of her fornication She is contrarie to the true Church which teacheth to worship God alone the Creator but this Synagogue hath causâ—d men to drinke of the wine of her fornication that is to worship others besides God and to worship the creatures and this is spirituall fornication And hath not the Church of Rome done so Who seeth it not Hee is onely to bee worshipped according to the truth of the Gospell that made heauen and earth but what Saint or Angell had any fellowship with God in that worke And therefore the Church of Rome in teaching the worship of these is Babylon and therefore she dissenteth most manifestly from the truth of the Gospell And therefore she is that whoore whose fornication is rather in doctrine then in maners Now she being thus manifestly descried the third Angell followed them saying with a loud voyce If any man worship the Beast and his image and receiue his marke in his forhead or on his hand the same shall drinke of the wine of the wrath of God yea of the pure wine that is poured out of the cup of his wrath and he shal be tormented in fire and brimstone before the holy Angels and before the Lambe c. O terrible sentence for all obstinate Papists which as yet the Gospell being so long and so manifestly preached will worship the image of the beast that is which will acknowledge the Popes supremacie or put their trust in his characters and consecrated creatures For as S. Iohn hath taught before He shall make an image of the Beast Reu. 13.14 that is as the Roman Emperor was Monarch ouer the world so he shall challenge a Monarchy ouer the Church And hath not the Pope done thâ—s God giue all men eyes to see this And here gentle Reader if peraduenture in this Treatise I do dissent in some points from the godly brethren I must desire thee to beare with me patientlie I dissent not with a contentious mind but with a mind longing and searching for the truth and according to my simple Talent deliuering it to thee and to thy iudgement Our dissensions are as diuers boughes proceeding from the same roote of the tree and as diuers arrowes shot out of the same quiuer aiming at the same marke shot against Babel Thou which art endued with Gods Spirit Ierem. 50.14 Rom. 8.9 1. Cor. 2.15 and art Iesus Christs iudge charitably who comes neerer the marke condemne not any Gods souldiers are commanded to shoote not on one side against Babel but round about her I vrge the fasts of Wednesdayes Fridayes and of Lent which the Fathers and the Primitiue Church solemnly obserued Who as they were not superstitious in these their fasts as the Papists were so they were not so curious in the numbring of the dayes of Lent as wee are They fasted about fortie dayes which was called of them Quadragesima and euerie weeke the fourth and sixt day not superstitiously but religiously to studie the Scriptures and to came the flesh The which fasts I vrge now againe in our dayes to rouse out of the sleepe of security the men of our age which eate and drinke as the men did in the dayes of Noe Luke 17.27 of whom our Sauiour giueth vs warning to beware least we perish with them I wish that all men would watch in their priuate prayers and that publike prayers also might be early in the morning which times of praying are both agreeing with the Scripture and to the Primitiue Church I commend the signe of the Crosse as an holy signe which diuers godly learned men haue thought to be that signe of the Sonne of man which shall appeare before the day of iudgement whereof mention is made in the 24. of Saint Matthewes Gospell If that sword of Goliah that killed him were kept reuerently lapt vp in a cloath and that in no obscure place but behind the Ephod in the Tabernacle Why should not that sword which killed the true Goliah indeed which vaunted himselfe against all Israel I meane the Crosse with which sword the diuell had thought to haue killed our Sauiour Iesus Christ 1. Sam. 21.9 1. Sam. 17.10 and wherof that other Goliah was but a shadowe bee had in reuerence in Christs Church amongst vs Christians And here we may note also that the Ephod may signifie Christ as the signification of the name it selfe may seeme to import which signifies to put on aboue or to couer ouer all And all Christians must put on this Ephod aboue all their other garments of their good works be they neuer so perfect And in this respect also they may bee called Kings and Priests Then Goliah his sword must not be placed before the Ephod or lapt vp with the Ephod but lapt vp in a cloath behind the Ephod So the Crosse is not to be made equall with Christ as the Papists haue made it but to be placed behind the Ephod lapt in a cloath that is as a reuerend and sacred thing to be accounted of So that this estimation of the signe of the Crosse for there is a mutuall relation betweene the signe and the thing signified makes nothing for Popery As concerning the testimonies of the Scriptures which concerne these points of doctrine which are handled in this Treatise in some places I alleage them not because I haue handled them else where in the exposition of the Epistle of Saint Iude. And I haue here alleaged the sayings of manie of the Romish Writers whom they call Catholikes In translating of whose sayings I protest I haue vsed as great faithfulnesse as can be and that I haue many times stucke so vnto the letter that I haue lost the grace of the sense Thus fare thou well good Christian Reader and the Lord Iesus giue thee a right iudgement and vnderstanding in all things Thine in the Lord FRANCIS TRIGGE Faults escaped amend thus Pag. 25. line 36. for sonne read sum of all Hammashe p. 94. l. 8. merit r. mercie p. 96 l. 37. put out onely pag. 103 in margin Dom. 18. post c. r. Dom. 8. pag. ibid. l. 33. works r. worlds p. 133. adde in margin De orat med die Lunae p. 148. l. 31. r. that they may c. p. 160. l. 25. now r. not p. 161. l. 11. adde saith p. 163. l. 20. after declared r. often deceiued p. 174. l. 4. meanes r. names p. 187. l. 30. the r. this p. 227. in margin cap. 40. r. cap. 4. p. 242. lin 5. It is not r. Is it not p. 247. l. 26. count r. cannot p. 255. in margin adde Ferus in Acta Apost cap. 1. p. 293. lin 33. caried r. cured p. 307 l. 8. dele foure p. 326. l. 4 dele the first in p. 342. l. 13. â—o r. to p. 370. l. 36. as r. is p. 441. l. 29. r. Lash vak 462. l. 21. r. Banah p. 577. l. 8 r. Stater p. 585. l. 3. r. out of their c. p. 586.
that they came out of the land of Egypt in the moneth of Abib when corne waxed ripe and began to be eared And this God wils them here to remember And surely no doubt for our learning and instruction That we also should come out of Egypt in the moneth Abib when as the Lords corne shall waxe ripe when as the doctrine of the Gospell shall growe to perfection when as the séede of the Gospell shall not now be newe sown as it was in the daies of the Fathers but now shall be eared and be comed to perfection Mat. 13 26.30 Mar. 4.28 and be readie for the reapers to thrust in the sicle and reape it into the Lords barnes As our sauiour teacheth The earth bringeth out of her selfe first the blade then the eare and after the full corne in the eare Such like is the growth of the seede of the worde in the Church I would to God all Israelites which nowe amongst vs belong to the Lord would remember this moneth Abib when we shall come out of the spirituall Egypt as the other Israelites came out of that corporall Egypt the Lords corne shall waxe ripe and shall growe to perfection Manie Israelites obserue not this They will haue the ceremonies and rites which the Fathers obserued euen now to be obserued still as though corne being greene and like grasse had not the hoses or huskes belonging to it which it being now ripe do wither away and fall downe as nothing which in the beginning grew aloft and flourished Surely this lesson the moneth Abib must teach vs the Lordes corne is now waxen ripe and therefore wee must not looke for those rites and ceremonies those hoses or huskes which in the beginning when as the Lords corne was greene the Fathers tolerated or perchance made great account of that part of the corne which in the spring flourished most and grewe aloft is now become withered and quite fallen to the ground The true worshippers as our sauiour teacheth worship the father in spirit and trueth Io. 4.23 And the name of the whore of Babylon is a mysterie as saint Iohn sheweth vs Reue. 17.5 that is she is full of ceremonies and mysteries Wee are made partakers of Christ if we keepe and holde fast 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Heb. 3.14 That is the beginning of our confidence our vnderpropping that is of our faith as Chrysostome expounds it euen vnto the ende That is asmuch to say as if wée kéepe fast the faith in the beginning taught and preached They that holde not the beginning of their firmitie and first faith haue lost their part in Christ The traditions of men will not warrant it them as saint Paul also writes to the Galathians O ye foolish Galathians Gal. 3.1 who hath bewitched you that you should beleeue another Gospell Euen then Sathan began by little and little to chaunge the Gospell of Christ to bring in his traditions and so to make the first Christians to loose their benefit in Christ let vs beeing warned by their example beware this his sleight Ferus of the markes of the true Church writes thus In 2. cap. Mâ—â— That also is the true Church which the starre declares that is where the word of God is taught and raigneth and where they liue according to the word of God and where all things are done according to the word of God and of Christ in what corner of the earth soeuer it be The new Testament saith Ferus is nothing else but a manifestation of those things which were sealed vp in the old vnder the rude letter vnder diuers figures The which thing is excellently declared vnder the figure of a booke sealed which none could open but the Lambe that was slaine and hereof it came to passe that the Apostles in their preachings opened the scriptures and hence it is that Christ wrote nothing but preached by worde of mouth that which was conteined in the olde lawe And also sewe of the Apostles wrote any thing And if any of them did write they would onely teach things that were contained in the olde If this be true then the scripture which the Papists cal traditioneÌ„ is not of like force with that which is scripta or written Secondly then the traditions which we are to beléeue are commended to vs in the worde of God and are the same that are contained in the written word of God For such traditions onely the Iewes were commaunded to obserue As we read in Ieremie Stand by the waies Ier. 6.16 marke and enquire of the auncient waies which is the good way and walke in it and you shall finde comfort for your soules But the traditions of the fathers besides the word were vtterly forbidden them as we read in Amos Thus saith the Lord for three transgressions of Iudah and for foure I will not turne Am. 2.4 but because they haue cast away the lawe of the Lord and haue not kept his commaundementes Their lies caused them to erre after which their fathers haue walked Sée how the following of their fathers steppes could not iustify them neglecting or making light account of the law of the Lord no traditions of fathers besides are warranted them So saint Paul writes to the Thessalonians That they should keepe the traditions which they had learned eyther by word or by Epistle 2. Thes 2.15 That is no doubt such traditions as either were written in other parts of the scripture or were agréeing to the worde written How greatly soeuer the nature of man delightes in traditions in the seruice of God yet our Sauiour telles all men plainlie They worship me in vaine Mat. 15.9 teaching the doctrines and commandements of men God will be worshipped of all his according to his own commandements All other worshippe be it neuer so statelie or costlie is vaine worship and displeaseth God Then by Ferus iudgement that doctrine which is not contained in the olde Testament vnder some type or figure is not to be beléeued in the newe And then as the olde Testament condemned all traditions besides the lawe written so that from that the Iewes might not depart neither to the right hand nor to the left so doth also the new Testament In cap. 4.30 The same Ferus of the worship of Christians writes thus The true worshippers shall worship the father in spirit and truth Waye saith he our worship according to this rule and see whether it be not more like Iewish then Christian worshippe Nay be sure that thou art not as yet a true worshipper although thou obserue al outward things neuer so exactly vnlesse thou worship God in spirit and truth How manie euill worshippers were then in the daies of our forefathers by his iudgement in the midst of Popish darknesse In. cap. 16. Mat. Also Ferus writes thus of this matter There is nothing more pestilent then euill doctrine and therefore Christ doth shadow it by
then he hath commaunded shall we not alone kindle them with that fire Luc. 12.49 Psal 119.105 Ier. 20.9 which Christ came to cast downe from heauen vpon earth which no doubt is the fire of his holy word which lightneth and inflameth all men the which fire his will is that it should burne and flame dare we prsume to fetch fire at any other be he neuer so holy or auncient Surely if Nadab and Abibu through their negligence were thus seuerely punished in the shadow we in the light being also taught most plainly and admonished concerning this point how shall we escape vnpunished Deut. 13.8 14.32 1. Sam. 15.22 Let no mans good intent or blind deuotion herein beguile him It excused not them neither shall it excuse vs. do that onely which I commaund thee saith God And obedience is better then sacrifice Ferus a Frier to exhort all Christians to call vpon the name of Christ verie excellently writes thus Fer. in ca. 13. Io. He kneeles downe at their knees he beginneth not to wash their hands which had been a more honest seruice but their feete which of all other is a duetie most abiect and most filthie And he doth all these things alone he alone powres out the water he alone washeth he alone wipeth Who will not here crie out with the Prophet I haue considered thy works and I haue beene amased I beseech thee consider with thy selfe who did this euen Iesus And whose feet washed he Of the dignitie of Christ we haue heard alreadie who were more base then the Apostles they were all poore and of no reputation besides all this one of them was a traitor another of them should denie his master yet for all this he did this seruice so louingly vnto them What can he denie vs who so greatly humbled himselfe And the same Ferus writes thus The scripture doth euer describe Christ vnto vs louing and courteous hauing no bitternes or sharpenes in him In cap. 2. Mat. but altogither seeking our commoditie that we might be the more drawen to his bountifull goodnes to embrace this king So Zacharie describeth Christ in the ninth chapter Behold thy king commeth to thee meeke and gentle And Esay Behold thy God feeds his sheepe as a shepheard And againe especially for this cause he would be made a child least any man should be affraid to come vnto him he is altogether gentle and courteous there is no sharpnes or discourtesie in him Therefore wo to him that deferreth to come vnto him how dare he behold the high Iudge that hath despised his lowly Sauiour Let vs therefore come to him while there is some time of Grace Let vs call vpon him while he is neere In cap. 4. Io. Let vs seeke him while he may be found Againe What is it to worship the father in the spirit but to haue receiued the spirit of Adoption by which we crie Abba father and what is it to worship God in truth but abiding in his son which saith I am truth to cal vpon the father and to pray in the name of the sonne It is the same as though he had said The true worshippers by a true and necessarie distinction of the persons shall worship one God the Father the Sonne and the holy Ghost yea they shall worship the father by the sonne in the holy Ghost This is an excellent and briefe summe of true worship and Christian religion The Iews did so despise the Samaritans yea al the Gentiles that they would not vouchsafe to speake to them Therefore this woman seeing Christ to be a Iew durst not haue spoken to him vnlesse Christ had first spoken to her So when as we all haue sinned and know that God is offended with our sinnes and therefore displeased with sinners none of vs durst haue spoken to God vnlesse he had spoken to vs first But now we speake to him safely and boldly and we can open to him all our necessities as this woman afterward durst speake boldly to Christ but in this also that he spake vnto a woman being a heathen and a sinner he declared that he despised no man God doth not onely speake to vs first as Christ did to this woman but commaunded vs to call and speake to him and if his onely speech did thus encourage the woman to speake to him though she were a sinner shall not his commandement much more encourage vs Fer. in 3. ca. Io. O we of little faith And againe the same Ferus saith in another place This is that true Ioseph whom God hath exalted ouer all Egypt hath commaunded that all should bow their knees before him This is that true Ioseph which hath his great barnes full of corne to be giuen forth to the hungrie To him the father sendeth vs euen as Pharaoh sent backe the Egyptians from himselfe to Ioseph Goe to Ioseph saith he and whatsoeuer he shall say that do So our heauenly father this is my beloued sonne heare him This is he alone who in famine can saue To him therefore let vs runne with the Egyptians saying we are thy seruants our saluation is in thy hands Thou onely haue regard vnto vs and we will serue the king willingly Ierome also of prayers writes thus Ieron in 1. ca. Mal. That sacrifice of the soule is blind which is not lightned with the light of Christ nor hath an eie looking from the gospell the prayer of him that prayeth is lame which commeth to God with a double mind which heareth that said vnto him which the Iewes heard said vnto them How long will you halt on both sides That prayer is faint and altogither weake which hath not Christ the power of God and the wisedome of God such like prayers which are made without the light of the truth and haue no sure footsteps and are as it were faint with diuers infirmities if they should be offered to any one that beareth rule in the Church to any other learned man or Teacher or Doctor would they not be reiected and turned to his shame and discredit that offereth such prayers This is Ieromes meaning we would be ashamed to offer to anie learned man doubtfull suites or requests and not vnderstood and shall we presume to offer such to God Philippus de dies a Frier of this matter writes thus Conc. 4. incarnat All the time before the comming of Christ may be called an emptie time but Christ was borne in the fulnesse of time because God to become man was to communicate himselfe more to vs then euer could haue beene Euen as one hauing often distributed his riches at last to shew the top of his liberalitie giueth his chest and all his Iewels So God before verie liberally had bestowed on the Iewes but on vs he hath bestowed the riches and chest and all that is his sonne In whom are all treasures of wisdome hid And therefore among other causes for this the time
glorifie him Thus farre Ferus Wherein he doth teach vs manie notable lessons First not to giue to Saints those things which belong to God Secondly that we maie honor the Saints too much which some I thinke at this daie do not beléeue Thirdly what is the minde of all Saints they cannot abide that they should be extolled for any of Gods gifts Fourthly that they are but Gods instruments and do nothing by their owne power as hath been taught and beleeued most commonly in the darknesse of Poperie when as men went a pilgrimage and offered to them as if they of their own power could helpe them Fiftly let all men in all wonderfull works acknowledge God the chiefe workman and giue him all the glorie and praise and magnifie him in his Saints as the first Christians did in Paul they did not magnifie Paul Gal. 1.24 Neither that they make anie of them equall with God The same Ferus manifestly refutes that same obiection which the Papists make commonly for their pictures and images of God Fer. in 2. Act. God say they hath appeared often times in many formes and shapes and why may we not then paint him according to that forme he appeared in Here first besides that this their picturing of God is manifestly against the second commandement and against the doctrine of the prophet Esay where God as it were euen reasons with these idolaters Esay 40.18 and saith To whom will ye liken me c. Ferus yéelds another reason of these appearances of God God saith he in himselfe is inuisible yet we reade that he hath oftentimes appeared And all such his appearances are for the most part as the matters required for the which hee appeared So Esay saw God sitting as a iudge for the iudgement of Israel was at hand He appeared to Moses in a bush burning and not consuming For then such like was the state of the people of Israel in Egypt for they were in the fire of aduersitie and were not consumed Also he shewed himselfe to the eies of man at the giuing of the law in thunder lightning cloud and an earthquake to declare that that law should be a fearfull lawe and should cause wrath So the Angell hauing a sword drawne in his hand shewed himselfe to Iosuah now ready to fight whereby he declared that he would fight against the enemies of the Iewes So to Zacharie Angels appeared like horsemen for it was a time of feare and trembling for the inuasions of the Persians So the holy Ghost was seene vpon Christ in the shape of a Doue that he might declare that singular and rare innocencie puritie and mildnesse which was in Christ For a Doue is a gentle simple and plaine creature without any gall So in the transfiguration of our Lord which is a type of the resurrection the holy Gost appeared in a bright cloud that he might declare that at the last resurrection shall want no comfort not glorie Here also the holy Ghost appeared in toongs and fire for the state of the matter then euen so required it The Apostles stood need of toongs but both of firie and heauenly toongs So Ferus giues these reasons of these apparitions and not that we should by them make images of all these things Ferus also concerning images quite dissents from M. Bellarmine Bellar. de imag lib. 2. cap. 12. M. Bellarmine writes thus We with the Church affirme that the images of Christ and the Saints are to be honoured if so be that as it is declared in the councell of Trent Sess 25. we put no trust in the images neither that we aske any thing of them neither that we thinke that there is any diuinitie in them And againe answering after the obiection of the golden calfe which the Israelites made he answeres Cap. 13. that the Israelites thought verily that they had receiued their deliuerance out of Egypt not of the God of Moses but of Apis the god of the Egyptians which they had seene in Egypt worshipped of the Egyptians and therefore to him they made the image of a calfe But Ferus is of another and better iudgement vpon these words Make vs Gods c. he writes thus Fer. in 7. c. Act. He shewes that they were not only rebellious against Moses but also against God By gods here they meane saith he some worship of God by which they might purchase his helpe For they were not so blockish that they beleeued that Aaron could make them a god And this prooues that which Aaron said Tomorrow is the holy day vnto the Lord therfore they worshipped the true God with this worship The which thing is euident also by their owne words These are the gods c. For they knew well enough that that calfe was not then when they came out of Egypt therefore no worship whatsoeuer pleaseth God which he himselfe hath not appointed Therfore they sinned herein two waies First in that they made an image against the first commandement of God Secondly in that they worshipped him with a worship deuised of themselues The true worship of God is in spirit and truth He worships God which beleeues in him trusts in him loues him feares him praiseth him and obeyeth him This worship is to be preferred aboue all others nor any other are auailable without this Images are therefore tolerated and borne withall in the Church that they may put vs in minde not that they should be worshipped otherwise they cannot at all be excused Here Ferus quite dissents from M. Bellarmine First he plainly affirmes that the Israelites as we doe teach did worship the true God vnder the image of the golden calfe and not Apis the God of the Egyptians as M. Bellarmine affirmeth Secondly that images are not to be worshipped at all And that their worship cannot be defended and yet M. Bellarmine goeth about to defend it Thirdly he teacheth that no worshippe whatsoeuer can please God which God himselfe hath not ordained Contrarie also to M. Bellarmines exposition Bell. de Imag. lib. 2 cap. 4. who expounds that place of the second to the Colossians thus I say secondly that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 voluntarie worship doth not signifie any voluntarie worship whatsoeuer not commanded of God or deuised of man but onely superstitious worship as our interpreter hath rightly translated it or false religion as S. Ierom expounds it in his Epistles in his tenth question to Algasia Therfore saith he Caluin must prooue the worship of reliques to be superstitious or false if he will haue it reprooued here of Paul Thus farre M. Bellarmine He affirmes that some worship of God deuised of man or besides that which God hath commanded so that it be not superstitious maie please God But Ferus plainly condemnes all worships of God whatsoeuer besides those which he hath appointed himselfe And to this purpose he writes thus after vpon these words Fer in 7. Act. Ye haue
papist cites out of Eusebius Clemens that that Cephas which Paul reprehended in the 2. of the Galathians was not Peter the Apostle but another one of the 72. Disciples who was also called Cephas as he proueth out of Dorotheus and Hippolytus And he séemes to be himselfe of the same opinion for sayth he After the comming of the holy ghost vpon the Apostles it is not likely that the pillar of the Church shold haue fallen into so great a fault and haue erred in so great a matter of faith that is concerning the abrogation of the legall ceremonies To whom Christ committed his Church and appointed him generall pastour and teacher and maister of the faithfull and left him his Vicar vpon earth c. And againe It was not meete that the high Bishop and Prince of the Apostles should bee reproued of Paul so publiquely and sharply But this his smoake manifestly obscureth the truth for what is the drift of Paul in that place by the iudgement of other learned papists themselues but that he conferred the gospell with the Apostles not that he should learne any thinge of them whom he witnesseth to haue added nothing vnto him but lest they should not haue allowed it of whom onely he receiued the ministerie of gathering of almes And he shewes himselfe in somuch not inferiour to the Apostles that he feared not to reproue Peter their prince as it were compelling the gentiles to Iudaisme And after he shewes that we are Iustified by saith and not by the Lawe Gal. 2.16 This is Gagneus opinion in his argument of the second chap. to the Gal. So that if Paul conferred not his gospell with Peter the rest if he rebuked not Peter euen to the face as he there writes neither his owne authoritie nor the authoritie of his gospell which he preached amongst the GalathiaÌ„s had béene of such great authoritie Gal. 2.1 as hee there goeth about to proue vnto them And againe he writes that he went to Ierusalem where the Apostles abode and he reckons vp by name those that were chiefe amongst the Apostles Iames Cephas and Iohn and if Iames and Iohn were the Apostles he conferred with so also was Peter no doubt the Apostle he after reproued nay hee calleth Peter also Cephas by both his names lest hee should seeme to forget the priuiledge giuen him of our sauiour Nay hee called them pillars and is it likely that any of the 72 disciples should be called by that honorable name Nay he addeth that they gaue him right hands of fellowshippe now what great matter had it béen if any of the 72 disciples had made Paul equall with them And hee addeth after no doubt of the same Peter and not of any other that when as hee was come to Antioch hee withstood him to his face We may note here that the Papists are so blinded with the loue of their Pope that they will not sticke to discredite S. Paul and to diminish as much as in them lieth his authoritie and the authoritie of the gospell which hee preached to maintaine their Popes authoritie But this their exposition is not onely against the scripture but also against the Fathers Ierome and Augustine hadde soone béen agréede if they had credited any such matter who so earnestly wrote one against the other Aug. epist 9. concerning this reprehension when as Austin sayd Peter erred in deede and Ierome that he dissembled only and that Paul did not iustly reproue him But Ierome in his commentaries vpon the Galathians makes mention of this opinion and reiects it Hanmer in trans Dorothei de 70. discip Nay also in Dorotheus latin copie there is no such Cephas numbred amongst the 72 disciples although in the gréeke such an one is named This diuersitie of copies argues some of Sathans subtilties And here may bee a true and forcible argument drawne against the Popes supremacie If Peter had béen head of the Church hee ought not so publiquely sharply to haue béen reproued of Paul saith Pintus but as Gagneus and Austen and almost all the auncient fathers and truth it selfe doth witnesse Paul did so openly and sharply reproue him therefore he was not head of the Church Ferus how resolute he is in this his opinion concerning the Popes authoritie it is worth the marking howe plainly in other his workes as occasion offers hee shewes his iudgment herein If therefore saith hee wee will haue the Church safe let vs especially pray for the holy ghost for it is he wherein the Church is vnited gouerned spread abroad and preserued He alone is the only tutor gouernour teacher and comforter of all the faithfull To the vnitie of the church as other papists doe hee requires not the vnitie of a ministeriall head to gouerne the church but the vnitie of the holy spirit And after speaking of Peter he writes thus He stood in the midst of his brethren In which word the humilitie of Peter is commended For he did not alone by himselfe puft vp with vaine arrogaÌ„cie dispose the ecclesiasticall affaires according to his owne pleasure but in the midst of his brethren he dispatched all thinges which were to be done For it is not lawfull that the ecclesiasticall affaires and what thinges belong to the whole Church should bee ordered by the pleasures of a fewe but rather that those thinges should be disposed to the glorie of God according to the rules and appointment of the scriptures by the mutuall consent of good men Neither is that fit that any one shall take vpon him any office whatsoeuer For the Apostle sayth Let all things be done decently and according to order Therefore it was necessarie that one of the Apostles should orderly doe those necessarie affaires and therefore Peter stepps forth who had béen euer hitherto both more zelous and more apt and luckie in dispatching businesses Peter alone like the Pope presumptuously dealt not in ecclesiasticall affaires And after speaking of Peter Hee calles them brethren though he were the first in order amongst the Apostles For others are not to be disdained because of our higher estate aboue theÌ„ lastly he begins his oration of the holy scrip uâ—es Neither doth Peter this by mans fancie but by the mouing of the holy scriptures And if the chiefe of the Apostles did this what thinke we that we ought to doe Therefore let ciuill matters be discussed by ciuill iust and equall lawes And those things which are diuine let them be weighed in the ballance of the scriptures For there ought nothing to bee established or decreede in the Church but first of all wee should aske couÌ„sell of the holy scriptures The which thing I would to God had been obserued till now but now that is coÌ„monly put in practise of many So I wil haue it This I command to be done my pleasure is a sufficient warrant Surely Ferus in these words toucheth the Popes peremptorie authoritie And after vpon these wordes Let