sticke at that ye will not sticke and make that false that ye graunt true or else ye proue master Feck not to be ignorant contrarie to his defence and all the rest of your owne défence of him as we shall sée your wordes afterwarde In the meane time let vs sée howe pretily ye shift off the matter onely bicause the Bishop names Tho. of Aquine a schole Papist for the diuision of Ignoraunce thinking ye haue gotten a wonderfull aduauntage thereby for the Popes supremacie But nowe sayth M. Stap. the verye authour brought forth by master Horne so fullie and effectually dischargeth M. Feck of all three and chargeth M. Horne with the worst of them three that is wilfulnesse and malice as he shal winne small worship by alleaging of S. Thomas For S. Tho. sayeth plainely that we are obliged and bounde vpon paine of euerlasting damnation to beleeue that the Pope is the onely supreme heade of the whole Church Nowe fearing as not without good cause that the B. would in this matter reiect the authoritie of this Thomas whom our Thomas calleth a late latine writer and to much affectionate to the Pope as it were by preuention He can not well reiect his authoritie sayeth he vsing it him selfe And why so Sir I pray you must euery one that citeth him in any one poynt receyue and admit his authoritie to in euerie poynt Is it lawfull for the Sorbonistes the Scholemen and the whole rabble of the Papistes yea for Thomas Stapleton him selfe to accept Thomas of Aquines authoritie in some poyntes and to reiect his authoritie in other some poyntes and is it not lawfull for the Bishop or anye other to vse the same libertie The Sorbonistes affirme of this Thomas Illa doctrina non potest esse in omnibus sic approbata c. That doctrine can not in all thinges be so approued that conteyneth many thinges erronious in fayth but as they say the foresayde doctrine of Saint Thomas not onelye in the matter of the absolute necessitie of a creature c. but also in manye other thinges conteyneth manye matters erronious in fayth And againe Non oportet credere c. VVee muste not beleeue that the doctrine it selfe is in no parte thereof erronious or hereticall wherein are conteyned manye contrarieties and repugnancies yea euen in the matter perteyning to the sayth â–ª but manye suche contrarieties and repugnancies are conteyned in the doctrine of Saynt Thomas Agayne 〈◊〉 dicunt aliqui c. And some saye for thys that manye maye denye the glosses of the decrees and Decreâ—… when the glosse doeth openlye denye the texte and lykewyse some saye of the ordinarye glosses of the Byble that notwithstanding seeme to bee of greater authoritie when they are alleaged for authoritie than is the Doctryne of Saint Thomas The sixte example maye bee giuen of certayne Doctours whiche are not canonized Saintes as the venerable Anselme Byshoppe of Cant. Hughe of Saint Victor and certayne other whose sayinges or wrytinges are in certayne poyntes founde erronious and yet theyr doctrine seemeth to bee no lesse authenticall than the doctrine of Saint Thomas sithe they are of the skilfull in their scolasticall actes alleaged for authoritie nor are wonted to bee denyed but their sayinges reuerently to be glosed and expounded whiche notwythstanding the Schoolemen are not woont to doe on the sayinges of Saint Thomas and therefore it seemeth presumptuous so to extoll hys Doctrine ouer them and other Doctours that wee maye not beleeue and affirme that hee erred in fayth euen as other also haue erred And after this as likewise before reckoning vp diuerse errours these spéeches are common Ista locutio est de virtute sermonis falsa multum impropria c. This speech in the force of the wordes is false and verie improper Ista doctrina multos errores continet c. This Doctrine conteyneth manie errours Uidetur multipliciter erroneum c. It seemeth diuerse wayes erroneous Deficit in multis c. If fayles in many poyntes Non est verum c. It is not true Et breuiter haec alia multa erronea falsa impropriè dicta videÌ„tur multis in praedicta doctrina contineri quae tamen ex taediâ—… pertransimus And briefly these and many other erronious false improper sayings seeme to many to be conteyned in the foresaide doctrine the which notwithstanding we ouerpasse for tediousnesse And from hence they discend to manifest errours in diuinitie And in conclusion write thus of him They say also that in verie many places of his doctrine he erred by reason of this that he applied to much the principles of philosophie or rather certaine wordes of Philosophers to the conclusions of Diuinitie Thus say the great Censors of the Popish doctrine agaynst Thomas of Aquine so well they agrée togither in vnitie of doctrine obiecting discorde vnto vs Yea the whole swarme of Papists not excepting our Thom. St. here him selfe vnlesse he be returned to the truth since he wrote his booke reiecteth and condemneth Thom â–ª of Aquines iudgement and authoritie in one of the most necessarie matters of Christian religion namely the doctrine of iustification For expounding this sentence of S. Paule Arbitramur hemâ—…neÌ„ iustificari absque operibus legis Arbitramur enim nos c. For we being taught of Christ thinke sayth Thomas according to the truth of the Apostle that euerie man whether he be Iewe or Gentile is iustified by faith Actes 15. By fayth purifying their hearts that without the workes of the law and that not onely without the ceremoniall works which did not giue grace but also without the works of the moral commandements according to that saying to Titus 3. Not of the works of the righteousnes that we haue wrought The reason is presumed that we are saued for our merits the which he excludeth when he sayth not of the works of the righteousnesse which we haue done But the true reason is the onely mercy of god There is not therefore in them the hope of iustification sed in sola fide but in fayth alone VVorkes are not the cause that any bodie is iust before God but they are rather executions and the manifestings of righteousnesse Where Tho. of Aquine thus according to Gods worde speaketh the truth as in this poynt here of iustification the Bishop and all other faythfull receyue his iudgement and admit the same with better reason than the Papists reiect it But where as in many other poyntes he swarueth from the truth though the Papists saint him neuer so much yet there all true saintes with good reason refuse him As in this that master Stapleton citeth out of him who confesseth him selfe that Thomas being a late latine writer wrote partiallye in this poynte bycause hée was to muche affectioned to the Pope and shall we beléeue such an affectionate wryter in hys partiall affection Or shall we beléeue master Stapleton no
his free mercie not of our freewill workes So that what we haue now either in will or worke to do any thing acceptable to his most blessed will and pleasure the same in déede is in vs bicause his spirite is in vs but not of vs but of him bringing forth in vs Uelle perficere Both to will and to worke as fruites of his holy spirite within vs And if this agrée with the pestiferous Fables and lies of Simon Magus Marcion and Manes then ye haue mounted faire and well If not had ye mounted farre higher than they write Simon Magus did yea than euer Lucifer did yet as Simon Magus fell downe and brake his necke as Lucifer was throwen downe to hell fire so must you M. Stapleton with shame come downe againe for feare ye be hurled downe with them Now if as ye rashly mounted vp ye will orderly come downe through out all ages as it were by steppes ye may descende by this doctrine euen to your owne time againe But I pray you M. Stapleton in your comming downe let Pelagius be your host What maÌ„ drinke with him at least one free draught of his erroneous doctrine He is a free companion and will let ye drinke at will freely and he hath pleasannt licour well swéetned with pure naturall drugges and brewed with strong spices of your owne habilitie perfection and merites delectable to the palace of mans selfeloue But swéete soppes must haue sowre sawce they say â–ª This pleasaunt errour is but a sugred poyson and as ill on the other parte as Sâ—…noÌ„ Magus fatall necessitie was if not a great deale worse But ye will come neere vs and touche ye say the very foundation and well spring of this your newe Gospell which altogither is grounded vpon Iustification without good workes In that also ye drawe very nighe to the sayde Simon Magus Do we drawe nighe him M. St God sende grace you draw not with him and that many of your works yea euen of your good works and suche as ye ascribe iustification vnto be not suche as Simon Magus and his disciples workes were We grounde not vpon iustification without good workes you grounde vpon lyes without good consciences that thus do slaunder vs Iustification in déede may well be without your good workes yea it can not be with them The good workes that God commaundeth iustification bringeth foorth and therfore it can not be without them bicause they be the necessarie fruites of Iustification we seuer not them therfore from Iustification but discerne them from the Acte of God in iustifying Not to make our selues our owne iustifiers in whole or in parte We discerne theÌ„ from the causes of our iustification and ascribe the causes to the loue fauor and mercies of God the father for Christ his sonnes sake by the sanctification of his holy spirite We discerne our workes from the merite and deserte of iustification muche more from the merite of our saluation and say it is onely wrought by his merites and giuen to vs gratis freely All haue sinned sayth S. Paule and wante the glory of God but they are iustified freely by his grace through the redemption which is in Iesu Christ whom God hath appoynted to be the reconciliatioÌ„ through fayth by his bloud comming betweene Which worde freely is contrary to merite and excludeth it as S. Paule reasoneth Sâ—… ex gratia iam non ex operibus alioquin gratia non est gratia If it come of grace then commeth it not of workes otherwyse grace is not grace That is to say it is not frée fauour but bound fauour as deserued or bought As Barnard said NoÌ„ est quo gratia intreâ—… vbi iam merituÌ„ occupauit VVhere merite hath taken vp the rowme there is no place for grace to enter And so S. Aug Haec est electio gratia c. This is the electioÌ„ of grace bicause all good merites of man are preuented For if it were giuen by any good merites then were it not giuen free but rendred as ought And by this meanes it is not by a true name called grace where reward is As the same Apostle sayth it is not imputed according to grace but according to duetie but if that it be true grace that is to saye freely giuen it findeth nought in man to whom it may be worthily owing Infinite are the places that may be cited out of the fathers and many are by others at large collected in this behalfe yea I haue shewed you Thomas his iudgement alredy therin who is the prince of al your scholemeÌ„ For merite of works therfore in iustification we are of S. Paules minde Arbitramur hominem iustificari fide absque operibus legis we suppose that man is iustified by fayth without the works of the law Thus in the poynt of iustification workes are excluded as he sayde immediately before VVhere is then thy boasting it is excluded By what lawe of workes no but by the lawe of fayth Althoughe our workes are not at all excluded in respect of the fruites of those that are already iustified For they are ipsius factura c. His workemanshippe created in Iesu Christ in good workes which God hath prepared that we shoulde walke in them But before this workemanshippe of Iustification we were but very enimies And therefore as sainct Augustine saith Quae merita bona tuÌ„c habere poter amus quando Deum non diligebamus VVhat good merites could we then haue when as yet we loued not God VVithout fayth it is impossible to please god And what soeuer is not of fayth is sinne Nowe this fayth which lykewise is not of vs but is the gifte of God we discerne from workes bicause it hath relation to the onely mercies of God promised in Christ vnto vs Which promises fayth catching holde vpon is the only meanes and instrumeÌ„t that God hath giuen vs to receiue the frée offer of his grace and to applie to vs forgiuenesse of our sinnes And so stedfastly beléening the same we are iustified by God onely as the efficient and actiue worker by Christ onely as the formall cause in whome our righteousnesse consisteth and by faythe onely as the instrument giuen of God vnto vs wherby we receiue the same And this sayth S Paule exemplifying it by Abraham Quid enim dicit scriptura For what sayth the scripture Abraham beleeued God and it vvas imputed to hym for righteousnesse But to him that worketh rewarde is not imputed according to grace but according to duetie But vnto him that worketh not but beleeueth in him that iustifieth the vvycked his faythe is imputed to righteousnesse according to the purpose of the grace of God. And this is that we say fayth onely iustifieth that is fayth is the onely eye that séeth the onely hande that catcheth holde vpon the onely meanes whereby we receiue the onely instrument wherewith we applye to our selues
the mercies of God pardoning our sinnes by not imputation The fauour and grace of God offered in Christe vnto vs by imputation of his righteousnesse workes and merites and not of ours but the father accepting his as ours bicause we are incorporated into him depend by faith on him in whom the father is onely well pleased and this is our Iustification Which is so sealed vp in vs by the spirite of God sanctifying vs to do all true good workes that by the shining of them God is glorified the fleshe subdued the spirite quickned our consciences appeased our fayth assured our liues bettred our fruites yéelded our duties discharged our neighbours helped the godly reioyced the weake confirmed the mouthes of the enimies stopped Gods commaundement obeyed practised and the workes of the diuell manyfest euill or hypocriticall detected abandoned and destroyed Not that these thinges be perfectly done but that we striue to perfection by them not that we are cleane dead to sinne as the Monkes boasted but that we dye dayly as S â–ª Paule sayth and still mortifie the olde man Not that we fulfill al the law of God or supererogate more as the Papistes vaunt but that fighting continually with Sathan with the worlde with fleshe and bloud all our workes are vnperfect Muche lesse that by our good workes we satisfie for our ill workes But that when we haue all done we are vnprofitable seruaunts for any satisfaction For howe can any vnperfect goodnesse which notwithstanding is not ours and so we can not boast thereon Si accepisti quid gloriaris if thou hast receyued it why boastest thou make satisfaction for perfect wickednesse Least of all that for any worke we can do or for any trouble we can suffer that we should merite the fruitioÌ„ of God the most perfect thing of all Non sunt condignae passiones huius teÌ„poris ad futuraÌ„ glâ—…riaÌ„ quae reuelabitur in nobis The afflictioÌ„s of this life are not answerable to the glory to come that shall be reuealed in vs. But that all the goodnesse of our good works all the rewarde of them is of him that fréely for Christes sake accepteth them and for his sake will crowne them bicause we be Christes and Christ is his and he is all in al in vs This is our doctrine of good works M. Sta. descerning our owne workes from the fruites of the spirite of God working in those whome he hath iustified holynesse and righteousnesse all the dayes of their life till tyme hâ—… glorifie them And thus in déede set we foorth the doctrine of iustificatioÌ„ without all workes be they neuer so good yea without our selues too in whom this iustification is wrought CoÌ„fessing God to be all in all and our selues the workmanship of his haÌ„ds And this was the grouÌ„d the fouÌ„dation and welspring not of our new Gospell as ye terme it but of the new Testament and ancient Gospell of Iesus christ Upon which foundation we béeing grounded farewell al your merites your supererogatorie more thaÌ„ merites your masses your traditions your ceremonies reliques Images myracles inuocations vowes purgatorie al this bagge baggage what soeuer your other not written verities or rather false forgeries which béeing not subiect to Gods righteousnes ye haue soght before meÌ„ to iustifie yourselues withal Thus much M. St. to the heresies ye charge vs with for This shall suffice ye say at this present to make open to all the worlde that they are no secret nor petit heresies that ye and your fellowes mainteyne What we mainteine M. St. is in déede not secret hyd as your mysteries secret conspiracies are but as Christ saide of his doctrine is dayly taught openly in the temple is proclaymed on the house toppe the corner stone is not caste aside in a hole of our builders but is made the head stone of the buylding The candle is not hidde vnder a bushell The people maye sée it and sée by it as thankes be to God they do more and more full sore agaynst your willes neither al the puffes of your counterblast can blow the light of this holy candle out But ye crie all is heresie heresie In déede suche as was layde to S. Paules charge is this heresie of ours It is soone sayde to call it heresie as ye haue done al this while but it would cumber you to proue it heresie as yet ye haue not done Ye haue héere layde many things vnto vs where either we defende not any suche thing at all nor any suche like thing And your selues for the moste parte defende them or the like or else a contrarie as ill or worsse As for such doctrine as we in déede defende except your slaunderous rayling ye haue brought not one worde agaynst it to proue any one heresie or errour aperte or priuie Neuerthelesse bicause of your instant crying and importune craking I haue answered a great deale further than either the principal issue about the princes supremacie or the volume could well suffer or than I minded or néeded to haue done For to say truth ye haue not nor ye can obiect any thing that your masters haue not obiected before and is not answered already by others chiefly by that Reuerende father in Christ the Byshop of Sarisburie whome you so often snatche and snurre at and not you alone but al the packe of you as at him whome God hath raysed vp as a singuler Iuell and instrument to open confute all your falshoods Yet since your impudencie is so extreme still to crie out vpon vs as though nothing were done or spekeÌ„ in the matter saying Come foorth once and cleare your selfe of this onely obiection if you can beeing so often pressed therwith If you maynteine olde condemned heresies what are ye lesse than heretikes them selues if you maynteyne them not or if they be not heresies that you maynteyne cleare your selfe if you be able I assure you master Horne you and all your fellowes will neuer bee able to auoyde this one onely obiection c. Since ye thus still crie and call vpon vs as though nonâ—… had answered to these obiectioÌ„s I haue therfore thus much at your earnest entreatie digressed thus farre from the principall question to satisfie if playne truthe for Rhethorike I leaue to you and other may satisfie your importunitie and fedde withal your vayne humor that where ye haue made and translated many braue bookes to the which your margine oftentimes sendeth vs to put vs in remembraunce what a ioly writer you be and thinke you muste néedes be answered or else al is marred and then ye might say with the Soluters dawe oleum operam perdidi I haue loste all my cost and labour if no man should regarde my workes ye still crie out therefore to be answered and bidde vs come foorth and we dare as though it were Golias and yet any one poore séelie stone of our
the Letanie for saying so often Lorde haue mercy vppon vs miserable sinners and for saying Amen to the curses recited against the wicked Besides that I haue shewed alreadie how they iustifie them selues with puritie of nature with fréewill with preparatiue workes meritorious more than mâ—…ritorious workes of perfectioÌ„ What say ye to the same Montanistes that vnder the pretence of offerings craftely gathered and extorted of the people great summes of monie But not the hundreth parte that the popish Priests offrings brought in What say ye againe to the Montanistes with whom the Prophicieâ—… of Priscilla and â—…aximilla were in greater honour than the holy Gospels of Iesus Christe as likewise the blinde Prophecies of the Papistes to the which they giue more credite than to the true Prophets that haue set forth Gods worde What say ye once againe to Montanus that taught the dissoluing contemning of Matrimâ—…nie for religioÌ„ sake in all which thingâ—… how nere your Papists follow Montanus steppes is very apparant to the easie conferrer What say ye to the Tessarescedecatitae which vsed and alleaged forged bookes in the Apostles names called Apocrypha as the Papistes make Canonicall the bookes so called besides that they alleage and set out their S. Thomas gospell Nichodemus gospell The actes of S. Peter The fables of Lazarnâ—… the birth life death and assumption of the blessed virgin and many such other counterfaite bookes to establishe their Masse Purgatorie Reliques Traditions and other such errours by them What say you to the Seueriani of Seuerus that saide a wench called Phâ—…lumene was enspired with the holy ghost to foretel things to come to whom declaring his dreames burnings of his minde she would warne him secretly as it were of things to come and that she should sée phantasies come vnto hir in the likenesse of a childe which childe appering would now and then say he were Christ now and then S. Paule that the spirite told hir such things as she told the people that she wrought such miracles of which this was the chiefe that she woulde put a great loafe into a glasse hauing a narrow mouth and with the tippe of hir fingars take it out againe vnbroakeÌ„ that she eate nothing els but that as sent hir from god Compare these things with the Popish practises in their visions trances and miracles of their she â—…incts S. Bridgits Reuelations the trances of the holy mayde in Kente the Pâ—…ell of Fraunce the she saint that Sir Thomas More telleth of in his booke of Pilgrimages and sée how much they differ What say you to the Taciani that would admitte none into their rules and orders were they men or women that renounced not Mariage as none may be admitted to the Popish orders or rules of their religions that haue not vowed not to marie What say you to the Alogiani that as is saide before stood vppon vnwritten verities and reiected the written worde of God What say ye to the Angelici that bowed them selues downe in the worship of Angels What say ye to the Apostolici which most arrogantly called them selues by this name as do your Popes call theÌ„ selues Apostolicall and they receiue not into their communion those that vse wiues as your Papistes will admitte no married Priests to consecrate at their Masse nor they receiued any that professe any proprietie of their goods as your Monkes and Friers do pâ—…tende of whome saith S. Augustine Quales habet Ecclesia Monachos Clericos plurimos Such as the Church hath many MoÌ„kes Clerkes No meruayle then if your Monkes and Priests do so now for the Heresie of your Apostolical as ye cal it but in déede apostaticall Church herein is of faire antiquitie What say you to the Manichaei with whom ere while ye falsely charged vs They forbid as S. Augustine saithe mariage so much as in them lieth They saide that by chastitie Prayers and Psalmes they purged their liues sent them to heauen They craked of false AbstineÌ„cie and Continencie to deceyue the simple They boasted that they forsooke all things for God and did arrogate to them selues all the blessings mencioned in the Gospell They added and tooke from the Scriptures so much as they pleased pretending they had bene or might be corrupted and preferred the bookes called Apocrypha They said the promise of Iesus Christ concerning the holy ghost the comforter was fulfilled in their Archmanichée as the Papists besides all the other aforesayde say the same promise of the holy ghost is fulfilled in their Arch prelate the Pope And as Manicheus called himselfe the Apostle of Iesu Christ so your Pope in his Bulles prefixeth the authoritie Apostolicall of Peter and Paule Moreouer they reiected flesh egges and milke which the Papists dâ—… on certaine dayes they reiected also the proprietie of goodes as due the begging Friers What say ye to the Hierachitae that likewise as these would receyue none into their societie but vnmaried men and women Such were also your Aerians whome falsly you obiect to vs being more like to them your selues admitting none but suche as were continent as renounced the worlde and would possesse nothing of their owne What say ye to the Psalliani and Euchitae that were all giuen to mumbling vp of prayers and sayde that Monkes ought not to labour to get their liuing and therefore they professed themselues to be Monkes bicause they woulde do no worke but pray Whom Erasmus in his defence against the Sorbonists being appeached onely for saying Christuâ—… in orando damnat multiloquâ—…um Christ doth condemne much babling in prayer likeneth the Papists vnto Denique Psalliani siue Euchitae c. To conclude the Psalliani or Euchitae haue augmented the beadroll of Heretikes who lyuing in idlenesse dispatched vp an heape of psalmes with a marueylous rolling of the tongue What say ye to the Pattalorinchitae which did so giue themselues to silence that at suche times as they thought they must holde their peace they would lay their fingers on their nose and lippes least they should speakâ—… a worde as I noted before of the Basilidians both whome herein your religious men resembled What say ye to the Aquarij which mingled water with wine in the Sacrament as all the Papist do What say you to the barefoote Heretikes that walked vp and downe barefoote and woulde weare no shooes like the barefoote Friers What say you to the Priscillianists that had this rule among them Iura periura secretum prodere nolâ—… Sweare and forsweare bewray not the secrete not onely like the dissembling Papistes practise among vs that will sweare and forsweare themselues to the Prince with false hollow heartes in truth â–ª and yet in falshood trustie to their confederates nor will bewray their secrete conspiracies but also like the rule of your Pope and all his perfect faythfull ones Nulla â—…ides tenenda