the time of the Law where a Doctrine and Worship prevailed which was not according to Gods word but mans will and where Judaism and Heathenism were mingled together into one mungrel Religion most odious and abominable to God and his People And so the Vniversities in the time of the Gospel are only answerable to the High Places in the time of the Law but not at all to the Schools of the Prophets as Mr. Simpson pretends And now for the Conclusion of this matter which I reckon to be of great concernment for the true Church to be thorowly instructed in I shall bring forth the Testimony of some Godly men of whom some shew how the Schools and Vniversities of Christians came first to be corrupted to wit by departing from the plain word of the Gospel and bringing in Philosophy And another foretels the Reformation of the Schools of Christians to wit by rejecting Philosophy again and bringing in the word of faith all which will serve as a Confirmation of what hath been already spoken Matthias Parisiensis a Bohemian by Nation who lived about the year 1380. wrote a large book against Antichrist whrein he affirms That Antichrist had seduced all Vniversities and Colledges of learned men so that now they teach no sincere Doctrine neither give any true light to Christians through their teaching to wit they being all corrupted through Philosophy and having through that corrupted all Divinity And John Hus that humble and faithfull servant of Jesus Christ and blessed Martyr saith That Antichrist hath seduced all carnal Christians from Divine wisdom which is full of Salvation and the Holy Spirit to the wisdom and Science of men and of the Princes of this world which wisdom and Science he hath exceedingly inlarged and increased and made Authentical and very gainfull of Riches and Honors in this world that so by this means Divine wisdom and science might be neglected of Christians and grow old and be covered over and be accounted as vile and unprofitable by them And that only that which is high with men to wit Humane Learning might be reckoned glorious and excellent and of great Authority with Christian people The same Hus saith That this Humane Learning Wisdom and Knowledge Antichrist doth perfectly subject to himself and his Service he being more mighty and subtil through the Operation of Satan then all worldly men whom with all their Learning Disciplines and Abilities he strongly subâ—ugates to himself and doth especially serve himself of these wherefore saith Job chap. 41. sub ipso erunt radii solis the heams of the Sun shall be under him that is the holy Scripture and the chief Doctors and Teachers of it and he shall prepare gold as dirt that is he shall have all the wisdom and learning of men at his pleasure and in great readiness and with much ease shall gain it to himself And Antichrist by such men saith I. Hus doth make his body or Church strong against the Saints of God and welfavoured and glorious that it may appear very taking to the world and may win in all men to it that are not taught of God and renewed by his Spirit And thus Antichrist serves himself of all Learning and Learned men whereas Divine Learning and the Teaching of God he could never in any measure subject to himself but is alwaies rejected discovered and overcome by it Martin Luther saith That whosoever it was whether Alexander of Hales or Thomas of Aquine who first instituted Vniversities he was a Star fallen from heaven to earth who received the key of the bottomless pit and opened it and brought forth into the Church Philosophy long ago dead and damned by the Doctrine of the Apostles and from the smoak of the bottomless pit that is Philosophy came forth Locusts on the earth that is saith he populus Vniversitatum è Philosophia natus the people of the Vniversities born and bred of Philosophy c. thus Luther Abbas Joachim Calaber who was long before these and flourished about the year 1230 in his Commentary on Jeremy the Prophet speaks to this purpose That the sixt Angel mentioned Revel. opens the bottomless pit and brings out Philosophy into the Church and out of the smoak of this Doctrine Locusts proceeded and are spread over all the Church into every fruitfull place and these Locusts he saith are Scholastici Magistri qui nunc facietenus blandiuntur ut decipiant nunc caudetenus feriunt unsubvertant simplices incautos that is the Locusts are Scholars and Masters according to the Academical degrees who sometimes flatter with their countenances to deceive and sometimes strike with their tails that they may subvert the simple and unadvised And to these Scholars and Masters the ignorant and common people resort and they open to them the old Cisterns of heathenish Learning and Disciplines long ago stopt up by the Doctrine of the Apostles and these Cisterns they open by teaching Philosophy to the people But they shut up the living fountain of saving water that is the word of faith But the spirit of the Lord saith he in the following Prophets whom the Lord shall raise up idola studiorum carnalium visitabit shall visit the Idols of carnal studies maintained and kept up by secular Stipends Further he saith that as Antichrist brings forth his mark which is Philosopical Doctrine in the Church of Christ and by this mark all his Teachers and People are known so there shall rise up against these such as have the mark of Christ or the sign of Thau in their foreheads that is the open and manifest Doctrine of Christ crucified And as the signs of Moses destroyed the signs of the Magicians so shall the word or preaching of the Cross destroy all Philosophical Doctrine and Humane and secular Learning out of the Church And then the children and youth and men of all ages sorts and conditions shall be taught no other Doctrine in the Church of Christ then that which is found in the Scriptures even in the writings of the Prophets and Apostles and that not according to any humane and Philosophical understanding but according to the teaching and mind of the Spirit And God by all his true servants shall destroy the studies of carnal Doctors and Masters in Divinity and shall dissipate all secular and Philosophical Learning by the word of Truth in their mouths And so shall the Church be reformed aright when the Doctrine of Christ only shall be received and esteemed of and shall live and flourish among Christians And thus as Antichrist hath laid aside the Scriptures and all true spiritual and divine Learning out of his Schools and Vniversities and hath brought into them instead thereof Philosophy and Humane Learning and so these Schools are most unlike to the Schools of the Prophets so in due time when God shall undertake to reform his Church all this sort of Learning shall be cast out again
them do now too shamelesly make broad their Phylacteries and inlarge the borders of their garments and love the chief chairs in the Schools and to be saluted in the Markets and to be called of men Doctor And by this they go in the apparrel and harness of the Mystical body of Antichrist because it is written that he is the King of all the children of Pride And the Crown of Pride of these children of Pride shall be troden down And thus as it is manifest what Religion founded the Vniversities so it is as manifest what Religion will in the appointed time destroy these Foundations if they be not truly and thoroughly Reformed For surely as they are if the work of Christ go forward in the world as it necessarily must do notwithstanding the present defection in the appointed time they can no more be held up then the house built on the sand in the time of Tempest For the true Spiritual Church is built on the Foundation of the Prophets and Apostles Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone and so it is firmly founded upon a Rock and can never fall But the Vniversities are built on the Philosophers and Heathen Plato and Aristotle being the chief corner stones and so they are built upon the sand and neither can their own hands uphold them nor the Secular Arm establish them in that day wherein the Lord alone shall be exalted But it is not men of moral and civil Religion and Righteousness who will do this work and execute this vengeance for the Inchauntments of the Vniversities are too strong and mighty for all Humane Spirits But the called chosen and faithfull Ones of Christ when he shall summon them and call them to his foot they shall not stand on-Complements Formalities and Niceties nor regard frindship or enmity but through the Power of Faith shall break through all that can be said and objected by the Wisdom Policy Prudence and Religion of man and shall execute the righteous Judgements of the Lord on these Mothers of Harlots and Fornications of the Nations And whereas he saith their Destruction will never be but of themselves I do verily believe that For seeing their Root is rottenness their Fruit must needs be Destruction Yea the Lord will raise up his word in the midst of them to destroy them For the more the word of the Lord shall blow upon the Vniversity the more shall this Grass wither and the flower thereof that is Humane Learning fade away till it be at last quite dryed up And this is the Burden of the Vniversity whose day is coming when iniquity shall have an end And thus have I done with these things There were many other things in that Sâ—rmon as contrary to the Gospel which for brevities sake I have omitted Now what a sad thing is it that such poysonfull Doctrine should be poured forth into an Vniversity Congregation and that by the Ministry of such a man and if the Ceremonies of the Law were in use under the Gospel how ought we to rend our Garments at the bearing of these things And now blessed Lord Jesus who wast crucified dead and buried but art risen from the Dead by the Eternal Spirit and art ascended on high to fill all things have mercy on thy poor Church which is so grievously rent and torn this day by Wolves in Sheeps cloathing and is thus hurt and consumed by poysonable Doctrine of men who seek themselves and their own things to the harm and ruin of thy poor people O thou Son of the Living God who are the way the truth and the life how shall the Kingdom of Antichrist be brought down when the hands of such men who seem Pillars in the Church are stretched forth so strongly to hold it up And how shall the days of Antichrist be shortned when his Kingdom is coming forth again in the greatest deceivableness of unrighteousness that hath ever yet appeared in the World to delude the Nations O Lord remember all thy Promises and make haste to destroy Babylon the Great with all its Mysteries of Righteousness and Vnrighteousness and let it sink as a Milstone in the Sea without any hope or possibility of a Resurrection And seeing there is no hand of man stretched out for this work but all hands are against it do thou destroy it O Lord without hand even with the Spirit of thy mouth and brightness of thy coming according to the Truth of thy Promises and the unutterable sighs and groanes of thy Spirit occasioned thereby in the hearts of all thy faithfull and elect Even so Lord And let thy Kingdom come and make no long tarrying AMEN A TESTIMONY From the WORD Against DIVINITY-DEGRES IN THE University OR Any Academical Degrees made usâ— of for the Ministry of the GOSPEL THe Universities whose soul and life do lye in humane Learning and School-Divinity that they might gaine the greater profit to themselves and glory to their children have after the example of the heathen given their children Degrees in Dâ—vinity as they in Art and the glorious Titles of Batchelors Masters and Doctors in Divinity as so many Crowns of Gold upon their heads to win them honour and reputation with all people who have been under the delusion of Antichrist And in the confirming of these Graduations or Degrees which also is done for a sum of money they give the Graduates license and power to preach and to expound the Scriptures and that by the sole Authority of the University For the Vice-chancelor admitting a Bachelour in Divinity to his Degree useth these words in the name of the University We admit you to declare all the Apostolical Epistles in the name of the Father Son and Holy Ghost And so the Batchelour in Divinity hath Power according to his Degree only to deal with the Apostolical Epistles but must go no farther And admitting a Doctor to his Degree the Vice-chancelor saith thus We admit you to interpret and profess all the holy Scriptures both of the old and new Testament in the name of the Father Son and Holy Ghost And thus doth the University through power received from Antichrist give men chiefly for money Divinity-Degrees and through those Degrees it gives Authority and priviledge to Batchelors in Divinity to expound part of the Scriptures and to Doctors to expound and profess all the Scriptures and they that gaine these Degrees to themselves are as there is good reason the great men in account with the University and also with the carnal people of Antichrist how destitute soever they be of the faith and spirit of the Gospel Wherefore I cannot chuse but give in my Testimony against this glorious and gainful priviledge of the Universities to wit their conferring upon their children Degrees in Divinity and creating them Masters in that Mystery which none can teach but God himself and which none can learn but true believers who are borne of God and are his true Disciples And
ERROR He brought that Scripture 2 King 6.1.2 Touching the Sons of the Prophets asking leave of Elisha to go and build at Jordan to prove the Lawfulness and Religiousness of the Vniversities in their present Vse and Customs c. Answer To this I Reply that there is a vast difference between those Schools and these Vniversities as in many other things so chiefly in this That in those Schools of the Prophets named by him the holy men of God freely taught the Youth who came willingly to them to learn especially in the corrupt times of Israel and Judah I say they taught them only the Knowledge of the Books of Moses and of the other Prophets then extant and no Heathenish knowledge or Disciplines of the Gentiles at all And these kinde of Schools began early in the Church For the Fathers before the Flood and the Patriarks after all taught their Children and Families the Word of God And so each of their Families was such a School And that we may not be at uncertainties in this matter it is manifest what Doctrine they taught by that which God himself saith of Abraham Gen. 18.19 I know Abraham saith God that he will command his Children and Household after him that they keep the way of the Lord and to do Justice and Judgement This was the summe of Abrahams Doctrine to his Family And this is farther confirmed by that of Asaph Psal. 78.2.3.4 Where he saith I will open my mouth in a Parable I will utter dark sayings of old which we have heard and known and our Fathers have told us We will not hide them from their Children shewing to the Generation to come the praises of the Lord and his strength and the wonderfull works that he hath done Where we plainly see what Doctrine the Children received from their Parents and the Parents taught their Children from one Generation to another to wit not vain Philosophy and the Disciplines of the Heathens but the praises of the Lord and his strength and wonderfull works This also is manifest by the practise of Jehosaphat King of Judah who sent his Princes with the Levites up and down throughout Judah and they onely took the Book of the Law of the Lord with them and no Heathnish Authors and taught the People 2 Chron. 17. And Ezra after the Prophets return from Babilon took onely the Book of the Law of Moses and read it to them and the Levites also read in the Book of the Law of God distinctly to the People and gave them the sense and caused them to understand it Nehem. 8. And this also James the Apostle witnesseth Acts 15.21 saying Moses of old time hath in every City them that Preach him being read in the Synagogues every Sabbath day So that the faithfull Prophets of the Lord during all the Old-Testament had the chief care in their Schools to keep the Word of the Lord among them in a right sense according to the mind of the Spirit For seeing the Lords People are his Portion they knew they were to be carefully Educated and Instructed in the right knowledge of the Scriptures to prepare them for the Lord and to make them meet for his Kingdom And the keeping of the Word and Doctrine of God pure is one of the greatest matters of all in the Church of God For as the Word is such is the VVorship such is the Faith such is the Conscience such is all Wherefore the Holy men of God would by no means bring in the Philosophy or Doctrine of the Heathens into their Schools to teach that to their Sons or Scholars but onely the true faithfull and unmixed word of God And if against this it be Objected That Moses was learned in all the Learning of the Egyptians To this I Reply But did Moses ever teach any of that Learning in the Church or publish any of the Doctrines of it or did he command or encourage any of the people of God to learn it Or did any other of the Prophets of the Lord many ages teach their Sons or Scholars any of the Egyptian Philosophy which was the Antientest or the Sinaradine Table of Hermes Trismegistus the pretended Scholar of Moses so much boasted of or any Heathnish Author whatsoever of which there were many then extant I say let them prove that but one Heathnish Author was read by any of the Prophets to their Scholars and then they will have some colour taught Jesus and the Resurrection from the dead Thus Peter first taught the Men of Judea and Inhabitants of Jerusalem That God had made Jesus whom they had crucified both Lord and Christ having raised him from the dead because it was not possible for him to be holden of death who was the Lord and Author of Life And Steven disputing with the Libertines Cirenians and Alexandrians and divers Philosophers of Cilicia and Asia did hold forth to them nothing but Christ and that He should put an end to the Temple and Law and should change all the Customs of Moses And they were not able to resist the wisdom and spirit by which he spake Act. 6. And Paul at the Vniversity of Athens reproved their Heathenism and taught nothing among the Epicureans and Stoicks and other sects of Philosophers but the Resurrection of Christ and his Kingdom and judgement Act. 17. He also disputed daily in the School of one Tyrannus and that for two years together and perswaded onely the things touching the Kingdom of God brought into the world by Jesus Christ Act. 19. And he so prevailed with his Doctrine that many which used curious Arts brought their books together and burnt them before all men and the prior of them was counted at fifty thousand pieces of silver So that as the Gospel prâ—vailed and the Name of Christ was magnified so did people renounce Philosophy and burn their books of curious Arts For which Books our Vniversity would give as much mony if they could procure it from good Benefactors as they were valued at So that as they through the efficacy of the Gospel of Heathens became Christians and threw away all other Learning and burnt their Books of great value least they should infect others So on the contrary in our Vniversities of pretended Christians men usually become true Heathens never valuing the precious Gospel of God our Saviour as they do other Heathnish and Philosophical Books Farther the same Paul dwelt after at Rome two whole years in his own hired house and during all that time Preached onely the Kingdom of God and taught those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness But taught not one word of Philosophy He also at Corinth a great and famous City of Greece full of Philosophers and Orators taught nothing among them but Christ Crucified to the Jews a Stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness But to them that believe both of Jews and Greeks Christ the power of
that indeed there is nothing in greater enmity to Christ Crucified nor more contrary to the word of the Cross then that Yea nothing in all the world hath been such an Introducer Favourer Supporter and Inlarger of Antichrists Kingdom as Humane Reason Learning and Philosophy This hath brought in all the Hypocrisie Superstition false Doctrine false Worship Sects Schismes Divisions which have at any time prevailed in the Church during all the Reign of Antichrist And the Gospel of Christ and the true belief and practice of it hath not had at any time a greater and more subtile and plausible Enemy then this Yea farther the gross ignorance and blindness of the rude world hath not so perverted and falsified the word of the Gospel nor rendred it such contradiction and resistance nor hath brought such annoyance to the faithfull who have received and confessed it as Humane Science hath done For this hath enabled men stoutly to oppose the truth and subtilly to defend error as the truth this hath made men bold and cunning to suppress Gods mind from the World and to hold forth their own mind to them as if it were Gods under the pretence of the outward letter of the word and a multitude of other evils have sprung from this corrupt fountain Wherefore the Apostle Paul is so far from encouraging Christians to betake themselves to Humane Learning to fit them for the Gospel that He by the Spirit utterly forbids Christians Heathenish Philosophy lest they should be spoyled through the vanity of it and be led away from Christ And thus in this matter hath Mr. Simpson manifestly departed from the Doctrine of the Scriptures and of faithfull men who have spoken from it 5. ERROR That mens Hatred to God doth as well appear in their hatred to Humane Learning as if they hated the Scriptures Answer I conceive Mr. Simpsons heart was hot within him out of his great Zeal to Humane Learning the great goddess by which the Vniversity lives when he thus spake And it appears he is very tender of the Reputation and Glory of it who thus vindicates it at as high a rate as the very Scriptures But Sir do you know no more difference between the most precious word of our eternal Lord God and his Son Jesus Christ and the foolish corrupt and stinking Doctrine of men is there no more difference in your Divinity between the word of Righteousness Life and Salvation which God hath spoken by Christ and Christ by his servants and the word and Doctrines of wretched men full of sin death and destruction And if the Law it self given by the Ministration of Angels loseth its glory before the Gospel as the Apostle testifies How much more doth Heathenish Philosophy brought forth partly from the corrupt Reason of man and partly from the Inspiration of the Devil become â—oathsom abominable before it for ever And cannot we be enemies to this say yâ—u without hating the blessed word of God Nay the blessed word of God where it prevails in truth doth make men to hate this and to count it loss and dung and filth and the most loathsom baseness in the world in comparison of it self Wherefore through the grace of Christ we will so love the Scriptures which are Divine Learning as to hate Humane and Heathenish Learning for their sakes seeing it hath put a Veil of Darkness in the Church over this glorious Sun the word of faith 6. ERROR That if the Spirit teach without means men may as well be without the Ordinances as without the Vniversities and Humane Learning Answer We do not say that the Spirit usually teacheth without means in the Church of Christ But we say he teacheth by means of his own appointing And how will Mr. Simpson prove by any Scripture that Vniversities and Humane Learning are Means which the Spirit of God useth to teach his Church by where did ever the Lord speak one word that he would use the Disciplines of the Gentiles as means whereby to teach men to know the Mysterie of Christ Wherefore this is strange Doctrine that Arts and Sciences are the means wherebâ— the Spirit teacheth the Church For sure I am the Lord never taught his Church either of the Old or the New Testament by these Means Only Antichrist hath taught his Church after this manner and hath set up Humane Learning as an Ordinance of God yea as an Ordinance of the New Testament to learn Christ by that Christians might be trained upto know Christ the wisdom of God by Humane Learning the wisdâ—â—â— of the world which is in direct enmity to God The chief Ordinances whereby God helps his Church are the word of faith and the prayer of faith And by the Ministration of the Spirit he begins and carries on the Salvation of this Spiritual People And these Ordinances the true Church cannot want neither doth God do any thing in his Church without them But the Spiritual Church for ought that I could ever yet read in the word may well want their Divine Ordinance of Humane Learning and yet not want any Ordinance of God that he hath appointed and sanctified for the Vse of his true Church 7. ERROR That men now are not to receive the Spirit in that immediate way to understand the Scriptures in which it was given to them who wrote the Scriptures Answer Surely Mr. Simpson will not deny that the Spirit is given to that whole Church which is the body of Christ seeing Paul saith if any man have not Christs Spirit he is none of his he is no member of his Now the Spirit is alwayes given to whomsoever it is given by the Father and the Son as Christ taught his Disciples promising them that the Father would send the Spirit to them in his Name and also that he Himself would send it to them from the Father And was this promise only made to them and not to all the faithful also who should believe in Christ through their word doth not Paul say Rom. 12.13 of the whole Church that by one Spirit we are all baptized into one body and are all made to drink into one Spirit He saith also to the Galatians Chap. 4. because ye are Sons God hath sent the Spirit of his Son into your hearts crying Abba Father And thus it is manifest that the whole Church of Believers and every true member thereof do receive the Spirit of God And do they not receive in alike immediatly from God Who can give the Spirit of God to man but God himself when God promised to pour out his Spirit in the last dayes upon all flesh did he name any difference in the pouring of it out saying some shall receive it immediately and some mediately No but all that are counted worthy to receive the Spirit of God do receive it alike immediately from him neither hath Christ left any Lieutenant or Deputy in the world to give his Spirit to
and royal priesthood to show forth the vertues of him that hath called them out of darkness into his marvelous light as Peter testifies and they all speak as they do believe and have experience and their Sonship Unction and Victory over temptation is as sufficient a ground for them to teach as it was for Christ to teach and so they without any regard of the Laws of Antichrist or Orders of the Clergy go forth to teach the everlasting Gospel as Christ did before them and this is the fourth degree of the faithful in the Church 5. Christs fifth and last degree which he took in the Church was this that he having both preached and lived the word whereat the world and worldly Church were wholly offended and inraged did at the last willingly confirme his Doctrine with his death and seal to the truth of it with his blood exposing himself to the most shameful and ignominious death of the cross to confirme his Gospel to his Church and this was the highest and most glorious Degree that Christ took in his Church as Christ testifies when speaking of his suffering he saith Now is the hour come that the Son of man should be glorified And this fifth degree also all the truely faithful do take with Christ either in deed if need require or in preparation and readiness and that whilst they live in outward peace All the blessed Martyrs have taken this highest degree in the Church with Christ and all the rest of his seed have been and are ready to take it also when it is the good will of their heavenly Father seeing they can say in the same faith and spirit with Christ even in this matter Father if it be possible let this cup pass from me yet not my will but thine be done for they are come to do the will of him that sent them even to the laying down their lives Now these are the onely degrees that Christ himself took in the Church and which all the Saints take with him and the true spiritual Church of believers allows and approves no other Degrees but these And what now are the University-Degrees in Divinity to these they are Degrees in Antichrists Church onely and every heathen or humane creature Turke or Infidel may take them aswel as they with a little time and paines and money Wherefore that I may turn my speech a little to the University do thou University lay this to heart how much thou hast departed from the Gospel of Christ in this matter as well as in all the rest and hast received the Doctrine and Laws and Methods and Manners of Antichrist wherewith thou hast deceived thy self aswell as the Nations And thou University hast like thy own mother Babylon Mystery written on thy forehead for thou hast taken to thy self this title ALMA MATER the beautiful mother which onely belongs to Jerusalem from above and though thou hast brought forth a company of prodigious children heathenish foolish vaine vile and abominable yet hast thou called them learned and given them Degrees in Divinity contrary to the Degrees in the Gospel and hast sent them forth into every City County Town and Village as Ministers of Christ yea as Sons of the morning though unbelievers and destitute of the spirit And thus hast thou deceived the Nations and given them a false Ministery in stead of a true and by this false Ministery a false word in stead of the Gospel and the world hath not at any time received a greater wo nor more grievous plague then from thee Wherefore thus saith the word of the Lord The day of thy vengeance is coming and the yeers wherein thou shalt be made desolate and thy dainty and goodly things shall depart from thee and thou shalt finde them no more at all and the voice of Musitians and Pipers shall no more be heard in thee for in thee is found the blood of Prophets and of Saints and of all that have been slaine upon the earth thy humane learning to wit thy Philosophy and School-Divinity the false Ministery that they have set up and the false Christians that have proceeded from that Ministery have devised and executed all these murders and massacres on the true Saints of God FINIS Quis est sapiens intelliget haec The Testimony of Martin Luther upon the whole matter To wit touching Vniversities Humane Learning or Philosophy Vniversity-Degrees c. MArtin Luther in his Answer to Ambrosius Catharinus expounding the Vision concerning Antichrist Dan. 8. speaks thus The twelfth and last face of Antichrist is that Chaos and open gate of Hell yet very comely to behold to wit the Universities into which perjurie and the abuse of Gods Name are the entrance and the progress is a free and most licentious conversation in all manner of wickedness And yet under these sins and destructions Science and Sapience are promised Yea Titles and Degrees are given in stead of rewards But what do they perform at length First the more choice youth of christian people are here prostituted and are cast into the open throat of Hell that I verily think this destruction was figured by the Idol Moloch to whom anciently they made their choice children to pasâ— through the fire Afterwards Aristotle being read to them and not rightly understood the wits of christian youth are exercised with heathenish and humane learning yea are quite blinded and oppressed with it And in stead of the Word of God the doctrine of Antichrist is delivered that it may seem the devil himself could not bring forth a more subtile and effectual Invention and engine Eutterly to extinguish the Gospel then to set up Universities Wherein under the pretence of Christian Doctrine nothing should be taught but that which is most contrary to the Christian Faith And if at any time it seems good to call forth the choicest to the Government of the Churches they call them out of these Stews and Dens And truly to me this last face of Antichrist seems to be the most hurtful of all because this hath the pretence of the Word when all the rest have onely the colour of Example and this is plainly Schola Hidoth the School of Propositions of which anon For it is incomparably the greatest prejudice under the colour of the Word to teach things contrary to the Word seeing the face of Eâ—amples is formed and strengthened by the face of the Word which otherwise would soon come to nothing if the Word should reign in its genuine sense and also seeing the pretence of Examples doth onely deceive the manners but the pretence of the Word overthrows the Word But if by any Grace of God the Universities should receive the Word to wit instead of Philosophy and School-Divinity how soon would the Papacy with all its faces or appearances perish seeing this face to wit the Universities is the prop bones and whole strength of that kingdom of faces This deceitful face seems to