we finde the rule chāged in the present Church of Rome therfore we are sure that it cannot bee the true Church that hath chāged the rule of faith by which the true Church was alwaies knowen heeretofore and must bee knowen heereafter And as they haue changed the rule of faith so haue they changed the Iudge of the controuersies of faith For before the Councill of Trent the Church neuer held the Pope to be Iudge of Controuersies of faith Before the same time the Church neuer helde the Pope to bee aboue generall Councils but his authoritie alwayes euen in the greatest ruffe and pride of Popes was yet helde to bee vnder the authoritie of a generall Councill Concerning the iudge of controuersies of Faith the ancient Writers and the writers of the Church of Rome haue written no otherwise then as we write and speake In the Council of Nice Theodoret Lib. 1. cap. 1. declareth how Constantine described the iudge of controuersies of faith In the disputations of things diuine sayth hee the Bishops haue the doctrine of the holy Spirit written For the Euangelicall and Apostolicall bookes and the oracles of the ancient Prophets doe fully instruct vs and therefore let vs take the determination of questions from the wordes of the holy Ghost In which words he declareth first that in diuine Disputations or in Controuersies of Faith wee haue the doctrine of the holy Ghost written then let them tell vs from what spirit the vnwrittē word of Trent proceedeth Secondly he sayth that the writings of the Prophets and Apostles doe fully instruct vs then that writing is the full rule of faith for that which doeth fully instruct vs and not in part is the full rule and not a part thereof Thirdly he saith that all determinations of doubts must be taken from this written word Then hee prooueth vndoubtedly that this written word doeth suffice to ende all controuersies of faith because the words of men may be subiect to errour but the wordes of the holy Ghost are not This is the Catholike determination of the iudge of controuersies in faith which hath beene in all succession preserued vntill the Councill of Trent Optatus an ancient Father holdeth the same way in seeking a iudge for thus he reasoneth against the Donatists Let no Optat. lib. 5. man beleeue you let no man beleeue vs for all we are contentious men Iudges must be sought but if wee take Christians they cannot be helde indifferent for both sides because the trueth is encumbred by contentions Wee must then seeke a iudge without But if he be a Pagan hee cannot vnderstand our mysteries if a Iewe he is an enemy to Christian baptisme Therefore on earth no iudgement will be found for this wee must seeke the Iudge from heauen But what need we knock at heauen seeing wee haue him here in his Gospel Thus Optatus sought a iudge and could find none but Christ speaking in his Gospel in his written word How easie had it beene for Optatus to haue named the Pope if the Pope had then beene esteemed the iudge of controuersies of faith But this is a late inuention not knowen to the ancient fathers Saint Augustine speaketh in like sort This matter Libr. 2. cap. 33. de nupt concupisc saith he writing against the Pelagians requireth a Iudge and therefore let Christ iudge And then hee produceth the words of Christ as the words of the Iudge Hee saith also Let the Apostle iudge with him for in the Apostle Christ speaketh And then he produceth the words of the Apostle as being the words of Christ the Iudge And in another place It is not without great cause that Ad Cresc lib. 2. cap. 31. the Canon of the Scriptures is ordeined with such wholesome vigilance whereunto certaine books of the Prophets and Apostles doe pertaine which wee dare not iudge at all but according to them may we freely iudge of other writings whether they be written by beleeuers or no beleeuers After this till the Councill of Trent the Church helde the same determination still concerning the Iudge of controuersies of faith Indeed there were some Friars and Canonists that flattered the Pope and the Pope was as willing to make vse of their flatterings But these flatterers were reiected as men odious and could neuer finde any credit in the world before the Council of Trent In so much that the Popes themselues and what is it that they durst not doe durst not claime this authoritie before that time Pope Clement the first hath Dist. 37 cap 14. This Pope liued anno 1047. these wordes You must not seeke a strange sense which may be adulterated and inwardly corrupted nor confirme such a sense by the authoritie of Scripture but a man must take the sense of the trueth from the Scriptures themselues seeing that one may haue the full and firme rule of faith and trueth in the Scriptures Thus sayth a Pope Integra firma regula veritatis ex Scripturis Then there were no vnwritten Traditions thought of at that time to be thrust into the rule of faith Secondly he saith that the vnderstanding of the trueth must be sought out of the Scriptures themselues So that hee knew no other Iudge of the controuersies of faith Thus was the doctrine of the Iudge of controuersies maintained vntill the time of the Council of Basill The Councill of Basil doth likewise maintaine the ancient doctrine of the Church concerning this point For thus they say Lex diuina praxis Concil Basil Sess 4. Christi Apostolica Ecclesiae primitiuae vna cum Concilijs Doctoribusque fundantibus se veraciter in eadem pro verissimo indifferente iudice in hoc Basiliensi Concilio admittentur That is The diuine Law or holy Scripture the practise of Christ of his Apostles and of the Primitiue Church together with Councils and Doctours grounding themselues truely thereon shall be admitted for the most true and indifferent Iudge in this Council of Basill We finde by this what was the sense and iudgement of the Church in our fathers dayes for this was done about the yeere of Christ 1440. Then before the Councill of Trent there was no change in these things but there they haue changed all and made a new Church but with such sleights and cunning that it is apparant that it was not religion and conscience which mooued them but ambition and a singular estimation and pride of their owne wit holding such a scorneful conceit of other nations whom they call Tramontani that they presume that they can make all other men fooles This they practised in the Council of Trent and through the simplicitie and ouer-much credulitie which they haue found in some haue partly well confirmed their purpose for there were certaine questions which were determined in that Councill of Trent and yet neuer discussed as namely whether the Popes authoritie be aboue the authoritie of a generall Councill and whether the Pope be the
Constance and of Basill which Councils wee finde to be a body representatiue of a Church which was opposite to the Pope and Court of Rome So that assuredly there was a Church which helde the rule of faith against the Pope and his flatterers In that Church was Luther in that Church were the learned men of these two Councils who proceeded roundly against the Popes authoritie they prooued that the Popes might erre that in many things they did erre they maintained the rule of faith which stood inuiolated in the Church till their dayes they maintained the ancient Iudge of controuersies of faith which before had alwayes beene acknowledged they protested that to giue that authoritie to the Pope which now since that time is giuen and since the Councill of Trent is confirmed to the Pope by these flatterers this say they is to giue an open entrance for Antichrist into the Church to subuert Christian Religion Then at that time the trueth was helde vp in some measure there was then acknowledged an authoritie in the Church aboue the Pope there was a Iudge of generall Councils the same which the Church before receiued and which wee acknowledge there was then no alteratioÌ„ no change made of the rule of faith but since this time all these things are changed in the Councill of Trent This Councill of Trent to giue you some taste of it was neither generall nor free nor lawfull Not generall for these Westerne parts because diuers Kings and Nations protested against it namely the King of England and the French King and would not send their Bishops and Ambassadours to it Many Nations helde it for a priuate conuenticle of a few gathered together against the Church For all England Scotland Ireland all France all Germanie that helde against that Councill will make a farre greater part then all the rest that consented to that Councill It was not free for none were admitted to haue voyce therein but such as should bee bound by an oath of bondage and slauery to the Pope It was not a lawfull Assembly forsomuch as it was neither called by a lawfull authoritie for against the first calling of it the Emperour himselfe dissented and protested against it by his Ambassadour Vergas the Kings also who had interst in these Westerne parts protested against it Neither was the manner of proceeding in that Councill lawfull Gentiletus a French Lawyer prooueth the nullities of that Council For by the Imperiall Constitution it is ordeined that the Decrees which are made against Lawes are not onely vnprofitable but void and to be taken for things not done Cap. Imperiali 25. q. 2. l. non dubium Hee proposeth therefore and prooueth a great number of the nullities of that Councill which make the whole to be void and of no validitie as being done against the Lawes This is that Councill that hath changed the faith of the Church that was held from the Apostles to that time vnchanged they haue brought into the Church the Popes word to match the word of God this was neuer done in the Church before And therefore the reformed Churches holding the ancient rule of faith which the Church had held froÌ„ the Apostles till the Councill of Trent must needes prooue themselues 〈◊〉 stand in the true succession of the Church For the true Church must continue to the end of the world And seeing it cannot coÌ„tinue in them that haue forsaken the Vnitie of the Catholique Church and the rule of faith it must needs be granted that it is coÌ„tinued in them that holde the vnitie with the Catholike Church and the rule of faith Thus then from the Vnitie of the Church we haue prooued that the Church of Rome that now is is not the true Church of Christ because it is not one with the true Church of Christ It holdeth not the Vnitie of that Bodie nor the Vnitie of the Head nor the Vnitie of the Spirit nor the Vnitie of Faith And holding not Vnitie with the Catholique Church it cannot be a church at all The Reformed Churches hold this Vnitie and are thereby prooued to bee one with the Catholike Church froÌ„ this which I haue said diuers trueths do apparantly insue which I will briefly open The consent of the Church which is but one in the fathers and their children is prooued to stand in the fundamentall points of doctrine before the Councill of Trent I say in the fundamentall poynts For diuers errours were crept into the Church before but these errours were such as did not raze the foundation for a Church may stand and bee a true Church though some errours creepe into it But if these errours change the foundation as the errours doe which change the rule of faith which is the foundation of the Church then without doubt it ceaseth to bee a Church The errours which before this time did creepe into the Church did not change the foundation because all men in the Church held the same olde and true foundation in the rule of faith till then The Popes Supremacie as men then vnderstand it was generally embraced But surely this was not a fundamentall errour For we doubt not but many good and godly men were among them and saued though they did acknowledge the Popes Supremacie in such a measure as Saint Bernard and the Councill of Constance and of Basill did acknowledge the same It appeareth hereby also 2 that the true Church of Christ as before I haue declared did stand vp in some â—ort vntill this time of the Councill of Trent For the â—rue Church may be prooued â—y the vnitie with the Catholicke Church and by the â—ule of faith which till then was helde in the Church It appeareth likewise that 3 the reformed Churches are in the succession and continuation of that true ancient and onely Church which stood before the Councill of Trent and shall endure to the end of the world For before that time there were as wee may say two faces of a Church the one of the court of Rome the other of the Church But in the Councill of Trent the Court oâ— Rome preuailed therefore the Church fell off and made a separation from the Court of Rome But the Church though falling away from the Court of Rome continued still the same Church because it helde still the same rule of faith and forsaked not the communion which before it had with the Catholicke Church But the Court of Rome which now calleth it selfe the Church and the onely Catholike Church altered the rule of faith and fell away from the communion of the Catholike Church It appeareth also that our 4 fathers which before vs liued and died in the Church of Rome had all necessarie meanes of saluation because the rule of faith was held then inuiolable And albeit the Friars the Canonists and flatterers of the Pope had corrupted many things in the Church yet the doctrines of the trueth were permitted to be preached according to the
iudge of the controuersies of faith These are now holden as things determined and yet they were neuer discussed This made Gentiletus exclaime Innocent Gentileti exam concilij Trid. in these words Ecquis fando vnquā audiuit vt quaestio in disputationē non reuocata non examinata non tractata fuerit tamen decisa conclusa rata approbata tanta astutia hic tractata est quaestio de Rom. Pontificis authoritate supra Concilium that is Did euer any man heare of the like that there should bee a question which though it were neuer brought to disputation neuer examined neuer handled should notwithstanding be decided concluded confirmed approoued By such cunning was the question handled heere concerning the Popes authoritie ouer a Council by this let the world iudge of this Councill whether it was like other Councils Is this a thing to bee tolerated in the Church that a companie of Italians men without Religion without the feare of God shuld in the pride of their wits put a trick vpon all the Churches in Christendom Let the simple soules that are seduced lift vp their eyes and see the snares that are prouided to catch them let them vnderstand that the Priests and Iesuites who now are imployed about their subuersion are instruments to driue and allure them into these nettes which these Inginers haue deuised by subtilty and fraud These trappes are laide with great subtiltie to inthrall their soules let them at the least looke vp and open their eyes and behold the danger that is before them If they will wilfully fall into these snares then may they blame themselues for their owne destruction Thus haue wee found out that the rule of Faith was changed in the Councill of Trent That in the same Councill the Iudge of Controuersies of faith was likewise changed that all things were then changed whereby the Church is knowen to bee a Church For before that the Church was knowen to bee a Church by the Vnitie which it helde with the Catholike Church This was the Vnitie of the Bodie the Vnitie of the Head the Vnitie of the Spirit and the Vnitie of Faith These were in some measure all held vntill the Councill of Trent changed all Now all these things being changed and forsaken by the present Church of Rome it remaineth to conclude that the present Church of Rome is no Church of Christ but an assembly I say not of Heretikes but of farre worse and more dangerous then any Heretikes heeretofore haue bene For the former Heretikes that haue openly forsaken the Church could neuer doe so much harme as Antichrist with his creatures who hauing secretly forsaken the Church yet make open claime to the Church and to all the rights thereof Seeing now that the now Church of Rome is not the true Church where then shall we finde it The Reformed Churches as now they are called being the generation of them that haue liued of long time before in the Communion of the old Church of Rome might haue continued in that course if the Church of Rome had not bin notoriously changed from a Church to no Church For in olde times we find a distinction obserued betweene the Church of Rome and the Court of Rome The Church we may call all these Westerne Churches that helde Communion with the Church of Rome then and maintained the Popes Supremacie in things spirituall as then the Supremacie was vnderstood but not as now they vnderstand it Now because they helde in this poynt with the Pope they were therefore vnderstood as belonging to the Church of Rome thus farre The Court of Rome were they that flattered the Pope and sought his greatnesse without respect to trueth or reason Such were Friers and Canonists which in the ende preuailed against the Church and now call themselues the Church of Rome These with their adherents for some Bishops and Priests did leaue the Church and adhere vnto these preuailed in the Councill of Trent by fraudulent sleights and forsaking the rule of faith changing the Iudge of Controuersies extolling the Popes Supremacie aboue all that were before them gaue a iust occasion vnto the Reformed Churches which after this reuolted from them to seeke the Church wheresoeuer they could finde it because they saw euidently now that in the Popes communion it was no longer to be found If any man obiect vnto mee that Martin Luther beganne to preach before the Councill of Trent for hee began first to preach against Indulgences in the yeere of Christ 1517. and the first Session of the Council of Trent was held in the yeere 1545. the last Session of that Councill was held in the yere 1563. Luther then hauing begun to preach against the Pope before the Councill of Trent it may bee thought that the Council of Trent gaue not occasion to the reuolt which followed seeing that Martin Luther had in some sort begun it before To this I answer that when Martin Luther begā first to preach against Indulgēces hee thought of no reuolting from the Pope For he preached the doctrines that he was sure the Church had held before him and which were agreeable to the rule of faith which stood at that time vnchanged in the Church And that Luther had no meaning to reuolt from the Church himselfe doeth plainely confesse and it is euident by the whole course of the Storie of these times Luther for a long time after his preaching against Indulgences sought peace with the Pope and therfore he appealed vnto Pope Leo nothing doubting but that the Pope would fauour the truth which he had so clearly proued from the Scriptures When he saw that the Pope went directly from the trueth then he appealed from the Pope to a generall Councill For Luther neuer doubted but that there was and alwayes would bee a Church that would fauour the trueth against the Pope and his flatterers So Luther fell away from the Pope but still hee helde himselfe sure in the Church teaching nothing but such things as hee offered to be examined according to the rule of faith which alwayes ruled the doctrines of the Church And thus he continued vntill his death He died after the Councill of Trent was begun In appealing frō the Pope to a generall Councill he followed the common practise of many that were oppressed by the Pope or that feared the Popes oppression in the Church of Rome who appealed from the Pope and Court of Rome to the Church of Rome or to a generall Councill Such Appeales were made sometimes by Emperours and Kings which were wronged by the Pope as namely by Lodouike Bauare Emperour and by Philip the faire the French King Sometimes by learned men of inferiour degree as by Michael Caesina with whom did then adhere William Occham and others The same distinction betweene the Church of Rome and Court of Rome was very apparant by the actions and processe helde by those two Councils collected of these Westerne Churches the Councill of
may clearely prooue that an vnwritten doctrine may bee receiued into the rule of Faith which thing to this day they haue not done what they are like to doe heereafter you may iudge by that which is done Now suffer not your selues to bee blind-folded Take a courage vnto you and a discerning spirit to vnderstand the things that concerne you so neerely And whereas I haue proued that the Pope was neuer admitted Iudge of Faith before the Trent Councill it may be that some of these blinde seducers may tell you that the Pope hath beene a Iudge and helde a Iudge in Christendome by some long time before which in some sort is true but not against me For hee hath bene by diuers reputed a Iudge of controuersies of right and wrong in such things as come to bee pleaded by the Canon Law But of matters of Faith he was neuer held to be a Iudge Therefore the Popes Canons doe confesse that Dist. 2. for exposition of Scriptures and matters of Faith the Expositors of Scriptures are to bee preferred before the Popes as for their learning and godlinesse farre excelling the Popes in the knowledge of the Scripture but in causis definiendis that is in deciding of causes and ending of suits which come to bee pleaded in the Popes Courts the Popes are preferred for the height of their place And this is all that their owne Cannons haue yeelded to them before the Trent Councill I warne you of these things before hand that your selues may bee the better able to iudge of any answer which may be returned against mee And I thinke that this warning may suffice to instruct you against their idle answeres so that I shall not need to trouble my selfe any further I haue bene short in collecting these directions for these causes First because in this scribling age I would not trouble the Church with vnneedfull writings Secondly because I would inuite the moe Readers who may bee content to reade a short Booke whereas length doth often deter such as either haue not much leisure or are coy of their pains Lastly because if any will answere it they may see that I haue somewhat helped them in shortnesse And therefore they may bee the better contented to set downe my words Now whereas your seducers pretend that they loue the saluation of your soules and glorie so much in the name of the Church you must bee carefull to trie the spirit that speaketh in them for it is as great a fault to beleeue eury thing without triall as to beleeue nothing It is Saint Iohns exhortation to you Dearely 1. Ioh. 4. 1 beloued beleeue not euery spirit but trie the spirits whether they are of God for many false prophets are gone out into the world If S. Iohn had cause euen in the beginning of the Gospel to warne the people against seducers what great cause haue we to warne you For these false Prophets are now growen both in number and in cunning But their multitude and cunning would vtterly faile them if they did not presume vpon your ignorance Wee labour to plant knowledge in all and are desirous that euery man might know the things needfull for his saluation they labour to holde all in ignorance their hope is not in the goodnesse of their cause for they see the ruines of Babylon falling euery day Only their care is to blinde you and keepe you ignorant They know well that if you had knowledge to discerne their subtilties it is not the pretence of the Church that could so much preuaile whereas now the very bare name of the Church doeth trouble and entangle many of the simple as a snare to catch the ignorant a iust iudgment of ignorance Wherein they deale with you as the Arrians did deale with a company of vnlearned Bishops and Priests in the Councill of Ariminum For the Arrians hauing procured the exile of the most worthie and best learned Bishops perceiuing that the companie that was left though they were not very learned yet would not be perswaded directly to disanull any thing that had beene concluded before in the Councill of Nice did abuse their ignorance in proposing the matter For they demanded of them whether they would worshippe Homoousion or Ruffin lib. 10. histor Eccles Christ they not vnderstanding what the Greeke word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 did signifie reiected it with a kinde of execration being as they thought opposed against Christ Whereas if they had vnderstood the matter aright they would haue knowen that this word agreed most fitly with Christ as best expressing his diuine nature Euen thus your Priests and Iesuits deale with you for when they haue told you somewhat of their Church and that out of the Church there is no saluation adding some trueths to some appearances and framing your fancies after their owne deuised paterne If then they aske you this question Whether will you rather forsake the Church of God or the allegeance to your Prince Some ignorant men but moe women that know not these subtilties but thinke all to bee true that these men tell them in corners must needs answere that rather then they would forsake Christ his Church they will renounce the obedience of any earthly Prince And thus is your zeale and ignorance abused by craftie companions But if you might vnderstand that you doe not forsake the Church but are more confirmed therein by yeelding alleagiance to the King then doubtlesse you would not bee vnwilling to acknowledge your owne errours and the craft of your seducers And here as I haue bene desirous to helpe you so I heartily entreat you to helpe your selues by louing and seeking the trueth Disdaine not to take helpe of any My labour hath beene to bring endlesse contentions to a short issue for your satisfaction onely I exhort you to trie the spirits because many false prophets are gone out into the world trust neither vs nor them vntill you haue tried for we are all contentious men though some contend for the trueth and some against it Trie before you trust and remember that S. Chrysostome gaue this exhortation to his hearers That they should be more carefull in trying the doctines which are deliuered to thē then in telling of money which is deliuered to them Suffer no false and counterfeit stuffe to be thrust vpon you at the motion of vaine men who themselues know not the trueth and haue no care to liue according to the trueth And iudge your selues who are your best friends and who are they that in reason may best be thought to hold the trueth they who call you to the knowledge of Gods word or they that would holde you in ignorance they that desire you to examine their doctrines by the rule of Faith or they that bid you take their doctrines vpon their bare word they that make the Scriptures iudge of themselues of their doctrines of the Pope and all or they that make the Pope Iudge of the