Reliques or peeces of Christs Crosse the rest But neither is Apostlicke Tradition enough to make vp the other moity of the partiall rule parallell to Scripture by Pontifician confession for neither will those serue the Popes turne What then How shall the rule of Faith bee eeked out to the intire perfection to please the Pope in case his Holinesse would come within the compasse of any rule Yes there is forsooth the liuely Oracle or voyce of the Church which being of an vnlimited latitude doth consummate the rule of Faith and the Popes brest is the fountaine whence these waters of Romes sanctuary flow But the truth is if there were any truth in it this rule is such as will not indure copartnership with Scriptures and Traditions for all they be Apostolicke but is the sole and supreme Rule whereby those must be squared whereto they must be conformed Nor is this Rule of the Popes brest certaine but sometimes it giues one sence of Scripture sometimes another according as the changeable various condition of the Church requiteth This is a Mystery which perhaps many of you the Popes Catholicke sonnes will hardly belieue specially such as are indued with any iudgement enjoy the priuiledge to haue the free vse of your reason without papall restraint but if any doubt of it we haue sufficient authentick records for it the best that Rome can afford But come doe but straine courtesie a little with your Ghostly Father and let vs enter in a little priuate sad conference and let right reason be the Moderatour Tell me as Paul asked Agrippa Belieuest thou the Scriptures of the Prophets and Apostles I know you belieue Surely if yee doe you may answere with Agrippa Almost thou perswadest mee to become an Orthodoxe Christian and true Catholicke And rest but vpon the Scriptures and I will say Thou art not farre from the Kingdome of God But to rest vpon the voyce of the Pope and not vpon the expresse words of Scripture what is it but to suffer him to plucke out both your eyes that so he may the more easily lead you blindfold into hell Or what were this but to make the Pope your God aboue God and Christ and so to adore him who thus aduanceth himselfe aboue all that is called God Fye for shame as God hath giuen you reason vnderstanding and iudgement so in the name of God vse it to his glory that gaue it and suffer no man to cheate you of it least you proue more sottish then those heathen who worshipped the creature in stead of the Creator who is blessed for euer But you are perswaded of the Popes inerrability as being Christs Vicar Peters successor as hauing continued in the See of Rome euer since the Apostles times so as not any Bishops See in the world hath done the like What then all Bishops and Ministers of the Word may be said to be Christs Vicars and Successors of the Apostles while they execute their Ministry as Christ and the Apostles did But neuer any man was Christs sole Vicar ouer his Church This prerogatiue is peculiar to the Holy Ghost that Other Comforter who onely cannot erre leading Gods people into all truth As for Peters Vicarship he had it but in common with his fellowe Disciples Wee passe by those places of Scripture which Pontificians haue miserably peruerted to this purpose Doe but looke in my answer to this Bull or Brieue And for lineall vniterrupted succession of the Bp. of Rome from the Apostles times what is this to the purpose to proue the Popes Vicarship or his Successors-ship Certainely it makes wondrous much to fulfill all those Prophecies in Scripture concerning Antichrst whose Seat is Rome For may not the same Church of Rome specially if we measure it by the place where it is fixed in so long a tract of time come exceedingly to differ from that it was once in the more pure and primitue age of it Doth not experience teach you that the soundest and solidest Oake in time growes rotten hollow a nest for Owles and such like night-birds vnusefull for building and at last good for nothing but the fire And yet the while it is called by the name of such an Oake still The Church of Rome at first was sound and Apostolicall while it kept the Apostolicke Faith but might not time make it rotten and yet be called Apostolicke still Bethel as much as the house of God so called at first by Iacob who erected there an Altar for Gods pure worship yet retained that name still in Ieroboams time euen when it was wholly polluted with the Idolatry of one of his golden Calues erected there Ancient goodly Chanels haue beene in time so choaked vp with mud and grauell that the maine streame hath beene diuerted and driuen another way and yet haue retained the name of the old chanell still Yea that goodly Cittie Ierusalem in Christs time when it crucified Christ was called the Holy Cittie and for all that God hath made that now a cursed heap and the Country about it a desolation neuer to be repaired yet your Pontificians especially call it the Holy Land still which notwithstanding is neuer a whit the holyer though by the Popes subtile instigation so many thousands of soules haue perished about the pretended quarrell out of a blind zeale of recoucring it againe which whither regained or no the Pope was sure not to loose by the bargain for if he had regained it it might haue brought the greater income to his coffers by the trade of superstitious Pilgrims at least althoug hee hath some footing there with the Turke but he was sure during the quarrell to inlarge his Papall Dominions at home in Christendome which he did but this by the way You see then that continuance of antiquity in name and title may notwithstanding stand with altering the propertie and true nature of the thing Did not the Prophet say of Ierusalem How is the faithfull Cittie become an harlot It was full of iudgement righteousnesse lodged in it but now murtherers c. And may it not proue so with Rome for all you still call it the Apostolicall See And what will you say then What if Apostolicall in title bee turned into Apostaticall in truth What if Tues Petrus c. and tibi dabo claues c. and Orani pro te Petre c. and Omnis mihi potestas data c. Ecce duo gladij hîc satest all proue by the Popes peruertings to make vp the Mystery of iniquity and by fastening all to Rome proue her the Mistres and Mother of whooredomes For let me tell you you cannot finde me out the exact and true naturall Mystery of iniquity indeed but vnder the vaile of such titles borrowed from Scripture None can be Antichrist but he must call himselfe the Vicar of Christ the Successor of Peter the onely one vpon earth that cannot erre and the like translating the whole power of
yet against your hope the prayers of Christs Church are neuer wanting for the frustrating of your fairest hopes Our Church in particular publiquely prayeth That it may please God to bring into the way of truth all such as haue erred and are deceiued And in another prayer for the whole estate of Christs Church in the end of our Communion booke Wee beseech thee ô Lord to reduce all such as bee yet ignorant from the miserable captiuitie of blindnesse and errours to the pure vnderstanding and knowledge of thy truth that wee all with one consent and vnity of mind may worship thee our onely God and Sauiour And for our King blessed bee God his heart is established vpon firmer grounds then to be remoued from that true faith wherein hee was bred and brought vp so easily as you hoped yea that pietie which with your solemne Crosse you haue so crowned our hope is that his Maiesty may in time by Gods grace so purifie and persit as that royall Queene shall account it the most rich dowry of her wedlocke to be made partaker of the liberty of that faith which her Royall husband professeth that so they may long enioy a sweet sociall conjunction as in their affections so in their Religion If that noble Lady Anne Sister sometime to Wenceslaus King of Behemia being married heere to Richard the 2. King of England and that in a deplored time when the Kinges of England were ouer-awed by the Popes vsurped power being tyrannized ouer also with that spirituall Egyptian seruitude if shee I say by the meanes of this marriage comming and liuing in England became so happy as to be made acquainted with the Gospell of Christ which shee had written in the English tongue namely the foure Euangelists with the Doctours vpon them in the reading thereof shee was dayly exercised and so by this meanes also many Bohemians comming hither into England comming to the sight and knowledge of Wickliffes workes conveyed the same into Bohemia whereby a good foundation was laid of planting and so establishing the true religion there what hopes then may wee perceiue of this our noble Queene who beeing married to such a royall husband who is not onely in title but in realty Defender of the faith yea a Prince who is excellently able to worke vpon such a noble disposition by infusing into her the seedes of the true Christian faith that so not onely her selfe may become a sound Protestant but by the blessing of God this religion may from so noble a roote multiply and branch it selfe into those her fathers Countries also so that when they shall taste of the clusters of Chanaan growing by the meanes of this blessed vine hir fathers house may then blesse the time that euer she was transplauted into so happy asoyle The Lord bring these faire blossomes of our hope to a timely maturity as your Pontifician hope is heerein already blessed be God blasted in the bud And the same God that preuented that intended massacre of Religion in Bohemia by the death of the King Ladislaus at whose intended marriage with Magdalene the French Kings Daughter of Prague where and when the confluence of so many Pontifician States should haue beene the massacre should the more easily haue beene effected that God hath and will wee trust euer preserue this his true religion professed in England and that by preseruing the life of our gracious Soueraigne long amongst vs to his glory and his Churches good maugre all Pontifician hopes of the contrary But it should seeme the Popes hopes are turned into feares but now saith he the vowes and councells of your enemies are feared Whom doth he meane here by enemies Surely by coherence with the premisses he must needes meane the most Potent King of whom he spake in the former part of the sentence And certainely in nothing shall our noble King show himselfe more Posent then by rooting out of his Dominions all Popish Priests and Iesuites and by establishing in vnity of doctrine that Religion which for these many yeares hath beene so happily mayntained therein Herein herein stands the potency and securitie of our Most Potent King The establishing of true religion is the establishing of the Kinges Throne It were happy if other Kinges in Christendome had their eyes opened to see their miserable thraldome vnder the Popes yoake and vpon what a tottering foundation their Kindomesstand where Papall authoritie and Iesuiticall doctrines take place But here we may not passe ouer that he faith Your Enemies Who or whose enemies what the King an enemy to whom to the Popes Sonnes here in England what to the Priests and Iesuites in England There were some reason why the King should showe himselfe an enemy to these for who are more mortall enemies to the King and his Crowne then they But it is playne by the sequell that hee meaneth chiefely heere such Catholique sonnes of his as are or at least ought to bee true subiects to the King Loe here then Pontifician malice The Pope doth here most subtilly insinuate that the King is an enemy to all those his subiects who are Roman Catholikes Enough with such a brand to kindle the flames of hatred and rebellion in such subiects against their King while the Pope thus blowes the bellowes But wherein is the King an enemy to their persons no but to their religion which is enmity against God and the King But the Pope feareth the Kings Councells Now the good Lord so direct the King and blesse him in all his Councells that they may more and more be matter as of feare to the Pope so of ioy and comfort to himself and all his People But hee feares also his enemies vowes What vowes For tolleration forsooth of the Popes Orthodox religion Yf Orthodox then ought it not onely to bee tollerated but publikely imbraced professed avowed But if it bee as it is the Antichristian Babylonian Apostaticall idolatrous religion of Rome that Where of Babylon then no vowes ought either to bee made or much lesse kept for the tollerating of such a religion It is against our vowe in baptisme wherein we disavow the Deuill and all his works and therefore all doctrines of Devills A precontract with our spouse Christ disanulleth all after contracts with Antichrist with a harlot Yea vowes made against God and his word are ipso facto voyd and become a meere nullity And if the Pope at his pleasure can dissolue all lawfull vowes which being duely made obliege men inviolably to keepe them hath not God himselfe power to disanull all impious vowes which are made to maintaine the religion of Antichrist Therefore the Pope must giue vs leaue herein not to giue credit to his Holinesse complaint which howsoeuer wee knowe to bee most vniust And whereas the Pope calls his Religion orthodox let the contents of this Bull witnesse Wee need goe no further for proofe Ipse dixit Yet you complaine that notwithstanding your orthodox Religion a
rebillion and speakes he of peace Or what peace can all popish doctrine put together giue vnto a poore sinner None at all For either they puffe a man vp with pride or possesse his heart and conscience with fearfull perplexities Peace it giueth none neither in life nor death But passe we by that too The Pope here making mention of Martyrs chaines cannot but put vs in minde of Father Garnet that damned crew Romes Martyrs and so may giue vs not without iust cause strongly to suspect there is some exploit towards which his Holinesse by subtile insinuation animates and armes his sonnes vnto whereby though they should at the worst miscary yet they should merit no lesse then the honour of Martyrs such as father Garnet for abetting the Powder Treason hath attained to in Romes Catologue of holy Martyrs Againe speaking of those that trample the lawes vnder their proude foote heere hee subtilly glanceth at Christian Magistrates to aggrauate their subiects hatred against them as proud violators of the Lawes But what Lawes Gods Lawes or mans Lawes God forbid But it sufficeth if they trample vpon the Popes lawes to expose them to the iust hatred of their people But if the Kingdome of heauen and the Principalities thereof bee promised not to the violaters of all lawes what part then hath the Pope therein who is the arch contemner of all lawes can breake them at his pleasure without checke can dispence euen against the Apostle In a word who is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that exlex or lawlesse one Let him make much of his earthly principality for part of those heauenly according to his owne speech according to his owne practice he hath none Which no doubt is the reason that he so labours tooth and naile to haue his heauen here vpon earth turning his Church militant into Triumphant as in that irrefragable decree of Pope Nicholis the 3. verifying to an haire that of the Reuel 18. verse 17. I fit a Queene c. onely militant against Christ and his word against Kings and Princes This is that which he addes But to those that suffer persecution for righteousnesse sake And who are they I pray you namely such as suffer for treason and rebillion against their Prince such as seduce the people of the land Noble and base to acknowledge and admit a forraine power aboue their owne Prince as wee shall see further anone To suffer for these nefarious impieties is with his Holinesse of Rome to suffer for righteousnesse sake ô blasphemous mouth ô whores forehead that dares so diabolically and shamefully prophane Christs sacred words Woe be to him that thus calleth euill good and good euill that putteth bitter for sweet and sweete for bitter that turneth the truth of God into a lye putting rebellion for righteousnesse that dare thus make a mocke of sacred Scriptures Call you this Christs Vicar Nay tell me is not this that scarlet coloured Beast full of the names of blasphemy Reuel 17. 3. for to fill vp the measure of this shamelesse blasphemy he goeth on This truth deriued out of the treasures of antiquity into the earth the Apostle considering did not only not cast away his hope but was super abundantly ioyfull in all the tribulations of the faithfull for they which are accompted worthy to suffer reproaches for the name of Iesu those seeme to possesse the bill of exchange of Gods loue and abound with that price wherewith they purchase the diadem of eternity Answer STill the Beast full of names of blasphemie all along He addeth the example of the blessed Apostle in reioycing in his sufferings This truth What truth that to suffer for Treason for rebellion is to suffer for righteousnesse sake surely your Holinesse must either egregiously equivocate meaning by for righteousnesse sake to suffer righteously or iustly for Treason and the like as the penitent Theife confessed on the Crosse or else you goe on most shamelessely to blaspheme But out of what Treasures of antiquitie I pray you it this truth of yours deriued into the earth or when when Terras Astraea reliquit in that age when truth forsooke the earth Rome and went into heauen then succeeded this truth of yours in stead thereof Or when that greate Starre called Wormewoode a true type of your Luciferian Apostacie fell from heauen which so imbittered the waters of the sanctuary that many thousands haue died thereof after which followed a great ecclipse of the heauenly bodies euen to a third part of their light which by degrees at last as in the next chapter for so in that booke is described the graduall growth of the Mysterie of Iniquitie through the smoake of hellish doctrine ascending out of the bottomelesse pit were wholly darkned through your Egiptian Church as we see this day the Sun shining onely in Goshen by the beames of the Gospell then then I say began this Romane Catholique truth to be deriued into the earth from no other treasues of Antiquitie can you deriue it We know what a treasure you haue of Antiquities but wee haue vpon better search espied your Gibeonitish iuggling pretending vnto vs you come from farre with your old shooes torne bottles and mouldie bread Or tell vs out of what Antiquities or Monuments euen among the heathen Grecians or Romans with whose old superstitions notwithstanding idolatries you fully symbolize onely you are more grosse and mad vpon your Idoles then euer were they yea fetch vs if you can some Antiquities out of the Turkish Alcaron that hold this Romane truth that a subiect playing the Rebell and Traytor against his Leige and lawfull King and suffering death for the same did as an holy Martyr suffer for righteousnesse sake No Heathen but abhorreth this cursed truth of Rome Or if ye will needs plead antiquitie for it take it then we yeelde you this truth came from the old serpent who was the first that moued mankinde to rebell against his King in disobeying Gods commandement Here is antiquitie for you But will you hereupon inferre that the punishment of the serpent is for righteousnesse sake yet this antiquity was but in fact the old serpent durst neuer avouch it for a truth but it lay antiquated and buried in the ashes of hell vntill the Pope and his societie of Iesuites of latter times raked it vp againe and with the force of Apostolique power armed with fiery arguments haue perswaded their first blind folded vulgar that this is a truth deriued from the treasures of antiquitie that to suffer as Romane Martyrs do for treason and rebellion is with the Apostles of Christ to suffer persecution for righteousnesse sake But what is their reward for all this suffering yes saith the Pope for they which are accounted worthy to suffer reproches for the name of Iesu Stay A man by this phrase Accounted worthie might take the Pope for a piece of a good Gospeller in the point of Iustification vnto eternall life for
purgatorie and those subterrestiall or infernall kingdomes according to that Phil. 2. v. 10. Psal 8. 7. v. 8. which places they familiarly apply to the Popes vnlimited power in these places vnderstanding by the Beasts men on earth by the Fishes soules in hell and purgatorie and by the Fowles the winged Angels ouer all which the Pope saith he hath dominion Thus all power is giuen him in heauen and earth Thus hee runnes away with Christs power but leaues the charge of Christ to his Disciples to preach the word and administer the Sacraments But in the meane time all this arrogant and blasphemous vsurpation of the Pope what doth it but most clearely conclude him to be that Great Antichrist described in the Scripture This is hee that exalis himselfe aboue all that is called God or that is worshipped This is hee that sits in or vpon the temple of God shewing himselfe that he is God to wit inuested in all the power of God and of Christ in heauen and earth as the Vicar of God almightie Herein hee is not Christs Vicar who would not meddle in matters of the world but indeede his Vicar that said to Christ All this power will I giue thee and the glory of them for that is deliuered vnto me and to whomsoeuer I will I giue it The Dragon spake this and of Antichrist it is said that he hath two hornes like a Lambe but speakes like the Dragon The Pope speakes iust like the Dragon here See this verified in the Pope to an haire to a very letter Pope Hadrian saith Vnde habet Imperator Imperium nisi à nobis c. From whence hath the Emperour his Empire but from vs that which the Emperour hath he hath it all of vs c. Loe it is in our power to giue it to whomsoeuer we will Therefore wee are appointed of God ouer Nations and Kingdomes that wee should destroy and plucke vp See how like the Sonnes voice is to the Syres Hee speakes iust like the Dragon onely in a more loftie stile wee for I. Also Pius 5. in his Bull against Queene Elizabeth of happy memorie vsed the like speech in Ier. 1. v. 10. So that the Pope and his clients conclude that all Emperours and Kings hold their Empires and Kingdomes but in fee of the Pope Thus Henry 1. King of England was glad with much paying and praying to obtaine of Pope Alexander the 3. that he and his successours should haue the title of the King of England This held till King Iohns time when the Pâ—pe againe resumed the kingdome of England into his own power but was content at length to let King Iohn haue it to farme So Pope Celestine 3. crowned Henry 6. Emperour and his Empresse with his holinesse feet and when he had done so strucke it off againe with his foot to signifie it was in the power of the fame foot to take away his crowne that had put it on Thus we see Antichrist exalting himselfe aboue all that is called God and that in the highest degree So that it may be admired that any man hauing but his eyes open to compare the Pope with his owne picture can doubt that he is that Antichrist vnlesse such men be giuen vp to a strong delusion because they receiued not the loue of the truth But it is lamentable to see learned men so blind-folded as not to see this Mysterie of iniquitie But more pernicious that not seeing it themselues they would perswade the world also that the Pope is not Antichrist Is it time now to make Apologies for the Pope not to be Antichrist when he so egregiously plaies the Antichrist euen vnder our noses when hee goes about to seduce and withdraw the hearts of subiects from the King from our gracious Soueraigne It was Tortus his speech noted by the learned Bishop in his Tortura to be Romes Doctrine that at the hissing of a slye which is in Babylon namely at Rome the subiects would reuolt from the obedience of their Prince and so by the window treason immediately entreth The Pope is the flye of Babylon who can make of the Prince no Prince of the subiect no subiect and the no subiect against the no Prince what may he not attempt But this is in case the Prince bee an Hereticke or Schismaticke And what is it for the Prince to be an Herticke forsooth if hee doe not yeeld himselfe the Popes Vassall which saith the Bishop is else to deny one of the prime Articles of the Christian faith It was the case of Philip le Bell. Thus the Bishop To proceede the Pope mentioneth a graue Decree of his Predecessor Paul 5. no doubt he meaneth that Bull sent hither into England inhibiting his sonnes the oath of allegiance The Pope calleth it a Decree of truth which must be diligently obserued For a taste I will insert one sentence of it cited by the learned Bishop Vobis ex verbis ipsis Iuramenti perspicuum esse debet quod huiusmodi iuramentum saluâ fide Catholica salute animarum vestrarum prestari non potest From the very words of the oath it ought to bee cleare vnto you that saith an oath cannot be vndertaken with the safetie of the Catholike faith and the saluation of your soules If so good reason their tongues should rather cleaue to their gums then they take it great reason that neither threats nor flatteries extort it from them rather part with life then faith yea this they must bee so vndoubtedly resolued of that If an Angell from heauen teach otherwise then this Apostolike truth let him be accursed Here at last breakes forth the thunderbolt it selfe which were enough to blast the very Angels of heauen if for subiects to denie due obedience to their lawfull Princes were an Apostolike truth But can a Christian eare heare such blasphemie without horror with any patience This an Apostolike doctrine an Apostolike truth Papall it is Diabolicall it is raked out of the pit of hell Apostolike it is not neither from Paul nor Peter from Paul 5. but not from Paul the Apostle Paul teacheth the contrary Rom. 13. Peter the contrary 1. Pet. 2. 13. how durst you you blessed Apostles preach such a doctrine as is contrary to the Apostolike truth of Rome either you must recant your doctrine or loe a smoaking Anathema is breathed out against you But lest those holy Apostles lest God himselfe lest Iesus Christ lest the holy Ghost lest the whole sacred word of God should come within the danger of the Popes curse and all for the mistaking of one word Apostolike for Apostaticke We are rather to thinke that as Manicheus writing himselfe Apostle hence hee would conclude his damnable doctrines to be Apostolike so the Pope calling himselfe that Apostolike one therefore all his lying Oracles must be taken for Apostolike truths And see here also how impiously the Pope goes on to peruert and prophane