FOR AS MOCHE as it is wel knowē, almoste to the holle worlde, that we en­tende nothynge soo ernestly, as that the olde honour and pristyne dygnitie, whiche scripture in tyme paste was in, and so nowe oughte to be, maye at the laste, be fully restored to scri­pture ageyne: We thynke it moche appertaynynge vnto our dueties, bothe to let no occasyon slyp, wher­by religyon myghte at the laste be truely restaured, and also to with­stāde all ingins, all assautes, made by the byshoppes of Rome, whiche neuer cesse to trouble trouthe, and cumbre religion. Amonges many, two thynges in especiall, make vs doo that we doo. Fyrst the feruent [Page]loue y^t we beare vnto trouthe. The seconde is, that we haue taken vp­pon vs, longe sythens, the defence of religion. Certes, seing that the bysshoppe of Rome, calleth lerned men from all parties, conductyng them by great rewardes, makynge as many of them Cardynalles, as he thinketh most mete and most re­dy to defēde fraudis & vntrouthes, we could not but with moche anxi­etie caste with our selfes, what soo great appreparance of wittis shuld meane. As chaunce was, we gessed euen as it folowed. We haue ben so longe acquaynted with Romayne subtylties, and popysshe deceytes, that we well and easily iudged, the bysshop of Rome to intende an as­semble of his adherentes and men sworne, to thynke all his lustes la­wes. We were not deceyued. Paule [Page]the byshop of Rome, hath called a councell, to the which he knew wel, eyther fewe or none of the chrysten princis coulde come, bothe the time that he indicted it, & also the place, where he appointed it to be, myght assure hym of this. But whyther wandereth not these popysshe bul­les, whether goo they nat astraye? what kynge is nat cyted and sum­moned by a prowde mynyster and seruant of kynges, to come to bol­ster vp errours, fraudes, deceytes, and vntrouthes? and to sette forth this feyned generall councell? For who wyl not thinke, that Paul, the bysshop of Rome, gothe sooner a­boute to make men beleue, that he intendeth a generall counsell, than that he desyreth oone in dede? No, who can lesse desyre it, thanne they that do dispayre of their cause, ex­cept [Page]they be iudges, and gyue sen­tence them selfes ayenste their ad­uersaries? we, which very soore a­yenste our wyll, at any tyme leaue of the procuremente of the realme and common weale, nede neither to come our selues, nor yet to send our pro [...]ratours thither, no nor yet to make our excuse for either of both. For who canne accuse vs, that we come not at his call, which hath no auctoritie to call vs. But for a sea­son let vs, as a sorte of blyndlinges do, graunte, that he maye calle vs, y^t he hath auctoritie so to do, yet we pray you, may not all men see, what auayleth it, to come to this coūcell, where ye shall haue no place, except ye be knowen both wyllynge to op­presse truthe, and also redye to con­fyrme and stablyshe errours. Doo not all men perceyue, as wel as we, [Page]with what integritie, fydelytie, and religion, these men go about to di­scusse matters in controuersy, that take them in hand in so troublesom a tyme as this is? Is it not playn, what fruite the common weale of christendome maye looke for there, where as Mantua is chosen the [...]lace to kepe this councell at? Is there any prince, not being of Italy, yea is there any of Italye, prince, or o­ther, dissentyng from the pope, that dareth come to this assemble, and to this place? If there come none, that dare speake for troden trouth, none that wyll venture his lyfe, is it meruayle, if the byshop of Rome beinge iudge, no man repynynge, no man ayensayinge, the defenders of the papacy obteyn, that popishe auctoritie, nowe quaylyng and al­moste fallen, be sette vp ayene? Is [Page]this the waye, to helpe thynges af­flycte, to redresse troubled religion, to lyfte vp oppressed trouth? Shal men this waye knowe, whether the Romayne byshops (whiche in very dede, ar, if ye loke eyther vpon their doctryne, or lyfe, farre vnder other byshoppes) ought to be made lyke theyr felowes, that is, to be pa­stours, in their own dios. & so to vse no further power, or elles, whether they may make lawes, not only vn­to other byshoppes, but also to kin­ges and emperours? O boldnesse, mete to be beten downe with force, & not to be cōuynced with argumē­tes. Can eyther Paule, that nowe lordeth, or any of his, ernestely goo aboute (if they alone, or at the leste without any aduersarye be thus in a corner assembled togyther) to hele the syckenesses, to take awaye the [Page]errours, to plucke downe the abu­ses, that nowe are crepte into the churche, and there be bolstered vp, by suche councelles, as nowe is like to be at Mantua? It is very lyke, that these, which proule for nothīge but profyte, woll right gladly pulle downe, all suche thynges, as their forefathers made, onely for the en­crease of Money. Where as theyr forefathers, whan theyr honour, power, primacye, was called into questiō, wold either in spite of god­dis law, mayntein their dignitie, or to say better, their itollerable pride, is it lyke, that these wol not trede in their steppes, & make naughty new canons, wherby they maye defende olde euyl decrees? Howe be it, what nede we to care, eyther what they haue done, or what they intende to do hereafter, for as moche as Eng­lande [Page]hathe taken her leaue, of po­pisshe craftes for euer, neuer to be deluded with theym hereafter. Ro­mayne byshops haue nothynge to doo with englysshe people, the one dothe not trafycke with thother, at the leste, thoughe they wyll haue to doo with vs, yet we wolle none of their marchaundyse, none of theyr stuffe. We woll reteyne them of our councell no more. We haue sought our hurte, and bought our losse, a great whyle to longe. Surely their decrees, either touchynge thinges sette vp, or putte downe, shall haue none other place with vs, than all byshoppes decrees haue, that is, if we lyke them, we admytte them, yf we do not, we refuse them. But lest peraduenture men shal thinke vs, to folowe our sensis to moche, and that we moued by small or no iuste [Page]causes, forsake thauctoritie, censu­res, decrees, and popishe councels, we thoughte it beste here, to shewe our mynde to the hole worlde.

Wherfore we proteste before god, and all men, that we enbrace, pro­fesse, and woll euer so do, the ryghte and holy doctrine of Christ. All the articles of his faithe, no iote omit­ted, be all soo dere vnto vs, that we wolde moche sooner stande in ieo­perdy of our realme, than to se any poynte of Christis relygion in ieo­perdye with vs. We proteste, that we neuer wente from the vnitie of this fayth, neyther that we woll de­part an ynche from it. No, we woll moche sooner lose our lyues, than any article of our belefe shall decay in Englande. We, which in al this cause, seeke nothyng but the glory of god, the profyte and quietnes of [Page]the worlde, proteste, that we can suf­fre deceyuers no longer. We neuer refused to come to a generall coun­cell, no, we promyse all our labour, study, and fydelitie, to the settynge vp of troden trowth, and troubled religion in their place ageyne, and to doo all that shall lye in vs, to fy­nyshe suche controuersies, as haue, a great whyle to longe, vexed chry­stendome. Onely we woll all chry­sten men be admonysshed, that we can suffre no lenger, that they be e­stemed wyllynge to take away er­rors, which in dede, by all the ways theyr wittes woll serue theym, go a­bout this alone, that no man, peyne of dethe, may speake ageynste any errour or abuse.

¶ We wolde haue a councelle, we desyre it, ye and craue nothynge so ofte of god, as that we maye haue [Page]one. But yet we woll, that it be su­che, as christen men ought to haue, that is, franke and free, where eue­ry man, without feare, may say his mynde. We desyre, that it be an ho­ly councell, where euery man maye go about to set vp godlynes, & not apply all their study to oppressinge of trouthe. We woll it be generall, that is to say, kepte at suche tyme, and in suche place, that euery man, which seketh the glory of god, may be presente, and there frankely vt­ter his mynde. For thanne it shall seme generall, eyther whan no mā, that dissenteth frome the byshop of Rome, is compelled to be frome it, or whā they that be present, are not letted by any iuste terrour, to saye boldly, that they truly thynke. For who wolde not gladly come to such a councell, except it be the pope, his [Page]Cardinalles, and popisshe byshop­pes? On the other syde, who is so foolyshe, where as the chiefe point, that is to be handled in this coun­cel, is the popes owne cause, power & primacy, to graunt, that the pope shuld reigne, shulde be iudge, shuld be president of this councell? If he, which in dede, can neuer think him selfe able to defende his cause, be­fore any other Iudge, be euermore made his owne iudge, and so cōtro­uerses not decyded, but errors sette vp, what can be deuysed in the cō­mon welthe of Christendome more hurtfull to the trouthe, than gene­rall councelles?

¶ AND HERE to touche some­what, their impudent arrogancye, by what law, power, or honest title, take they vpon them to cal kinges, to somon princis, to appere, where [Page]their bulles commaunde them? In tyme paste, all councelles were ap­poynted by thauctoritie, consente, and commaundement of thempe­rour, kinges, and princis. why now taketh the byshoppe of Rome this vppon hym? Some woll saye, it is more likely, that bishops woll more tender the cause of religion, glad­lier haue errours taken away, than emperours, kinges, or princis. The world hath good experience of thē, and euery man seeth, how faithful­ly they haue hādled religious mat­ters. Is there any man, that dothe nat se, howe vertuously Paul, that nowe polleth, taketh occasyon to set vp his tyrāny ageyn? Is it nat like that he, that choseth such a tyme as this is, to kepe a councel, moch en­tendeth the redresse of thinges that nowe are amysse, that he seketh the [Page]restoryng of religion, that now cal­leth a councell, the Emperour and the frenche kynge, two pryncis of great power, so bent to warres, that neyther they, nor any other christen prince, can in maner do any thyng, but loke for the ende of this longe warre. Go to, goo to bysshoppe of Rome, occasion longe wysshed for, offreth her selfe vnto you, take her, she openethe a wyndowe for youre fraudes to crepe in at, call your car dynals, your owne creatures, shew them, this is a ioly tyme to deceyue pryncis in. O fooles, we calle you fooles agaynst our wylles. O wyc­ked men, we call you wycked with all our harte. Are you not fooles, whiche beinge longe suspected, not onely of princis, but of all christen people in maner, that in no case you coulde be brought to a general coū [Page]cell, playnly shewe the holle world, that by these your cōciliables, your hutter mutter in corners, you take away al hope of a lawful catholike and generall councell? Are you not wycked, which so hate trouth, that excepte she be vtterly banysshed, ye wyll neuer cesse to vere her? The li­uynge god is alyue, neyther trouth his darlynge, he beinge alyue, can be called to so great shame, contu­mely, iniurie. I lye, it maye well be called to all these, but yet it canne come to none of theym. Who is he, that greuously lamenteth not, men to be of suche shamefull boldenes, to shewe apertely, that they be ene­myes vnto Christe hym selfe? On thother syde, who wyl nat be glad, to see suche men as folyshe as they be wycked? The worlde, good bys­shop, is not nowe in a lyght suspi­tion, [Page]as it hath bene, that you woll no reformation of errors, but euery man seeth before his eyes, your de­ceytes, your wycked myndes, your immortall hatrede that ye beare a­geynste the trouthe. Euery manne seeth, howe many miserable trage­dies, your pretense of an vnitie and cōcorde, hath brought into christen­dome. They see, your faire face of peace hath serued sedition, & trou­blid almost, al christē realmes. They se, ye neuer oppugne religion more, than whan ye woll seme most to de­fende it. They be sorye, to see, that great wyttes, a longe season, haue spende their hole strength in defēce of deceytes: reason to putte his hole power, to the promotynge of pride, and vngodlynes: vertues to serue vyces: holynes to be slaue to hypo­crysie: prudencye, to subtylitie, Iu­stice [Page]to tyranny. They be glad, that scripture nowe fyghteth for it selfe, & not ageinst it selfe. They be glad, that god is not compelled to be a­geinste god, Christe ageinst Christ. They be glad, that subtilitie hathe doone no more hurt to relygion in tyme past, than now cōstancy doth good to trouthe. They se, the mar­kes that ye haue shot at in all your councelles paste, to be, Lucre, Mo­ney, Gaynes. They se, you sought your profyte, yea, thoughe it were ioyned with y^e slaughter of trouthe. They se, ye wolde euer, that sooner iniurie shuld be done to the gospel, than that your auctoritie, that is to say, arrogant impudency, shulde in any poynte be diminished. And we pray you, what may Paule, the by­shop of Rome, seme nowe to go a­boute, whiche seinge all princis oc­cupyed [Page]cupyed in greatte affayres, wolde steale, as he callith it a general coū­cell, what other thynge than herby to haue some excuse, to refuse a ge­nerall coūcell hereafter, whan tune & place moche better, for the hande­lynge of matters of religion, shall be gyuen vnto princis of christen­dome? He wol think he may thā do, as princis nowe do. He wol thinke it laufull not to come than, bicause princis nowe come not? we praye god, that we euer braule nat oone with an nother for relygion, no nor that where we dissente as moche as men may, we al say, we defende the better part, we be in the right way. We pray god, that the worlde maye enioye peace and tranquillitie, and that then we may haue bothe tyme and place to settle relygion. For ex­cept fyrste princis agree, and warre [Page]laide asyde, seke peace, he loseth his labour, that seketh a general coun­cell. If the byshop of Rome, maye kepe his councell, whyle they thus be togyther, wol not there be made many prety decrees? If they, whi­che wolde come, if they had leyser, be absente, and we, whiche though we safely myght come, wyl not lose any parte of our ius, trowe you, in all our absence, that the bysshop of Rome, wyl not handle his profite & primacy wel? Paule, howe can any of ours not refuse to come to Man­tua, through so many peryls, a citie so farre set from Englande, so nigh your frendes, kynsmen, and adhe­rentes? Is he not vnworthye lyfe, that where he maye tarye at home, woll passe through so many ieoper­dies of lyfe? Can he, which cometh to Cremona, a citie not farre from [Page]Mantua, be safe, if he be taken not to be the byshop of Romes frende, y^t is, as the cōmon sort of deceiuid people doth interpretate, an heretique? And if there come to Mantua such a nombre, as wolde furnyshe a ge­neral coūsel, may not Mātua seme to litell, to receyue so many gestes? Put these two togyther, al the way from Englande to Mantua, is full of iuste peryls, and yet if ye escape all those, the very place, where the councell is kepte, is more to be sus­pected, than all the way. Do ye not knowe, al cyuyle lawes, to compell no man to come to any place, where he shall be in ieoperdy of his lyfe al the way? We haue no safe conducte to passe and retourne by the domy­nyons of other pryncis. And yf we had a saulfe conduct, yet shulde not we be charged with rasshenes, that [Page]where iuste terrour myght haue di­swaded vs from suche a iourneye, commytted our selues to suche pe­ryls? Surely, he that, the tyme be­inge as it is, thinges standynge as they do, wyll go from Englande to Mantua, may be careles, if he lack wytte, sure of his arryualle, or re­turne from thens, he canne not be. For who doth not knowe, howe oft the byshops of Rome, haue playde fals partes with them, that in suche matters haue trusted to their saufe conductes? Howe ofte haue they caused, by their perfydie, suche men to be slayne, as they haue promised by their feith before, that they shuld both come safe, and go safe? These be no newes, popes to be false, po­pes to kepe noo promyse, neither with god nor man: Popes, cōtrary to their othes, to defyle their cruell [Page]handes with honest mens bloudde. But we tarye to longe in thynges, that as well touche all men, as vs. We woll, these nowe layde aparte, tourne our Oration into such thin­ges, as priuately towche bothe vs, kynge Henry the eight, and all En­glyshe men. Is it vnknowen, to a­ny man, what mynde Paule the bi­shop of Rome, beareth to vs king Henry the .viii. to vs his nobilitie, to vs his gracis byshoppes, and to vs all his gracis subiectis, for the pullyng downe of his vsurped po­wer, and proude primacy, for expel­lyng of his vsurped iurisdiction, & for delyuering of our realme from his greuous bōdage and pollage? Who seeth not hym euen inflamed with hatrede ageynste vs, and the flames to be moche greatter, than he can nowe kepe theym in? He is [Page]an open enemy, he dissembleth noo lenger, prouokynge all men, by all the meanes y^e he can, to endomage vs and our coūtrey. This thre ye­res he hath ben occupied in no one thinge so moche, as howe he myght styre vp the cōmens of Englande, nowe corruptynge some with mo­ney, some with dignities. We lette passe, what letters he hath writen, to christen princis, with howe great feruent studye, he hath exhorted mē to sette vpon vs. The good vycar of Christe, by his doinge, sheweth, howe he vnderstondeth the wordes of Christe. He thinketh, he playeth Christis parte well, whan he maye say as Christe dyd, Non veni pacē mit­tere in terram, sed gladium, I come not to make peace in erthe, but to sende swerdes about: And not such swer­des, as Christe wolde his to be ar­med [Page]withall, but suche as cruelle māquellers, abuse in the slaughter of their neighbours. We meruayle lyttel, though they vexe other prin­cis ofte, seing they recompence our fauour, shewed to theym, with con­tumelyes, our benefites with iniu­ries. We woll not reherse here, how many our benefytes, bestowed vpō Romayne byshoppes, be loste. God be with suche vngrate Carles, vn­worthy to be noumbred amongest men. Certes, suche that a man may welle doubte, whether god or man hath better cause to hate them, But y^e we haue lerned to owe good wyl, euen to them that immortally hate vs, what coulde we wyshe them soo euylle, but they haue deserued mo­che worse? We wysshe theym this hurte alone, that god sende them a better mynde. God be thanked, we [Page]haue made all theyr seditious entē­tes, soner to shewe theyr great ma­lyce towardes vs, thā to do vs mo­che hurte, yet they haue wel taught vs, euermore to take good hede, of our enemyes. Vndoutedly, it were good goynge to Mantua, and to leaue theyr whelpes amonges the lambes of our flocke, when we be wery of our welth, we wol euen do than, as they wolde haue vs nowe do. No no, as longe as we shall see his harte so good towardes vs, we trust vpō his warnyng, we shal wel prouyde to withstande his cruel malyce. No let hym nowe spende his deceytes, whan they can hurt none but suche as wolde deceyue, and at deceyued. They haue, by sundrye wayes, made vs preuy, howe moch we be bound to them. It went nigh their hartes, to see the iudgemente [Page]of Iuly, of Clement the seuenth, of Paule the thirde, nothing to be re­garded with vs. They be affraide, yf we shulde susteyne no hurte, by­cause we iustely reiected their pry­macy, that other princis wolde be­gynne to do lykewyse, and to shase of theyr shulders, the heuye bur­thens, that they so lōge haue borne, ageynste Scripture, all tyght and reason. They be sory, to se the way stopped, that nowe theyr tyrannye auaryce & pryde, can haue noo pas­sage into Englande, whyche was wont to walke, to triumph, to tosse, to trouble all men. They can scase suffer priuileges, that is to saye ly­cence to spoyle our cytesins, gyuen them by our forfathers, brought in by errorfull custome, to be taken from them. They thinke it vnlau­full, that we require thinges law­full [Page]of them that wyll be vnder no lawes. They thynke, we do theym wronge, bycause we woll not suffer them to do vs wronge any lengar. They see their marchandyse to be banysshed, to be forbydden. They se, that we wyl bie no lengar chalke for chese. They see they haue loste a fayre flese, vengiable soorye, that they canne dispatche no more par­dons, dispensations, tot, quottes, with the reste of their baggage and tromperie. Englande is no more a babe, there is no manne here, but nowe he knoweth, that they do fo­lysshely, that gyue golde for leade, more weyght of y^t, thā they receyue of this. They passe not, thoughe Peter and Poules faces, be grauē in the leade, to make fooles fayne. No we be soory, that they shulde a­buse holye sayntes vysages, to the [Page]begylynge of the worlde. Surely excepte god take awaye our righte wittes, not only his auctoritie shall be driue out for euer, but his name also shortly shal be forgotten in Englande. We woll from hensforthe, as ke counsell of hym and his, whā we luste to be deceyued, whan we couet to be in errour, whan we de­syre to offende god, trouth, and ho­nestie. If a man may gesse the hole worke by the fundation, where de­ceytes begynneth the worke, can a­ny other than deceytes be buylded vpon this foundation? What can you loke for in this Mantuan coun­cel, other than thoppression of truth and true religion? If there be any thynge well done, thynke as euery man dothe, byshoppes of Rome to be accustomed, to do a few thinges well, that many euyll may the bet­ter [Page]be taken at their handes. They, whan they luste, can yelde somme parte of their ryghte, they are con­tente, that somme of their decrees, somme of theyr errours and abu­ses be reprehended: but they are neuer more to be feared, thanne whan they shewe them selfe moste gentyl. For yf they graunt a fewe, they are many: yf they leaue a lyt­tell, they wylle be sure of a greatte deale. Scase a man maye knowe, howe to handell hym selfe, that he take no hurte at their handes, yea whan they blesse hym, whyche sel­dome do good, but for an intent to do euyll. Certaynly come who soo wyll, to these shoppes of deceytes, to these faires of fraudes, we woll lese no part of our ryght in cōming at his call, that oughte to be called, and not to calle. We wolle neyther [Page]come at Mantua, nor sende thyther for this mattier.

¶ HYTHERTO we haue rea­soned the mattier, as thoughe the councell shulde haue bene kepte at Mantua. Nowe wolle we speake somwhat of this last bull, that pro­rogeth the councell vntyll Nouem­bre, and appoynteth it to be kept no where. Is it not lyke, that nothyng shall be done amysse, in this coun­cell, if it be kept no where? As god help the pope and his, a matter wel handled. We proroge the councell, sayth the pope, bycause the duke of Mantua, woll in no case suffre vs to kepe any there, excepte we main­teyne a noumbre of warryours for the defence of his towne. Is not this a prety, or to say as it is, a spite full mockynge of all christen pryn­cis, to cal them to a place, where, in [Page]dede, he that calleth other, can no [...] be suffred to come hym selfe? Dot [...] not he esteme the Emperour, kynges, princis, potctatis veray ligh [...] that woll soo rasshely calle they [...] from home, and thyther, as they [...] no wyse can be permytted to come. If princis canne be moued for any thynge, we thynke, they must nedes depely stomake this so opē a mock, this suche a contumely. For yf they had set forthe on their waye, at the fyrste bulles callynge, and thanne shulde haue mette by the way, this other bull, that dryueth them home ayen, myght they not haue thought their honour theyr maiestie, to mo­che despised, to greattely illuded?

Can the popishe people blame princis, that owe vnto the bysshoppe of Rome none obedience, whiche also may commaunde the bysshoppe to [Page]come, whanne and whither it shall plese them. yea, can they blame pruicis, although they ought hym obe­dience, if in tyme to come, they come not at his calle, whiche he thus de­ceytfully and spitefully mockethe? we thynke, they wolle venture no iourneye hereafter, where, in the myddes of their way, they may se, he dothe but trifle with them. They knowe nowe, that he mocketh, and y^t he meaneth no good faith. They may nowe se them selfes deceyued, that thought he intended to kepe a councel at Mantua, where he pur­posed to comme neuer adeale. For were they not more than than madde, y^t yf the byshop of Rome, shulde hyre an army of mē to lie in garryson a­bout Mantua, wolde come thither, to dispute ayenst his prymacy, to sette hym with other bishops, that nowe [Page]sytteth aboue all kynges? wordes can not countreuayle weapons, re­son is not harde, where souldiours are hyred to rage. Thus all men se, that woll se, if an army were there, that no wyse man wolde putte his lyfe in ieoperdye, to come thyther. On the other syde, yf there be none armye, that thenne councelle there canne be none. Soo that alwayes the pope and his, were sure, that there shoulde be no generall coun­celle. Nowe lette vs adde also this thynge vnto thother. If we, whi­che dwell farre from Mantua, had intended to haue beue there, shulde we not haue bene at our iourneyes ende, before this laste bulle came to vs? Shulde we not haue payd our greatte costes and charges, with a greatter losse of our labour? The day was appoynted, the yere of our [Page]lorde. M. D. xxxvii. the .xxiii. daye of Maye. This newe bulle cometh to vs, in the later end of June, and to them, to whome it came soonest, it coulde not so soone come, but it myght iustely seme to come to late. But let other princis and prelates, if there be any, that prepared thy­therwarde, chaufe with theym, we fele no damage, whiche sturred no foote that waye for this pourpose. All men may well see, that he is but lyttell sory, no, that he nothyng ca­reth, for the Turkes inuadynge of christen princis dominions, whiche wolde princis to come nowe to coū­cell, whan in dede they can scase, by all theyr study, industry, and wyt­tes, resyste his cruelle interprises. Nowe be it we woll not charge thē with it, all though we myght better laye it to their charge, than they be [Page]able to put it away.

¶ This last bull, procedinge won­derfull popishely, prorogeth the ho­ly assemble vnto the month of No­uembre, vntyl that tyme we are not loked for. Than he commaundeth, specially patriarches, archbishops, byshops, abbottes, and other of the spiritualtie, by the vertue of obedi­ence, and vnder peyne of cursyng, to be present. But where he wyl be, or to what place, we shall come, no man knoweth. No in very dede, he knoweth not as yet hym selfe. And what maketh it matter, as good no where, as where it can not be: aswel no place serueth hym, that intedeth no councelle, as all places: moche better to name none, than to name suche, as he purposeth not to come to. He breakethe noo promyse, if he make none. To mocke princis but [Page]ones, is a smalle faute in a pope. This we be assured of, eyther he woll appoynte one, yf he appoynte any, in some citie of his owne, (we call those his owne, which his pre­decessours haue wrongfully extor­ted frome other pryncis, and those, whiche he nowe kepeth, contrary to equitie and iustyce) or elles he wyll call vs to some other princis domi­mon. To the fyrst no man y^t wise is, and dissenteth from his opynyons, woll come. And if he call vs, where he without an hoste can not be suf­fred to entre, shall not they be iust­ly charged with folye, whiche ones deceyued, woll be deceyued ayene? Is he not lyke to deceyue vs, that promyseth more than he canne per­forme? But we dispute to longe in a thynge, that pertayneth lyttell to vs. For what place so euer he find, [Page]be it neuer soo sure, we wolle neuer come to any assemble at his calle. No, we wolle Paule and his adhe­rentes vnderstand that, that we oft haue sayd, and no we say, and euer woll say, He nor his hath none au­ctorite, no iurisdiction in Englāde. We giue him no more then he hath, that is neuer a dele. That which he hath vsurped ageinst goddis lawe, and extorted by violēce, we by good ryght, take from hym ageyne. But he and his woll say, we gaue them a Primacy. we here them wel. We gaue it you in deede. If you haue auctoritie vpon vs, as long as our consent gyueth it you, and you euer more woll make your plee vpō our consent, thā let it haue euē an ende, where it began, we consent no lon­ger, your auctoritie must nedes be goone. If we beinge deceyued by[Page]alse pretense of yuell alleged scri­ptures, gaue to you that you ought to haue refused, why may we not, our errour nowe perceyued, youre deceyte espied, take it ageyne? We princis wrote our selfes, to be infe­riours to popes: as longe as we thought so, we obeyde them as our superiours. Nowe, we wryte not as we dyd, and therfore they haue noo great cause to meruayle, if we here­after do nat as we dyd. Bothe the lawes cyuile, and also the lawes of god, be on our syde. For a free man borne do the not lese his libertie, no nor hurte the plee of his lybertie, though he write hym selfe a bonde man. Ageyne, yf they leane to cu­stome, we sende them to saynte Cy­prian, whiche sayth, that custome, if trouthe be not ioyned with hit, is nothyng, but erroris vetustas, that is, [Page]an olde errour. Christe said, Ego su [...] uia ueritas & uita, I am y^e way trouth and lyfe. He neuer sayd, Ego sum con­suetudo, I am the custome. wherfore seynge custome serueth you on the one syde, and scripture vs, vppon thother, are ye able to matche vs: In howe many places, doth Christ monyshe you to seke no primacy, to preferre your selfe to no body, no, to be obediēt vnto all creatures. Your olde title Seruus seruorum, euyll agreeth with your newe forged dygnitie. But we wol not tary in matters playne. We onely desyre god, tha Cesar, and other Christian princis wol agree vpon some holy councel where trouthe may be tried, and relygyon sette vp, whiche haue ben [...] hurte by nothynge so fore, as by generall not generall councelles. Errours, abuses growe to faste. Erudi [Page]mini, erudimini qui iudicatis terram. Gette [...]ou lernyng, you that iuge the erth, & excogitate some remedy, for these so many diseases of the sycke chur­che. They that be wyseste, doo dis­paire of a generall councell. Wher­fore we thinke it nowe beste, that e­uery prince calle a councell prouin­cial, and euery prince to redresse his owne realme. We make all menne priuey, what we thynke beste to be done for the redresse of religion. If they lyke it, we doubte not, but they wyll folowe it, or some other better. Our truste is, that all princis woll so handel them selfe in this behalf, that princis may enioy their owne, and priestis of Rome content them selfis with that they ought to haue. Princis as we truste, woll no lōger nourysshe wolues whelpes. They woll subscrybe no more to popisshe [Page]pride, to the papacy. &c.

¶ Fauour our doinges, O chry­sten pryncis, your honour and an­cient maiestie is restored. Remem­bre, there is nothynge perteynynge so moche to a princis honour, as to sette forthe trouthe, and to helpe re­lygyon. Take you hede, that theyr deceyte worke not more myschiefe, than your vertue can do good. And euerlastynge warre, we wolde all princis had with this papacye. As for theyr decrees, so harke to them, that yf in this Mantuan assemble, thynges be wel done, ye take them, but not as authorised by them, but y^e trouth, & thynges that mayntein religion, are to be taken at all mens handes. And euen as we woll ad­mitte thynges wel made, so if there be any thyng determyned in preiu­dyce of trouth, for mayntenance of [Page]the euyll grounded primacy, or that may hurte thauctoritie of kynges, we protest vnto the hole world, that we neither allowe it, nor wyl at any tyme allowe it.

¶ YE HAVE CHRISTEN re­ders our mynde, concernyng the generall councell: we thynke you all see, that Paul, and his Cardinals, Byshops, abbottes, Monkes, Fry­ers, with the reste of the rablement, do nothynge lesse intende, than the knowledge or serche of trouth. Ye se this is no tyme mete, Mantua noo place mete, for a generall councell. And though they were bothe mete, yet excepte some other cal this coū­cell, you see, that we neither nede to come nor to sende. You haue harde howe euery prynce in his owne re­alme, maye quiete thynges amysse. If there be any of you, that canne [Page]shewe vs a better way, we promise, with all harty desyre to do that, that shalbe thought beste for the setlyng of religion, and that we woll leaue our owne aduyses, yf any manne shewe vs better. Whyche mynde of ours, we moste hartily praye god, that gaue it vs, not onely to encrease in vs, but also to sende it vn­to all christen princis, all chri­sten prelates, al chri­sten people.

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