The name of the masse sheweth, that it is a sacrifice.

THe masse, good reader, hathe that name, and is so called, by reason it is a sacrifice, for in the Hebrewe tongue missah is named that whiche the grekes do call li­turgiam, the latins oblationem, & we ī englysh, a sacrifice. For wherein the boke of Moses called Deu­teronomium Dou [...]e. 1 [...]. the .xvi. chaptre we reade in the hebrew missach, & in [Page xix] the latyn, oblatio, the english hath an oblation, or els a sacrifice, so y ^t euen therof we may wel se, and perceaue, that the holye masse hathe that name, because it is a sacrifice, which vndoutedly the apostles of our sauyour Christe Iesu, dydde first so cal, vnderstandyng by these wordes, Hoc facite in meā cōme­morationem, Luc. 22. Do ye this for my remēbrance, that Christ gaue thē autorite to make sacrifice of his very true & naturall flesh and bloud at their masses, which thynge he hym self had thē before done, at his last supper, as it shall manyfestlye be proued, by goddes grace, hereaf­ter in this booke. Peter the apo­stle sayd the fyrst masse of al at Antiochia, whiche ordeyned a greatte part of the ceremonies nowe vsed in the masse, and also instituted the selfe same ordre of prayers, with [Page] which the priest doth cōsecrate the very flesh & bloud of christ at his masse, as we rede in diuers wel lerned mens R [...]migius d [...] officio [...]. Hugo [...] [...]sodo­ [...] lib. de o [...]fic [...]s. Cap. 15. bokes. Ihon Wiclep he was therfore iustly cōdēned in the general coūcell, holden at Cōstātia, because he sayd y ^t the masse was not instituted, & ordei­ned by Christ, but inuented onely by man: of y ^• which more largely hereaf­ter I wyll entreat by y ^e helpe of god. But let vs se what is a sacrifice, and what y ^• scripture saith of y ^e sacrifice of y ^e masse. S. Austen, good reader, in y ^e x. boke de ciui. de [...], & the .vi. cha. thus describeth a sacrifice. A very sacrifice what is sacrifice. is euery worke, whiche is done, y ^t we myght cleaue vnto god w ^t a holy fe­lowship, referred to y ^e ende of good­nes, wherby we may be truly, happy, or blessed. Moreouer sacrificare in latin is to make sacrifice, & a priest in latin is called sacrificus, because he maketh sacrifice by his priesthod, & orders, whi­che is his cheif, & principal office, as it appe­reth [Page xx] in s. Paules epistle y ^• .v. cha. to y ^e Heb. 5. Hebr. y ^e which I wyl declare also her­after. Daniel y ^e ꝓphet made mentiō, good reder, in y ^e xii. chap. of this sa­crifice saieng. Impie agēt impij, ne (que) intelligēt oēs impij, porro docti ītel­ligēt, & a tēpore cū ablatū fuerit iuge Luther. Bully, bucer Mesā Regiuo. &c. are of that nom­ber. sacrificiū, & posita fuerit abominatio in desolationē dies mille, ducēti no­naginta. Vngracious or vngodly mē shal do vngraciously, or vngodly, & the vngraciouse or vngodly shal not vnderstād, but y ^e lerned mē shal vnderstād, & frō the time, whē the cōtinual sacrifice is takē away, & abominatiō put in to desolation, y ^t is to wytte, Antichrist destroyed, a M. dayes .ii. C. & xc. The which do make .iii. yeres and y ^e halfe, by which space antichrist shal reigne, & persecute christē people, af­ter he hath caused masses to ceasse, & taken away the sacrifice of them.

Thus we se that the prophete dyd prophecy y ^t a cōtinuing or continuall [Page] sacrifice should be destroyed or ta­ken awaye, in the tyme of cursed antichriste, for of him the prophete dyd there speake, as the text it selfe doth shewe, whiche Chryst dyd al­lege, entreatyng of Antichriste, as Matthewe writeth the xxiiii. chap­ter, but this continual sacrifice cā be none other but the sacrifice of the masse. Fyrst bicause y ^• prophet speaketh of that one sacrifice, whi­che shulde ceasse the space onlye of thre yeres, and the halfe, but the Iewes sacrifices were many, and This pro­phise cā not be vnderstād of the sacri­fice of pray­er, geuinge thankes nor lyke other spir. sacryfy­ces, for the godlye, shall vse those thē mooste of all beyng a time of persecutiō are abolished for euer. Secondlye because they haue ben taken away these M.cccc. yeres, and yet anty­christ is not come, therfore by this continuall sacrifice was mente the sacrifice of the blessed masse, which antychrist, labouringe all that he can to destroye christes fayth, and his whole religion, shall abolisshe [Page xxi] and cause to ceasse for three yeres space, and the halfe, for so longe by Daniels, & saint Ihons sayenge, he shall reigne, wherfore Martyn Luther, and his scolers, endeuou­rynge them selues to take awaye this holy sacrifice of the masse, are the messangers of Antichryst, ma­kyng redy and preparyng against his commynge, that people may receyue, and honoure him for the ve­rytue messyas, and sauyour of the worlde, Christe our sauyour reiec­ted, and vtterly forsakē, as he him selfe dyd prophicye, sayenge to the Iewes. I came in the name of my Ioā. 5. father, and ye dyd not receaue me, an other shall come in his owne name, ye wyll receaue hym. But I wyll passe ouer this, and goo for­ward vpon my purpose, to proue that the masse is a very sacrifice, and fyrst by fygures of the olde testament. [Page] We rede in the, xiiii. chap. of y ^e Gene. that Melchizedech, wh [...] che was both a king & also a preist Of Melchisedech. dyd offre in sacrifice breade and wine, when Abraham was retour­ned frō the kyllyng of .iiii. kinges, for these be the wordes of y ^• letter. At vero Melchizedec rexsalē, proferēs panē & vinū (erat enim sacerdos Gene. 1 [...]. dei altissimi) benedixit ei. &c But verely Melchizedec kynge of Salē, bringinge forth or offering bread & wine (for he was a preist of god y ^• higheste) blessed Abraham. This text doth proue sufficiētly y ^e Melchizedec did offre to god bread & wine in sacrifice, to thanke hym for y ^• victory geuē to Abrahā, and therfore it must nedes thervpon folow, y ^t christ did make sacrifice vn­der y ^• forme of bread & wine, at his last supper, instituting y ^e masse, for as moch as Melchizedec was a fygure [Page xxii] of him, & his preisthode like­wise a figure of christes preisthode according to y ^e prophecy of Dauid [...]n y ^e Psalme, which is. Tues sacerdos Psal. 109. in aeternū secūdū ordinē Melchizedec, Thou art (said god y ^e father to christ his son) a preist for e­uer, after y ^e ordre of Melchizedec. No mā cā truely say, y ^t christ was a preest after this ordre of Melchiz, whē he offred vp him selfe on the crosse to his father for our sinnes, for thē he did not offre his body vnder y ^e forme of bread & wine, but vnder y ^e forme of flesh, & bloud, & therfore he was that time, so offring sacritice, a priest after y ^e ordre of Aa­rō, & not of Melchiz. so y ^t this fy­gure of Melchiz. and the prophicy of the holy ghoste pronounced by Dauid, were fulfylled by christ at his mandy, & last supper, when he toke breade, gaue thankes to god, blessed y ^• bread, brake it, & gaue it [Page] to his apostles saieng. Take, eate, this is my bodye, whiche shall be gyuen, to death for you, and ther­fore Christ dyd then offer hys flesh and bloude in sacrifice to god his father, and the same also doeth the priest in the masse, hauyng autori­te so to do, & cōmaunded of hym to do that same thynge, whych he dyd afore, when he said to his apostles Hoc faicte in mei commemorati­onem. Luc. 22. Do ye this for my remem­braunce, as Luke maketh mentiō in his gospell. But nowe let vs se what they saye, whiche are of the contrarye opinion, that the masse is no sacrifice, to proue that this autoritie of the Genesis, makethe not for vs, to perswade that Mel­chiz. dyd at that tyme offre to god breade and wyne in sacrifice. Fyrst they say that the texte of the Gene­sis An obiecti [...]. hath not offerēs, vel sacrificās [Page xxiii] panem & vinum, offerynge, or sa­crifisynge breade and wyne, but proferens, bryngyng forth bread and wyne, and therfore this place proueth not that Melehiz. dydde make then sacryfyce to god. To that I aunswere that the texte in dede hath euen so, as they say, and yet it proueth right well, and suffi­ciently that Melchiz. dyd then of­fre sacrifice to god, with breade & wyne, or els why shoulde Moyses haue added a sentence declarynge that Melchiz, dyd that thynge as a prieste, and because he was a priest. For if he had not offred that bread and wine to god in sacrifice, there shulde haue ben no cause, to say. Erat enim sacerdos dei altissi­mi, for he was a priest of the high­est god, because he myghte haue done it then beynge no preest. For it is not the office of a prieste to [Page] bryuge forth breadde and wyne to refresshe the hungrye people, but rather of a laye man, as no man can saye naye, and ther [...]fore syth Melchizedec dyd this as a preest, and exercising y ^• office of a preist, the whiche is cheifely to offre sacrifices for the synnes of the people, as Paule saith, it foloweth that [...] Melchizedech did make thē sacri­fice, wyth bread and wyne. Moreouer this argument is very weake and sclender, the texte of the Gene­sis saith that Melchizedec dydde brynge forthe breade and wyne, therfore he dyd not offre them in sacrifice, for as these two, to brynge forth breade and wine, and to offre them are not cōtrary euen so Mel­chizeder dyd bryng forth those thinges not to feade Abrahā, and his souldiers, as anone it shal appere but to offre them vnto god in sa­crifice, [Page xxiiii] to giue him thankes for the greate victorye by hym geuen to Abraham. Now where many men, folowing therein the Iewes, as it appereth in Lire vpon the Gene­sis, do affyrme that Melchizedech Lir [...] dyd not of [...]re bread and wine in sacrifice to god, but onlye broughte thē forth to refresh Abrahā, & his souldiers, they are very blīd so to say. For they neaded not his bread nor wine, hauing sufficiēt vittals brought w ^t thē there hence, where they got y ^e victory, as it appereth in y ^• letter. Also is it like y ^t Melch. had bread & wyne ynough in store, to refresh so many souldiers being in nūber aboue .iii. c.? Beside this who y ^t wise is wold say y ^e Abrahā, if he had had any such nede, wolde not haue gon rather to some other man for succoure, then to the priest of the hyghest god? Abrahā also [Page] gaue to Melchyzedech tythes of y ^• spoyles gottē in warre, as Paul wytnesseth, whiche he wolde not Heb. 7. haue done yf he had wanted neces­saries for him and his souldyers. Finally Abrahā brought with him all Lothes goodes besides the substaunce of the foure kynges, whi­che he had sleane before, and there­fore he neaded not to begge breade and wyne of goddes preeste Mel­chizedech.

But ye wyll saye to me, the text An obiectiō hath not in Hebrewe a worde de­claringe a cause, for the Hebrewe worde signifieth only in englyshe (and) and therfore that texte ma­keth not sufficiently to proue that Melchy. dyd offre that breade and wyne in sacrifice. To that I make The āswer. aunswere, fyrst that saint Hierom, whiche was excellently learned in [...]he Hebrue tonge, dydde so trans­late [Page xv] the Hebrewe worde, to whom more credence ought to be geuen, then to twenty Luthers, Bucers, Byllygers, or any like, which nei­ther for learnynge nor holynes of lyuynge are worthy to be cōpared with hym, as all good Chrysten men wil graunt. Secondly I say that this latyn worde Et, whiche is in englysh (and) is many times vsed in scripture, for enim sygni­fienge in englyshe (for) as in Esai Esai. 65. the prophette, sayenge. Lo thou art angrye with vs, and we haue synned, where (and) is put in stede Psal. 59. of this worde for. Also in the psal­tre it is thus written. Lorde geue to vs helpe, and the health of mā is vaine. Here also, and, is put for this worde for. Lykewise in the newe testamente that worde is v­sed as in Luke the fyrste chapter, where the most blessed, and hono­rable [Page] vyrgyn our lady, mother of christ, was thus sayd vnto, by Elizabeth Zacharias wife. Benedictatu in mulieribus, & benedictus fructus ventris tui. Thou art bles­sed Luc. 1. among women, and blessed is the fruyt of thy wombe, where (&) is put for (enim) declaring y ^• cause why our lady was blessed, whiche was because she broughte forthe our sauyour most blessed of al, by whose death al the faythfull, ly­uyng godly shuld be saued, & blessed in heuen, accordyng to the promysse of God, made vnto Abrahā as the Genesis doth playnly tell. Manye other textes of scripture Gene. 15. 22. manyfestly do shewe that it is no seldome thing y ^e (&) shuld be vsed in stede of (enim) which I wyl not reherse at this tyme, least I shuld be tedious to the reader, especy­allye syth these places alredy re­cyted, [Page xxvi] are sufficiente to proue my purpose, y ^t which is approued by many doctours expositiōs not only of Hebrues, but of the grekes & the Ltayns also: for amongest the Hebrew writers, one called Rabbi semuel expoundynge this texte of Rabbi semuel y ^e Genesis, entreatyng of Melchi. thus writeth. Hic Melchi. myste­ria sacerdotij, tradidit. Erat enim ipse sacrificans panē & vinū deo sancto, & benedicto, that is to wit This Melch. taught, or deliuered misteries, or thinges secret in wordes & ceremonies, of preisthod. For he was doing sacrifice w ^t bread & wine to god holy, & blessed. Here we se y ^t this great clerke being an Hebr. writer, & an Hebr. borne did vnderstand this afore sayde texte of Melchizedeches oblatyon, or sacryfyce. Nowe oughte not more credence to be geuen vnto hym [Page] in this poynt specially, than to a­ny man of this our tyme laboring to teache an heresy by wrestynge of this place from his right sense? Also an other of the Hebrewe doc­tours Rabbi pinhas called Rabbi Pinhas, con­firmeth playnly this matter say­enge, In the tyme of messias, or y ^• Gene. 14. Psal. 109. anoynted (meanyng our sauiour) all sacrifices shal seace, but the sacrifice of breade and wyne shall neuer cease. Forthwith he alegeth this texte of the Genesis and the verse of Dauydes Psalter, wher­in mention is made of Christes presthode. This might be proued by the saienges of many other Hebrewe doctours, but I wyll lette them passe to be short, and reherse some of y ^• greke wryters to proue Eusebius lib. 5 cap. 3. De cuā ge. demonstra this my purpuse. Eusebius whi­che was aboue twelfe hundred yeres passed, thus writeth of this [Page xxvii] matter speakynge of the prophe­tes saienge. Tues sacerdos. &c. Psal. 109. Thou art a preist after the order of Melchizedec, for euer. The end (sayth Eusebi.) of the prophesy is wonderfull to hym, whiche dothe beholde after what maner our sa­uiour Iesus, whiche is the anoin­ted of god, dothe accomplyshe by his ministers after the ordre of Melchizedec, those thinges, that appertayne, to the vsyng, or exer­cysynge of priesthod among men. For lyke as he, which was a preist of the gentiles, doth appere in no place to haue vsed corporall sacri­fices, as Aaron dyd with beastes, but only with breade and wyne, when he blessed Abraham, so truelye fyrst the sauyour and our lord, afterwarde the preistes whiche were instituted by hym, exercising the spirituall office of preisthode, [Page] among all people after the lawes, or ordinaunces of the churche, do present, shew, or bryng in presence wyth bread and wyne the misteri­es, or secrete thinges both of hys bodye, and also of his holsome bloude. The which mysteries ve­rely Melchizedec so longe before dyd know through the holy gost, and dyd vse the ymagies, or figu­res of thynges to come. Hetherto Eusebius, euydently saynge that Melchyzedech fygured Christe, and offered sacrifice with breade and wyne, for a fygure of Chri­stes sacryfyce, whyche he shoulde offre vnder the fourme of breade and wyne, (& euen so he dydde) sa­crifisynge to his father, hys ve­ry fleshe and bloude, as the prei­stes nowe do instituted, and made by hym, and his auctorytie. whō [...]restes are ordeined by chryste. wyll not rather beleue this holye [Page xxviii] father, and aunciente clerke, then Martyn Luther, whyche labou­reth dylygentlye to abolyshe all holy and godly sacramentes▪ But nowe let Chrisostom speake hys Chrysostome. mynde in this controuersy, which for his aūcienty beyng before our tyme .xii. c. yeres, and for his lear­nyng ought to be admitted amōg good christen men to the decysing In Hebr. Ca. 5 of cōtrouersyes risen in their reli­giō, which thus wryteth. To whō was it said, y ^u art a preist for euer, after the ordre of Melchiz.? who is a preist after the order of Mel­chizedec? None other but christ, for all other were vnder y ^e law, al dyd kepe y ^e sabboth dayes, al were cyr­cūcised, y ^e Iewes could fynd none other but Christe, that shulde be a preiste after the ordre of Melchi­zedech. But thou wylt say to me y ^e An obiectiō text hath not offerens offring, but [Page] proferens bryngynge forth, It is very true, but yet the greke word, that the .lxxii. translatours, whi­che turned the Hebrewe letter in to greake, do vse in this place, [...] a. proferre, pro offerre. whiche is prospherin signifiethe not only to brynge forth, but also to offer sacrifice, as it appereth in many places of the newe testamēt in greake, but specially the fyfthe Cap. 7. &. 9. of Matthewe. Si obtuleris. &c. The fifth of Paule to the Hebre. and in other certayne places of that epistle, and therfore this ob­iection is of no force, nor strength but it maketh rather for my pur­pose: Lib. 3. To: [...]. Haeresi. 9. Epiphanius moreouer a greake doctoure beynge aboute twelfe hundred yeres passed, con­fyrmeth this playnly, sayenge. Abraham iustus sacrificat deo, & Melchizedec sacerdos dei altissi­mi, Abraham rightuous doth sa­crifice [Page xxix] to god, and Melchizedech y ^e prest of y ^e highest god. Also thus he saith speakyng of the same matter. Melchizedec Abrahamo ob­ [...]iam Lib. 2. To. 1. Haeresi. 55. venit, et proposuit ipsi panē & vinum, mysteriorum aenigmata praefigurans, & exemplaria, cum dominus noster dicat. Egosum panis viuus, & exēplar sanguinis ip­sius, qui ex latere ipsius compun­cto Io. 6. fluxit, ad purgationem inqui­natorū, & respersionē, ac salutem animarum nostrarum. That is, Melchizedec met Abraham, and sette out, or shewed to hym breade and wine, before fyguryng darke thinge [...] and samples of misteries or secrete thynges, forasmoche as our lorde sayeth. I am the quyck bread, and a sample of that bloud whiche dyd runne out of his syde pricked, to the purgynge of the defyled, and sprinklyng, and health [Page] of our soules here we se that after this aūcient writers mind, y ^• bread & wine which Melchiz. shewed to Abrahā, figured our sauiour chri­stes flesh & blod, which ran out of his syde strykē, y ^t he offered to his father, vnder the fourme of bred & wine, at his last supper, & not v­pon the crosse, for there he offered himself to his father vnder and in his owne propre forme, after y ^e or­dre of Aaron onely. Damascene also a greke doctour, whiche was aboue a thousand yeres afore our time, confirmeth playnly this our Lib. 4▪ ca. 14. purpose, entreatynge of Melchi­zedeches sacrifice offred to god in bread & wyne, when thus he sayth Haec mensa, hanc mysticam praefigur [...]uit mensam, velut & sacerdos Gene. 14. ille christi veri sacerdotis figuram Psal. 10 [...]. praeseferebat, et imaginē. Tues enim (inquit) sacerdos in aeternū [Page xxx] secundum ordinem Melchizedec That is, This table of Melch. fi­gured before this mistical table of Christe, like as this preiste Mel­chyzedec dyd beare the figure and image of christ the very preist. For the holy goost saith by Dauyd y ^• prophet, rehersing god y ^e fathers wordes to christ his sonne. Thou art a preist for euer after the ordre of Melchize. Is not this plainly spoken of this old writer & great clarke? Is it not mete to beleue him rather thē Martin Luther, or any of his disciples, nothinge so well learned as he was, nor so vertuouse in liuyng? But to be short, I wil allege now Theophilactus Theophila. wordes, whiche was also a greke doctour, & then go to y ^• rehersal of In Heb. 5. latin doctours. He saith after this maner. But whom can the Iewes bryng besyde christ, which may, or [Page] shoulde be a byshoppe, or a preiste after the order of Melchizedec? were not all other preistes vnder the lawe? dyd not they all obserue the sabboth dayes, and offre sacrifices? Therfore it is most euident that it was spoken of Chryst, for he, and onlye he, dyd make sacry­fice with bread and wine, after the maner of that Melchizedec. Anon after he asketh howe Christe is a preist for euer. To that he maketh this aunswere, that he is called a preist for euer, not only because he doth alway pray for vs to his fa­ther, shewing to hym his bodye, whiche he offered vp for y ^e synnes of the world vnto his father vpō the crosse, to obteyne mercye for vs, sayenge, o father haue mercye on them, for whom I haue suffe­red death, but he is also a preiste for euer because he is offered day­lye, [Page xxxi] or els because an oblation, or sacrifice is continuallye offered by goddes mynisters the preistes, which hath in it Christ our lorde, byshoppe, and sacrifice, that for our sake doth sanctifie, halowe, or make holy him selfe, breake, and geue: this he. Hitherto I haue al­leged the Hebrewe & the Greake wryters to proue that Melchyze­dec dyd offre breade and wyne in sacrifice to god, in fygure of oure sauiour christes sacrifice, whiche he sholde then offre, and now hath in dede offered to his father at his maundy, verely none other thing, then his owne naturall and lyue­ly bodye, flesh and bloude vnder the fourme of breade and wyne. Nowe let vs see what the latyn Latyn au­tours tou­chynge this matter. doctours say in the same matter, but yet not al, whiche I haue red, entreatynge of it, but certayne of [Page] the eldest & best lerned only, as S. Austen, Hierom, Ambrose, Lactāt. Arnobius, & the holy martir Cy­priane, S. Austen. the yere of our lorde .cccc. Of y ^e which S. Austē thus sayth vpon the .xxxiii. Psalme of Dauyd. Melchize. was in Abra­hās time. Of what other saith god y ^e father. Thou art a preist for e­uer, Psal. [...]0 [...]. after the ordre of Melch. but of him, whose sacrifice ye knowe? The sacrafice of Aarō is taken a­way, & a sacrifice after y ^e order of Melchi. is begon. Also in another place he saith, Melch. did know to To. 2. ePist. 95 figure y ^e eternal preisthod of oure lorde, w ^t a sacrament, or a holye signe of oure lordes table, shewed To. 5. de ciui dei. lib. 16: ca. 22. forth. Againe he saith speaking of Melchi. & his sacrifice. Ibi quippe primū apparuit sacrificiū, q [...] nūc a christianis offertur deo toto or­be terrarū, impletur (que) illud, quod lōge post hoc factū, per prophetā [Page xxxii] dicitur ad christū qui fuerat venturus in carnē. Tues sacerdos secū ­dū ordinē Melch. inaeternū. Nō scilicet secūdū ordinē Aaron, qui or­do fuerat auferēdus, illucescētibꝰ rebus, quae illis vmbris praenotabā tur. That is to say in englyshe. Surely there fyrst did appere y ^e sacrifice, which now is offred of christē people to god through all the world, & y ^e is fulfilled, which longe after this dede of Melch. is saide by y ^e ꝓphet Dauid to christ y ^e shuld come to be made man. Thou art a preiste for euer after the ordre of Melch. As who saith, not after y ^e ordre of Aarō, which ordre shold be takē away, y ^e thinges being clere, or manifest, which were before no­ted or figured w ^t those shadowes. Hitherto S. austen, which was a­boue eleuen. C. yeres past, and of suche cunnynge, and learnynge [Page] in holy scripture, beside manye o­ther thinges, as neuer was anye sence the holy apostles tyme, therfore syth he dothe so playnlye ap­proue this matter of the sacrifice of the masse, as we haue alredye shewed, & wyll do hereafter more at large, god wyllynge, is not he a very madde man, that wyll ra­ther beleue Martyn Luther than this auncient father, and godlye wryter? But now to go forwarde on this purpose, I wyll brynge in saynt Hieroms mynd in this matter, whiche thus sayeth therin. Melchizedec pane & vino, sim­plici, Hierom ad [...] ­u [...]grium. puro (que) sacrificio, Christi de­dicauit sacramentum. That is, Melchizedec with bread and wine a symple and a pure sacrifice, dyd dedicate christes sacramēt. Again vpō the sautre Quo modo Mel­chize. rex salem obtulit panem & [Page xxxiii] vinum, sic et tu offeres corpus tu­um & sanguinem, verum panem & vinum. [...]ste Melchizedec, ista mysteria, quae habemus, nobis de­dit. Ipse est qui dixit. Qui mandu cauerit ex hoc pane viuet in aeter­num. Ioh. [...]. Secundum ordinem Melchizedec tradidit nobis sacramen [...]ū suum. In what maner Melchize­dec kynge of Salem hath offered bread and wyne, euen so thou also shalt offre thy bodye, and bloude, very breade, and very wine. This Melchi. gaue to vs these misteri­es, whych we haue. He it is, which Iohan [...]. said. He y ^e shal eate of this bread, shal liue euer. He hath delyuered to vs his sacramēt, after the ordre of Melchyze. Are not these plaine wordes of this aūcient, & excellent clerke Hierom, & sufficient to stop all their mouthes, that bable, and barke agaynst the holye sacrifice [Page] of y ^e masse, whych euer synce chri­stes time was had in honoure tyll Marten Luther began to write a­gainst it? But yet ons more let holy Hierom say his mynde, in this cōtrouersi, to y ^e vtter cōfutatiō, of Hierom [...] in Mat. 26. y ^e masses (ye of christes, which dyd institute it) aduersaries. Thus he writeth, after he had rehersed oure sauiours wordes spokē at his last supper, when he did institute this blessed masse, & the sacrifice of it. After y ^e pasouer, which was a fy­gure, was fulfilled, & christ had eatē y ^e flesh of a lābe, w ^t his apostles, he taketh bread which comforteth mās hart, he passeth ouer to y ^• very sacramēt of easter, or y ^• pasouer, y ^• like as Melch. y ^e preist of y ^e highest god, in a figure afore of him had done, offring bread & wine, he also shold bring in presēce or lay before mē, the truth of his body & bloud. [Page xxxiiii] Who cā desire more plaine words thā these are of s, Hierom, to proue y ^t Melch. offered bread & wine in sacrifice to god as a figure of christes sacrifice instituted of him vnder y ^e forme of bread & wine at his maūdy. S Ambrose in like maner Ambrosius lib 4. de sacram [...] tis. cōfirmeth this veritie saieng. Oc­currit Melch. sacerdos Abrahae, & obrulit ei panē & vinsi. Melchi. a preist met Abrahā & offred to hym bread and wine. Also in an other Lib, 1. de A­braham patri­arch [...]. Ca. 3. place thus he saith intreatinge of Melch. Who is king of rightous­nes y ^e priest of god? but he to whōe it is saide. Thou art a preist, for e­uer after y ^e ordre of Melchi? Hoc est, dei filius, sacerdos patris [...] sui corporis sacrificio, patrē nr̄isre ꝓpitiauit delictis? y ^• is, y ^• son̄e of god, y ^• preist of y ^e father, which w ^t y ^• sacri­fice of his body hath appesed or made merciful y ^• father to our liūs These words do plainly declare y ^e [Page] saynt Ambrose beleued that christ dyd offre his owne body to his father, after the order of Melchize. to appease his wrath, whiche can not be vnderstand of the sacrifice made vpō the crosse, because there he was not a preist, or he dyd not offre sacrifice there, after y ^e ordre of Melchizedec vnder the kyndes of breade and wyne, but after the maner, & ordre of Aaron offeringe his bodye, and bloude vnder, or in his owne fourme visible. This also is approued by an olde doc­tour Lactantius lib. 4. cap. 14 de uera sap. Psal. 109. named Arnobius, writynge vpon the sawtre, whiche sayethe. Hic per mysterium panis & vini sacerdos factus est in eternum se­cundū ordinē Melchizedec, qui panem solus obtulit, & vinum in sacerdotibus. This (meanynge Christ of whom y ^e prophet spake) by reason of the mysterie of bread [Page xxxv] and wyne, was made a preiste for­euer after the ordre of Melchize. the whiche only amonge preistes offred bread and wyne. This was written aboue twelue hundred, & fortye yeres passed, manyfestlye affirmynge that christe by reason of the mystery or the secrete thing, that is the sacrament, of breade & wyne, was made a preist for euer, after the ordre of Melchizedec: whiche he coulde not be, except he had offered his owne bodye and bloude in sacrifice to his father at his maundye vnder fourme of breade and wyne, as I haue declared alredy, therfore y ^e masse muste neades be a sacrifice, wherin he is continually sacrificed, by the prei­stes, his ministers, after the ordre of Melchize. Fyue bisshops, whi­che were Aurelius, Alipius, Augustinus, & Pos­sidonius, wrote an e­pistle to Innocentius, in the whi­che they said Melchizedec prolato sacramento mensae dominicae, nouit aeternum eius sacerdo­tiū figurare. That is Melchize­dec dydde know to fi­gure our lordes euerla­stynge preisthode with a sacrament or a holy si­gne of his table shewed forth. The which thing is so euidently affirmed by the holy martyr S. Ciprian (which was [Page] almost thirtene hundred yeres passed) that nothing cā be more plainly sayde, for this he writeth. In sa­cerdote Melchizedec sacramen­tum dominici sacrificij praefiguratum videmus, We se (saith holye Cypriane) the sacrament of oure lordes sacrifice before fygured in the preist Melchizedec. Than he proueth that his saienge both by the wordes of the Genesis .xiiii. chaptre spoken of Melchizedec, and his sacrifice made with bread and wine, and by the wordes also of Dauyd spoken of god the fa­ther to Chryste oure Sauyoure his sonne, whych are these. Thou arte a preiste for euer, after the ordre of Melchizedec. Anon afterwarde he layeth thus. The whi­che ordre of Christe trulye is this commynge of that sacryfyce, and therof descendynge, that Melchi­zedec [Page xxxvi] was a preiste of the higheste God, because he offered breade and wyne, and blessed Abraham. Nam quis magis sacerdos dei summi, (qui) dominus noster Iesus Christus, qui sacrificium deo pa­tri obtulit. Et obtulit hoc idem, quod Melchizedech obtulerat, id est, panem & vinum, suum scili­cet corpus & sanguinem. That is to say. For who is rather the preist of god the highest, than oure lord Iesus Christe, whiche dydde offre sacrifice vnto his father? And he offred the verye same y ^e Melchi­zedec had offered, that is to witte, breade and wyne, surely his body and bloude. Moreouer Cipryane [...]peaking of the sacrifice of Mel­chizedech in breade and wyne, the whyche wente before as a fy­gure of Chrystes sacryfyce that was to comme in breade and [Page] wyne, sayth after this maner. Quam rem adimplēs dominus, & perficiens, panem & calicem mixtum Cyprianus. vino obtulit, & qui est pleni­tudo, veritatem praefiguratae ima­ginis adimpleuit. The whiche thynge (that is to wytte, the sacri­fice of Melchizedec, that was a fi­gure of christes sacrifice to come, vnder fourme of bread and wine) our lorde fulfyllynge, and accom­plysshynge, hath offered breade, and a cuppe, or chalyce mengled with wine and water, and he, whi­che is fulnesse, hathe fulfilled the truth of the image, or figure afore figured. Who could haue spoken more playnly, than this holy mar­tyr here speaketh, that christes sa­crifice in fourme of bread & wine, was fygured before by the sacry­fice of Melchizeder? And to put a­waye all doubte, anone after this [Page xxxvii] he sayth. Vnde apparet sanguinē Christi non offerri, si desit vinum calici, nec sacramentum dominicū legitima sanctione celebrari, nisi oblatio et sacrificiū nostrū passio­ni respond erit. Whereby it appeareth that christes bloude can not be offred, yf there be no wyne in the chalyce, neyther our lordes sa­crament celebrate, or made, after the laufull ordinaunce, except our oblation, offeringe, and sacrifice shall agree, or be lyke the passion. Hitherto this blessed martyr saint Cyprian, a man nere the apostles tyme, and of a very deape knowe­lage in goddes holye worde, we ought therfore to geue credence rather vnto him in this presente controuersy of our religion, than to Martyn Luther, or els any o­ther of that sort, whiche vpon no grounde, as it shall hereafter ap­peare [Page] manifestlye, deny the masse to be a sacrifice propitiatory, that is, appeasynge or pacifieng gods displeasure, and wrath, whiche all mē (sēce christe dyd firste institute it at his last supper, til now Mar­tyn Luthers comynge) euer bele­ued vndoutedly, & stedfastly, but I wil procede vpon this purpose, & make yet a further probation, to leaue no doubte in the matter, yf it may be by my small learninge. The twelue loues of bread spokē of in Leuitico, were a fygure of this blessed sacrifice made in the Leui. 24. masse vnder fourme of breade, as saint Dainascene dothe affirme sayeng. Hunc panē, panes figura­bant Damas. lib. 4. Cap. 14. propositionis. The loues of shewe, dyd figure this bread. And therfore, where our texte in Latin hath, panes propositionis offert, He offereth breade of shewe, the [Page xxxviii] Hebrewe hath, as Galatinus te­stifieth. Galatinus lib. 10. cap. 7. Quia carnem dei tui ipse est, vel erit sacrificans, that is, be­cause he is or shall be sacrifisynge the flesshe of thy god. S. Origen Origines in Leui. 24. doth playnlye confirme the same saieng. If a man loke on y ^e bread, which descended downe from hea­uen, and on that cōmemoration, or remembraūce, of the which y ^e lorde saith, Hoc facite in meam commemorationem, Luc. 22. Do ye this for re­membraunce of me, and do remember also the misteries of y ^e churche more dylygently lokyng on them, In his, quae scribit lex, futurae ve­ritatis inuenies imaginem prae­formatam, He shall fynde in those thynges, whiche the lawe writeth, an Image, or a symyly­tude of the trouthe afore four­med. Thys sacryfyce also was fygured by the continual sacrifice [Page] of the olde lawe mentioned in the boke of Moses called Exodus the xxix. chap. For lyke as the twelue Exodi. 29. loues were set out to shewe daily, and this sacrifice cōtinually done by the preistes of the olde lawe, e­uen so in the masse the preist doth shewe daylye to the people our sauiours blessed bodye vnder the fourme of bread, and continually offereth it in sacrifice to god for to appease his displeasure, and to make him mercyfull and fauourable vnto vs, that yet lyue, and to the deade also. Nowe the prophet Malachias shall come forthe to saye his mynde in this matter, whych this writeth. Non est mihi Mala. 1. [...]. 3 voluntas in vobis, dicit dominus exercituum, & munus non susci­piā de manu vestra. Ab ortu enim solis vs (que) ad occasum, magnū est nomen meum in gentibus, & in [Page xxxix] omni loco facrificatur & offertur nomini meo oblatio munda, quia magnum est nomen meum in gentibus. I haue no wyll or mynde to you, saith the lorde of hostes, & I wyll not receaue of your hand a gyft, or a sacrifice. For from the risinge of the sonne vnto the go­ynge downe, my name is great a­monge the people, and sacrifice is made, and a cleane oblation is of­fred to my name, bicause my name is great amonge the people. Lo, good christen reader, here we se that god said by this his prophet, that he had no mind to the Iewes mening that he wold forsake thē, by reason of their infidelite, lacke of fayth, refusing his sonne christ at his commynge, and synne, and that he wolde no more receaue of them sacrifices made with beastes as he had done afore christ came [Page] in the tyme of the old testamente, but that all suche sacrifices shuld be vtterlye abolysshed, and lefte cleane, as shadowes, and fygures of christes sacrifice the very thing shadowed, and figured by them, whiche shuld, and doth in dede, as moch excede, amoūt, & excel them, as the bodye dothe the shadowe, and the thynge fygured, the fy­gure, or pycture representynge it. That this is mente, and spoken by the sacryfyce of the masse, dy­uerse olde wryters, men so wel ler­ned, as none are nowe these daies, do playnely testyfye, of the which I wyll brynge a fewe. Damas­cene Dam [...]s. lib. 4. Ca. 14. aboue a thousand yeres sence thus wrote on this texte of the prophete Malachias. Haec est pura scilicet hostia, & incruenta, quam ab ortu vs (que) ad occasum ipsi offer riper prophetam dominus loqui­tur, [Page xx] Christi videlicet corpus & sā ­guis, in stabilimentum animae no­strae, & corporis, inconsūptū & in­corruptū, non in secessū iens (absit enim) sed in nostrā substantiā, & conseruationem, omnimodi nocumenti reparatio, sordis omnis purgatio. This is the englysshe ther­of. This is the pure hooste, or sa­crifice offered to atteyne victorie of our enemies, and vnblouddy, or offered without bloud sheding, the whiche our lord sayeth by his prophet shuld be offered to him frō the risinge of the sonne to the go­yng downe, surely the bodye, and bloud of christ, to kepe stedfaste or stable our soule and bodye, or to be that thing, which doth stablish our soule and body, not cōsumed, ▪ incorrupted, not going into the draught (for god forbyd that) but into our substaūce, and conserua­tion, [Page] a repayringe of all maner of The masse is a sacry­fice propiri­atory [...] for one sinnes. hurt, a purgation or purgynge of al vncleannes. Marke here good reader, that this olde wryter Da­mascene affirmeth that oure lorde sayde by the prophet that a cleane hoost shoulde be offered to hym, without bloude sheddyng, verely the body and bloud of Christ, and none other sacrifice, than the sa­crifice of the masse, though Luter Bucer, Bullyger, and lyke other do neuer so much say the cōtrary, without al good ground. Secondly note, that the same hoost, or sa­crifice shuld be a stay, or a stablishment bothe of our bodye and the soule also. Thyrdlye that it goeth not into the draught, as other bo­dily meates do, but it is turned in to the spiritual sustinaunce of the soule, & cōseruatiō of it. Fourth­ly note well, that he calleth this [Page xli] holy sacrifice, a reparation of all harine (whiche came to the soule through synne) and a purgynge, or clensynge of all fylth of synne, a­gaynst them, which denye that the masse is a sacrifice propitiatorye, that is, makyng god mercyfull to vs, and appeasynge his wrath to­warde vs for our synnes. Some Dyuers obiections are here soyled. men saye that this prophetment of a sacrifice, whiche the Iewes dyd make to god, but they are farre de­ceyued. Fyrste bycause he prophe­cyed of a sacrifice, which shuld suc­cede, y ^e iewes sacrifices abolyshed. Secondly bycause he spake of a sacrifice whiche all people in euery place shuld offre to goddes name, therfore it can not be vnderstande of any sacrifice of the iewes, which they only in the temple of hierusa­lem dyd offre, as it apereth by the law playnly. Moreouer, some vn­derstande [Page] this prophecy of the sa­crifice, fulfylled by christe on the crosse, but as vntruly as the other, for that sacrifice was offered of christ only in one place, which was the mounte of caluarie, but the prophet entreateth there of a sacrifice, that shuld be offered to god in all places, and therfore he spake not of christes sacrifice ones doone on the crosse. Agayne the prophete wrote of that sacrifice, which shuld be offered to god, when his name shuld be great and famous amōge the gentylles, whiche was not re­noumed among them, before christ Mat .vi. Mar. 16 dyd suffre death, but after his re­surection, whē he sent his apostles to preache the gospell through all the worlde to euery man. Thyrd­ly As bucer bulliger & other of that sortt. they are lykewyse deceyued, that vnderstand by this sacrifice here mentioned, laudyng of god, than­kes [Page xlii] gyuynge to him, confessynge of his name, contritiō of mannes harte, preachyng of y ^e gospel, mor­tifyenge of the bodye, and carnall lustes, or desyres of the flesh, or any lyke, first bycause none of these succeded, or came in to the place of the Iewes sacrifices done away, anulled, and vndone for euer, for they all were in the tyme of the lawe of nature, before Moses lawe was put forth, and vnder Moses lawe, and after it was abolysshed, as no man can say nay, and therfore this prophecy can not be taken of them, or any one of them. Agayne the prophet spake of one sacrifice in the synguler nomber, and the [...]e are many, wherfore he may not be vn­derstande of these. Moreouer the prophet dyd speake of a pure, and a clene sacrifice, but our workes are not pure, and clene, because we [Page] offend, sayeth saynt Iames, in ma­ny Iacobi. 3. 1. Ioh. 1. thynges, And Iohn saith, yf we saye we haue no synne, we deceyue our selfes, and the trouth is not in vs: Therfore this prophecye must be vnderstande of Christes very bodye, and blotidde, a lambe with­out spotte of all fylthe, and synne, as Peter saith, and sainte Paule 1 Peter. 2. 2. Cor. 5. also, which he offered vnder forme of bread & wyne at his last supper, and gaue autorite to his apostles and theyr successours, prestes and byshoppes, to do the same for his Luke. 22. 1 Cor. 1 [...]. remembraunce, tyll his commynge agayne at the last day. But I wyl brynge forthe Eusebius an olde Eusebius lib. Primo de euangelica demon­stra. greke writer, to conferme this my purpose, which thus writeth. Mo­saicis sacrificiis reiectis, quod futurum erat nostrum ipsarum institu­tum, propheta diuinitus nūciat di­cens, Quoniam ab ortusolis. &c. [Page xliii] That y ^• prophet sheweth of god, or by the inspiratiō of y ^e holy goost, y ^t which shuld be our own ordinaūce or institutiō, y ^e sacrifices of Moses reiected, sayng, bycause from y ^e ry­syng of the son̄e, to y ^e goyng down, sacrifice is made, & a clene oblati­on is offered to my name in euery place. Therfore we do sacrifice (saith Eusebius) to god y ^e highest a sacrifice of laude, we do sacrifice to god a full sacrifice, and bryng­yng feare, Et sacrosāctum sacrificium. A cōsecrated sacrifice halowed, and that whiche ought not to be touched but reuerentlye. We do offre in sacrifice to god, with a new maner after the new testament, an hoost clene. This can not be vnderstande of any other sacrifice, than of the sacrifice of the masse, for none other is offered to god nowe after a newe maner, accordynge to the newe testament, as euery lear­ned [Page] man may easely perceyue, and therfore it must neades be taken of that sacrifice only. Agayne he saith thus, after very many wordes spoken of this matter, as concludyng I [...]aque Christus quasi mirabilem quādam victimam, sacrificiū quod eximium deo patri operatus, pro nostra omniū salute obtulit, eius­què rei memoriam vt nosipsi ipsi deo pro sacrificio offerremus, in­stituit. That is to witte. Therfore Christe after he had wrought, offered to god the father for all our helth, or saluation, as who saith a certen wonderful, and an excellent sacrifice, and hath ordeyned that we our selfes shulde offre to the same god for a sacrifice, the remembraunce of the same thynge. If Marten Luther or his scolers had sene this holy fathers sainges, and not ly [...]ed to lyke, and esteme, theyr [Page xliiii] owne iudgemnet more than his, they wolde not haue so rashely, & The sacri­fice of the masse was ordined by Christe and not by man, as some mē saye. vngodly denyed the masse to be instituted, & ordeyned a sacrifice of our sauiour Christe him selfe, as they do, ascribynge it, and the set­tyng vp of it, vnto prestes auarice and couetousnes. Whose fonde, Ireneus. lib. 4 Ca. 32, 33, [...]4, leude, and vngodly opinyon Ire­neus an other greke wryter, which was withī .clxxx. yeres, of Christes byrth, and sawe sainte Polycarpe saint Iohn the euangelystes disci­ple, yea whose scholer he was (as some men say) doth thus euydently wryte in this matter, but Christe also geuyng counsayll to his disci­ples to offre vnto god of his crea­tures the first frutes, not as who saith nedynge, but y ^t they shuld be neyther vnfruitful, nor vnkynde, toke that breade whiche is of his creation, or his creature, and gaue [Page] thankes, sayng. Hoc est corpus Christ at his laste supper taught his apostles a newe sacri­fice, whiche is the holye masse. meum. This is my bodye. And he toke lykewyse the cuppe, and con­fessed it his bloude, and he taught a newe sacrifice of the newe testa­mente, whiche the churche recey­uynge of, or from the apostles, offereth to god throw al y ^e hole world. What can any wyse christen man desyre to be more playnly spoken of any man than this, in defence of y ^e sacrifice of y ^e masse? Maye not (I beseche the good reader) men be greatly ashamed either to deny the masse to be a sacrifice, or els to saye that it is nothyng but an ydoll, set vp by prestes couetousnes, for lu­cre and gaynes? Ought not we rather to beleue this aunciēt father, whiche was instructed by them, that learned the trouth of Christes religion of the apostles scholars, then Marten Luther, or any of his Luther. [Page xlv] teachyng, and schole, which now after xv. hundred yeres, do laboure to brynge vp a new religion, and faith amonge christen people? Came not the holye goost to teache men the truth, which Christ promysed Note reader Io. 14. 16▪ to sende to the apostles, tyll Marten Luther came, the foun­tayne almost of all heresie? Hath Christe suffered his deare spouse the churche (for whiche h [...] shed his most precious bloud) to erre in his religion and the faith▪ thus longe, the space of xv. hundred yeres? Dyd not he promyse his apostles Matt .vlt. Ioh. 14. to be with them, & the holy churche tyll the worldes ende, that he lea­dyng them, whiche is the truth, as he him selfe saith, they could not be disceyued so foule in theyr belefe, to thynke the masse a sacrifice or­deyned by Chrtste in the gospell, & it nothynge so? Truly euery wyse [Page] man doth iudge moche other wise, but it is better to passe ouer this, and to retourne agayne to holye Ireneus, whiche after he hath ale­ged the prophecie of Malachias, whiche I haue nowe in hande, to proue that Christ as his maundye dyd offre his bodye and bloude in sacrifice to his father, teachynge the apostles euen so to do, and they the hole churche, which offereth the same also through all the worlde, Anone after this he writeth, Quo­niā ergo nomen filij propriū patris Caep. 33. est, et in deo omnipotente, per Ie­sum Christum offert ecclesia, be­ne ait secundum vtraque, et in omniloco incensum offertur no­mini meo, et sacrificium purum. That is. Therfore because the sonnes name is proper to the father, and in god almyghty, the churche offereth sacrifice by Iesu Christe, [Page xlvi] the prophet Malachias saith well after both the thinges, both inc [...]se, or a swete perfume, is offered in euery place to my name, And also a pure sacrifice agayne. Igitur ec­clesie Cap. 34. oblatio, quam dominus do cuit offerri in vniuerso mundo, purum sacrificium reputatum est apud deum, & acceptum est ei, nō quod ille indigeat a nobis sacri­ficium, sed quoniam is, qui offert glorificatur ipse in eo, quod offert si acceptetur munus eius. That is thus moch in our speach. Therfore Mathe wel this reder. the sacrifice of the churche, whiche our lorde taught to be offered in the hole worlde, is rekened with god a clene sacrifice, and it is ac­cepted of him, not because he nea­deth our sacrifice, but because he whiche doth offre it, is glorified, or renoumed, by that, whiche he doth offre yf his gyfte, or sacrifice [Page] be accepted of god. Lo, good rea­der, here eftsoones, and agayne, this holy man playnly affyrmeth, that y ^e churche doth offre sacrifice, whiche our sauiour Christe dyd teach so to do, & not any couetous preist, or byshop, myndyng to gette vaūtage, & gaynes therby, though many through enuye, and malyce conceyued against the clergy, (whiche no heretike euer lacked) are not ashamed so shamefully, & falsly to say of thē. But now to S. Hierōe, S. Hierome [...]pō Mala. 1 which writeth after this maner, vpon this prophet Malachie. Non in vna orbis prouincia Iudaea, nec in vna vrbe Iudaea Hierusalem, sed in omni loco offerri oblationem, nequa (que) immundā, vt a populo is­rael, sed mundam vt in caeremonijs Christianorum. That is to witte. God spake to y ^e prestes of y ^e iewes by the prophet, the whiche do offre [Page xlvii] the blynde, the lame, and faynt, to make sacrifice with, that therby they myght knowe that spirituall sacrifices shuld succede the carnal, and that not bulles and gootes bloude, but a swete perfume (that is y ^e saintes prayers) shuld be offe­red to the lord, and that not in one prouynce of the worlde Iury, no­ther in one citye of Iury, Hierusa­lem, but in euery place shulde be offered a sacrifice, in no wyse vn­clene, as by the people of Israell was offered once, but cleane, lyke as in the ceremonyes of christeās, or christen people is offered. Lo. Here good reader, saint Hierome vnderstandeth the prophet of one pure and cleane sacrifice, whiche should (as nowe daylye it is in the masse) be offered in christen mens ceremonyes, whiche muste nea­des be spoken of the sacrifice [Page] of the masse, wherin are many ceremonyes vsed, with diuers holye prayers. And that the prophet mēt that sacrifice of the blessed masse, he himselfe declareth openly in the thyrde chapyter folowynge For Malachi. 3. there he do [...]h prophecy of Christes commyng by his byrth, saynge, lo he cometh. Who canne attayne by thought the day of his commyng? Who shall stande to se him? For he lyke as fyre bloweth, lyke as one bloweth the fyre and as the herbe of fullers of clothe. And he He meaneth the apostles which christ clensed by makyng thē ryghteuos & good men, afore they should offre sacrifices to god his fa­ther. shall sytte bloyng together or blo­wyng lyke as one bloweth the fyre and makynge clene lyke as gold, and lyke as syluer, and he shall purge, or make clene the sonnes of Leui. Et colabit eos quasi aurum, et quasi argentum, et erunt domi­no offerentes sacrificia in iusticia. And he shall strayne out theyr ly­coure [Page xlviii] lyke as gold and syluer, and they shall offre to our lorde sacrifi­ces in ryghteousnes. S. Hierome vnderstandeth here the sonnes of Leui, all preistes of the new lawe, whiche onlye shoulde succede the prestes of the olde lawe, and these clensyd, and purged, as golde and syluer, should offre to our lorde sa­crifices in rightuousnes. Et place­bit domino sacrificium iuda et hierusalem, sicut dies seculi anni antiqui. That is the sacrifice of Iude and Hierusalem shall please the lorde, lyke as the dayes of tyme, & the olde yeres. This letter is not so playne, and easye to be vnder­stand, as men thynke the scripture is, which saint Hierome thus ex­poundeth the sacrifice of the pre­stes, which they do offre for Iuda and Hierusalem, that is for them, that do confesse our lorde, and se [Page] his peace with the mynde, shall please the lorde, lyke as dayes of tyme, and as olde yeres, that is, as they pleased him at the begyn­nynge, so after penaunce done for synne commytted, when they shall be clensed from the fylth of all syn­nes, they shall begynne to please god with theyr sacrifices agayne. It is called also the sacrifice of Iuda, because Christ dyd institute it, whiche was borne of the tribe, and in bethelem Iuda, Also the masse is called of the prophet, the sacrifice of Hierusalem, because it was there first institute by christe. Therfore sith this was prophecied of christes cōmyng by byrth, which should make clene, and purge the prestes of the newe testament, that they myght (beyng so clensed) offre sacrifices to god for the people, whiche confesse Christe to be our [Page xli] sauiour, and do se his peace with their mynde, euery man playnlye maye perceaue, that this prophe­cye toucheth y ^• sacrifice of y ^e masse, for that onely doth appertayne to the preistes of the new testament, as no man can denye. Hytherto of the olde testament. Now to the newe, wherin are certayne places, and textes, euidently prouyng the masse to be a sacrifice, not of laude and thankes geuynge onlye, but also of appeasynge gods displea­sure Textes of newe lawe, prouyng the masse to be a sacrifice. toward vs for synne, and ma­kynge hym mercyfull both to the lyuynge, & the dead. Of the whi­che the fyrst is this of Lukes gos­pell. Hoc facite in meam comme­morationē. Do ye this for my re­membraunce. Luc. 2 [...]. That is to wytte. I geue you autoritie, power, and cō ­maūde you also to do, y ^• whiche I haue done euen nowe at thys my [Page] maundye, that is, take ye breade, geue thankes to god for al his benefites geuen to man, blesse it, consecrate it, turnyng the substaunce of it in to my fleshe, offre it to my father, not onelye to geue hym thankes for his benefytes besto­wed on man, but to purchase his grace also for the people, & to ap­pease his displeasure, conceaued & taken against man for his synne. Finally receaue it your selues sayeng masse, and distribute the same to the people, for their housle, and all this do ye in remembraunce of Luc. 22. 1. Cor. 11. my death and passion, continuing so to do, till y ^• worldes ende. That Christe didde offre his blessed bo­dye to his father a swete sacrifice for our synnes at his laste supper, & cōmaūded his apostles likewise to do, and all preystes, in and by [Page l] them, the aūcient and old fathers sentences do playnlye proue, of the which I wyl allege here some, that be most stronge and euydent. Ireneus a greke doctour beynge withī .clxxx. yeres of christ, expoū ­dynge Ireneus: lib. 4. cap. 32. these wordes of christ Hoc est corpus meum, & hîc est san­guis meus, This is my body, and this is my bloude (whiche he pro­nounced at his last supper, conse­cratinge, and offeringe his bodye and bloude in sacrifice to his fa­ther) thus writeth, as I haue ones afore rehersed. Oure lorde toke bread, and gaue thankes sayeng. This is my body. Also he toke the cuppe, and confessed it to be his bloude. Et nouam docuit noui te­stamenti oblationē, quā ecclesiam ab apostolis recipiens, in vniuerso mūdo offert deo. And he taughte them a newe sacrifice of the newe [Page] testamente, which the churche re­ceauynge Christe dyd institute the sacrifice of the masse, & the apostels taught the church. of the apostles (he sayth not of the byshop of Rome nor of any other bishoppe, or preist) doth offre to god in all the hole worlde. These wordes are so playne, that no man can denye, but that this saint sayth, that Christ dyd offre his bodye and bloude in sacrifice to god at his maundye, and that Chrystes mynystres, the preistes of the newe lawe, do dayelye offre the same at masse, instructed that lesson of the apostles, which were taught it of their maister, our sa­uiour christ. Shal it not therfore be moch more mete, & cōueniēt, y ^t we christen men, and women geue credence rather vnto this holye, and aunciente fathers teachynge in this matter, (especially beinge so agreable with goddes worde, yea beyng playnly set forth by it) [Page li] than to Martyn Luther, n [...]yther lyke to hym in auncientie, nor vertue, nor learninge? Meruayle not (reader) that I do here expounde this worde facere, to signifie as muche as to make sacrifice, partly because this holy martyr saynte Ireneus, saynt Cyprian, and ma­ny other of the eldest, and best writers vpon the scripture, so do take it in this cōmaundement of christ geuen to his apostles, Hoc faci­te. Facere to do, ī christes wordes is to make sacrifice. &c. Partely for asmuche as it is so vsed both in prophane wry­ters, and also in the holye scrip­ture. For Vergylle sayth. Cum fa­ciam Vergilius: vitula pro frugibus ipse ve­nito. When (sayth Dametas) I shall do sacrifice, or offre sacrifice, to Ceres the goddes of corne, with an heffar for the corne, come thou thy selfe. Also Theo­critus Theocritus, a greke poete so vseth this [Page] word sayeng: Quum facies agno, Nymphas veneratus agrestes. When thou shalte make sacrifice with a lambe, honouring the wild or rude maidēs of y ^e sea. Likewise baptista Mātuanꝰ (a christē mā) Mantuanus, vsed this word, saieng of Abel the first shepeherd. Nunc oue, nunc pingui vitula faciebat, & agno. He made sacrifice sometyme with a shepe, sometyme with a fat hef­fer, and a lambe. Now to the scripture, whiche in this signification often tymes doth vse this worde. For the thirde boke of the kynges y ^e eleuenth chapter, thus hath, Et fecit Salomon astartae abominatio ni Sydoniorum, That is. And Salomon Lege Ezech, 45: &, 46: et Iudicum. [...], dyd make sacrifice to the idol the abominatiō of the Sydo­niōs: Is not here facere which is in englysh to do, vsed for sacrificare, to make sacrifice? Many other [Page lii] textes of the old testamēt do shew Leui. 23. Et facietis hyrcum pro peccato. playnly that this worde is often­times vsed for to make sacrifice, which I passe ouer to be the shor­ter, and brynge one place oute of the newe testamente, whiche is in Lukes gospell, the seconde chap­ter after this fourme of wordes. Et cum inducerent puerum Iesum parentes eius, ut facerent secundū consuetudinē legis pro eo, Sim eō accepit eū in ulnas suas. &c. That is, And whan the father & mother of the childe Iesu brought him into the temple, that they mighte do for him after the cu­stome of the lawe, Symeon toke hym into his armes. What els I besech the good reader is ment by (doyng) in this place, but making of sacrifice, or offeringe of sacrifi­ces according to the law of Moi­ses? The text a litle before in Luke [Page] declareth this plainelye, whiche sheweth that our Lady Christes honourable, and most blessed mo­ther, Marye our sauiours blessed mo­ther. and his father Ioseph (at the lest whiche was iudged his father of the people) at the day of purifi­cation, presented Christ in the tē ­ple of hierusalem, Vt darent ho­stiam, secundum ꝙ dictum est in lege domini, par turturum, aut du­os Leui. 12: pullos columbarum, that is to saye. That they shulde geue an hoste, a paire of byrdes called tur­telles, or two pygeons, accordyng to the commaundemēt of the lawe of our lord. Thus we se that chri­stes Christes parentes did geue to the preiste these thinges not off [...]ryng [...] in sacrifice (for that is the office of a preist but presentyng them to the preist, that he shuld of­fre them in sacrifice as the law re­quired. father and mother presented and brought in to the temple, ey­ther a payre of turtelles or .ii. py­geons, that the preist shulde offre them in sacrifice after the lawe, & so (facere) doth sygnifye in this place of Luke sacrificare to make [Page liii] sacrifice in the whiche significati­on both greke wryters, and latyn also do often vse that worde, and not onely the Hebrewe speache, as it appereth by the places aboue recyted. Why therfore maye we not well vnderstande by these wordes of our sauyour Christ, Hoc facite in meam commemorationem, Do ye this for my remembraūce, that he commaunded them to offre sa­crifice for his remembraūce? espe­cyally seynge the aunciente wry­ters of Christes churche, and the whole churche hath euen so taken those wordes euer synce they were spoken, no man otherwyse expoundynge them, tyll Martyn Luther came, lerna ferè omniū haereseō, in whom was almost all heresies? Homilia. 17. in Hebre. To be shorte, saynt Chrysostome vnderstode, that Christe dyd of­fre his bodye and bloude in sacri­fice [Page] at his maundy, and gaue commaundemēt Read more of Chrisost. in the chap­tre of the doctours sayenges. to his apostles to of­fer it also, in remēbraunce of hys death, whose wordes are these, Pō tifex autē noster ille est, qui hostiā mūdantē nos obtulit, ipsam offeri­mus, & nunc, quae tunc oblata qui­dem consumi non potest. Hoc autem, quod nos facimus, in com­memorationem quidem eius fit, quod factum est. Hoc enim facite Luc. 22. (inquit) in mei commemorationē. That is. Our byshop is he, which hath offered an hooste, or sacrifice Note this well reader [...]gainst the enemies of the masse: makynge vs cleane, the same we offre also nowe, the whyche than offered, trulye can not be consu­med, but this that we do, is done for a remembraunce of that thing whyche was done, for christ sayd, do ye this for remembraunce of me. Who is so blynde, that he can not see, that Chrysostom, a greake [Page liiii] autour, learned as excellentlye in the scripture, as euer anye was of the greakes synce the apostles tyme, and their scolers, doth saye playnelye, that we (meanynge preistes, of whom he was one him selfe) do offre the selfe same sacri­fice, whyche Chryste ones for euer offered by deathe and bloudde shedynge on the crosse? but we do it for remembraunce of that hys passion, and blouddy sacrifice, not withoute autoritie, power, and cō maundemente, as the whyche all three we haue of him, saieng, Hoc facite in mei commemorationem, Luc. [...]. do ye this for a remembraunce of me. Wolde to God chrysten men wolde looke well on these wor­des, consyderynge bothe the aun­cientie of the wryter, and also hys greatte learnynge, and [Page] holynes, whiche may cause them rather to beleue his sayenges thā any other, nothynge lyke to hym in those qualities, but it is better to let this passe, and to here saynt Cypryan that holy martyr, which wrote aboue twelue hundred and lxxx. yeres past. He this wryteth after Cyprianus ii. [...], epist 3 many wordes spokē of the ho­ly sacrifice of the masse. Qua in parte inuenimus calicem mixtum fuisse, quem obtulit, Vnde appa­ret sanguinē Christi non offerri, si desit vinum calici, nec sacramen­tum dominicum legitima sanctifi­catione celebrari, nisi oblatio & sacrificium nostrum passioni re­sponderit. That is. In the whiche parte we do fynde that the cuppe was mengled or medled (that is wyne & water were therein mixed together) whiche Christ dyd offre. Whereby it doth appere that chri­stes [Page lv] bloude is not offered yf there want wine in the cuppe or chalice: neither is our lordes sacramente celebrate with halowynge accor­dynge to the lawe, excepte our of­ferynge and sacrifice be lyke the passion. In these wordes note that he sayth we fynd y ^• the cup whiche christ offred, was mixed w ^t wine & water, whyche was at none other tyme, but onely at his last supper, for at the time of his death he had no cuppe so medled, nor then he offred not his bloud vnder forme of wyne, but onely vnder y ^e forme of bloude, therefore he offered his bloud in sacrifice at his maundy, after this holy martyrs mynde, & preistes do euen that same after his lawe and ordynaunce, as he sayth lykewyse here agayne, for thus he writeth. Quo modo autē de creatura vitis, nouū vinum cū [Page] christo in regno patris bibemus, si in sacrificio dei patris, & christi, vi nū non offerimus, nec calicem dn̄i traditione dominica miscemus? That is to saye, Howe shall we drynke newe wyne wyth Christe of the creature of a vyne, in the kyngedome of the father, yf we Marke whose is the sacrifice of the masse offre not wyne in the sacryfyce of God the father, and of Chryste, or if we do not meddle or myxe the lordes cuppe, after the tea­chyng, or cōmyssyon of our lorde? Lo, oure lorde taughte the prei­stes at the masse to myxe in the chalyce wyne wyth water, and so to offre in sacryfyce hys precyous bloudde, whyche he dydde neuer but at his laste supper, as it is e­uydente, and therefore he dydde there offre hys bodye, and bloude in sacryfyce, and gaue commyssy­on to hys apostelles, and to all [Page lvi] preystes in, and by them, to do the same. Also in the same epystle he sayth agayne. Ab euāgelicis praeceptis Cyprianus. Luc. [...]2. non est omnino receden­dum, ea (que) quae magister docuit, & fecit, discipuli quo (que) obseruare, & facere debent. We oughte not to goo from the commaundementes of the gospell, and the dyscyples muste of duetye obserue, and doo also, those thynges, whyche the mayster taughte, and dydde. Lo, here Saynte Cypryane sayethe, that Chryste offered him selfe, and taughte hys scolers that same les­son, and commaunded them also to offre sacryfyce, as he hadde Matt. 26. Luc. 2 [...]. doone afore, when he toke breade, and so forth, and thereby he bond them to kepe, and doo the selfe same thynge that he dydde.

What woulde anye manne [Page] desyre more? To proue all this he allegeth saint Paule the eleuenth chapter of the fyrste epistle to the 1: Cor. 11. Corinthians. This holye martyr sheweth wherfore christ dyd myxe wyne and water together in the cuppe, whiche he blessed, and con­secrated at his maundye, sayenge that he so dyd because the water signifieth the people (as we reade in the Apocalypse of saint Iohn, Apoca 17. why water is mengl [...]d with wyne, in the chalice when the preist sayth masse. the .vii. chapter) so that lykewyse as the water in the chalice is med­dled and myxed together with the wyne, and so meddled that the one cā not be separate from the other, euen soo by shedynge of christes bloude, the people, whiche beleue in hym, trust in goddes mercy promysed to thē for chrystes deathes sake, feare god, forsake their syn­nes thorough perfytte penaunce, loue god and their neyghboure, & [Page lvii] finally do kepe gods commaun­dementes, and abyde therein, no­thing can separate or disseuer thē from goddes fauour, and loue, as Paule affirmeth the eight chap­ter to y ^e Romaines. But yet marke by the waye (good reader) that Cyprian doth saye that Christe dyd myxe wyne and water together in the cuppe, which he dyd blesse, and consecrate at his laste supper, and dyd also teache, and commaunde preistes to kepe, and do that same, as we now in dede do at our mas­ses, and yet there is no texte of all the scripture, that maketh anye mention of this dede, lesson, and commaundement of our sauyour Christ, therfore they are foule de­ceaued A verytye not wryttē in scripture thorough ignoraunce: or rather malyce, which affirme, that we ought to beleue nothinge, ex­cepte it be mencioned in scripture. [Page] But I wyll retourne eftesones to holye Cypryan, and allege out of hym a fewe moo sentences for my purpose, of the whyche this is one, agaynste theym, that putte onelye water in the chalyce at masse. Quaerendum est enim, ipsi quem sunt secuti [...]nam si in sa­crificio, quod Christus est, non ni­si Christus sequendus est, vti [...] id nos obaudire, & facere oportet, quod Christus fecit, & quod faci­endum esse mandauit, non de­bemus attendere, quid aliquis an­te nos faciendum putauerit, sed quid qui ante omnes est, Christus prior fecerit. For we muste aske (sayth Cyprian) whom they haue Cyprianus. folowed. For if in y ^e sacri [...]ice, whi­che christe is, none, excepte Chryst, [...]uste be folowed, truely it is ne­cessary that we obeye, and do that whiche Chryst hath done, and that [Page lviii] the whyche he commaunded to be done, we ought not to marke what any man before vs thought to be done, but what Chryst which is a­fore all men, fyrste hathe doone. Note dylygentlye (good reader) that this holye martyr saythe that Chryste is the sacryfyce offered of the preiste, and that he dyd make sacryfyce, in the cuppe beynge myxed wyne, and water together, and commaunded the apostles, & all preystes to folowe that same his maner, and fourme of sacra­fice at theyr masses. These wordes hytherto rehersed (good Christen reader) are verye playne to per­suade euerye man, not vtterly vn­apte to be taughte for wante of faythe, to beleue the masse to be a sacryfyce, ordeyned not by anye man, but by oure Sauyoure CHRIST, at hys maundye, [Page] but yet here more playne wordes of him (if it may be). Thus he saith (declaringe that gods ordinaunce oughte not to be chaūged by any mans tradition, the which shulde be, if wyne and water were not myxed together in the chalice at masse, according to Christes insti­tution) Nam si Iesus Christus do­minus & deꝰ noster, ipse est sūmus Cyprianus▪ sacerdos dei patris, & sacrificium deo patri ipse primus obtulit, & hoc fieri in sui commemorationē, praecepit: vti (que) ille sacerdos vice Luce. 22. Christi vere fūgitur, qui id, quod Christus fecit, imitatur. Et sacrificium verum, & plenû tunc offert Marke this reader dily­gently: in ecclesiam deo patri, si sic inc [...] ­piat offerre, secundum ꝙ ipsum Christum videat obtulisse. This is the englysh. For yf Iesus christ our lord and god, be the hygheste prepsie of God the father, and [Page lix] he fyrste hathe offered a sacryfyce to God the father, and commaun­ded that to be done for remem­braunce 1. Cor. 11. of hym, verelye that preiste doth exercyse Christes of­fice, or place truely, whiche folo­weth that thinge, whiche Christe hath done. And then he offreth to god y ^e father in the churche, a true and a full sacrifice, yf he begynne so to offre, as he may se y ^e christ hī selfe hathe offered. Are not these wordes playne, and sufficient to proue the masse to be a sacrifice set vp by our sauiour Christe Iesu? The apo­stles sayeng masse, did make sacri­fice to god. We reade moreouer in the actes of the apostles the .xiii. that the a­postels accordinge to the power, autoritie, and commaūdement geuen them of their maister Christe at his maundy sayeng, do ye this for a remembraunce of me dydde make sacrifice to god, for there we [Page] fynd these wordes after Erasmus translation, Quum autē sacrifica­rent Act. 1 [...]. dn̄o, ieiunarēt (que) dixit illis spiritus sāctus. Segregate mihi Pau­lum & Bernabā in opus, ad quod assumpsi eos. That is. Whan the apostles dyd make sacrifice to our lorde, and fasted, the holye gooste sayde to them. Seuer, or separate for me Paule and Bernabe, to the worke, vnto the whyche, I haue taken them. Here we se that the a­postles offered then sacrifice to god, and that in the greke tongue was wrytten by Luke the euangelyste, whyche vseth here the same greke verbe of y ^e which the masse in the greke speache is called [...], as in the hebrewe it is na­med [...] Litourgia. (missah) and that name is v­sed in latyn. Chrysostom wrytte a booke of the masse, whiche he cal­leth in greake. [...], and E­rasmus, Pelargus, with dyuers [Page lx] other translatours of that booke in latyn, do turne that greke word by the hebrewe word (missa) which the latyn men commonlye do vse, and it can not be otherwise conue­niently turned into y ^e latin tongue but by that same hebrewe worde (missah) whiche name the holye a­postle Peter (that fyrst said masse) dyd belyke geue to that dyuyne, and holye office, whiche we cal the masse in englyssh. And that most blessed, and holy sacrifice, with the whole ordre and maner of godlye suffrages, prayers, petitions, and laudes commonly nowe vsed in the churche, from y ^t time of Christ and his apostles, vntill this oure time hath alwayes ben receyued, & taught by y ^e very selfe same name, w ^tout agayne saieng of any man, excepte one Peter Brusian, whi­che denied sacrifice to be offred to [Page] god. Thoughe the greake worde, [...]. Luc. 1. Heb. 9. whiche Luke vseth there signifi­eth many thynges, yet not onelye in that place, but also in other dy­uers, it signifieth to offer sacrifice as a preist doth, and therefore the apostles dyd offre sacrifice to god instructed by their mayster Christ at his laste supper. Moreouer it maye thus be proued, that Chryst dyd offre him selfe in sacryfice at his last supper to god his father. It is writtē in the first chapter of Iohns gospel, and the fyfth chap­tre of the fyrst epistle of Paule to Ioan. 1. 1. Cor. 5. y ^e Corynthians, y ^t Christ is y ^e very true Easter lambe, pascal lambe, & passeouer, in a fygure of whom y ^e Iewes by goddes cōmaundemēt dydde offre in sacrifice a lambe (as we fynde in the booke of Moyses called Exodus) vpon the whiche Exo. 12: I make this reasō for my purpose [Page lxi] The thynge fygured muste agree with the figure, and therefore as y ^e pascall, or passeouer lambe, was a fygure of Chryste, euen so muste neades the maner of offering, and eatynge of Chryst (the lambe figured by the passeouer, or paschall lambe) be lyke the offrynge in sa­crifice, and eatyng of that fygure, but that could not be except christ had offered his verye bodye and bloud at his maundye and after­ward receaued it, (as S. Hierom Hedibi [...]. sayth that he dyd in verye deede), for the Iewes dyd fyrste offre the pascall lambe in sacryfice, and af­terward Exo. 12. eate him, as Moyses te­stifieth, Therfore Christ dydde at hys laste supper offre hys bodye in sacrifice to his father, fyrst in a fygure offeryng the pascal lambe, and after that in very dede with­out a fygure, eatynge it hymselfe, [Page] and geuynge it to his apostles to eate also. The which is done day­lye of the preiste by his autorite, power and commission, as I haue declared already, and wyl declare hereafter more at large, by gods helpe, and grace. Saynt Ambrose Li [...]. 1. [...] Lucā dothe gather of Paules wordes, the first epistle, and y ^e fyfth chap­ter to the Corynthians, that christ is sacrificed by the preist at masse, for thus he saieth. Non dubites assistere angelum, quando Christus 1. Cor. 5. assistit, Christus immolatur. Ete­nim pascha nostrū immolatus est Christus. That is. Doute not the aungell to be here, syns that christ is here, Christ is offered in sacry­fyce. For our pascal, or our passeo­uer lambe christe is offered in sa­crifice. Paule doth opēly cōfirme this wryttyng to the Corynthiās the .x. chap. of y ^• first epistle, saieng [Page lxii] Vnus panis & vnum corpus multi sumus, oēs quidē de vno pane, & devno calice participamus. We be many one breade (saith Paule) & one body, sothely we take parte all of one bread & of one cup. The holy father & great clerke S. Au­sten thus writeth, Huius corporis To. 2. epist. 57. Dardano. caput est Christus, huius corporis vnitas nostro sacrificio significat̄. Q [...] br [...]uit significauit apostolꝰ dicēs. Vnus panis vnū corpꝰ multisumꝰ. 1. Cor. 10. That is. Christ is the head of this body, (the church) y ^e vnitie of this body is signified by our sacrifice. The which thing y ^e apostle Paule hath breifly signified, say­eng. We are many one bread, one body. Also in another place thus he saith, after he hath defined, and shewed what a sacrifice is. Hoc est To. 5. de ciui, dei lib. 10. Cap. [...]. sacrificiū christianorū, multi vnū corpꝰ sumꝰ in christo. quod etiā sacramēto altarꝭ fide libꝰ noto frequē tat [Page] ecclesia, vbi ei demonstratur, quod in ea oblatione, quam offert, ipsa offeratur. The englysshe is this. This is the sacrifice of chri­sten people, we many be one body in Christe, the which also y ^e church accustomely vseth with the sacra­mente of the aulter, knowen to the beleuynge people, where it is opē ­ly shewed to the churche, that in that sacrifice, which she doth offre she the same is offered. No man can desyre more playne wordes than these are, but yet I wyll pro­cede vpon a further proufe of this matter. Paule the tenth chapter of the firste epistle to the Coryn­thyans 1. Cor. 10. this writeth againe. Non potestis calicem domini bibere, et calicem daemoniorum. Non po­testis mensae domini participes es­se, & mensae daemoniorum. ye can not drynke of oure lordes cuppe, [Page lxiii] and the deuils, or yll spirites to. Paule put­tynge diffe­rēce betwixt the eaters & drynkers of oure lordes table, & thē that eate & drinke thinges offred ī sacrifice to the deuyls, doth meane that the bodye & bloud of Chryst is fyrst offred in sacrifice, as the meates and drinkes were to the ydolles, and then afterward receaued of vs Chrystē people.

Ye can not be partakers of oure lordes table, and the deuyls also, Here saint Paule reasoneth with the Corynthians to persuade thē, that they wold abstayne from the eatynge of meates offred in sacry­fice to the ydolles, and that with two very good reasōs, of the whi­che the fyrst is grounded vpon the wordes, whiche are here nexte be­fore rehersed out of this same epi­stle, and chapter, and it is this.

Lyke as they, whiche haue mutu­all participatiō in christe through the sacrifice of his flesshe & bloud, do entre into a certayne vnite w ^t him, Sēblaly they haue acertain vnite w ^t the idolles, by y ^e eatinge S. Paule comparing the bodye & bloudde of Chryste, to the meates of the gen­tyles offe­red in sacri­fice. dothe playnely nō bre the body and bloude of Christe, amonge thī ges offered in sacrifice. The same is proued by that that he calleth the lordes table the aulter, for none o­ther cause truely than he called the Iewes and gedtiles aultare a table of those thinges, which are offered them in sacryfyce. Nowe for as muche as euerye Chrysten harte doth or shuld abhorre to haue any [Page] vnitie with the deuyls or ydolles, it is mete that ye, whiche are chri­stened people, do forbeare eatyng of meates, offered in sacrifice to i­dolles. But that we are vnyted, or knytte to Christ, and haue with hym a certayne mutuall participation, thorough the sacrifice of hys flesshe and bloud, he sheweth by a similitude of the Iewes table vsed in the synagoge. For as the sacri­fice, which the carnall Iewes dyd offre, made them partakers of the aulter, lykewise the sacrifice, whi­che is offred either in the table of oure lorde, or elles of the deuyls, maketh the offerers partakers of christ, or of the diuels. Thoughe Paule dothe not call in this rea­son the body and bloud of christ a sacrifice, yet his wordes do shewe that he so ment, because he setteth the table, and cuppe of our lorde [Page lxiiii] christe, agaynst y ^e table and cuppe of the dyuels, sayenge. Non pote­stis calicem domini, &c. Ye can not drinke of the lordes cuppe, & so forth as is aboue rehersed. Therefore seyng the apostle doth calle that, whiche is offered in sa­crifice to the deuyls, the table, and August T 6. lib. 1. Ca 19. contra adu [...] sariū legis & proph. Paulus 1. Cor. [...]0. Di­cendo Calix, &c. ostendit ad (que) sadrifi­cium debeant pertiner [...]. cuppe of the deuyls, it muste ther­of folowe, that he mente by the cuppe, and table of our lorde, that thing which is offered in sacrifice vpō our lordes aulter, so y ^t this is y ^• sēse, ye cā not cate y ^t thing which is offred to god in sacrifice, & y ^• al­so which is offred in sacrifice to deuels, because y ^e light hath no felowship w ^t darknes (as he sayth in an other place) nor betwixt christ and y ^e deuil is any agreing. Wherfore it is manifest by saint Paule that 2. Cor. 6. the bodye and bloud of Christ is a sacrifice of the newe Testament, [Page] [...] [Page lxiiii] [...] [Page] or els, if they be not offred in sacrifice This declareth that s. Paule dyd gather of Chrystes wordes pronounced of hym at hys last supper, that he dyd offre his bodye then in sacrifice. at the masse, and then after­ward receyued of vs, howe shulde Paules comparison stande and take place, when he teacheth that the Corynthyans could not be to­gether partakers of thinges of­fred vp in sacrifice to god, and al­so to deuyls? Truely Chrisostome expoundynge this chapter dothe shew that saint Paule ment this, whose wordes are these, Ita (que) si cupis sanguinem, non imbue altare idolorum caede irrationalium, sed altare meum meo imbue sanguine That is, Therfore yf y ^u doest de­sire to haue bloud, do not y ^u spryn­cle the ydolles aulter with slaughter of vnreasonable beastes, but laye vpon my aultare my bloude, reade the chapter of the doctours sentences. Adde to this (good rea­der) that whiche saynt Paule wri­teth [Page lxv] the nexte chapter folowynge with these wordes, Quotienscū (que) enim ederitis, panem istum, & ca­licem istum biberitis, mortem do­mini annu [...]ciabitis, quoad vs (que) veniat. For as ofte as ye shall eate this bread & drinke of this cuppe, ye shall declare the lordes deathe tyll he come. These wordes doo shewe that the masse is a sacrifice as saynt Cyprian doth construe, Cyprianus li▪ 2. epist. 3. and take them, whyche thus saith vpon them, Et quia passionis eius mentionem in sacrificijs omnibus facimus (passio est enim domini sacrificium ꝙ offerimus) nihil aliud, (qui) quod ille fecit, facere debemus Scriptura enim dicit Quotienscū ­ (que) panem istum, &c. And because we make mention, or we remem­ [...]re christes death in all sacrifices [...]or that whiche we do offre is the [...]rdes death) we are bonde to do [Page] no other thinge than that whiche he hath doone. For the scripture sayth, as ofte as ye shall eate this bread. &c. Lo Cypryan did vnder­stande these Paules wordes spo­ken of makynge remembraunce of christes death, so that he affyr­meth, that we do make sacrifice in the masse, and therby is that remē braūce made of Christes passion & death. And that this holy martyr so dyd vnderstande saint Paules wordes, it doth playnly appere by his wordes streighte folowynge, which are these, Quotiēscū (que) ergo calicē in cōmemorationē dn̄i, & Cyprianus. passionis eius offerimus, id quod cōstar dn̄m fecisse, faciamꝰ. That is in our englysshe speache, thus muche to saye. Therfore as often as we do offre the cuppe in remembraunce of our lorde, & of his pas­sion, let vs do that, whiche it is e­uydent, [Page lxvi] that our lorde dyd. Doth not Cyprian here manifestlye af­fyrine that by the offering in sacrifice of christes bloud cōteined at y ^• masse in y ^• chalice, a remembraūce is made of Christes death, accor­dynge to his, & saint Paules commaūdement? but ye wil say to me, An obiectiō that S. Paule in this chapter maketh mention of eatynge, and drinkyng the body and bloud of christ and of the remembrynge of christ. & his passion therby, which thing is indifferēt to lay men, & preistes, and therefore Cypryan doth not well gether of Paules wordes here, that Christes deathe is remē bred by doyng sacrifice of y ^e priest at masse. To that I saye, that the The solu­tion. death, and passion of Christ, is re­membred by euery laye mannes, and womans housle or receyuyng [Page] of the blessed sacrament of thaul­ter, but more chiefly, more lyuelye, and expressely, by offeringe of his verye bodye, and bloude, in sacri­fice, whiche is done of the preist at his masse, than by that eatynge, lyke as the sacrificyng of the pas­chal, or passeouer lambe, did moch more expressely figure the deathe and sacrifice of our sauyour christ on the crosse, then to come, thā did the eatynge of hym, as no lerned man doth, or can doute, and there­fore although euery man, and wo­man receauynge the blessed sacra­mente of the aulter (whiche is the very bodye, and bloude of Christ, A booke made of the sacramente of thaulter. and not only a figure therof, as I haue declared in my boke made of that matter) dothe by that declare Christes death, and make a remē ­braunce of it, yet that notwithstā ­dynge, the preist in his masse, doth [Page lxvii] princypally make remembraunce of that christes death, and so saint Paules mynd was, that the preist in the masse, offeringe Christes fleshe and bloude in sacrifice, doth thereby especially remembre hys deathe, though he doth that secondarely in receiuing his body, and bloude, and the laye people do al­so the same. But ye wyll saye vnto me, that Christes institution, whē Math. [...]. Luc. 2 [...]. he bade his disciples to take, cate and drynke, and to do that for his remēbraunce, doth playnely shew that we do only remembre christes death in eatynge, and drinkinge his flesshe and bloude, and not by An obiectiō offering it in sacrifice, and there­fore saynt Paule mente no suche [...]hynge. Also saynte Paule hym [...]lfe sayeth, when ye shall eate [...]is breade, and drynke of this [...]ppe, ye shall shewe the lordes [Page] death, speakynge not one word of makyng sacrifice, and therfore he oughte not to be wrested in this place to the sacrifice of the masse. To that I aunswer, that Christ, & his scholer saynt Paule, dyd com­maund, The aun­swere. that when we do eate hys bodye, and drinke his bloude, we shulde haue his passion in remembraūce, or take thē to the remem­braūce of his death, but yet no mā ought, ne can if he wolde gether thereof, that to shewe the lordes death, is nothynge els but to eate, and drynke the Sacrament in re­membraunce of christes passion. For if a man do wel and diligent­ly considre, and pondre Chrystes wordes, when he saith. Hoc facite Luc. 2 [...]: 1. Cor. 11. in meam commemorationem, Do ye thys for my remembraunce, he shall see, that it is an other thinge to do that, whiche Chryste com­maunded [Page lxviii] the apostles to do, than onelye to make remembraunce of Chrystes death. For Chryst badde we shulde do that, whyche he dyd, to remembre his death. Now who knoweth not, that the thinge whi­che is done, and that, wherefore it is done, are not both one thing? But what neade so many wordes at this time, syth Paule sayth no­thinge agaynst the remēbrynge of christes death, by offring his body & bloude in sacrifice in the masse, but with it rather, as I haue de­clared by S. Cyprians iudgemēt and sayenge, and I haue proued already by diuers autorities both of the scrypture, and the holy doc­tours, that Chryste dyd offre his flesshe and bloude at his maundy to god his father in sacryfyce? Therefore I wyll recyte more of the scrypture, to proue that the [Page] holy masse instituted by Chryste our sauiour, is a sacrifice, appea­synge goddes displeasure, profitable both to the quicke, & also to the deade people. Whereby men maye perceyue howe moch Martin Lu­ter, Iohan Fryth, with dyuers o­ther were deceaued in this matter and namely a yonge man of this P [...]raenesis our countrey, in a boke sette forth in latyn, in the which he saith that the holye masse is set vp to the re­proche or iniurye of Christe, and that Paule, Peter, and Iohan do teache vs the same. The apostle Paule to the Hebrewes the fyfthe Chapter thus wryteth, Omnis pōtifex ex hominibus assumptus, pro hominibus constituitur in ijs, quae sunt ad deum, vt offerat do­na, & sacrificia pro peccatis. That is. Euery byshoppe or preist taken out of the nombre of men is ordeyned [Page lxix] for men in those thinges, whi­che This texte proueth that eyther ī our tyme of the newe testa­mente there is no preist­hode, which no good christen bodye wyl affirme or that there is a sacrifice pro­pre to it ad­uered to be offered for sinne which none can of fre vp but a preiste, and syth there is nor can be anye other suche sacri­fice but the masse, it must nedes folow that it is a sacrifice of the newe test­ment. do appertaine to god, that he sholde offre gyftes, and sacrifices for synne. This texte is manifeste agaynst Martin Luthers heresy, whiche is, that all Christen people are preistes, and that among chri­sten folke there is none rather a preiste than all other. For here Paule affirmeth, that a preist is e­lected, and chosen out of the multitude of the people, therfore some and certayne of the people are preistes, and not all the hole num­ber of them. Also he sayeth that a preist is ordeined, or instituted, for the multitude of Christen people, to offre gyftes, and sacrifices for theyr synnes, and therfore that is the preistes propre and chiefe of­fyce, so that it neyther dothe be­longe to the layte to vse that of­fice, nor the office of a preist is on­lye [Page] to preach, as some men vntru­ly do saye. Moreouer this place declareth playnly, that amonge chrysten people there are preistes, whose office is to offre giftes, as prayer & such other & also sacrifi­ces, as y ^e sacrifice of teaching y ^• holy word of god to the people, and chiefly the sacrifice of thaulter, the very body & bloud of our sauiour Christe Iesu, which offeryng, and sacrifice doth only appertaine to y ^• office of a preist, & to euery preiste indifferently, for amonge christen people there are certaine sacrifices belonging only to a preist, as preaching & offering sacrifice at masse, not only of prayer, prayse, & than­kes geuynge, but also, and princi­pally of the body & bloud of christ This letter of Paule. omnis ponti­fex. &c. can not be vnderstāde only of preist [...] after the ordre of Aaron, accor­dyng to the olde lawe, for Paule ꝓueth therewith, that christe whi­che was no suche preist hath neade of a sacry­fice moche more excel­lente than was euer a­ny other before hys tyme of the lawe there­fore yf that place shuld be vnder­stande only of preistes of Aarons ordre, it could make nothynge for Pau­les purpose vnder fourme of bread and wyne, wherein consysteth Christes continuall priesthode after the ordre of [Page lxx] Melchizedec (as it is already de­clared largely) and also in whiche euery preistes offyce dothe nowe stāde chiefely. Wherefore no man can well denye, but the masse is a sacrifice belongynge to preistes of christes ordre, and of the newe testamēt. This ment also s. Paule in the seuenth Chaptre of his epi­stle sent to the hebrewes, sayeng y ^t y ^• preisthode of Aarō is abolished, & put cleane away, & christes preisthode set in his romth, & place whi­che is after y ^t ordre not of Aarō, for after y ^t ordre Christ dyd ones for all offre him self a sacrifice to god his father, as Paule saith often to y ^• Heb. but after y ^e ordre of Melch. wherby sacrifice is offred vnder y ^e forme of bread & wine, in the sacramēt of thaulter. For in this point as I haue afore proued, resteth christes ꝓpetual & cōtinual preist­hode, [Page] & preistes office. Moreouer that the masse is a sacrifice, it may be proued by another text of saint Paule, in this same epistle to the Hebrues the .xiii. chapter, where he thus writeth. Habemus altare, de quo edere non habent potesta­tem, qui tabernaculo deseruiunt. We christen people haue an aul­ter, of the which they haue no po­wer, or auctoritie to eate, that do serue the tabernacle, that is, they Math 5: Cū offers. &c▪ sit mentio al­taris. &. 1. Cor. 9. whiche do put difference betwixte meate after Moyses law (anulled vtterly by Christes death) & kepe the ceremonies of that lawe, haue none auctoritie, nor power to eate of Christes breade, his very body Hebraei [...]ocāt altare. Misp [...] ­ach, &. 70. [...] ab oblatione. cōsecrated, and offered in sacrifice on the aulter, whiche we Christen folke haue sette vp in our temples For yf he had not ment thys, why shoulde he haue made any mentiō [Page lxxi] of an aulter, which is made for sa­crifice to be offred therupō to god? The masse therfore is a sacrifice, exercised on the aulter, for the continuall remembraunce of chrystes death, and blouddy sacrifice once offered vpon the crosse. The name which the greakes do geue thaul­ter, declareth that it is made for sacrifice, for they calle it [...] thysiasterium a [...], & [...] Thysia & Tireo hoc est, sacrificio, ho­stia, seu victima, & seruo, vel ani­maduerto, & perpendo, So that they name that an aulter where sacrifice is offred or kept, as amōge Christen people nowe is kepte al­waye the very bodye of our sauy­our in the boxe or pyxe hangynge vpon or ouer the aulter, and ther­fore euen the name of an aulter giuen to it by the greakes, whiche Paule dothe vse often, maye and [Page] doth muche proue that the masse 1. Cor. 9. Heb. 13. wont to be sayde on the aulter is a sacrifice, the whiche beyng ones abolyshed, as Martyn Luther, and his scolers goeth about to do but al in vayne, for it hath conti­nued synce chrystes maūdy (neuer spoken against til Martyn Luter came) and euer shall tyll the worl­des ende, accordynge to our sauy­ours Matt. vlt. Luc. 23. 1. Cor. 11: promise, though it shal cease almost wholly & amongest al nations, a fewe excepted, whan Anti­christ shall reigne the space of .iii. yeres & the half, as saint Danyell Dan. 7. & 12 writeth. This I say sacrifice done awaye (as it shall neuer be cleane tyl the worldes ende) or yf y ^e masse were no sacrifice in dede, (as Lu­ther and his adherentes falselye saye it is none) why shoulde than the aulter beare that hys name in the greake tungue? But nowe [Page lxxii] let vs se what the generall coun­cels, the presidēt, leader, and ruler wher [...]f was y ^• holy goost y ^• spirite Math. 16. Math. 18. of tru [...]h, as I wyll anon proue by gods grace, & therfore they erred not in their iudgemētes, & senten­ces, therein establyshed, inacted, & published by their auctoritie. But to y ^• matter, wherin I wil be short. The gene­rall coun­sayls. Our sauiour christ ꝓmised to his apostles, as we read y ^• .xviii. chap. of Matheus gospel, that he wold be in the myddes among thē, that being .ii. or .iii. were gathered together in his name, how moch rather hath he ben presente, where two hundred hathe ben assembled in his name, as hathe ben in the mooste parte of all generall coun­celles, and therefore they ney­ther erred in any weyghtye mat­ter belongynge to oure faythe, as this doth of the sacrifice of y ^• masse [Page] nor yet could erre, Christ the truth it selfe beynge theyr guyde, & lea­der. Also he promised to be wyth the churche euer tyll the worldes ende, as Matthew doth tell in the laste chapter, and to sende the ho­ly Matt. 28 gooste, the spirite of truth, to teache the churche all truthe necessary for christen people to knowe, Io. 16. and that the same shall alwaye, & for euer abyde wyth it, the whiche he hath vndoutedly perfourmed before Luthers byrth, and especy­ally to the generall councels representynge the whole churche, and congregation of christen people, so that they beynge lawfullye ga­thered together, and assembled, dyd not erre in the faith of Christ, nor yet coulde erre therein. Ther­fore yf it maye be proued that any suche counsayle hathe approued thys doctryne that the masse is a [Page lxxiii] sacrifice (as in deede manye hath done) it must neades be very true. Wherefore I wyll breifely shewe what some councels hath thought in this matter of the masse. The counsayle holden at the citie Ancyra Ancyrane counsayle. aboue twelue hundred yeares passed, whiche was before the coū ­sayle of Nycene, hath these wordes folowynge. Presbyteros immolan­tes videlicet idolis, & iterum lucta men adeuntes. &c. placuit honorē quidem sedis retinere, offerre au­tem illis non liceat. That is, We ordeine that preistes, which do of­fre sacrifice to ydols, & go againe to wresteling, shal retayne or kepe still, theyr dignitie, or promotion, but it maye not be lefull for them to offre. Lo this greate assemble of learned coūsaylers, dyd ordeine that preistes, whiche dyd make sa­crifice to ydolles, shulde not offre [Page] sacrifice to god, whiche must nea­des be vnderstande of the sacrifice of the masse, for asmuche as none other sacrifice was than, nor now is, propre to preistes. Also the coū ­sayle kepte at Laodicea a citie in [...] counsayl holden at Laodicea Cap. 58. Assia about twelue hundred yeres before this our tyme, this dyd in­acte. Non oportet oblationes in domibus ab episcopis, vel presbyteris offerri. It behoueth not sa­crifices to be offered of bysshops or preistes in houses. Who can denye, but this ordynaunce was made of the sacrificy of the masse? In lyke maner the counsell holdē Cap. 4. Affricane counsayle. in Affrica, at the which S. Austen was, doth declare by an ordynaū ­ce made of them therin assembled, that y ^e masse is a sacrifice, sayeng. In sacramētis corporis & sāguinis dn̄i nihil amplius offerat̄ (que) quod ipse dn̄s tradidit, hoc est, panis, & [Page lxxiiii] vinū aqua mixtū. That is to wyt. let nothinge more be offered in the sacramentes of our lordes bodye and bloud, thē that, which the lord hym selfe dyd teache, that is bread and wine, meddled w ^t water. Note Note thys reader. wel here, good reader, two thin­ges, whiche this acte conteyneth, the fyrst that the masse is a sacri­fice, because the bodye, and bloud of chryste is offered therein vnder the fourme of breadde and wyne myxed wyth water, the seconde, that oure lorde Christe Iesus dyd teache that nothynge elles, but breade and wyne, meddled with water shoulde be offered in sacri­fyce in the sacramente of our lor­des bodye and bloude, whyche doth well agree with Saynt Cy­pryans sayenge afore rehersed, so that this sacryfyce of the holye [Page] masse, & also what thinges shulde be offered therin, was instituted & ordeyned by christ. Furthermore marke, reader, that this counsell affirmeth, that wine is mixed with water in the chalice at masse, by christes teachynge, as dyd Cypry­an before that tyme longe, and yet there is no commaundemente in the scrypture to meddle wine with water at the masse, nor yet any one A truth not expressed in scripture. sentence to teache vs that thynge, and therefore they are farre deceaued (as I sayde afore) whiche de­fende that nothinge pleaseth god, whiche is not commaunded in the scripture to be done (as Martyn Luther sayth) and that there is no truth necessarye to be beleued of christen people, but that only, whi­che is expressely conteyned in scripture, the whiche howe false it is, I will declare in my boke of traditi­ons, [Page lxxv] whiche god wyllynge, shall [...] booke of traditions. be shortely put forth. But nowe to the counsayle, whiche was holden at Nicea a citie in Bithinia the yere of our lorde. 327. whiche thus Canone. 18 sayth. Peruenit ad sanctum conci­lium, ꝙ in locis quibusdam, & ciuitatibus, ptesbyteris diaconi sacra­menta porrigant. Hoc ne (que) regu­la, ne (que) consuetudo tradidit, vt ij, qui offerendi sacrificij non habent potestatem, ijs, qui offerunt, corpꝰ Christi porrigant. It came to the holy counsaile, that in certaine places and cities, the deacōs do geue to the preistes the sacramentes, whiche neither rule, nor custome, taughte, that they whiche haue no power or auctoritie to offre sacry­fyce, shulde gyue Christes bodye to them, whiche do offre. Doeste thou not heare (good reader) that this holy generall counsayle, whi­che [Page] is one of the foure, that saynte Gregorye sayde he estemed as the foure gospels, doth affyrme that the preistes do offre sacrifice, whi­che the deacons haue none autori­cie to do, because they are not prei­stes, and therefore thys was spo­ken of the sacrifice of the masse onlye, for all other sacrifices the dea­cons maye offre? Who wyl not rather geue credence to this coūsaile & so many learned men therin assē ­bled, by the holy ghoost, as saynt Gregorie Nazianzene Ieromes maister saith oratiōe .xviii, affir­mynge thus plainely the masse to be a sacrifice, rather then to Mar­tyn Luther, with all the rablemēt, of that sorte, whyche hauinge no groūde to leaue to, but scrypture wrested from the ryght meanynge of it, into a wrōge sence, do affirme the contrarye? Also the same coun­sayle [Page lxxvi] thus hathe agayne. Genera­liter autem cuilibet in exitu po­sito, & poscenti sibi communionis Cap. 13. gratiā tribui, episcopus probabili­ter ex oblatione dare debebit. But y ^• Byshop wisely oughte to geue to euery mā at his departyng here hence, & desyrynge the grace of cō ­munyon to be giuen him, the sacrifice. But nowe to the fyrste coūsel of Ephesus, whereat saynte Cy­ryll was, almoste twelue hun­dred yeres passed, wyth two hun­dred byshoppes assembled, whiche Iu epistola ad Nestorium. thus hath. Nos annuntiantes mortē fili dei, id est Iesu Christi, & re­surrectionē eius, & in coelos ascensionem pariter confitentes incru­entā celebramus in Ecclesiasticis sacrificijs seruitutem, sic etiam ad mysticas benedictiones ac­cedimus, & sanctificamur parti­cipes facti corporis, & praeciosi [Page] sanguinis Christi, non vt communem carnem percipientes, ꝙ ab­sit, nec vt viri sancti facti, & verbo coniūcti, sicut dignitatis vnita­tem, aut sicut diuinam possidentes habitationem, sed vt vere viuifi­catricem, & ipsius verbi propriam factam. That is. We declaringe the sonne of goddes death, Iesu Chryste, and confessinge his resurrection, and also his assension, in to the heauens, do celebrate a ser­uyce, or an honouringe, vnbloud­dye, or without bloude sheddynge in the sacrifices of the church. Al­so we so come to the mysticall bles­synges (the consecration) and are halowed, or made holye, or cleane, beynge made partakers of Chri­stes bodye, and preciouse bloude, not receauyng it as common flesh (whiche god forbydde) nor as of a man made holy, and ioyned to the [Page lxxvii] worde, as a vnitie of dygnitie, or as possessyng a godly habitation, but as flessh verelye geuyng lyfe, and made propre to the word, that is the sonne of god. Doest thou not see here (good chrysten reader) that this greate counsayle of two hondred byshoppes, amonge the whyche saynt Cyrille was heade and chiefe, doth call y ^e seruice done of the preistes at masse, a seruyce Obserue this well reader. vnbloudye in the sacrifices of the churche? can that be otherwise ta­ken, thā of the sacrifice of y ^e masse, wherein the preiste serueth and honoureth god by offerynge to hym in sacryfice the verye bodye and bloude of his sonne Christe Iesu without bloud sheddynge, vnder the fourme of breade and wyne? Heb. 9. &. 1 [...]. Christe on the crosse ones offered him selfe a blouddye sacrifice to god for our synnes, and is not af­ter [Page] that forte by his bloude shed­dyng offered in the masse, because he can dye no moore, as Paule saythe to the Ramaynes the syxte chapter, yet that notwythstan­dynge, Christ ones offered vp­pon the cros is daylye offered at masse. he is daylye offered in the masse withoute bloude sheddynge as thys holye counsayle sayethe, and al the wrytters vpon the scripture, bothe latins, and grekes spe­cially. This counsayle moreouer affyrmeth in theyr epystle sente to Nestorius the heretique, that the worthy receauers of Christes blessed The masse is a sacry­fyce propitiatorye. bodye and bloude are made holye, or cleane thereby, and therfore the masse is a sacryfyce not of prayse onelye, but also of appea­synge goddes wrath, and purcha­synge to vs cleannes, or holynes. Fynallye it is to be noted diligently, that this great assemble of ler­ned [Page lxxviii] byshoppes calleth Chrystes flesshe. Viuificatricem, that is, the gyuer of lyfe, and that whiche ge­ueth lyfe to them, whiche lefullye and purelye do receaue it, the whiche declarethe, that Chryste sayenge, Caro non prodest quic­quam, Io: 6. the flesh profiteth nothing, dydde not meane that hys flesshe worthelye receaued vnder fourme what christ ment saieng the flesshe profytethe nothynge. of breade in the holye Sacra­mente dothe profytte nothynge, as the heretyques do expounde it, but that the Iewes carnall vnderstandynge hys wordes spo­ken of the eatynge of his flessh, whereby they thoughte he mente they shoulde eate it rawe, bloud­dy, or sodden, cutte out in peeces, as meate is wonte to be solde in the shambelles, shulde profit no­thyng, as bothe Saynt Austen & [Page] Cyryllus also doth expounde that wordes of Christ in Iohan, y ^e flesh ꝓfiteth nothyng, or els christ ment that his flesshe of it selfe withoute the spirite ioyned to it, and y ^e god­hede, as the Iewes beleued it was not, but onely the flesshe of a pure man, & not of him which was very god & mā could profyt nothīg, but A booke of the sacra­ment of the aulter. of this text I haue spokē at large in my boke of the sacrament of the aulter, therfore nowe I wyll passeouer it whiche I haue touched by the waye, takynge an occasion of this holy counsailes wordes, affirmynge christes blessed flesshe, be­ynge ioyned with the godhead, to gyue man lyfe, when it is worthe­lye receaued of hym in the sacra­mente of the aulter. Nowe to go forwarde, I wyll reherse the wor­des of a counsell holden at Neo­cēsaria, Cano .vli. whych are these, Presbyteri [Page lxxix] ruris in ecclesia Ciuitatis epis­copo praesente, vel praesbyteris vrbis ipsius, offerre non possunt, nec panem sanctificatum dare, calicē ­ (que) porrigere. That is. Preistes of the countrey, or that dwell out of the citie, may not offre in y ^e church nor geue the breade halowed, and the cuppe, the bysshoppe beynge present, or the preistes of the same citie. Here is euident mentiō made of the preistes offerynge sacrifice vnder the fourme of bread and al­so of wyne conteined in the chalice This hathe in fewe wordes the counsaile kept at Laodicea, a citie The coun­sel kepte at Laodice [...]. in Asia, sayenge, Tunc Laici sibi tribuent, & ita sancta celebrabitur ob latio. that is to witte. Than the laye men shall geue to them selfe peace (by kyssyng the paxe), and so the holy offeringe, or sacrifice shal be celebrate. What man wyll, or [Page] can, yf he wolde neuer so gladlye, denye that this was spoken of the sacrifice of the masse? Seing ther­fore, good reader, that not onelye fygures of the olde testament, the holye prophetes, and dyuers tex­tes of the newe testamente wyth the expositions of the eldeste, and greateste learned doctoures, but also these generall counsayles, and dyuers other, whiche were ledde, and guided with CHRI­STES presence, and the ho­lye ghostes alsoo, haue thus playnely, and strongelye sette vp, and establyshed the sacryfyce of the masse, ageynste the whyche no man dydde speake, or wryte by the space of .xv. hundred yeres, whan Martyn Luther began to barke agaynste it, as the dogges are wonte to barke at the lyghte of [Page lxxx] the moone in the nyght, geue thou rather stedfaste credence vnto all those wytnesses approuynge, yea prouynge the masse to be a sacri­fyce, than to Martyn Luther lu­tynge out of tewne. Now though Luther In­teth oute of tewne. this whyche is alreadye wrytten in thys booke were ynoughe, and sufficiente, too persuade euerye man, not wedded to his opinion, to beleue that the masse is a sacri­fyce, appeasynge goddes wrathe towardes man, yet to stoppe all bablers mouthes, I wyll goo further in thys matter, and shewe what the holye apostelles haue doone, touchynge this thynge be­fore whome CHRISTE made hys maundy, and to whom he gaue power, autoritye, and al­so commaundemente, to offre hys bodye and bloudde in sacryfyce, [Page] as he hadde done him selfe before, Luc. 2 [...]: 1. Cor. 11. sayenge to them. Hoc facite in meam cōmemorationem. Do ye this in remembraunce of me. These disciples of Christ did make certaine Canons, or rules for the instructi­on of Christen people, the whyche saint Clement, the apostle Pau­les company on in preachinge the gospell, dyd gather together, and put them in writinge, as Damas­cene Lib. 4. ca. 18. saith, whiche dyd so greatly esteme, and regarde the same ru­les, that he dyd numbre, and re­herse them amonge the bookes of goddes holye worde, and therfore their wordes ought to be without al dout beleued. They thus write, Si quis episcopusvel presbyter p̄ ­ter Canone. 3. ordinationē domini, alià quedā in sacrificio offerat super altare, id est, aut mel, aut lac, aut pro vino siceram &c. contra cōstitutionem [Page lxxxi] domini faciēs, deponatur congruo tempore, If any bysshoppe, or prieste do offre vpon the aulter in Note rea­der the holy apostles iudgementē in this matter sacrifice certen other thynges be­syde ouer or aboue the lordes ordinaunce, that is to wyt, either hony or mylke, or in stede of wyne, drink made of corne or fruites, doynge against oure lordes ordynaunce, let him be deposed in a mete tyme. Lo the holye apostles of Christe, whiche learned the gospell of him, and reaceaued the holye ghost, the spirite of truth, teaching al trouth The masse is a sacry­ficeinstitute by Chryst. to them, do playnely affirme, that the masse sayde of the preiste, is a sacrifice, of chrystes owne institu­tion, and ordinaunce. Dydde not they knowe the truthe (supposest thou good reader) better thē Martyn Luther or any of his scoole? Heare what Tertulian wryt with in clxxx. yeares of chryste sayenge Tertul. de praescri. [Page] Veritas illis adiudicanda est▪ qui in ea regula in cedunt, quam eccle­siae ab apostolis, apostoli a Christo Christus a deo accepit. That is, the truth must be adiudged to thē whiche do walke in that rule, whi­che the churches or congregatiōs of the faithfull, haue receaued of the apostles, the apostles of christ, Christe of God, but the churches dydde receaue this doctrine, cōcernynge the sacrifice of the masse, of the apostelles, as Saynt Ire­neus testyfyeth, whose wordes are Lib. 4. Ca. 32. rehersed before, and here the same doth also appeare playnelye by thys canon, or rule made of them, therefore the churches of Chryste, haue the truthe on theyr syde, whiche do go in this the apostles cannon, or rule sette forth for that verye same thynge. But yet ones [Page lxxxii] more lette vs se what the apostles haue sayde in this matter, which thus doth speake. Si quis episco­pus, Canone. 2. aut presbyter, aut diaconus, aut quilibet ex sacer dotali cata­logo, facta oblatione non communicauerit, aut dicat causam, vt si fuerit rationabilis ueniam consequa­tur, aut si non dixerit communione priuetur, tanquam quipopulo causa laesionis extiterit, dans su­spicionem de eo, qui sacrifica­nerit, quod non recte obtulerit. That is in oure englysh tongue. If anye Bysshoppe, or preiste, or deacon, or who thou wylte of the numbre of preistes, or spiry­tuall men, shall not receaue his housle, whan the sacryfyce is offered, eyther lette hym tell the cause thereof, that yf it be reasonable, he maye gette [Page] pardon, or yf he do not shewe the cause wherfore he dyd not receaue his communion at masse, let hym not haue his housell lyke as he, which gaue an occasiō of harme or hurte to the people, geuyng to thē a suspicion of him, which dyd offre sacrifice y ^t he did not offre or make sacrifice well ynoughe, or after a ryght fasshyon. Hytherto the apo­stles of our sauiour christ in theyr boke of canons, or rules, whose wordes are so playne, & clere vp­pon oure syde, agaynst Marten Luther, and his scholers, that no­thyng can be more plaine. Ther­fore let Luther go wyth his fon­de wycked, & dyuelly she heresye agaynst the sacrifice of the masse (good Christen reader) & folowe christes, and his holye apostles Doctryne, so clerely makynge for this truth. Moreouer. s. Audrew, [Page lxxxiii] one of the apostels, dyd offre chri­stes Saynt An­drewe at masse offred sacrifice. bodye in sacrifice at his masse as he sayde hym selfe to Aegeas the tyraunt Philaletus testifieng that wrytting the apostles lyues, whose wordes are these. Ego om­nipotenti deo omni die sacrifico, non thuris fumum, nec hircorum, aut tautorum sanguinem, sed im­maculatum agnum quotidie in al­tari sacrifico. I do (sayth he) make sacrifice euery day to god almightye, not offering in sacrifice smoke of Frankynsence, nor the bloud of goates, or of bulles, but I offre in sacrifice daylye on the aultare the vndefyled lambe. Be not these manifest wordes, and inough to satisfye euery man, beynge not ouer moche geuen to the blynde errour of Luther? Saynt Clement, whi­che S. Clemēt. was a companion of Paules in teachyng the gospell of Chryste [Page] vsed this fourme (as Bassario te­stifieth) when he dydde saye masse Rogamus ut mittas domme spiri­tum Basssario libri de sacramen­to altaris. sanctum tuum super hoc sacrificiū, qui efficiat hunc panem corpus Christi tui, & quod in calice, est, sanguinē filij tui. That is. We beseche the o lorde to sende thy ho­ly spirite vpon this sacrifice, whi­che maye make this breade the bo­dye Saint Cle­ment Pau­les compa­nyon ma­keth mention of th [...] masse, as we reade in the .lxxiii. canon & there­fore it is no new thinge as Luther sayth it is. of thy christe, or annoynted, & that thynge which is in the cuppe or chalyce, the bloud of thy sonne. Here we se that saint Clemēt, whi­che was instructed by the apo­stels in Christes faith, & religion, toke the masse to be a sacrifice. Whether is he more of credence or Martyn Luther? Nowe t [...] make ones an ende of the prouynge the truth, I wyll reherse the auncient doctours sayenges in this matter and that done, I wyll aunswere [Page lxxxiii] to the scriptures wrested frō their true sense to the mayntenaunce of this heresy by Martyn Luther & his scholers.

¶ What the doctours haue said in the matter of the sacrifice of the masse, here it appeareth euident­ly, Interroga obsecro genera­tionem pristi­nam & prae­parate ad in­uestigationē yatrumtuorū Iob. 8. and also that we ought to beleue them agre­mge together in any thynge touchyng our faith, for because than they erre not.

THe scripture is very hard to be per­ceiued, Ne transferas termin [...]s an­tiquos, quos fecerunt pa­tres. prou [...]. 23 as s. Peter saith in his second epystle, though it seme or be iudged neuer so plaine and easye to some men, whiche in verye dede are not [Page] learned therein, and therfore it is not conuement that euery man do vnderstande it, after his owne fansie, for that hath bene, and yet is, the cause of many errours, but we The scrip­ture is hard to be vnderstande, and the true sense of it must be learned of the holy doc­tours. muste leaue, and cleaue to the aunciente doctors expositions made, and publisshed therevpon. For as god chose them to be doctors, and teachers of his worde, and gaue to thē his holy spirite (which now these dayes many do arrogantly callenge but vntruely) euē so they dyd spende theyr tyme whollye in praier, and studieng the scripture, that thereby they myghte atteyne the true sense thereof. But ye will saye to me, as many fonde people are wont to say, may not god now giue to men the spirite of truth, as he dyd to the apostles, or els to the doctours of the church? Is he not nowe both as stronge, that he can [Page lxxxv] do it, and also as kynde and libe­rall, that he wyll do it, as he was before our tyme? To that blynde reasons I aunswere that god can do it if he lyst, but he can do many and sundrye thynges, whiche he wyll neuer do. For he can make this man a kynge, reysynge hym (as Dauyd sayeth) a poore man, from the donge hill, and that man a byshoppe, whiche he wyll neuer do. The thinges whiche he doth are euer done in a semely ordre, as Paule affirmeth. Nowe an ordre Rom. 13. requireth, that in Christes church some shulde be teachers, and some learners, some maisters, and some scholers, as in mannes bodye, to the whiche Paule compared the 1. Cor. 12. churche, some membres haue one office, and workynge, and some an other, and not all one office. The eyes do se, the eares heare, so the [Page] doctours seyng the truth do teach, and the learners doo heare theyr lessons. Therefore god made not Saint Ia­mes the thirde chapter exhorteth men not to coue [...]te the office of a teacher for the danger therof, Math. 15. all men indifferently doctours, as nowe men wolde be, foule decea­uynge both themselues, and also many other, while they beynge blynde, do leade the blynde, and falle thereby bothe together in to the denne of erroure, and damna­cion, but (as Paule saith) he gaue to the instructynge of hys people some apostelles, some prophettes, some euangelystes, some shepe­herdes, and some doctours, and therefore our sauiour sayd to hys disciples: Vobis datū est nosse mysteriū regni dei. It is geuē, not to Luc. 8. all men, but to you to knowe the mysteries or secretes of the scryp­ture, the knoweledge of the whi­che is the keye of heauen gates. Dydde not god appoynte Esdras [Page lxxxvi] to teache the lawe to the people, as we reade in the scrypture, whi­che sayth. Esdras interpretatus est eis verba legis. Esdras dydde ex­pounde to them the wordes of the law. Paule wrotte his epystles to the bysshoppes, that they shoulde declare them to the people vnlearned. All sortes of meates are not Vide Gregoir Nazianze. in apologetico. meete for all ages of folke. Milke is good for chylderne, stronger meates for yonge lustye men, moyster meates are beste for a­ged men, whyche are drye of com­plexion, 1. Cor. 3. in lyke maner all men are not apte and meete to seede on all the scripture indyfferentlye, but Heb. 5. those onelye, whiche haue good wyttes and haue spent theyr stu­dye therin by gods callyng. Now it is true, the moore pitie, that Saynte Hierome. wrytte in an [Page] epistle to his frende Paulyne, complaynynge lamentably of the vn­reuerent handlynge of scrypture. Hierom epi­stola. [...]8: Saynt Clement sayth the seconde boke to S. Iames, the law of god can not be vnderstand withoute a teach [...]r. Note good reader the vnreuerent handl [...]g of scriptu [...], Thus he sayth. The husband mē, morter makers, smythes, cutters of woode, woull men also, and ful­lers, and other diuers craftes mē, abs (que) doctore esse nō possūt, quod cupiunt, without a teacher can not be that whiche they couette to be, that is, cunnynge in theyr craftes. Quod medicorum est, promittū [...] medici, tractant fabrilia fabri. Sola scripturarum ar [...] est, quam omnes passim vendicant, hanc garrula a­nus, hanc del [...]rus senex, hanc so­phista verbosus, hanc vniuersi praesumunt, lacerant, docent, ante (que) discunt. In englyshe. The phisiti­ons do promyse that, whiche doth appertayne to them, the smythes or craftes men, whiche worke with the hande, do handle, or exercyse [Page lxxxvii] thynges belongynge to hādycraf­tes men or smythes. Onelye the craftes of scrypture is, whiche all men indifferently do clayme, this the bablynge olde wyfe, this the dotynge olde man, this the sophi­ster full of wordes, this all men do arrogantlye take vpon them to know, they rent it in peces, or geue to it many woundes, they teache it afore they learned it. This wrote saint Ierom against men, & womē of his time, whiche dyd arrogant­ly, and vnreuerently handle gods holy word, but what wold he now saye (thinkeste thou good reader) If he were lyuynge at this tyme, whan men and women are in this matter so fautye, as they neuer haue bene heretofore? wolde no [...] he greatly lament, & bewaile this our wonderfull blyndnes, and de­testable presumption, whereby we [Page] neyther by shame, nor yet by feare do forbeare to clayme vnto vs the knowledge of the scriptures, whiche we neuer studied, or els but very lytell, yea we stycke not to cal­lenge to vs the holy goost, the spi­rite of truth, cōparyng our selues therein with the apostles of christ, whiche anone became teachers of the gospell, beynge fyshers rude and vnlearned a litle before This Such flatterynge prea­chers whom Saint Gragorye Nazianzene Ie­roms may­ster calleth euentriloquos that is speakers of the belye, beca [...] se in al th [...]ir words m [...]y prouide for the b [...]lye. is a straunge fondnes, and a mar­ueilous presumption, our lorde a­mende it. Some preachers haue not ben ashamed in their sermons to brynge the lay people into this fooles paradise, praysyng their cū nyng in the scriptures, which they neuer vnderstode them selues, but they studie to please theyr hearers and seinge their eares itche, they clawe them and with pleasaunte saienges they deceaue y ^e innocētes [Page lxxxviii] hartes. But I will recyte a lytle more of saynt Ieroms wordes out of the saide epistle, which thus writeth: Alij adducto supercilio gran­dia verba trutinantes, inter mulier culas de sacris literis philosophantur. Other wayenge, examinynge or iudgyng with a stately, or a lourynge countenaunce greate wor­des, doo reason lyke studentes of wysedome amonge women of the holy scripture. Was this at anye tyme truer (good reader) then it is euen nowe in our dayes? yet Ie­rome goth on sayeng. Alij discūt (proh pudor) à faeminis quod doce ātviros, et ne parū hoc sit, qua dā facilitate [...]borū immo audacia edis­serūt women do teache men, and men o­ther that, which they vnderstand not them selues. alijs, quod ipsi nō intelligūt. Other lerne (alas for shame fast­nes) of women, y ^t which they shold teach mē, & lest that myght be a ly­tle, they declare to other w ^t a certē easynes, or lightenes of wordes, [Page] yea rather with boldenes, or tru­stynge well in them selues, that thynge, whiche they them selues vnderstand not? Do not men euen so nowe amonge vs, whome wo­men arrogantelye do teache, and men also that thynge whiche they do not perceaue them selues? Saynt Gregory Ieroms maister sayth, all suche men are touched in the common prouerbe, In dolio discere artem figuli, hoc est in periculo animarū doctrinam discere pie­tatis. To lerne a potters crafte in a tunne, pype, butte, or a hogges heade, that is, in the daunger of soules to learne the doctryne of the knowledge of god. Hytherto that saynt, playnlye reprouynge As I of kēt many men of our tyme. Some women can say moche of the scripture without the boke, but they vnder­stande almoost no worde therof. [Page lxxxix] They are not ashamed (suche is their shameles pride, and impudēt arrogācy) to boast that they haue ouercome, and confounded euen the doctours of diuinitie by reasonynge in scripture, whan in deede they do but bable without lerning and all reason, yf they meete with any cunnynge man therin, whiche I my selfe haue often times pro­ued true. Let thē beware of gods curse, whiche he threteneth to all suche by his prophet. sayenge. Esa. 5. Vae qui sapientes estis in oculis vestris, & corā vobismetipsis pru­dentes. Cursed be you whiche are wyse in your owne sighte, and po­lytike before youre owne selues. Doth not this gods curse touche them, whiche do thinke that their wittes. and learning doth farre excell As Lather [...]oth, & hys scholers. the wittes, & lerning of al y ^• aū cient wryters, and do folowe their [Page] owne fonde fantasie, and leude dreames in construynge, and vn­derstandynge goddes holy worde rather thē the olde writers? Saint Basyle & saint Gregory Ieromes maister were not so proude, and arrogant as those nowe be. For they beynge very excellently well lerned in the tongues, in logicke, thetorike, philosophie, and diuers other sciences, sought the vnder­standynge of the scripture oute of their elders bokes, as the historie Lib 1 [...]. cap. 9▪ of Eusebius doth reherse sayeng, They gaue their studye to holy scripture, not folowing their own Scripture must be learned of the doctours. presūptiō, but y ^e writinges of their aūcetours, & their autoritie to vn­derstand y ^e same, which it was eui­dent to haue reaceaued the rule to perceaue y ^e scripture of thapostels and their successours. Contrary to this men doo in these miserable [Page xc] dayes, of their owne heades & wittes, thinking to vnderstand gods word, as did the heretike Aetius, Triper. Histo. li. 5 Cap. 45. saienge y ^t god had opened to hym those thinges, whiche he hyd from his apostels, as the storie maketh mention. Doth not euen so at this our time Martin Luther, and his scholers, whiche deny the masse to be a sacrifice, whan the apostles taughte the cleane contrary, as I haue afore declared largely? S. Dioni lib. de caelesti hie­rarchia. Ca. I, Dionise Paules scholer, teacheth vs an other lesson, how we shulde study scripture, & whom we shuld folow in y ^e vnderstādyng of it, his wordes are these. Ad sāctissimarū scripturarū intelligentias, prout illas a patribus accepimus, contu­endas pro viribus pergamus. Lette vs procede to loke on the vnderstandynge of the moost ho­ly scriptures, accordynge to oure [Page] strengthe, or power, as we haue harde, or receaued of y ^e elders. Do we not here see, that this father, whiche was a greate philosopher, and verye well learned in dyuers knowledges afore he was conuerted by saint Paule, & was taught the fayth by hym, wolde not pre­sume to studye the scripture with­out the doctours, and elders bo­kes, whiche he studied to vnder­stande it? Therefore if thou wilte study y ^e scripture to profyt therein reade saint Austens bokes, sainte Ieromes, Chrisostoms, Ambroses Cyprians, and suche other, whiche do sincerely, truely and catholykely expownde the scriptures to the auauncinge of the truth, and the thrustynge downe of errours, and heresie. Preistes of Cesarea cappa docie coulde not be persuaded to leaue the faith, Q [...] eis suffecerint [Page xci] ad vtilitatem sui antiquae patrum narrationes, & velut quaedam tur­res murum fidei indeclinabilem Triper. Histo. li. 7 Cap. [...]6. seruauerunt, Bycause the aunciēt expositions of the fathers sufficed them to their proffitte, and dydde kepe, lyke as certaine towers, the wall of faith vpright. And where men saie y ^t god is as lyberall now as he was in the apostles tyme to them, and therefore he can geue euen nowe also the holye ghost to euery man, and woman, for the vnderstandynge of his worde y ^e scripture. I graunte that god is nowe as lyberall in dede as he was thā, but yet thervpon it foloweth not that he dothe nowe geue the spi­rite of knoweledge in the holye scripture without all laboure and why god did geue to fys­shers his holy spirite to vnderstand the scripture studye as he then dydde to his a­postles, to confounde the greate clerkes, and lerned men by the simple, [Page] and vnlearned fysshers, and by ther teachyng to conuert to the faith the hole world, that thereby his almighty power might be knowen, his blessed name glorified, & the vertue of his sonnes deathe christ our sauiour estemed y ^• cause (as in dede it was) of that so great a myracle. This, I saye, was the cause whye at the begynnynge of christes religion and fayth, rude fysshers hadde geuen them suche knoweledge in the scripture with­out all labour, and study geuen to it of their partes. God thē shewed hys greate lyberalytye, in feading fyue thousande men, besyde wo­men and chyldren, with fiue barly Io. 6. loues, and two fysshes, as sainte Iohan testyfyeth, but shal we therfore loke for anye lyke thinge now in oure dayes? Chryste at that [Page xcii] tyme dydde worke dyuers myra­cles, whych he worketh not at this tyme, nor neuer wyll hereafter. He is therein lyke to one that plan­tethe yonge trees, or setteth her­bes, whyche while they be tendre, and yonge, not yet well rooted in the earthe, he often watereth, but after they are growen vp, and haue taken well rootes, than he ceassethe waterynge them, so christ A similitude oure sauyoure, when he planted the faythe at the fyrste, dydde wa­ter it wyth sundrye, and dyuerse myracles, and whan he sawe it well, and surelye rooted in mens hartes, than he lefte waterynge it with myracles. Therefore let vs not looke to receaue the holye goost to teache vs the scryptures, and the vnderstandynge of them wythoute oure studye, and labour [Page] as the apostles ones dydde by mi­racle, for the cōuersion of y ^e worlde to the faith, but let vs learne it of the holy doctours, and of the prei­stes, which are learned, and whose office it is to teache the vnlearned multitude, as witnesseth the holy prophet Malachias saieng. Labia Malach. 2. sacerdotis custodiunt scientiam, & legem requirent ex ore eius, quia angelus domini exercituum est. That is. The preistes lyppes do kepe cunnynge, and the laye people shall often seke, or demaūd of his mouth the lawe, for asmuch as he is the messanger of the lorde of hostes, that is of aungels, whi­che are called the hoostes of hea­uen. Aeto. 20. Heb. 13. He is sent by goddes assigne­ment to teache the vnlearned, and doth take charge of theyr soules, as the scripture in manye places wytnesseth. Nowe I wyll shewe [Page xciii] the holy doctours myndes in this our cōtrouersye, sens we ought to folowe their iudgement in the vnderstandynge of the scriptures, as I haue nowe declared, that by thē we maye perceaue which doctrine is true, and catholique, and which is false, and hereticall. I wyll yet recite here but a certaine of y ^e most auncient, and eldest writers on the scripture, for the yongest almost The olde doctours sayeuges. of thē shal be about nyne hundred yeres olde, because men saye that the sacrifice of the masse was inuē ted of late, and set vp by preistes coueteousnes for lucre, that they maye se theyr folye, and forsake it in tyme, leaste it at the length (as it must neades) brynge them to vtter confusion, in bodye, and soule. But to the rehersal of the olde writers in this matter, amonge the whiche Theophilactus shall occupy [Page] the first place, sayeng: Quaere [...] Theophilac. In Heb, 10 aliquis, num & ipsi sine sanguine immolamus? Ita quidem, sed Chri­sti tunc reminiscimur obitus, & v­na nobis est immolatio, nō multae, quandoquidem est & ille semel oblatus, eundem enim semper of­ferimus, vnus est enim sanguis, & semel effusus. Vnum est corpus nō multa, (qui)uis fuerit pro multis obla­tum, & item vna est, quae offertur, hostia. Hanc nam (que) semper ut praesentem offerimus. That is. Some body wyl demaunde wether we do sacrifice without bloud or no? we do so surely, but then we remembre Christes death, and we haue one sacrifice, not manye, for as moche as Christe also hath bene ones of­fered in sacryfyce, for we offre al­waye the sam [...], the bloude is one, & shedde ones. The body is one, not many, thoughe it bathe bene [Page xciiii] offered vp in sacryfyce for manye, and also the hoste is one, which is offred. For we alwaye offre that same as present, hitherto Theoph. No man can desire playner wor­des than these are, of this greate clerke, to proue that the masse is a sacrifice. Rupert also confirmethe this, saieng. Quotidie in altari sancto Lib. 1. comēt. in Dani. ca. 14. oblationes eius, sacrū celebra­mus mysteriū. We do daiely cele­brate in the holy aulter the holye mystery or sacramēt, y ^• sacrifices of christ, Fulgentius whiche was a­boue a M. yeres sence agreeth w ^t Fulgentius li. 2. ad Monimū this verity, saieng. Dicis te a non­nullis īterrogatū de sacrificio cor­poris & sāguinis χρι, quod pleri (que) soli patri existimāt immolari, cū ad patrē litātis destinatur intentio, sa­crificij munus omni trinitati, vno eodē (que) offertur litātis officio. That is in our language. Thou sayeste, that y ^u was asked of some [Page] men of the sacrifice of the bodye & bloude of christ, whiche manye do iudge to be offred in sacrifice only to the father, whan the intente of him, whiche pleaseth god with sa­crifice, is appointed to the father, the gyfte of sacrifice is offered to the hole trinitie, with one, & the sa­me office of him, which obtayneth his desire of god by sacrifice. Also he aunsweringe to the thirde que­stion proposed to him by his frēde Monimꝰ, sayth thus. Thou doest aske, yf the sacrifice be offered to y ^• whole trinitie, wherefore the sen­dynge onelye of the holye goost is desyred to sacrifice, or consecrate y ^• gyfte of our sacrifice? As verelye (that I so may say) god the father hym selfe, from whome the holye goost procedeth, coulde not halow the sacrifice offred to hym, or the sonne hymselfe coulde not make [Page xcv] holye the sacrifice of his body, the whiche he offered to raunsom vs, or els that the holye goost shulde so be sente to consecrate the chur­ches sacrifice, as the father and y ^e sonne were not presente, helpinge them, whiche do offre sacrifice. At the length he concluding this matter thus writeth. Quando aūt congruentius ad consecrandum sacri­ficium corporis Christi sācta ecclesia (quae est corpus eius) sancti spi­ritus deposcat aduentum? Aedifi­catio Marke this reader. spiritualis opportunius nun­ (que) petitur, (qui) cum ab ipso Christi corpore (quod est ecclesia) in sa­cramento panis ac calicis ipsum Christi corpus & sanguis offertur. Calix enim, quem bibimus, com­municatio 1. Cor. 10. sanguis Christi est, & panis, quem frangimns, participa­ [...]io corporis domini est, vt ait apo­stolus. That is. But whan maye [Page] the holy church (which is Christes body) more conueniently aske the holy gostes cōming to consecrate the sacrifice of christes body? A spirituall edifienge is neuer desired in duer time, than when the same Christes bodye and bloude is of­fered in sacrifice, of that his bodye (whiche is the church) in the sacramente of breade and wyne. For the cuppe of whiche we do drynke, is 1. Cor. 10. the communion of christes bloude and the breade, that we breake, is the partetakynge of oure lordes bodye. Hytherto this holye father Fulgentius, whole wordes are as manyfeste for the sacryfice of the masse, as they can be, therefore I wyll speake no more of them, but 1. Ambrose l0 1. offi. ca. 41: reherse saint Ambrose iudgement, that was aboue eleuen hundred yeres synce, whiche this hathe, re­hersyng saint Laurences wordes [Page xcvi] spoken to Syxtus the bysshoppe, whā he was ladde to suffre martirdome. Quo sacerdos sācte sine di­acono ꝓperas? Nū (que) sacrificiū sine ministro offerre consueueras. Cui cōmisisti dn̄ici corporis consecra­tionē, To. 2. li. 1. offi. cap. 41. cui cōsūmādorū cōsortiū sacramētorū, huic cōsortiū tui sāgui nis negas. Whither goest y ^u hastly o holy preist w ^tout a deacō? Thou wast neuer wont to offre sacrifice w ^tout a ministre. To whom thou hast commited the consecratynge of our lordes body, and the felow­shyp of sacramentes to be accōplisshed, to him thou deniest the felowship of thy bloud. Again in a certē oration funeral of the death of valentynyane the emperoure, thus he speaketh to Valentynyane, and To. 1: Gratian. Nulla vos nox non do­natos Prayers & the masse do auayle the dead. aliqua praecum mearum Cōtextione transcurret, omnibus [Page] frequentabo oblationibus. I wyl (saith Ambrose) praye for you euerye nyghte, I wyll accustomelye offre sacryfyce for you. Also to one Faustine, ouer muche lamentyng his systers deathe, after manye Lib. 2. epist. 8. wordes spoken to comforte hym, thus he writeth, Ita (que) non tam de­plorandam, (qui) frequentandam orationibus reor. Nec maesticandam lachrymis tuis, sed magis oblatio­nibus animam eius deo commen­dandam arbitror. Therefore I thinke that she ought not so moch to be lamented as to be praied for accustomedly. Neyther I thynke she shoulde be made heuye wyth thy teares in wepinge, but rather hir soule to be commended to god w ^t sacrifices. Are not these playne wordes to testifie the holye masse to be a sacrifice profitable for the Prayers & the masse do auayle the dead. deade, & that also prayers of thē [Page xcvii] which do lyue here, be auayleable for them? besyde this he saith in an epistle to Theodosius the empe­rour, Lib. 5. epist. 28 whom he had excommunicated for the murder done in Thes­salia at his commaundemente.

Ego causam cōtumaciae nullā in te habeo, sed habeo timoris, offerre nō audeo sacrificiū, si volueris assistere. I haue no cause in y ^e of diso­bedience, or froward wyll, but I haue a cause of feare, for I dare not offre sacrifice, if thou wylte be present: was not this ment of the Excommu­nicatiō once was regar­ded. sacrifice of the masse, whiche saint Ambrose sayde he durste not offre yf Theodosius themperour were in the temple, because he was ex­communicate? Thē excommuni­catiō was feared of the highest e­states, and the masse had in great honour, as it ought in dede to be, though both of them now are lyt­tell [Page] regarded, the more is the pite. Ambros. Mar. lib. 5. epist. 5. Missam sacere caepi, dum (que) offero, raprū cognouicastu lum. S. Austens sentences. lib, 2. retract, Ca. 21, But of sainte Ambrose ynoughe. Now saint Austen shall speake in this controuersie, whose learning farre amoūteth and excelleth any mans, y ^t hath ben synce y ^• apostles tyme, especially in the holy scrip­ture. He was aboue eleuen hun­dred yeres passed, which thus sai­eth. Hylarius quidā laicus, nescio unde aduersus dei ministros, vt fieri assolet, irritatus, morem, qui tūe apud carthaginem caeperat, vt hymni ad altare dicerentur de psal morum libro, siue ante oblationē, siue cum distribueretur populo, quod fuisset oblatum, maledica reprehensione lacerabat. That is. Hylarye a certayne laye man, kendled wit wrath, as it is wont to be, against gods mynysters, wherby I knowe not, did breake w ^t cursed reprouynge the custome, whiche [Page xcviii] than began at the citie carthage, y ^t hymnes shulde be sayde out of the boke of psalmes, at the aulter, ey­ther before the offerynge of sacri­fice, or whan that, which was offe­red, shoulde be dystributed to the people. Imprynte, good reader, these wordes surely in thy mynde, for they do playnlye make for the defence of the sacrifice of y ^e masse. But yet heare hym againe, affyr­mynge that same thynge more playnely, with these fewe wordes. Augustinus. To. 2. epist, 23. Marke reader, howe Christ was ones [...]ffred in sacrifice, & yet he is daily offred in the masse Nonne semel immolatus est chri­stus in semeripso, & tamen in sa­cramento non solum per omnes paschae solemnitates, sed omni die populis immolatur, nec vti (que) mentitur, qui responderit eum im­molari. Is not CHRISTE ones offered vppe a sacryfyce in hym selfe, and that not wyth­standynge he is offered in the [Page] sacrament for the people, not only through all the feastes of easter, but also euery daye, nother truely he doth lye, whiche aunswerethe, that he is offred in sacrifice. Lo, good reader, this holy man, and excellent clerke, (with whom Martyn Luther in learnynge and ver­tue can no better be compared, thā a snayle with a hare in swiftnes) doth playnely saye, that christe is dayly offred in sacrifice, in the sa­crament, though he was but ones offered in his owne fourme vpon the crosse, and therefore Luthers & his scolers argument, gathered out of Paule to the Hebrewes, the nynth and the tenth chapter ma­kynge mention that Christe was Note reder that chryste is offered in sacrifice twyse, a­gainste Lu­thers bablīg ones offered, is cleane wyppe a­waye, and funde of no force, ne strength, as I wyl hereafter more largely declare, god wylling. But [Page xcix] saynt Austen dothe this agayne wrytte in this matter. Firmissime tene & nullatenus dubites vnige­nitum To, 3. de fide ad petrn̄ca. 19 deum verbum carnē factū, se pro nobis obtulisse sacrificium & hostiam deo in odorem suauitatis, cui cum patre, & spiritu sancto à patriarchis, prophetis, & sacerdo tibus, tempore veteris testamenti animalia sacrificabātur, & cui nūc i. tempore noui testamenti, cum patre & spiritu sancto, cū quibus illi est vna diuinitas, sacrificium panis & vini in fide & charitate, sancta ecclesia catholica per v­niuersum terrae orbem offerre nō cessat. That is to wytte. Holde thou moost surely, and in no wise doute, that the only begotten son̄e god, beinge made man offred hym selfe for vs a sacrifice, & an hoost of swete sauoure to god, to whome wyth y ^• father, and the holy goost, [Page] beastes were offered in sacryfyce the tyme of the olde testamente, by the patriarches, prophetes, and preistes, and to whom nowe, that is, in the tyme of the newe testa­mente, with the father, and the ho­lye ghoste, wyth the whiche he hathe one godheede, a sacrifice of breade, and wyne the holye church catholyqe ceasseth not to offre in fayth and charitie, throughe the whole worlde. Also in another place he sayth. Huius sacrificij ca­ro Lib. 20, ca: 21, Contra faustū Christe is dayly offred i [...] sacrifice, thoughe he was ones offred for al on the cros & sanguis ante aduentum do­mini, per victimas similitudinum promittebatur, in passione christi per ipsam veritatem reddebatur, post ascensionem Christi per sa­cramentum celebratur. The flesshe, and bloudde of thys sacri­fice was promysed before the lor­des commynge, by beastes kylled in sacryfyce of symylytudes, [Page c] or lykenesses, in y ^• passion of christ it was gyuen by y ^• truth it self, af­ter christes ascēsion it is celebrate by or in the sacramente. Doth not saint Austen here affyrme that in the sacramente of the aulter the Christes ve­ry flesh and bloude are in the masse offered in sacrifice, & not a fygure therof. flesshe and bloude of the sacrifice is euen that selfe same, which was fygured by the sacrifices of y ^e olde testamente before the commynge of Chryste, and offered vpon the crosse in the tyme of the passion, that lyke as in the time of the olde testamente, Chrystes flesshe and bloud were offered in sacryfice by symylytudes, so at the tyme of his death they were offered wythoute fygure, or lykelenesse in his owne fourme, and dayelye are in the Sacramente vnder the fourme of breade and wyne. More­ouer the same Doctoure thus [Page] writeth, Populus christianus reli­giosa solemnitate memorias con­celebrat martyrum, & ad excitan­dam Lib. 20. ca. 21. Contra faustū imitationem, & vt meritis eorum consocietur, at (que) orationibus adiuuetur, Ita tamen vt nulli mar­tyrum, sed ipsi deo martyrum constituamus altaria, (qui)uis in memori­as martyrum. Quis enim antistitū in locis sanctorum corporum alta­ri assistens, aliquando dixit, offeri­mus tibi Petre, aut Paule, aut Cy­priane? sed quod offertur, deo, qui martyres coronauit, offertur. This it is in englysh. Christē people do celebrate the remembraun­ces of martyrs, with a godly, or a deuout solemniti, both to stirre or The merit [...]s of martyrs and theyr prayers do profytte the worshipers of them. encourage men to folowe them, & also y ^e by their merites they might be made felowes wyth theym in heauen, and helped wyth their prayers, yet so that we do sette vp [Page ci] aulters to none of y ^• martyrs, but Lege August: lib: 22. ca. 1 [...], De Ciui dei to god hym selfe, although we do it for remembraunce of the mar­tyrs. For whiche of the byshoppes beynge at the aulter in the places of the saintes bodyes, hath sayde at anye tyme. We doo offre sa­crifice to the O Peter, or Paule, or Cypryane? But that whyche is offered in sacryfyce, is offered to GOD, that hathe crowned the martyres. No man coulde speake more playnelye agaynste three of Martyn Luthers here­sies, then in these fewe wordes Saynte Austen hath done, allow­ynge fyrste that saintes do praye Saintes do pray for vs Saintes merites do profytte vs. for vs, and thereby we are helped Secondelye that their merytes do profytte vs, Thyrdely that the byshoppe at the aulter dothe of­fre sacryfyce to god, the whyche in an other place of hys workes he [Page] he affyrmeth to be done by good autoritie, that is of the gospel whiche telleth that Christ at his laste supper offered his bodye in sacri­fice, for these are his wordes. Augustinus lib: [...], ca. 20: De trinitate. Infantes non nouerunt quod in al­tari ponitur, & peracta pietatis ce­lebratione, consumitur, vnde vel quo modo conficiatur, vnde in usū Consumed therfore the bread after the consecration remay­neth not as Frith wold it shulde. religionis assumitur. Chyldrene, whyche can not yet speake, knowe not what thinge is put vpon the aulter, and is consumed whan the consecration is perfetlye doone, whense or howe it is made or con­secrated, of what it is taken in to vse of relygyon. It folowethe in that place of saynte Augustyne. Et si nunquam discant experimen­to suo, vel aliorum, & nunquam illam rerū speciē videant, nisi in­ter cèlebrationes sacramentorum, [Page cii] cum offertur, & datur, dicatur (que) illis autoritate grauissima, cuius Math. 26, corpus & sanguis sit, nihil aliud credent, nisi omnino in illa specie dominum apparuisse oculis mor­talium, & de latere tali percusso. liquorem illum omnino fluxisse. Althoughe they neuer learne by theyr owne experience, or other mennes, and they neuer see that kynde of thynges, excepte it be a­monge the celebratyons of Sa­cramentes whan the sacryfyce is made, and gyuen, and sayde to them wyth greateste autorytye, whose bodye and bloud it should be, they wyll beleue nothynge elles, but that our lorde hath ap­peared in that fourme to the eyes of men, and that lycoure to haue runne out of suche a syde streken. This saynt Augustyne. Agayne [Page] in an othere booke this he writte. De ciui dei. li. 10. cap. 20. Christ doth offre hym selfe at the masse, and he is the sa­crifice there­in offred. Per hoc & sacerdos est offerens, & ipse oblatio. Cuius rei sacramentū quotidianum esse voluit ecclesiae sacrificium, cū ipsius corporis sit ipse caput, & ipsius ipsa sit. corpꝰ, tam ipsa per ipsum, (qui) ipse per ipsā suetus offerri. That is thus much in englyshe. By that both he is a preist offerynge sacrifice, and he is the sacrifice. A sacramente of the whiche thinge, he wolde, shulde be the daylye sacrifice of the churche: For asmoche as he is the heade of that bodye the churche, and the churche is his bodye, as well the church by Christ, as Christ by the church is wont to be offred: This saint Austen: Now I beseche the, good reader, what doest thou call the dayly sacrifice of y ^• church, but y ^e sacrifice of christs body & bloud, accustomed dayelye in the masse, [Page ciii] to be offered of the priest? Wherin is Christe wont to be offered in sacrifice by the churche, excepte it be in the masse? What man, excepte he be very affectionate, and blynd will not rather gyue credence to this greate clerke sait Austen, thā to Luter, or any other taughte in his schole? But of this holye doc­tours sentences writtē in this matter, the learned may reade muche more in his bokes, whiche I doo passe ouer, lest my booke shulde be S. Hierome aduersus lucif [...] riano [...]. To. 2. to longe, and tedious, Therefore I wyll go to saynt Ierome, which cōfirmeth this truth, sainge, while he sheweth that a preist is the salte of the earth. Sacerdos quippe prolaico offert oblationē suā. For as moche as the prieste offere the his offerynge or sacrifice for the laye man. Doth not here saint Ierom affyrme that the preiste offereth at [Page] the masse sacrifice for the lay mā? Estesones he sayeth. Nec moses dedit vobis panem verum, sed dominus Quaest [...], ad [...]edibiam. Christ is ea­ten in the sa­cramente of the aulter, & hys bloudde drunken. Iesus, ipse conuiua & con­niuium, ipse commedens & qui commeditur, illius bibimus san­guinem, & sine eo potare non possumns, & quotidie in sacri­ficijs eius de genimine vitis verae, & uineae sorec, quae interpretatur electa, rubentia musta calcamus, & nouum ex his vinum bibimus de regno patris. Moses hath not gyuen to you verye breade, but oure lorde Iesus, he is the gueste, and the feaste, he is that eatethe, and whych is eaten, we do drynke his bloude, and withoute hym we cannot drynke, and we day­lye treade or presse downe in hys sacryfyces newe redde wyne of the true vynes, and the choosen vyneyardes generatyon, and [Page ciiii] we drynke of these, newe wyne of the fathers kyngedome.

Thys sentence of Saynte Hie­rome manyfestely makethe bothe for the presence of CHRISTE hym selfe in the holye Sacra­mente of the aultar, because it sayethe that CHRISTE hym selfe is the feaste, he that is eaten, and we drynke hys bloudde, and also for the sacryfyce of the masse, wherein the same CHRISTE is offered in sacryfyce.

I lette passe manye other textes, of thys holye Doctoure, and go to the rehearsall of other men­nes sayenges, amonge the whiche Damascene thus speakethe. Damas. l [...]b. 4. ca. 14. Etsi quidam exemplaria corpo­ris & sanguinis domini, panem & vinum vocauerunt, vt deifer vo­cauit BASILIVS non tamen, [Page] post sanctificationem dixit, sed pri us (que) sanctificaretur ipsa oblatio, ita vocabant. That is. Albeit certaine men haue called the breade and wyne samples of our lordes body, and bloude, as the godlye Basyll hath called them, yet he called thē not that after the halowynge, or consecration, but before the sacri­fice was halowed, or consecrated, so they dydde call them. This Damascene wrote aboue eleuen hun­dred yeres passed afore this oure tyme. In the whiche belefe was also Gregorius Nazian. in apolo­getico. saīt Gregory Ieronis maister, whiche wrote this, almoste twelfe hūdred yeres synce Sciens quoniā nemo dignus est summi dei sacer­dos esse, vel sacrificium offerre, qui non prius exhibuit se hostiam viuam, deo placentem &c. Knowynge that no man is meete, or apte to be a preiste of god the [Page cv] hyghest, or to offer sacrifice, which hath not set abrode hym selfe (by vertuous lyuyng, and mortifieng his lustes) a quycke hoost, plea­synge god, and so forth as Paule writeth to the Romaynes. Fur­thermore writynge of preistes dignitie Rom. 12. he thus saythe. O sacrificia mittentes incruenta sacerdotes. O anim arum custodes magnifici. O magnum figmnetum dei mani­bus In uersibus: in vestris ferentes. O preistes (saith Gregory Nazianzene) sen­dynge, or geuynge sacrifices vn­blouddy. O the kepers of soules, whiche do greate thinges. O ye that beare in youre handes the greate workeman shyppe of God. What is to sende or geue sacrifi­ces without bloude sheddynge in this sayenge, good reader, but to offer in sacrifice at the masse the very bodye, and bloude of Chryst, [Page] discipulis suis offerendam, quam­ (que) modo conficiunt sacerdotes. Nihil habet ista, quam illa minus, quia hanc non sanctificant homi­nes, sed Christus, qui illam sacrauerat. Vt enim verba, quae locutus est Christus, eadem sunt, quae nûc quo (que) socerdos pronuntiat, ita ea­dem est, quae tune fuit, hostia. In englisshe. This holy sacrifice whether Peter doo offre it, or Paule, or els a preist of what meryte in lyuyng so euer he be, is y ^e same, that our lord gaue his dyscyples to be Luc. 22, offered, and that nowe the preistes do make or consecrate. This hath nothynge lesse than that, because men do not halow this but Christ, whiche had halowed that. For as the wordes, (which Christe spake at his laste supper) be y ^e same, whi­che nowe the preist also doth pro­nounce, lykewise the hoste or sacrifice [Page cvii] is the same, whiche was than. There was neuer mā, that set out better and more plainely the bles­sed sacrifice of the masse, than this holye man Chrisostome hath done aboue eleuen hundred yeres pas­sed. wolde god these his wordes were learned and kepte of al men, in a faste and sure remembraunce, withoute all doutyng in the very­te of them. Note, good reader wel, what lessons here are geuen to vs of this auncient and excellent doctoure. Fyrst he saith, that the sacrifice, whiche Peter or Paule hathe offered, or nowe any preiste dothe offre, what so euer he be, good or yll in his lyfe, is none other but y ^e same, whiche Chryste gaue hys a­postles to offer, vndoubtedlye at his laste supper, after he had tur­ned bread and wine into his owne verye bodye and bloude, and offe­red [Page] them in sacrifice to his father For then he gaue them autorite to do that very same, whiche he had afore done sayenge, Hoc facite in mei commemorationem, Doo ye thys in remembraunce of Luc. 22. me. Secondly he saith that the sacrifice, which now prestes do offre at masse, is the same hoost (hauing nothinge lesse than that had) whi­che Christ gaue hys apostels to offer because men do not halowe, or consecrate it, but Christ, (that dyd consecrate that geuen to his discyples to offre) and that by reasō the wordes whiche a preiste sayeth at masse, are the selfe same, whyche Chryste spake at his maundy, consecratinge and offeringe his bo­dy and bloud. Thus it appeareth that the learnynge of the sacryfice of the masse is not new nor of late [Page cviii] inuented, thoughe one Vrbanus Regius in his vngodly boke (cal­led the comparison betwene the olde learnynge, and the newe) doth impudently without learning (ey­their olde or newe, that good is) affyrme, Vrbanu [...] Regiꝰ boke translated out of Latī into english by wyllyam Turner is ful of heresy that it is, as herafter I wil by gods grace declare. But nowe ones againe to saint Chrisostome, lettynge passe this hereticall boke of Regius (sette forth in latine by hym, & translated into english by one wyllyam Turner) Papae (in­quit Chriso. homilia de enceniis Chrisost) mensa mysterijs in­structa est, agnus dei pro te immolatur, sacerdos pro te angitur, se­raphin astāt, omnes (que) incorporeae virtutes pro te cum sacerdote in­tercedunt, sanguis in cratere in tuam purificationem, ex immacu­lato latere haustus est, & non cru­bescis ne (que) propitium tibi facis de um? That is to wytte. The [Page] table is furnysshed with thinges secrete, or hyd in wordes, or cere­monyes, The masse is a sacrifice propitiato­rye, and profitable not onlye to the sa [...]er of it, but to other also. the lambe of god is offe­red in sacrifice for the, the preist is in an anguish for the, the aungels called Seraphim are present, and all powers hauynge no bodyes, do pray, and make intercession for the with the prieste, the bloude in the cuppe is drawen out of the immaculate syde for thy purgynge, & art not thou ashamed, nor doeste make god mercyful to the? O lord howe manyfeste are these wordes, both to proue the very presence of Christ in the sacramente of thaul­ter, and also the masse to be a sacrifice, The masse is a sacrifice propitiato­rye. not of laude, and thankes ge­uynge to god only, but also appeasinge goddes wrath and dysplea­sure conceaued againste vs for synne? The whiche he affirmethe in sundrye places of his workes, [Page cix] of the whiche I wyll alledge yet some, because no man wrote so wel and playnely in this matter, as he dyde? This he saith ones againe. Cum astat pontifex, is preces diu­turnas fundit, quo gratia in sacrifi­cium influat. Whan the byshoppe is presente, he praieth longe conti­nuynge, that grace maye runne in Chrisostom in missasua. to the sacrifice. To be shorte Chri­sostome in his masse sayeth, recy­tynge, the praier, whiche the preist than dyd vse to saye before he wēt in to the place, where he shoulde offre sacrifice, saieng masse. Domine deus noster emitte ma­num tuā de sancto habitaculo tuo, & corrobora me ad propositum ministeriun tuum, vt citra condemnation em assistam metuendo alta­ri tuo & immaculatum peragam sacrificium. Sacrifica domine ag­num, Immolatur agnus dei, qui tol [Page] lit peccata mundi, That is. Send o lorde our god thy hande (that is thy power) from thy holy mansiō, and make me stronge to this ser­uyce sette forth, that I may be presente Marke rea­der. at the dreadefull aulter with out damnation, make perfyt this cleane sacryfyce. O lorde sacryfice thou the lambe. The lambe of god Luc. 22. whiche taketh awaye the synnes of the worlde, is offred in sacrifice. Also he saith. Domine sacrificio­rum ritum instituisti, ac solemnis huius, & immaculati sacrificij celebrationem nobis tradidisti, tan (que), Christe dyd ordeyne the accustomed mauer of sacrifice doīg and not any preiste vpō couetousnes dominus omnium. Thou (o lord) hast begonne, taught, or ordeyned the approued custome of sacrifi­ces, and haste deliuered to vs the celebration of this annual, or yere ly, and vndefiled sacrifice, as the lorde of all thynges: doth not this doctoure affirme that Christe dyd [Page cx] institute, and ordeyne the vsage approued in makyng of sacrifices, & taught the apostles to offer him selfe a sacrifice pure withoute spotte of synne? It is therefore a greate blasphemye to god, and a reproche to CHRIST our sa­uioure, to ascribe this his dede & ordinaunce to any mā, Ceasse therfore that leude sayenge, whych turneth to no lyttel derogatiō of god des honoure. Beleue this and o­ther auncient writers, whiche do with one assente confesse that the sacryfyce of the masse is of oure sauyours settynge vppe and tea­chynge. Whyche Eusebius thus Eusebius lib. [...]. de euangel. de monst. ca. 10. confyrmethe, after manye wordes. spooken of this matter. Christus post omnia quasi mirabi­lem quandam victimam, sacrificiū (qui) eximiū deo patri operatus, pro nostra omniū salute obtulit, eius (que) [Page] rei memoriam, ut nos ipsi deo pro sacrificio offerremus, instituit. Christ after all thinges, whan he had wrought a certayne maruey­lous hoost, and a verye greate, or excellent sacrifice, he offered it to god for all oure helthes, and he hathe ordeined, that we our selues shoulde offer to god for a sacrifice the remēbraunce of the samething Gregorius Emissenus, which was G. Emissenus. Anno. d. [...]00. aboue twelfe hundred yeres afore this tyme, after this sorte, writeth vpon this matter, Quia corpus assumptum erat ablaturus ab oculis nostris, & syderibus illaturus, ne­cessarium erat, ut nobis in hac die sacramentum corporis & sangui­nis cōsecraret, ut coleretur iugitet per mysterium, quod semel offe­rebatur in praecium, ut quia quo­tidiana currebat, & in defessa pro hominū salute redemptio, perpetua [Page cxi] etiam esset redemptionis oblatio, & perennis illa victima viueret in memoria, & semper praesens esset in gratia. That is to wytte. Be­cause Christ wolde take away the bodye, whiche he toke to hym, frō Christ ones offred in sa­crifice, on the crosse is d [...]yly offred in the masse and worshipped. our sight, and brynge it in to hea­uen, it was necessary that he shuld this tyme consecrate to vs the sa­cramente of his bodye and bloude that the thynge, whiche was ones offred for the price of our raunsō, shulde be alwaye worshypped by a mysterie, or a sacrament, that because a daylye, and a continuall redemption for mannes helth dydde runne, a continuall also sacrifice of the raunsom shoulde be, & that euer endurynge sacrifice shoulde be had in memorye, and shulde be alway presente in grace and autorytie, What maye be sayde more playnely for our purpose? This [Page] saint Cyprian, of whome I haue moche spoken alreadye, (beynge within two hundred &, lix. yeres of Christes byrth) manifestly doth Cyprianus de caena do. confirme sayenge. Perpes est hoc sacrificium, & semper permanens holo caustum, nulla panem hunc multitudo consumit, nulla antiquitate veterascit, This sacrifice is perpetuall, and euer abydyng, no multitude of people consume the this bread, it waxeth olde with no aūcientie. Origene also being .xxx Origenes li .i. in Iob. yeres before hym, (that is within twoo hundred, and, xxv. yeres of Christs byrth) doth opēly affirme the masse, to be a sacrifice sayeng. Probet seipsum Homo .i. munde [...] seipsum, & ita de mundissimis domini sacrificijs frueatur, vt apostolus ait. Let a man (sayth Origen) proue hym selfe, that is to saye, let [Page cxii] hym make hym selfe cleane, and so lette hym vse with delectation, and profytte the moost cleane sa­crifices of oure lorde, Lo this olde doctoure sayth, that the Sa­crament of the aulter is a sacry­fyce, whyche Paule exhorted the people to eate, after they hadde proued, and made cleane them sel­ues, through penaunce from their synnes, soo that after hys iudge­mente, Sainte Paule vnderstode Christes wordes spooken at his maundye (whiche he there to the Corinthyans the eleuenth chapter of the fyrst epistle, recytethe) to be spoken of his blessed bodyes sa­crifice. Ireneus lykewyse wrytte thus vpon the same matter before Origen twenty yeres. Quomodo Ire. li. 4. ca. [...]4. autem dicūt carnē in corruptionē deuenire, & nō ꝑcipere vitā, quae a [Page] corpore domini, & sanguine ali­tur? Ergo aut sententiam mutent, aut ab offerēdo abstineāt, quae prae We eate and drynke chri­stes flesshe & bloud in the sacrament & they are of­fered at masse in, sa­crifice. dicta funt. Nostra autem conson ās est sententia eucharistiae, & eucharistia rursus confirmat sententiam nostram. Whiche is thus moch in oure speache. But howe saye they that the fleshe goeth to corrupcion and receiueth not lyfe, whiche is fedde with the bodye and bloude of our lorde? Therefore lette them eyther chaunge their opinion, or forbeare offerynge in sacrifice the thinges, which are spokē of afore, the very bodye and bloude of our lord. Our iudgemente, or opinion is agreinge, with the sacramente of the aulter, and the sacramente againe doth confyrme our opiniō What man is he, except he be past shame, yea very blynde, or malici­ous against the truth, that wyl or [Page cxiii] can deny this olde and godly martyrs saienge, to be ynoughe for the establyshynge of the sacrifice of y ^e masse, for asmuche as he learned y ^• scripture of them whiche were the apostles scholers, as sainte Poly­carpe Ihon the euangelystes dis­ciple, and suche other? He goethe forth and saith thus. Offerimus ei quae sunt eius, congruenter com­municationem, & vnitatem praedicantes carnis & spiritus. Quem­admodum enim qui est è terra pa­nis, percipiens uocationē dei, iam non cōmunis panis est, sed eucha­ristia, ex duabus constans rebus, terrena & caelesti: sic & corpora nostra percipientia eucharistiam, iam non sunt corruptibilia, spem resurrectiouis habentia. We offer to hym in sacrifice those thinges, whiche are his, publysshynge, or openly declarynge accordynglye [Page] the partakinge together, and vni­te of the fleshe, and the spirite. For lyke as the breade, which is of the earth, perceauynge, or takinge the callynge of god, is not nowe com­mune breade, but the sacramente or the bodye of Christe consistinge in two thinges, the one erthly, and the other heauenly, so also our bo­dyes receyuinge the sacrament of the aulter, are not now apt to cor­ruptiō, hauing hope of risinge a­gaine. Hitherto S. Ireneꝰ. Tertuliane (which was about a C. & .lxxx Tertulian li, de exhorta castitatis. yeares after Christes passion) writ in this matter, for my purpose sai­eng. Differentiam constituit, ecclesiae autoritas inter plebem & ordi­nem. Et sacerdos offert & tingit. The authoritie (he saithe) of the churche hathe ordeyned a differēce betwene the laye people, and them which hath taken ordres. And the [Page exiiii] preiste offereth sacrifice, and bap­tiseth. Loo here two offices of a preiste, to do sacrifice at masse, (for noone other sacrifice is propre to a preiste) and to deepe chyldren in the founte. Anacletus, which was Anacletus be epist. ecclesia▪ w ^t in .c. & .ii. yeres of christes byrth, doth confirme this marter saieng. Diaconi cōstituti sunt, utessent ab oculis episcoporum, quibus hoc praecipuum curae erat, ut sacris in­duti vestibus, episcopum ad altare ducerent, & reducerent, eum (que) sa­crificantem, velut ex cubitores ob seruarent, ne maleuolorum in cur­sione sacra turbarentur. That is, Deacons are ordeyned, that they shulde be to the byshops as spectacles, or to se for thē, the which had this as chiefe charge, or whose la­bour was chiefly, that they hauing on y ^e holy vestures shuld bringe y ^e byshop to thaulter, and from it a­gaine, and alsoo as watche men, [Page] take good hede on hym offerynge sacrifice, lest y ^e holy thynges (whi­che are in the masse) shulde be troubled by inuasion of malycyous, or yll wylled personnes. Wyth this accordeth Euaristus beyng with­in Euaristus ad aphricanam ecclesiam. ten yeres after hym, saienge. Ea tantum matrimonia rata habean­tur, quae teste populo solemni rituperacta fuerint, & sacerdotis obla­tione firmata. Let onelye those mariages be counted stablyshed, the whiche were finisshed with a so­lemne, or an accustomed maner, y ^e people bearyng witnesse, and were also assured with the preistes sacrifice. Is not this spoken of the sa­crifice of the masse? Are not they The masse is a sacri­fice not newlye inuented as heretikes say it is. shameles, whyche do saye that the masse was of late inuented by preistes, for their owne lucre, and vaū tage, and sette vp by them for a sacrifice to get pence with? But I [Page cxv] wyll go forwarde to the martyr s. Alexanders sentēce, which is this (written aboue .xiiii. hūdred yeres Alexander sanctissimus. Martir uixit. [...]no d. 119▪ afore our dayes) In sacramentorū oblationibus, quae inter missarum solemnia domino offeruntur, pas­sio domini miscēda est, vt eius, cuius corpus & sanguis conficitur, celebretur passio. Crimina enim at (que) peccata, oblatis his domino sa­crificijs, delentur. Idcirco & passio eius in his commemorāda est, qua redempti sumus, & saepius recitan da, at (que) domino offerenda. Talibꝰ hostijs delectabitur, at (que) placabitur dominus, & peccata dimittet ingē tia. Nihil enim in sacrificijs maius esse potest, (qui) corpus & sanguis christi. Neculla oblatio hac po [...]ior est, sed haec omnes praecellit, quae pura conscientia domino offeren­da est, & pura mente sumenda, at­ (que) ab omnibus veneranda. Et sicut [Page] potior est caeteris, ita potius exco­li, at (que) uenerari debet. Hec ille. The englyshe may be this. In the oblations of the sacramentes, whiche are offered to our lorde among the solemnities of the masses, oure lordes passion muste be meddled, that his passion, (whose body, and bloude is made) maye be celebrate or had in remēbraunce. And there fore it was not so ones offered on the crosse that it cānot ne ought to be offered in the masse daylye, albeit Luther is of that opi­on as his scholers be. For cry­mes, and sinnes are putte awaye, throughe these sacrifices offred to our lorde. Therefore his passion also in these muste be remembred, with the whiche we are ransomed, or redemed, and it muste be often­tymes rehersed. The mas is a sacrifice appeasinge gods wrath and purchasynge to vs remission of oure synnes and offered to our lorde. For he wyll be delyted, and appeased, or pacified w ^t suche sacrifices, and wyll forgeue greate synnes by thē. For in sacrifices nothinge can be greatter then the body & bloud of christ. Neither there [Page cxvi] is any sacrifice better th [...] this, but this excelleth all, whiche muste be offered to our lorde with a cleane The blessed sacramente ought to be worshipped and honoured of chri­sten people thoughe Luther & Frith denied it. consciēce, and receaued with a pure minde, and worshypped of all men and women. And as it is better thē other sacritices, so it oughte to be rather had in reuerence, and wor­shipped. Hitherto that blessed martyr saint Alexander, whose saieng shulde the rather be beleued, be­cause he was within a hundred, & twentye yeares of Christe, and a man of hygh perfection in his life, and notably lerned also. This sayeng of this blessed aūciēt martyr, ought to be beleued of euery christē mā, without suspitiō of deceyt, & colouringe of this doctrine for lucre or gaines, Now, good reader, I haue almost fully declared by y ^• rehersall of the eldeste doctours of christes churche, from whense, and whom, this doctrine of the masse, [Page] and the sacrifice therof, hath come to vs, that is to wytte, euen frome Christe him selfe at his last supper institutinge and orderinge them bothe, & that y ^e church was taught the same by his holye apostels & their successours, and obserued it L [...]terluteth out of tune against the masse cotinually no man again saieng it, tyll Martyn Luther beganne, vpon mere malyce, to lute against it with his stringes farre oute of V [...]banus Regius tune, and therefore Vrbanus Re­gius ought to be ashamed to call Ignatius saint Iohn the euange­lystes disci­ple spake of the masse & the sacrifice of it in hys epistle to the Smyrnen­ses, and ther fore neyther of thē is lately inuented thoughe Luther and his scholers say other wise. this the newe learnynge, beynge aboue .xv. hūdred yeres olde. But Ignatius (saint Iohn euangely­stes scholer) doth after this maner wryte of thys sacryfyce. Nemo preter episcopum aliquid agat eorum, quae ad ecclesiam pertinēt. Firma eucharistia reputatur quae ab episcopo concessa fuerit, Christus est dispensator totius in­telligibilis [Page cxvii] naturae, propterea non licet sine episcopo, ne (que) offerre, ne (que) sacrificium immolare, ne (que) missas celebrare. No man can do any of those thinges, whiche doo per­teyne to the churche; againste the byshops mynde, or otherwise then he wyll it shulde be doone. Let the sacrament of the aulter be accompted of strength, or assured, whiche shal be graunted of the byshoppe, Christe is the stewarde, or dispen­ser, of the hole nature, whiche may be vnderstande. Therfore it is not lefull to offer, nor to make sacri­fice, nor to say masses withoute a byshoppe, that is, without the consente, and authoritie of hym. Loo good christē reader, this holy martyr saint Iohns disciple doth thus manifestelye speake, bothe of the masse, and also of the sacrifice of it whiche he learned of his mayster [Page] Ihon y ^e was taught, & instructed by our sauiour christe at his laste supper both y ^e masse, & the sacrifice of y ^e same. S. Clemēt saieng masse S. Clement the apostle Paules cō ­panyon in preachynge sp [...]a [...]ethe of the sacrifice of the masse it is therfore no new thīg inuented for lucre of preistes. (as Bassario cardinall of Nicea saith writing vpō the sacramēt of y ^• aulter) was wōt to vse this forme of praieng. Rogamus dn̄e vt mit­tas spūm sāctū tuū suꝑ hoc sacrifi­ciū qui efficiat hūc panē corpꝰ χρι tui, & qd in calice est, sāguinē filij tui. That is to say in englysh. We besech y ^e, o lord, to sende thy holye ghost vpon this sacrifice, whiche shuld make this bread the body of thy christ, and also y ^t, which is in y ^e cuppe, y ^e bloud of thy son̄e. Againe in the thirde epistle to s. Iames, thus he saith. While we lyue here we must knowe where is the place to offre sacrifice. Qm̄ in alijs locis sacrificare, & missas celebrare nō licet, nisi in ijs, in quibus episcopꝰ [Page cxviii] proprius iusserit, aut ab episcopo regulariter ordinato, tenēte videli­cet ciuitatē, cōsecratus fuerit. Ali­ter enim nō sūt h [...]c agēda, nec rite celebrāda docēte nos nouo, & ueteri restamēto, Haec apostoli a dn̄o acceperūt, & nobis tradiderūt, haec nos do cemꝰ. That is, forasmuch as it is not leful to offre sacrifice, & say masses in other places, but in those, in which y ^e propre bishop hath, or shall commaūd, or in that, which hath ben or shalbe halowed of the byshop, ordered after y ^e rule, as who saith possessinge the citie. For these thinges ought not to be done otherwise, nor well (after the maner vsed) they are otherwise to be celebrate, y ^e new & the olde testamēt teachīg vs. Thapostles hard or receaued these thinges of oure lord, & taught thē vs, or lefte thē to vs by traditiō, which we teache: & [Page] commaunde to be doone of other men withoute reprofe, as it folo­weth immediately, Lo good chri­sten reader, this holy doctoure S. Paules companyon, in preaching doth playnlye make mention both of the masse, & also of the sacrifice of it, affirmyng that Christ taught his apostles, and they vs, that sa­crifice shoulde be offered onelye in places assigned by the bys­shop, or in a place consecrated by him whiche is propre byshoppe of the citie. This dothe euidentlye proue that Christe also taught his apostles the masse, & the sacrifice of it, & that they taught the church and congregation of the faithfull people the same lesson, whyche hathe euer since remayned, & shall alwaye tyll the worldes ende, a­monge all true and catholyque nations, although dyuers men doo [Page cxix] bable, and barke againste it neuer so muche, for the truth of oure lord abydeth for euer, as Dauyd saith, and Christe sente to the church the spirite of truth to abyde with it cō tinuallye, that it shoulde not erre in the faith, beware therefore rea­der of Luthers pestilent doctrine whiche teacheth againste the pre­mysses. But to be short, s. Dionise Dionistus De ecclesibierar. Ca, [...]. the holye apostle Paules scholer conuerted by hym, (which was a­fore Christes passiō, a famous philosopher) doth call the sacramente of the aulter, hostiam hostiarum, the hoste of hostes, or the sacrifice of sacrifices, saienge moreouer Ferme non reperitur sacerdotalis muneris mysterium peragi, quod non compleatur in consummatione diuinissimae, eucharistiae, ad vnā perficiente sacrificio collectionē. The mysterye, or secrete of a prei­stes [Page] office is welnygh not founde to be made perfit or done throughly, whiche shulde not be finisshed in the perfourmynge of the sacra­mant of the aulter mooste diuine, or perteynyng to god, while the sacrifice doth accomplysshe, or bring to a point, men to one gatherynge together. Doest thou not se, christē reader, that this holy man, sainte Paules disciple, calleth the bles­sed sacramente of the aulter, most diuine, godlye or pertaynynge vnto god, and yet men of oure dayes are not ashamed to call it an ydol? Also this aunciente father calleth the masse a sacrifice, and that also which maketh y ^e people, for whom it is offered, and which do worthely receyue it, one together in christ through perfit charitie & concord. Wherefore euery good christē mā ought rather to geue credence to [Page cxx] this doctours iudgemente, and al y ^e other rehersed afore in this boke than to one Martyn Luther, and his secte, or folowers: But now I wyll shewe what the same writers (or at the leaste some of them) saye concerninge that pointe, which is nowe moost amonge men in con­trouersie, that is, whether y ^e masse be a sacrifice propitiatorie, or ap­peasynge goddes wrathe againste synnes, and makynge hym mercy­full to vs, so that it be auayleable, and profitable, bothe for the quick & the dead, or no. That it is so, this chapter nexte here ensuynge shall proue sufficiently, to persuade all them (whiche are blynded wyth affection, towarde the contrary opi­nion) to beleue no lesse vn­doubtedly, and stedfast­lye.

¶ That the masse auayleth both the quyck and the deade, for the appeasynge of gods dyspleasure taken for synne, and the purcha­synge of his mercy also.

SAynt Austen ma­keth mencion of a August, de ei­ui. dei. lib. xx. cap. 8. wonderfull myracle, whiche was done by a preistes praiers, & masse. Wherebye we maye perceaue, of what great force & strēgth y ^e masse is, & therfore I wyll recite his wordes breifly, whiche are euen these. Vir Tribunitius, qui apud nos est, habet in territorio Fussalēsi fundū [Page cxxi] cubedi appellatnm, vbi cum affli­ctione animalium, & seruorum su­orum, domum suam spirituum malignorum vim noxiam perpeti cō ­perisset, rogauit nostros, me absente, presbyteros, vt aliquis eorum illo pergeret, cuius orationibus cederent, perrexit vnus, obtulit ibi sacrificium corporis christi, orans quantū potuit, vt cessaret illa vexatio, deo protinus miserante cessa­uit. That is to saye. A man bea­rynge the tribunes office at Rome (whereby he had cheife iurisdicti­on amenge the commons) whiche is with vs, hath in a territorie, or a countreye of fussalence, a soyls named cubedi, where, after he per­ceyued by experience, throughe the tormentynge of his beastes, & seruauntes, that his house suffred violence hurtefull, of the yll spiri­tes, he beseched oure preistes, whā [Page] I was absente, that some of them A greate myracle wrought of god by the masse. wold go thither, by whose prayers they shulde departe thence. One wente, he offred there the sacrifice of Christes bodye, prayenge as muche as he coulde, that that vex­ation shoulde ceasse, wythoute ta­ryenge it ceassed god hauynge pi­tie. Dothe not this place proue the masse to be a sacrifice propitiato­rye, sythe by the offerynge of Chri­stes bodye in sacryfyce at it, god­des wrathe towarde thys man, To. Io. ser. 28 de uerbis d [...] secundii Lucam and hys seruauntes conceaued for their synnes (whereby the deuell hadde suche power on them) was pacified, and appeased? Agayne saynte Austen thus writeth, after many wordes spoken of the sacra­ment of the aulter. Tu audis, ꝙ quotienscum (que) offertur sacrifici­um, mors domini, resurrectio, & e­leuatio 1. Cor. 11. eius significētur, & remis­sio [Page cxxii] peccatorum, & panem istum vitae nostrae quotidianum non assu­mis? Qui vulnus habet, medicinā Note this reader. requirit. Vulnus est, quia sub pec­cato sumus. Medicina est, caeleste et venerabile sacramentum. Hac­tenus ille. In englyshe this it is. Thou doest heare, that as oftē as the sacryfyce is offered, our lordes deathe, resurrectyon, and lyftynge vp of him on y ^e crosse, are signified and represented, and also forgyue­nes of sinnes, and doest not thou receaue this daylye breade of oure lyfe? He, whiche hathe a wounde, dothe seke often a medicine. The wounde is, for as moche as we be vnder synne, the honourable and Christes body in the sa­cramente is honourable against Lu­ther & Ihon Fryth. heauenlye sacramente is the medi­cine. Nothynge can be moore eui­dentlye spooken for the sacryfyce of the holye masse, that it is a sacrifice propytyatory curyng mannes [Page] woūdes, that is to say, his sinnes, and that also by the ordinaunce of Christe, commaundynge it to be done for a remembraunce of hys death, and rising againe. It folo­weth in the same sermon of sainte Austens. Cum tractarem de sacra­mentis, Sermone [...]8. de verbis d. secun. Lucum dixi vobis, ꝙ ante verba Christi, quod offertur, panis dica­tur, ubi Christi verba fuerint de­prompta, iā non panis dicitur, sed corpus Christi appellatur. Whan I dyd entreate of the sacramentes (saieth Austen) I telled you, that afore Christes wordes pronoun­ced of the preiste, that, the whiche is offered in sacrifice, is called bread, after Christes wordes be spoken, it is not now named bread but it is called christes body. This sainte Austen dothe set forth bothe the sacryfyce of the masse, and also that by y ^e strenght, & force of chri­stes [Page cxxiii] wordes, which he spake at his laste supper institutynge the mas­ses sacrifice, the breade is turned Transubstantition into Christes very bodye, and af­ter loseth the name of breade. Moreouer sainte Austen thus writeth De ciui. dei. li 20. cap. 25. in an other place of this mat­ter, Omnes, qui offerunt, profecto in peccatis sunt, pro quibus dimit tendis offerunt, ut cum obtulerint, acceptum (que) deo fuerit, tunc dimit tantur, That is to saye in englysh All men whiche do offer sacrifice, forsoth they are in synne, for the whiche to be forgiuen they offre Note this dilygently reader. sacrifice, that whan they haue of­fred sacrifice, and that is accepted of god, than their synnes shoulde be forgyuen them. These wordes are inoughe to stoppe all mennes mouthes, that they maye haue no­thinge hereafter to speake against this holye sacryfyce of the masse, [Page] but that it is a sacrifice obteyning of god remyssion of synne. This ment saint Poule the fifte chapter to the Hebrewes, sayenge, that a byshoppe, or a preiste is chosen, & ordeined to offre gyftes (as praier and lyke thinges) & sacrifices for the lynnes of the people. With the whych saynt Chrisostome agreeth Chrisostom in missa sua. saienge. Idoneos nos redde domi­ne ad inferenda tibi dona, & sacrificia spiritualia, pro nostris peccatis & populi ignorantijs, & dignos nos fac, ut inueniamus gratiam in cōspectu tuo, vt acceptabile fiat sacrificiū nostrum. That is. Make vs, o lord, (saith the preist at masse This is plainly said of that no­ble doctoure and holye saynte. amonge the greakes) meete to bringe into the, gyftes and spiri­tuall sacryfyces for our synnes, & the peoples sinnes, cōmytted tho­rough lacke of knoweledge, and make vs worthy to fynde grace in [Page cxxiiii] thy syghte, that oure sacrifice may be acceptable. Againe in the same treatice of the masse he sayeth. Fac panem hunc praeciosum cor­pus filij tui, in calice vero hoc, san­guinem preciosum Christi tui, trāsmutans ea spiritu tuo sancto. Vt fiat assumentibus in lotionem ani­marum, in remissionem peccatorū in communionem sācti spiritus, in regni coelorum impletio nem, in fiduciam apud te, non in iudicium, non in condemnationem, haec ibi. Make o lord (saith the greke preist at masse) this breade the precious bodye of thy sonne, and that thing whiche is in this cuppe, the precy­ous bloud of thy Christe The doc­trine of Transubstā tiation is no newe thing, of whiche Chrisostom wrote nigh twelue hun­dred yeares past. chaun­gynge them from breade and wine in to flesshe and bloude by thy ho­ly spirite. That it maye be to the receauers therof, for a wasshynge [Page] or a clensynge of their soules, and remyssion of their synnes, and a cō munion, or a mutuall participati­on together of the holye ghoste, & to the fulfyllynge of the heauenly kingdom, an affiaūce in the, not to their iudgemente, not to their con­demnation. Epiphanius alsoo, a greake doctour (nygh twelfe hun­dred yeares olde) confirmeth this Epipha. in cpi. ad Ioan hiero so uersa ab d. Hieroni. sayenge. Illud audiens admiratus sum, quod quidam te quo (que) turba­uerunt, & dixerunt, ꝙ in oratione, quando offerimus deo sacrificia, soleamus ꝓ te dicere, Domine presta Ioanni, ut recte credat. That is I hearynge that dyd maruayle, that certayn men had troubled the also, and sayde that we are wonte in oure prayer, whan we doo offre sacrifices to god, to saye for the. Lorde graunte to Ihon, that he maye beleue truely. A lyke saieng [Page cxxv] hath saint Gregory Ieroins mai­ster, entreatynge of Iuliane the Grego. Nazi. oratio. 1. in Iulianum. emperours wickednes. Mox incruenti sacrificij oblationem manus commaculat, per quod nos christo unimur, nec non passionis, ac diui­nitatis eius participes reddimur, Anone the handes do defile the oblation of the sacrifice vnblouddye, or offered without bloud shedding by the whiche we are ioyned toge­ther with Christe, and made parte Marke reader. takers also of his passiō, and god­head. What sacrifice I beseche the good reder, can ioyne vs together with Christe, and make vs parte­nars of his death, and godheade, whiche mannes handes maye de­file, except it be the masse, and it be also a sacrifice propitiatory, & pa­cyfieng goddes wrath toward vs for oure offences? That sayethe sainte Cyprian, thus writinge, af­ter Cyprianus de caena domini. [Page] he had saide that Christe vpon the crosse dyd offer hym selfe a sa­crifice, and that he the buttelar had giuen the same cuppe, Penitrat omnia tanti medicamenti virtus, quicquid esset intus ibi, dum effugaret, & renouaret, sanaret (que) quic quid morbi carni, vel spiritui, veteris uitae adlinierat corruptela. That is. The vertue or strength of soo greate a medicine perceth al thin­ges, while it dryueth awaye what so euer shulde be there within, and shoulde renewe, and heale what so euer disease the defylynge of the olde lyfe had brought to the fleshe or the spirite. Hytherto Cypryan. Origen doth also thus write of y ^e force and strength of the masse. Origenes ho: 13. in leui. Sirespicias ad illam commemora­tionem, de qua dicit dominus, Hoc facite in meam commemorationē, inuenies ꝙ ista est commemoratio Lu. [...]2: [Page cxxvi] sola, quae propitium facit hominibꝰ deum. If a man loke to that remē braunce, of the whiche oure lorde saith, do ye this for my remēbraūce he shal fynde, that this is the only memorye, or remembraunce (of Christes death, and sacrifice done on the crosse) whiche causethe god to be contented or mercyful to men. Of this part this is sufficent to proue that y ^e masse is a sacrifice propitiatory, or appeasynge gods dyspleasure for synne. Now to the seconde part, which is that the masse is auayleable and profitable to thē whiche are depar­ted from this lyfe.

¶ That the masse is profitable to the deade, lyke as other good deedes doone for them are.

THegrekes good reder, dyd deny vtterly y ^t there was any meane place be­twene heauen, & hell, wherin mās soule shulde be deteined for a time tyll that it myght please god to deliuer it frō thence, to his glorious sighte. The whiche errour among diuers other, Iohan Wycleffe, Martin luther, & Ihon Frith, did maynteyne, and defende. Also one Aerius (as sainte Austen sheweth August. lib. de heres. heres. 55 in his booke of heresies) whan he coulde not obteyne a byshoprike, [Page cxxvii] for y ^e which he laboured, he taught Epiphani: lib. 3 many heresies, amonge the whiche he saied, that a christen man shuld not be bounde, to faste any certain daye, but to be suffered to fast whā he lyste, ageinst the which I haue made a boke in englisshe, and also A boke of fastynge. he saide that it shulde nothinge auaile the deade, yf the lyuynge shuld pray for them. And thought it were nowe greate nede to write fully of this matter, yet I wyll at this tyme onely bringe the aunciēt doctours sentences, to proue that the masse is a sacrifice profitable to them, whiche are departed, yf it be songe, or sayde for them, and shortely, god wyllynge, I wyll set forthe a hoole booke of that mat­ter, againste Frithes booke com­piled of the same. To begynne Innocen. li. de myst. miss. therfore, Innocentius thus wry­teth. Istos, qui nondum perfecte [Page] prorsus purgati sunt, commendat pia mater ecclesia intercessione sua in sacrosācto sacrificio, certissime The same hath s. Bar­narden ser­mone. 66. Canti. ca. credens, ꝙ sanguis ille praecio­sus, qui pro multis effusus est in remissionem peccatorum, non solū valeat ad salutem viuentium, sed etiam ad releuationem defunctorū The godly or piteous mother the church, doth remembre them wtih her intercession in the halowed sa­crifice, beleuynge moste assuredly that y ^e precious bloud, which was poured out for the remission of many mēs sinnes, is not only of force or strength for the helth of the ly­uynge, but also for the easyng of y ^e dead. Isodorꝰ agreeth with this, Isodorus lib. [...] off. sayenge. Sacrificium pro defun­ctorum requie offerre, quia per to tū orbē custoditur, credimus ab a­postolis esse traditum. We do be­leue that the apostles taught to offer [Page cxxviii] sacrifice for the deades reste, because it is kepte throughe all the world. But I wyl passe ouer those S. Augu. lib. 9 confes. ca. 12. &. 1 [...]. later writers, and go to S. Austen which thus saith, (after he had re­hersed his mothers petitiō, which was that y ^• preistes wolde pray for hir in their masses,) Cū ecce corpꝰ elatū est, imus, & redimus, sine la­chrymis. Nā ne (que) in eis praecibus, quas tibi fūdimus, cū offerretur ꝓ ea sacrificiū precij nostri, fleuimus Lo whā y ^e body of my mother was brought forth to beburied, we go & come again w ^tout teares in wepīg For we dyd not wepe in those prayers, Note that he saith the sacrifice of our price or redemption. whiche we poured oute to the, whā the sacrifice of oure price, or ransom, was offred for hir. Also s. Austen desired the preistes to remē bre his mother Monica, and hys [...]ther Patricke, in their masses. Oughte I besech the good reder, [Page] bablers, and bunglers in diuinite affirme, that the prayers of the quicke, and preistes masses can nothynge auayle the deade, sythe saint Austen the greateste learned man, that hath ben sence the apo­stles tyme, dyd so instantlye desire preistes at their masses to remem­ber his father, and mother? More ouer this he saith. of the same matter. Ne (que) negandū est defunctorū animas pietate suorum uiuentium releuari, cum pro illis sacrificium Angnst. q. 2. de octo questi. ad dulcitium. mediatoris offertur, uel eleemosy­nae in ecclesia fiunt, sed eis haec profunt, qui cum uiuerent, vt haec sibi postea prodesse possent, me­ruerūt. That is to say ī our tōgue It maye not be denied, that the deade mennes soules are releaued or eased with the pitie of their frendes, liuynge when the sacrifice of the medyatoure is offered, or al­messe [Page cxxix] ar done in y ^e church, but these thinges profit thē, which deserued whā they lyued, that these thinges Augustin en­chy. ca. 109 & 110 myghte afterwarde auayle them. Cū ergo sacrificia siue altaris, siue quarūcū (que) eleemosynarū pro bap­tisatis omnibus defūctis offerunt, pro valde bonis gratiarū actiones sūt. Pro valde malis, etsi nulla sint adiumenta mortuorum, qualescun (que) viuorum consolationes sunt. Quibus autem prosunt, aut ad hoc prosunt, ut sit plena remissio, aut certe tollerabilior fiat ipsa damna­tio. Therfore whan sacrifices ey­ther of the aulter, or of any almesse are offered for all christened peo­ple deade, for those, whiche are ve­ry good, they be geuynge of than­kes. For those that are very muche yll, though they be no helpe to the deade, they are confortes (suche as they are) of the liuyng. But whom [Page] they do profite, they profitte, to that, that the remyssion maye be full, or perfitte, or at the leste the damnation shulde be more tolle­rable. lib. 20. deciui. de [...]. cap. 9. et de cura pro mor­tuis habenda. Hytherto saynte Austen, whiche saienges he hathe alsoo in many other of his bokes, which I now go ouer to y ^e rehersal of other writers saienges, among y ^e whiche Ambros. oratione funebride [...]bitu fratris. one is S. Ambrose whiche sayeth, wryting vpon the death of his brother. Tibi nunc omnipotens deus innoxiā cōmēdo aiam, tibi hostiā meā offero, cape, ppitiꝰ ac serenus, munus fraternū, sacerdotis sacrifi­ciū. I commende to the o (god al­mighty) a harmles soule, Ioffer to y ^e my host or sacrifice, take cōtēted, and pleased, & with a mery countenaūce, y ^e sacrifice of a preist, y ^e due­ty S. Ambrose prayed and saide masse for his bro­thers soule departed. of a brother. Lo here Ambrose doth praye at masse, & offer in it a sacrifice the very body, & bloud of [Page cxxx] Christe, for his brothers soule de­parted, & wilt thou not beleue him, that it is profitable to the dead so to do, rather than Martyn Luter, new scoryng an olde heresye of the greakes, Aerius, Ihon Wycleffe, And suche other? Epiphanius whiche was somwhat elder then saint Ierom, condēnynge Aerius of he­risie, because he denied y ^e praiers, & Epiphani. li. [...] suffrages of y ^e quick shuld auayle the deade, thus writeth, Quae pro defūctis fiunt prosūt praeces illis, etiāsi totā culpā nō abscindūt, Ec­clesia hoc necessario ꝑficit, traditi­one a pr̄ibus accepta. The praiers which are said for y ^e dead do, ꝓfit thē, thoughe they cut not away al y ^e fault. The church doth y ^t thing necessarely by a tradition receiued of y ^e fathers. Gre. Nazi. s. Ieroms maister doth in diuers places confyrme this godlye and catholyque doctrine, of the whiche to be breife [Page] I wil allege but only one, which is in a certaine oration made at the buryall of his brother Cesarius, where he thus praieth for him to Greg. Nazian. Oratio. 7. god. O domine nunc quidem caesariû suscipe, peregrinationis nostrae primitias, Take to the now, o lord, Cesary, the first fruites of our pilgrymage.

Chrisostome also doth wryte in Chrisost. ad popu antioch. homilia 69. this controuersye so playnelye, as fewe other hath done, either before his tyme, or els sence, for these are his wordes. Non temere ab apo­stolis Chrisostome also the 41. sermon vpō the l. to the Corinthiās saith that the holy goost ordeyned that in the masse the deade shuld be praied for. haec sancita fuerunt, ut in tremendis mysterijs defunctorum a­gatur cōmemoratio. Sciunt enim illis inde multum contingere lu­crum, utilitatem multam. Cum eni constiterit populus extensis mani­bus & sacerdotalis multitudo, & tremēdum proponatur sacrificiū, quomodo deū nō exorabimus pro [Page cxxxi] illis deprecantes? These thinges were ordeined of the apostles for a lawe not vnaduisedlye, nor with The sacri­fice of the masse, and prayers said in it, do pro­fyt the dead, and the apo­stelles made that ordy­naunce that masse shulde be said for them. out a cause, that in the dreadefull mysteries, or sacramente of thaul­ter, a remembraunce of the deade sholde be made. For they knowe, that muche lucre, and moche pro­fytte, doth come to them thereof: For whan the people shall stande holdynge vp their handes, and also the multitude of preistes, and y ^e fearefull sacrifice is set forth, how or by what reason, shall not we ob­teyne (grace or pardon) for them praienge? What is mente heare by that fearefull sacrifice, whiche is shewed forth, whan the lay people and the preistes are assembled to­gether holdynge vp their handes? Is it not the very bodye of Christ, god moste dreadefull, whiche the preist offereth at masse for y ^e dead, [Page] as this olde writer testifieth, whi­che writte almost twelfe hundred yeares passed? This lawe to saye masse for the dead (saith this aūci­ente doctour) was made by y ^e holy apostles of our sauiour christ, and therfore it must nedes be true, and godlye, and all doctrine against it false and vngodly. This holy fa­ther also in many other places maketh mention of this matter, the whiche I wyll passe ouer, excepte one in his masse, whiche is this. Memoriā dn̄e agimus omniū san­ctorū tuorū, quorū supplicatiō ibus respice nos deꝰ, & memēto omniū The grekes vs [...]d in their masse to pray to s [...]intes, and for the dead:. qui dormierunt in spe resurrectio­nis, & vitae aeternae, & requiescere eos facito, vbi videtur lumē vultꝰ tui. We do saye a memorie (o lord) of all thy saintes, for whose hum­ble requestes, or prayers sake, take pitie on vs, & remember all them, [Page cxxxii] which are dead in hope of rising againe, and of euerlasting life, and cause them to rest, where the light of thy countenaūce is sene. Hyther to this holy, and great clerke Chrisostom, w ^t whōe agreeth s. Damascene Damascenu [...] connone pro mortuis. sayeng. Apostoli discipuli saluatoris, in tremendis vitalibus (que) sacramētis, memoriā eorū qui fidelit obdormierūt, habendā edixerunt. The apostles oure sauiours disci­ples, hath cōmaunded, ordeined or published, y ^t a remembraūce shuld be had of thē, in the feareful, & liuely sacramentes, whiche haue died faithfully. Lo here, good reder, another witnesse, [...] man of yeres, for he was .xi. c. yeres before Luter & Ihon Frithe were borne, & muche better learned then anye of them two, or any other of that fashyon. He affirmeth that the apostles did inacte and establysshe this lawe, [Page] that preistes shulde praye at masse for the deade, and arte thou not a­shamed to saye that the masse, and praiers of men lyuynge doth no­thynge auayle the deade? These two auncient, and excellente cler­kes saye, that in the masse by the ordinaunce of the apostles (which were instructed in the gospell of Christe) a remembraunce is made of the dead, and thou being shame lesse, doest saye that couetous prei­stes haue of late brought it vp for lucre. Ceasse for shame, and say no more so. Saye with these fathers that the apostles taught y ^e churche this l [...]sson, let neither malyce to­warde preistes, nor sauynge of money, whiche y ^u shuldest gyue for the dead (eyther by y ^e duetie of charite, or els by hys wyl, y ^t in his testamēt wylled the so to do, for his soules helth) cause the thus to say, Remē ber [Page cxxxiii] our sauiours saieng, which is. Math. 16. What shal it auayle a man to wyn y ^e hole world, and loose hys soule? But of this ynoughe. I wyll pro­cede on this matter, Athanasius, Athanasi. libr. quest. 34. whiche writte aboute twelfe hun­dred yeares synce, doth sette forthe this thing very manifestly, saieng, Num sentiunt aliqua beneficia animae defūctorum, cum super illis fi­unt cōuentus, & peractiones bonorum operum, & oblationum? Doth the soules of the deade feele any benefites, or pleasures, whan assembles are made for them of the people, and good workes, and sa­crifices are also done for them? To y ^e questiō he thus aunswereth. Si non aliquo beneficio participa­rent ex illo, non uti (que) in caena & in exequijs fieret eorum commemo­ratio, Intelligimus animas pecca­torum participare aliqua beneficia [Page] ab exangui immolatione, et gratificatione pro illis facta, sicut solꝰ ordinat, et praecipit deus, [...]uiuorū & mortuorū potestatē gerit, That is If the soules of the deade shulde not take some benefitte thereof, truely a memorie, or a remēbraūce of them shulde not be made in the Note reder. supper (the masse he meaneth therby) and in the dyryges, or funeral­les doone at the buryall. We doo perceaue that synners soules do take parte of some benefytes of the sacryfyce offered wythoute bloude shedynge, and of a good tourne done for them, as god one­lye God (saythe the auncient doctor) hath ordeined & commanded vs to offre sacrifices, and to do other good dedes for the dead. ordeyneth and commaundeth, whyche hathe power vppon the quycke, and the deade. These wordes are very playnly spokē for the defence of thys catholyque, and charitable doctryne, but Saynte Cypryan, beinge nyghe wythyn [Page cxxxiiii] two hundred yeares of Chrystes byrthe is euen as plaine therein, saieng in his, iii. boke of epistles. Celebrantur hic a nobis oblatiōes Cyprianus lib. 3 epist. 9. & sacrificia, ob cōmemorationē e­orū scilicet mortuorum in carcere We here offer, and doo sacryfyces for the remembraunce of theym, whyche are deade in the pryson. Agayne Sacrificia semper pro ijs, meministis, offerimus, quotiens li. 4. epist. 5: martyrum passiones, & dies ani­uersaria commemoratione cele­bramus. We offer sacryfyces al­way for them, as ye do remembre, as often as we do kepe the fea­stes of the martyres, wyth an yerelye remembraunce. Moreouer he saythe thus in an other place. Quod episcopi antecessores no­stri religiose considerantes & salu li. [...]. epist. 9. briter prouidentes censuerunt, ne quis frater excedens ad tutelam [Page] vel curam clericum nominaret, ac­si quis hoc fecisset, non offerretur pro eo, nec sacrificium pro dormi­tione eius celebraretur. Ne (que) enim ad altaremeretur nominari in sacerdotum prece, qui ab altari sacerdotes & ministros suos leuitas auocare uoluit, For as muche as the bysshoppes our predecessours deuoutly consyderynge and holesomelye prouydyng haue determyned, that Marke this reader. no brother, or christen man depar­tynge shoulde name a clerke to a wardeshyppe, or custody of infan­tes, or to the charge of worldely busines, and if any man had so done, there shoulde be no offeringe for hym, nother the sacrifice shulde be offered for his deathe. For he de­serueth not to be named at the aulter in the preistes prayers, whiche wolde call awaye the preistes, and his ministers the leuites, from the [Page cxxxv] aulter. This Cyprian rehersynge the determination of the byshops his predecessours, whiche forth w ^t sayth. Et ideo Victor, cum contra formam nuper in consilio a sacer­dotibus datam, Geminium fastiuū presbyterum ausus sit actorem cō ­stituere, non est quo pro dormitio­ne eius apud uos fiat oblatio aut deprecatio aliqua nomine eius in ecclesiam frequentetur, ut sacer­dotum decretum, religiose & ne­cessarie factum, seruetur a nobis.

And therefore for as muche as victor against the fourme made of late by the preistes in the coūsayle, hath ben so bolde to ordeine one Gemyne faustine a preist his fac­toure to take the charge of hys busines, there is not whye ye shoulde do sacrifice for his departyng, nor any prayer shulde be vsed for him in the churche, that the preistes de­cree [Page] godly, and necessarelye made, myghte be kepte of vs. But of s. Cyprian this is ynoughe. Tertu­lian Tertulia de corona milit. [...] also doth not dissent frō this doctryne, but holde wyth it in dy­uerse places, of the whyche I wyll reherse two or three. He faith ma­kynge mention of certayne tradi­tions, whyche came from the apo­stles to the churche, wythout wry­tynge. Thapostles ordeined that sacrifice shuld be of­fered for [...]he deade, & not anye coue­tous preiste as some say Oblationes pro defūctis an nua die facimus. We do offre sacrifices yearelye for the deade. Therefore y ^• apostles (as I haue recyted of Damascene, and Chry­sostome) dydde make this ordy­naunce to praye, and say masse for the deade, thoughe those thynges be not expresselye sette forthe in scrypture. But Tertulian shall speake once agayne wyth these Tertulia li. de exhorta ad ca­stitatem wordes. Et iam repete ad deum ꝓ cuius spiritu postules, pro qua oblationes [Page cxxxvi] annuas reddas. Stabis a­pud deum cum tot vxoribus, quo [...] illas oratione commemoras, & offeres pro duabus, & commemo­rabis illis duas per sacerdotem. &c. And nowe remember, for whose soule thou mayest make pe­tytyon to God, for whyche wyfe thou mayeste rendre yearelye sacrifyces. Thou shalte stande afore god wyth soo manye wyues, as thou doeste remember in thy prayer, and thou wylte offer for them bothe, and thou shalte remember them two by the preist, Fynally in Tertulian, demonog. an other boke. Enim vero pro ani­ma prioris vxoris orat, & refrigerium interim postulat, & in prima resurrectione consortiū, & offert ā nuis diebus dormitionis eiꝰ. For soth the husbande dothe praye for [Page] the soule of his first wyfe, and he desireth a recreation, refresshynge or a coolynge for hir in the meane season, and felowshippe in the first arising vp, and he offreth sacrifice Obites or yeres mīdes. yerely at her obite, or the tyme of her dyenge and decesse, lo good reader, the custome, to haue dirige, & masse ones in the space of an yere A booke cal­led epi [...]ome cronicon falsely saith that one Pelagius a bysshoppe of Rome dydde ordeine that masse sholde be sayde for the dead for he was [...]52 yeres after Christes byrth. for the dead, is no newe inuention, nor of late sette vp by couetous preistes (as many couetous, and enuious persons saye) but a thing obserued alwaye euen from the holy apostles tyme tyll oure dayes, and therefore it muste neades be a good, and a godly custome, For as Tertulian saith, We maye pre­scribe againste all heretikes hol­dyng the contrary, agaynst whom iudgemente is giuen afore, Id esse uerum, (qui) cun (que) primum, id esse ad ulterum, quodcum (que) posterius, [Page cxxxvii] That to be true, what so euer is first, that to be counterfait, or for­ged, what so euer is that commeth Dionisius lib. de eccl. hierar ca. 7. after. Saint Dionise Paules sco­ler thus writeth also of the pray­enge at masse for the dead. Sanctorum preces, etiam in ista vita, & nō This came vp in the traditiō of the apostles, as s. Dionise testifieth. tantum post mortem prosunt ijs so lis, qui digni sunt, vt pro eis sanctae preces fiant (nempe fidelibus). That is, holy mens prayers, ye in this lyfe, and not only after death do profitte them onely, whiche are worthye, that holye prayers shuld be saide for them, sothelye for the faithfull, as Damascene recytyng these wordes doth expound them. Againe this sainte speakynge of Sermone de mortuis. the bysshops, or preistes prayenge for y ^e dead at dirige, & masse, saith after this maner. Inter praecandū igitur oratur diuina bonitas, ut cuncta defuncti peccata dimittat per [Page] humanam infirmitatem admissa, Damas. eum (que) in luce collocet, & regione viuorum, in sinibus Abrahae, Isaac, & Iacob, in loco vnde aufugit do­lor, tristicia, & gemitꝰ. While the preiste doth praye for the dead, the goodnes of god is praied vnto, y ^e he wolde forgiue the deade all his synnes, commytted by mans infir­mitie, and that he wolde sette hym in lyght and in the region of the liuynge persons, in the bosomes of Abraham, Isaac, and Iacob, in a place frome whense is fleed heuy­nes, That is in heauen. sadnes, and waylynge. Thou doest le (saith s. Damascen reciting these wordꝭ) o aduersary, by what meane Dionisius confirmeth praiers to be very profitable for them, which are departed in a holy hope Damas. sermone pro defun­ctis. This aunciente doctour Damas. reherseth s. Gre. (Ieroms masters) wordes, writtē in a certeine oratiō of the funerall exequies for hys [Page cxxxviii] mother, whiche are these. Diuitias igitur, quae in nostra potestate fu­erūt, partim dedimꝰ, partim daturi sumus, anniuersarios illi honores, & memorias exhibituri. Therfore (sith by praiers and masses my mothers dolour may be eased, for that he saide afore) we haue parte­ly geuen already, and partely wyl geue these goodes, which were in our power, I wil geue to her y ^t mē may behold yerely honours & me­mories. Thou seest (saith Damas.) y ^t he cōfirmeth our opiniō allowīg sacrifices & yerely remēbraūces to be made for thē, which are depar­ted in god, while he callethe them good, & holy. Moreouer s. Dama. doth alledge a very plaine sentēce of one Grego. Nyssene saint Ba­syls brother, which is this, Nihil abs (que) vtilitate a predicatoribus, & discipulis Christi est traditum, & in omnibus ecclesijs predicatum. [Page] Res autem modis omnibus est uti­lis, Gregorius Nyssenus saithe that the apostles dyd preache and teache ī all churches that we shulde pray at masse for the dead, as Damascen, Chrisostom Tertulian, and diuers other do say they dydde. & deo in primisgrata, indiuinis praeclaris (que) operationibus eorum, qui in recta fide discesserunt, manifestam facere memoriam. That is in englysshe. There is nothinge taughte, or delyuered by tradition and preached in al churches, of the preachers and disciples of Christ, without profitte, but it is a thinge by alwayes profilable, and to god chiefly thankefull, or acceptable, to make a manifest memory of thē (that haue departed in a ryghte faith) in the diuine, and very noble workes. What els, good reader, I besech y ^e, ment this great clerke, and aunciente father, by these dy­uyne and very noble workes, than dirige, masses, and other lyke prayers, offred to god for them whiche dyed in a true faith? The apostles of Christ the truth, and to whome [Page cxxxix] y ^e holy goost, the spirite of y ^e truth, It is a tra­ditiō of christes apostels to pray for the dead at masse as G. Nyssene saith, & Da­mascene doth affirm that they lerned it of Christe. dyd teache all truth, accordinge to christes promysse taughte this les­son, and the same is preached in al churches. Thou doest beleue that infantes, or yonge children ought to be baptised, and that baptisme auaileth them thorough the fayth of the church, to the attainemente of remyssion of originall synne, grace and glorye, and yet that can not be proued by any scripture sufficientlye, but it is a tradytyon of christes apostles, left to the church De eccle. hiera Origene ii. 6. in epist. Rom. without writing, as saint Dionise Paules scholer affirmeth, and O­rigen with many other, Why ther­fore doest thou not beleue, that the masse is a sacrifice propitiatorie, and profitable both to the quicke and the deade, for as muche as the holye apostles hathe taughte the church, aswel the one as the other? [Page] They whiche denye that chyldren shulde be baptised because there is no plain scripture for it, are coū ted heretikes of the sect of the anabaptistes, only because the holy a­postels taughte the churche that All catho­lyke chur­ches do baptise infan­tes, though that be not cōmaunded in scripture doctrine, and it hath ben obserued through al churches of the worlde euer since, therefore by that auto­ritie, and reason they muste nedes runne into heresie, that denye the masse & prayers, with other good deades to be auaileable for the deade, because it is a tradition of the apostles to praye, to geue al­mes, and saie masses for them, and it hath ben kepte accustomedly in all churches of Christe, from that time to this tyme, and shalbe till y ^e worldes ende (as Damas. saith) because it is a truth of our lord whi­che Sermone pro defunctis, shal abide for euer as Dauyd y ^e ꝓphet saith. Moreouer Damas. [Page cxxxx] telleth, that one Palladius an old writer of histories writing of a holy mā called Macarius which had wrought manye greate miracles, thus saith of him. Quia faciebat ꝓ consuetudine sua ꝓ defūctis p̄ces, scire (que) desiderabat nūqꝓ illis ꝓdesset, et cōsolatio illis inde proueni­ret, Deus amator animarū, uolens hoc suo seruo, pluribus et certis argumētis pate facere, cranio, ꝙ exaruerat, verbū ueritatis inspirauit, ꝓ­rupit enim cranium in hec verba. Quādo pro mortuis offers preces, cōsolatiunculā sentimus. That is to wit. Whā y ^t holy man Macariꝰ A myracle doone to shewe that praiers of the quycke do profytte the deade. dyd, after his custome, pray for the dead, and was desirous to knowe whether y ^t he did any ꝓfit to them or no, & whether they had any comforte thereof. God the louer of soules, wyllinge to disclose or de­clare this thinge by many & certen reasōs makīg a profe to his seruāt [Page] dyd inspire the foremoost parte of a skull (which was) dried with the worde of truth, For the foremoost parte of the skull brast out, saieng these wordes. Whan y ^u doest offer prayers for the deade, we feele cō ­forte in aduersite. Lo here a great miracle, to proue this matter, as there are written in olde bokes many mo, whiche I wyll passe ouer, to be short and bring ones againe Damas. contione de defun­ctis. Idē hrbet D Hugo Aethe­rianorum lib. de regressu a­nimarum ab inferis: saint Damascenes saienge, which is this, Nisi hoc in oculis dei mi­sericordis rectum foret, nun (que) oc­casionem dedisset habendae memoriae defunctorum in sacrificio illo incruento, & anniuersariorum, quae nunc inconcussa, & certiora (quam de quibus iudicandum sit) aposto­lica, catholica (que) ecclesia, ac popu­lus domino collectus, pietati (que) de­ditus, abs (que) omni contradictione custodit. This is in oure speache. [Page cxli] Excepte to praie, and to offer sacrifice at the masse for the soules de­parted shulde be in goddes merci­full sighte, righte, he wolde neuer haue giuen an occasion of a memorie to be had for the deade in that vnblouddye sacrifice, nor of anni­uersaries God gaue an occasion of the sacri­fice of the masse to be offered and yeares min­des to be kept for the deade, as s. Damascene doth affirm retourninge euery yeare ones at one tyme, Thus moche I haue said of the olde doctours iudgementes in this matter, touching the sacrifice of the holy masse, and the offerynge of it to god, both for the quicke and the deade also, vpō the which doctrine they are al and whollye agreed, and therefore no wise, & godly christen man, or wo­man wyll rather beleue Martyn Luther, Eucer, Bullynger, Me­lancton, Iohn Frith, Bale, or any of that yll heare, then all these auncient fathers, of the whiche some were taughte, and instructed by y ^e [Page] apostles, & some by their disciples & scolers, & therfore no mā y ^t wise is or godly wil doubt, but they did know the truth much better, than any mā of a later time, not lerning it of thē and their bokes. All the doctours of christes church do af­firme, y ^t the masse is a sacrifice a­uaileable, both to y ^e quicke and the dead, Luther Ihon Frith, w ^t a ra­blement of like rascalles denie it, whether party wilt y ^u good reader, beleue al these holy fathers, or these leude & vnlerned later writers? very natural reasō & wyt, yf nothing els shuld persuade y ^t rather to be­leue these aūciētes, thā these other which now write, like to thē nether in yeres, nor lerning. Valeriꝰ Maximus An hystory of Valeriꝰ Maximus. sheweth that the Romanes dyd in a matter, risen betwene two men, of the which the one was of muche honestie, and fidelitie, & the [Page cxlii] other of very litle vertue & credēce gyue sētence vpon the honest mās part, for his truthe and honesties sake when his aduersary laide a­gainst hym a certaine cryme. The story is this. Cū Marcus aemelius Scaurus vir clarissimus, ac explo­ratae probitatis, a vario Succronē ­si, uiro parū syncero, apud populū accusaretur, at (que) accusator long a oratiōe perorasset, ille maximo cō pendio vsus est, eo ꝙ sua & populi conscētiā fretus, non voluit oratione cōtēdere. Querites (inquit) Variꝰ Succronēsis ait, Aemiliꝰ Scau­rꝰ negat. Vtri potius Credēdū cēsetis? quibꝰ verbis applaudēte popu­lo falsā s [...]bi intēta [...]ālitē cōsopiui [...]. That is. Whan Marke Aemyle Scaurus a man most honorable, or famous and of goodnes well knowen, was accused to the peo­ple of Varius Succronēsis a mā of lyttle purenes, or symplycytie, [Page] and y ^e accusar had reasoned to an ende with a longe oration, Marke Aemile vsed a very shorte fourme, for because he trusted vppon hys owne cōscience, & the peoples also, he wolde not striue with reaso­nynge, but saide onely for his de­fence againste his aduersarie. O Romaines, Varius Succronēsis affirmeth (that I am gylty in this faulte) Aemelius Scaurus deny­eth it. To whiche of these two doo you iudge credence shuld be giuē? with the which wordes he ceassed, or sette at rest the action, falsely entred against him, the people mo­uing their handes, or feete for ioy. Lo good reader, amonge the Ro­maines, which then were infidels, the famousenes, and surely knowē goodnes of the person, was a sufficiente cause, to geue sentence with a signe of ioye vpon the famous, [Page cxliii] and good mannes syde saieng onely for his defēce that he was false­lye accused, against his aduersary being yl & pleading his actiō with many wordes. The honourable and good Marke said to the peo­ple, myne aduersarye saith that I am gyltye, I saye naye, whether thinke you ought to be beleued. The people mouing their handes or feete for ioy, y ^e good mā Marke was discharged of that actiō tho­rough those his fewe wordes, for his goodnes, and fames sake. So in this presente controuersie of the sacrifice of y ^e masse, saint Dionise, saint Ignatius. S. Anaclet, saint Alexander, saint Clemente s. Cy­prian, with all other catholycke doctours of all ages do saye that the masse is a sacrifice appeasinge goddes wrath, Martyn Luther Suynglius, Oecolampius, Bucers [Page] shoulde be praied for to our lorde. The thirde councel holden at Carthago hath a lyke decre and other diuers, whiche I wyll passe by at this tyme, and go to the soilyng of myne aduersaries argumentes, grounded vpon scripture, wrasted cleane from the true, and right vnderstandinge of it, as it shall anon openly be seene to them, that be not holly blynded neither with malice, nor affection to­warde the contrary part, for whom as persons nygh vncurable, I haue not taken this labour. But to my purpose.

¶ An aunswere to all Martyn Luters, and his scolers reasons made againste the sacryfyce of the blessed masse, by the which it dothe playnelye appeare vppon howe weake, and sclender a grounde they haue builded theyr vn­godlye doctryne in this controuersy, so that no wyse and cunnynge buyl­der, wyl hereafter build with them on that foundation, lest y ^e hole house at the length fall downe on his heade, and so vtterly destroy hym.

NOwe, good reder, after I haue said inough for the defence, and setting forth of the truth, I wyll by gods help take cleane away mine aduersaries weapons frō them w ^t which they haue warred, and yet do, but very vnmanly, against the truth, & no maruayle, syth they be so yll weaponed, and so sclenderly har­nessed, as we se that they are. The fyrst argument of theirs good reader, is gathered of y ^e holy prophet Osees wordes, which our sauiour Osee. 6. recyted to the Iewes, as we reade in Mattheus gospell the nynthe Matt. 9. chapter and they are these. The fyrste reason a­gainst the sacrifice of the masse.

Misericordiā volo, & nō sacri­ficiū. I wyl haue mercy, & not sacrifice. Here we se (saith the aduersa­ries of y ^e holy masse) that god wil [Page cxlvi] haue no sacrifice done to hym, and therfore the masse is not a sacrifice acceptable vnto god for the appeasinge of hys wrath towarde vs for our sinnes.

Who is so yll lerned, good rea­der, The soluti­on. among them, that haue anye knowledge in gods worde, that he doth not perceaue how weake this argument is? For god ment by his prophet Osee, and also oure sauy­our recytyng the same words, that dedes, and workes of mercy, suche as are to teache y ^t ignoraunt, to cō uerte the sinners to god, to forgiue men theyr offences, and other like, were more acceptable to hym, then any sacryfyce of beastes sleane, af­ter the maner of tholde testament, whyche maketh nothynge against the sacrifice of the masse. That this was gods meanyng, it dothe euydently appeare by the text folowynge, [Page] whiche is this. Sacrificium S. Clement in the firste booke to s. Iames vn­derstandeth the ꝓphets wordes of Christes time whan the sacryfy­ces of tho [...]d lawe shulde ceasse so that than god wolde haue no such sacry­fice. Lib. 20. ca. 16 & scientiam dei magis (qui) holo cau­sta. I wyl rather haue sacrifice & y ^e knowlege of god, thā sacrifices holly burned. Here we se that god dyd not vtterlye denye, y ^t he wolde ac­cept sacrifice, but that he wold that we sholde offre rather to hym the sacrifice of pitie, or mercy, and the knowledge of him, then other carnall sacrifices. Sainte Austen a­gainst one Faustus, and also wri­tynge of gods cytie, doth approue this exposition saienge. Hoc dicto nihil aliud, (qui) sacrificium sacrificio praelatum oportet intelligi. By this saienge no other thynge oughte to be vnderstande, than a sacrifice to be preferred before a sacrifice, that is the sacrifice of almes, pity, com­passion, with soch other to be more estemed of god, than the sacrifices offered to him after the custome of [Page cxlvii] the olde lawe. He that wyll reade the nynth, and the twelfte chapter of Mathewe, shall fynde that oure sauyoure thus vnderstode the prophetes wordes nowe recyted. Moreouer Christe ment by those the prophetes wordes, that sacry­fices done without faith, and wor­kes of mercye were not pleasaunt, nor acceptable to god, as it dothe appeare by Esaye the prophet, in the firste chapter, and alsoo in dy­uers other places of the prophets, but yet the same ioyned with faith loue, and almes, were acceptable to hym, or elles why shuld he haue commaunded them to be offred to hym? wherefore this argument is cleane put away. Nowe to the se­conde reason made against the sa­cryfyce of the masse, whyche is this.

The holye apostle saint Paule The secōde argument. [Page] (sayth Luther) writing to the He­brewes y ^e seuenth chapter, sheweth that this difference is betwene a preiste of the olde testamente, and of the newe, that a preist of the old lawe, is not one, but dyuers, be­cause they were mortall, (and soo one oughte to succede an other) and the preiste of the newe lawe, is but one onelye, for as moche as he is immortall (and neadeth none to succede hym, for the supplyenge of hys rome), and therefore it were a thynge verye inconueny­ente to affyrme, that there is anye sacryfyce in the newe testamente, for the offerynge, of the whyche Chryste onelye shulde not be suffi­cyente, But one preist muste suc­cede an other frome tyme to tyme, tyll the worldes ende, as it muste neades folowe, yf the masse were [Page cxlviii] a sacryfyce, Therefore it is none, but a remembraunce onelye of the sacryfyce once for al, offered to god by Chryste on the crosse for oure synnes. Hytherto Luther and his scholers.

To the whiche thus I aunswer The solutiō breiflye, that the verye same hoste, and sacrifice is offered in y ^e masse, which was ones offred vppon the crosse, but it was there offred with bloudesheddynge, and here in the masse it is offered wythoute bloudsheddyng, so that the maner of of­ferynge is onelye dyuers, and not the sacryfyce it selfe, and therefore there is but one heade, and cheife preiste in the newe Testamente, Christ our sauyoure, whiche day­lye offereth hym selfe a sacryfice in y ^e masse to his father for our sinnes & the preistes as ministers do offer in his name and person, saieng at [Page] their masses. Hoc est corpus meū, & non, hoc est corpus christi. This is my body, & not, this is Christes bodye. Nowe it is no inconueny­ence, nor againste Paules mynde, that one, and the same hoste, or sa­crifice shulde be offered of onelye Christe, a preiste after the order of Melchisedech, and yet a multitude of preistes, as mynysters to be re­quired, accordynge to Paules say, enge. 1. Cor. 4. Sic nos existimet homo ut ministros Christi & dispensatores mysteriorum dei. That is to saye. Let a man so esteme vs as the my­nysters of Christe, and the dispen­sers, or stewardes of goddes my­steries, or secretes hidde in wordes or ceremonyes. Nowe thou seeste, good christen reader, that this reason is of no strength, againste the sacryfyce of the masse, and therfore I wyll recyte the nexte, whiche is [Page cxlix] of like force, & it is this in fourme, as here foloweth, collected and gathered of sainte Paules wordes wrytynge to the Hebrewes, which thus sayeth.

Sine sanguinis effusione nō fit The thyrde reason. remissio. Remissiō of synne is not without poutynge out of bloude, But at the masse there is no pou­ring out, or sheding of bloud, ther­fore the masse is no sacryfyce pro­pitiatorye, obtaining forgiuenesse The soluti­on. of synnes, and the fauoure of god.

This reason is grounded vpō the wronge vnderstandynge of s. Paules sayenge. For we maye as well proue by this autoritie, that remyssion of our synnes commeth not by baptisme, penaunce, the hearing Expende haec lector & iu­dica. of goddes worde, faith, hope, nor any other lyke thynge, as that by the masse forgyuenesse of synne hapneth not to vs, because when [Page] these thynges are receyued, there is no paurynge oute of bloude, as there is none in y ^e masse. Therfore let vs se what Paul ment by these his wordes, which is easely found out by y ^e wordes nexte afore in the letter pertainyng to the same sen­tence, and they are these. Et oia pe­nè in sanguine, secūdū legē mūdāt And all sinnes almost, after y ^• law, are made cleane in bloude. Lo he saith almost all, and not all, and therefore the other part of his sen­tence, whiche is alleged aboue a­gainste the sacrifice of the masse, ought to be thus takē, almost with out pouryng out of bloude remis­sion Aduerte lect. of synne is not, for els he had spoken playnely against the lawe, which maketh mention of an oblation Leui. 2. Heb. aliud Sa­bach, aliud Nuncha, aliud Misath. vnblouddy, wont to be offred to god for remission of sinne, that was made ex simila, that is of fine [Page cl] meale of corne. Also by the water, called aqua expiationis, that is the Num. 8. & 19 S. Paule sayeth, that the bloud of goates, and of bulles & the ashes of a heffer sprī cled, dydde make holye or pure the defyled, as touchynge the vncleannes of the flessh and in the tenthe chapter he affyrmethe that it was impossyble that synnes shulde haue bene taken awaye by the bloud of bulles and goates. water of clensinge, or purgyng, of the whiche the booke of numbers speaketh, synnes were forgiuen, & not only vncleanes of the bodye was purged, and yet bloude was not alway shedde whan this was done, but ones before through sle­ynge of a redde heffar to make that water, Thou mayst say, good reader, that although Paule ment that nothinges almooste, whiche were vncleane, in the olde lawe, were made cleane without bloude sheddynge, eyther euen than, [...] before, yet that saieng of his may be applied to the time of the new law, for asmuch as in this time there is no remyssion of synnes giuen with out bloud shedding, that is to wit, withoute the vertue of Christes [Page] bloude once shedde on the crosse, & that the same is applyed to vs by the masse, as by the other sacramē ­tes. Without faith in the strenghe merite and vertue of this bloude sheddynge than to come, no sacry­fyce of the olde testament dyd put awaye synne, finallye it maye ap­peare by the letter of this chapter that Paule mente here by remyssi­on, the purgynge of certaine irre­gularites, and vncleanes of the body, and flesshe, rather than forgiuenes of synne, the triall and iudge­mente whereof, I referre to the lerned, and wyll go forwarde to the rehersall of the nexte argumente, whiche is this, taken out of Pau­les epystles to the Hebrewes, thus wrytynge.

Christus semel oblatus est ad multorum The fourth reason. [...]b. 9. semel. peccata exhaurienda. Christe is ones offered in sacrifice [Page cli] to consume, or to take away many mennes synnes, vppon this that Paule affyrmeth, that Christ was ones offered vp in sacrifice for our synnes, they argue, and reasō that the masse is no sacrifice, for then Christe muste neades be offered, as often in sacrifice, as masse is sayde, the which is plaine against saint Paule, sayenge, that he was ones, and not often tymes offred for mennes synnes, and therefore it must neades folow that y ^e masse is not a sacrifice propitiatorye, or purchasynge to vs grace, and for­gyuenesse of synnes.

This reason though it be iud­ged The soluti­on. neuer so stronge, yet it is but very weake, and of lytle force. For (as s. Austē saith) Christ was ones offered for vs, and yet if we beleue and remember his comming to vs he is dayly offered for vs, so that [Page] albeit he was ones offered on the Christ was offred by the preistes of tholde law in figures and heofie­reth hym selfe at his laste supper whan he of fered the paschall lambe crosse, where he shed his precious bloud, and died for all the worldes offences, and that beynge a preist, and exercysynge also a preistes of­fice after the order of Aaron, yet he offered him self vnder the fourme of breade at his last supper (as I haue proued before sufficiently) & dayly dothe offer in the masse by y ^e ministery of the preiste, after thor­der of Melchizedech, which made sacrifice to god with breade and wyne, as y ^e Genesis sheweth, wher Gene. 14. of I haue entreated afore at large S. Austen saith the .xxiii, epistle whiche he wrote to the byshoppe Boniface: was not Christ ones of fred in sacrifice in hym selfe, and yet he is offered in the sacramente not only on al the feastes of easter but euery day also for the people? That saint Paule ment onelye in [Page clii] this place of the deathe of christ, and that his blouddye sacrifyce was ones done for al on the crosse, and nothing of the sacrifice vnder the fourme of breade and wine, whiche was fygured by Melchi­zedeches sacrifice, it appearethe plainly by certaine wordes of that same chaptre, whiche are these. Ne (que) ut saepe offerat semetipsum, quē admodū pontifex intrat in sanctaꝑ sigulos annos in sāguine alie­no, alioquin oportebat eū frequēt pati ab origine mūdi. Nūc aūt se­mel in cōsūmatione seculorū, ad destitutionem peccatiꝑ hostiā suā apparuit. Not y ^t he shuld offer him selfe oftentimes, lyke as y ^e bishop entreth into the holy places, euery yeare with the bloude of an other, or els he muste neades haue suf­fred death often from the begin­ning of y ^e world. But now he hath [Page] ones appeared by his hoste, or sacrifice in the ende of the worlde, to the putting away of syn̄e. Nothing cā be spoken more plainly, thā this is to declare that Paule ment of y ^t sacrifice, which is ioyned w ^t suffring of passion, and death, that ones is done, and offred for euer, and shall be neuer offered againe, because Christ dyed ones for our synnes (as Paule saith to the Romanes) and shall neuer suffre death again Rom. 6. that notwithstandynge, he is of­fred dayly in the masse withoute passion, or paine, that we maye the better, and the souer be partakers of the grace, whiche he purchased for vs by his deathe. But of thys ynoughe, now to the nexte reason of Martyn Luther.

Saint Paule saieth the nynth The fyfthe reason. to the Hebrewes, that yf Christe sholde oftentymes offre hym selfe [Page cliii] in sacrifice, that than he must nea­des suffre death often, but he can not dye, nor suffer deathe oftenty­mes, therfore he doth not offre him selfe often in the masse, as he nea­des muste, yf the masse were a sa­crifice, wherfore the masse is no sacrifice. The solutiō

This reason is soyled alredy in the aunswerynge to the laste argumente, whan I sayde that Vrbanus Regius & his folo­wers saye vntruelye that we de­fendyng the masse to be a sacrifice, do crucyfye christ again as much as lyeth in vs. Paule wolde that, yf Christ shold sundry tymes offer him selfe in sa­crifice in his owne fourme, by pourynge out his bloude, as he dydde ones on y ^e crosse, that than he must nedes oftentimes suffre death, but so he doth not offre hym self at the masse but onelye vnder the forme of breade and wyne, withoute all payne, and sufferinge. Sainte Ihon saithe in the Apocalypse. Agnus occisus est ab origine mundi. [Page] The lambe, (christ Ioh. i) was sleane from the beginninge of the worlde, not that christ thā suffered death (but many yeres after, whan Gala. 4. y ^e tyme appointed (as Paul saith) was come) but y ^t thā it was appointed by gods prouydence y ^t he shuld dye for mans offences, & that his death was fygured by the death of Abel, and other lyke, beynge at the begynnynge of the world, so christ is offered in sacrifice at the masse, not that he suffereth there ageyne, but that there he is offered for the remembraunce of his death ones suffered on y ^e crosse, wherfore this reason is cleane wiped away, & the next anone shalbe, which is this, cōpiled also of s. Paules wordes, y ^• x. to the Heb. where he thus saith.

Lex per singulos annos eisdē The syxte reason. ipsis hostijs, quas offerūt indesinē ­ter, nun (que) potest accedentes per­fectos [Page cliiii] facere, alioquin cessassent offerri. &c. The law (saith Paule) neuer could make them perfytte, whiche came to it, by the same ho­stes, or sacrifices, whyche the prei­stes euery yere do offre w ^tout ceas­syng, or elles they shuld haue ceas­sed to be offered, for as moche as the haunters, or kepers of it, shuld not haue any lenger grudge, or cō science of sinne, vpon these wordes thus they reason. The sacrifices of tholde lawe were for y ^t cause oftentymes (as Paule saith) offered, be­cause they were weake, and not of strength to put awaye sinne, & to delyuer mēfrō grudge of synne in their cōsciences, for yf they coulde haue done this, they shuld haue cessed to be offred, whā they had done it, but y ^e sacrifice of christes flesh, & bloud, ones offred vpō y ^• crosse, was strōge, & sufficiente inoughe [Page] to take awaye the synnes of all the 1. Pet. 2. 1. Io. 2. Apo. 2. worlde, as the scrypture witnesseth in sundrye places, therefore by S. Paules reason, Christe oughte no more, after his death to be offered in sacrifice, as he shold necessarely yf the masse were a sacrifice, wher­fore it is no sacrifice.

This reason hath some appa­raunce The solution. of truth, though it be very false in dede. For saint Paule mēt y ^t the sacrifices of y ^e olde lawe were of them selues vnperfit, weake, & not able to put away mans synne, and therfore it was nedefull that many, and dyuers hoostes, and sa­crifices shuld one succede an other from tyme to tyme, durynge that lawe, now christ is not oftentimes offred in sacrifice at masse, because his sacrifice done ones on y ^e crosse, was not able, and sufficiēt to take away al mens synnes, but because [Page clv] men do dayly synne, and they haue neade to haue the vertue of that sacrifice done on the crosse, ones for all, applied to them, which is done by the masse. Agayne in the olde law, there was not alway one, and the same sacrifice offered, but ma­ny, and dyuers, for their feblenes, and insufficiēcy, but so it is not in the newe lawe, for there is continually one hooste, and the very same, is offered in the masse by the preist whiche Christe on good fryday of­fred vpon the crosse for our sinnes although in the masse it is offred vnder the fourme of breade and wine, and was vpon the crosse vn­der the forme of flesshe and bloud, so that the sacrifice is one, albeit the maner of offering it be not one, but dyuers, as the flesshe raw, and rosted is one thinge, thoughe it be altered in his qualities. This is [Page] S. Chrisostoms mynd, as it shall appeare in the soylinge of y ^e nexte reasō, which is this, gathered also ho. 17. in. He. out of Paules epistle to y ^e Hebre. Vrbanus Regius abuseth thys autoritie a­gainste the sacrifice of the masse, as Luther his mayster doth. the .x. chapter, where he thus saith Vna oblatione consummauit in sē piternū sanctificatos. Christe hath made perfecte for euer w ^t one oblation thē that are halowed, or made holy, Vpon these wordes Luther & his scholers, make this argumēt.

S. Paule doth affirme, that The seuēth reason christe hath made perfecte for euer with one sacrifice vpon the crosse, those which are sanctified, therfore we nede none other sacrifice beside that to make vs perfecte, before god, and thervpon it folowethe y ^t the masse is no sacrifice.

To this I saie, that it is great The solution. meruaile, that Martyn Luther wyll take oute of thys epystle of Saynte Poule, anye wytnesse a­gaynst [Page clvi] the sacryfyce of the blessed masse, For as muche as he denieth the autoritie of it, and sayeth that Marke Luthers, vn­shame ful­nesse, it is not saynt Paules letter, But suche is hys maner, and others lyke to hym, that they are not a­shamed to denye the autoritie of some bookes of scripture, the auc­toritie of the churche, and the holy doctours, and yet whan they seme any thyng to make for the setting forth of their heresies, than they wyl vse thē, but let this go. Saint Paule this mente by his wordes aboue rehersed, that Christ our sa­uiour, offring him selfe to his fa­ther a sacrifice of swete sauoure, (as Paule saith in an other place) dyd make men beleuynge in hym, and doynge penaunce for their synnes, perfecte, and dydde take awaye their synnes accordynge to saynt Iohn baptistes sayenge. [Page] Ecce agnus dei, ecce qui tollit peccata mūdi. Lo the lambe of god, se hym that taketh awaye the sinnes Io. 1. of the worlde. This I saye Christ hath done for vs, ones offerynge hym selfe on the crosse, the whiche Moses lawe, and all the sacrifices of it, coulde neuer do (as s. Paule saith in this tenth chaptre) though they were neuer so oftentymes of­fered, and for this cause Christes sacrifice done ones on the crosse is perfecte, and sufficient to doo a­waye all the worldes offences, whiche is not offered againe at masse, vnder the fourme of breade and wine, for the vnperfectenes, and in sufficiency of it (as I haue afore often saide) but for the applyenge thereof to vs, for the remembraūce of Christes death, and the greate, and tender loue, which he shewed towarde vs in the tune of his pas­sion, [Page clvii] that therbye we excited, and moued, sholde loue him tenderlye againe, and finally, for the attainement of that grace, whiche Chryst dyd merite, and purchase for vs, offerynge hym selfe on the crosse to appease his fathers wrath. Many Note how many men are deceued in valuinge of the vertu of christes death. men are shamefullye deceyued in this matter, puttynge no diffe­rence betwene the merite of remis­sion of synne, and the applyeng of suche merite. The church of Christ neuer taught otherwise, than that Christ onely was a sacrifice deser­uynge, or meritinge grace, and for giuenesse of synne for vs, the only 1. Cor. 6. 7 Ti. 2 1. P [...]. 2. Apo. 1. 5, 14 pryce for the raunsom of the hole worlde, and the only redemption, whiche boughte vs with the pryce of his precious bloude, and yet the masse is a sacrifice representynge and aduertisinge vs of Christes blouddy sacrifice, and deth, by the [Page] which, the grace (as I haue alrea­dy sayde) and remission of synne, that christe through that his sacrifice dyd merite for vs, is applyed to vs, If thou wylt say that christ (as Paules mind was) did so take awaye al synne with that his one oblatiō, or sacrice done on y ^e crosse, that we neade nowe no sacrifices for the purgynge of synne, than what nede we the sacrifice of con­fession made to god, of laude, thankes gyuynge, of a contryte harte, of mortifienge our affections and lustes, of alines, & semblable other whiche god commaundeth in scripture to be done? wherefore thinke not, good reader, that saint Paule mente, that christe had so satisfyed for oure synnes, with that his one oblation doone on the crosse, that thereby all other sacrifices are annulled, abrogated, and abolyshed [Page clviii] cleane, as vnfrutefull, and vnne­cessarye, but onely to declare of what, and how greatte efficacie, force, and strength that sacrifice was and is, for the takynge away of sinne, and makyng a man (be­leuynge, and repenting for his vi­ces committed) perfect before god, whiche al the sacrifices of the olde lawe, a thousande tymes and ofte­ner offered, coulde neuer bryng to passe, and therefore they ought to be forsaken, and lefte of, Christes onelye sacrifice receiued, embraced and obserued. This was sainte Paules onelye mynde, as the let­ter it selfe euydentelye shewethe. But yet ye wyll percase say to me, CHRISTE dydde sufficiently, An obiectiō & perfectly satisfye for our sinnes with this one oblation, and made the sanctyfyed, perfecte for euer (as saint Paule here affirmethe) [Page] therfore there is no neade at all of the sacrifice of the masse, to satisfy for our sinnes, or to make vs per­fecte afore god. This is a greate blyndnes of men. Dyd not chryst also sufficiently faste, wepe, & pray for vs, & yet we must fast, wepe, & praye for our sinnes forgiuenesse? dyd not he also pray, being in this world, sufficiently for our trespa­ces, Heb. 5 and that notwithstandyng he cesseth not to praye for vs? There­fore, Ro. 8. Heb. 9. Gene. [...]. lyke as god dyd make al thinges perfect within the space of .vi. dayes, and yet he worketh euen now (as christ sayd) in conseruing the same his creatures: so christ w ^t one oblation dyd sufficiently, and perfectly worke our saluation, me rytynge for vs grace, remyssion of synnes, and glorie, and yet he ceas­seth not, nor will tyll the worldes ende, to worke oure health, and saluation, [Page clix] by the holye sacramentes, and diuers other meanes, wherby we are made partakers of that his moost sufficient and perfect oblation, and sacrifice, or els we shoulde be damned for euer. Reade Chry­sostome the .xvii. homilie on thys epystle, in whom thou shalt fynde that the preiste, at masse doth offre christ in sacrifice, notwithstādinge that Paule saith that Christe dyd make vs perfect with one oblatiō. Of this sufficient, now to the next reason; fet lykewise out of the same Paules epistle, where he thus sayeth.

Vbi peccatorum remissio, iam The eyghte reason non est oblatio pro peccato. That is. Where or after there is remys­sion of synne, forth with there is no oblation for synne, to these wordes they adde. But christ hath through his death, and oblation done vpō [Page] the crosse, taken awaye the synnes of all the worlde (as manye textes of the scripture do wytnesse) there­fore there remaineth no sacrifice, or oblation necessary for y ^e doyng away of synne, and so the masse is no sacrifice for synne.

Saint Hilarye, good christen reader, sayd wel, that he is a good Lib. 4. de trinitate: and a mete reader of the scripture whiche bringeth not w ^t hym in his fansy or heade the vnderstādyng of it, labouring to make it seme to signifie that thyng, which he hath afore conceaued, and fantisied, but taketh the vnderstandynge of it of the causes, why it was writtē, and the circumstaunce of the text. As Martyn Luther, and his scholers do not, but cleane contrary. These wordes of Saynte Paule make as muche againste the sa­crifice [Page clx] of laude, thankesgyuyng to god for his benefites, of penaūce & such other, as against the sacri­fice of the holy masse, as it is euy­dente, & therefore let vs see, what Paule ment by them. Truelye his The solutiō mynde was to shewe vnto the Ie­wes, which wold that the olde law and the sacrifices of it shoulde be kept with christes gospel, and that his death was not a sacrifice sufficiente to put awaye mannes sinne but it was nedefull that the olde sacrifices shulde helpe thereunto, that Christe by offerynge hym selfe ones vpon the crosse dydde so perfectely, and sufficiently take awaye synne, that afterward there neaded none other sacrifice of Moses law (than abolyshed) no nor it was not necessarye that Chryste shoulde dye agayne to offer [Page] eftesones sacrifice for synne, as thoughe that one sacrifice done on the crosse were not sufficient. This is nothinge againste the sacrifice of the masse, for as muche as that is not a sacrifice of Moses lawe, nor yet distincte from the sacrifice of the crosse, but the selfe same, thoughe the maner of offrynge be Chrisosto. ho. 17. im. Heb. dyuers. For on the crosse Christe was offered vnder the fourme of flesshe and bloude vysyblye, wyth shedynge of his precious bloude, but in the sacrament at masse he is offered vnder the fourme of bread and wyne inuisibly, and yet this dyuersitie of offring doth not make the sacrifice dyuers, but it remainethe euer one, lyke as the flesshe rawe and rosted, is one, and a man clothed, and naked. But yet some peraduenture wyl say, yf our synnes be forgyuen, & done clane [Page clxi] awaye by christes death, and sacrifice, An obiecti­on commō ­ly moued of foles vnlearned. why shuld we neade to haue the masse sayde, and christe therin offered in sacrifice for them? I say to that fonde question, that as wel they may aske why shuld baptisme penaunce, fastynge, almes, praier, The solutiō fayth, hope, feare, charite, and such other be neadfull, syth our synnes are forgyuē by christes passion? Maye it not be sayed to these men Matt. 22. as christe sayed to the iewes Erra­tis nescientes scripturas, ye do erre or go out of the waye knowynge not the scriptures, because they thinke that christ hath by his deth so taken awaye synne, that there [...] grosse errour of ma­ny men. is none remaynynge amonge vs. For than wherefore shulde chryste teache vs to praye for remission of oure synnes? Why shuld penaūce Matt. 6. Luc. 24. be preached for remyssion of synne as christe sayde it ought? for what [Page] cause dyd christe geue to his apo­stels, after his death, and resurrec­tion, autoritie, and power to remit the penitent persons synne, yf they Ioan, 20: [...]eto, 2. dyd confesse them? Why dydde Peter commaunde the people to do penaunce, that they myghte be baptysed for to receaue remyssion of theyr synnes, yf Chryste hadde in dede and in effecte, so done a­waye synne by hys deathe, that noone shulde afterward remaine? They whyche wolde gladlye lyue after the flesshe, and the leude lu­stes thereof, do laye all on Chry­stes backe, sayenge that he hathe doone suffycyent for vs, we neade to doo nothynge, but Saynte Paule euen in thys epistle the .v. chapter, teacheth vs an other lessō sayenge. Christus factus est omni­bus obtēperātibus sibi, causa salu­tis [Page clxii] aeternae. Chryste is made the cause of euerlastinge saluation, to all them which do obeye him. Loo we muste obeye Chryst, commaundyng vs to beleue, to hope, to loue to feare god, to praye, and to kepe his commaundementes, or elles Chryst shal not be to vs a cause of euerlastynge saluation, although he hath dyed for vs, that we shuld be saued, but rather an occasion of our damnation, as Symeon said to oure Lady. Ecce hic positus est in ruinam multorum, Lo this thy sonne Christ is put to make many fall, or extremely to decaye. Ro. 8. Haeredes dei sumus, si tamē cōpati mur, ut cōglorificemur. 2. Tim. 2. si cōmortui fuerimꝰ, et cōuiuemꝰ, si sustinebimꝰ, & cōregnabimus. We are gods heires (saiethe Paule) yf we suffre wyth Chryste, that we maye be gloryfyed wyth hym.

If we dye wyth Chryste, we shall liue with him, yf we suffre, we shal reigne wyth Christ. These condi­tions, and manye other, are requi­red by the scripture as necessarye for to attayne lyfe euerlastinge, thoughe George Ioye calleth thē the honourable fathers Steuen lorde bysshoppe of Winchester, as thinges of his muention. To be shorte, yf only christes passiō were sufficiente to saue vs, withoute a­ny thinge done of oure parte, than all men shulde nedes be saued (for christe dyed for all the hole world, as Iohn testifieth) the whiche is 1. Io. 2. manifestly against the scriptures. Againe, If this were trewe take hell awaye cleane, as touchynge men at the leste, doest thou not see reader, that Lactantius sayd wel. Argumēta ex falso petita, ineptos, De. orig, [...]. li. 2. ca. 6. et absurdos exitus semꝑ habent. [Page clxiii] That is, argumentes fet, or gathered of a false prīciple, haue alway tryflynge endes, vnapte to the purpose, and folysshe. But I haue ta­ryed ouer longe in the handlynge of this argumente, and therfore I wyll say therin no more. They yet reason farther, after this sort, vpō these saint Paules wordes, shame fully wrasted from their true sence Volūtarie peccantibus nobis, post The nynth reason. acceptam noticiam ueritatis, iam nō relinquitur pro peccatis hostia To vs, whiche do synne volunta­rilye, after we haue receiued the knowledge of the truth, now there is lefte no hooste, or sacrifice for synne, yf there be lefte no sacrifice (sayth these men) for synne, it folo­weth, that the masse is not a sacri­fice propitiatorye.

To this I aunswere, that the The solution. autours, and setters forth of this [Page] argumente, doo not vnderstande Saynte Paules wordes, or elles they reason vppon them againste their owne conscience, seynge that they make nothynge for any suche purpose, as in dede they doo not. For Saint Paule ment, that men offendynge after they had ones receaued the faith, and the truth of the gospell, beynge Christened, shulde not trust to be againe raunsomed, and reconcyled to god, by an other crosse, or by the deathe of Chryst agayne to be crucified, and offered to god in sacrifice, as in the olde lawe, the sacryfyces were of­tentymes offered for synne, for yf they had that hope, they shulde be deceiued, because Christ died ones for oure synnes (as Peter sayethe) & shal neuer dye againe, as Paule 1. Petrt. 3. Rom. 6. wytnesseth, for he lyueth a lyfe im­mortall, and euer shal. Thus saint [Page clxiiii] Chrisostome doth expounde Paul in thys place, sayeng. Hostia ultra non est, hoc est secunda. Crux ul­tra nō est, hostiam quippe hanc uocat. An hoost is no more, that is y ^e seconde crosse is no more, for he calleth this a crosse. Vna nam (que) hostia perficit in perpetuum eos, qui san­ctificantur, non sicut iudaica. Cau­tos nos uult efficere, ne speremus ultra, secundū iudaicā legē aliam hostiam. That is to witte, For one hooste maketh them perfytte for e­uer which are halowed, not as the Iewes hooste. He wolde make vs The iewes hostes often tymes offe­red coulde neuer make men perfit in their consciences, as Paul saith Heb. 9. ware, y ^e we shuld not trust to haue offered for vs an other hoost, after the Iewes lawe. Hytherto saynte Chrisostom. Some expounde this text, that saint Paule shuld meane that they, whyche do synne after they be baptised, and haue receiued y ^e fayth, & continue in synne, doing [Page] no penaunce therefore, shuld take no profitte by christes deathe, but harme rather, because they shalbe more greuously punysshed (not ly­uynge after their profession, and fayth) than yf they had neuer bene christened, as Christe and Peter do say. This toucheth them, which Matt. 11. 2. Petrt. 2. folowyng madde Martyn Luther do beleue that only faith, without good workes shulde be sufficiente to saue them. Finallye this texte maye be vnderstande of them, that synne of malyce, and do reioyce in their yll dedes, of whome Salo­mon speaketh, sayeng. Laetantur Prouerb. 2. cū malefecerūt, & exultāt in rebus pessimis. They reioyce in their myndes (whiche they shewe also outwardely by sygnes) whan they haue done yll, and do bragge, or leape out with excedyng gladnes, in warst thinges. The sacrifice of [Page clxv] christe done on the crosse, can pro­fytte these men nothynge excepte they amende and repente. For as muche as the meanynge of these wordes, do depende vpon them, whiche wente a lytle before, wherby Paule dydde exhorte the Heb. to styrre, and prouoke one another to loue, and good workes, that no man in tyme of persecution shulde forsake the churche, or congrega­tion of y ^e faithful, I thinke Paule mente, that neither christes sacri­fice ones done on the crosse coulde saue them, that dyd leaue the company of the christened, and forsake their faith in christe, nor any other whiche they shulde loke for. But yet I do not preferre this myne exposition before saint Chrisostoms whiche semeth to me verye ryght, and true. The nynth reason made againste the sacrifice of the masse, [Page] is this.

Sainte Paule saith, deus erat in christo mundum sibi reconcili­ans, The tenthe reason. non reputans illis delicta ipso­rum. God was in Christe, reconcy­lynge to hym the worlde, that is al people of the world, not imputing their sinnes to them. Vpon these, & such other textes of scripture, whi­che do testifie that god is pleased through christes death, and we set in his fauoure, they reason, and argue, that there is no nede vtterlye of any sacrifice, to appease goddes wrath, and displeasure, toward vs conceaued for oure sinnes, for as much as he is alredye pleased by christes death, and blouddy sacri­fice, and therfore the masse is no sacrifice propitiatory.

The aunswere to this argument The solutiō is sone made, for they take wronge the scripture, which saith that god Matt. 3. [Page clxvi] is pacified, & appeased by chrystes sacrifice ones doone on the crosse, thinkynge that he is pacified indifferently to all men, and that christ toke awaye in deede, and in effecte al y ^e worldes sin̄es, so that streight withe, after his deathe none dydde remaine, whiche is plaine false (as I haue declared before) for than the Turkes, the Iewes, the Sarasons, with all other not beleuynge in Christe, and those that beleuing in hym, dyeng yet impenitēt, shuld al come to heauen, & shuld none be damned. Therefore the truthe is, that albeit Chryste dyed for al in­differently, yet those onely shal be saued by his deth, which do or shal beleue ī him perfitly, amēdīg their liues through penaunce, hopīg in gods mercy promised for his sake to vs, loue god & their neighbours as thē selfes, fear god, giue almes [Page] to neadye, doo praye and obserue gods commaundementes. These only shalbe saued by christes deth (I speake not of infantes) & none other, the whiche christ ment, say­enge. Hic est sanguis noui testamē ti, qui pro multis effunderur in re­missionem peccatorum. This is Matt. 26. the bloude of the newe testamente, whiche shal be poured out for the remission of many mens synnes, he saith of many, not of al, because all men shuld not fulfill the aboue rehersed thinges, necessary for the attainemente of grace, and saluation purchased by his deathe, in the whiche, and suche other is contayned the cōditiō, that George Ioye G. Ioye. mockyngly, and vngodly, callethe Wynchesters condition, in his vnlearned raylynge booke made a­gainste that honourable prelate, but to his owne greate shame, yf [Page clxvii] he be not shamelesse, as it shulde appeare by that his boke, that he is. The confutation of whose try­flynge The honourable lorde byshoppe of wichesters boke. and deuyllysh boke, he that lysteth to se well set forth in his colours, let hym reade my lorde of Wynchesters aunswere made to hym, whiche is full, on euery syde, both of hygh wyt, and also of depe learnynge. But my lorde neadeth no more my commendation, than the sea water, or the son̄e the light of a candell, therfore I wil speake no more of his prayse, but go forth on my purpose, to the confutation of the next argument, which thus they make.

That whiche is a signe, and a Th [...] [...]th reason. representation of a sacrifice is no sacrifice, But the masse is a signe, and a representation of christes sa­crifice, ones offered by hym on the crosse for our synnes, Therefore it [Page] is no sacrifice. This argument hathe Vrbanus Regius without a­ny prouf of it as though it were i­noughe for hym to saye it onely.

They proue the seconde part of this argumente (whiche nedeth no proufe) by christes wordes saying, do ye this for my remembraunce, whiche Paule also recyteth to the Corinthians, but they proue not the first parte therof, which is ve­ry false, folowyng therein certeine In proaemio de opificiodei philosophers, whiche (as Lactan­tius testifieth) so dydde reason of all thinges, that were darke, and obscure, Vt ea, quae asserunt, pro­bata, & cognita videri velint. That they wolde those thinges to seme proued, and knowen whi­che they do affyrme, or approue. Where they saye that one thynge can not be a signe, a remembraūce, or a representation of a sacrifice, and a sacrifice also, that is false. For wherefore I beseche the good [Page clxviii] reader, maye not the masse be a sa­crifice, and yet a memorye, signe, & representation of Christes sacri­fice offred ones vppon the crosse, as well as the paschall lambe, was a verye sacryfyce in dede, as the scripture wytnesseth, and that notwythstandynge, a sygne and representation Exo. 12. of Christes sacryfice to come. Chrisostome the se­uententh sermon vpon the epistle of Saynt Paule to the Hebrewes plainelye saith that the masse is both a remembraunce of Christes death and sacrifice offered ones on the crosse, and also a sacryfyce not dystynete frome that, but the verye selfe same, as wherein is of­fered the same bodye, which christe dydde offer on the crosse for vs. Truely we maye proue by that, that the masse is commaunded of CHRIST to be sayde for a [Page] remembraunce of his death, that it is a sacrifice rather than the cōtrarye, after this sorte. That whiche is done in remēbraunce of a thing passed, oughte to represente it per­fytlye, and especiallye the chiefe parte therof, but the masse was or­deined of christe to be a memoriall of his deathe, whereat he dydde offer him selfe a sacrifice, and that was the cheife thing he than dyd, therefore the masse ought to represente and to put vs in remēbraūce of that sacrifice, whiche it can not do, excepte it be a sacrifice, where­fore it is a sacrifice. Fynally christ saide not, do ye this onelye for the remembraūce of me, for than that texte shulde make muche more for myne aduersaries purpose, than nowe it doth, The nexte reason is this.

Christes oblation, and sacrifice The twelfe reason offered on the crosse was moost sufficient, and puisaunt to take away cleane all the synnes of the world, for as moche as it was offred by hym whiche was bothe god and man also, defiled with no spotte of synne, therefore we haue no neade of the sacrifice of the masse to pur­ge vs of sinne, and they whiche do ioine this sacrifice with christes sacrifice ones offered vppon the crosse, do seme to diminishe the myght, vertue, efficacy, & strength of Christes sacrifice, shewing ther by that it is not of it self sufficient to delyuer vs from synnes daun­ger, but that it wanteth helpe of y ^e sacrifice of the masse.

Many mē thinke this a strong The solutiō reason, whan in dede it is very fe­ble, and weake. For as no learned man that is catholique, doth deny [Page] that Christes sacrifice offred vp­pon the crosse is sufficiente, and of vertue inoughe to do awaye all synne of the whole worlde, euen so no good Chrysten man, nor womā wyll saye nay, but that this chry­stes death, and sacryfyce must neades be (as I haue oftentimes said afore) applyed to vs by the sacra­mentes, and other meanes prouy­ded of god there vnto, amonge the whiche the sacrifice of the masse is one not of leste necessitie, as it ap­peareth before in this booke suffi­cientlye declared, and therefore I wyll let that passe, and go forward in this matter to the disprouynge of the nexte reason, whiche is thys set forth by one Vrbanus Regius in latyn, & translated into englysh by wyllyam Turner. wyllyam Turner Th [...] .xiii: reason.

If they worke (saith he wiselye lyke him selfe) with their dayly sa­crifice [Page clxx] (as they cal it) remyssyon of Vrbanus Reginus reason synne, I pray you thē, what sinnes dyd the bloude of the newe and e­uerlastynge testament take away?

Dyd euer man heare, or reade, The solutiō so fonde, and foly she a question, as this is? who sayth that the masse, or the sacrifice therof, doth take a­waye synnes withoute the vertue of the bloud, whiche Christ shedde for the establyshemente of the new testamente? Who doth not ascribe the forgyuenesse of all synnes vn­to Chrystes deathe, and sacryfyce offered to god on the crosse, as the onelye meryte or merytoryous cause thereof? Agayne what man, excepte he wante fayth, wytte, or learnynge, wyll denye, but that the meryte, vertue and strēgth, of that CHRISTES bloud shedynge, muste neades be applyed to [Page] vs by the sacramentes, and other necessarye meanes, that we maye thereby be made partakers there­of, for the remyssion of our synnes obtaininge of grace, and saluatiō euerlasting? Now the masse (as I haue declared already sufficiētly) is an application of that Christes meryte, consystynge in the offring of hym self, a swete sacrifice to his father, for the pleasinge and pacifienge of his wrathe towarde vs for our synnes, and putteth awaye no synne, but throughe the vertue of christes deathe, and bloude, as al defēders of it do affirm, though Vrbanus Regius, and his scolers maliciouslye do laye the contrary to their charge. Further yet these men reason, sayenge.

Christe by his death hath satisfied The xiiii. reason. sufficiētly for our synnes, and with his bloud wasshed thē away, [Page clxxi] accordynge to the prophecye of E­saye the .liii. chapter, he dyd beare our synnes, and was corne for our wickednes, of y ^e which it foloweth and is a good argument, that all the oblations, whiche are beside this, are vaine, and voyde, the whiche they pretende.

Hytherto Vrbanus Regius, The solution. Naughtye bookes whose leude, and vngodly boke of the comparison betwene the newe and the olde learnynge, is among the people in english, to the poysonīg of their soules, as many other The kynges maiestie lyke a most Chri­sten prince hath by hys proclamari­on redressed this matter naughty bokes be, the more is the pitie y ^t it is so suffered. God wolde that men, and women, nowe hadde no lesse zele to the truth, nor loue to their owne soules, thā the Ephesians (whiche were idolaters) had whan saint Paule preached to thē, that they wolde bringe forth their bokes of heresye and burne them, [Page] as they dyd their yll bookes, but to the argumente of Regius, whi­che hathe as lytle learnynge in it, as godlynes. For what learned, or godly man wold reason after this sorte, Christe hath by his oblation satisfied sufficiently for our sinnes Therefore all other sacrifices & oblations be vayne & voyde? Doth not the scripture commaund vs to offer dyuers kyndes of oblatiōs & sacrifices, notwithstandynge the sufficiencye of Christes oblation, & sacrifice? Reade y ^e .vii. the .xiiii. the .xxxiiii. and xlv. chapter of the booke called Ecclesiasticus in la­tyn, and in englysshe, the boke of y ^e sonne of Sirach, where mentiō is made of certen oblations, whiche Christes deth made not voyd, as y ^• oblatiō of almes, & other dyuers. Doth not christ him selfe speake of offeringe sacrifice, in the fyfte of [Page clxxii] Matthew? doth not saynt Paule Rom. 12: cōmaunde vs to offer vp our bo­dies a sacrifice to god? doth not saynt Peter make mention of offerynge 1. Petri. 2. to god spirituall hoostes, and sacrifices? doth not s. Paule calle the conuersion of the people Rom. 15. to the fayth an oblation? doth not Dauyd saye, Tunc acceptabis sa­crificium iusticiae, Than o lorde y ^u Psal. 50. shalte accept the sacrifice of righ­tuousnes? Doth not he also com­manude vs to do sacrifice saienge Sacrificate sacrificium iusticie, & Psal. 4. sperate in domino. Offer ye sacri­fice of righteousnes, or verteous liuīg, & trust ye īour lord, as though he had sayd, excepte ye liue well, yf ye had all faythe (as Paule sayth) your truste in god is but vayne, & rather presumption, than verye hope, or trust, as theirs vndouted­ly Iacobi. 2. is, which saye y ^e onelye fayth do [Page] iustifie man, or is sufficient to saue hym withoute good workes, as s. Paule, and Iames both, do plainly Rom. 2. witnesse. Moreouer Dauyd speketh of the sacrifice of laude, the, c and syxte, and the hundred and .xv Gala. 5. psalme. Item, in the fyfty psalme mention is made of the sacrifice of a contrite harte. To be shorte, dothe not sainte Paule saye, that god is pleased, or appeased with the hostes of liberalitie, and al­mes Heb. 12. geuynge? Who is therfore so mad to say, that christes death, & satisfieng for synne, hathe made al these oblatiōs vaine, voide, & of none effecte? Howe with christes sufficient satisfaction it doth agre, and stand, that the masse is a sacrifice (whereby we are made parta­kers of the passiō of christ) I haue oftentimes shewed alreadye, and therefore I wyll nowe passe ouer [Page clxxiii] that thing, and reherse mo of their reasons. Vrbanus Regius againe thus saith (wyselye.)

To rayse vp a new oblation is The .xv. reason. to sette lytle by the firste. But they that defende the masse to be a sacrifice, do eayse vp a newe oblation. Therefore they set lytel by christes oblation, made on the crosse.

He proueth not the second part of this argument, because he sawe that it was playne false, and that it farre passed his witte, and lear­nynge to proue it. For no man set­teth vp the masse, but Christ onely hym selfe (as I haue afore in sun­drye places of this boke declared) and it is not a newe sacrifice, nor yet any other than that very selfe same, whiche christe dyd ones offer on the crosse, (as saint Chrisostom Homili [...]. 17. in hebre: truely sayth) though the maner in offerynge, whiche Chryste vsed in [Page] the tyme of his death, and now is vsed at masse is not one but dy­uers, like as I haue opened before so that this reason is playn voide and of no strength. Moreouer the same Regius thus bableth verye fondly. Whan they say, that sinnes be releassed, and forgiuen in the sacrifice An obiectiō of the masse, it foloweth af­ter their opinion, that that only sacrifice on the crosse did not satisfye for all synnes. This he sayth with out all proufe of his saienge, whi­che The solutiō is very false. For it is true that sinnes are releassed, and forgiuen by the sacrifice of the masse, & yet Christe dyd sufficiently satisfye by hys sacrifice offered ones on the crosse for all sinnes, as Ihon sayth 1. Io [...]. 2. in his first epistle the .ii. chapter. The masse, as a meane, and an ap­plication of christes bloudy sacri­fice offered on the crosse, doth put [Page clxxiiii] awaye sinne, throughe the vertue of that sacrifice, so y ^t the releassing of sinne by it, is & ought to be ascribed to christes death. We saye by baptisme, sinne is forgiuen, by pe­naunce, faith, hope, prayer, almes dedes, w ^t suche other, & yet it were great foly, and blyndnes to argue thervpon that christes onely sacrifice dyd not satisfie for al sinne. Now to Luther againe who thus reasoneth vngodly.

It is not lefull to set vp any sacrifice The xvi. reason to be a worshypping of god w ^tout expresse cōmaūdemēt of god or w ^tout manifest scripture ther­fore, but there is neither expresse commaundement, nor plaine scripture, that the masse is a sacrifice, or y ^t the preist in it shuld offer anye sacrifice. Therfore it is no sacrifice The first part of this reasō is false The solutiō for Abel offred sacrifice which pleased god, w ^tout cōmaundement or [Page] scripture, as the fourth of the Ge­nesis doth testify, and Iob also for his chylderne. Furthermore al the Iob. 1: catholyke doctours are cleane in this opinion, that Christe at hys laste supper dydde institute the sacrifice of the masse, and commaunded his apostles to offer there at his blessed bodye, and bloude in sacrifice, saienge, Hoc facite in meā commemorationem, Do ye thys for my remembraunce. Luke .xxii. Finally we beleue many thinges not expressed, nor commaunded in Verities not written expressely in scripture. the scripture, as the continuall virginitie of the mooste blessed, and honorable virgin marye Christes mother, for the denial of the which Saint Ierome called Eluidius an heretike. Also the baptisme of infantes or babes, can not be proued by expresse scripture, but only by tradition of the apostelles, as [Page clxxv] Origen, Sainte Austen, and Dionise Li: 6. cō. ī Ro. Aduer. faustū lib. de. ecclesi. hierarch. Paules disciple do say. I passe by, diuers other thinges necessary to be beleued, althoughe scripture neither commaundeth them to be done, nor speaketh anye thinge of them, of the whiche I wyll putte forth shortely a boke, god willing. They yet reason thus against the masse. The .xvii. reason.

That can not be a sacrifice, whi­che the preiste doth eate, because a sacrifice is wholly offered to god, and no part of it is turned to mās vse, but the preist doth wholly eate the sacramente. Therfore it is not a sacrifice.

O blyndnes of Luther, dydde The solutiō not the Iewes eate the paschal, or passeouer lambe, and yet that was a sacrifice, as it appearethe in the scripture playnely? And where he saith, that a sacrifice is wholly of­fered [Page] to god, and no peece of it turned to mans vse, that is true only of one kynde of sacrifice, called in greke holocaustum, that is al burned. For in the olde laue the iewes dyd [...]leye beestes, wich hauynge theyr bowelles taken out were layed hole on the aulter, and bur­ned, so that of these onelye no part was turned to mans vse, the whi­che Martin Luther applieth falsely to all other sacrifices, therefore this his reason is not worth two peason, as this is not made by him

The sacrament of thaulter is a The xviii. reason. gage, or a pledge of gods promyse made of the remission of sinne, and obtaininge of life euerlastynge, by the eatynge of it, as it appeare the in Iohans gospell, sayeng, he that eateth of this breade, shal lyue for Ioā 6 euer, therefore that thinge, whiche [Page clxxvi] is consecrate in the masse, can not be a sacrifice, for as muche as one thynge can not be a gage, and also a sacrifice. Hytherto leude Luther without all learnyng.

To this I aunswere breifely, The solution. that the masse is both a pledge, assurynge vs of the perfourmynge of gods promysse touchynge remission of synne, and the lyfe euerla­stynge, & also a sacrifice, in dyuers respectes. For it is a sacrifice, for as moch as it is offered of y ^e preist to god, after y ^e churches ordinaūce and a gage, or pledge, in as moch as it is geuen to vs of god, as a certificate, and an assuraunce of forgiuenes of synne, and glorie ce­lestiall, at the lengthe to be of vs receaued, throughe the worthy eatynge of Christes bodye. Wherefore thys reason is soyled [Page] cleane. Nowe whan Luther thus argueth.

The sacramente is a gyfte, ge­uen The .xx. reason. to vs of god, as christe sayeth Accipite, take ye, this is my body but one thinge can not be a sacri­fice, and a gyft, because the nature of a sacrifice is to be offred to god, and of a gyfte to be giuen of god, whiche are contrarye, and can not agre together in any one thinge.

What ignoraunce is this of The solutiō this greate doctour, whome hys scholers are not ashamed to call Daniel, and the lanterne of the worlde, whiche brought the lyght into it? If (good christen reader) one thinge coulde not be bothe a gifte of god gyuen to man, and also a sacrifice, than Abell dyd offer no sacrifice, for those thinges whiche he offered, were the gyftes of god, as the text sheweth, nor Abraham, [Page clxxvii] nor Iob, nor the Iewes offe­rynge of beastes, corne, and other thinges by the cōmaundement of god had ben any sacrifice, because al those thinges were goddes gif­tes, as al creatures be, accordyng to the prophet Dauids sayenge. Domini est terra, & plenitudo eiꝰ Psal. 23. The earth is our lordes, and the fulnes of it, are not the praysynge of god, geuynge thankes to hym, the confession of his name, geuing of almes, with many other thīges sacrifices, and yet they are al gods giftes, as Paul saith. Quid habes 1. Cor. 4. quod non accepisti? What hast y ^u (that good is) whiche thou haste not receaued? Therefore the pro­phet 1 paral. 29. Dauyd sayde. Tua sunt om­nia domine, & quae de tua manu accepimus, dedimus tibi. Lorde all thinges are thyne, and we haue giuen to the, those thinges, whiche [Page] we haue receaued of thy hande. This y ^e church confesseth in the ca­non Nihil deo preter [...] sua damus. we gyue no thynge to god besyde his owne. G. Nazianze. oratione. 16. of the masse, sayenge. Offeri­mus praeclarae tuae maiestati de tuis donis, ac datis, hostiam puram, ho­stiam sanctam, hostiam immacula­latam, panem sanctum vitae aeternae & calicem salutis perpetuae. We do offer to thy very excellent ma­iestie of thy lyberal or fre gyftes, & thynges geuen to vs, a pure hoost a holye hooste, an vndefyled host, holye breade, of euerlastynge lyfe, and the cuppe of saluation perpe­tuall.

Lo here thou seeste, reader, that the church, christes spouse (the foū dation and pyllar of the truth, to whome christe promysed the holye ghost the spirite of truth, whiche shulde abyde with it for euer, that it shuld not holly erre in the faith) [Page clxxviii] doth confesse one, & the same thing Tua ex tuis tibi offerimꝰ we offre to the saythe Chrisostom ī his masse▪ thine owne thynges, of thyne owne to be a gyfte of God, and a sacry­fyce offered to hym. Ought not we rather to beleue this, than Mar­tyn Luthers folysh bablyng, groū ded vppon no learnynge? but of this sufficiente. An other argumēt of his framynge is this, whyche I do reherse, that men maye se his great and exceadynge ignoraunce in scripture, and not for any lear­nynge, or strength it hath. The xx. reason The sacramente of the aulter was called of Christe, whan he dydde institute it, the newe testamente in hys bloude, as it appereth the .xxii Lu. 22. 1. Cor. 11. of Luke, But nothing can be both a sacrifice, and a testamēt, because a testament is receaued by the ex­ecutour of the maker of it, and a sacrifice is offered to god.

Thys reason is easelye [Page] soyled, partely for as muche, as onlye the bloude of Christe is called the newe testamente and not the flesshe, and that improperlye, be­cause the newe testamente is con­firmed, and establyshed, by shed­dynge Heb. 9. Gro. 24. of it, as the olde was by the bloude of beastes. Also the sacra­ment is called the newe testamente because it is a gyfte of the newe testament, or a thing bequeathed of Christe therin, as peace is, whiche Christe bequethed to his disciples whan he shulde depart from them by death, as Iohn testifieth y ^e .xiiii Ioan. 14: chaptre. This notwithstandynge, it is a sacrifice, for as much as it is Testamentum est institutio percipiendae baereditatis morte testatoris obsignata Heb. 9. offered to god at masse, for y ^e quick and deade. A testament properlye, is an ordinaunce of a mans laste wyll, concernyng the distribution of his goodes, ratified and assu­red w ^t his death, as Paule saieth, [Page cixxix] and so the sacrament of the aulter is not called a testament, as it is e­uident. Fynally the newe testamēt Testamentum dequo christꝰ l▪quitur, est ordinatio ui­tae aeternae [...] gīam indis­cendae, chri­sti morte ob­signataꝙ ide [...] dicitur aeter­num ꝙ uitae aeterna est ab aeterno preparata electis. & ꝙ illa est aeterna. Matt. 25. in an other significatiō, containeth the lawe of fayth, hope, charyte, the commaundementes, counsaylles, and the promisses of Chryste, after the whiche sorte the sacrament cannot be called a testament, as euery learned man perceaueth, and ther­fore it is called the newe testament for two the first causes aboue mentioned, with the whiche it standeth very wel, that it is also a sacrifice, but of this reason I haue spoken inoughe, wherefore let vs here the nexte, thus fashyoned out of fas­shyon.

The communyon or housle, of one laye man profyteth nothinge another, Therefore the preistes masse doth nothynge auayle the people, but onely hym selfe.

Dyd euer man heare, or reade [...]he .xxi. reason. afore Martyn Luther came, anye so fonde and folysh an argument? The apostels of christe, receauing their housell of hym, dydde there­wyth profytte vs nothynge, ther­fore Christes consecration of the sacramente dydde profytte vs no­thinge, Is this a good reason? Is it lyke of the laye mannes recea­uynge his housle, and of the prei­stes sayenge masse? who, but Martyn Luther is so ignoraunte, and blynde to affirme that? But the blynde leadeth the blynde, tyl both fall into the denne of heresye, and eternal damnation. Beware, good reader, of suche blynde leaders, leste thou repente, whan it is to late. Againe, thus Luther reaso­neth, saienge.

One mā can not be baptised, or christened for an other, nor marry [Page clxxx] a wyfe, for an other, therefore one can not offer sacrifice for an other,

This is a reason mete for such a teacher: Why dyd not he as well argue thus, one man can not be christened, nor marry a wife for an other, therefore one can not praye for an other, nor giue almes for an other? Doth not that folow as wel as the other vpon his first propo­sition? Dyd not Iob offer sacrifi­ces Iob. 1. for hys chyldrene? Dydde not the preistes of the olde lawe offer Leui, 9, sacrifices for the peoples synnes? Doth not sainte Paule saye that Heb: 5. euery preist, or byshoppe, is chosen to offer gyftes, and sacrifices, for mens synnes? beleue not therfore good reader, this doiynge igno­raunt techer, which erreth so plainly against gods holy worde, as y ^e seest in these argumentes alredye recited, that Luther did, & as thou [Page] shalte se in the reasons now folo­wynge, of whiche this is one.

The laye people do not offer The xxii reason sacrifice, whan they receyue the sacrament, Therfore y ^e preistes likewyse do not offre sacrifice, when they do eate it, and so the masse is no sacrifice.

This reason is so sclender, and The solutiō weake, that it is not worthye to be rehersed, much lesse to be confuted. The Iewes eatinge the paschall lambe, dyd not offer sacrifice, ney­ther the layte, nor the preistes, and yet the preistes dydde offer hym in sacryfyce, before they dydde eate hym, as the scripture sheweth ma­nifestlye, after lyke sorte, the prei­stes of the newe lawe, thoughe in receauynge the mooste blessed sa­crament, they do not offre sacrifice yet they do offer the body & bloude of our sauioure Christ to god, be­fore [Page clxxxi] they take it, as the canon both of the greake, and also the latyne masse, playnelye declareth, where­fore this argumente is of no pith, ne strength, as y ^e nexte is, fourmed after this maner.

If the masse were a sacrifice, or The xxiiii. reason. deyned by Christe, (as ye say it is) than it shoulde folowe, that the a­postles at their masses, had offred sacrifice, ensuinge therein Chryste their maisters sample, and com­maundement, byddinge them doo that whiche he had done hym self. But they dyd not offer sacrifice in their masse. Therfore the masse is not a sacrifice.

Martyn Luther thus trauai­leth The solution. to proue the seconde parte of this reason, whiche is that the apostles at their masse dyd not offer sacrifice, we reade (saith he) in thac­tes of the apostels, that they dyd [Page] breake breade about the howses, & so they receiued it (which is vnderstande of the sacrament) and made no sacrifice, because sacrifice was and is nowe euer offered in the temple, and not in anye pryuate house. The solution.

To this I say that that breaking of breade was but a distribution, or a giuing of y ^e holy body of christ to the people which was before cō secrated, & offred vnto god a sacrifice: For that is oftentymes in scripture, the signification of this worde frangere, to breake, as in the prophet Esaie the eyght and fyfty chaptre, where we read these wordes frange panem tuum esurienti, breake thy bread to y ^e hungry that is, gyue it to hym Moreouer there were (belyke) some halowed places about those howses, in the wich the apostles sayed masse, and [Page clxxxii] made sacrifice to god, before the temples were buylded. Fynally a temple is not vtterly necessarie to offre sacrifice in, as now experiēce of the church declareth, and so by this aunswer, another of Luthers reasons is soyled, whiche is: that Another reason of Luthers is soyled by the waye. Christ at his maundye dydde not offer sacrifice, institutynge the masse, because he was not then in the temple, where sacrifyce should haue ben offered, but in the geste chaumber or a parler, where men dyd vse to souppe, for yf a temple hadde bene so necessarye to offer sacrifyce, that none coulde haue ben offered, excepte in it onelye, than CHRIST had not offered hym selfe in sacrifice at his death. whiche is agaynste the scrypture for than he was not in anye temple, but on the mounte of [Page] caluary, as the gospels do playne­lye tell. This reason therefore is cleane, and clerelye doone awaye. yet Luther goeth forth thus reasonyng.

If the masse were a sacrifice The .xxv. reason. we myghte therewith worshyppe, and honoure god. But we can not so do. Therefore it is no sacrifice.

That we can not worshyp god with the masse, he goth about this to proue, by the wordes of Christe, written y ^t fourth of Iohns gospel. Io. 4. Oportet eos qui adorāt deū, in spiritu, & veritate adorare, They that do worshyppe god, muste worshyp in spirite and truth, therefore the masse, which is an outward thing can not serue anye thinge for the worshyppynge of god, as it shuld do, yf it were a sacrifice, and for that cause it is none.

This reason is grounded vpon The solutiō [Page clxxxiii] the yll takynge of christes wordes whiche do not exclude al outward thinges from the honouringe of god (as Martyn Luther and his scholers suppose) but they shewe that in the time of the newe lawe, y ^e figures, and ceremonies of tholde lawe shulde ceasse, and be anulled clerelye, so that it shulde be lefull for men to worshyppe god not only in the temple of Hierusalem, as it was duringe the olde lawe, but they shulde honoure hym in euery place in spirite, & truth. Also christ ment by those wordes y ^t the errour of thē, which did worship god in y ^e hyll, or mountaine called Seir, as the Samaritanes dyd, shulde likewise be taken awaye, as the text it selfe playnlye declareth, that christ ment, and therefore this letter ma­keth vtterly nothynge agaynst the sacrifice of the masse, whiche is no [Page] ceremony of the Iewes law, nor errour of the gentiles, but a sacrifice instituted by christ at his laste supper, the whiche he that doth offer deuoutly to god, doth honour and worshyppe hym in spirite & truth, wherefore this argument is aun­swered vnto sufficiently. Martyn Luther wold haue in the new law, no outward sacrifice, suche as the masse is, but only inwarde & spi­rituall, as to offer to god our bo­dyes in sacrifice thorowe mortify­enge out affections, and carnal lustes, Rom, 12, to offer laudes, and thankes to god for his benefites bestowed on vs, with suche other sacrifices, which euery christen man, & womā offreth to god, & is therby a preist, as Peter & Ihon in the Apocalips 1. [...], 2, Apo, 1, [...], 5, do witnes, and there is none other preist no sacrifice, nor preisthoode, but this only. Hitherto Luter, whiche [Page clxxxiiii] dyd not se, he was so blynded, or els he wold not se, such was his myscheuous malyce, that in the lawe of nature, men offered to god outward sacrifices, as Abel, Noe, Melch. and other dyuers, & were not content to honour god with in warde sacrifices onlye. Also in the tyme of Moses lawe the Iewes dyd likewise by goddes owne commaundemente, why therfore shuld not christen people after, sembla­ble and lyke maner worshyppe god in the tyme of the newe lawe, sythe euery lawe hathe a sacrifice, or a sorte of sacrifices propre to it, as a kynde of preisthode also? Nor it is not to be marueiled at, whye The. [...]. reason. saynt Paule so largely intreating of christes preisthode, and of the cō parison betwene hym, and Melch, made no mentyon of the sacry­fice [Page] of the masse, which is after the order of Melchizedech. For sainte Paule speketh there only of those Heb. 7. The solution. thinges, whiche myght make any thinge for the auauncynge, and settinge forthe of the excellency of Christes preisthoode, before the preisthood of Moyses lawe, to the entent, he myght cause the Iewes to leaue, and forsake that sacrifice of Moses, and cleane onely to christes, beinge farre more excellente, and of greater strēgth to saue mā, than the other, to the whiche pur­pose, it shoulde nothynge haue helped, if he had entreated of christes sacrifice vnder fourme of breade & wyne, as it is euydente to all lear­ned men, & therefore in that whole epistle to the Hebrewes, Paule ne­uer spake of that sacrifice, but on­lye of that, which Christe offered ones vppon the crosse, whereby he [Page clxxxv] made man perfitte in soule, which thing, al Moyses sacrifices could neuer bringe to passe, and for that cause christe, whiche offered that noble sacrifice, was and is a preist muche more excellente, than Moyses preistes were. Nowe we se how lyttle it maketh against the sacri­fice of the holye masse, that Paule spake not thereof in his epistle sēt to the Hebreus. Moreouer it folo­weth not that the masse is no sacrifice because Paule to y ^e Hebrewes spake not of it, for many thynges are true, not ones touched there. Thirdely it was a matter to hard for the capacitie of the Iewes, to perceaue howe the masse shulde be a sacrifice auaileable for the quick and the deade, for they neded easye doctrine rather thā hard, as Paul saythe to them the fyfte chapter, & therefore he made no mention of [Page] that matter to them. Nowe where Luther allegeth the twelfe of the Romaines, the seconde of saint Peters first epistle, & the Apocalipse, to proue al christen people prestes, he is deceiued shamefully, because those textes do proue as well y ^t all christē folke be kinges as preistes, & so they are ī dede spiritually, & in wardly, for asmuch as they do rule their affectiōs, & carnal desires w ^t the bridel of reason, which is a kinges office, & they offre spiritual sa­crifices to god, as praier, thākesgi­uīg. &c. being therby spiritual preistes, but not as we be y ^t haue taken preisthode of y ^t bishop. Hytherto [...] I haue rehersed M. Luthers reasōs against the masse, & the disprouing of thē also, now let vs se, what one of his scolers, called Philip Melā ethon hath sayd against the same, first this he saith, beside & aboue y ^• which I haue already confuted, of [Page clxxxvi] Luters his maisters forgyng.

The scripture saith y ^t we are iustified, or made righteous by faythe, The. [...]xvii. reason. whē we do beleue y ^t oure sinnes be forgiuen for christes sake, now if y ^e masse do take away the sinnes of y ^e quick, & the dead, through y ^e worke done, our iustificatiō shulde happē by the worke of the masse, and not of faith, which y ^e scripture suffreth not, it foloweth thervpon that the masse is no sacrifice, putting away the sinnes of the quicke, and dead.

As touching y ^e first parte of this The solutiō reason, whiche is y ^t we be iustified through faith, whē we do beleue y ^t our sinnes are forgiuē vs for chri­stes sake, I saye y ^t it is not sufficiēt for the attainemente of rightous­nes, and remission of oure sinnes to beleue that they be remitted for Christes deathes sake, excepte we forsake also our synnes, and do diuers thinges ther vnto necessary [Page] by the assignement of god in scrip­ture, as I mynd to declare in my boke of iustification, whiche god willing I wyl shortlye put forth, therefore now I let that passe, and touch the seconde peece of this ar­gument, whiche is, that yf by the worke of y ^e masse we shuld obteine remissiō of our sinnes, thā it shuld not come by faith. This propositi­on declareth y ^e autours ignoraūce, or els his malice, cōceiued against the truth and the clergy, of whom he doth falselye reporte, that they saye, that the masse of it self, with­out faith in christes death, shulde bringe to vs remyssion of our syn­nes, where they affirme with saint Rom. 3. Heb. 11. Paul, that our righteousnes, doth come by faith, and that withoute fayth no mā can please god. These are all very true, remissiō of sinne commeth by the passion of Christe, [Page clxxxvii] by the masse, by baptisme, by faith by penaūce, by hope, by feare, prayer, fastinge, almes dedes, and such other, as the scripture sheweth, but onely christes death is the merite of grace and remyssion of synnes, Therefore this argument is of no force ne pith, as in dede this is not The. [...]xvii. reason. which he maketh after this sorte.

It is an horrible thinge to at­tribute, or ascribe, as muche, & as great vertue to the priestes worke which he doth saienge masse, as to christes death. But they y ^e affirme the masse to be a sacrifice, abolys­shinge the synnes of the quicke, & the dead, do no lesse giue, & ascribe to the priestes worke, then to chry­stes death, Therefore the masse is no suche sacrifice.

He proueth not the second part The solutiō of this argument, whiche is verye false, but only saieth it, as though [Page] his saieng shuld be sufficient with out all proufe, to verefy his deuel­lysshe purpose. All catholyke peo­ple do beleue that by the masse the synnes of the quicke, and dead, are forgiuē, as by an applyeng of christes death to vs, & by y ^e vertue ther of, and that not by the priestes worke chiefly, but by christes owne worke, offering him selfe in sacry­fice to his father, by the ministery of the priest, saieng masse, & this is not to ascribe as to y ^e preistes ded [...] or worke, which he doth in y ^e masse, as to christes death, which Melācthon falsely sayth we do, y ^t defende the blessed masse to be a sacrifice, pacifieng gods wrath. Moreouer he sayth, that synne can not be vanquysshed, and ouercome but by The .xxix. reason. fayth in Christe, as Paule sayeth the fifth to the Romaynes.

We iustified throughe faith haue [Page clxxxviii] peace, wherefore the payne, which the soules departed in grace (and are not yet in heauen) do suffre cannot be ouercome by the applyenge of an other mannes worke, soch as the masse is, sayde by a preiste, and therefore the masse is no sacrifice profitable for the deade, to deliuer them frō the paine, which they do suffer, to make them cleane, that they maye entre into heauen.

O wonderful blyndnes of this The solutiō man, whych sawe not, that iustifi­cation bringeth remission of mor­tall, and deadlye synnes, whyche they obteined, whyle they were here liuing, whom being dead the masse doth auayle, for the remissiō of venial sinnes, and the releasing of their temporall paines, whyche they suffre, because, whan they ly­ued in this world, they did deserue and merite that not onely masses, [Page] (as saint Austen affirmeth) but also Ad dulcitiū questi. [...] ineucha. 109 prayers, and almes of the quick shuld profit thē, if they were applyed to thē, therfore this Melancth­thons reason is clerly of no value ne force. Vrbanus Regius dothe Vrbanus Regiꝰ false ly reporteth of preistes as many o­ther do, that they make mar­chaundyse of the masse falselye, & spitefully saye, that the preistes, ydell fellowes, do make marchaundise of the masse, lefte to be a memoriall, and remem­braunce of y ^e death which brought lyfe. For they do take moneye for sayenge masse as a stipende, and wages of their labours to liue by accordinge to their vocation, and maner of lyuing. Is it not lefull for them to take somwhat for that their seruice, for as muche as eue­rye man maye lyue by the swete of his face, as god sayde to Adam, that he shulde? doth not Christ say Gene. 3. Mat 10. Rom. 1. 1. Cor. 9. that the workeman is worthye to [Page clxxxix] haue his wages for his laboure? Doth not also saynte Paule saye that they ought of duetie to geue Rom. 1 [...]. temporal sustinaunce, and goodes to them, of whom they had recey­ued spiritual thinges? May not a prieste take money for his susty­naunce, whan he prayeth, and sai­eth masse for the people, as well as the preacher for his sermons, whi­che maye lefully lyue by that hys labour, as Paule declarethe the ninth chapter of the first epistle to the Corinthians? Therefore we preistes make no marchaundise of the masse, like as the preacher doth not of his preachinge, Nowe good peroratio. Christen reader, thou hast not onely the truth of this matter set forth at large in this boke, but also a cō futation of al, that Martin Luter (which of al men first began to ba­ble against y ^e blessed masse), could [Page] write for the maintenaunce of his heresye, to the which I haue added some other of his scholers argu­mentes, with a reprouynge also of them, so that no man can hereafter excuse him selfe, through want of knowledge of the truth, which wil reade ouer this boke withoute all affection diligently, more conside­rynge what is therein sayde, than who sayde it, and set it forth to be redde of all men:

Accepte in good worth, gentil reader, this my endeuour, and la­bour, taken to profyt them, which eyther be cleane rude, and vnlear­ned, or els haue but lytell knowe­ledge, and vnderstanding in scrypture, for learned men haue no nede of this my laboure, whereby the truth is declared after a grosse, and a rude fasshion, for the easier vnderstanding of the vnlearned, [Page clxxxx] for whom it is done. The grace of god be with the good reader, and kepe the from all heresye, or sone delyuer the from it, yf thou be alredye therewith infected, and poyso­ned, that thou stedfastely and vn­doubtedly beleuinge all thinges pertaining to a christen mans be­leefe, and obseruinge goddes commaundementes, mayest, at thende of thy lyfe, come to that ioy which god hath prepared for hys true louers, & christ our sauiour most dearly hath boughte for the same, with shed­dyng of hys precious bloude, to whom be glorye, ho­nour, and imperye for euer. Amen.