held at Altenburge accuse one another for corrupting and falsifying the Confession of Ausburge which is the very ground next vnto the holy Scripture of their faith and religion Colloquium Altenberg fol. 402. The former copies or examplars say they haue not the true and sincere confession of Ausburge For there is another substituted or put in the place of it which was neither exhibited at Ausburge or euer approued by the states of the Confession of Ausburge Thus they And vpon the corruption of this Confession and of an other booke called Corpus doctrinae containing this and other treatesies arose great discord and dissention among them vvhich is not yet ended for no man almost can tel vvhich be the true bookes But what dissention was there among them in the same conference touching Luthers vvorkes corrupted verily the zealous Lutherans complaine after this sort * See 2. respoÌ„s ad Hipothes fol. 284. 290 353. 355. 441. 442. 443. 526. The Diuines of the Prince Elector who were also Lutherans doe most filthily and beyond al measure depraue Luthers writings so as since Luthers death there haue not beene more foule corrupters of Luthers bookes Thus they and this fault each side doth most often object to the other in most spiteful tearmes a Ibid. Saxon. in respons discessu fol. 539. 540. Last of al a promisse is made that the Duke of Saxony vvil cause Luthers workes to be printed vvithout corruption And thus much of the Lutherans whome M. Crashaw I hope with the Apology of the Church of England wil acknowledge to be his bretheren Nowe let vs behold the dealing of the Sacramentaries vvho are more properly of his faith and religion And first let vs looke towardes Geneua a City most famous for vpholding this sect What then shal vve there finde for our purpose Verily Westphalus a Lutheran accuseth the Caluinists euen of this very place that they haue corrupted Luthers vvorkes for thus he complaineth I maruaile much that Caluin keeping such adoe about this one word could not see the most filthy mutations and corruptions of the diuine commentary of Doctor Luther vpon the Epistle to the Galatians and translated into French and printed at Geneua In one place some wordes are taken away in an other many moe somewhere whole Paragraphs are lopt off in the exposition of the sixt Chapter two pages and a halfe are left out c. at other times they haue put in vvordes such as pleased them And that this was done at Geneua without Caluins knowledge it is not very likely Thus Westphalus But let vs heare an other man of more credit among English Protestants make the like complaint that by the testimony of two witnesses they may be proued falsifiers M. Morton a famous Protestant writer of this realme nowe liuing set forth in London in the yeare 1605. the first part of his vvorke called by him a Catholike Apologie But what did they of Geneua They printed againe the said booke in their City putting the name of London to it as though it had beene there printed and disliking a certaine answere by him made in defence of Beza they put that out and vvithout any more adoe in place of it added an other of their owne This I proue out of M. Mortons owne wordes vvho in certaine animaduersions vpon this first part printed at the end of the second part published at London in the same yeare speaking of the same matter complaineth thus C. 21. in calumnia 5. Noua impressio Londini dicta ver'e Geneuae facta totum responsum meum pro Beza penitus expunxit responsum suum assuit prob hominum fidem doleo equidem tantam cum scriptis meis injuriam factam esse tum etiam proelo Geneuensi tantam corruptelae labem contractam A newe impression said to be at London truly made at Geneua put out altogether my whole answere for Beza and patched in their owne O the faith or falsehood of men verity I am sorry both that such an injury is offered to my workes and also that the print of Geneua is stained with such a blot of corruption or deprauing Thus Morton What wil M. Crashaw say to this vvho are nowe more to be blamed in this kinde vve who correct books by publike authority receiued from a general councel and that publikely making our action knowne to the vvhole world in print or these his bretheren who secretly and as it were in corners get other mens workes corrupt them and then set them forth to the viewe of the world as though nothing had beene altered And this is no old matter but a thing done within these two or three yeares I come nowe nearer home Anno 1606. This last yeare vvas published a booke in our language with this title A Manuel or brief volume of controuersies of religion betweene the Protestants and the Papists written in Latin by Lucas Osiander and nowe Englished with some additions and corrections But howe doth the translator mangle and teare the poore booke Verily whereas the author of it being a Lutheran and a mortal enemie of the Sacramentaries for he hath published the like booke against them speaketh as a Lutheran he maketh him speake like vnto a good Sacramentary Hence whereas he hath these vvordes in Latin Chapt. 15. Alius enim modus a Paulo nobis monstratur nimirum communicationis For an other manner of Christs being in the Eucharist is shewed vs by Paul to wit by communication He meaneth that Christ is there really and substantially together with bread The English man translateth thus Chapt. 15. pag. 265. For it was in the Sacrament by sacramental relation and vnion and receiued of the beleeuers spiritually by faith Againe whereas the Latin is thus Ergo veré est corpus Christi cum pane visibili Therefore there is truly in the supper the body of Christ with visible bread In English he saith thus Ibid. pa. 266. There is Christs body but not after a natural manner of being by transubstantiation but after a spiritual by faith and sacramental vnion Finally Osiander in Latin vseth these wordes Nos quidem ipsum Christum qui est in Eucharistia spiritualiter adorandum non negamus Ipsam vere Eucharistiam adorandam minime concedimus We truly denie not but Christ himselfe who is in the Eucharist is spiritually to be adored But we grant not that the Eucharist it selfe is to be adored The English translator turneth it thus We say the Eucharist is to be reuerenced as an holy mistery but not to be adored or worshipped And diuers other such corrections or rather corruptions occurre euery foote in his English booke Diuers other such like examples there are which conuince the Sacramentaries to be guilty of this crime which for brâ—uities sake I omit Only I adde that this is no newe vice in them but an old and inueterated euil For if vve beleeue Luther such vvere their proceedings euen at their first
parauesi ex epist. Blandratae in coÌ„fut judicij Polonicarum ecclesiaruÌ„ Of Neuser this is testified by Câ—nr Schluss in Catal. haeret lib. 11. de Seruetianis Bernardinus Ochinus Alamannus Georgius Blandrata Adamus Neuserus Iohannes Siluanus Gregorius Paulus and Andreas Volanus al Ministers of great name and fame Franciscus Dauid denied Christ and willed al men to returne to the law of Moises and circumcision and so to become Iewes And doe not al the newe sectaries by their common doctrine offer an occasion of al these blasphemies and apostasies Surely they doe both by leauing no euident certaine and sufficient rule by vvhich such men may be confuted and attributing ouer much to the sufficiency of the bare letter of holy Scripture and also by rejecting certaine wordes and propositions of ours as manifestly gathered out of the holy Scripture as the wordes Trinity person and consubstantial and the propositions by them declared For out of these groundes some of the preciser sort of them argue that we ought not to admit into our beliefe or vse in the explication of out faith any wordes not contained and expressed in the word of God For say they the Scripture being so sufficient vvherefore should vve vse any vvordes inuented by man what neede haue we of any strange deductions or any other thing If these wordes be admitted we may euen aswel admit the word transubstantiation other new inuentions of the Papists c. thus the preciser sort and the enemies of the blessed Trinity dispute And to discourse a little more at large of the word transubstantiation Aske an English Protestant what reason he hath to reject it He wil answere both because it is not found in the Scripture and also because the thing by it signified to wit the changing of bread and wine into the body and bloud Of Christ is not collected out of the same Demand likewise of an Arian vvhy he admitteth not the vvord consubstantial He wil answere because neither the vvord it selfe is vsed in holy writ nor the thing signified thereby to vvit that the Father the Sonne and the holy Ghost are of the same substance truly gathered out of the same Behold the answere of both is one and certainely the reason yeelded serueth both alike for like as the vvord transubstantiation so the word consubstantial is not found in the Scripture but both these vvordes haue beene appropriated by the Church to signifie more distinctly and plainely misteries expressed truly in the word of God but not so plainely vvherefore if one of them be rejected the other cannot be receiued They say that the thing signified by the word transubstantiation is not in expresse tearmes to be found in the Scripture I reply that like as the real presence by the confession of their owne bretheren the Lutherans is so plainely deliuered vnto vs by the Euangelists that it cannot be denied which neuerthelesse by them is vtterly rejected so likewise is transubstantiation And like as if we admit of their translations and interpretations of holy Scripture neither the real presence nor transubstantiation is out of them gathered so in like sort neither is the mistery signified by the vvord consubstantial gathered out of the said Scripture if vve admit the translations and interpretations of the Arians Yea I dare boldly affirme that if vve allowe but of Caluins Commentaries vpon the Scriptures which some of our a Hooker in the preface to his booke of eccles pollicy pag. 9. Couel in his defence of Hooker English Protestants so highly esteeme that neither of these misteries are expresly contained in the word of God For like as vvith our Sacramentaries he expoundeth it against the real presence so vvith the Arians he expoundeth it against the diuinity of Christ Part. 2. chap. 1. sect 3. And this as I haue noted before is very vvel declared by diuers Protestants especially by Aegidius Hunnius in a booke vvhich he set forth with this title Caluin playing the Iewe that is to say the Iewish glosses and corruptions by vvhich Iohn Caluin abhorred not after a detestable manner to corrupt the most noble and famous places of holy Scripture and testimonies of the glorious Trinity the Deity of Christ and the holy Ghost c. printed at Wittenberge anno 1593. Also by Conradus Schlussenbergius in his second booke of the diuinity of the Caluinists and diuers others But if vve reject al heretical interpretations both these misteries are expresly contained in the Scripture and therefore our aduersaries haue no more reason to refuse the vvord transubstantiation then they haue to refuse the vvord consubstantial and by rejecting the first they giue occasion to the Arians to reject the second because they haue no greater proofes for this then vve haue for that And hence it appeareth howe vveake a ground the naked letter of Scripture is and vvhat smal force deductions out of it commonly made by euery priuate mans discourse haue and consequently vvhat a feeble foundation they build their saluation vpon vvho haue no other ground SECTION THE FOVRTH The insufficiency of the bare letter of holy Scripture is proued by other arguments especially by this that the true interpretation cannot be infallibly gathered out of the letter LET vs adde vnto these reasons that although we should grant to our aduersaries that the bare letter of holy Scripture is sufficiently proued true by the Scripture it selfe which assertion notwithstanding I haue demonstrated to be false yet that an other argument for the proofe of the insufficiency of the said letter may be taken from the doubtfull obscure and diuers senses of the same Part. 1. chap. 7. sect 2. For as I haue proued before in the first part of this treatise the Scriptures are hard and admit diuers translations and interpretations and there may be gathered out of them both hony and poison both true and false doctrine I knowe that Luther affirmeth Luth. praefat in assert art a Leone 10. damnatorum the Scripture to be of it selfe a most certaine most easie and most manifest interpreter of it selfe prouing judging and enlightning al thinges I doe not also denie but * Brentius in Prol. cont Petrum de Soto Brentius seemeth to be of the same opinion but against these I oppose a Field booke 4. chap. 15. M. Field vvho of this point vvriteth thus There is no question but there are manifold difficulties in the Scripture proceeding partly from the high and excellent nature of the thinges therein contained which are without the compasse of natural vnderstanding and so are wholy hidden from natural men and not knowne of them that are spiritual without much trauaile and studious meditation partly out of the ignorance of tongues and of the nature of such thinges by the comparison whereof the matters of diune knowledge are manifested vnto vs Hitherto Field * Chap. 18. §. betweene §. The reason §. Thus hauing He further alleageth and approueth that of Sixtus
to him And seing that this feeding vpon Christ by faith may be performed at other times as wel as when their supper is receiued hence they further auouch that Christ himselfe as wel at other times as then may be receiued but principally they say vve receiue him by reading the vvord of God or hearing it preached He is deceiued saith Caluin that thinketh there is any more giuen to him by the Sacraments then that which being offered by the word of God he receiueth by faith c Ibid. §. 17. in Ioan. 6. vers 54. Againe Let this remaine certaine that there is no other office of the Sacraments then of the word of God which is to offer and set forth Christ vnto vs and in him the treasures of heauenly grace Moreouer expounding those wordes of Christ d Idem in 1. Cor. 11. v. 24. Doe this in remembrance of me thus he argueth Therefore the supper is a token or memorial appointed to helpe our infirmity for if otherwise we were mindful of Christes death this helpe were superfluous And this is common to the Sacraments for they are helpes of our infirmity Thus Caluin Beza in epist Theolog. 65. pag. 285. And this was decreed in a Synode held by the Caluinists at Rochel in vvhich we finde that albeit the supper be particularly appointed for our mystical and spiritual communication of Christ yet that Christ is receiued as fully with al his gifts also in a simple or only word or sermon But this is most earnestly defended by Peter Martir likewise a Caluinist vvho among other his discourses hath these sentences We attribute no more to the wordes of God then to the Sacraments nor no more to these then to them a Martir in de fens Euchar. cont Gardin part 2. regula 5. pag. 618. I adde withal that touching the deliuery and obtaining of Christes body and bloud if yee respect the thing and substance it selfe we haue it no more by Sacraments then by wordes b Ibid part 3. pag. 651. see also before p. 644. 547. The body of Christ is receiued as wel in hearing faithfully the word of God as it is in the Sacraments c Ibid. p. 683 I denie not but this is our doctrine that the body of Christ is receiued no lesse in wordes then in the Sacraments or Symbols For this receiuing is wrought by faith and to faith we are stirred vp by wordes as wel as by the Sacraments d Only an empty signe c. possible And I feare not to affirme that we come to the receiuing of Christes body much more by wordes then by Sacraments For Sacraments haue al their force from the wordes Hitherto Martir e Caluin Instit booke 4. c. 14. §. 20. 23. Caluin Beza and Martir in 1. Cor. 10. v. 1.2 Hence they make no difference in honour grace vertue and efficacy betweene the Sacraments of the old lawe and those of the newe f Caluin Instit booke 4. c. 14. § 23. Beza in actis colloq Monpelg p. 77. Sadeel in tract demāducut Sacram p. 191. Nay they adde that the Fathers of the old were as much pertakers of the body and bloud of Christ as Christians are in the newe And to proue this g Caluin Institut booke 4. c. 14. §. 23. Caluin corrupteth S. Paules vvordes 1. Cor. 10. vers 3. by affirming the Apostle to say that the Fathers of the old lawe did eate the same spiritual meate which we eate vvhereas the Apostle maketh no comparison betweene Christians and Iewes but only telleth vs that the Iewes among themselues both good and badde just and vnjust did eate the same spiritual meate Neither ought it seeme strange to any one of our English nation that this doctrine is taught by the Caluinists for we want not some euen in our Protestants Church of England that seeke to vphold it And among other h Willet in his Synopsis controuers 11. p. 463. see also Iewel in his reply against Harding art 5. pag. 323. Andrew Willet before cited in expresse wordes auoucheth and concludeth that looke howe the word of God worketh being preached so doe the Sacraments Their doctrine therefore is that Christ may as truly and really be receiued by hearing of a sermon as he is in their supper And of al this I may first inferre that if they say true vve may as truely and really receiue Christ in our chambers reading the Scriptures and by feeding on him by faith or by eating a peece of bakers bread and drinking a cup of wine or by taking any other such corporal foode in remembrance that he died for vs on the Crosse as we can doe in their Churches by taking the like bread and vvine of the Minister I further inferre that the opinion of Carolostadius Zwinglius and Caluin in verie deede equally exclude Christ from being really present in the Eucharist and therefore the bread and vvine vvhich they receiue according to al their judgements is nothing better then a peece of bakers bread or a bottle of wine bought in a tauerne The reason is euident because Christ himselfe according to his humane nature is as far distant from the bread and wine as heauen is from earth although Caluin acknoweledg a certaine vnion betweene vs and Christ by faith yet this is a thing altogether extrinsecal to the bread and wine for this faith is in the soule not in the bread and vvine neither doth it vnite the body and bloud of Christ to the bread and vvine but as they say to the soule And this vnion in like sort is not real but imaginary for the body bloud of Christ are as farre distant from our faith vvhich is an inward act of our soule and produceth of it selfe no outward effect as they are from the bread and wine And this is true euen according to the doctrine of Caluin and his disciples vvhatsoeuer they seeme in vvordes to say to the contrary But to make the proofe of it more strong let vs confirme it by the testimony of Beza Beza Epist Theolog. 1. pag. 7. Caluins schollar and of some Lutherans Bezaes vvordes are these I say they are very impudent slaunderers that imagine that there was euer any contrariety betweene those most excellent men Zwinglius OEcolampadius and Caluin in their doctrine concerning the Sacrament Thus Beza Among the Lutherans Westphalus a principal Doctor of their company vvriteth thus Caluin vseth such art in handling this matter Westphal in Apologia de coena contra Caluin p. 71. he leaueth his reader so doubtful and vncertaine what to judge of him he shadoweth his speach with such colours that sometimes he yeeldeth a confession of faith like to our Lutheran Churches he seemeth to reject the doctrine of Zwinglius and to beleeue that the very body and bloud of Christ is truly present and giuen in the supper with the bread and wine But hauing conferred many of Caluins sentences
togither thus he resolueth By view of these places euery man may see Ibid. p. 76. 71 that Caluin sticketh in the same mire in which Zwinglius and other Sacramentaries haue wallowed and that he is stirred vp with their spirit and that vnder this craftie jugling he singeth the old song of Zwinglius and OEcolampadius and jumbleth in his figures and significations taking away the true presence of Christes body and bloud Hitherto are the vvordes of Westphalus But vvherefore did Caluin in this matter vse such craftie dealing and jugling Luther 4. fol. ante Verily the said Westphalus affirmeth it vvas to deceiue his readers and to abuse them more pernitiously For seing that the vvordes of Scripture are so euident for the real presence of Christes body and bloud in this Sacrament seing also that al our forefathers and predecessors haue esteemed it so highly haue spoken so honourable of it and haue expounded the Scriptures according to their plaine meaning if Caluin had in flat tearmes wordes so much debased it as to make it no better then a peece of bakers bread and a cuppe of wine he had made forthwith his doctrine odious to al indifferent Christians And of this he sawe an experience in Zwinglius before him against vvhose prophane doctrine both the Catholikes and Lutherans vvith one voice exclaimed He thought it therefore conuenient in external shewe to condemne Zwinglius and to couer his vvoluish hart and opinion vvith the vvordes and fleeces of the sheepe of Christes fold but in condemning Zwinglius he condemneth himselfe and his owne disciples as is sufficiently proued The same proceedings of the Caluinists are also noted by Luke Osiander an other Lutheran Protestant and superintendent who for the aforesaid proceedings of the Caluinists likeneth them to the Camoeleon Lucas Osiander in Euchirid cont Caluinianos c. 1. In principio Plinius lib. 28. cap. 8. and he auoucheth that like as this creature as Pliny writeth hath of his owne nature no certaine colour but seemeth nowe of one colour nowe of an other according to the variety of the place and colours neare vnto him So the Caluinists play For where saith he they are to deale with the more simple sort which they hope may be drawen to their opinion there they take vpon them the colour and confession of the orthodoxe or right beleeuers and say with them The body and bloud of our Lord to be so present in the supper that they cannot be more present c. And for these and other such like speaches he alleageth Beza in the conference of Monpelgar pag. 21. He addeth But when they speake among those of their owne sect they condemne and blaspheame the true and real presence of the body of Christ and pronounce a farre different sentence Hence also Grawerus an other Lutheran very learned and liuing in these our daies Grawer Absurda Absuâ—dorum c. cap. 3. §. 4. auoucheth that the Caluinists in wordes protest that both by hart and voice they confesse before God and al his Angels and Men that the body and bloud of Christ not only are present in the supper but also that they are eaten and drunken Notwithstanding in the meane time saith he it is most certaine that in very deede they denie the true and real presence of the body of Christ in the supper And this he proueth at large by inuincible arguments and among other thinges he very vvel declareth §. 34. that faith cannot make thinges absent present as the Caluinists say it doth in the Sacrament Nowe to conclude this discourse no man I thinke vveighing wel these matters wil deeme Caluin and his disciples to accknowledge any true and corporal presence of Christ in the Eucharist their wordes and proceedings are so plaine for the contrary And truly what neede we almost any other proofe of this matter then the testimony of Beza rehearsed who calleth them impudent slaunderers who imagine there was any contrariety betweene Zwinglius OEcolampadius and Caluin in their doctrine concerning the Sacrament For seing that Zwinglius excluded Christ altogether from the Sacrament and made it a naked signe as Caluin confesseth if Beza say truely who can doubt but Caluin himselfe doth the same Of vvhich I inferre first that Caluin and his followers cal God a deceiuer For thus I argue Vnlesse a man wil cal God a deceiuer he can neuer be so bold as to say that he setteh before vs an empty or naked signe in the supper so saith Caluin before cited but Caluin and his followers are so bold as to say that God setteth before vs an empty or naked signe in the supper as is proued by their owne vvordes by the testimony of Beza and the censure of some learned Lutheran Protestants therefore Caluin and his followers cal God a deceiuer Secondly I inferre that the Caluinian Sacrament or supper is no better then a peece of bakers bread and cup of ordinary wine this is demonstrated and it is apparant because Christ as they say is no otherwise present but by the apprehension of faith and faith hath no effect at al in the bread wine it being an inward act of the vnderstanding whererfore the bread and wine remaine as they were before And this Luther long since concluded against Zwinglius from vvhome Caluin as Beza confesseth doth not dissent for he complaineth that the Deuil by Zwinglius and his adherents laboureth to suppe vp the egge and leaue vs the shel Luther ser de Eucharist fol. 335. that is as he expoundeth himselfe to take from the bread and wine the body and bloud of Christ so that nothing remaine but plaine bakers bread Thirdly it is euident that the vvordes of Scripture are plaine for Christes real and corporal presence in the Sacrament for this is one principal reason vvhy Caluin and his Caluinists some times vvould seeme to affirme it And seing that the Sacramentary doctrine denieth this true and real presence it is manifest finally that the said doctrine is not built vpon the word of God but that this prerogatiue is due to our faith vvhich holdeth the affirmatiue part Thus I haue exemplified and shewed in two principal controuersies by the testimonies of our aduersaries that the vvordes of holy Scripture are on our side not with our aduersaries Of which my prudent reader may gather what I could doe concerning other matters for breuities sake omitted And by these meanes it is apparently declared that the propositions vvhich the newe Sectaries tearme of their faith are not contained in the holy Scripture Let vs nowe proue the title of this Chapter by an other reason SECTION THE FOVRTH The followers of the newe religion in diuers matters obserue not the letter of their owne Bibles MY drift and intent in this Chapter is to shewe that our aduersaries build not their beliefe vpon the letter of holy Scripture contained as they say in their owne Bibles This I haue already proued by one argument vnto
my soule in hel Act. 2. v. 27. Psal 15 10. and auoucheth this to be the true translation of those wordes especially in this sentence in which they can beare no other sense seing that the soule of Christ was not detained in his graue The Sectary contrariwise affirmeth the vvordes cited not to be truely translated but wil haue the true translation of them to be Bible 1589. 1592. 1600. Thou wilt not leaue my soule in graue And howe shal this controuersie be decided The Catholike for his opinion and to proue that Christ truely descended into hel alleageth al the grounds of Catholike faith aboue set downe But what can his aduersary bring forth in defence of his doctrine Perhaps he wil runne to conference of other places of Scripture but what if those other places admit also diuers translations as wel as this and therefore he giue one sense of the said places and the Catholike another To what other judge wil the Sectary appeale verily to no other but to himselfe and his owne priuate judgement This is the ordinary course of proceeding of our aduersaries with vs and al others that doe impugne them And doe they in this case remit the controuersie to holy Scripture doe not the Catholikes aswel as they admit of the text cited both as it is found in the Hebrewe in the 15. psalme and also as it is in the Greeke in the second Chapter of the Acts of the Apostles this cannot be denied The difference then betweene vs them is concerning the translation of the last word which the Catholike affirmeth to signifie hel the Protestant graue And what moueth the Sectary to admit one translation rather then another Certainely his owne priuate opinion which he hath framed to himselfe contrary to al antiquity against Christs descent into hel August epist 99. Surely S. Augustine auoucheth that No man but an Infidel wil deny him to haue beene in that place and with him the rest of the Fathers consent SECTION THE THIRD Concerning the newe exposition of those wordes This is my body in particular BVT if it vvere not for being ouer-long in these discourses I could exemplifie in particular concerning sundry newe expositions of holy Scripture inuented by our aduersaries and shew to euery mans eye the inuentors of the same vvho framed them out of their owne braines One example I vvil bring among the rest vvhich shal be concerning those wordes of our Sauiour Math. 26 26 This is my body For vvho inuented in these our daies the first Sacramentary exposition of the said vvordes verily Carolostadius as al the vvriters of his daies beare vvitnesse And vvhat was he He was Archdeacon of Wittenberge Melanct. Sleidan others but as Melancthon himselfe a Sectary reporteth * Melanct. in epist ad Fredericū Myconiū praefat veterum senten de coena Domini a rude sauadge man without wit without learning vvithout common sense in whom neuer appeared any token or signe of the spirit of God But howe expounded he the said sentence Certainely not of the Sacrament which Christ deliuered to his Apostles but of the visible person of Christ sitting at the table as if Christ had said Eate and drinke for I am he that must suffer on the Crosse for your redemption so that he changed the sense of the word This into the word Here. Let vs farther demand what moued him to inuent this heresie and false interpretation Melancton aboue cited reporteth that it vvas only the hatred vvhich he had conceaued against Luther vvho rebuked and reproued him for breaking downe of Images in the Churches of the said City without his warrant and approbation The second principal Sacramentary vvas Zwinglius Zwingl l. de vera falsa relig vvho first affirmed the body of Christ to be present in the Eucharist but together with bread and wine and consequently denied only transubstantiation afterwardes he denied the real presence altogether and turned the word is into the vvordes doth signifie and made the sense to be This doth signifie my body The third was * Oecolāp in li. de genuina expos horum verborum Oecolampadius vvho altered the sense of the word body and would haue it signifie a figure of the body and therefore the sense of those wordes according to his judgement is This is a figure of my body The fourth was Caluin a Caluin l. 4. Instit c. 17. §. 10. 11. 24. 32. Idem lib. de coena Domini who although he confesse that Christ is really only in heauen yet he vvil haue vs truly to receiue him on earth in the Eucharist vvherefore he reprehendeth both Luther and Zwinglius and vvil haue the sense of the said wordes to be This bread is a figure of my body but a figure giuing my body it selfe so he in effect Howe this is brought to passe he confesseth himselfe ignorant But vvhat saith Luther their first parent to these his children he damneth them to the pit of hel and b Luth. thes 24 cont Louaniēs Itē in parua cōfes de coena Domini telleth vs that they treade vnder foote and ouerthrowe al. He addeth further c To. 7. in defensor verb◠coenae c. fol. 387. that the text can admit but one direct and true sense How then are the said wordes to be vnderstood in his iudgement Thus he vvriteth in an epistle to certaine of his followers concerning the interpretation of them Luther the Preacher and Euangelist of Wittenberge to the Christians of Strasburge Luther to 7. Wittenberg fol. 502. Thus much I neither can or wil deny that if Carolostadius or any other man fiue yeares since could haue perswaded me that in the Sacrament was nothing else but bread and wine be truly had bound me vnto him and I would haue accepted that as a very great benefit For in examining and debating that matter I tooke maruailous paines and strained euery veine of my body and soule to haue ridde and dispatched my selfe thereof because I sawe fulwel that thereby I might haue done notable harme and damage to the Papacy But I see my selfe taken fast and that there is no waies to escape For the text of the Gospel is so cleare and forcible which cannot easily be shaken much lesse ouerthrowen by wordes and glosses deuised by giddy braines Hitherto Luther both declaring the true cause which moued him to set a foote his newe Gospel to wit the hatred of the See of Rome and also the force of Scriptures for the real presence What then beleeued he touching this point First Luther lib. de captiuit Babilon cap. de Eucharist although he affirmed it to be no article of faith whither bread remained or no in the Eucharist togither with the body of Christ yet he esteemed the affirmatiue part most probable * Idē in serm de Sacra coenae Domini Et in li. quod verba Christi HOC EST CORPVS MEVM
whole discourse to certaine principal conclusions of which although some be partly already proued against external Infidels yet I wil briefly proue them againe out of the newe Testament against Heretikes First therefore that Christ is the redeemer of al mankinde and that by his bitter passion and paineful death he hath satisfied for al our sins if we please to apply his merits to our soules 1. Io. 2 2. 1. Io. 1 7. 1. Cor. 6. vers 20. Eph. 2 13. Col. 1 14. Heb. 9 11. euery Christian must needes confesse for this is most plainely affirmed in the holy Scripture in which it is said that Christ is the propitiation for the sinnes of the whole world that his bloud doth cleanse vs from al sinnes and that we are bought and redeemed with his pretious bloud It must likewise be granted by al Christians that Christ by his infinite merits purchased to himselfe a Church on earth that is to say established a newe religion and a newe law among men ordained Apostles Pastors Gouernours of his flocke instituted newe Sacraments by which his faithful people through his merits were to receiue forgiuenes of sinnes and his grace in this world and euerlasting glory if they deserued it in the next This likewise euen in as plaine wordes is deliuered vnto vs in the said word of God in which we read that Christ purchased his Church with his bloud Act. 20. vers 28. Ephes 5 25 26. that he loued her and deliuered himselfe to death for her to sanctifie her cleansing her with the lauer of water in the word of life that he might present to himselfe a glorious Church not hauing spot or wrinckle And al this is also manifest by reason for what other cause can be assigned of the incarnation passion of Christ but the redemption of man the erecting of a Church and religion which may guide him to euerlasting saluation Out of these two assertions I gather a third to wit that there is but one true Chruch of Christ in which true religion is only to be found among Christians and consequently that they only who are members of this Church truly worship God and are in state of grace in this world and in the right way to eternal blisse in the next And first that Christ hath but one true Church on earth it is euident because he according to his owne assertion is the way and the veritie and the life Ioh. 13. vers 6. Wherefore like as there is but one life Christ who by his bitter passion redeemed al mankind from euerlasting death and giueth man true life in heauen so this one life ordained one only way and truth whereby to attaine to the said life and saluation erecting one only Church vnto which the fruit merit of his passion should be deriued Like as therefore God made first but one man Adam and one woman Eue who were the corporal or carnal father and mother of the transitory life of al mankind so he hath constituted but one spiritual father Christ and one spiritual mother which is his only Spouse the Church who are the spiritual parents of the spiritual life of his true children Moreouer like as God hath giuen one only corporal body although adorned with variety of members to one head to be gouerned so he hath framed one only mistical body for one mistical head which is Christ which he only as supreame head directeth and gouerneth Cant. 2. vers 6. Ephes 4. vers 2. Hence we are told by Salomon in the Canticles that the Doue of Christ is one perfect and chosen to her mother The Apostle likewise telleth vs that there is one Lord one Faith and one Baptisme and consequently one Church Finally whosoeuer affirmeth that Christ hath erected more Churches then one impugneth al sense and reason seing that vnitie is to be preferred before diuision and discord and no cause can be assigned why two Churches should be founded Of this it also followeth that out of the one Church of Christ there is no saluation For if our blessed Sauiour by his death established one only Church it is euident that they only are partakers of his holy merits who are members of that Church and that they only are in the true way to saluation who imbrace that doctrine and religion which is taught and prescribed in the said Church Hence proceedeth that famous sentence of S. Ciprian Cipr. de vnitate Ecclesiae c. 5. who affirmeth that he that is not a member of Christ his Church notwithstanding al his good workes and endeauours otherwise shal neuer come to enjoy the promised rewardes of Christ in heauen He is an alien he is prophane he is an enemy saith he he cannot haue God for his Father who hath not the Church for his Mother The same sentence is pronounced almost in the selfe same wordes by S. Augustine Aug. tom 9. de Simbol lib. 4. cap. 10. Aug. de vnitat Eccles c. 19. who auoucheth that he shal not haue God his Father who refuseth to haue the Church for his Mother And this in an other place he proueth because no man commeth to saluation and life euerlasting but he that hath Christ his head and no man can haue Christ his head but he that is in his body the Church of a Ephes 5. vers 23. which according to the Apostle he is Sauiour This also moued Lactantius to discourse after this sort of the excellency and prerogatiues of the Church his wordes are these b Lact. lib. 4. diuin Inst c. vlt. It is the Catholike Church only so he tearmeth the Church of Christ that keepeth the true worship of God this is the fountaine of truth this is the house of faith this is the temple of God Into which whosoeuer doth not enter or out of which whosoeuer doth depart he is an alien stranger from the hope of euerlasting life and saluation No man must by obstinate contention flatter himselfe for it standeth vpon life and saluation Thus farre Lactantius And this was long since figured by the arke of Noe which only saued the men in it contained from the general deluge wherefore in S. Ciprian we find this sentence Cipr. de vnitat Eccles ca. 5. If any man could escape that was without the arke of Noe he also may escape that is out of the Church These and such like considerations induce al those that professe themselues Christians of what religion or sect soeuer they be to challenge to themselues the true Church of Christ This challenge is made by them that professe the Roman faith it is made by the Lutherans it is made by the Zwinglians it is made by the English Protestantes by the Caluinists or Puritans by the Anabaptists by the Libertines it is made finally by al newe Sectaries and hath euer beene made by al Heretikes since the beginning of Christian religion And although the multitude of challengers with their false and
added soone after that by the faith by him described we vnderstand that the worldes were framed by the word of God that by this faith Noe built the arke c. which effectes cannot be attributed to any other faith then to that by which we beleeue the articles of Christian religion But because our aduersaries seeme so much to impugne this doctrine let vs proue the same out of other places of the newe Testament and first out of these wordes of our Sauiour to his Apostles Mar. 16. v. 15.16 going into the whole world preach the Gospel to al creatures He that beleeueth and is baptized shal be saued but he that beleeueth not shal be condemned In which as we see commission is giuen to the Apostles to preach the Gospel And what Gospel truly no other but the whole summe of Christian doctrine touching the incarnation life passion resurrection ascension other articles of Christian beleefe This Gospel the Apostles preached and as it was then foretold by Christ in the wordes immediately following confirmed with miracles And whosoeuer beleeueth this Gospel and is baptised if to his faith his actions be agreable shal be saued contrariewise who beleeueth it not shal be damned wherefore this faith concurreth to our justification and consequentlie is that faith which is required in al Christians This faith our Lord and redeemer highly commended and rewarded in the holie Apostle S. Peter Math. 16. vers 16.17 c. when as for confessing him to be Christ the sonne of the liuing God he pronounced him blessed and promised to build the Church vpon him and to giue him the keyes of the kingedome of heauen This faith and no other was in S. Martha when to our Sauiour saying I am the resurrection and the life Ioh. 11. vers 25. he that beleeueth in me although he be dead shal liue euery one that liueth beleeueth in me shall not die for euer beleeuest thou this she said to him yea Lord I haue beleeued that thou art Christ the sonne of God that art come into this world And consequentlie this is the faith which maketh vs liue for euer and preserueth vs from eternal death This faith was in S. Thomas the Apostle when touching the woundes of our Sauiour after his resurrection he cried out my Lord and my God Of which I inferre Ioh. 20. v. 28. c. that they are pronounced by Christ blessed that are indued with this faith when he replied to his said Apostle Blessed are they that haue not seene and haue beleeued Act. 2. v. 4.10.13.17 This faith and no other S. Peter and S. Paul preached to the people as appeareth in their sermons recorded in the acts of the Apostles This faith S. Phillip before baptisme required in the Eunuch saying Loe water who doth let me to be baptised S. Phillip answered Act. 8. vers 36. If thou beleeue with al thy hart thou maiest and the Eunuch replied I beleeue that Iesus Christ is the sonne of God vpon which confession he receaued that holie Sacrament Rom. 4. vers 22. Ibid. v. 19. By this faith Abraham as the Apostle testifieth was justified for it was reputed him to justice that he beleeued God promising him that he should be the father of many nations and that not considering to vse the Apostles wordes his owne bodie nowe quite dead and the dead matrice of Sara he staggered not by distrust but according to the promise of God expected a sonne This word of faith the same Apostle according to his owne testimonie preached to the world Rom. 10. vers 8.9 1. Cor. 15. ver 3. c. 1. Ioh. 5. v. 1.4 5. Ioh. 3. ver 36. that who confesseth with his mouth our Lord Iesus Christ and in his hart beleeueth that God hath raised him vp from the dead shal be saued This Gospel he deliuered that Christ died for our sinnes that he was buried and that he rose againe the third day c. Whosoeuer saith S. Iohn beleueth that Iesus is Christ is borne of God againe this is the victorie which ouercommeth the world our faith who is he that ouercommeth the world but he that beleeueth that Iesus is the sonne of God Hitherto S. Iohn the Euangelist And this is to beleeue in the sonne of God which who doth according vnto Christes wordes hath life euerlasting Ioh. 20. vlt. Finally to cause in our soules this faith S. Iohn as he witnesseth himselfe and consequently also the other three Euangelistes wrote his Gospel These thinges saith he are written that you may beleeue that Iesus is Christ the sonne of God and that beleeuing you may haue life in his name Al which sentences of holy Scripture and diuers others which I could produce most euidently demonstrate that the diuinity incarnation passion and resurrection of Christ and other such articles reuealed by God vnto the Church are the object of that faith which concurreth to our justification and is the roote and foundation of al justice and true religion Hence in the Creede of the Apostles which as a Aug. ser 115. de tempore S. Augustine censureth it is a plaine briefe and ful comprehension of our faith we professe our selues to beleeue these articles Of which Creed mention is not only in the said b Aug. ibi ser 181 S. Augustine but also in c Amb. ep 81. ad Siricium S. Ambrose d Hier. ep ad Pama aduersus Ioan. Hieroso S. Hierome e Leo epi. 13. ad Pultheriam ser 11. de Pass S. Leo and diuers others If I should endeauour to recite al the testimonies of the ancient Fathers to the same effect I should neuer make an end for al of them discourse of no other object of faith then this and require only in Christians the beleefe of the articles of our faith mentioned See Ireneus lib. 1. ca. 2. 3. 4. aduersus haereses Tertul. lib. aduersus Praxeam S. Basil in orat de confes fidei where he telleth vs that the faith necessary to saluation and justification is that by which we beleeue those thinges which God hath reuealed The same is taught by S. Ciril Bishoppe of Hierusalem Cateches 5. 18. By S. Leo serm 4. de Epiphania .. This faith and no other is explicated as necessary to saluation by S. Gregory Nazianzene orat in sanctum lauacrum extrema in tract de fide Nicena By S. Chrisostome in duabus homilijs de simbolo By S. Augustine lib. de fide simbolo in lib. de Genes imperfecto cap. 1. in Enchirid. per multa capita and diuers others but of this matter enough SECTION THE FIFT That true faith is built vpon diuine authority I NEEDE not vse many wordes for the proofe of the fourth point to vvit that true faith ought to be built vpon diuine authority because this is easilie gathered out of that which hath beene already said for if faith be a
most absurd and contrary to the vvordes themselues of holie Scripture For Christ as I haue noted before erected not a Church for the daies of the Apostles only but to continue vntil the end of the vvorld as vvas foretold by the Prophets that men in al ages to come might haue a meane to attaine to saluation vvherefore those thinges vvhich he spoke to his Apostles and Disciples he spoke also to al their successors Ephes 4. vers 11. For as vve are taught by the Apostle he hath giuen some Apostles some Prophets and other some Euangelists and others some Pastors and Doctors vntil the day of judgement In this sense he promised his Apostles as we read in S. Mathewes Gospel that he would be with them al daies euen to the consummation of the world that is to say Math. 28. vers vlt. vvith them and those vvhich should succeede in their place Wherefore Saint Hierome expounding that sentence vseth these vvordes Hier. lib. 4. in Mat. He who promiseth that hee wil bee with his Disciples vntil the consummation of the world both sheweth that they shal alwaies liue and also that he wil neuer depart from the faithful Saint Augustine likevvise affirmeth Aug. in ps 101. cōc 2. that he spoke to the Apostles and signified vs. To the same effect a Cipr. lib. 4. epist Saint Ciprian and b Basi consti monast cap. 23. Saint Basil tel vs that these vvordes of Christ c Luc. 10. vers 16. He that heareth you heareth me vvere spoken not only to the Apostles but also to their successors Finally the vvordes themselues of Christ aboue cited are plaine for howe can the holie Ghost remaine here on earth vvith those Apostles vnto vvhome Christ spake for euer seing that they liued in the vvorld but for a short time Wherefore he remaineth vvith their successors the Bishoppes and Prelates of the Church vvho haue succeeded the first Apostles as children their parents and with these he shal remaine as long as the world shal endure For the confirmation of this truth I adde that this assistance of the holy Ghost in the Church was long since foretold by the Prophet Isaie These wordes he vseth speaking in the person of God of the state of the Church in the lawe of grace Isa 59. My spirit which is in thee and my wordes which I haue put in thy mouth shal not depart from thy mouth and from the mouth of thy seede and of thy seedes seede saith our Lord from hence forward and for euer Hitherto the Prophet Isaie and what could be said more plaine then this Surely the promise is so euident that Caluin him selfe in his Commentarie vpon them graunteth as much as we haue affirmed Thus he discourseth expounding the said wordes He promiseth saith he that the Church shal neuer be depriued of this inestimable good Caluinus in Isai cap. 59. but that it shal alwaies be gouerned by the holy Ghost and supported with heauenly doctrine And soone after The promise is such that the Lord wil so assist the Church and haue such care of her that he wil neuer suffer her to be depriued of true doctrine Thus farre Caluin Finally Beza his Scholler confesseth Beza de haereticis a ciuili Magistratu puniendis pa. 69. Ire li. 1. c. 3. li. 3. c. 4. that the promise of our Sauiour of the assistance of the holy Ghost was not made only to the Apostles but rather to the whole Church Let this therefore be the conclusion of this argument that the Church of Christ is directed by the holy Ghost in matters concerning faith and religion in such sort that she neither hath fallen nor can fal into any errours And this was long since affirmed by S. Ireneus who telleth vs that the Church keepeth with most sincere diligence the Apostles faith that which they preached and moreouer that those Churches in which succession from the Apostles is found conserue and keepe our faith Cipr. epist 55. ad Cor nelium See him likewise epist 69. ad Floreatium The same we are taught by S. Ciprian who auoucheth that the Church alwaies holdeth that which she first knewe SECTION THE FOVRTH The same is proued by other arguments AN other argument prouing the judgement of the Church to be of infallible truth vve may take from the loue and affection vvhich Christ beareth to the said Church For in the Scripture vve find that Christ is the * Cant. 4. Ephes 1. v. 22. c. husband and head of the Church the Church his Spouse and body August in psal 126. For if we beleeue S. Augustine he formed her out of his owne side vpon the Crosse as Eue our first father Adams spouse was made of his ribbe and this long since he promised to doe by the Prophet Osee in these wordes I wil espouse thee vnto mee for euer Osee 2. vers 19. and I wil espouse thee vnto mee in justice and judgement and mercy and miserations He also redeemed purchased and vvashed her vvith his owne most pretious bloud and made her his spiritual body wherefore he is present with her according to his promise al daies Math. 28. vers vlt. euen to the consummation of the world and no man wil denie but he loueth cherisheth and gouerneth her as his Spouse and body Out of which fauours and prerogatiues I may very wel inferre that he being truth it selfe and hating al falshood preserueth her from errour this also being a dowry and priuiledge so necessary to her dignity These considerations moued S. Ciprian to discourse after this sort of this matter Cipr. li. de vnitat Ecclesiae the Spouse of Christ saith he cannot be defiled with adultery she is incorrupt pure and chaste she knoweth one only house she keepeth with a chaste shamefastnesse the sanctity of one chamber Thus S. Ciprian To the same allude these wordes of S. Augustine spoken of the Church This is the true mother Aug. tom 6. conc ad cath c. 22. a mother pious and chaste adorned inwardly with the dignity of her husband not outwardly shamefully and dishonestly painted deceitfully with a deceauing lie The promiseS of Christ vnto his Church of not erring and the prerogatiues which he hath bestowed vpon the same yeeld vs a third argument For listen a litle what a notable and worthy promise he hath made to vs that his Church built vpon S. Peter or as I may say his whole Church vnited to the supreame Vicar and cheefe head of the same vnder himselfe shal not faile or erre These are the wordes which he vttered to the said Apostle Math. 16. vers 18. Thou art Peter or a rocke and vpon this rocke wil I build my Church and the gates of hel shal not preuaile against it What could he haue said more for the certainety of the continuance of the Church and for her infallible judgement For is it not
Canonical without his approbation although the number of Bishoppes vvere neuer so great as appeareth by that of Ephesus vnder Theodosius the younger by that of Constantinople vnder Leo Isaurus and diuers others And out of this discourse I gather that this authority of general Councels if we had no other argument were sufficient to perswade vs to detest and abhorre the condemned doctrine of the new Sectaries For the same Church which in the first general Councel of Nice condemned Aâ—ius and the Arians the same which in the second such Councel held at Constantinople condemned Macedonius and the Macedonians vvhich in the third held at Ephesus condemned Nestorius the Nestorians vvhich in the fourth held at Chalcedon condemned Eutiches and the Eutichians vvhich finally in other general Councels hath condemned other Heretiks and heresies The selfe same Church I say directed in al truth by the holy Ghost hath condemned and accursed Luther and the Lutherans Zuinglius and the Zuinglians vvith al their followers togeather vvith their doctrine in the last general Councel held at Trent But they say that this Councel vvas not laweful nor the judges indifferent I reply first that this hath beene an old cauil of al condemned Heretiks wherefore it may lawefully be suspected in these Moreouer it is sufficiently proued by Catholike authors and the matter is euident in it selfe that nothing necessarie to a laweful general Councel vvas vvanting in this vvherefore it is receiued by the vvhole Church as Canonical and therefore no vvise man seing that saluation and damnation vpon this depend vvil reject it vpon these mens reportes They affirme further that the Church hath no authority in a general Councel to make any newe article of faith To this likewise I answere that the Church properly maketh no newe article of faith for euerie decree by her made concerning such matters is either in expresse tearmes contained in the holie scriptures or gathered out of them by infallible deduction through the direction of the holie Ghost or expresly or virtually approued by the vnwritten Tradition of the Church wherefore the Church neither hath euer taught or shal euer teach any truth so newe that it vvas vnknowne to the Apostles For that which by her is defined and propounded was true before and an article of faith although sometimes not certainelie nor generally knowne before to be of such authority or dignity And that this is our doctrine it is graunted by Field vvhose vvords are these Field book 4. cap. 12. § Our aduersaries Our aduersaries confesse that the approbation and determination of the Church can not make that a truth which was not nor that a diuine or Catholike truth which was not so before thus Field Hence the Catholike diuines affirme that Christian faith neuer since Christs ascention hath increased or beene altered in substance but only in explanation or explication because the Church hath euer since only more plainelie and expresly declared her beliefe and authority to doe this vvas needful in her Vinc. Lir. cap. 28. 29. et 30. for preseruing of peace and ending of al controuersies This Vincentius Lirinensis most elegantly declareth by a similitude taken from the body of man vvhich hath the same members in his infancie youth vvhen he is at mans estate and in his old age and although for the diuersitie of time they are lesse and greater vveaker and stronger yet the body it selfe is not chaunged but augmented so saith he it falleth out in our faith c. They object also the authority of some Fathers but principally those vvordes of S. Gregorie Nazianzene vvho saith as he is alleaged by Whitaker * Whit. in his ans to Camp 4. reasoÌ„ Abbot in his answere to Hils 9 reasoÌ„ Nazianz epist 55. or 42. alias 102. ad Procop. Hist tri part li 9. cap. 9. That he had deliberated with himselfe and fully resolued to auoid Episcopal conuocations because he had neuer seene a good issue of anie Sinode I answere that this holy father doth not deny the authority of lawful general Councels as appeareth by his testimonie before cited and also by this that he vvas a most earnest defender of the Nicene Councel as is testified by Ecclesiastical histories and was himselfe present and subscribed to the second general Councel held at Constantinople He therefore only speaketh of such Sinods as was celebrated in those daies when he wrote that epistle of which fewe were lawful and none had good successe as appeareth by that of Seleucia Ariminum Millan Tirus Sirmium Bilson in his booke of the perpetual gouernment of Christs Church Chap. 16. pag. 396. Athan. li. de sinod et ad Affrican see also S. Ambrose epist 32. c. of vvhich in verie deed he neuer sawe good issue and for that cause he refused to be present to any of them and this solution is approued by M. Bilson a learned Protestant who expresly saith that this Father in these words condemneth not al Councels They bring likewise against vs certaine words of S. Augustine in his booke against Maximinus where he writeth thus as Abbot translateth him But nowe neither should I produce the Nicene Councel nor thou that of Ariminum as meaning to extol it neither am I held with the authority of the one nor thou with the other I answere first that although S. Augustine might haue proued out of S. Athanasius and diuers other authentical authors that the lawful Councel of Ariminum most notably confirmed the Nicene faith and that the Councel alleaged by this Heretike vvas but the supscription of the Bishops to a certaine forme of faith by threatning feare and affliction extorted by Taurus the Emperors officer after that the Councel vvas finished yet in the dispute which he had with Maximinus the said Maximinus opposing the Councel of Ariminum aganst the Councel of Nice he vvould not enter into the proofe of the authority of the one and confutation of the other but hauing most pregnant testimonies of holy scripture he voluntarily in that disputation ceased to vrge the authority of the Councel of Nice and so those his vvordes Neither am I held c. are vnderstood for the sense of them is I vvil not that nowe thou be bound to the one or I to the other Verely that he esteemed highly of the authoritie of general Councels al his workes and proceedings testifie yea his discourse before the vvords alleaged doth proue it as wil appeare to the reader For he saith that in the Councel of Nice the word consubstantial was by the Catholike fathers established by the authority of truth and by the truth of authority And in another place he telleth vs Tom. 7. de baptismo contr Donat li. 7. cap. 53. that we may securely auerre that which is confirmed and roborated by the consent of the vniuersal Church Chapter 10. Of the decrees of the supreame visible Pastour of the Church which make a fourth particuler ground of our faith and of other
Apologie of three testimonies of holie scripture c. Hillar l. aduersus Constantium Verilie Parkes a Protestant writer hauing discoursed of such contention here at home affirmeth that by it setled mindes are distracted the parts of the same bodie dismembred and religion it selfe brought to be a matter of meere dispute and altercation not without feare saith he that it befal vnto vs as it did to the builders of Babel or to the bretheren of Cadmus He hath also these wordes These contentions are no smal preparatiues to Atheisme in that we may now say as Hillarie said of his time that there are so many faiths as wil◠so many doctrins as maners of men whils either we write them as we list or vnderstand them as we please in so much that many are brought euen to their wits end not knowing what to doe Amidst al which miseries and mischiefs the Papists insult triumph to se those that professe themselues brethren to be at such deadly fewd among themselues thus Parks To the same effect writeth Powel who auoucheth that through this dissention together vvith other inconueniences from it flowing by him recited Many for want of knowledg are wrapped in ignorance doe not cal vppon God but fly God Many fal into an Epicurian contempt of religion and are oppressed with dispaire And thus much of the first roote of Atheisme among our aduersaries A second reason of the multitude of atheists among them I deem to be the liberty which they giue to euery person to examine sundry of the high misteries of Christian religion by the rule measure of their owne feble vnderstāding according to their owne fancies to frame interpretations of scripture For this liberty the principal Sectaries hauing taken to themselues they haue consequētly as Tertullian long since noted in Heretiks both by example and otherwise giuen the same to euery one of their followers Tert. de praescript c. 42. Caluin lib. 4. Instit cap. 17. § 20. For example Caluin telleth the defenders of the real presence that howsoeuer they cry out that they be touched with reuerence of the wordes of Christ whereby they doe not figuratiuely vnderstand those thinges that were plainely spoken yet that this is not a pretence rightful enough why they should so refuse al the reasons which they object to the contrary And what reasons bringeth he others against it Their common arguments are that the same body cannot be at the same instant in sundry places that so great a corporal body cannot be in so smal a roome that the accidents of bread and wine cannot be without a subject that it repugneth to the nature of a body to be wholy in al and wholy in euery part of the Host But vvho seeth not that by this manner of proceeding and arguing they giue occasion to Atheists to impugne the truth of the B. Trinity the presence of God in al places the incarnation of Christ the resurrection of our bodies the immortallity of our soules and other such like articles For like as they affirme the real presence to be impossible because the same bodie cannot be at the same instant in sundry places so may an Atheist argue that it repugneth that the selfe same nature without any distinction should be in three distinct persons or that the selfe same bodies beeing once corrupted should rise againe Nay it is certaine that some of our late aduersaries haue in very deede pleaded this argument of impossibility against the B. Trinity Moreouer Theodosius Schimberg epist praefixa scriptis Ioan. Sōmeri Thedorus Dorchius li. Germanico quo defē dit dogmata Francis Dauidis like as they impugne the real presence because so great a body cannot be in so smal a place nor the accidents of bread and wine vvithout a subject nor the body of Christ wholy in the whole and wholy in euery part of the Host c. So may an Atheist dispute against the incarnation that it is repugnant that two natures should be vnited in one person because no substance can be without a proper subsistence which is euen as natural vnto it as inherence is to an accident against the presence of God in euerie place and the spiritual nature of the soule because neither God can be wholie in the whole and wholie in euerie part of the vvorld as they may falslie imagine nor the soule of man wholie in the whole and wholie in euery part of his bodie And although these arguments in verie deed ouerthrowe not the truth of these misteries and articles of our beliefe yet are they euen as hard to answere as any of those which our aduersaries bring against the real presence Wherefore like as for the aforesaid reasons they reject the one as false so doe they giue occasion to Atheists for the like reasons to reject the others And vpon this ground of measuring al thinges by their feeble vnderstanding built those sectaries in Germanie Iacobus Curio in rebus chronolog anno 1566. p. 151 impress Basil vvho as Iacobus Curio a Protestant reporteth laughed Moises to scorne for giuing Adam and his progenie an age which exceedeth the measure and vvarrantize of nature and this is the next steppe to Atheisme And because the Sacramentaries much more then the Lutherans relie vpon natural reason in matters of faith hence perhaps it proceeded that Brentius a Lutheran whom Iewel calleth a most graue and learned man foretold Iewel in the defence of the Apol. part 4. c. 19.20 § 1. Brentius in recognit c. in fide et in Bullengeri Coron de anno 1564. that it would in short time come to passe that by the Zuinglians the heresie of Nestorius would be brought againe into the Church and nothing more would remaine of the articles of our religion but Paganisme Talmudisme or Iudaisme and Mahometisme would be brought into the Church Thirdlie sinne which nowe through these sectaries licentious doctrine aboundeth among them as I wil declare in my treatise of the notes of the Church bringeth them also to Atheisme for besides that continual carnal pleasures dul and darken the vnderstanding and make it vnapt to conceaue the articles of our faith custome and delight in sinne breed also a desire of sinning without restraint or scruple of conscience vvhich desire maketh them vnwilling to think of spiritual matters and moueth them to accept of any perswasions whatsoeuer be they neuer so absurd disprouing those articles of our faith which vsuallie moue men to feare of punishment due to sinful actions In the fourth place I adde their blasphemous doctrine against God by which they make him a tirant in commanding vs to doe things which are not in our power for they a That this is their doctrine I wil proue at large in my treatise of the definition notes of the Church hold his commaundementes to be impossible and damning vs euerlastinglie for not performing that vvhich he knoweth vs not able to doe They make him
in prefat li. de psichopamichia Calu. īstrust or cōtr libert ca. 11. et 22. Articles of the familie of loue prīted Lōdon an 1579. he himselfe by his owne wordes in the places cited seemeth to haue embraced it to no other end Caluin likewise insinuateth that this opinion pleased diuers good men of his sect vpon the same motiue And hence proceed both the Libertines who as Caluin reporteth deny altogether the immortallity of the soule deride the hope of resurrection also the Familists who make the soules of al mortal those of their owne sect only exempted But what difference is there betweene Luthers opinion and that of the Libertines certainlie very litle and in this matter I wil admit Caluin for a judge Caluin in Psichopamichia pa. 536. who discourseth thus They who confesse the soule doth liue and together bereaue it of al sense doe truly faine a soule which hath nothing of a soule or pul the soule it selfe from it selfe seing that the nature of it without which it can by no meanes haue being is to moue to feele to be quicke and to vnderstand and as Tertullian saith the life or soule of the soule is sense hitherto Caluin who trulie saith that Luthers sleeping of the soule doth impugne and ouerthrowe the very nature of the soule But let vs moreouer behold Luthers owne words in which be may he thought in plaine tearms to denie the immortallity of the soule Luth. tom 2. operā impres Wittenbergae an 1546. in assert art 27. I permit neuertheles saith he that the Pope make articles of his faith and to those that are his faithful such as are bread and wine to be transubstantiated in the sacrament the essence of God neither to beget nor to be begotten the soule to be a substantial forme of the bodie of man himselfe to be the Emperour of the world and the king of heauen and an earthlie God the soule to be immortal and al those infinite monsters contained in the Romane dunghil of decrees that like as his faith is such his gospel be and such his faithful thus Luther And these vvordes I haue translated vvord for vvord as they are found in his booke here cited in the margent and although none of his scholers in their publike writings that I haue seene absolutelie and plainelie make the soule of man mortal yet that this doctrine is thought true by diuers of their company it is auouched by Brentius who himselfe being a famous Lutheran of this point writeth thus Brentius ad c. 10. Lucae Although there be no publike profession among vs that the soule doth die together with the bodie and that there is no resurrection of the dead yet that most impure and most vaine life which the greatest part of men doth lead plainly sheweth that they doe not thinke there is any life after this such wordes also are let fal by some aswel by those that are drunck among their pots as by those that are sober in familiar conferences thus Brentius Hither also tendeth the doctrine of Illiricus and his followers commonlie called Substantialistes or Flaccians concerning original sinne For they affirme this sinne to be the very substance of man and say that the said substance and soule of man by the fal of Adam was transformed changed and corrupted This diuers sentences gathered out of the workes of the same Illiricus by Conradus Schlusselburge himselfe a Lutheran manifestlie declare of which some are as followeth * Conradus Schussels in catalago haereticorum lib 2. pa. 207. ex lib. Illirici de occas vitand errorem c. The Diuel transformed mentem et rationem the mind or soule and the reason into another forme The Diuel turned vp-side downe the very essential forme it selfe of the soule tooke away the first essential forme most good and put another in place of it most bad Death by sinne changed the substance of man man lost his essential forme c. These and other such like assertions I say tend to the ouerthrow of our beliefe concerning the immortallity of the soule because if these be true it must needes followe that the soule of man is corruptible and consequently of it selfe mortal Beza epist 5. pag. 55. Hence Beza against this Protestant writeth thus That Ismael Illiricus hath published a booke of original sinne a booke not only foolish and ridiculous but also execrable to wit which manifestly laieth the foundation of the doctrine of the mortallity of the soule For if the essence of the soule can be corrupted as is auouched by Illiricus truly it may die and perish and who can indure this assertion thus Beza Nowe if that be true which M. Field auerreth shal be justified against the proudest Papist of vs al that none of the differences betweene Melancton and Illiricus except about certaine ceremonies were real if Beza doth not wrong Illiricus we may also censure Melancton to be guilty of the same crime But I think M. Field wil hardly be so good as his word And like as this hidden and secret denial of the immortallity of the soule is plainly by him confessed to raigne in their sinagogues so a man out of their principles proceedings and behauiour may likewise gather the same secret denial of the being of God and of his diuine prouidence of which before But what say these sectaries touching heauen hel Luther verily writeth thus Luther ad ca. 9. Ionae What hel is before the last day of judgment I doe not yet certainly know for I esteeme it as nothing or false that there is a certaine place in which the soules of the damned nowe are as the painters expresse and those which serue their bellie preach The deuils are not in hel Againe Idem ad cap. 25. Genes The Papists say the first place of hel is that of the damned which is a punishment of euerlasting fire but whether the soules of the wicked are punished presently after death I cannot affirme It appeareth that they sleepe and rest but I affirme nothing He addeth in another place that the hel in which the rich mans soule was buried Luke 16. was nothing els Idem in serm in Euangel de Diuite et Lazaro but a remorse of the conscience it selfe which remorse wanteth faith and the word of God in which conscience the soule is kept buried and shut vp vntil the last day after which man both in body and soule shal be cast head-long downe into the places of hel In like sort he auerreth the bosome of Abraham or heauen before the day of judgment to be nothing else but the word of God in which saith he the faithful rest sleep are kept vntil that time Caluin expounding the word Topheth which is read in the thirtith chapter of Isaias Caluin in Isa 30. vers 33. hath this discourse By Topheth without doubt be vnderstandeth hel not that we ought to dreame of any place in which the
Senensis affirming the litteral exposition of Scripture to be in deede the hardest of al other And this notwithstanding vpon it he vvil haue the allegorical tropological and anagogical senses founded of vvhich a man may inferre great obscurity of them al. This also may be proued out of a Illiric in his clauis scriptur de causis difficul script remedijs remed 2. Illiricus a famous Lutheran who as b Field booke 4. chap. 19. Field testifieth discoursing of the difficulties that are found in Scriptures and howe they may be cleared sheweth that nothing is more necessary for the vnderstanding of Scripture then to be rightly taught the general principles and axiomes of diuinity out of which flow and on which doe depend whatsoeuer thinges are contained in the Scripture c Kemnit in examin Cōc Trid. sess 4. Kemnitius an other Lutheran acknowledgeth in the Church such a gift of interpreting the Scripture as is the gift of doing miracles not common to al but peculiar to some The d Centur. 1. lib. 2. cap. 4. col 52. Century writers auouch that the Apostles thought the Scriptures could not be vnderstood without the holy Ghost and an interpreter yea e Luth. in colloq conuiual titu de verbo Dei see him also l. de Concil praefat in psalm Luther himselfe seemeth to haue recanted his former opinion before his death for two daies before he died as his disciples record he pronounced this sentence No man can vnderstand the Bucolica of Virgil except he be fiue yeares a shepherd no man can vnderstand the Georgica of Virgil except he be fiue yeares a husband-man no man can vnderstand the Epistles of Cicero except he haue liued in some famous common wealth for 20. yeares Let euery man knowe that he hath not sufficiently tasted the holy Scriptures except he haue gouerned in the Church for an hundred yeares with the Prophets as with Elias Elizeus Iohn Baptist Christ and the Apostles Thus Luther and the like he hath in other places And al this may be confirmed by this Chap. 8. Sect. 7. that al Heretikes haue euer alleaged Scriptures for proofe of their heretical assertions as I wil hereafter declare Yea Osiander a professour of the newe religion telleth vs Osiander in cōfut scripti Melancthon contra ipsum editi l. cot Nicticoracē that among the Confessionists only so he tearmeth those that followe the confession of Auspurge there are twenty different opinions concerning the formal cause of justification and that euery one is affirmed to be deduced and proued out of the word of God I argue therefore thus The rule and ground of Catholike faith ought to be one that is not diuers certaine and manifest but the bare vvordes of Scripture alone cannot be such a rule because the Scriptures are obscure may be falsly and erroneously interpreted c. vvherefore the sense of them is not one certaine and manifest therefore the bare vvordes of Scripture are not the only rule and ground of Catholike faith Math. 26. vers 26. See chap. 8. Sect. 3. Let vs declare this by an example The Catholike vnderstandeth those vvordes of our Sauiour This is my body one way the Lutherans an other way the Zwinglians a third way and the Caluinists a fourth vvay as I vvil shewe hereafter I demaund nowe of our aduersaries howe in this sentence and a thousand other such like the bare wordes of Scripture are a plaine and certaine rule whereby the truth of any one of their interpretations may infallibly be knowne Can the wordes speake and interpret themselues or doe they sufficienty decide the controuersie This they wil not grant because they are plaine for the Catholike part Yea Caluin himselfe confesseth that Christs wordes are so plaine although to make his wordes accord with his doctrine he flieth to certaine chimerical conceits that except a man wil make God a deceauer Caluin lib. 4. Instit cap. 17 §. 10. 11. he can neuer be so bold as to say that he setteth before vs a naked signe vvherefore according to their judgement if we wil allowe of any one of their interpretations we must find out some other judge or else affirme that Christ hath ordained no sufficient judge or rule in his Church to decide controuersies and to discerne the true interpretations of holy Scripture from the false And because our aduersaries acknowledge no other judge but the bare letter and euery mans owne fancy Hence proceede so many sects and dissensions among them which were so diuers and implacable euen in Luthers daies who beganne this Tragedie concerning the true sense of Scripture it selfe that the said Luther plainely confessed that if the world vvere longe to endure they should be forced to haue recourse againe to trial of Councels and that otherwise they should neuer agree Luther contra Zwinglium Oecolampadium Further seing that the Scriptures admit senses so diuers and interpret not themselues and the false sense is so dangerous howe can any man be assured by the bare vvordes that he hath attained to the true sense For example Bible 1592. Hieron in Catal. verbo Marcus Eusebius lib. 2. hist. cap. 14. our newe Sectaries affirme that the vvord Babilon in the first Epistle of S. Peter although S. Hierome and Eusebius say the contrary signifieth the great City called Babilon in Caldea or Assyria not Rome because otherwise it vvould followe that S. Peter was at Rome contrariwise they tel vs that in the * Apocal. 17. 18. Apocalipse the same word signifieth the City of Rome because there much is said against Babilon which they are desirous to apply to the City of Rome But howe knowe they by the bare vvordes of Scripture that this their double interpretation of the selfe same vvord is true Adde also that the diuers and large Commentaries vpon the Scriptures and the great study of al sorts concerning the exposition of them are euident arguments that the bare vvordes of Scripture may receiue diuers and false interpretations yea euery man must of necessity graunt that some of our learned aduersaries themselues expound them falsly seing that their expositions be repugnant and contrary Of vvhich I inferre that it is a matter impossible that euery man out of the vvordes themselues only should gather infallibly the right sense vvhich if it be true in the learned much more true it is in the vnlearned The common answere of our aduersaries to this argument is See before part 2. chap. 5. sect 1. in the beginning that one place of Scripture expoundeth another and therefore if the vvordes of any place be of doubtful sense they bid vs conferre them vvith other such like sentences but this answere may be easily refelled For like as the place in controuersie or doubtful receiueth diuers interpretations so doe also those other places vvith vvhich they vvould haue it conferred vvherefore by this conference diuers times vve are neuer
art seene a manifest and common corrupter and peruerter of the holy Scripture which thing thou canst neuer deny before any creature How much are we ashamed of thee who hitherto haue esteemed thee beyond al measure and nowe trie thee to be such a false fellowe Bucer telleth vs Bucer Dial. cōt Melāch that in translating the Scriptures his errours are manifest and not fewe But is not Zwinglius himselfe although he so confidentlie reprehend Luther to be found guiltie of the same crime Certainelie to establish his doctrine against the Real presence he corrupted those vvordes of our Sauiour This is my bodie by translating them thus Mat. 26 26. Conr. Schluss in Theolog. Caluinist l. 2. cap. 6. fol. 43. 44. l. 2. art 1. Luther tom 7. in defens verborum coenae This signifieth my bodie Of this Conradus a Lutheran is a sufficient vvitnesse vvho affirmeth that he sawe those vvordes so translated in a Zwinglian Bible at Mundera in the yeare of our Lord one thousand fiue hundred and threescore and therefore he pronounceth this sentence against him that he was stroken with the spirit of giddinesse and blindnesse as al Heretikes are daring to corrupt the Testament of our Lord. Hence Luther also to requite Zwinglius called him and al his followers corrupters of the worde of God Caluin to proue his blaspheamous Doctrine that Christ despaired and suffered on the Crosse the very torments of the damned in hel whereas the Apostle saith Hebr. 5. vers 7. that Christ was heard for his reuerence Caluin in Catechis lib. 2. Instit cap. 16. §. 11. 12. maketh him say that Christ was heard from his owne feare vvhich translation is not only newe for Caluin as Beza confesseth in his Annotations vpon this place vvas the first Authour of it but also contrary to the true signification of the Greeke word as Beza likewise graunteth and it is apparently to be seene Act. 8. vers 2. vvhere the adjectiue of the same Greeke word is vsed to signifie deuout men Caluin lib. 4. Instit ca. 14. §. 23. 1. Cor. 10. v. 3 such as religiously reuerenced God In like sort the same Caluin to proue no difference betweene the Sacraments of the old and newe lawe affirmeth that the Apostle teacheth that our Fathers of the old lawe did eate the same spiritual meate which we eate vvhereas the said Apostle saith only that the Iewes among themselues did eate the same meate Beza annot in Math. 3. v. 2. Marc. 1. v. 4. Luc. 3 8 Beza annot in Rom. 5. Beza of set purpose as he himselfe confesseth in his translation auoideth the word penance and this sentence doe penance Wherefore Act. 26. vers 20. whereas the Greeke saith doing workes worthy of penance he readeth doing the fruits meete for them that amend their liues Also he graunteth that he added to the text of Scripture and altered the same to ouerthrowe as he tearmeth it the execrable errour of inherent justice Further those vvordes Act. 2. vers 27. thou wilt not leaue my soule in hel He wittingly and willingly according to his owne confession Beza annot in Act. 2. ver 27. 24. in 1. Petr. 1. vers 19. to improue Limbus Patrum Purgatory and Christs descent into hel vvhich he tearmeth foule errours translated in his edition of the new Testament of the yeare 1556. thus thou shalt not leaue my carcas in the graue And this not only against al Greeke copies in the world but also against the proper signification of the Hebrewe wordes in the 15. Psalme ver 10. whence this sentence is taken For the Hebrewe word which Beza translateth carcas signifieth only a soule and the other which he translateth graue vsually signifieth hel Hence in his latter edition he corrected somewhat the former and read thou shalt not leaue my soule in the graue but of this his corruption more hereafter Finally because these vvordes of our Lord spoken of the Chalice and recorded by S. Luke which is shedde for you as they are in the Greeke text Beza in Luc 22. vers 20. containe a manifest proofe of the real presence for as he saith according to their plaine construction and that in al his auncient bookes they appertaine of necessity not to the bloud but to the cuppe of the Chalice this Geneuian Doctor altered the text and made an other sense of the said wordes in this translation And why so but because they cannot as he affirmeth be vnderstood of the cuppe and that according to his beliefe Our English Sectaries cannot deny this fault in Beza for they in some places dare not be so bould as to followe him but thinke it best to forsake and reject him For example Iames 2. vers 22. whereas Beza readeth Bible printed anno 1592. 1595. Faith was a helper of his workes they reade with the Greeke Faith wrought with his deedes Againe whereas Beza readeth 1. Cor. 12. vers 30. in his newe Testament of the yeare 1556. Behold moreouer also I shewe you a way most diligently and in the editions of the yeare 1562. And besides I shewe you a way to excellency Bible 1595. vers 31. against the dignity of charitie aboue faith Our English sectaries according to the Greeke reade And yet shewe I vnto you a more excellent way Yea although in the newe Testament printed in the yeare 1580. they vndertake and professe to followe him yet in some places they reject him as for example Act. 1. vers 14. Beza readeth Bible 1595. Bible 1600. they put the worde wiues in the margēt Carolus Molinaeus in trāslat Test noui part 11. fol. 110. Idem part 26 30. 40. 64. 65. 66. 67. 74. 99. Humfred de ratione interpret and i. lib. 1. pag. 62. 63. 189. Al these were perseuering with one minde in praier with their wiues to the end to proue that the Apostles were married they read according to the Greeke with the women But I neede not labour to proue Caluin and Beza guiltie of this crime seing that one of their owne bretheren confesseth that Caluin made the text of holy Scripture leape vp and downe at his pleasure that he offered violence to the same and added of his owne to the very sacred letter it selfe to the end he might drawe it to his purpose He crieth likewise out against Beza and telleth vs that he actually altereth the text that he actually changeth the text retained by al Doctors and the like censure is pronounced against his translation by Selneccerus by the Vniuersity of Zena by Castalio and diuers other Protestants But the last of these named although a Sacramentary and a man much commended by Doctor Humfrey a Gesnerus in Bibliotheca and Gesnerus is more vehement then the rest For hauing noted certaine errors committed by Beza in his translation only of the first tenne Chapters of S. Mathewes Gospel thus he concludeth b Casta in def pa. 182. 183. I
of free-wil and merit of workes The like haue e Whitgift in his defence p. 472. 473. Whitgift f Adam Scultet in Medulla Theolog. p. 48. 122. 151. Adamus Scultetus and others Nay Field although he also tearme S. Augustine the g Field booke 3. chap. 42. pag. 170. greatest of al the Fathers and worthiest Diuine the Church of God euer had since the Apostles times yet he telleth vs that h Ibid. chap. 15. pag. 93. his manner of deliuering this article of justification is not ful perfect and exact as they are forced to require in these times against the errors of the Romanists For that when he speaketh of grace he seemeth for the most part to vnderstand nothing else thereby but that sanctification whereby the holy spirit of God changeth vs to become newe creatures seldome mentioning the imputation of the righteousnesse of Christ hitherto Field And thus we see that the letter of holy Scripture not only according to the plaine and open confession of our aduersaries but also according to the tradition and belief of the ancient Fathers our said aduersaries likewise being witnesses doth teach not with them that faith only doth justifie vs by the imputation of Christs justice but with vs that workes also concurre to our justification I could joyne vnto this another argument sufficient in any wise mans judgement to condemne these Sectaries doctrine of falsehood and consequently to proue it not to be build vpon the letter of holie Scripture to vvit the dissention which is among them in explicating this article but breuity causeth me to omitte it Only I wish my reader to peruse that which a Field of the Church booke 3. chap. 44. pag. 177. Field hath in his third booke of the Church concerning this matter and to conferre it with the doctrine of Luther b Caluin in his Institutions Caluin c Perkins in his reformed Catholike pag. 48. 315. Perkins d Willet in his Synops controuers 19. part 2. pag. 827. part 4. pag. 877. 885. 887. Willet and others For there he shal finde that the said Field maketh that act of faith which obtaineth and worketh our justification an act by way of petition humbly intreating for acceptation and fauour not an act in the nature of comfortable assurance consisting in a ful and assured perswasion that through Christs merits we are the children of God as is taught by the rest SECTION THE THIRD The like discourse is made concerning a place of Scripture alleaged for the real presence AN other principal article controuersed betweene vs and our aduersaries is that touching the real presence of Christes body and bloud in the Eucharist For the affirmatiue part which we Catholikes defend especially against the Sacramentaries I haue alleaged in the first Section of this Chapter among other those wordes of our Lord This is my bodie I wil therefore proceed and discourse of this sentence as I haue already done of that of S. Iames touching justification by workes Melancthon for his learning and piety is much commended both by a See Bullēger in Firmamēto firmo cap. 4. fol. 27. colloquium Altemberg an 1568 fol. 203. Lutherans Sacramentaries Luther himselfe judged his booke of common places b Luth. tom 2. de seruo arbitrio fol. 424. in colloq cōuiualibus ca. de Patribus Eccles worthy to be placed in the Ecclesiastical canon of holy Scripture and * Luther in praefat to 1. affirmed that God raised him that he might haue a companion in his labours combats and daungers in the propagation of the sincere doctrine of the Gospel Caluin tearmed him c Caluin admonit 3. ad Westphalū admonit vlt. fol. 23. the great ornament of the German Churches and with great vehemencie affirmed that Philip Melancthon in the controuersie touching the supper could be no more plucked or diuided from him then from his owne proper bowels Peter Martir calleth him d Martir in dialogo de corpore Christi in loco fol. 107. contra Gardinerum de Eucharistia pag. 768. a man incomparable and most instructed in al kind of vertue and learning he maketh him equal in learning and piety with S. Augustine S. Hierome S. Leo and the auncient Fathers Beza finally saith he was instaurator Beza in Iconib in Creophag pa. 80. the repairer againe of Euangelical doctrine he tearmeth him likewise the singular ornament of our age and together vvith * Lauather in histor Sacrament fol. 47. Lauatherus likeneth him to the Phoenix What then vvriteth this great schollar of so rare vertue touching this matter thus he discourseth There is no care that hath more troubled my minde then this of the Eucharist and not only my selfe haue weighed what might be said on either side but I haue also sought out the judgement of the old writers touching the same Melancth li. 3. ep Zwinglij Oecolampadij fol. 132. And when I haue laied al together I finde no good reason that may satisfie a conscience departing from the propriety of Christes wordes this is my body You gather many absurdities he debateth the matter with Oecolampadius a Sacramentary which followe this opinion but absurdities wil not trouble him who remembreth that we must judge of diuine matters according to Gods word not according to Geomatry And soone after I finde no reason Ibid. fol. 140. howe I may depart from this opinion touching the real presence Wel it may be an other opinion more agreable to mans reason may please an idle minde especially if the said opinion be furnished and commended with arguments wel handled but what shal be come of vs in tentation when our conscience shal be called to an account what cause we had to dissent from the receiued opinion in the Church Then these wordes this is my body wil be thunderbolts hitherto Melancthon Luther as al the vvorld knoweth out of the same vvordes gathered and defended the real presence in so much as he condemned the Sacramentaries as Heretikes for auouching the contrary but let vs rehearse some of his wordes Luther to 7. in defens verborum coenae fol. 388. Ibid. fol. 390. Wheras Gods power saith he surpasseth al cogitation and worketh that which is to our reason incomprehensible and which only faith beleeueth and the same God said This is my body which shal be deliuered for you howe can I perswade my conscience that God hath neither meanes nor ability to doe as his wordes sound Againe These good Sacramentaries by their loathing and abhorring such thinges make way to the denial of Christ and God himselfe and of al articles of our faith And truly for a great part they haue already begunne to beleeue nothing for they bring themselues within the compasse of reason which is the right way to damnation And themselues knowe that these Ethnical cauils either are nothing worth against this article or if they conclude any thing against this they doe the like
against al for the word of God is foolishnes to mans reason 1 Cor. 1. And they would neuer haue vttered this had they had any regard of the Scripture and were not their harts ful of infidelity so as their mouth speaketh out of the aboundance of their hart Fol. 391. Finally he concludeth thus If these be the groundes and reasons which should certifie vs of the truth and proue our faith and confirme our conscience he meaneth such groundes and reasons as are brought from natural discourse and Philosophy then truly we are in euil case If a man had deliuered me such bookes without title or name as are vvritten by the Sacramentaries and I knewe not otherwise such learned and excellent men to haue beene the Authours of them I should surely haue thought that some iesting Comediant or Turkish vagabond had made them in despite and derision of Christians Verily I see not howe they can be excused with any probable pretence as many other Heretikes haue had for it appeareth that they play with Gods word of wilfulnesse and malice And I thinke it cannot be that such cold toyes and bablings should indeede moue a Turke or Iewe much lesse a Christian c. Centur. 4. in praefat This and much more hath Luther The Magdeburgians likewise tel vs that some and they meane the Sacramentaries flatly by Philosophical reasons make voide and frustrate the Testament of our Lord so as they take away the body and bloud of Christ touching his presence and communication which presence and communication is according to the most cleare most euident most true and most puissant wordes of Christ and they deceiue men with maruelous equiuocation of speach hitherto the Centurie writers Of the same opinion touching the ground of the Sacramentary doctrine is Westphalus for the Sacramentaries against the real presence vrge this argument Westphalus in Apolog. cōtra Caluin c. 19. pag. 194. anno 1558. The body of man is circumscribed in a place therefore at one time it cannot be but in in one place therefore not in al places where the supper is ministred vnto vvhich Westphalus replieth thus Is not saith he this Geometrical argument featched from Euclides demonstrations the piller and vpholder of al these Sacramētaries Doth not this vphold the building of their sillogismes which corrupt verie many places of Scripture Most truly is verified of the Sacramentaries that memorable saying Take from Heretikes that wherein they agree with Philosophers and they cannot stand Take from the Sacramentaries that which they drawe from Philosophie and how smal a quantity wil remaine of the great volumes of al the Sacramentaries Howe long wil it be before the doctrine of Berengarius fal to the ground Wel and truly wrote Tertullian that Philosophers are the Patriarkes of Heretikes for Philosophy brought forth al Heresies and shee begat the error of Zwinglius Thus much out of the Lutherans in defence of the real presence against the Sacramentaries and their vvorkes generally are ful of such discourses Hence it appeareth that according to their judgement the beliefe of the real presence is built vpon holy Scripture and the denial of it vpon Geometrical and Philosophical reasons But finde we no proofes for our Catholike exposition of the afore said vvordes in the Sacramentaries themselues Truly first Caluin auoucheth that vnlesse a man wil cal God a deceiuer Caluin Institut booke 4. cha 17. §. 10. he can neuer be so bold as to say that he setteth before vs an empty signe and this he is forced to affirme through the euidence of the wordes of Scripture Secondly it is the opinion of diuers learned men of this sect yea of some esteemed by them Martirs that our doctrine touching this point may be held without any peril of damnation or seperation from the one true spiritual body of Christ his holy Church Of which opinion among others was William Tindal whome Whetenhal honoureth with this title * Whetēhal in his discourse of the abuses c. pag. 134. William Tindal that blessed martir of God the first man that euer brought the Gospel of Christ into English print and therefore saith this Puritan he may worthely be called our English Euangelist yea our booke of martirs a Fox p. 883. edit 1. calleth him the true Apostle of our latter daies and that much more justly then Popish Augustine the first Arch-bishop of Canterbury is so tearmed by diuers Thus Whetenhal This Tindal I say as also Frith Barnes and Cranmer of whome the said Whetenhal b Whetenhal ibid. p. 157. in an other place as is related by c Fox in Tind Fox himselfe held it d Frith Barnes and Cranmer especially pag. 500. edit anno 1563. a thing indifferent to belieue or not belieue the real presence Of the same opinion is e Couel in his def of Hooker art 11. M. Couel a man of good account among the English Protestants f Doue perswasion p. 11. Doue also vvriteth that in fundamental points of doctrine the greatest Papists in the world agree with them And seing that we agree not vvith them in this it is manifest that in his judgement this is no fundamental point It may likewise be vvel gathered out of Fields assertions g See Field booke 3. chap. 3. and 4. in his third booke of the Church that his sentence is conformable But vvhat neede I rehearse particular authors For this must of necessity be h See the Apologie of the Church of England par 3. pag. 100. Sutcliffe in his answere to the Ward-word pag. 21. Fulke vpon the Rhemes Testam Ephes 4. vers 4. c. granted by al the Sacramentaries who make one Church of themselues and the Lutherans And of this the reason is apparent because although the Lutherans differ from vs in the manner yet vvith vs they confesse Christ to be really and corporally present in the Eucharist Vnto vvhich if we adde that our doctrine touching the manner it selfe howe this is done in the Sacramentaries judgement is more tollerable then Luthers it vvil followe that there can be no reason assigned why we should receaue a harder censure for our belief then they for theirs And doth not Caluin himselfe auerre this to be so It must needes be granted For certaine it is that almost al the Lutherans to defend this real presence of Christ in the Sacrament affirme his humane nature to be really present vvheresoeuer is his Deity Caluin Institut booke 4. chap. 17. § 30 See also the preface to the harmony of confessions which Caluin calleth the monstrous being of Christ euery where and saith the Papists doctrine is more tollerable or at the least more shamefaste then this Nay al the vvhole company of Sacramentaries in forraine Countries are more vehement in oppugning this then ours Wherefore if the Lutherans according to the doctrine of the Sacramentaries this notwithstanding are neither excluded from heauen nor the Church a man
in rememberance of Christes passion The French Sacramentaries in their confession followe Caluin for there we reade among other thinges Confess Gallica art 37. Se it in Harmony of Confess sect 14. pag. 426. that the body and bloud of Iesus Christ are no lesse truly the meate and drinke of the soule in the supper then bread and wine are the meate of the body that this mistery is aboue nature c. And these their assertions in very deed haue caused some * CoÌ„fess Eccl. in ditione Comitum Mansfeldiae c. anno 1559. fol. 21. Lutherans to make a difference betweene the old Sacramentaries that is as they tearme them the Carolostadians the Zwinglians and the Anabaptists who say they alwaies taught the Sacrament of the Altar to be nothing else but an external signe without the body bloud of Christ and that it serued only for a token to distinguish Christians from Pagans and the newe commonly called Caluinists Nowe if vnto these discourses of Caluin and his followers vve joine that proposition by them so often repeated and with such vehemency defended that Christes humane nature is only in heauen Caluin in 1. Cor. cap. 11. vers 24. Item in his Instit chap. 17. §. 24. c. and alwaies as farre distant from the Eucharist as the highest heauen and earth are a sunder What a Paradoxe or rather a contradiction in external shewe of wordes shal we here finde I neede not recite their sentences because they are found almost in euery place vvhere any one of them treateth of this matter and no Caluinist wil denie this to be a part of his beliefe But doe these thinges accord togither Howe doth Christ truly growe vnto vs and refresh vs with the eating of his body and drinking of his bloud his said body and bloud being in a place so farre distant from vs howe is he truly deliuered vnto vs yea and his body and bloud in the supper seing that he doth approch no nearer vnto vs then the highest heauen is vnto earth howe doth he truly deliuer and we truly receaue vnder the signes of bread and wine his body and bloud and howe is his body really and truly giuen vs how are our soules finally fedde with the substance of Christes body if his said body be only in the heauens and our soules no nearer vnto him then is the earth Are not these thinges according to the proper signification of the vvordes opposite and contrary Verily if corporal sustainance came no nearer to the bodies of these sectaries then the body and bloud of Christ doth according to their owne doctrine to their soules they vvould soone perish vvith hunger But is not Caluin although he make a shewe neuer so glorious in vvordes of the true and real presence of Christ in the Eucharist yet inwardly in very deede a Zwinglian and Carolostadian in beliefe It cannot be gainesaid And to declare this first thus he writeth I plainely confesse Caluin Institut booke 4. chap. 17. §. 32 that I refuse that mixture of the flesh of Christ with our soule or the powring out of it or the transposing of it from one place to an other such as they teach because it sufficeth vs that Christ doth out of the substance of his flesh breath life into our soules yea doth powre into vs his owne life although the very flesh of Christ doth not enter into vs. And in an other place euen nowe alleaged he addeth Caluin in 1. Cor. cap. 11. vers 24. that it is al one to say that our soules are fedde with the substance of Christes body to the intent we may be made one with him and to auerre that a certaine quickning vertue is powred on vs out of the flesh of Christ by the holy Ghost although the flesh be farre distant from vs. Thus Caluin beginneth more plainely to open his minde but by adding an other falshood for vvhat Philosopher or Diuine euer affirmed the body and substance to be one vvith a vertue proceeding from the same as he here auoucheth He goeth on and saith that we receiue him though so farre distant from vs as heauen is for that he causeth from heauen to descend on vs presently and truly the vertue of his flesh Loe Christian reader nowe thou receiuest no longer truly and really the body and bloud of Christ but the vertue of his flesh And let vs heare him declare this by an example or similitude In an other place he discourseth after this manner Caluin Institut booke 4. cha 17. §. 12. For if we behold the sunne shining forth with his heames vpon the earth after a certaine manner to cast forth his substance vnto it to ingender nourish and quicken the fruits thereof why should the extending beames of the spirit of Christ be inferiour to conuey the communion of his flesh and bloud vnto vs Thus he Out of â—â—ch his vvordes if his similitude hold it is euident that Christinâ—â—e Eucharist doth no otherwise coÌ„municate vnto vs his body and bloud then the sunne shining doth coÌ„municate his substance to the earth Wherefore like as no mâ—n can say that the sunne doth truly and really communicate his substance to the earth for this is most false and therefore Caluin saith it is done after a certaine manner so Christ doth not truly and really communicate himselfe vnto vs according to this Doctors opinion as before he auouched but after a certaine manner And how is this He had declared before where he vseth these vvordes We confesse there is no other eating but of faith Ibid. §. 5. as there can no other be imagined The flesh of Christ is eaten by belieuing because by faith he is made ours And this is that which our English Protestants haue decreed in their articles of religion Articles of religion agreed vpon in the coÌ„uocation of 1562. art 28. in which they define that the body of Christ is giuen taken and eaten in the supper only after an heauenly and spiritual manner and the meane say they whereby the body of Christ is eaten in the supper is faith Hence the same Caluin and his a Beza in Math. ca. 26. vers 26. Caluin Instit booke 4. chap. 17. §. 31. disciples affirme that the right way to finde Christ and receiue him in the supper is that our mindes stay not on earth but mount aloft into the celestial glory where Christ dwelleth there to imbrace him and so they vvil haue vs to enjoy his presence as wel as if he descended vnto vs. The like hath Andrewe Willet an English Caluinist vvriter vvho telleth vs b Willet in his Synopsis controuers 13. part 1. quest 1. §. That Christ p. 516. Caluin Instit booke 4. chap. 14. §. 14. that Christ is verily exhibited vnto vs in the Sacrament that the substance of Christs flesh is exhibited vnto vs c. Not that Christ descendeth from heauen to vs but we ascend saith he by faith in spirit
firmiter stent in confess de coena Domini yea not long after most absurdly he taught and defended the humane nature of Christ to be in euery place togither with his diuine And this he did to prejudice the Roman Church and Catholike religion For seing that the vvordes are so plaine that he could not in substance denie the real presence by these meanes malice droue him to contrary our doctrine concerning transubstantiation and the manner of the being present of Christes body in this dreadful Sacrament These are the principal expositions of those wordes to which I could adde diuers others for a Luther in l. quod verba Christi HOC EST CORPVS MEVM firmiter stent Luther hath recorded that in his daies there vvere among the Sacramentaries about tenne diuers interpretations of them and in the yeare 1577. a booke vvas published in vvhich two hundred expositions or deprauations of the said vvordes are numbred and assigned al inuented or reuiued by the Professours of this newe religion Nowe I thinke that no man indued with any sense or reason wil be so fond as to affirme that al these expositions haue a certaine ground in the word of God for certaine it is as we haue hard Luther himselfe confesse that there is but one true sense of these vvordes vvherefore it must needes followe that al the rest be false and forged And seing that the inuentor or vpholder of one hath no more reason or diuine assurance for his inuention or opinion then hath the inuentor or vpholder of an other vve may vvith like probability affirme them al to be humane inuentions And certaine it is that vvhosoeuer imbraceth any one of them buildeth only vpon the erroneous and fallible judgement of man yea I may truly say that the ground of his beliefe is his owne fancy vvhich moueth him to censure one opinion as true and to condemne al the rest as false And like as I haue discoursed of this one sentence of our blessed Sauiour so could I in like manner discourse of sundry other places of holy Scripture but I should be ouer long It may be some for the solutions of al these matters vvil flie to priuate illumination or inspiration of the spirit and pleade that to proue the certaine truth of their interpretations of holy Scriptures but first such persons if vve beleeue Field Field booke 4 of the Church chap. 16. See also Whitaker de Ecclesia cōtrouers 2. q. 4. cap. 3. pag. 278. are accursed by the common consent of Protestants if as the Enthusiasts they neglect the common rules of direction Secondly I haue at large * Part. 2. chap. 5. sect 1. before proued al such illuminations to be vncertaine and that no priuate man is by any such meanes ordinarily directed by God into the truth something also concerning this point shal be said in the next section SECTION THE FOVRTH That certaine rules prescribed by Field for the true vnderstanding of Scripture of themselues alone without the censure of the Church are insufficient to assure vs that our exposition made is of diuine truth BECAVSE the doctrine of Field is commonly singular in so much that I thinke I may very wel in some sort liken the platforme or order and faith of a Church set downe in his bookes of this argument to Sir Thomas Moores Eutopia for that there neither is nor euer vvil be any such Church in the world as he describeth I am and shal be forced especially in my treatise of the definition and notes of the Church to dispute against him in particular and seuer him from al his bretheren Part. 2. chap. 5. sect 4. We haue heard him before acknowledging the Scriptures to be hard and obscure of which it seemeth to followe that except he assigne vs some diuine rule vvhereby we may come to an infallible knowledge of the true sense of them we can neuer infallibly assure our selues of their true interpretation He telleth vs therefore first that men not neglecting that light of direction which the Church yeeldeth Field booke 4 chap. 15. nor other helps and meanes may be assured out of the nature of the thinges themselues the conference of places the knowledge of tongues and the sutable correspondence that one part of diuine truth hath with another that they haue found out the true meaning of it and so be able to conuince the aduersaries and gaine saiers Thus Field But howe friuolous this his assertion is it vvil appeare by the confutation of his rules vvhich he vvil haue vs obserue and helps vvhich he saith vve must trust vnto in interpreting the Scriptures What rules and helps are then assigned by him let vs recite and for auoiding of repetition togither confute them Ibid. chap. 19 these are his vvordes Touching the rules we are to followe the helps we are to trust vnto and the thinges required in the interpretation of Scripture I thinke we may thus resolue First there is required an illumination of the vnderstanding for the natural man perceiueth not the thinges of God for they are spiritually discerned but the spiritual man judgeth al thinges and himselfe is judged of none This is the first helpe concerning which I first demand howe a man shal infallibly knowe that he hath such an illumination or that he is a spiritual man if he answere that it is knowne by this that a man feeleth himselfe thus and thus affected I vrge further and aske by vvhat diuine testimony or firme reason he knoweth that a man feeling himselfe so affected hath an illumination of the vnderstanding from God and is a spiritual man verily seing that Luther and Caluin both boasted of such an illumination and yet one of them was deceiued 2. Cor. 11 14 seing also that the Diuel doth often transfigure himselfe into an Angel of light as S. Paul vvarneth vs and as our aduersaries vvil grant it hapneth to the Anabaptists and others seing moreouer 1. Iohn 4. v. 1. Caluin alleaged in the 8. section of this chapter that the Apostle S. Iohn biddeth vs not beleeue euery spirit but proue the spirits if they be of God vvhich Caluin also thinketh necessary he must alleage or knowe some such testimony or reason or else he cannot ordinarily haue supernatural knowledge of it which neuerthelesse at the least is necessarily required to this that the exposition of the place of Scripture expounded be an inducement or ground of supernatural faith And vvhat diuine testimony can he alleage no other I thinke but Scripture or diuine inspiration if Scripture then another question may be asked howe he knoweth himselfe rightly to vnderstand that place of Scripture if inspiration I demand in like sort howe he knoweth it to be diuine and not diabolical and so of both these answeres wil follow a processe without end Secondly of this rule it may be inferred not only against Field but al our aduersaries that our faith is not built vpon only
care and diligence without any alteration or deprauation was and is to deliuer to his successors vntil the end of the world Vinc. Lir. lib. contra prophanas hoeresum nouitates cap. 7. This is most learnedly explicated by Vincentius Lirinensis who florished in the Church very neere twelue hundred yeares since For this learned Father hauing demanded what the depositum was which the Apostle left with Timothie answered thus This pawne or pledge saith he is a thing committed to thy charge not inuented by thee that which thou hast receiued not that which thou hast deuised A matter not of wit but of doctrine not of priuate vsurpation but of publike tradition a thing brought downe vnto thee not brought forth first by thee of which thou must not be authour but keeper only not the founder but the follower not a leader but one which is led Hitherto Vincentius Lirinensis Of this Depositum likewise are these wordes of the Apostle in the same Chapter 1. Timoth. vlt. ver 13 I command thee before God who quickneth al thinges and Christ Iesus who gaue testimonie vnder Pontius Pilate a good confession that thou keepe the commandement without spot blamelesse vntil the comming of our Lord Iesus Christ And so these places are expounded by Tertullian and the rest of the Fathers for they are according to their exposition Tertul. de praescriptionibus Iren. lib. 3. cap. 4. most earnest exhortations to Timothie to keepe vnspotted the doctrine receaued and to admit no newe thing inuented by mans fancie This moued S. Ireneus to affirme that the Apostles haue laid vp in the Church as in a rich treasure house al truth Moreouer this summe of Christian doctrine for the same reason is likewise called the doctrine of the Apostles Act. 2.24 They were saith S. Luke speaking of the first Christians perseuering in the doctrine of the Apostles that is to say in the doctrine which by Christ was deliuered to the Apostles and by them preached and published to the vvorld Finally because according vnto it euery man is to direct his beleefe it is called by S. Paul the rule of faith and the forme of doctrine Gal. 6 16. Whosoeuer shal followe this rule saith he peace vpon them and mercy Againe let vs continue in the same rule And in the Epistle to the Romans Phil. 3 16 Rom. 6 17 2. Cor. 10. vers 15. you haue obeyed from the hart vnto the forme of doctrine into the which you haue beene deliuered The like sentences he hath in other places Hence Tertullian auoucheth that the * Tertul. de praescr ca. 13. 22. 27. c. Apostles receaued from Christ the fulnesse of the preaching of the Gospel and that they deliuered vnto al Christians al the order of the rule of beleefe He telleth vs also that a Cap. 14. faith is placed in rule he biddeth Heretikes be b Tertul. de praescr cap. 22. silent and not prate against this rule and wisheth Catholikes if they wil doubt or aske questions concerning matters of religion to inquire of those which are of their owne company and concerning such matters as may be called in question without the breach of the rule of faith Lastly he addeth that c Cap. 14. this rule instituted by Christ hath no doubtes or questions among vs but such as Heretikes doe bring in or doe make Heretikes Thus farre Tertullian The same rule S. Ignatius the Disciple of S. Iohn the Apostle affirmeth himselfe to haue obserued Doe you saith he in his Epistle to the Phillippians say and teach the selfe same and be of one judgement for by this I haue obserued the rules of faith Wherefore I conclude that Christ deliuered a rule of faith or forme of doctrine to his Apostles which they confirmed by miracles and deliuered to their successors and that the said rule containeth the vvhole summe or corps of Christian doctrine SECTION THE THIRD The Church cannot stray from the rule of faith receaued nor erre in matters of faith or general precepts of manners which is proued first because the holy Ghost directeth her in al truth THIS being proued I must nowe declare that the Church hath neuer erred nor can erre from this rule of faith receiued and that her judgement concerning matters of religion is of diuine and infallible authority The most principal reason vsually brought for the proofe of this is that God himselfe to wit the holy Ghost the third person of the most blessed Trinity who is subject to no errour or falsehood is the guide and director of the Church in al such affaires And this we are taught by Christ who likewise being God the second person of the most blessed Trinity cannot deceaue vs. For this promise he made to his Apostles immediately after his last supper these vvere his wordes Ioh. 14. vers 16. Ioh. 16. vers 13. I wil aske the father and he wil giue you another Paraclete that is to say an other comforter or aduocat that he may abide with you for euer the spirit of truth Againe yet many thinges I haue to say vnto you but you cannot beare them nowe but when he the spirit of truth commeth he shal teach you al truth This was the promise of our Sauiour and who wil say that he hath not beene so good as his word Surely if this promise vvas not brought to effect the breach of it either proceeded of vvant of power or of vvant of vvil in Christ but vvhat Christian can imagine that either of these was wanting in the Sonne of God Hence I gather that although our Sauiour during the time of his being on earth both before and after his passion gaue to his Apostles diuers instructions touching Christian religion yet that he left the ful and perfect instruction of them to the holie Ghost vvho vvas to reduce al thinges to memorie and to establish them perfectly in faith and whome his Father was to send by his mediation to be the cheefest instructor and guide of his Church in al truth to the vvorldes end And this vvas done on the day of Pentecost vvhen the holie Ghost in the likenesse of firie tongues Act. 2. v. 4 descended vpon the Apostles and Disciples since vvhich time according to the promise of Christ he hath neuer departed from the Church but remained in her and taught her al truth which euery man must needes confesse that vvil not accuse Christ of breach of his promise Wherefore like as Christ is tearmed the head and husband of the Church as I vvil euen nowe declare so the holie Ghost is aptly tearmed by S. Augustine her soule Aug. tom 10. serm 186. de tempore For like as the soule of man directeth and gouerneth his body so doth the holie Ghost the Church Some man perhaps vvil answere that Christ made this promise of the assistance of the holie Ghost to the Apostles only and not to their successors but this assertion is