ„ this very rule and sayinge of yours that If it were a necessary matter to praie for the dead it had not lacked all authorite and example of the Canonicall Scriptures Where finde you in Scriptures that without Scripture nothing is to be admitted wil you driue vs for lacke of holy scripture to praye no more for the dead and binde vs to your owne rule hauing the same lacke also Will you make a rule of your selfe withoute Scripture and will not admitt the rules and lawes of the church except they bring you example and authorite out of scripture I trust your wisedom considereth how vnreasonable the request is and I doubt not but the ChristeÌ„ reader wil by this coÌ„sideration beware off such deceitful persuasions whereby great part of our faith in Christ Iesus may by the guile of heretikes be deluded To passe therefore to your other reasons let vs coÌ„sider the remnant of your talke Thirdly saie you where in the olde Testament be Sacrifices and expiations appointed for many and sundry thinges whereoff some semed small offenses yet was there neuer any Sacrifices appointed for any purgation or expiation of the dead What if there were any such sacrifices for the dead in the olde lawe would you theÌ„ nowe practise theÌ„ M. Grindal in your coÌ„mon praier and seruice of the church If you woulde why vse you no sacrifice for the sinnes and trespasses of the quicke as you see in the olde lawe practised abundantly Why reiect you the blessed Sacrifice of the Masse clerely figured and foreshowed in the ceremonies of the olde lawe Why leaue you the Realme without any sacrifice at all as well after the order of Melchisedech whiche you knowe was proper to Christ and shoulde endure for euer amonge Christians as after the order of Aaron which was proper to the olde lawe and shoulde ende when the light off the ghospell appeared If you woulde not vse any Sacrifice for the dead though in the olde lawe you hadde fouÌ„de example thereof as it is moste euident you woulde not no more then you vse the other why then finde you that lacke and refuse to offer sacrifices for the dead bicause you haue no example in the olde lawe Do not wise men see youre collusion and false plaie herein I will not spend time and paper in amplifying youre guile I leaue it to the prudent Reader to be coÌ„sidered I come to your other reasons that I may ones returne to my principall purpose againe You saie Nowe if they shall alleage that the auncient doctours make for them first it is to be saied that mens writinges alone are not sufficient in matters of faith and Religion I answer we haue not only mens writinges but holy scripture euen beside the Machabees as we haue sufficiently proued Againe make you so light of mens writinges what are Caluin Beza Bale and such other whose writinges you reuerence and reade are they not men also why commaunde you the priestes of England to reade the Institutions of Caluin why in your notes vpon the Bible referre you vs to baudy Bale for the right vnderstanding of it laste of all why make you so vaunting a chaleÌ„ge against al the Catholikes that liue and offer to yelde if they can bringe but one poore sentence of any one doctour or Councell against you As touching the writings of men we knowe that Animalis homo non percipit ea que dei sunt the fleshly maÌ„ knoweth not those thinges that appertaine to God Yet we are bidde in holy Scripture Interrog are patres nostros c To aske our fathers and they will declare vs to enquire of our elders and they shall tell vs. And S. Peter sayth Spiritu saÌ„cto inspirato locuti sunt sancti Dei homines The holy men of God haue spoken as inspired with the holy Ghost Neither can we forgett that beside the prophets the Euangelistes and the Apostles of whom we haue receaued the holy write of Gods worde Christ hath left to his Church also Pastores doctores Pastours and doctours as meÌ„ by whom the Scripture ought to be expounded and the church directed And according to these lessons of holy Scripture heretikes haue ben confuted by mens writinges without holy Scripture as in the conflictes of Athanasius with the Arrians of Cirillus with the Nestorians of S Augustin with the Pelagians of Tertuâ—lian and Irenee with the Valentinians of S. Basill with Eunomius you may reade and see M. Grindall if you haue not yet sene But let vs passe on and see what you saie farder It can not be denied but from Gregories time But the eldest writers and doctours of the Church speake not at all of praying for the dead wel then M. Grindall att one push you condeÌ„ne all the ChristeÌ„ people of England that euer hath ben of errour and superstion For sence the time of S. Gregory only you knowe we englishmen haue had the faith of Christ and of that blessed Pope we receiued it But let that passe your stomach is good that caÌ„ digest so many hundred yeares without grudge of conscience The eldest writers saie you speake not at all of praying for dead Not at all M. Grindall will you abide by it Before so honourable an auditory at such a solemne funerall in so open and publick a place blushe you not at so lowde a lie I am sory you did so farre forget your self You spake then in pulpit and now you speake in print These two conditions require deliberatioÌ„ truthe and honesty And how shall I proue you the contrary where shal I beginne I showed yow before out of S. Augustin and Epiphanius that Aerius was condemned for an heretike euen for this cause that he disallowed praier and oblation for the dead Be not Augustin and Epiphanius elder then S. Gregory Your freÌ„des CarioÌ„ and Pantaleon can tell you they are his auncetours the one aboue a hundred the other allmost two hundred yeares But these wordes may seme to haue escaped you though if they had in pulpit escaped yet in print they might haue ben corrected for euen in your wordes folowing you remembre your selfe better and then you runne to your distinctions and you saie If the auÌ„cient fathers when they praie for the dead meane of the dead which are already in heauen and not els where then must we nedes by their praier vnderstande either thankes geuing or ells take such petitions for the dead for figures of eloquence and exornation of their stile and oration rather then necessary groundes of reason of any doctrine Howe can you suppose M. Grindall any such meaning in the olde fathers as though they were either of so litle wisedome as to praie for those that neded no praier
continuall succession of time vncorrupted whole and perfite whiche maketh me more to maruaill what wicked and malitious sprit moued these protestants to terme them selues only ghospellers and professours of Gods worde calling the Catholikes papistes and enemies of the worde of God seing that bothe nowe and in all ages we reade the ghospell in our churches we preache the worde of God in our pulpits and interpret it to the people we expresse it by outward ceremonies rites and gestures such as we haue receaued of our forefathers euen from the primitiue church and the Apostles time And this Luther knewe him selfe well inough But why dissembled he it then forsothe to deceaue and entrappe the easier the simple people in to his preteÌ„ded religion For Luther and all his ministers knowe very wel that in the ghospel and worde of God two thinges are to be considered First that the text be sownd and not corrupted then that the same text be expounded Catholikely and not heretically For as S. Bernard saieth looke with what sprit the scriptures were writen with the same must they be read and vnderstanded Seing then the text by the instinct of the holy ghost hath ben geuen vs true and perfit the vnderstanding also and interpretation thereof coming of the holy ghost must be true and perfit so that one shall be as true and of as much force as the other It is not inough therefore to reade holy scripture perfitly but to vnderstande it well also For as S. Hierom sayeth The scriptures consist not in reading but in vnderstanding All this Luther was not ignorant of But to depraue and corrupt the right interpretation of holy scripture and to bring in place his owne hereticall and forged expositions he maketh no mencion off the text but crieth still the worde of God calling the dreames of his braine pure and holy scripture For if ye aske of the Lutherans when they preache that God coÌ„straineth men to do euill that God was the cause of Iudas his reprobation and obstinat desperation that good workes are hurtefull to saluation and such like matters what maner of doctrine that is they will incontinently awnswer you that This is the pure ghospell the sincere worde of God and holy scripture it selfe But then if ye go farder and desire them to showe yow these very wordes and propositions in holy scripture there they hush Yet will they tell you that the wordes in dede them selues be not in the Bible but the meaning of them is there To the which if ye replie agayn and vrge them farder it will soone appere that the controuersie betwene the protestants and vs is not of holy scripture it self but of the true vnderstanding of the same And so S. Hilary hauing to do with heretikes in his time pronounced Heresie sayth he is in the vnderstaÌ„ding not in the scripture And truly all heretikes neuer cried other thing theÌ„ the holy scripture the worde of God and we that are Catholikes also haue holy scripture allwaies in our mouth Nowe then a man may maruaill and aske howe cometh it to passe that the Lutherans and the Catholikes the protestants and the papistes striue and contend so one with an other where as yet bothe haue the ghospell bothe loue and embrace it bothe cleaue vnto it and bothe are ready to spende their good and their life for it Here I beseche the Christian reader marke and perceaue well that this is not the coÌ„trouersie whether the Catholikes or the Lutherans haue the worde of God but which of them doth truly rightely and sincerely expounde that worde off God For this is the Lutherans common saying The papistes vnderstand not the Bible but we haue founde the right interpretation thereof and the kaye of all truthe And to set a good coulour vppon this holy protestation they saye farder That all bisshops prelats priestes and Monkes be all without lerning all incoÌ„tinent all of euill life geauen to couetousnes to pleasure and to the bely But they theÌ„ selues that is the Lutherans be learned chaste sobre liberall deuowte and of perfit life and such as haue done great miracles and yet do Neither are these impudeÌ„t heretikes ashamed of these lowde lies although all the worlde well knoweth it is nothing so while they see Churches hospitalls religious houses of all sorte colledges and bishoprickes of these men partly cleane ouerthrowen partly rifled all taken into their handes and conuerted into palaces armories barnes cole houses shops of Marchaundrise yea and in some places in to stables These lo be the miracles of this new ghospell abundantly practised all this fourty yeares As for other miracles not one of these new ghospellers was euer able so much as to cure a lame colte or a halting biche so farre is it that these meÌ„ could euer cast out deuils heale the lame cure the blinde restore the deafe or raise vp the dead all which miracles many holy fathers of the olde ghospell as I may so speake which these men call Papistes haue wrought from time to time in Christ his churche as right approued histories do manifestly declare Now as for the good and perfit life of these men and excellent lerning all the worlde seeth it An olde sorte of heretikes called Donatistes obiected in times past to S. Augustin the very same argumeÌ„t saying that their church only was vpright holy pure and lerned But the Catholike churche was nothing so And therefore the doctrine of the Donatistes was vndoubtedly souÌ„de and perfit but that of the Catholikes false and vntrue But what awnswered theÌ„ here S. Augustin The argument saieth he that proueth mens doctrine by their life is false But let vs suppose that these holy protestants passed al the vniuersall Catholike church of Christ sens the time of the Apostles bothe in godlines of life and excellency of lerning Which I thinke in good sothe they wil not al together affirme But if it were so it wil not yet thereuppon ensue that only the Lutherans vnderstande holy scripture and the Catholikes neuer vnderstoode it For if the right intelligence of holy Scripture be only to be sought amonge such as will stoutely affirme of them selues to passe all the rest of men in vprightnes of life and excellency of lerning then in very dede must we nedes leaue this great treasure of the right meaning of holy scripture vnto heretikes For in all ages heretikes allwaies craked of their great lerning and perfit life as the ecclesiasticall histories well declare of the Arrians the Manâ—ches the Pelagians and such like And what other thinge dothe Luther in many of his workes especially in his booke against the pope Then call the olde Catholike writers and holy fathers fooles asses rude and vnlerned babes of the pope hermaphrodites and such like Neither contemneth he only the Catholikes but euen his owne coÌ„panions and felow heretikes also as Zuinglius
Oecolampadius and other of that batche Yea this mā father of all this bessed broode of protestāts so highely extolleth him selfe so presumptuousely dispiseth all the worlde like an other Lucifer that the protestants them selues of Zurich write plainely that now no more the holy ghost but the spirit of pride and presumptuousnes speaketh in M. Luther Illiricus also and his companions crake they not likewise of their vertu and great lerning especially Illiricus how boasteth he that he was perfitly sene in Aristotle and had writen maruailouse much vppon him But what doth holy scripture speake to these proude boasters S. Peter saieth God resisteth the proude and geueth grace to the make and humble And the prophet saieth of god Thou arte he which poorest out the fountaines in the lowe vallies not in the toppes of hilles Againe in an other place Euery vallie shall be exalted and euery highe hill shall be plucked downe It is therefore a great vanitie of them to iudge and pronounce so proudely of thē selues seing that the Apostle of such men saieth Saying them selues to be wise they haue proued fooles and their foolish hart hath ben darkned But nowe touching the integrite of life and vertuous behauiour of the Lutherans I would be lothe to reporte thereof my selfe Surely I see Luther to doute very much thereof For in his great postill vppon the ghospell of the first Sonday in Aduent he crieth out and complaineth That by his ghospell men were become farre worse then they were before vnder the Pope For wickednes and vice had so farre growen in his ghospellers that they semed allmost become deuills And truly this is a sure token of false prophets For Of thornes who gathered grapes or of brambles who gathered figges at any time For looke what the tre is such is the frute such master such scholer such doctrine such liuing Now where as they againe obiect vnto vs the euill and disordinat life of the prelats of the church and of the clergy as that they be gloutons dronckards ambitious horehunters and so forthe I will not here presently defend them that are such It is surely much to be lamented that the life and behauiour off the reuerēt priesthood awnswereth not to their godly and highe profession but is very scandalouse to the worlde euen in such places as the church is by heretikes corrupted and persecuted Notwithstanding I doubt not although in many of the clergy it be founde true that the Lutherans saye of thē touching euil life yet there are a great numbre of vertuous and lerned bishops and priestes of deuowte and perfit religious men such as amonge the Lutherans were harde to find But it were better in this case and more semely for Christen charite that eche part looked in his owne wallet and first Tooke out the beame of their owne eyes for so shall they see better to take out the mote off their neighbours eie And herein whatsoeuer the iudgement of man saie God knoweth who are his and who are in dede vertuous or contrary Wherefore our faith and belefe must not be pinned to the life of the clergie or preachers For by this reason we are not sure of the due administration of any Sacrament neither can we truste any preacher of the worde of God seing that we are not able to iudge whether the priest or the preacher be a mā of vpright life or otherwise But our Sauiour Iesus Christ to take awaie this doubt and to assure vnto vs the verite of his Sacraments duly administred by the clergy thereunto chosen and the preaching of his holy worde by their mouthe he hath left vnto vs a sure and certain rule to knowe the false preachers and prophets from the true and to discerne the doctrine from the person that teacheth And this rule hathe thre parts The firste is when the doctrine is good in it selfe but the life of the teacher is euill and fauty The secōd whē the life of the teacher is good and vertuous but his doctrine false and vitious The thirde is to knowe howe the doctrine may be tried by the life off the teacher and howe the life of the teacher may be tried by his doctrine As for the first part Christ geueth vs a very good lesson what to do whē the doctrine is good and the life is naught saying The scribes and pharises sitt in the Chaire of Moises What soeuer they shal saie vnto you kepe it and do it But do not according to their doings By the which wordes of our Lorde we see that the lerner ought not so much to regard the life of the teacher as the doctrine For it may be that his doctrine be sownde and good wose life is euill For although that as well in the former ages as now a daies we finde many of right good lerning whiche haue preached and taught the worde of God sincerly yet some of such liue not accordingly Neither is there at this daie any point wherein the people more grudgeth against the clergy then that many of thē leade their life cleane cōtrary and repugnant to their owne Canons and constitutions For many of them can tell a trim tale in the pulpit exhorte the people very demeurely to a sobre and perfit life but will not ones moue a foote to liue well them selues And now alas it is to true that our lorde sayeth by the prophet of his church I haue longe looked that my vineyarde shuld haue brought forth grapes but lo it hath brought forthe brambles and a litle after Wo be vnto you which rise vp early to folow dronknes and to drinke vntell the euening that they be set on fire with wine In your companies are harpes and lutes tabrets and pipes but ye regard not the worke of the lorde Can this be denied it is alas to true But what then is this their liuing accompted vertuous is this Catholike No Catholike nor Christen man wil saie so The doctrine of our religion vtterly forbiddeth these thinges and the Catholike church condemneth them Neither cā al this preiudicat in any point to the doctrine of the Catholike church For as our Sauiour saied Do all that they shall saie vnto you but do not as they do and againe First cast out the beame of thy owne eye and then thou shalt see to cast out the mote of thy brothers eye And in an other place Who so euer of you be without sinne let him cast the first stone against her Agayne We must carye one an other his burden that we may be all saued We must not rashely iudge other least we be iudged to The second part now is cleane contrary to this as when men of good and sobre behauiour preache false and hereticall doctrine of these our Sauiour geueth vs warning in these wordes Take ye hede of false prophets which come vnto you in shepes
and abominations were found in the whole clergy and rulers of Christes flocke notwithstanding the commaundement of Christ must remaine in his full force and effect That the darnell be suffred to growe that the scribes and pharises sitt in the chaire of Moyses do as they commaunde you to do but do not as they do thēselues Againe Obey thē that haue the ouersight of you for they watche as those that must geue accompte for your soules And euery man must plucke first the beame out of his owne eye and then take the mote out of the priestes eye Let vs therefore good Christian reader suffer the church to stande and continewe in his former and most receaued course For without doubt she is so surely grounded vpon the Rocke that hell gates shall neuer be able to ouerthrowe her or preuaile against her As for the life of the clergy God is their iudge For as of virginite so of priesthode man can not iudge Yet we discharge not here the clergy of the Ecclesiasticall censures and punishements For as it is sayde to the laye men touching the euill life of the clergy Let the darnell growe on so is it saide to the bishops as S. Augustin declareth against the Donatistes Take awaye the euill from amonge you Wherefore we reade of that notable Emperour Constantinus the great at what time certain bishops offered vp certain cōplaintes to be determined by him to haue awnswered in this sorte God hath ordained you priestes in his church and hath geuen you authorite to iudge vs and therefore we are well iudged of you but you cānot be iudged of any men It were surely very expedient that some reformation were had to correct and chasten the corrupted clergy according to the prescription of their owne Canons to thentent that such offences as rise in mens hartes against the clergy and the church throughe their inordinat life might be remedied and taken awaie But this is not in the hands of the laite or temporall rulers whose part it is to suffer and obey OF TRANSLATING THE BIBLE IN TO THE VVLGAR TONGVE ANother thing that the Lutherās obiect vnto me is that they saie it hathe ben by my meanes and counsell procured that the Bible is no more reade in the vulgar tongue especially as Luther translated it Nowe although I remembre not that I euer saide or wrote that the laye men ought not to haue the Bible in their vulgar tongue yet iff I had so done it had ben no greate trespas For surely I could neuer yet finde in holy scripture that the common people ought of necessite to reade scripture But that of the reading thereof much schisme and the destruction of many soules hath proceded daily experience teacheth vs. And holy write warneth vs where our Sauiour thus speaketh It is geuen to you to knowe the misterie of the kingdome of God but to the rest in parables that seing yet they see not and hearing they vnderstande not Who are these vnto whom our Lorde saith To you it is geuen c Surely the Apostles and their successours the rulers of Christes flocke And who are they that should lerne by parables surely such men as were better not to knowe the misteries lest misusing them they procure them selues a greater damnation For precious stones ought not to be cast before hogges and such of all likelihod are the laye ignorant people Beside our Lord in that his former sayeng may seme very well to haue alluded to the .xij. tribes of Israel whiche figured the twelue Apostles and to the threscore and ten elders chosen out of those twelue tribes which also did represente the threscore and twelue disciples that were beside the Apostles These threscore and ten elders of the Iewes had only the power as stories declare to reade and and vnderstand the misteries of the Scripture For at that time the hebrewe text vsed of the Iewes had no vowels in all the text but only consonants And this maner of reading without vowels was knowen only to the threscore and .x. elders the other Iewes knewe it not lest peraduenture the precious misteries of that olde lawe should be cast before hogges the rude and curious people These threscore and ten elders also very miraculousely translated the Hebrew Bible in to Graeke before the coming of Christ they only hauing the knowledge of the text So in like wise bicause the threscore and twelue disciples were chosen to reade and vnderstande the misteries of holy write vnto whom priestes haue succeded as in the principall seas and Bishopriks in Christendom by stories we are able to showe therof it is euident that vnto Priestes Pastours and Bishops whō God hath placed to ouersee his church the grace of the holy ghost allwaies assisteth to interpret and expounde the misteries of holy scripture by parables vnto the people as farre as for them is requisit Wherefore the vnlerned laie men maye well be admonished to refrain from all curious and gredy reading of holy scripture First lest rashely and vnaduisedly they take vppon them the office cōmitted by God to the elders to priestes and bishops wich presumptiō we see hath ben greuousely punished in the examples of King Ozias of Core Dathan and Abiron Thē also because experience of our time hath taught howe dangerous it is that euery laie man craftes man labourer or otherwise all without discretion should reade and examine scripture at their pleasure The sectes of the Picardi of the Anabaptistes of the Swenckfeldians and diuers other heresies proceded off no other cause then that certain vnlerned laie people toke vpon them to reade interpret and expounde scripture And what text do these vnlerned men reade surely such as Luther him selfe or some other archeretike hathe translated in to the vulgar tongue and corrupted partly with false additions and preuy foisting partly with hereticall gloses put in the margin Againe they come all to reading of it with a certain preiudice that Luther hath appointed them teaching that he which will reade holy scripture ought not to bringe with him any iudgement but seke it in the text Which is as much to saie that the vnlerned laie man nothing informed before in the faith of the church nothing prepared with deuotion and humilite nothing instructed by what meanes to vnderstande holy scripture may rashly and roundely set vpon it as if it were Beuis of Hampton or a tale of Robin hoode In this case if the vnlerned mā sodenly imagin an exposition of some place that liketh his braine and serueth well his humour be it neuer so contrary and repugnant to the true vnderstanding of holy scripture yet he will not be brought from it but cleauing vnto it tothe and naile forgeth him selfe a newe religion frameth a faith of his owne and setteth vp in his hart a newe idoll in the defence whereof he will spend his body his goods his life
and his soule And this is lo the well spring of sondry heresies nowe a daies Wherein me thinketh it fareth as if the common craftes men of a cite vpon a stomach of priuat presumption would sodenly displace all phisicians and remoue poticaries from their shops persuading themselues to knowe as wel as they the vertu of their medicines balmes drogges waters ointmēts rootes herbes and other such ware and hereuppon would take vpon them to minister bothe to them selues and vnto other potions purgations and all kinde of medicine Were not these men thinke you likely to do much good in shorte time especially if other would be so madde as to beleue them would not experience quickely teache them to call home againe their olde Masters Phisicians and poticaries and set these men to their craftes againe Surely so it is of the holy scripture translated in to the vulgar tongue and so made common for all men For the laye man may so reade them and picke out metsons mete for his appetit but for lacke of skill as experience hath tried he will cast him selfe downe being whole before and so as they saie shall paie for touching For in very dede the vnlerned man is not acquainted with the phrase of scripture he knoweth not the language of the holy ghoste and although he heare the sounde yet he seeth nothing nor vnderstādeth not to what ende or purpose this or that be spokē For it fareth in scripture as in medicines which although they are ordained of God for the helthe of mans body and are the giftes of God yet if they be not vsed in time and place as the desease requireth and as the lerned physician appointeth they may be mischef in stede of a remedy and serue to kill man being made to heale man By this similitude the vnlerned maie gather howe dangerous it is for him to reade the scripture in his mother tongue especially with the entēt to interpret it as he shal thinke best him selfe Nowe whereas I haue in dede founde faute with the translation of Luther and haue withdrawen men frō reading of it I haue don it vpon good reason and waightie considerations For it is euident that Luther in his translatiō hath bothe corrupted the text omitting and altering the very wordes and also hath depraued the sence of the text by false and hereticall gloses partly added in the margin partly foisted in the text it selfe So by clipping awaie the termes of the text and patching on the suttle shiftes of his owne braine he hath gaily coloured his pernicious doctrine with the painted shethe of pretended scripture I wil here bringe you for a taste some fewe examples of his liegerdemain geuing you to vnderstāde what conscience he is likely to haue in other doctrine that feareth not to iugle to cogge and to foist in holy scripture it selfe S. Paule writeth thus vnto the Ephesians according to the Latin translation Which also worde for worde agreeth with the graeke text Wherefore take vnto you the whole armour of God that ye maye be able to resist in the euill daie and stande perfite in all thinges These wordes of S. Paule the honourable and lerned man George Gienger one of the preuie counsell vnto the Emperoures Maiestie translated after this sorte Darum ergreift den harnisch Gottes auf daffir andem boesen tag widersteē kundt vnd in al len dingē als die volkommen vesteen mijghr that is Therefore take on the barnis of God to the entent that in the euill daie you maie resist and in all thinges stande as the perfite But Luther clipping the text translated it thus Omb des wegen so ergreifft den hamisch Gottes auff daf ir widersteen kundt an dem bosen tag vnd in allen ewren thun besteen mijgt which soundeth thus Therefore so take on the barnis of God to the entent that you may resiste in the euill daie and stande in all workes In the which sentence Luther omitteth the worde perfecti in laten als die volkommen in dutche perfyte in englishe which deprauation of the text in this place and cutting awaie the worde perfyte serued his turne very well to raise vp againe the stinking heresie of the Maniches For he writeth that Sinne is parte of man and a thing giltie it selfe which cleaueth also so fast vnto man that it can in this life be taken a waie by no vertu of the grace of God or of the Sacraments and therefore that man remaineth allwaies in sinne nor is not able to attaine to any point of righteousnes in this life And herein Luther as the maner and custome of heretikes is fighteth against scripture with scripture it selfe For S. Paule saieth Not bicause I am alreadye perfyte but I folowe iff that I may comprehend and a litle after Let vs therefore as many as be perfyte be thus wise minded Here he maketh mencion of two sortes of perfectiō One which cōsisteth in hope and is looked for in the life to come of the wich the Apostle in an other place speaketh By hope we are saued an other which Christ speaketh of saying Be ye perfyte as your father of heauē is perfyte and again Be merciful as your father of heauē is merciful which perfectiō is as for exāple that oure glory be the witnes of our owne conscience which we are boūde to haue in this life and therefore ought to labour as S. Paule before exhorted vs that taking vpon vs the armour of God we may stāde perfyte in all thinges Now Luther admitteth no perfectiō in this life but teacheth that man is so farre from being perfyte in this life that God doth compell him to sinne S. Paule vseth often times the worde perfection but so that he confoundeth not the perfectiō of the life to come with the present which in this life as procliue and subiect to sinne maye and ought be kept of vs as farre as our infirmitie beareth Yet this perfection as litle as it is Luther to the entent he might vtterly take awaie he sticketh not as you see to clippe the coyne of Gods worde and bereue the text of the worde perfite lest any man perhaps woulde labour to be honest and vertuous The like slight vsed he in an other place of the Apostle for the like purpose and intent For whereas the Latin and Greke text bothe do reade By the lawe we haue knowleadge of sinne Luther corrupteth it translating after this sorte Durchs Gesetz ist nur erkantuus dee Sijnden that is By the lawe is nothing but knowledg of sinne For as before he clipped awaie the worde perfyte so here he foisteth in the worde Nur nothinge but to buylde againe the former heresie vpon this text But although Luther as by his writinges it is manifest and as the Illyricans and Antinomi his scholers do yet teache professed at the first that the lawe nor before nor after
iustification is necessary and that good workes were pernicious to saluatioÌ„ yet afterward writing against the Antinomi his scholers he corrected his former doctrine after this sort That the lawe before iustification is in dede necessary for the knowleadg of sinne but afterward is vtterly vnprofitable For the maintenaunce therefore of this PelagiaÌ„ and Manichean heresie the shifting in of the worde Nur nothinge but fitted his purpose maruailous well For by this only worde he hath planted againe two notable and auncient heresies The one of the Pelagians whiche saide that the lawe auailed nothing but for the knowleadg of sinne teaching what we ought to do and not to do and that by the ghospell we haue no grace geuen vs to perfourme that which by the lawe we learne to be good and godly An other of the Maniches which teache as Luther doth that the lawe is made for wicked men not for Christen men which can be helde in by no lawe nor are not bounde to any good workes In an other place where the Apostle according to the Latin and Greke text hath thus Haue we not power to leade about a sister a womaÌ„ Luther thus traÌ„slateth it Haben wir nicht macht ein Schwester zum Weib mit vmbher zu fijrn that is Haue we not power to leade about a sister for a wife Here againe like a false foister he shifteth in counterfaited droges amonge the swete spice of holy scripture adding thereunto of his owne these wordes zum Weib that is for a wife which is farre different from the meaning of the holy ghoste and was neuer writen by the Apostle nor reade in holy scripture from the beginning of the church by any Christen Catholike man But what intended Luther by this his addition surely to roote out of mens hartes all loue off chastite and virginite lest perhaps if S. Paule and the rest of the Apostles had caried no wiues aboute with them some woulde be content also by their example to lacke them yea he maketh the blessed Apostle a lyar whereby he might remoue him cleane out of the Bible For the Apostle say the in an other place I would haue allenâ—n be as my selfe That is as he expoundeth himselfe that all priestes and preachers off the worde of God should abstaine from matrimonie and all pleasure of the flesh to the entent that they might studie rather to please God then their wife As also againe when he saythe He that marieth his virgin doth wel and he that marieth her not doth better meaning thereby that bothe are right good bothe to mary and to liue single Yet whem one of the twaine and the better must be chosen certain it is that the Apostle preferreth single life before mariage But Luther by iumbling in only these wordes Lum Weib that is for a wife hath taken awaie the meaning and godly inteÌ„t of the Apostle not only out of the scripture but also out of thousandes of mens hartes not without great losse of many a soule He hath beside hereby not only disgraced the excellent vertu of chastite and virginite but also brought so in contempt the holy sacrameÌ„t of wedlock as if it were in inuention of maÌ„ that nothing is now more common then as Luther him self teacheth in the sixt tome of his workes If the wife will not let the maide come And there be yet extant certaine epistles of Luther and Melanchthon and aduises geuen by their letters wherein they do openly permit and pronounce it to be lawefull that one husband may haue two lawfull wiues I could also alleage and note with my finger diuers examples hereof agreable to the doctrine of these blessed ghospellers Neither may any man here thinck that this false and deceitefull translation of Luther is any newe inuented tricke of him selfe it was practised also in the time of S. Augustin who coÌ„futeth it with these wordes For vpon this respect sayth he speaking of relief made to the Apostles godly and faithefull wemen hauing wordly substaunce went about with the Apostles and ministred vnto theÌ„ of their substance that they lacked nothing necessary for this present life Which S. Paule showeth he might lawfully haue done as the other Apostles did but he saieth afterward he woulde not vse his power and authorite herein And this point certain men not perceauing expounded not asister woman where the Apostle saith haue we not power to leade aboute a sister woman but a wife These men seme to be deceaued by the ambiguite of the graeke worde For that in graeke one worde signifieth bothe a woman and a wife Allthouh the Apostle so placed that greke worde that they might not be deceaued For neither he sayde a woman only but a sister woman nor to mary but to leade aboute but other interpretours were nothing deceaued with this ambiguite translating it a woman not a wife Thus farre S. Augustin very plainely and roundely confuting the fonde interpretation or translation of Luther There is in the church a laudable custome and godly institution of the Apostles to applie holy scripture to the passion of Christ. So that Lessons and other praiers in the church especially of priestes and other in holy orders be so deuided and distributed in to certain howres that bothe the storie of Christ his passion and the rest of holy scripture may by that orderly distribution more coÌ„ueniently be vnderstaÌ„ded Hereof as we haue before touched were instituted the Canonical houres of Matins of Prime of the iij. vj and ix howres of EueÌ„song and CoÌ„plin And that al this is not by mans coÌ„stitutions or traditioÌ„s it may by diuers places of holy scripture euidently be confirmed Dauid in a certain psalme writeth SeueÌ„ times in the daye haue I saide laudes vnto the vpon the iudgemeÌ„ts of thy righteousnes And that this was done at certain houres and prescribed times it appereth by an other place of the same psalme I arose at midnight to confesse vnto the vpon the iudgements of thy righteousnes And in an other psalme he writeth At euening at morning and at none daie I wil praie and he shall heare my voice Morning praier in the church is couÌ„ted the Prime None daie the ix howre after Masse At euening the EueÌ„song In the Actes we reade of the Sixte howre Where it is writen that Peter ascended in the vpper partes to praie about the Sixte howre The iij. also the vj. and the ix howre aremeÌ„cioned in Daniel at the which howres he praied with teares ouer against HierusaleÌ„ Complin time of praier appeareth by that which S. Luke writeth of our Sauiour It happened in those daies he weÌ„t vp in to the MouÌ„te to praie alone and continued all night in praier to God These howres also by Gods institutioÌ„ are so distributed for the remeÌ„brauÌ„ce of Christes passioÌ„ that euery howre coÌ„taineth the remeÌ„braunce of some speciall acte of the passioÌ„ For at Matins
of Ihon Caluin in his booke of predestination and of Theodore Beza the archeheretike of FrauÌ„ce in his defence for Caluin This yeare 1561. one Lucas Sternberger in Omoluke a towne of Morauia being cast in to preson preaching amonge the Sternbergers and in diuers other places bearing him selfe for a Minister of the ghospel and scholer of Luther and Melanchthon preached and persuaded the people this doctrine that foloweth for the true and expresse worde of God First he openly taught and confessed That al suche as worship the name of the Blessed Trinite do imagin falsely the Gods That the name of the Trinite is vaine and superfluous bicause that worde is no where expressed in holy scripture beinge also but one God in heauen Therefore he forbad that the same songe O veneranda Trinitas O blessed Trinite should be songe and commaunded in his place to singe O blessed goodnes of God He wisheth also that all the deuills of hell woulde come and cary awaye this Trinite saieng he can not tell whether it be a man or a woman yet that he is sure that the same Trinite was ones a woman which had thre husbands Secondarely he confessed and taught that Christe was not true god but maÌ„ only like other meÌ„ For if he had beÌ„ god he should haue descended out of he auen in to earthe and committed the gouuernemeÌ„t of the worlde here to Angels That he was borne only of Mary and Ioseph the carpenter and that he exercised that crafte with Ioseph vntel the thirtyth yeare of his aage Beside he teacheth That Christ rose froÌ„ death not by his owne power but by the power of god almightie and that he worked no miracle but by the power and operatioÌ„ of almightie god which had endued him with more excellent giftes and graces then al the other prophets adopting him for his son at the leghth for his vertuous and honeste life when he was baptised of Ihon in the Iordayn and the voyce from heauen came downe saieng This is my welbeloued son in whom I am delited so that Christ is not the son of god but touching his soule onely bicause in the crosse he commended and gaue vp but his soule to god Thirdly he mocketh at the holy ghoste saieng that it is nothing els but a pigeon affirming beside that nothinge is writen of his diuinite in all scripture nether of the olde testameÌ„t nether of the newe and that it is not knowen what is this holy ghost Finally he had rather returne to the cloyster and be a papiste then to beleue in the holy ghoste Fourthely he will not the blessed virgin Mary mother of god to be a perpetuall virgin but that she had before two or thre sonnes and that she nothing differeth froÌ„ the rest of wemen and therefore nether she nor any other saints ought to be worshipped or haue their holy daies kepte Againe that men ought to worke the Sonday and reste the Saterday bicause in holy scripture the Saterday is coÌ„maunded to be kept holy But of the SoÌ„day nothing is prescribed nor appointed for as Luther taught nothinge ought to be admitted or obserued which god hath not in expres wordes commaunded or forbyd in holy scripture Fiftely he reiecteth holy baptim calling it a diuelish institution affirming also that it procureth nought els but hell and eternall damnation for circumcision was instituted of god not baptim Sixtely as touching the blessed Sacrament of the aultar he can neuer satisfie himselfe with mocking iesting and scorning at it for he saith the Iewes haue longe ago eaten vp the paschall lambe and if any thing were lefte they burned it Finally he confesseth he is of that opinion in this Sacrament as Melanchthon is For at a certain time hauing some communicating with him but fewer then he thought he inuited all other by speaking to them in these wordes Come hether for â—am not able to deuoure him vpp alone as for other sacraments he foloweth Luther in all points as his schole master of whom he receaued this doctrine Now that these heresies here reakoned vp be rife in Morauia and that many a soule is miserably in ueigled and seduced with them the experience showeth They also which are sene in the Alcoran of Mahomet and in Luthers doctrine may well consider and perceaue that this fifte ghospell of Luther prepareth and fostifieth the waie for Mahomets Alcoran to come in to Germany And though the Lutherans to excuse them selues and their ghospell will here obiect that Luther neuer inuented neuer thought nor taught these detestable heresies published by Lucas Sternberg it maye and ought well be awnswered vnto them that though Luther neuer tought these matters expresly which yet is to be doubted of yet he gaue abundant and sufficient occasion for these and all other heresies and schismes onely in that he writeth and bableth all waies that nothing ought to be receaued approued or obserued in the church which was not manifest euident and expresse in holy scripture And what other grounde hath this Lucas Sternberg to abolish al truthe of our Christen religion and to plante his deuelish doctrines then this lesson of Luther For euer he crieth VVhere is it writen where is it in holy scripture that there be thre persons VVhere is it read that Christ in the vnion of his godhead and manhood should be the Second person in Trinite or that Christ is the true and naturall son of God and not a creature according to his euerlasting and diuine generation VVhere is it expressed in scripture that the holy ghoste it selfe is any other then the euerlasting father VVhere is it noted in holy scripture that Mary the mother of Christe was a Virgin before and after the byrthe and that shee continued a Virgin allwaies In what place of the Bible can we reade that the Sabbaoth daie should be abrogated and the Sonday instituted And what heretike I pray you maye not saie the like of all the articles of our catholike faithe For what scripture hath saie the Anabaptistes that infants shoulde be baptised And the Swinglians VVhat Scripture saie they affirmeth that the true body and not the figure off Christ his body is in the Supper of the Lorde Againe the Lutherans VVhat place of scripture saie they dothe testifie that Christ instituted the Masse in his Supper Therefore if Luther had raised vp no other particular heresie yet this was detestable and cursed inoughe that he taught nothing to be obserued or receaued in the church but whiche god had expresly directly and in plaine wordes commaunded or forbed in the Bible To this heresie of Lucas Sternberg an other secte directly repugnant and contrary rose vp very lately at Pinczouia in Pole in the which place two new ghospellers Petrus Statorius and Georgius Brandata teach that there is not one God but thre gods and they so diuers one from an other as thre men yet that the son is somewhat lesse then the father and
import Now Caluin in his frēch trāslatiō printed at Geneua and at Lyōs by the heires of Iohn Michel turneth it thus Ila tue ses victuailles il a verse son vin that is She hath killed her victuals powred out her wine and prepared her table And this is the very trāslation also of our english Bible printed in the yeares 1549. 1551. 1552. and 1562. But bothe the trāslatiōs of our Bible and of Caluin herein their Master are other them selues much deceaued or do malitiously deceaue other For the latin the greke and the hebrew all with one accorde reade after the first english translation aleaged by vs. The hebrew hath 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the greke readeth thus 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 The latin hath Immolauit victimassuas miscuit vinum suum c. Nowe I appeale to all the lerned in these tongues whether the wordes of these textes aunswer not worde for worde to the first translation brought by vs. True it is that in the greke text the worde 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is ambiguous and may signifie to mingle or to fill out But the hebrewe text admitting no suche ambiguite from whence the greke was deriued nor the latin which folowed the greke that worde must nedes be takē in such sence as the greke receiued of the hebrew and as the latins folowed in the greke Therefore the french translation of Caluin and our english folowing the same is not the worde of God nor the text of holy scripture but the worde of Caluin and his text What may not heretikes do if they maye sette vs forthe their worde for the worde off God their imaginations for holy scripture their poisonned heresies for sounde faith You haue sene what conscience our protestants make of it and howe many places of holy scripture they haue altered peruerted and corrupted for the maintenaūce of their pretēded ghospel I will not in wordes exaggerat this wicked presumption of our protestāts The matter it selfe doth I truste sufficiently speake it And I do not vtterly despeare their amendment when they shall see and fele their falshood discouered and broughte to light seing that in the later translations they betray sometime their former iuggling as in certain places here noted by Staphylus of Luther it is euident For although as we saied in our preface of all the places corrupted by Luther and noted here by Staphylus there is but one readen in the cōmon translations off our countre yet that is to be vnderstanded of the later onely printed in the yeares 1552. and 1562. For in the former translations printed in the yeares 1549. and 1551. the place of S. Paule in the 1. to Timothe the 4. chapter and the first to the Corinthians the 9. chapter are corrupted euen as Luther had first taught them but in their later editions they haue made the holy ghoste to talke in an other language Well I beseche God to geue thē grace farder to see and to amēde their owne fautes and other men spedely to beware of them And truly what one man yea what one colledge or vniuersite of lerned men may take vpon it to sette forthe any translation other then whiche allwaies hath ben receiued Erasmus Roterodam a lerned man vndoubtedly but in this point ouer rashe was the firste of our time that with his newe translation in latin of the newe Testament comptrolled the olde Whereof he is worthely reprehended of diuers And what folowed Soone after Sebastian Castalion sette forthe an other translation in latin also Likewise Luther in the vulgar tongue which only was commaunded amonge the protestants to be reade and vsed in a publick decree made at Lipsia But an on after the Zwinglians of Zurich published yet an other translation of the Bible And in the preface of it they write plainely that the congregation ought to be bounde to no certain trāslation but that euery man may turne the text of holy Scripture according to his iudgement Thus we see by this bare text of scripture left of Luther more then Antichrist will leaue as they saie in the liberte of so many and diuers translations to be a very bare and weake staye of mens consciences and litle better then if with Antichrist we had no Scripture at all For when a doubte ariseth in holy Scripture as thousandes do what helpe haue we The expositions of holy fathers Councells and so forthe by the vardit of Luther auaileth not Translations be false diuers and vncertain What then Forsothe there is yet one shifte more Places of scripture they saie must be conferred and laied together so one place shall geue light to the other Is this allwaies true Maye this be a generall rule Let vs take for example some parcel of holy scripture Greate controuersies and sundry sectes are nowe a daies vpon these fewe wordes of Christ Take eate this is my body Luther and Zuinglius Brentius and Carolostadius were at defiaunce one with an other vppon the true meaning thereoff Luther excommunicateth all that confesse not the naturall body withe the bread to be there Zuinglius and Carolostadius will haue the breade to be but a signe or tokē of the body The latin text is plaine and euident for the reall presence The greke likewise Will they counsell the hebrewe ghospell of S. Matthewe If any hebrewe text serued their turne were it neuer so barbarous or Rabbinicall they would not spare to sett it out to the vttermost Let vs then see what that text hath I meane not the barbarous text of Munster nor the lerned exercise of Quinquarboreus but that text which beinge founde in Italy amonge the Iewes was of late yeares printed and sett forthe in Paris without points by the diligence of Ioannes Mercerus That text readeth thus 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 That is Take and eate this which is my body Here the hebrew text though it haue some one worde more then the latin and greke translation yet it furdereth the meaning of the Catholikes and fighteth directly against the Sacramentaries But let these interpretations by helpe of tongues passe Let vs see howe by conference of other places this sentēce may be lightned Luther compareth these wordes to the saying of S. Iohn Verbum caro factum est The worde is made flesh Zuinglius compareth them with an other place Caro non prodest quicquam The fleshe profiteth nothing Caluin varying from Zuinglius though bothe Sacramentaries in his commentaries vppon S. Matthew saieth Corporis appellatio pani tribuitur ea ratione qua Spiritum Sanctum Ioannes columbam vocat that is The bread is called the body of Christ as Iohn calleth the holy ghoste a pigeon An other sacramentary cometh yet and saieth those wordes are like to the saying of S. Paule The rocke was Christ. Lo these men haue conferred these wordes of Christ This is my body with other places of Scripture But haue they nowe founde out the truthe
amator ciuitatis vt valde bene audiens c I stam vero eius mortem mirabiliorem quā quā prudentiorem narrauit quemadmodum facta esset non tanquam facienda esset scriptura laudauit Nostrum est autem sicut Apostolus admonet omnia probare quod bonum est tenere Et hanc quidem scripturam que appellatur Machabaeorum non habent Iudaei sicut legem Prophetas psalmos sed recepta est ab Ecclesia non inutiliter si sobrie legatur vel audiatur that is Razias therefore was praised as one that tendred the cyte and a man of a very good name c. But his deathe more straunge and wonderfull then wise and discret is declared of the scripture howe it was done not commended as if it ought so to be done But it is our parte as the Apostle teacheth vs to proue and trie all thinges and to holde that good is And this Scripture which is called the Machabees the Iewes in dede receiue not as the lawe the prophets and the psalmes But it is receaued of the church not vnprofitably if it be read and heard with discretion Thus farre S. Augustin In whose Wordes you see M. Grindall that not only he acknowledgeth the bookes off the Machabees for Scripture and that receiued off the Church but also he telleth vs how Razias is commended in these bookes not as you obiect in your Sermon bicause he killed him selfe but bicause he was amator ciuitatis c. Howe thinke you shall we condemne the bookes of the Iudges bicause we reade there of Sampson that he killed him selfe or the Genesis bicause we reade there of Lot that he laie with his daughters and off Iudas that he compained as he thought with a hoore by the high waie shall we not rather reuerence the holy Scripture and saie with S. Augustin that Scripture declareth these thinges howe they were done not commending them as if they ought to be done As for your other sory shift where you gesse that the place of the Machabees commēding praier for the dead hath ben put to the text by some addition of late yeares bicause you saie certain of the oldest copies in greke haue no mention thereof I answer to charge the Church withe any such addition hauing no proufe thereof as yet you bringe none is the maner of olde heretikes the Manichees by name who saied also the genealogie in S. Matthew was added to his ghospell by some they knew not who And as for greke copies that lacke that place of praieng for the dead if you haue sene any such M. Grindall you may rather thinke they are corrupted of some olde or new Aerians heretikes as you haue heard in that point then to doubte of the common receiued text of holy Scripture els what heresy is there that may not escape by this shift if it may be lawfull vpon variete off copies which may rise of sundry causes as well the printed as the writen to call in doubt the authorite of holy scripture which ought without all doubt being ones vniuersally authorised assuredly and constantly be beleued and folowed And thus much to the reasons and arguments brought against the bookes of Machabees You go forthe M. Grindall and you saie Secondarely we haue no example in the Canonicall Scripture of any inuocation for the dead What then M. Grindall if that were true as we haue proued it already false will you therefore condemne the practise of the vniuersall Church which is clere and euident in this point What example in Canonicall scripture haue you off celebrating the Sonday holy daie Will you therefore driue men to their craftes that daie with the Sabbataries a secte of the Anabaptistes of oure time what example of Canonicall scripture haue you of inuocation of the holy Ghost Will you therefore as that protestant Minister of Morauia preached rather be a papist then beleue in the holy Ghoste What example haue you in Canonicall Scripture of baptising infants before the yeares of discretion Will you therefore with the Anabaptistes baptise no children hereafter in the Realme and call vs all to the fonte againe And did not thinke you the Anabaptiste laugh in his sleue when he heard you make youre reasons in pulpit vpon lacke of example of Canonicall scripture Especially when you concluded afterward so stoutely and solemnely For most certain it is if praier for the dead had ben so necessarie as many now adaies woulde haue it seme it had not lacked all authorite and example of the Canonicall Scriptures as it doth Surely M. Grindal you can neuer speake better worde for heretikes then graunting them this your proposition that without example and authorite of Canonicall scripture nothing is to be admitted And yet this one sentence is the grounde and foundation of all your newe doctrine For why May not the Anabaptiste saie vnto you iff yow hadde him in consistory before you Most certain it is my L. if baptising of infants and babes were so necessary as you would haue it seme it had not lacked all authorite and example of the Canonicall Scriptures as it doth And could you then repell him for so saying seing you preache it in pulpit and make it your strongest argument to ouerthrow praier for the dead Againe might not Nestorius haue tolde Cyrillus and all the fathers of the Ephesin Councell We haue no example in the Canonicall scripture that Our Lady is called the Mother of God And certain it is if it were so necessary a matter to haue her so called and beleued for such as you will haue it seme pronouncing me an heretike for denying it and assembling your selues so from al partes of the worlde for approuing and defending it it had not lacked all authorite and example of Canonicall Scriptures as it dothe might he not I saie thus haue tolde them as you M. Grindall do tell vs if that argument had ben thought worth the telling Might not Arrius haue quarelled in like maner with the fathers of the Nicen Councel for the wordes Consubstantiall and ingenitus might not Heluidius haue vsed the like againste S. Hierom for the perpetuall virginite of our Lady and Nouatus with S. Cyprian for reconciling of such as had abiured Christ For none of al these had any authorite or exāple in the Canonical Scriptures And yet M. Grin dall the Anabaptistes the Nestorians the Arrians the Nouatians the Heluidians be all condēned heretikes euen by your owne iudgement I doubt not though the Catholike doctrine in confuting of al those heresies lacke all authorite and example of the Canonicall Scriptures Where is then nowe become your argument against vs for lacke of Scripture supposing it were true we did so lacke Where is nowe that stoute and great assertion Most certain it is cae But to ouerthrow with one worde this forte and shooteancker of all your pretended religion tell vs I praie yow if without authorite and
the broode of that fonde frier sing the same song Beza and his companions at the late Synod of Poissy in FrauÌ„ce were stiff in that opinion aloÌ„g time but at the leÌ„gth were driuen from it whereupoÌ„ they chaunged the tenour of their supplication calling them selues Les esleus de Dieu the chosen of God This wilde persuasion is allmost receiued of all protestants It is the very heresy of the Pelagians condemned therefore in S. Augustins time as in his booke De heresibus he reciteth at large What a great corrupter of holy Scripture Luther hath ben in the second part of this Apologie it is at large declared by Fridericus Staphylus How our protestants also haue folowed his example therein and how manifoldly they haue peruerted the very text of holy Scripture I haue in part touched to geue good warning in the rest Who list to see how this hath ben the guiâ—e and maner of olde heretikes Let him reade Tertullian in his praescriptions S. Ambrose vpon the epistle of S. Paul to Titus Iraeneus also and S. Augustin writing against Adimantus the manichee cap. 12. 14. 16. What should I procede farder in declaring how Luther and his scholers folowe rhe race of olde heretikes bothe in their doctrine and in the maner and setting forthe thereof The very refusall of the auncient fathers in Christes church pronouÌ„ced as you haue heard so impudently of Luther and folowed with no lesse impudence of his scholers is no new point but euen the very shift of their forefathers cursed heretikes of olde time This appeareth well by the disputations of Athanasius with Arrius by the counsell of Sisinnius to the Emperour Theodosius by the maner of Eutyches in the Councell of Chalcedon by the writings of Cirillus touching Nestorius and of S. Basil coÌ„cerning Eunonius For all these lerned fathers could not drawe those vnruly heretikes to the rule of the auncient and holy writers in the Church of Christ. They appealed to only Scripture and would be tried only by that as Luther would and the protestants of our time wil though many heretikes receiued not the whole corps of Scripture but such partes only as liked them reiecting all that made against them euen as now a daies also Luther and his scholers reiect the bookes of Machabees and the epistle of S. Iames the one bicause it praieth for the dead the other bicause it writeth directly against their only faith Of what heretikes they lerned this shift we haue already declared defending the Machabees against M. Grindall Aduise your selues now good Christen readers whether you thinke the surer waie to saluatioÌ„ to for lowe the steppes of these fathers of Luther and all new ghospellers all condemned heretikes aboue a thousand yeares past or embrace the doctrine of the holy Fathers and lerned approued writers in Christes church May we not wel iudge and assuredly persuade our selues that the very sprit of heresy spake in Luther and speaketh in all new ghospellers preaching and defending olde condemned heresies Why haue protestants departed from the olde Catholike religion and embraced the new doctrine of Luther they saie forsothe bicause all thinges are reformed after the paterne and practise of the primitiue Church What meane they trow ye herein truly I do not otherwise thinke but that a great numbre the vnlerned and deceiued sorte take them to meane wel and that all is reduced to the doctrine and religion approued and generally receiued in the primitiue church for the espace of fiue or six hundred yeares after Christ. But vndoubtedly the lerned and ringleaders of this new fangled faith if they meane truly must nedes meane the renewing of such heresies as were in that time condemned For thus and no otherwise do they folow doctrine practised in that time that is of heretikes as in a numbre of particular assertions you haue sene But to returne to Luther what point of a right heretike is there that hath not in him ben verified He condemneth the Church and holy Fathers appointed of the holy Ghoste to gouuerne and direct his church as you see by his owne wordes before alleaged He corrupteth holy scripture by false translations as the secoÌ„de part of this Apologie hath declared you He denied partes hereof at his pleasure after the acustomed maner of al heretikes He holdeth teacheth and defendeth olde cursed and loÌ„ge condeÌ„ned heresies as we haue before deducted vnto you He hath bredd diuers sectes by his owne doctrine repugnaÌ„t and coÌ„trary one to an other to wit the Anabaptistes the SacrameÌ„taries the S weÌ„ck feldiaÌ„s and diuers other as it appeareth clerely by the Table of his Ofspring in the thrid part of this Apologie Finally bicause al heretikes are knoweÌ„ by their frutes what the frutes of this maÌ„s doctrine haue beÌ„ it is in this Apologie of Staphylus in diuers places expresly set forth as wel for the great decaye of deuotion and spirituall vertus as for the temporall waste and misery that of this heresy hath ensued Of his terrible arrogancy and pride the most euident token of a wilfull heretiken and voide of all grace and goodnes all that haue read his writings can testifie abundantly None more complaine thereof then his felowe protestants the Sacramentaries of Zurich as partly by their wordes in the thirde parte of this boke alleaged it maye well appeare Neuer baude in bridwell nor scolde in the stewes so railed as this man doth beinge comptrolled of his doctrine His awnswers against all such as wrote againste him abundantly declare the same For hereupon the ciuill Lutherans do swarue in many pointes from such doctrine as he was wonte to vtter in the vehemency of sprit as they cal it and in his cholere He wrote him selfe an Euangelist off Christ euen as Manicheus called him selfe an Apostle of Christ as S. Augustin witnesseth And off his scholers he is called the thirde Helias as in the story of his deathe we reade writen by Melanchthon Ionas and Pomeranus Euen as Manicheus was of his scolers called the holy ghost and Montanus of his secte also He writeth that he is sure and certain he hath his doctrine from heaueÌ„ eueÌ„ as Aetius sayde also of him selfe I knowe God moste clerely and euen as perfitly as I knowe my selfe The cause and original of Luthers departure from the church was ambitioÌ„ as all the ecclesiasticall histories of our time FoÌ„tanus Rouerus and other do testifie to witt bicause he was not preferred to the publishing of the famous pardon of the croisad The same ambition made Aerius an heretike bicause Eustathius was preferred before him in a certain bishoprike as Epiphanius recordeth The like writeth Tertullian of ValeÌ„tinus and Nicephorus reporteth of Montanus lib. 4 cap. 2. of Nouatus libro 6. capite 3. of Florinus libro 4. capite 20. and of Thebutes one of the firste heretikes in the Apostles time the very same cause of falling in
Dieu that is Beside the profit which we receaue at the Sacraments ought not to be restrained to the time we receaue thē as if the visible signe as soone as it is presented vs brought with it forthwith the grace of God Be not these two tales cōtrary First he biddeth vs not doubt but with the signe we receaue the body which as you heard before of Caluin can not be voide of grace Now he saith that the visible signe bringeth not forthwith the grace of god First he maketh it a rule that seing the signes the verite also Christ him self be present Nowe he saith the profit of the Sacramēts ought not to be restrained to the time we receaue thē Peraduēture he meaneth we shoulde receaue the signes and not see thē els how these two saiengs maie be reconciled I see not and I thinke no man els dothe see But it is not ones nor twise that he thus contradicteth him selfe but many times and often and that in small space as oute of his resolutions vpon the Sacraēnts I will note nowe vnto you In the thirde article of his resolutions he writeth Christ estant fils eternell de Dieu d'vne mesme essence c. that is Christ being the eternal Son of God of one very substaunce and glory with the father hathe taken vpon him oure fleshe to the ende that he should communicat vs that whiche he had properly by nature In these wordes are two doctrines cōtrary to his former saiengs First if Christ be as he is in dede of the very same substaunce and glory with the father then he is not a folowing cause of life as he teacheth writing vpon the sixte of Ihon. We will alleage you his wordes herafter when we shall detecte you his heresies Againe here he confesseth Christ to communicat vnto vs that which he had properly by nature to witt his fleshe before he graunteth not vs his fleshe but a spirituall communion thereof to wit a quickening power oute of that fleshe In the. 9. article thus he writeth Albeit we putte a difference betwene the signe and the thinges figured thereby yet we separat not the verite from the figures The figure or signe which Caluin meaneth is bread it selfe the thinge figured is Christe Now if he seuer not Christ from the bread then is he there present really as the bread is with the bread Which Caluin writing against Westphalus and other Lutherans dothe allwaies declaime and inueigh against In the nexte article folowing thus he writeth But we muste not haue a regarde to the bare signe but to the promis which is thereto annexed Beholde I beseche you what fonde contradictiō this is For what is the promis of the blessed sacrament Christ saith Who eateth my flesh hath life and I wil raise him again at the later daie Lo life and resurrectiō is the promis If this as Caluin teacheth be annexed to the signe how calleth he it a bare signe But Christ teacheth vs as you see that this promis is not annexed to the bread which is impossible but to his very flesh and that full of all diuinite which is no bread pardy It foloweth in the article Therefore the simple matter of water of bread and wine doth not present vs nor geue vs Christ. Lo here againe he calleth the signe a simple matter of bread and wine Howe then I praie you is that waighty promis of life and resurrection annexed vnto it Beside he sayth the signe dothe not present vs Christ. Yet before in the seuēth article he wrote that the principall office off the sacraments was that god by them dothe testifie vnto vs his grace representeth it and sealeth it vnto vs. And in the .8 article he calleth them true witnesses and seales and euery where he calleth the bread the figure of Christ his body If all this be true howe saieth he nowe true saieng that the signe dothe not present vs Christ howe calleth he it a simple matter of bread and wine Lo howe many contradictions are couched in one of his articles But let vs considre the reste In the twelueth article thus he writeth Farder as for that which is geuen vnto vs by the Sacraments that is not by their owne proper vertu although that the promis is comprised in them whereby they are indued with the qualite thereof Here he confesseth againe in the sacraments is comprised or contained the promis of the ghospell and that this promis remaineth in the sacraments as the qualite dothe in a substaunce First if bare bread be as he saied defore the sacrament calling it a signe such as with Caluin all sacraments are howe can it haue any suche promis or any suche qualite in it who euer heard that life and oure resurrection were promised to a piece of bread Then if the sacraments as in his Institutions he defineth them be not onely bare signes but sure witnesses of gods grace towardes vs their vertu being the worke of God why denieth he by their vertu any thinge to be geuen He woulde deface the sacraments but he cōtradicteth him selfe But wil you see a cleane repugnant and direct contrary doctrine to all that hetherto hathe ben saied For hetherto you heare Caluin saie that he seuereth not the verite from the figure that the promis is annexed to the signe and againe that the promis is comprised in the Sacrament Nowe at the very ende of all his resolutions see I praie you how he resolueth him self In the laste article thus he concludeth Although saieth he the bread be geuen vnto vs as a marke or pleadge of the communion yet because it is a signe not the thing it self nor hath not the thinge included in it they which staie their minde thereupō worshipping therein Christ they make an idol of it Lo now Caluin hath plucked of his visard and plaieth his parte kindely now he saieth the thing of the sacrament to witt Christ is not included contained or comprised in the sacrament that it is but a signe or a pleadge In dede we agre with Caluin that Christ is not in the bread and much lesse is the bread a pleadge or marke of oure communion or participation of Christ. S. Paule saieth the holy ghoste is geuen vnto vs as a pleadge no scripture saieth so of bread Againe we confesse that the true flesh of oure Sauiour is geuen vs in this moste blessed sacrament in forme and shape of bread not remaining but by the omnipotency of the worde as S. Ciprian speaketh made flesh But why dothe Caluin make the Sacrament nowe but a bare signe Why denieth he now the thinge or verite of the Sacrament to be therein included hauing graunted it before Forsothe the deuill him selfe moued Caluin to saie so enuieng at the glory of god and desiring as litle honour to be done to Christe as might be For after that Caluin as the proctour of the deuill
parare rias eius thou shalt go before the face of oure Lorde to praepare his waies and saie with Caluin that he Christned mē as well as Christ dyd and was the Lorde him selfe that should weane vs in to the faithe by his baptim Thirdly the baptim of S. Ihon is called in holy scripture no other but baptismus penitentiae the baptim of repentaunce For repentaunce was the waie that S. Ihon made to bring men to Christ. Nowe the baptim of Christ is called lauacrum regenerationis renouationis spiritus sancti the fountaine of regeneration and renewing of the holy ghoste Be these all one Is there not a farre passing difference betwene them Laste of all we reade in the actes of the Apostles euidētly that suche as were baptised before of Ihon were after baptised againe by S. Paule The wordes of the scripture are these Paule coming to Ephesus founde there certain disciples that is suche as bore them selues for Christians and he saied vnto them haue ye receiued the holy ghost and do ye beleue but they saied vnto him We haue not so muche as heard if there be any holy Ghoste Then he saied Wherein then are ye baptised which awnswered vnto him In the baptim of Ihon. Then Paule saied Ihon baptised the people with the baptim of penaunce telling thē they should beleue in him that should come after him that is in Iesus This being heard they were baptised in the name of oure Lorde Iesus Hetherto the wordes of holy scripture Nowe if the baptim of Ihō and Christ were al one as Caluin saieth why dyd S. Paule baptise them againe as the scripture here declareth Doth Caluin allowe rebaptisation Is he an Anabaptist Or were they baptised againe bicause they were not instructed before in the holy ghoste This were in dede a good reason for the furious Anabaptistes to make vs all come to the fonte again bicause when we were babes we vnderstode nothing of the holy ghoste What shift then hath Caluin here to defeate this most expresse text of holy scripture Truly he laboureth impudently to defeate in it his institutions but with no lesse foly then impudency For whereas it is writen they were baptised in the name of Iesus that is saieth Caluin they receaued visible and sensible graces of the holy ghost they were not baptised again Lo the scripture saieth they were baptised in the name of Iesus Caluin saieth they receaued visible graces of the holy ghoste Maye not a mā by this meanes come and denie baptim vtterly and saie that after the ascension of Christ none were baptised For in all the newe testament after the ascension of Christ we reade of no other baptim but that men were baptised in the name of Iesus So we reade in the first sermon of S. Peter made after the coming downe of the holy goste Baptizetur vnusquisque vestrum in nomine Iesu Christi Let euery one of you be baptised in the name of Iesus Christ. And of the Centurion and all his house it is writen they were baptised in the name of oure lorde Iesus Christ. Nowe all this by Caluins doctrine was no baptim but onely a receauing of visible graces from the holy ghoste For why maye it not as well meane so in other places as here shall scripture meane sometime one thinge sometimes an other as it pleaseth Caluin Againe many were baptised that receaued not those visible graces Or els Caluin must saie there is no baptim nowe in the worlde nor hath no ben these many hundred yeares Cornelius also and his family receaued those visible graces before they were baptised Whereby we lerne it is not al one to receaue those visible graces and to be baptised But what nede we farder refute this impudent hereticall shifte of Caluin It foloweth immediately in the text aboue recited Et quum imposuisset manus eis Paulus venit Spiritus Sanctus super eos loquebantur lin guis prophetabant that is And when Paule had laied handes ouer them the holy ghoste came down vpon them and they spake with tongues and prophecied Lo these visible giftes were geuen them after they were baptised by laieng on of handes For the scripture telleth vs that first S. Paule baptised them and after layed handes on them which being done the visible graces were geuen them What thinke ye now did Caluin trow ye reade so farre yes sothely And yet goeth he forth to defend impudently that which he had ones wickedly affirmed For he saieth all this was but one action though it be diuersly tolde for two seuerall actions and he saieth so onely But by what authorite by what reason saieth he so He telleth vs it is the maner of the hebrew phrase to speake first the matter shortely and after to sette it forthe mere at large What if it be the maner of the hebrew phrase Is it so allwaies or sometimes onely If it be so all waies then shoulde he at leste haue brought here one example Nowe he bringeth none at al. Beside that he shooteth very wide of the marke No tounge auoideth more idle repetitions of one thinge no tounge affecteth more breuite and speaketh more in fewer wordes then the hebrew dothe and therefore it is called of al other most chaste frugall and lesse ryotous in lāguage I reporte me herein to the skilful thereof If he meane it is the hebrewe phrase sometimes to speake so what of that so is it the greke phrase the latin phrase and the phrase of all tongues sometimes to do What then Bicause it dothe so sometime ergo dothe it so in this place But where trowe ye was Caluins witt and remembraunce when he wrote this What meaned he to bleare oure eyes with the authorite of an hebrew phrase in this place whiche nother was writen in the hebrew tongue nor of any hebrician For whose wordes are those we alleaged you before Be they not writen in the Actes of the Apostles the .19 chapter Was the Actes of the Apostles euer writen in the hebrewe tongue we neuer heard yet that any parte of the new testament was writen in the hebrewe tongue except S. Matthewes ghospell onely and the epistle vnto the hebrewes Againe who wrote the Actes of the Apostles Was it not S. Luke the Euangelist a greke borne to witt at Antiochia To what a miserable shift trowe ye was this willfull proude heretike driuen when to vpholde his heresy against the expresse wordes of scripture after all other shiftes he was glad at the length to flie to the succour of an hebrewe phrase in suche a text as neither was writen in the hebrewe tongue neither of any hebrewe borne But what will not an heretike do rather then he will acknowleadg the truthe We reade that onely Christ was able to put the Pharises to silence and stoppe the mouthes of the Sadduces two hereticall sectes of the Iewes as the Lutherans and the Caluinistes are nowe of the
Christians We haue peraduēture ben ouer longe in this one point But it was necessary that the suttle shiftes of that wily heretike shoulde be discouered This perilous booke of his Institutions is as I vnderstande in oure englishe tongue and commaunded to be reade of the simple and vnlerned priestes Let these fewe pointes that by occasion in this oure discours we haue discouered be a lesson and charitable aduertismēt vnto them what to iudge of the rest Truly it were better for them being vnlerned to nourishe a serpent at their table then to reade this perilous poisonned booke whereby the olde serpent is euer at hande to seduce them in to most hainous heresies and most horible blasphemies as we haue before in parte touched The seconde heresy that Caluin vttereth and forgeth himselfe aboute this doctrine of baptim is that the Iewes were baptised in the cloude and in the read sea as we are in the fonte He teacheth this doctrine in his cōmentaries vpon the first to the Corinthiās the tenth chapter and concludeth that in spirituali substantia in figura visibili bothe in the spirituall substaunce and in the visible figure their baptim in the cloude and in the read sea agreeth with oure baptim in the fonte And therefore he teacheth the Iewes to haue had the sacramēt of baptim no lesse then we And this he dothe bicause he woulde bringe oure Christen faith to mere figures signes and shadowes in the whiche the Iewes in the olde lawe were traded to a better perfection vnder Christ as S. Paule teacheth But let vs see howe hereticall and false this doctrine is First it repugneth manifestly against holy scripture For S. Paule after he had saied the Iewes were baptised in the cloude and in the read sea he saieth euen immediately after Hec in figura facta sunt nostri these thinges were done in the figure of vs. and againe after a fewe lines Haec autem omnia in figura contingebant illis all these thinges happened to them in figure And thus do all holy fathers expoūde this place Chrisostom saieth Veritatis nominibus vsus est in figura the Apostle vsed the names off the verite in the figure S. Augustin sayeth their passing throughe the read sea whereby the escaped the Aegyptians figured the deliuraunce of vs from the deuill throughe baptim Theodoret writeth that the cloud ouer shadowing them from burning heates figured the grace of the holy ghoste ouershadowing vs from flame of concupiscence and sinne S. Hierom likewise writeth that these thinges happened vnto them in vmbra typo non in veritate in shadowe and figure not in verite Onely Caluin against expresse scripture and so many lerned fathers impudently as his maner is defendeth that the cloude and the read sea was as true a baptim to the Iewes as the holy fonte is to vs. But let vs see what absurde inconueniences depend of this doctrine thoughe nor scripture nor authorite of holy fathers made against it If the children of Israel were baptised bothe in the read sea and in the cloude with the like perfection as we in the fonte then they were twise baptised and our baptim may be double not withstanding the perfection of it Which being so we must chaunge the scripture in S. Paule saying there is vna fides vnum baptisma but one faithe and but one baptim Caluin here awnswereth that these are two different signes making but one baptim awnswering to oure baptim But see I praie you what a sory shifte this is For first by the doctrine of Caluin as you haue heard before baptim is nought els but a signe of the remission of sinnes by the which we are admitted in to the felowship and societe of Christen men Nowe if the Iewes had two suche different signes had they not two baptims or els if those two signes made but one baptim then in the clowde they were not baptised vntell they had passed the read sea which was afterwarde Nowe S. Paule saieth they were baptised in the cloude and in the sea Iff the worde Baptised as Caluin will haue it be ment of true baptim suche as oures is then were they truly baptised bothe in the cloude and in the sea whiche were two diuers actions and at two sundry times Againe if the children of Israel were baptised in the cloude and in the sea with the like perfection as we are in the fonte howe will Caluin auoide the suspicion of an Anabaptiste seing they were baptised before in their circumcision by the doctrine of Caluin For Caluin in his Institutions in his chapter of baptim teacheth that circuncision was to the Iewes as baptim was to vs the onely difference being in the outwarde signe to witt that by circuncision they had remission off sinnes life euerlasting and were admitted in to the leage of god And oure baptim as you haue heard Caluin defineth to be naught els but a sure token or warrant that we be admitted in to the societe and number of Christen men ioyned in leage to god Nowe if the Iewes by Circumcision had their perfit baptim and yet in the cloude and in the sea were baptised again as perfitly dothe not this doctour of Geneua teache vs diuersite of baptims Dothe he not muche furder the cause of the Anabaptistes Seing it is but a matter of signes by Caluins doctrine haue not they greate occasion to crie vpon rebaptisation It is not muche to be maruailed if so many Sacramentaries be also Anabaptistes as experience doth showe in all those countres where Sacramentaries do swarme The doctrine of Caluin dothe minister right good occasion thereunto as you shall see yet by one consequence more deducted of this his heresie If the Iewes were baptised in their circuncision in the cloude in the sea and receaued the same baptim as Christen men do in the fonte howe saye we to the baptim of S. Ihon Why dyd S. Ihon baptise the Iewes being baptised before with the very same baptim For if as Caluin here saieth the Iewes were baptised in the cloude and in the sea no lesse then we are in the baptim of Christ and againe the baptim of S. Ihon be as you hearde him saie before the very same baptim that Christ his baptim is why I saie dyd S. Ihon baptise them againe Dothe he not here teache plaine rebaptisation Let vs yet go one steppe farder The Iewes saieth Caluin were baptised in the cloude and in the sea in their circuncision in the baptim of S. Ihon euen as we are in the water of oure baptim Why then dyd S. Peter at his first sermon made to the Iewes exhorte them to baptim againe And those of the Iewes whiche beleued in Christe why were they baptised as the text saieth they were For it is writen Qui receperunt sermonem eius baptisati sunt they that receaued the worde of Peter were baptised And why dyd Ananias baptise S. Paule If
the Iewes were as verely and as truly baptised in the clowde vnder Moyses whiche Caluin most impudently affirmeth as we are in the fonte vnder Christ and his minister why were they baptised againe of S. Ihon or of the Apostles when they came to the faithe of Christ What a numbre of baptims dothe Caluin teache vs beside the one onely baptim of Christ whiche the Catholike church hathe lerned in holy scripture Circuncision the clowde the sea the baptim of S. Ihon and al these the very same and of the selfe same effect and force as the baptim of Christ. Is not Caluin trowe ye a ioyly Anabaptiste Nay dothe he not farre passe the Anabaptistes They go aboute to repete one twise Caluin maketh vs fyue for one off the which euery Christned Iewe by his doctrine hathe foure and euery vnchristened Iewe hathe three I woulde nowe passe from his heresies to his contradictions But I muste nedes put you in minde off one ioyly tricke of Caluin which he practised in the planting of this heresy In his commentaries vpon S Paule where he teacheth this doctrine after longe labour and strife seing he coulde bringe forthe no true childe but that it proued to a mōster and ougle vnnatural thinge and perceauing one foule faute in it which he thought most of all those of his generatiō would abhorre he goeth aboute to cloke it and colour it as wel as he maie The greate faute that he espied him selfe in this doctrine is that it had no expresse scripture for it You shall heare him finde the faute and see howe he will remedy it These be his wordes Sed rursum obijcitur nullum de his verbum extare I d ego fateor sed neque dubium hoc est quin Deus spiritu suo defectum externae praedicationis suppleuerit that is But they will obiecte againe That there is no worde extant hereof That do I confesse but it is not to be doubted but that God by his Spirit hath supplied the lacke of external preaching Lo Caluin nowe is glad to runne to the refuge of the holy ghoste for his doctrine whē scripture faileth him But when the Catholike churche directed allwaies and assisted by the holy ghoste teacheth vs any thinge that is not expressed in holy scripture Caluin can not abide it Hereupon in his Institutiōs he raileth at the adoratiō of Christ in the blessed sacrament bicause in holy scripture saieth he Nulla eius mentio ostendi potest quae tamen non fuisset pretermissa si deo accepta foret that is No mentiō there of cā be showed which notwithstāding had not bē omitted if it had liked god And in the matter of reseruatiō though he graūt that the primitiue church vsed it yet bicause it is not expressed in scripture he wil none of it Thus whē it pleaseth Caluin scripture is requisit and whē it pleaseth him not scripture may be lacked and the spirit of god maie supplie it In like maner though he crie vpō scripture alwaies and as we noted you before oute of his Institutitiōs wil not allow the church no farder thē she bringeth expresse scripture for her yet not only in this place he teacheth beside scripture and cōfesseth it to but also in many other places In the matter of the blessed sacrament of the aultar you haue sene in howe many and sundry pointes his doctrine repugneth to holy scripture while he laboureth to persuade men that to be but bread and wine which oure Sauiour pronounced to be his body and bloud It cometh nowe to my minde howe impudenly he shifteth awaie the authorite of expresse scripture where with he sawe him selfe pressed You shall heare his wordes In his Institutions the 18. chapter thus he writeth Vtcunque verborū Christi tangi se religione quiritentur quo minus figuraté intelligere ausint que sunt tam aperté dicta non est tamen hic satis iustus praetextus cur omnes quae contra obijciuntnr rationes ita respuāt that is Howesoeuer they crie and cōplaine that for the reuerence of Christ his wordes they dare not take it for a figure which was so plainly spoken yet this is no sufficient pretēce why they shuld refuse al such reasons as we bringe against thē This he writeth against the Lutherās which will not go frō the real presence of Christ in the Sacramēt And see we not here the vncredible arrogancy of this proude heretike Doth he not showe him felfe to be a very Antichriste For what can Antichriste require more off men then to haue the expresse wordes of Christ yelde to suche reasons as he will obiect against And dothe not Caluin require the very same Doth he not bidd the Lutherans beleue his reasons against the expresse wordes of Christ And where as the Lutheran alleageth that bicause the wordes of Christ are plaine saieng This is my body he can not be brought to make it a figure as Caluin dothe what other shifte hathe Caluin then to saie that this is no sufficient pretence why they shoulde refuse his reasons for the contrary Which is as much to saie Though Christ speake plainely yet you must harken also what we can saie against it and ye must geue eare to suche reasons as we can laie against him and then folowe my reasō what soeuer Christe or the ghospel telleth you Nowe what cā Antichriste require more Verely as S. Iohn saied of the heretikes of his time Antichristi multi sunt there are many Antichristes so may we most truly say of our time there are many Antichristes but none a more righter Antichrist thē this heretike Calui You haue sene good readers what heresies and howe diuers Caluin hathe partely renewed partly forged of his owne in his doctrine aboute these two Sacraments which onely he acknowleadgeth and taketh for Sacraments If we woulde vse the like diligence in other points of his doctrine we coulde be longe and should be I feare tedious And truly it were to be wished that neither the heresies of this man neither any heresie at all were knowen to the common and vnlerned people But bicause this suttle heretike hathe so wined him selfe in to mens hartes that he hathe trained them not onely from the Catholike churche of Christ but also from the Lutherās and Melanchthonistes which before bore all the swaie of this new gospell I thought good to discouer his heresies and other abominable doctrine aboute these two Sacraments as two of the waightiest articles nowe in controuersy and most of all other touching oure saluation to the entent that not onely the Catholikes and suche as god of his goodnes hathe hetherto staied in the faithe of the churche may as they do vtterly abhorre his doctrine neither yelde by the wickednes of the time to any one point thereof but also oure dere deceiued countremen that so gladly reade his workes and so gredely deuoure his diue lish doctrine maye lerne of
by them left vnto their lawfull successours with the very text of the scripture therefore it is cōmonly called the Tradition of the holy fathers and oftentimes the vnwriten verite in respect of the writen texte And bicause the truthe off the text and of the right vnderstanding of the texte must nedes be all one truly our aduersaries do slaunder vs fayning that in triall off cōtrouersies we woulde beside the worde of God sett as iudge the traditions of men directly against the worde of God The third principle is that holy continuall succession of the See Apostolike and other bishops in the Catholike churche For if we be able to proue by order of continuall succession that all bishops as well before vs as nowe haue allwaies expounded the holy scriptures euen as the first Apostles did can there be any more certain waye for the vnderstanding of scripture then this is I would gladly heare what can be saied against it The fourthe principle is the vnite and consent of the Catholike churche Whereby it is made that the like truthe be in euery part that is in the whole and so contrary wise These are moste Reuerend Prelate the right principles of Christian doctrine these are the foundations of all truthe these as foure quarres or corner stones holde vp the Catholike churche and therefore it is called One Holy Catholike and Apostolike churche For of these principles dependeth the Authorite of the councels Of these the holy Canons haue their beginning and of these all laufull and laudable rites of the church take force and strength These then being the principles of our religion not those which Brentius falsely chargeth vs withal Princes and rulers ought to looke more nerer vnto the doings and sayings of their preachers But nowe Bretius to make an oppositiō of the foresaide forged principles our principles are saieth he the worde of God Christ and an assured certainte of oure confidence in Christ But what is I praie you this your worde of God This it is that all maner of folke mē and womē cookes and coblers baudes and buchers tinkers and tailers pedlers and poticaries minstrels and mummers and all such like be priestes be bishops be doctours and pastours and haue authoritie to administrat the Sacraments to interpret Scripture and what interpretation eche one by the drifte of his braine draweth out of scripture that to be the pure ghospell off the Lorde and the expresse worde of God This is not right Reuerend father the worde of God but the worde of the diuell him selfe inuēted of Luther not inspired by the sprit of God For that man entending to peruert all that appertained to God or to man laboured trauailed and endeuoured by al meanes possible that there might remaine no spirituall magistrat whiche might by authorite discerne betwene leper and leper maintaining the right doctrine of the ghospell and remouing the bastard And this labour of Luther being well liked of Sathan he imagined an other worde of God as that among Christen men shoulde be no ciuill magistrat for all princes were fooles tyrans and men of no religion to thentent that if perhaps the heresies of Luther were condemned by the Spirituall magistrat and so forth with cōmitted to the secular sworde princes therunto might haue no authorite Hereuppon he forbiddeth Christen men to kepe warre against the Turke and commaundeth subiects to rebel against their princes Strait vppon this arose an other worde of an other God that all lawes of chaste and single life shoulde be taken awaye teaching amonge a sorte of maydes and yonge men that Man was no more able to refraine his fleshly lustes then not to spet when nature prouoked Againe that fasting and abstinence from flesh nothing helped prayer nothing furdered deuotion made nothing to sobriete These smaller pointes being first all most conquered he reacheth to higher and diuiner matters First bicause he teacheth that sinne is not by the grace of baptime taken away in dede but is saide and fained only to be taken away hereof he savve it vvolde folovve that mē oughte not be estemed righteous and good in dede but onely accompted and imputed for such Then bycause he made no difference nor degre of grace he admitted no encrease in vertu and therefore could not abide the Sacramēt of Confirmation Fardermore bicause if sinne be not rooted out if there be no encrease of grace nor goodnes but al is only by maner of accōpte and imputing thē must he also infer that the presence of Christes body may not be in earthe that no sacrifice be admitted and vvhich folovved thereupon no priesthood nether And of this point the Zuinglians picked out one worde of their straunge God and the Lutherās an other of this spring also arose the doctrine teaching mā to be iustified by only faith hope charite repentaunce and other good workes being pernicious and hurtefull to saluation what frute then thinke you proceded hereof This sothely and many other For if God doth compell man to sinne as Luther and the Caluinistes do write howe can God require good workes or by what lawe can be punish sinne seing that he worketh sinne in vs and good workes are thought to be pernicious And truly if there be no rewarde for vertu there shall be no punishment for sinne And then there is no hel nor place of punishment as in the seacoste townes of Germany it is taught there is no diuell to execute that punishment as Osiander teacheth This worde not of God but of the diuell beyng laied this principle being put an other principle concerning Christ ensued as that the humain nature of Christe is god as the Swenckfeldians will haue it or contrairely that Christe is not God as the Seruetians teache and Mathias Flaccius affirming that the worde in the first of Iohn is not the sonne of God Lo how fertill and abundant was this principle of Luther and Brentius There were in times past and are also nowe a dayes whiche openly denie Christ to be the son of God affirming him to be the son of Ioseph and Mary Which Mary also had as they saye many other children beside Christ. Other there be nowe which teache the ghospell of S. Iohn to be a tale of Plato baptim to be the inuentiō of the diuell And that there is not in God the Trinite of persons some other doubting whether this Trinite be man or woman So taught euen this winter a certayn new ghospeller in Sternberg a towne of Morauia and that with the fauour of the people but much against the will of the Bishop of Omoluke their diocesian There be nowe in Hungary also which in their baptim leaue out cleane the name of the Son There be in many places the Seruetians which call the blessed Trinite by the name of the hellhownd Cerberus whom the poetes fained to haue thre heads With like horrible blasphemies two other ghospellers daily