¶ why Tindale vsed this worde congregacion rather thē church in the translacion of the new testament.

VVherfore in as moch (as the clergye as the nature of those hard & indurat adamādstones is / to draw all to them) had appropriat vnto them selues the terme that of right is comen vnto all the hole congregacion of them that be­leue in christe and with their false and sotle wyles had begyled and mocked the people and brought them in to the ignoraunce of the worde / makynge them vnderstonde by this word chur­ch / nothinge but the shauēflocke / of them that shore the hole world: therfore in the translacion of the new testament where I found this word ecclesia / Ienterpretated it / bi this worde congregacion. Even therfore did I it / and not of any mischevouse minde or purpose to stablishe he­heresie / as master More vntrulye reporteth of me in his dialoge where he rayleth on the translacion of the new testament

And when. M. More saith / y^e this word church is knowen well ynough / I reporte me vn­to the conscyences of all the londe / whether he saie truth or otherwise / or whether the laye people vnderstonde by church the hole multytude of all that professe christe / or the iuglinge spry­tes onlye. And when he saith that congregacion is a moore generall terme / iff yt were yt hurteth not. for the circumstaunce doeth ever tell what congregacyon ys ment. Neuerthelesse yet sayth he not the truth. For whersoeuer I maye saye a congregacyon / there maye I saye a church also as the church of the deuell / the church of sathan / the church of wretches / the church of wekedmen / the church of lyers and a church of turkes therto₊

For. M. More must graūt (if he will have ecclesia translated thorowte all the new testa­mēt by thys word church) that church is as co­men as ecclesia. Now is ecclesia a greke worde and was in vse before the tyme of the apostles and taken for a congregacyon amonge the he­then / where was no congregacion of god or of christ. And also Lucas hym selfe vseth ecclesia for a church or congregacyon of hethen people thrise in one chapther even in the .xix. of the ac­tes / where Demetrius the goldsmyth or syluer smyth had gathered a cōpanie agenst paul for Actes. 19. preachynge agenst ymages₊

How be it. M. More hath so lōge vsed hys figures of poetrie / y^t (I suppose) whē he erreth most / he now by the reason of a longe custome / beleueth him selfe / that he saith most true. Or else (as y^e wyse people whych when they daunce naked in nettes beleve that no man seyth thē) even so. M. More thynketh that his erroures [Page] be so subtilly cowched that no man can espye them. So blinde he coūteth all other men in cō­parison of his great vnderstondinge. But charitablye I exhorte him in chryste to take hede for Iudas though Iudas were wilier then his felowes to get lucre / yet he proued not most wise at y^• last ende. Nether though Balam the false phophete Balaam had a clere sighte to bringe y^• curse of God vppō the chyldern of Israel for honoures sake / yet his couetousenesse did so blynd his prophesie / Y^t he coude not se his awne ende. Let therfore. M More and hys company awake be tymes ere ever their sinne be rype lest y^• voyce of theyr wekenesse ascende vp and awake God out of his slepe / to loke vppon them and to bow his eares vnto their cursed blasphemies agenst the open truth / and to send hys heruestmen and mowa­res of vengeaunce to repe yt₊

But how happeth it that. M. More hathe not contended inlykewise agaynst hys derelyn­ge Erasm{us} all this lōge while? Doeth not he chaūge this worde ecclesia in to cōgregracyon ād y^t not s [...]ldē in y^• new testamēt? peraduenture he owithe him fauoure because he made Moria in his housse. which boke if were in englishe / then shulde euery mā se / how y^t he then was ferre o­ther wise minded thā he nowe writeth. But ve­relie I thinke y^• as Iudas betraid not christ for any loue y^• he had vnto the hie prestes / scribes ād phareses / but only to come by y^t wherfore he thirsted: euen so. M. More (as there are tokens evident) wrote not these bokes for any affeccyō y^• he bare vnto the spiritualtie or vnto y^• opinions which he so barelie defendeth / but to obtayne only that which he was an hongred fore: I praie God y^t he eate not to hastely lest he be choked [Page viij] at the later end / but y^t he repent and resyst not the spirite of god whych openeth lyght vn­to the worlde₊

¶ why he vseth thys word elder ād not prest

A Nother thinge which he rebuketh ys that I interprete thys greke word presbiteros by this word senior. Of a truth senior is no ve­ri good english / though senior ād iunior be vsed in the vniuersities: but there came no better in my mynde at that tyme. How be it I spyed my faute sens / longe yer. M. More told it me / and haue mended it in all the workes which I sens made ād call it an elder. And in that he maketh heresie of it / to call presbiteros an elder he con­demneth their awne olde latine texte of heresye M. More cōdēpneth the laten texte 1. petri. 5. also / which they vse yet dayly in the church and haue vsed / I suppose / this .xiiij. hundred yeres. For that texte doeth call it an elder lykewyse. In the .v. chaptre of the first of peter / thus stan­deth it in the laten texte. Seniores qui in vobis sunt / obsec [...]o ego consenior / pascite qui in vobis est gr [...]gem christi. The elders that are amonge you I besech whych am an elder also that ye fede the flocke of christe / whych is amonge you There ys presyteros called an elder And in that he saith fede christes flocke / he meaneth euē the ministres y^t were chosen to teache y^• people ād to enforme them in gods worde and no laye [...]ersones. And in the seconde epystle of Ihon ij. Iohan [...]aith the texte / senior electe domine et filijs [...]e­ [...]us. the elder vnto the electe ladye and to here chylderen. And in. the .iij. epystle of Ihon. Senior Gaio dilecto. the elder vnto the beloued iij. Iohan Gaius. In these .ij. pystles presbiteros ys cal­ [...]ed an elder. And in the .xx. of the actes / the texte Actes. 20. [...]ayth: paule sent for maiores natu ecclesie / the [Page] elders in birth of the congregacion or curch / ād said vnto them / take hede vnto youre selves ād vnto the hole flocke / ouer which the holy gost hath made you episcopos ad regendum ecclesiā dei / bisshopes or ouersears to gouerne y^• church of god▪ There is presbiteros called an elder in birth which same is immediatly called a bissho­pe or ouersear / to declare what persons are ment. Herof ye se that I haue no moare erred thē there awne texte which they haue vsed sens the scripture was first in the latine tongue / and that their awne texte vnderstondeth by presbi­teros nothinge saue an elder. And they vere cal­led elders / because of their age / grauite and sad­nesse / as thou maist se by the texte: and bissho­pes or [...]uersears by the reason of their offices. And all y^t were called elders (or prestes if they so will) were called bisshopes also / though they haue diuided the names now / Vvhich thinge thou maist evidently se by the first chapter of titus. And the .xx. of the actes and other places moo. And when he layeth Timothe vn to my char­ge / how he was younge / then he weneth that he hath wonne his gylden spores. But I wolde praye him to shew me where he readeth y^t Paul calleth him presbiteros / preast or elder. I durst not then call him Episcopus propirly. For tho­se ouersears which we now call bisshopes aftir the greke worde / were all waye bydynge in one place / to gouerne the congregacion there. Now was Timothe an apostle. And Paul also wri­teth that he come shortly agayne. Vvel / will he saye / it cometh yet all to one. For if it becometh the lower ministre to be of a sad and discrete a­ge / moch more it becometh y^e hyer. It is trueth [Page ix] But .ij. thinges are with out lawe / god and ne­cessite. Note yf god to shew his power shall shedeout his grace moare vppon youth then vppon age at a tyme / who shall lett him? wemen be no mete wemen vesseles to rule or to {pre}ach (for both are forbodē thē) yet hath god endoted them with his spirite at sondrie tymes and shewed his power▪ goodnesse vppō them and wrought wonderfull thin­ges by them / because he wold not haue them di­spised. Vve reade that wemen haue iudged all Israel and haue bene greate prophetisses and haue done mightie deades. yee and if stories be true / wemen haue preached sens the openynge of the new testament.

Doo not oure wemen nov christen and mini­stre the sacrament of baptim in tyme of neade? Might they not by as good reason preach also / if necessite required? If a woman were dreuen in to some Ilande / where Christ was neuer preached / might she there not preach him / if she had the gyfte therto? Mighte she not also baptise? And why might she not / by the same reason mi­nistre the sacramente of y^• body & bloude of Christe / and teach them how to chose officers & ministres? O pore wemē / how despice ye them? The viler the better welcome vnto you. An hore had ye lever than an honeste wife. If only shauen & annoynted maye doo these thinges / then Chri­ste did them not ner any of his apostles / ner any [...]an in longe time after. For they vsed no soch ceremonyes.

Notwithstondinge though god be vnder no law & necessite lawlesse: yet be we vnder a lawe & ought to preferre the men before the wemē and age before youth / as nye as we can. For it is a­genst the lawe of nature that younge men shul­de [Page] rule the elder / and as vncomely as that we­men shulde rule the men / but when nede requi­reth. And therfore if paul had had other shifte & a man of age as mete for the rowme / he wold not haue put Timothe in the office. he shuld no doute haue bene kepte backe vntyll a fuller age and haue lerned in the meane tyme in silence. And what soeuer thou be / y^t readest this / I ex­horte the in oure lorde / that thou reade both the epistles of Paul to Timothe / that thou maist se how diligently (as a mother careth for hir child / if it be in perell) Paul writeth vnto Timothe / to enstructe him / to teach him / to exhorte / to corage him / to stere him vpp / to bewise / sobir / diligēt / circumspecte / sad / humble ād meke sayenge: these I write / that thou maist know how to behaue thy selfe in the howsse of god which is y^• church or congregacion Avoyde lustes of youth / bewa­re of vngodly fables and old wiues tales / & auoyde the companye of men of corrupte myndes which wast their braynes aboute wranglynge questions. Let no man dispise thyne youth. As who shulde saye / youth is a dispised thinge of itselfe / where vnto men geue none obediēce natu­rally or reuerence. Se therfore that thy vertue excede / to recompence thy lacke of age / and that thou so behaue thy selfe / that no faute be foun­de with the. And agayne / rebuke not an elder sharpely / but exhorte him as thy father / and yon­gemen as thy brethern / and the elder wemen as thy mothers / and the yoūgewemen as thy siste­rs and soch like in euerye chapter. Admitte no­ne accusacion agenst an elder vnder lesse then .ij wittenesses. And Paul chargeth him in the sight of god and of the lorde Iesus christe and of his electe angeles / to doo nothynge rashly or of af­fecciō. [Page x] And shortely where vnto youth is most prone and ready to fall / therof warneth he him with al diligēce / even al most or all to gether halfe a dosen tymes of someone thynge. And fynal­ly as aman wold teach a childe that had neuer before gone to scole / so tēderly & so carefully doeth paul teach him. It is a nother thynge to tea­ch the people and to teach the preacher. Here Paul teacheth the preacher / younge Timothe.

And when he affirmeth that I saye / how y^• the oylinge and shauinge is no parte of the presthode. That improueth he not ner can do. and therefore I saye it yet. And when he hath enserched thuttermost that he can this is al that he can laye agenst me / that of an hundred there be not .x. that haue the propirties which paul requireth to be in them. wherefore if oylinge ād shauinge be no parte of their presthod / then euer­more of a thousand .ix. hundred at the lest shuld be no prestes at all. And quod youre frēd wold confirme it with an oth and swere depely / that it wold folowe and that it must nedes so be. which argument yet / if there were no nother shifte I wold solue aftir an oxforde facion / with con­cedo consequenciam et consequens. And I saye morouer that their annoyntynge is but a cere­monie borowed of y^• Iewes / though they haue somewhat altered the maner / & their shauinge borowed of y^• hethē prestes / & y^• they be no more of their presthode / thē y^• oyle / salte / spittell / taper & chresom cloth of y^• substaunce of baptim. which thinges / no doute / because they be of their cōiurynge / they wold haue preached of necessite vnto the saluacion of y^• childe / excepte necessite had dreuen them vnto the contrarye.

And seinge that y^t oyle is not of necessyte / let .M. More tell me what moare vertue is in the oyle of confyrmacion / in as moch as the bysshope sacrithe the one as well as the other: ye and let hym tell the reason why there shulde be more vertue in the oyle where wyth the byssho­pe annoynteth hys prestes. Let him tell you frō whence the oyle cometh / how it is made / and why he selleth it to the curates wher with they anoynte the syke / or whether thys be of lesse vertue then the other₊

And finally whi vsed not y^• appostles this greke worde hiereus or the interpreter thys la­ten ☞ worde sacerdos / but all waye thys worde presbiteros and senior / by which was at that tyme nothynge sygnyfyed then an elder? And it was no doute taken of the custome of the he­brues / where the offycers were ever elderly mē as nature requireth. As yt appereth in the olde testament and also in the newe. The scry­bes / pharises ād y^• elders of y^• people sayth the texte / which were the officers and rulars / so cal­led by the reason of theyr age₊

¶ why he vseth loue rather then cheryte

HE rebuketh also that I translate thys greke word agape in to loue / ād not rather in to charite so holy ād so knowē a terme. Verely charite is no knowē Englesh in y^t sens whych agape requireth. For whē we saye / geue youre almes in y^e worshepe of God ād swete saint charite / ād when y^• father teacheth his sonne to sa­ye blissinge father for saint charite / what meane they? In good faith they wot not. Morouer when we saye / God helpe you / I haue done my charite for this daye / doo we not take it for almes? And y^• man is euer chidinge ād out of charyte / [Page xi] and I beshrew him sauinge my charyte / there we take it for pacyence. And when I saye a cha­ritable man / it is taken for mercifull. And tho­ugh mercifulnesse be a good loue or rather springe of a good loue / yet ys not euery good loue mercifulnesse. As when a womā loueth her hus­bonde godly or a man his wife or his frend that is in none aduersitie / it is not allwaye mercifulnesse. Also we saie not this mā hath a greate charite to god / but a greate loue. wherefore I must haue vsed this generall terme loue / in spite of mine herte often tymes. And agape ād charitas were wordes vsed amonge the hethen yer chryste came / ād signified therfore more then a godly loue. And we maye saye well ynough and ha­ue hearde it spoken y^• the turkes be charitable one to a nother amonge them selues and some of them vnto the chrysten to. Besydes all thys agape ys comen vnto all loues₊

And when Master More saith euery loue ys not charyte / no more is euery appostle chrystes appostell ner every angell gods angell / ner euery hope chrystē hope nor euery faith or beleffe chrystes beleffe / and so by an hūdred thousande wordes. So that yf I shulde all waye vse but a worde that were no moore generall then the worde I enterprete / I shulde interprete nothynge at all. But the mater yt selfe and the circumestaunces doo declare what loue / what ho­pe and what fayth ys spoken of. And finally I saye not charite god or charite youre neyboure but loue God and loue youre neyboure ye and though we saye a man ought to loue hys ney­boures wife ād his doughter / a christen mā doeth not vnderstonde / that he ys commaunded to defyle hys neyboures wife or hys doughter₊

why fauoure and not grace

ANd wyth lyke reasons rageth he because I turne charis in to fauoure and not in to grace / sayenge that euery fauoure is not grace and that in some fauoure there is but litle gra­ce. I can saye also in some grace there is lytle goodnesse. And when we saye / he stondeth well in my ladis grace / we vnderstōde no greate godly fauoure. And in vniuersities manye vngracious graces are goten₊

¶ why knowlege and not confessyon / repentaunce and not penaunce₊

ANd that I vse this word knowlege and not confession / ād this repentaūce and not penaunce. In whych all he can not proue / that I geue not the ryghte englishe vnto the greke worde. But yt ys a ferre other thynge that payneth them and byteth them by the brestes. There be secret panges that pinch y^• very hertes of them / where of they dare not complayne. The sekenesse that maketh them so impacyent ys / that they haue lost theyr iuglinge termes. For y^e doctours preachers were wont to make many deuisyons / distinccyons and sortes of grace / gratis data / gratum faciens / preueniens and subsequens. And wyth confessyon they iugled / and made the people / as ofte as they spake of yt: vnderstonde shryft in the eare. wherof the scripture maketh no mēcyō: no it is cleane agēst y^• scrypture as they vse yt and preach yt / ād vn to god an abhominacyon and a foule stinkyn­ge sacrifice vnto the filthy ydole priapus The losse of those iuglinge termes ys the mater where of all these bottes brede / that gnawe them by the belies and make them so vnquiet₊

And in lyke maner / by this word penaun­ce / penaunce. they make the people vnderstōde holy dedes of their enioynynge / with which they must make satisfacciō vnto godwarde for their synnes. whē al y^e scripture preacheth y^t christ hath made full satisfaccyon for oure synnes to godwarde / and we must now be thankefull to god agayne and kyll the lustes of oure flesh wyth holy workes of gods enioynynge and to take pacientlye all that god layeth on my backe. And if I haue hurte my neyboure / I am bounde to shriue myselfe vnto hym and to make hym a mendes / yf I haue where with / or if not then to axe him forgeuenesse / and he is bounde to forgeue me. And as for their penaūce the scripture knoweth not of. The greke hath Metanoia and metanoite / repentaunce and repente / or forthynkynge and forthynke. As we saye in english it forthynketh me or I forthynke / ād I repent or yt repenteth me and I am sory that I dyd yt. So now the scripture sayeth repent or let yt forthynke you and come and beleue the gospell or glad tydynges that ys brought you in chryst / and so shall all be forgeuen you / and henceforth lyue a new lyfe: And yt wyll folowe yf I repent in the herte / that I shall doo no moore so wyllyngely ād of purpose. And yf I beleued the gospell / what God hath done for me in christe / I shuld suerly loue hym agayne and of loue prepare my selfe vnto hys commaundementes₊

These thinges to be be euen so. M. More knoweth wel ynough. For he vnderstōdeth the greke / ād he knew thē longe yer I. But so blin­de is couetousenesse ād drōkē desire of honoure Giftes blinde the eies of the seinge ād peruerte [Page] the wordes of the righteous Deut. xvij. Vvhen Deut. 17. ☞ couetousenesse findeth vauntage in servinge falshed / it riseth vpp in to an obstinat malise agenst the trouth and seketh all meanes to resi­ste it and to quench it. As Balam the false pro­phete / though he wiste that god loued Israhel & had blessed them and promised them greate thinges / Balam. and that he wold fulfyll his promises / yet for couetousenesse and desyre of honoure / he fell in to soch malice agenst the trueth of god / that he sought how to resiste it and to curse the peo­ple. Vvhich when god wold not let him doo / he turned him selfe a nother waye and gaue pesti­lent counsell / to make the people synne agenst god wherbye the wrath of god felle vppon thē / and many thousandes perished. Notwithston­dinge gods trueth abode fast and was fullfil­led in the reste. And Balam as he was the cause that many perished / so escaped he not him selfe No moare did any that maliciousy resisted the open trueth agenst his awne conscience / sence y^• world beganne / that euer I red. For it is sinne The sin­ne agenst the holye gost. agēst the holy gost / which Christ saith shall ney­ther be forgeuen here nor in the worlde to come / which texte maye this wise be vnderstonde that as that sinne shalbe punished with euerlastinge damnacion in the life to come: even so shall it ☞ not escape vengeaunce here. As thou seist in Iudas / in Pharao / in Balam and in all other tirā­tes which agenst their consciences resisted the open trueth of god.

So now the cause why oure prelates thus rage / and that moueth them to call master Mo­re to helpe / is not that they finde iust causes in y^• translacion / but because they haue loste their iugglynge and fayned termes / wherwith Peter ij. Pet. ij. [Page xiij] prophisied they shuld make marchaundice of y^• people.

¶ Vvether the church were before the gospell or the gospell be­fore the church. ☜

ANother doute there is / whether y^• church or congregacion be before the gospell or y^• gospell before the church. Vvhich questiō is as hard to solue / as whether the father be elder thē y^e sonne or y^• sonne elder then his father. For y^• hole scripture and all beleuinge hertes testifye that we are begotten thorow the worde. Vvherfore j. Petr. y^•. if the worde begette the congregacion / and he that begetteth is before him that is begottē then is the gospell before the church. Paul also Romano. ix. sayth / how shall they call on whom they beleue not? And how shall they beleue with Ro. 9. out a preacher? That is / Christ must first be preached yer men can beleue in him. And then it foloweth / that the worde of y^• preacher must be before the faith of the belevar. And therfore in as moch as the worde is before the faith / and faith maketh the congregacion / therfore is the word or gospell before the congregacion. And a­gayne as the ayre is darke of it selfe and recea­ueth all hir light of y^• sonne: even so ar all mens hertes of them selfe darke with lies & receaue al their trueth of gods worde / in that they consent therto. And morouer as the darke ayre geveth the sonne no lighte / but contrary wise the light of the sonne in respecte of the ayre is of it selfe ād lighteneth the ayre and purgeth it from dar­kenesse: even so the lienge herte of man can ge­ue the word of god no trueth / but contrary wi­se the trueth of gods worde is of hir selfe and [Page] lyghteneth the hertes of the beleuers and ma­keth them true / and clenseth them from lies / as thou readest Ihon. xv. ye be cleane by reason of the word. Vvhich is to be vnderstond / in that y^• Iohan. xv word had purged their hertes from lies / from false opinions and from thynkynge evell good / and therfore from consentinge to synne. And I­hon. xvij. sanctifie thē o father thorow thy tru­eth. And thy word is trueth. And thus thou seist that gods trueth dependeth not of man. It is Iohan. 17 not true because man so saith or addmitteth it for true: But man is true because he beleueth it / testifieth and geueth wittenesse in his hert y^t it is true. And Christ also saith him selfe Ihon. v. I receaue no wittenesse of man. For if the multitude of mās wittenesse might make ought true / then were y^• doctrine of Mahomete truer then Christes.

¶ Vvhether the appostles left ought vn written / that is of necessite to be beleued. ☜

BVt did not the appostles teach ought by mouth that they wrott not? I answere / be­cause that many taught one thinge / and everyman the same in diuers places and vnto diuers people / and confirmed euery sermon with a son­dry miracle: therfore Christ and his appostles preached an hundred thousand sermons ād did as many miracles which had bene superfluous to haue bene all written. But the pith and sub­staunce in generall of euery thinge necessarie vn to oure soules health / both of what we ought to beleue & what we ought to doo / was writtē / and of the miracles done to confirme it / as ma­ny [Page 14] as were nedefull. So that what soeuer we ought to beleue or doo / that same is written ex­presly or drawen out of that which is written.

For if I were bounde to doo or beleue vn­der payne of the losse of my soule any thynge y^t were not written / ner depended of that which is written / what holpe me the scripture that is written? And therto in as moch as Christ and all his apostles warned vs that false prophetes shuld come with false miracles / even to discea­ue y^• electe / if it were possible / where with shuld the true preacher cōfounde the false / excepte he brought true miracles to confoūde the false or else autentycke scripture of full auctorite all ready amonge the people.

Some man wolde axe / how did god conti­nue his congregacion from Adam to Noe & frō Noe to Abraham / and so to Moses / with out wrytynge / but with teachynge from mouth to mouth. I answere first that there was no scrip­ture all the while / they shall proue / when oure lady hath a new sonne. God taught Adam greater thinges then to write. And that there was writynge in the world longe yer Abraham ye ād yer Noe doo stories testifie.

Notwithstondinge / though there had bene no writynge / the preachers were euer prophetes glorious ī doynge of miracles / where with they confirmed their preachynge. And beyonde y^t god wrote his testament vn to them all waye / both what to doo and to beleue / even in sacramētes. For the sacrifices which god gaue Adams son­nes were no dumme popetrie or supersticious [Page] mahometrie / but signes of the testament of god And in them they red y^• worde of god / as we do in bokes / and as we shuld doo in oure sacramētes / if the weked pope had not taken the significaciōs awaye from vs / as he hath robbed vs of y^• true sens of all the scripture. The testament which god mad with Noe / y^t he wolde no moa­re droune the world with water / he wrote in y^• sacrament of the raynebowe. And the appoyntement made betwene him and Abraham / he wro­te in y^• sacrament of circumcision. And therfore saide Steuen Actes. vij. he gaue them the testament of circumcision. Not that the outwarde Actes 7 circumcision was the hole testament / but the sacrament or signe therof. For circumcision prea­ched gods word vnto them / as I haue in other places declared.

But in the tyme of Moyses when the con­gregacion was encreased / that they must haue many preachars and also rulars temporall / thē all was receaued in scripture / in so moch that Christ and his appostles might not haue bene beleued with out scripture for all their miracles Vvherfore in as moch as Christes congregaciō is spred a brode in to all the world moch broder [...] Moseses / and in as moch as we haue not the old testamēt only but also the new / wherin all thinges are opened so richly and all fulfilled that before was promised / and in as moch as there is no promise behinde of ought to be she­wed moare saue the resurreccion: yee and seinge that Christ and all the appostles with all the angels of heuen / if they were here / coude preach no moare then is preached / of necessite vnto oure soules: How then shuld we receave a new arti­cle of the faith / with out scripture / as profitable [Page xv] vnto my soule / when I had beleved it / as smo­ke for sore eyes. Vvhat holpe it me to beleue y^t oure laidies bodie is in heuen? what am I the better for the beleffe of purgatorye? to feare mē thou wilt saye. Christ & his appostles thought Purgatorye hell ynough. And yet (besydes that the fleshly imaginacion maye not stonde with gods worde) what greate feare can there be of that tereble fire which thou maist quench all most for .iij. hal­fe pence?

And that the apostles shuld teach ought by mouth which they wold not write / I praye you for what purpose? because they shuld not come in to the handes of the hethen for mockynge / saith M. More. I pray you what thinge moa­re to be mocked of the hethen coude they teach / then the resurreccion / and that Christ was god and man an died betwene .ij. theves / and that for his dethes sake / all that repent beleue therin / shuld haue their sinnes forgeuē them. ye and if the apostles vnderstode therby as we doo what madder thinge vnto hethen people / coude they haue taught then that bred is Christis body and wine his bloude. And yet all these thyn­ges they wrote. And agayne purgatory / confes­sion in the eare / penaunce and satisfaccion for synne to godward with holy deades / and prayē­ge to saintes with soch like / as dome sacramen­tes and ceremonies / ar marvelouse agreable vn to the supersticion of the hethen people / so that they neaded not to absteyne from writynge of them / for feare lest the hethen shuld haue moc­ked them.

Morouer what is it y^• the appostles taught by mouth ād durst not write? The sacramētes? As for baptim and the sacrament of the body & [Page] bloud of Christ they wrote / and it is expressed Sacramētes haue significaci­ons what is signified by them. And also all the cere­monies and sacramentes that were from Adam to Christ had significacions / and all that are made mencion of in the new testament. Vvher­fore in as moch as the sacramentes of the olde testament haue significacions / and in as moch as the sacramentes of the new testament (of which mencion is made that they were deliue­red vn to vs by the verye appostles at Christes commaundement) haue also significacions / and in as moch as the office of an appostle is to edi­fie in Christe / and in as moch as a dumme cere­monie edifieth not / but hurteth all to gether (for iff it preach not vn to me / thē I can not but put confidence therin / that the dede it selfe iustifieth me / which is the denyenge of Christes bloude) & in as moch as no mencion is made of them / as well as of other / ner is knowen what is ment by them: therfore it appereth that the appostles taught them not / but that they be the false marchaundice of wilye ypocrites. And therto prest­hode was in the tyme of the appostles an office which if they wold do truely / it wold moare profitt then all the sacramentes in the worlde. And ☞ agayne gods holinesses striue not one agenst a nother ner defile one a nother. Their sacramentes defile one a nother. For wedlocke defileth preshode moare then horedom / thefte / murther or any sinne agenst nature. They wyll happly demaunde where it is writ­ten that wemen shuld baptise. Verely in this cōmaundement loue they neyboure as thyselfe it is writtē / that they maye and ought to ministre not only baptim / but all other in time of neade / iff they be so necessarie as they preach them.

And finally though we were sure that god him selfe had geuen vs a sacrament / what soe­uer it were / yet if the significaciō were once lost we must of necessite / ether seke vpp the signifi­cacion or put some other significacion of gods word therto / what we ought to doo or beleue therby / or else put it downe. For it is impossibi­ble to obserue a sacrament with out significa­cion / but vnto oure damnacion. If we kepe the faith purely and the law of loue vndefiled / wh­ych are the significacions of all ceremonies there is no ieoperdy to alter or chaunge the facion of the ceremonye or to put it doune / if nede requyre₊ ☜

¶ Vvhether the church can erre

THere is a nother questiō whether y^e church maye erre. Vvhich if ye vnderstonde of y^• pope and his generacion / it is verely as hard a question as to axe / whether he which hath both his eyes out be blynd or no / or whether it be possible for him that hath one legge shorter then a nother / to halt. But I said that Christes electe what y^t very church is & what faith sa­veth. church is the hole multititude of all repentynge synners that beleue in Christ and put all their trust and confidence in the mercye of god / felynge in their hertes / that god for Christes sake lo­ueth them and wilbe or rather is mercifull vn to them and forgeueth them their synnes of w­hich they repent / and that he forgeueth them al­so all the mocions vn to synne of which they feare lest they shuld therby be drawen in to synne agayne. And this faith they haue with out all respecte of their awne deseruynges / yee and for no nother cause then that the mercifull trueth of god the father which can not lye / hath so promi­sed and so sworne.

And this faith and knowlege is euerlastynge life / and by this we be born a new and made the sonnes of god and obtayne forgeuenesse of synnes and are translated from deeth to life ād from the wrath of god vn to his loue and fauoure. And this faith is the mother of all trueth. and bryngeth with hir the spirite of all trueth. Vvhich spirite purgeth vs / as from all sinne / even so from all lyes and erroure noysome and hurtefull. And this faith is the fundacion layd of the appostles and prophetes wheron Paul saith Ephe. ij. that we are bylt / and therby of y^e household of god And this faith is y^• rocke wheron Ephe. 2 Christ bilt his congregacion. Christ axed the Mat. 16 appostles Matth. xvj. whom they toke him for. And Peter answered for them all sayenge I saye that thou art Christ the sonne of the liuinge god y^t art come in to this worlde. That is / we beleue that thou art he that was promised vn to Abraham / shuld come and blesse vs and deli­uer vs. How be it Peter yet wist not by what meanes. But now it is opened thorow out all the world / that thorow the offerynge of his bo­dy and bloude. That offeringe is a satisfaccion for the sinne of all that repent and a purchasynge of what so euer they can axe / to kepe them in fauoure. And that they sinne no moare. And Christ answered vppon this rocke I will byld my congregacion: that is / vppon this faith. And agenst the rocke of this faith can no sinne / no hell / no deuell / no lies nor erroure preuayle.

For what soeuer any man hath commit­ted / if he repent and come to this rocke / he is saf­fe. And that this faith is the only waye bi which y^• church of Christ goeth vn to god and vn to y^• enheretaunce of all his riches / testifie all the ap­postles [Page xvij] and prophetes ād all the scripture / with signes ād miracles / and al the bloud of marters. And who soever goeth vnto God and vnto for geuenesse of synnes or saluacion / by any other waye then thys / the same is an heretike out of the rightwaye and not of Christes church.

For this knowlege maketh a man of the church. And the church is christes body Collossen. [...]j. and every person of the church is a member Col. j. of christ. Ephe. 5. Now it is no member of christ that hath not christes spirite in it. Roma. viii. as Ephe. 5. it is no parte of me or member of my body wherin my soule is not present and quikeneth it. Rom. 8. And then iff a man be none of christes / he is not of his church

¶ How a true member of christes church syn­neth not / and how he is yet a synner

FVrthermoare / he that hath this faith cannot sinne / and therfore can not be discea­ved with damnable erroures. For by this faith we be (as Isaide) borne of God. Now he that is born of god can not synne / for his seed dwell­eth in him / and he can not therfore synne / because he is born of God. j. Ihon. iij. which seed is y^• j. Ioha. 3. holygost that kepith a mans hert from consen­tinge vnto sinne. And therfore it is a false con­clusion that master More holdeth / how that a Faith ād synne cannot stond to gether. man maye haue a righte faith ioyned with all kyndes of abhominacion and synne

And yet every membir of Christes congre­gacion is a synner and sinneth dayly / some mo­are and some lesse. For it is written .i. Ihon. i. if we saye we haue no synne / we disceaue oure selues and the trueth is not in vs. And agayne iff we saye / we haue not sinned / we make him aliar [Page] and his worde is not in vs. And Paul. Roma. vij. saith / that good which I wold / that do I not / but that evell which I wold not / that do I So it is not I that doo it (saith he) but synne that dwelleth in me. Thus are we synners and no synners. No synners / if thou loke vn to the profession of oure hertes towarde the law of God / on oure repentaunce and sorow that we haue / both because we haue synned and also be­cause we be yet full of synne still / and vn to the promises of mercie in oure sauioure christe / and vn to oure fayth. Synners are we / iff thou loke vn to the frailtie of oure flesh / which is as the weakenesse of one that is newly recouered out of agreate disease / by the reasō wherof oure dedes are imperfect. And by the reasō where of also / when occasions be greate / we fall in to horrible dedes / ād the frute of the synne which remayneth in oure membirs breaketh out. Notwithstondynge yet the spirite leaveth vs not / but rebuketh vs ād bringeth vs home agayne vn to oure profession / so that we never cast off the yocke of God frō oure neckes nether yeld vpp oure selues vn to synne / for to serue it / but fighte afresh ād begynne a new batayle. ☞ ☜ ₊ ₊ ₊

¶ How a christen man can not erre / and how he maye yet erre.

ANd as they synne not / so they erre not. And on y^• other syde as they synne / so they erre: but never vn to deeth and damnaciō. For they never synne of purpose ner holde any erroure maliciously / synnynge agenst the holygoste / but of weakenesse and infirmitie. As good obedient childern / though they loue their fathers cō­maundementes / yet breake them oft / by the rea­son of their wekenesse. And as they can not yel­de them selves bond vn to synne / to serue it: evē so they can not erre in any thynge that shuld be agenst the promises which are in christe. And in other thynges their erroures be not vn to damnacion / though they be neuer so greate / because they hold them not maliciously. As now / if some when they reade in the new testament of Chri­stes brethern / wold thynke that they were oure ladies childern aftir the birth of christe / because they know not the vse of speakynge of the scri­pture or of the hebrues / how that nye kinsmen becalled brethern / or happly they might be Iosephes childern / by some first wife / neyther can haue any to teach him for tiranny y^t is so greate / yet coude it not hurte him / though he died the­rin / because it hurteth not y^• redempcion y^t is in christes bloude. For though she had none but christ / I am therfore neuer the moare saued / ney­ther yet the lesse / though she had had. And in so­ch like an hundred that plucke not a mans fa­ith from Christ / they might erre / and yet be­neuer the lesse saued no though the contrary were written in the gospel. For as in other synnes / [Page] as sone as they be rebuked / they repent: even so here / assone as they were better taught / they sh­uld immediatly knowlege their erroure ād not resiste.

But they which maliciously maynetene opinions agenst the scripture / or that that can not be proued by the scripture / or soch as make no mater vn to the scripture and saluacion that is in christ whether they be true or noo / ād for the blinde zele of them make sectes / breakinge the vnite of christes church / for whose sake they ought to suffre all thynge / ād rise agenst their neyboures / whom they ought to loue as them sel­ues / to slee them (soch men I saye are fallē frō christe and make an Idole of their opinions. For except they put trust in soch opinions and thought them necessarie vn to saluaciō / or with a cākred cōscience went about to disceaue / for some filthie purpose / they wold never breake the vnite of faith or yet slee their bretern. Now is this a playne conclusion / that both they that trust in their awne workes / and they also that put confidence in their awne opinions / be fallen from Christe and erre from the waye of faith y^t is in chri­stes bloude / and therfore are none of christes church / because they be not bilt vp­pon y^e rocke of faith. ₊ ₊ ✚

¶ Faith is ever assayled and fought with all.

MOrouer this oure faith which we haue in Christ / is euer fought agenst / euer assaylled and beten at with disperacion: not when we sinne only / but also in all temptacions of ad­versite in to which God bringeth vs / to nurtoure vs and to shew vs oure awne hertes / the ypocrisie and false thoughtes that there lye hidd / oure al most no faith at all and as litle loue / even then happly when we thought oure selues most perfecte of all. For when temptacions come we can not stond / when we haue synned faith is feble / when wronge is done vs we cannot forgeue / in sickenes / in losse of goodes ād in all tribulacions we be impacient: when oure neyboure neadeth oure helpe / that we must de­parte with him of oures then loue is colde. And thus we lerne and fele that there is no goodnesse ner yet power to doo good / but of God only. And in all soch temptacions oure faith perisheth not vtterly neyther our loue and con­sent vnto the law of God / But they be weke / sycke and wounded and not cleane deed. As a Good child whom the father and mother haue taught nurtourne and wisdom / loueth his fa­ther and all his commaundementes / and per­ceaueth of the goodnesse shewed him / that his father loueth him and that all his fathers pre­ceptes are vnto his welth and profitt / and that his father commaundeth him nothinge for any neade that his father hath therof / but seketh his profitt only / and therfore hath a good faith vn to all his fathers promises and loueth al his commaundementes and doeth them with good wyll and with good will goeth to scole. And by the waye haply he seeth companie playe and with the sight is taken and raveshed of his memory [Page] and forgetteth him selfe and stondeth and beholdeth and falleth to playe also / forgettynge father and mother / all their kyndes / all their la­wes and his awne profitt therto. How be it the knowlege of his fathers kyndnesse / the faith of his promises and the loue that he hath agayne vn to his father and the obediēt mynde are not vtterly quenched / but lye hyd / as all thynges do when a man slepeth or lieth in a traunce. And assone as he hath played out all his lustes or bewarned in the meane season / he cometh agayne vn to his olde profession. Neuer the later many temptacions goo ouer his herte / and the law as a right hangman tormenteth his conscience ād goeth nye to persuade him that his father will cast him a waye and hange him if he ketche him so that he is like a greate while to runne awaye rather then to returne vn to his father agayne. Feare and dreade of rebuke and of losse of his fathers loue and of punishment wrastell with the trust which he hath in his fathers goodnesse ād as it were geue his faith a fall. But it riseth agayne assone as the rage of the first brount is past and his mynd moare quiett. And the good nesse of his father and his old kindnesse cometh vn to remembraunce / eyther of his awne cora­ge or by the comforte of some other. And he beleueth that his father will not cast him awaye or destroye him / and hopeth that he will no moare doo so.

And vppon that he geteth him home / dis­mayed. But not all to gether faythlesse. The old kyndneses wyll not lett him dispayre. How be it all the world can not sett his hert at rest / vntill the payne be past / and vntyll he haue herd [Page xx] the voyce of his father that all is forgeuen₊

¶ The maner and ordre of oure ele­ction₊ ☜

EVen so goeth it with gods electe. God choseth them first and they not god / as thou readest Ihon. xv. And then he sendeth forth and calleth them / and sheweth them his goodwyll Ioan. 15 which he beareth vn to them / and maketh them se / both their awne damnacion in the lawe and also the mercie that is layd vpp for them in christes bloude / and therto what he will haue them doo. And then when we se his mercie / we loue him agayne and chose him and submitte our selues vn to his lawes to walke in them. For w­hen we erre not in witt / reason and iudgement of thinges / we can not erre in wil and choyse of thynges. The choyse of a mans will doeth naturally and of hir awne accorde folowe the iudge­ment of a mans reason / whether he iudge righ­te or wronge. So that in teachinge only resteth the pith of a mans liuynge. How be it there be swine that receaue no lerninge but to defile it. And there be dogges that rent all good lernin­ge with their teth. And there be pope holy why­ch folowynge a ryghtewesnes of their awne faynynge resiste the rightwesnesse of god in Christe And there be that can not attend to herken vn to the trueth for rage of lustes / which when lu­stes abate / come and obeye well ynough.

And therfore a Christen man must be pa­cient and sofre longe to wynne his brother to Christ / that he whych attendeth not to daye / maye receave grace and heare to morowe: [Page] we se some at their very later ende / when colde feare of deeth hath quenched the heet of their appetites / lerne ād consent vnto the trueth / whe­re vnto before they coude geue none eare / for y^• wylde rages of lustes y^t blinded their wittes₊

And though gods electe can not so faull y^• they rise not agayne / because that the mercy of mercye waiteth euer on y^• electe god euer wayteth vppon them / to deliuer them from euell / as the care of a kind father wayteth vppon his sonne / to warne him ād to kepe him from occasions ād to call hym bake agayne yf he begonne to ferre: yet they forgett them selues oftymes ād synke downe in to traunces ād fall aslepe in lustes for a season. But assone as they be awaked they repent and come agayne wythout resistaūce. God now ād then withdraweth his hande ād leueth them vnto their awne stre­ngth / to make them feale that there is no power to do good but of god only lest they shulde be proude of that which is none of theirs. God la­yd so sore awaight of persecucion vppon Dauids Dauid backe that passed his strēgth to beare. So y^t he cried oft out in his psalmes / sayenge that he had liued well and folowed the right waye off God in vaine. For the moare he kepte him selfe from sinne / the worse yt went with hym / as he thought / and the better with his enemie Saull y^e worse he was, yet god left hym not there / but comforted him and shewed him thynges which before he wist not of / how that the saintes must be pacyent and a byde gods heruest / vntyll the wekedenesse of vngodly synners befull ripe / y^t god maye repe it in dew season₊

God also suffered occasyons stronger then [Page xxi] Dauid / to faull vppon him ād to carie him clea­ne out of the waye. was he not readye for a churlysse answere to haue slayn naball and all the males of his housse / so moch as the chyld in the cradell? how be it God with helde hym and kepte him backe frō that evell / thorow the wis­dome of Abegall. How longe slomberd he / or rather how hard in slepe was he in the adulte­rye of Bathseba. And in the murther of her husbond Vriah / But at both tymes assone as he was rebuked and his faulte told him / he repen­ted immedyatly & turned agayne mekely. Now in all that longe tyme / from the adulterye of Bathsabe vntyll the prophete Nathan rebu­ked him he had not lost his faith nor yet his lo­ue vnto the lawes of god / no moare then a man loseth hys wittes when he ys a slepe. He had forgott hym selfe only and had not malycyously cast of the yocke of gods commaundementes from off his necke. There is no man so good / but that there cometh a tyme vppon hym / whē he fealeth in hym selfe no moare faith or loue vnto god / then a sycke man oftymes feleth the tast of his meate which he eateth₊

And in lyke maner the apostles of chryst at hys passyon were astonyed and amased and in soch a storme of temptacyons / for the soden chaunge from soo greate glorye in to so vyle and shamfull deeth / that they had forgott all the myracles and all the wordes whych he had told them before / how that he shulde be betrayed and delyuered on the same maner vnto deeth. Morouer they neuer vnderstode that sayenge of hys deeth because their hertes were all waye hevie and ouer lade wyth erthely [Page] thoughtes. For though they saw him reyse vpp other / yet who shulde reyse hym vpp / when he were deed / they coude not comprehende.

Reade what thou reade canst / and thou shalt fynd no temptacyon lyke vnto that from y^e creacyon of y^e world / or so greate as yt by the hundred parte. So that the wonderfull soden chaunge and the tereble syght of hys passyon and of hys most cruell and most vile deeth / and the losse of whom they so greatly loued / that theyr hertes wolde fayne haue died wyth hym / and the feare of their awne deeth / and the im­possibilite that a man shulde ryse agayne of his awne power / so occupyed theyr myndes and so astonyed them and amased them / that they coude receaue no comforte / ether of the scrypture or of y^• miracles which they had sene christ doo / nor of the monicions ād warnynge wherewith he had warned them before / nether of the wo­men that brought them tydynges that he was rysen. The swerd of temptacyons wyth feare sorow / mornynge & wepynge / had depely perced theyr hertes / and the cruell syght had so com­bred their mindes / that they coude not beleue / vntyll chryst hym selfe came / deeth put off and ouercome / ye and when they first saw him / they were astonied for wonderinge ād ioye to gether that thoughtes a rose in theyr hertes / alas ys thys he or doeth some spirite mocke vs? he was faine to lett them feale him ād to eate with thē / to strength theyr faythes₊

How be yt there was none of them that was fallen in hys hert from chryste. For assone as the wemen brought worde / Peter and I­hon ran vnto the sepulchre and saw and won­ted and wold fayne haue beleuen that he was [Page xxij] rosen and longed for hym? But coude not bele­ue the wound of temptacyon beinge greater thē that it coude be healed wyth the preachynge of a woman with out any other miracle

Ioseph of Arimathea ād Nicodemus which while he yet liued durst not be a knowē of hym assone as he was deed / bedged his bodie and buried hym boldly. And the wemen assone as yt was lawful to worke prepared their annoyntmētes with all diligence And the hertes of the dys­ciples that went to Emaus burned in their brestes to heare speake of hym₊

And thomas had not forsaken Christ / but coude not beleue vntyll he sawe hym / and yet desyred and longed to se hym and reioysed whē he saw hym and for ioye cryed out / my lorde my god. There was none of them that euer railed on hym and came so ferre forth / to saye / he was a disceauer and wrought wyth the dyuels craft all thys whyle / and se where to he ys co­me in the ende? we defye hym and all hys wer­kes false wretch that he was and hys false doctrine also. And therto must they haue come at the last / when feare / sorow ād wonderynge had bene past / yf they had not bene preuented ād holpe in the meane tyme₊

yee and peter assone as he had denied chryst Peters fayth fayled not came too hym selfe immedyatly and went out and wepte bytterly for sorow. And thus ye se / that peters fayth fayled not / though yt were oppressed for a tyme: so that we neade to seke no gloses for the texte that Chryst sayd to pe­ter how that hys fayth shulde not fayle. yes sayth Master More yt fayled in hym selfe / but was reserued in our ladye. ☜ [Page] but lat vs se the texte and their glose to gether. Christ saith Luke. xxij. Simon / Simon / sathan Lu. 11. seketh you to sifte you as men sifte where: but I haue prayed for y^• / that thy faith shall not faile / werfore when thou art come vn to thy selfe agayne strength thy brethern. Now put this wise glose therto and se how they agre to gether. Simon / satā seketh to sift you as whete / but I haue prayd for the / that my mothers faith shall not faile / wherfore when thou art come to thyselfe agayne / acordynge as my prayar hath ob­tayned for the / that my mothers faith shall not ☞ faile / strength thy brethern. How saye ye / is not this a propir texte and well framed to gether? Do ye not thinke that there is as moch witte ī the heed of mad colens / as in the braynes of soch expositoures?

¶ Vvhether the pope and his secte be Christes church or no

THat the pope and his spirites be not the 1 church maye this wise be proued. He that hath no faith to be saued thorow Christe / is not of Christes churche. The pope beleueth not to Pope be saued thorow Christe. For he teacheth to trust in holy workes for the remission of sinnes and saluacion: as in y^• workes of penaunce en­ioyned / in vowes / in pilgremage / in chastite / in other mens prayars and holy liuynge / in freres and freres cotes / in saintes merites / and the significacions put out / he teacheth to beleue in y^• dedes of the ceremonies and of the sacramētes ordeyned at the begynnynge to preach vn to vs and to do vs seruice / and not that we shuld be­leue in thē ād serue thē And a thousand such supersticiousnesses setteth he before vs in steade [Page xxiij] of Christ / to beleue in / nether Christ ner gods worde / nether honourable to god ner servicea­ble vnto our neyboure ner profitable vn to ourselues for the tamynge of the flesh / which all are y^• denyenge of Christes bloud.

A nother rason is this. Vvhosoeuer bele­ueth 2 in Christ / consenteth that gods lawe is good. The pope consenteth not that gods lawe is good. For he hath forboden lawfull wedloc­ke vn to all his / ouer whom he raigneth as a tēporall tirant with lawes of his awne makynge and not as a brother exhortynge them to kepe Christes. And he hath graunted vnlaufull hore­dom vn to as many as bringe money. As tho­row all doucheland / euery prest payenge a geldē vn to the archedecon shall frely and quietly haue his hore and put hir awaye at his pleasure / & take a nother at his awne luste. As they doo in wales / in yerland / Scotland / Fraunce & Spay­ne. And in Englond therto they be not few wh­ych haue licences to kepe hores / some of the po­pe and some of their ordinaries. And when the parishes goo to law with them to put a waye their hores / the bisshopes officers mocke them / poll them and make them spend their thryftes / and the prestes kepe their hores still. How be it in very dede sens they were re [...]uked by the preachynge of wicleffe / oure englesh spiritualtie haue layd their snares vn to mens wiues / to couer their abhominacions / though they byde not all waye secret.

Ther to all Christen men if they haue done amisse repent when their fautes be told them. 3 The spiritualtie repent not / but of very lust ād consent to synne persecute both the scripture wherwith they be rebuked and also them that [Page] warne them to amend & make heretikes of them and burne them. And besydes that / y^• pope hath mad a playne decre in which he commaundeth sayenge / though y^• pope synne neuer so greuously and draw with him to hell by his ensample thousandes innumerable / yet let no man be so hardye to rebuke him. For he is heed ouer all & none ouer him distinct .xl. Si papa.

And Paul saith Roma. xiij. let euery soule 4 obey the hier powers that are ordeyned to punysh synne. The pope will not / ner let any of his. Rom. 13

And Paul chargeth. 1. Corin. v. if he that is a brother be an horekeper / a dronkerd / couetou­se / 5 an extorsioner or a raylar and so forth / that we haue no felowsheppe with him: No not so 1. Cor. 5. moch as to eate in his companie. But the pope with violence compelleth vs to haue soch in ho­noure / to receaue the sacramentes of them / to heare their masses and to beleue all they saye / and yet they wyll not lett vs se whether they saye trouth or no. And he compelleth .x. parishes to paye their tithes and offeringes vn to one soch to goo and runne at riott at their cost & to doo noughte therfore. And a thousand soch like doeth the pope contrarie vn to Christes doctrine.

¶ The faith that dependeth of a nother mans mouth is weke.

IF I haue no nother fealynge in my faith then because a man so saith / then is my faith faithlesse and frutelesse. For if I haue no nother felynge that lecherie is synne then that y^• pope so preacheth / whom I se before my face Lecherye. sett vppe in Rome a stues of .xx. or .xxx. thousād hores / takynge of every pece tribute yerly / and his bisshopes with all other his disciples folowynge the ensample mightily / and the pope ther­with not content / but to sett vpp therto a stues of younge boyes agenst nature / the committers of which synne be burnt at a stake amonge the turkes / as Moses also commaundeth in his la­we / ād the pope also to forbid all y^• spiritualltie / a multitude of .xl. or. l. hundred thousand to mary / & to geue them licence to kepe euery man his whore who so wyll: if I saye / I haue no nother felynge in my faith that lechery is synne then this mans preachinge / I thynke my faith shuld be to weake to beare moch frute. How coude I beleue a man that wold saye he loued me / if [Page xxxi] all his dedes were contrary? I coude not beleue God him selfe that he loued me / if in all my trybulacions I had of him no nother comforte thē those bare wordes₊

And in like maner if I had no nother felyn­ge Couetu­ousnesse. in my fayth that couetousnesse were synne / then that the spiritualtie so sayth / my faith coude be but weake and faintie / when I se how the pope wyth wiles hath thrust downe the emproure / and how the bisshopes ād prelates be cropt vpp an hye in all regyons aboue their kinges and haue made thē a seuerall kindome and ha­ue goten in to their handes all most the one halfe of euery realme whiche they diuide amonge them selues / geuinge no laye mā ony parte wyth them / and hepynge vpp bisshoperike vppon bisshoperike / promocyon vppon promocion / be­nefice vppō benefice / with vnions and tot quottes robbinge in euery parish the soules of their Vnions▪ tot quot­tes. fode and the pore of their due sustynaunce: ye and some preachinge that it were lesse sinne to haue .ij. wyues thē .ij. benefices / but whyle they be yet younge & hote / ād therfore thynke coue­tousnesse ☞ greater synne then lecherye: which sa­me / when they be waxed elder and their cōplex­cyon some what altered / thinke that couetous­nesse is as small a synne as lechery / and therfo­re take all y^t cometh. And if any man cast theyr preachynge in their tethes / they answere that they be better lerned and haue sene further. If I saye / I haue no nother felinge that couetousnesse is synne / then the preachynge of these holy fathers / my faith were bilt but vppon a weke rocke or rather on the soft sonde. And therfore oure defenders do ryght well to fome out their awne shame and to vtter the secret thoughtes [Page] of their hertes. For as they write / so they bele­ue. Other felynge of y^• lawes of god ād feyth of chryst haue they none / then that theyr God the pope so sayth. And therfore as the pope preacheth with hys mouth only / even soo beleue they wyth theyr mouth only what soeuer he preacheth / with out moare a doo / be it neuer so abhominable / and in theyr hertes consent vnto all their fathers wekednesse and folow hym in theyr de­des as fast as they can runne₊

The turkes beinge in numbre .v. tymes mo Turkes then we knowlege one God and beleue many thynges of God moued only by the auctoryte of theyr elders and presume that God wyll not let so greate a multitude erre so longe tyme. And yet they haue erred ād bene faythlesse thys viii. hundred yeres. And the Iewes beleue thys daye / as moch as the carnall sorte of them euer beleued / moued also by the auctoryte of theyr elders Iewes only / and thynke that yt ys impossyble for them to erre / beynge Abrahams seed and the chyldern of them to whom the promysses of all that we beleue were made. And yet they haue erred and bene faythlesse thys .xv. hundred yeres. And we of lyke blyndnesse beleue only by y^e auctoryte of our elders and of lyke pryde thynke that we can not erre / beynge soch a multytude. And yet we se how God in the olde testament did lett the greate multitude erre / reseruynge alwaye a litle flocke to call the other backe agayne and to testifie vnto them the right waye₊

¶ How this word church hath a double interpretacyon

THis ys therfore a sure conclusyon / as pa­ul Ro. 9. sayth. Ro. ix. that not all they that are of Israel are Israelites / neyther because they [Page xxxii] be Abrahams seed / are they all Abrahams chyldren: but they only that folow the faith of Abraham. Euen so now none of them that beleue wyth theyr mouthes moued wyth the auctory­te of theyr elders only: that ys / none of them y^t beleue wyth Master Mores fayth / the popes fayth and the deuels fayth whych maye stonde (as Master More cōfesseth) with al maner ab­hominacyons / ☜ haue the ryght fayth of christ or are of hys church. But they only that repent ād fele that the law is good / And haue the law of god written in their hertes and the fayth of oure sauioure Iesus / even wyth the sprite of God. There is a carnall Israel and a spirituall. There ys Isaac ād Ismael / Iacob ād Esau And Ismael persecuted Isaac and Esau Ia­cob and the fleshly the spiritual. wherof paul complayned in hys tyme persecuted of hys car­nall brethern / as we doo in oure tyme and as the electe euer dyd and shall doo tyll the worl­des ende. what a multitude came out of Egypte vnder Moses of whych the scripture testify­eth that they beleued / moued by the miracles of Moses / as Simon magus beleued by the reason of philippes miracles actes .viii. Neuer the Actes. 8. lesse the scripture testyfieth that .vi. hundred thousand of those beleuers peryshed thorow vnbeleffe and lefte theyr carcasses in the wildernesse and neuer entred in to the lond that was promysed them. And euen so shall the childern of Master Mores faythlesse fayth made by the persuasyon of man / leppe shorte of the rest whych oure sauioure Iesus is rysen vnto. And therfore lett them enbrace thys present worlde as they doo / whose chyldern they are though they hate so to be called₊

And hereby ye se that it is a playne and an evident conclusion as bright as the sonne shyn­inge that the trueth of gods worde dependeth not of the trueth of the congregacion. And therfore Questiōs whē thou art asked / whi thou beleuest y^t thou shalt be saved thorow christ and of soch like principles of oure faith / answeres answere thou wot­test ād felest that it is true. And when he asketh how thou knowest that it is true / answere be­cause it is written in thine herte. And if he aske who wrott it / answere the sprite of God. And if he aske how thou camest first by it / tel him / whether by readynge in bokes or hearynge it prea­ched / as by an outward instrument / but that inwardly thou wast taught by the spirite of God And if he aske whether thou beleuest it not be­cause it is written in bokes or because y^• prestes so preach / answere no / not now / but only because it is written in thine hert and because the spirite of god so preacheth and so testifieeh vn to thi soule. And saye / though at the begynnynge thou wast moued by readynge or preachynge / as the Samaritanes were by the wordes of y^• woman / yet now thou beleuest it not therfore any Ioh. 4 longer / but only because thou hast herde it of the spirite of God and red it written in thyne herte.

And concerninge outwarde teachynge we allege for vs scripture elder thē any church that was this .xiiij. hundred yeres / and old autenticke stories which they had brought a slepe wherewith we confoūde their lies. Remembir ye not how in oure awne tyme / of all that taught grā­mer in England not one vnderstode the latyne tongue? how came we then by y^e latyne tongue agayne? not by them / though we lerned certay­ne [Page xxxiij] rules and principles of thē by which we we­re moued and had an occasion to seke further / but out of y^• old auctours. Even so we seke vpp old antiquities out of which we lerne and not of oure church / though we receaved many principles of oure church / at y^e beginninge / but mo­are falshed amonge then trueth

It hath pleased God of his exceadynge loue where with he loued vs in christ (as Paul saith) before the world was made and when wee we­re deed in synne and his enemies in that we did consent to synne and to liue evell / to write with his spirite .ij. conclusions in oure hertes / by wh­ich we vnderstond all thynge: that is to wete / y^• faith of Christ and the loue of oure neyboures. For whosoeuer feleth the iust damnacion of synne and the forgeuenesse ād mercie that is in chri­stes bloud for all that repent and forsake it and come and beleue in that mercie / the same only knoweth how God is to behonoured and wor­sheped and can iudge betwene true seruinge of God in the spirite and false image seruinge of God with workes. And the same knoweth that sacramentes / signes ceremonies and bodyly th­ynges the vse of signes & ceremonyes can be no seruice to God in his person but memorials vnto men and a remembraunce of the testament wherewith god is serued in the spirite. And he that feleth not that / is blynd in his soule and of oure holy fathers generacion & maketh god an image and a creature and vorshepith him with bodyly seruice. And on the other syde he that loueth his neyboure as him selfe vnderstondeth all lawes an can iudge betwene good and evell right and wronge / godly ād vn­godly in all conuersaciō / dedes / lawes / bargēs / [Page] couenauntes / ordinaunces and decrees of mē / & knoweth the office of euery degre and the due honoure of euery person. And he that hath not that written in his herte is popish and of y^e spi­ritualtie which vnderstondeth nothynge saue his awne honoure his awne profit and what is good for him selfe only: and whē he is as he wold be / thinketh that al the world is as i [...] shuld be. ☞ ∵

¶ Of worthepinge of sacramentes / cer­monies / images / reliques and so forth

NOw let vs come to the worshepynge or honourynge of sacramentes ceremonies images and reliques. First images be not god / and therfore no confidence is to be geuen thē. They be not made after the image of god ner are the price of christes bloude / but the werkmanshep­pe Images of the craftes man and the price of money ād therfore inferioures to man₊

wherfore of all right man ys lord ouer them and the honoure of them is to doo man seruyce and mans dishonoure yt ys to doo them hono­rable seruyce / as vnto hys better. Images then and reliques ye ād as christ saith / the holy daye to are seruantes vnto man. And therfore it fo­loweth y^• we can not / but vnto oure damnacion put one a cote worth an hundred cotes / vppon a postes backe / and let the ymage of god and y^• ☞ price of christes bloude goo vpp & downe / ther­by naked. For yf we care more to cloth the deed image made by man and the pryce of seluer thē the liuely image of god ād pryce of christes bloude / thē we dishonoure the image of god ād hym that made him and the price of chrystes bloude and hym that bought hym₊

Vvherfore the right vse / office and honoure The vse of creatu­res inferyours to man of al creatures inferiores vnto mā / is to do mā seruice / whether they he images / reliques / orna­mentes signes or sacramētes / holidayes / ceremonies or sacrifices. And y^t maie be on this maner ād no doute it so once was. If (for an ēsample) I take a pece of the crosse of christe ād make a litle The wor­shepinge of y^• crosse crosse therof and beare it aboute me / to loke theron with a repētinge hert / at tymes when I am moued therto / to put me in remēbraunce that the body of christ was broken ād his bloudshed [Page xxxvi] theron / for my sinnes / ad beleue stedefastly that the mercyfull trueth of god shall forge­ue the sinnes of all that repent for his deeth sa­ke ād neuer thinke on thē moare then it seruith me and I not it and doeth me y^• same seruice as yf I red y^• testamēt in a boke / or as iff the prea­cher preached it vnto me. And in like maner if I make a crosse in my forehed / in a remēbraūce y^• god hath promised assistence vnto al y^• beleue in him / for his sake y^t died on the crosse / thē doeth y^• crosse serue me ād I not it. And in like maner if I beare on me or loke vppon a crosse of whatsoeuer mater it be / or make a crosse vppō me / in remēbraunce that whosoeuer wilbe christes disciple must sofre a crosse of aduersite tribulaciōs ād persecucion / so doeth the crosse serue me and I not it. And this was the vse of y^• crosse once / and for this cause it was at the begynnynge set vpp in the churches₊

And so yf I make an image of christ or of The wor­shepynge of images any thinge y^• christ hath done for me / in a memory / it is good ād not euel vntill it be ab vsed.

And euen so / yf I take y^• true life of a saynt ād cause it to be painted or carued / to put me in remēbraunce of the sainces life / to folow the sa­ynt as the saint did christe / and to put me in re­mēbraūce of the greate faith of the saint co god ād how true god was to helpe him out of al tribulacion / and to se the saintes loue to warde his neyboure / in that he so paciently sofered so paynefull a deeth and so cruell marterdome to testifie the trueth for to saue other / ād all to strēgth my soule with all and my faith to god and loue to my neyboure / then doeth the image serue me and I not it. And this was the vse of images at the beginninge and of reliques also₊

And to knele before the crosse vnto the word of god which the crosse preacheth is not euell Neyther to knele doune before an image in a [...] mās meditaciōs to cal the lyuinge of y^e saint to minde for to desyre god of iyke grace to folow y^• ensample / is not evell. But the abuse of y^e thynge is euell / and to haue a false fayth: as to bea­re False worshepynge a pece of the crosse aboute a man / thynkynge that so longe as that ys aboute hym / spyrytes shall not come at him / his enimies shall do him no bodyly harme / all causes shall go on his side euen for beringe it aboute him / ād to thynke y^t yf it were not aboute him yt wold not be so / & to thinke / if any misfortune chaunce / that it came for leauynge it of or because this or that ceremonie was lefte vndone / and not rather because we haue broken Gods commaundementes / or that God tempteth vs to proue oure pacyence Thys ys playne ydolatrie / and here a man ys captyue / bonde and seruaunt vnto a false faith and a false ymaginacyon / that ys nother god ner hys worde Now am I Gods only and ought to serue nothynge but god and hys worde. My bodye must serue the rulars of thys world and my neyboure (as god hath appoynted it) & so must all my goodes: but my soule must serue God only / to loue hys law and too trust in hys promyses of mercye in all my nedes. And in like maner yt ys that thousandes / whyle the prest patereth Saynt Ihons Gospell in latine ouer S. Ioans gosspell theyr heedes / crosse them selues wyth / I trow a legyon of crosses / behynde and before and wythe reuerence on the very arses ād (as Iack off napis whē he claweth him selfe) ploucke vp theyr legges ād crosse so moch as their heeles ād y^• very soles of their fete / & beleue y^t if it be done in [Page xxxvij] the thyme that he readeth the gospell (and else not) that there shall no mischaunce happen thē that daye / because only of those crosses. And w­here he shuld crosse him selfe / to be armed and to make him silfe stronge to beare y^• crosse with Christe / he crosseth him selfe to driue the crosse from him / and blesseth him selfe with a crosse from the crosse. And if he leaue it vndone / he thynketh it no small synne / and that god is hy­ly displeased with him and if any misfortune chaunce / thinketh it is therfore / which is also Idolatrie and not gods worde. And soch is the confidēce in the place or image or what soeuer bodyly obseruaunce it be: soch is. S. Agathes Supersticiousnesss letter written in the gospell tyme. And soch are the crosses on palmesondaye made in the passiō tyme. And soch is the beryng of holy waxe aboute a man. And soch is that some hange apece of S. Ihons gospell aboute their neckes. And soch is to beare the names of god with crosses betwene ech name aboute them. Soch is y^• sayēge of gospels vn to wemen in childbed. Soch is the limeteriers sayenge of in principio erat ver­bum from housse to housse. Soch is the sayen­ge of gospells to the corne in the feld in the pre­cessiō weke that it shuld the better growe. And soch is holy bred holy water and seruinge of all ceremonies and sacramentes in generall with out significaciō. And I praye you how is it possible that the people can worshepe images / reli­ques / ceremonies and sacramentes / saue super­sticiously / so longe as they know not the true meaninge / nether wil the prelates sofre any mā to tell them: yee and the very meanynge of so­me and right vse no man can tell?

And as for the riches that is bestowed on images [Page] and reliques they can not proue but that it Riches bestowed on images or reliques is abhominable / as longe as the pore are dispi­sed and vncared for and not first serued / for w­hose sakes and to fynd preachers / offeringes ti­thes / londes rentes and all that they haue was geuen the spiritualtie. Obiectiō They will saye we maye do both. Solution Maye or not maye / I se that the one most necessary of both / is not done: But the po­re are bereued of y^• spiritualtie of all that was in tyme passed offered vn to them. Morouer th­ough both were done / they shall neuer proue y^t the sight of gold and siluer and of precioussto­ues shuld moue amās hert to dispice soch thyn­ges aftir the doctrine of Christe. Nether can y^• riche cote helpe to moue thy mind / to folow the ensample of the saint / but rather if he were purtrayde as he sofred / in the most vngoodly wise. Vvhich thinge taken awaye / that soch thynges with all other seruice / as stekynge vpp candels / moue not thy mynde to folow the ensample of the saint / ner teach thy soule any godly lernyn­ge: then the image serueth not the / but thou the image / and so art thou an Idolater / that is to saye in English / a serueimage. And thus it ap­pereth that youre vngodly ād bely doctrine w­here with ye so magnifie the dedes of youre ce­remonies and of youre pilgremages ād offerynge for the dede it selfe / to please god and to ob­tayne the fauoure of deed saintes (and not to moue you and to put you in remēbraunce of y^• law of god & of y^• promises which are in his sonne and to folow the ensample of the saynte) is but an exhortynge to serue images / and so are ye image seruers / that is / Idolaters / And finally the more deuocion m [...]n haue vn to soch dedes / the lesse they haue vn to gods commaundemēt / [Page xxxviij] in so moch that they which be most wontte to offer to images and to shewe them / be so colde in offerynge to the pore / that they wyll scace ge­ue them the scrappes which must else be geuen dogges / or their old shone / iff they maye haue new bromes for them.

¶ Pilgrimages.

TO speake of pilgrimages / I saye / that a christen man / so that he leaue nothinge vn done at home that he is bounde to doo / is fre to goo whother he will / only aftir the doctrine of the lorde / whose seruaunte he is and not his awne. If he goo ād viset the pore / the secke and the presoner / it is well done and a worke that god cōmaundeth. If he goo to this or that place / to heare a sermō or because his mynd is not quiet at home / or if because his hert is to moch occu­pied on his worldly businesses bi the reasons of occasions at home / he gett him in to a moare quiett and styll place / where his minde is me are abstracte and pulled from worldly thoughtes it is well done. And in all these places if whatsoeuer it be / whether liuely preachynge / ceremo­nie / relique or image stere vpp his herte to god and preach the worde of god and the ensample of oure sauioure Iesus moare in one place thē in a nother / that he thither goo / I am content. And yet he bydeth a lorde and the thynges ser­ue him and he not them / Now whether his en­tent be so or no / his dedes wil testifie / as his vertuouse gouernynge of his housse and louynge demeanoure towarde his neyghboures: yee and gods worde wilbe all waye in his hert and in his mouth & he euery daye perfecter then other.

For there can nothinge edifie mans soule saue that which preacheth him gods worde. On­ly the worde of god worketh the health of the soule And what someuer preacheth him that / cānot but make him perfecter.

But to beleue that god wilbe sought moa­re in one place then in a nother / or that god will heare the moare in one place thē in a nother / or moare where the image is / then where it is not ☞ is a false faith and Idolatrie or imageseruice. For first god dwelleth not in tēples made with handes Actes. xvij. Item steuen died for the cō­trary god dwelleth not in any place Actes. 7 and proued it by the prophetes Actes. vij. And Salomon in the .viij. off the thirde of the kinges / when he had byld his temple / testified y^• same and that he had not byld it for god to dw­ell in / ye and that god dwelleth not in the erth / but that he shuld out of heuen heare the pra­yars of them that prayed there. And the prophetes did often testifye vn to the people that had soch a false faith that god dwelt in the temple / that he dwelt not their. Morouer god in his testamēt byndeth him selfe vn to no place ner yet the: But speaketh generally (concerninge whe­re and when) sayenge psalme. xlix. in the daye of the tribulacion thou shalt call on me and I wil Psal. 49. deliuer the / and thou salt glorifie me. He setteth nether place ner tyme / But whersoeuer and w­hen soeuer: so that the prayar of Iob vppon y^• dongehyll was as good as Poules in the tem­ple. And when oure sauioure saith Ihon. xvj. Vvhatsoeuer ye axe my father in my name / I Ioā. 16 will geue it you / he saith not in this or that pla­se / or this or that daye: but whersoeuer & whensoeuer / as well in the feldes as in the toune and on the Monedaye as on the sondaye. God [Page xxxix] is a spirite and wilbe worsheped in the spirite Ihon. iiij. That is / though he be present euerywhere / Iohan. 4, yet he dwelleth liuely and gloriously in y^• myndes of angell only and hertes of men that loue his lawes and trust in his promises. And whersoeuer god findeth soch an hert / their he heareth the prayar in all places and tymes in­differently. So that the outward place nether helpeth or hindred / excepte (as I said) y^t a man [...] minde be moare quiett and still from the rage of wordely businesses / or that some thynge stere vpp the worde of god and ensample of our sauioure moare in one place then in a nother.

¶ Vvhence Idolatrie or ima­geseruice springeth. ☜

NOw that thou maist se whence all this I­dolatrie or imageseruice is sprounge / marke a litle / and then I will answere vn to y^e argumentes which these imageseruars make agenst the open trueth. All the cerrmonies ornamentes and sacrifices of the olde testament were sacra­mentes. Sacramētes Circumcision. That is to wete / signes preachinge vn to the people one thynge or a nother. As circumcision preached vn to them / that god had chosen them to be his people / and that he wold be their god and defende them and encrease and multi­plie them and kepe them in that londe and bles­se the frutes of the erth and all their possessions And on y^e other syde it preached / how that they had promised god agayne to kepe his cōmaun­dementes / ceremonies and ordinaunces. Now when they saw their younge children circumci­sed / iff they consented vn to the appoyntement made betwene god and them / moued by the preachinge [Page] of that same / then were they iustified thereby How be it the dede in it selfe / the cuttyn he off of the foreskyn of the manchildes priuey mēbir iustified them not ner was a satisfaccion for the childes synnes / but the preachynge only did iustifie them that receaued the faith therof­fe. For it was a bage geuē indifferently as well vn to them that neuer consented in their hertes vn to gods lawe / as vn to y^• electe in whose hertes the lawe was written. And that this was y^• meaninge of circumcision maye be proued ma­ny wayes: But namely by Paul Romans. ij. where he saith / circumcision is moch worth / if thou kepe the lawe (whose signe it was) and el­se not. And Roma. iij. where he saith that god did iustifie y^• circumcised of faith (whose signe it was on the other syde) and else not.

And the paschall lambe was a memoriall Paschall lambe. of their deliueraunce out of Egypte only ād no satisfaccion or offeringe for synne.

And the offeringe of their first frutes prea­ched how they had receaued all soch frutes of y^• Firste frutes hand of god / and that it was god that gaue thē that land and that kepte them in it / ād that did blesse and make their frutes grow. In token wherof as vn to a lorde roiall they brought him the first ripe frutes of their herueste. Vvhich remembraunce as longe as it abode in their her­tes / it moued them to loue god againe and their neyboure for his sake / as he so oft desyred thē. And out of this ceremonye was fett the blessynge of oure new ripe frutes for like purpose / tho­ugh we haue lost the significacion.

And their other offeringes / as the sacrifices of doues / turtles / lambes / kyddes / shepe / calues [...]crifices. gottes and oxen were no satisfaccions for syn­ne [Page xl] / but only a signe and token / that at the repē­taunce of the hert / thorow an offeringe to come and for that seedes sake that was promised A­braham / their synnes were forgeuen them.

And in like maner the ornamentes and all Ornamentes other ceremonies were eyther an opē preachynge or secrett prophisies ād not satisfaccions or iustifienges. And thus the workes did serue thē and preach vnto them and they not the workes ner put any confidence therin.

¶ False worshepynge. ☜

BVt what did the childrē of Israel and the Iewes? They latt the significacions of their ceremonyes goo and lost the meanynge of ☜ them and turned them vn to the workes to ser­ue them / sayenge that they were holy workes commaunded of god and the offerars were therby iustified and obtayned forgeuenesse of syn­nes and therby became good: as the parable of the pharesey and publican declare Luke. xviij. and as it is to se in Paul and thoroute all the Byble: and became captiue to serue and put Luc. 1 [...] their trust in that which was nether god ner his worde. And so the better creature agenst nature did serue the worse. Vvhere of all likely hode god shuld haue accepted their worke by y^• reason of them / if their hertes had bene right / & not haue accepted their soules for the bloudes sake of a calfe or shepe / for as moch as a man is moch better then a calfe or shepe / as Christ testifieth Matth. xij. For what pleasure shuld god haue in the bloud of calues or in the light of ou­re candeles? his pleasure is onlye in the her­tes of them that loue his commaundementes.

Then they went further in the imagination of their blynd reason sayenge / in as moch as god accepteth these holy workes / y^t we be ma­de righteous therby / thē it foloweth that he whyche offereth most / is most rightewesse and the best man: ye and it is better to offer an oxe thē a shepe / because it is more costly. And so they stroue who might offer most / and the prestes were well apayde. Then went they further in their ☞ fleshly wisdome sayenge: if I be good for y^• offeringe of a doue and better for a shepe and yet better for an oxe / and so euer the better thynge I offer / y^• better I am / Oh how accepted shuld I be if I offered a man / and namelye him that I most loued? And vppō that imaginaciō / they offered their awne children and burnt them to asshes before images that they had imagined.

And to confirme their blyndnesse they layde for them (no doute) the ensample of Abraham which offered his sonne Isaac and was so acce­pted / y^• god had promised him / how that in his seed / all the world shuld be blessed. Herof ye se vn to what abhominacion blynd reason bryn­geth a mā / when she is destitute of gods worde.

And to speake of the sabbath (which was ordeyned Holyday. to be their saruaunte & to preach & be a signe vn to them / y^t god thorow his holy spirite Ero. [...]. & worde did sanctifie them / in y^t they obeyed his cōmaundementes & beleued and trusted in his promises (& therfore were charged to leaue workynge and to come on the holy daye & heare y^• worde of god by which they vere sanctified) vn to it also they became captiue and bonde to sar­ue it / sayenge that they were iustified by absteynynge from bodyly laboure (as oures thinke also) in so moch y^t though they bestowed not the [Page xli] holy day in vertue prayer and hearinge the worde of god / in almosede / in visitynge the sycke / y^• nedie and comfortelesse and so forth / but went vp & downe ydlye / yet what soeuer nede his neyghboure had / he wolde not haue holpe hym on the saboth daye / as thou mayst se by the ruler of the synagoge which rebuked christ for healinge the people on the holy daye luke. xiij. Luke. 13.

And of like blyndnesse they went and fett The bra­sen serpes out the brasen serpent (which Moses commaūded to be kepte in the arcke for a memorie) and offered before it: thinkynge (no doute) that god must be there present / for else how coude yt ha­ue healed the people that came not nye yt / but stode afarre off and beheld yt only. And a thou­sand soch madnessesse did they₊

And of the temple they thought that god The temple herd them there better then any were else: ye ād he hearde them now here saue there. And therfore they coude not praye but there / as oures cā no where but at church and before an ymage. for what prayar can a man praye / whē the woorde of god is not in the temple of hys herte: ye ād when soch come to church / what is their prayer and what is their deuocyō / saue the blynde imageseruice of their hertes₊

But the prophetes euer rebuked them forsoch psal. 46. faythlesse workes and for soch false fayth in theyr workes. In the .xlix. psalme saith the prophete / I wil receaue no calues of youre houses ner gottes out of youre foldes / thinke ye y^• I will eate the flesh of oxen or drynke the bloude of gottes? And Esaias saith in his first chaptre / what care I for the multitude of youre sa­cryfyces sayth the lorde. I am full. I haue [Page] no lust in the burnt offeringes of youre rammes or in the fatt of fatt beestes or bloud of calues / lambes or gottes: offer me no moare soch false sacryfyce. And therto youre swete cense ys an abhominaciō vnto me. And thus he said because of the false fayth and peruertynge the ryght v­se of them

And for their false fastinge / not referrynge Fastynge theyr fast vnto the tamynge and subduynge of theyr flesh vnto the spirite / when they complayned vnto god iustifienge them selues and saynge / how happeneth it / that we haue fasted and thou woldest not loke vppon it / we haue hum­bled oure soules and thou woldest not know it God answered them by the prophete Esayas Esai. 58. in the .lviii. chaptre / behold / in the daye of youre / fast / ye doo youre awne lustes and gather vpp all youre dettes. And how soeuer ye fast / ye ne­uer the later striue and fight and smyte with fyste cruelly. I haue chosen no soch faste ād humblynge of soule. & c̄ But that ye louse weked bondes and lett the oppressed goo fre / and to breake breed vnto the hongrye and to cloth the naked and so forth₊

And concerninge the temple / Esaias sayth Temple in hys last chaptre. what housse wyll ye bild for me or in what place shall I rest? heuen is my se te and the erth my fote stole. As who shuld saye Actes. 7. Actes. 17. I am to greate for any place that ye can make / and (as steuen sayth actes. vii. and paul actes. xvij. (I dwell not in a temple made with hādes

¶ How ceremonies sprange amonge vs

VNderstond also (to se how we came yn to like blyndenesse) that before the comynge of christe in the flesh / the Israelites and Iewes were scatered thorow out all the world / to pu­nish theyr imageseruice / both eest / west south ād north / as ye reade in the chronicles how Englonde was once full: so that there was no pro­uince or greate citie in the world where no Ie­wes were: god so prouydynge for the spedie preachynge of the gospell amonge the hethen tho­row out the worlde. Now chryst / as he was promised / so was he sent / vnto the Iewes or Israelites And what by chrystes preachynge ād the appostles after his resurrexion / there were in­numerable Iewes conuerted haply an hundred thousand or moo in Ierusalem and Iewry and in the contres aboute / and abode still in the loude. Then paul rose vpp and persecuted them in Iherusalem and thorow out al Iewry and Damasco / Paule sleynge all that he coude catche or makinge them forswere christe. For feare of which persecucion they fied in to all costes and preached vnto the Iewes that were scatered / prouinge y^t Iesus was christ the sauioure of y^• worlde / both by the scripture and also by myracles: so that a­greate parte of the Iewes came to the faith euery where / and we hethen came in shortely after / and parte a bode styll in vnbeleffe as vnto this daye₊

Now y^• Iewes beynge born & bred vp roted and noseld in ceremonyes as I haue shewed ād as ye maye better se in the .v. bokes of Moses / if ye wold reade thē / coude but with greate difficultie / depart frō thē as it is to se in al y^• epistles of paul / how he fought agēst thē. but in processe [Page] they gatt the vpperhand. And therto the fyrst that were christened ād all the offycers and bisshopes of the church / euen so moch as the grea­te God of Rome were Iewes for the most par­te a greate season₊

And Morouer / as paul saith. Ro. ix. not al that came of Israel are ryght Israelites nether are al they Abrahams sonnes that are Abrahās seed. whi so? because they folowed not the step­pes of the fayth of their graundfathers. Even so / not all they that were called and also came vnto y^• mariage whych god the father made betwene christ hys sonne and all sinners / brought Matt. 22. their maryage garment wyth them / that is to wete / true faith wherwyth we be maryed vnto chryste and made his flesh and hys bloude and one spirite with hym / his brethern and heyres with him and the sonnes of god also. But ma­ny of them (to fulfyll the sayenge of christ / that the kyngdome of heuen / which is the gospell / is like a net that ketcheth good and bad) were dreuen in to the net and compelled to confesse that Iesus was christ ād that seed y^t was promised Abraham and Messias that shuld come: not off any inward fealinge that the spirite of god ga­ue thē / nether of any louely cōsent that they had vnto the law of god that it was good / mornyn­ge / both because they had broken it and because also they had no power to fulfill it and therfore to obtayne mercie ād power came to christ and vnto the father thorow him / with the hert of naturall childern which receaue all thinge frely of their fathers bounteous lyberalitie and of loue become saruauntes vnto theyr brethern for th­eyr fathers sake: But were compelled only [Page xliij] with violence of the scripture which everiwhere bare wittenesse vn to christe and agreed vn to al that he did / and ouercome also with the power of miracles that confirmed the same. That is to saye / they came with a storifaith / a popish faith / a faithlesse faith & a fayned faith of their awne makinge / and not as God in the scripture describeth the faith / so beleuinge in christ / that they wold be iustified by theyr awne dedes / which is the deinenge of christe. As oure papistes beleue. which moare mad then those Iewes / beleue no ☜ thynge by the reason of the scripture / but only that soch a multitude consent therto / compelled with violence of swerde / with falsyfienge of the scripture and fayned lyes. which multitude yet is not y^• fifte part so many as they that consent vn to the lawe of Mahomete. And therfore by their awne argumentes / the faith of the turkes is better then theirs. And their faith therto maye stond by theyr awne confession / with all mi­sheue (as it well appereth by them) and with yeldynge them selues to worke all wekednesse with full delectacion / aftir y^• ensample of the faith of their father the deuell / and with out repentaunce and consent vn to the law of god / y^t it is good. which popish therto so beleue in Christ / and so wilbe his saruauntes / that they wilbe bond vn to domme ceremonies ād deed workes puttynge their trust and confidence in them & hopinge to be saued by them and ascribynge vn to them the thanke of their saluacion and rightte wysnesse

And therfore because / as I saide / the Iew­es ye and the hethen to / were so accustomed vn to ceremonies and because soch a multitude ca­me with a faithelesse faith / they went and cleane [Page] contrary vnto the mynde of paul / set vp ceremonies in the new testamente / partely borowynge them of Moses ād partely imageninge like / as ye now [...]e / and called them sacramentes: y^t is to saye / sygnes (as yt ys playne in the storyes) the sacrament of holy water / of holy fyre / holy bred holy salt and so forth. And they gaue them significacions. As holy water signifyed the sprinclinge what holy water sygnyfyeth of christes bloude for our redempcyon. which sacrament or sygne (though yt seme superflu­ous / in as moch as the sacrament of christes body and bloud signifieth the same dayly) yet as longe as the significacion bode / it hurted not. And the kyssynge of the pax was settvpp to signifie / that the peace of christ shuld be euer amonge The pax vs / one to loue an other after hys ensample as the word yt selfe well declareth. For pax ys as moch to saye as peace₊

And as for cōfirmacion / it is no doute / but that it came this wise vp and that thys was y^• vse / which the word it selfe well declareth. we confirma­cyon reade in y^• stories / that they wich were cōuerted vnto y^e faith of the age of discreciō / were ful taught in y^• law of god (as right is) and in y^• fayth of oure sauiour Iesus / yer they were baptised / and vppon the profession or promisinge to kepe that law and fayth / were baptised And thē for the socure ād helpe of younge childern / baptised before the age of discreciō / to know the law of god ād faith of christe / was cōfirmacion institute y^t they shuld not be all waye ignoraunt and faithlesse / but be taught the professyon of theyr baptim. And thys / no doute / was the maner / as we maye wel gather by probable cōiectures and euident tokens. when the childern were of [Page xliiij] vj. or seuen yeres olde / their elders brought the vnto the preest or deacon in euery parish / which officer taught the children what their baptimment & what they had professed therin: that is to wete / the law of god & their dutie vn to all degrees / and the faith of oure sauioure. And then because it shuld not be neglecte or lefte vndone / an hier officerr as y^e archdeacon (for it hath not bene I suppose in the bisshopes handes all waye as now / nether were it mete) came aboute from parish to parish / at tymes conuenient. And the prestes brought the children vn to him at .xj. or .xij. yere olde / before they were admit­ted to receaue the sacrament of Christes body haply. And he apposed them of the law of god & faith of Christe / and axed them / whether they thought that law good / and whether their hertes were to folow it. And they answered ye.

And he apposed them in the articles of ou­re faith / and axed them / whether they put their hope ād trust in Christ / to be saued thorow his deeth and merites. And they answered ye. Thē confirmed he their baptim sayenge: I confirme you / that is / I denunce and declare / by the auctorite of gods worde and doctrine of Christ / that ye be truely baptised within in youre hertes ād in youre spirites / thorow professynge the lawe of god and the faith of oure sauioure Iesu / w­hich youre outwarde baptim doeth signifie / ād thervppon I put this crosse in youre forehedes that ye goo and fight agenst the deuell / y^e world and the flesh / vnder the standarde of oure saui­oure / in the name of the father / the sonne / and the holy gost. Amen. Vvhich maner I wold to god for his tender mercie were in vse this daye₊

But aftir that the deuell was broken low­se and the bisshopes beganne [...]o purchace / and the deacons to scratch all [...]o them / and the spiritualtie to clime an hye: then because the laboure semed to tediouse and paynfull / to appose y^e childern one by one / they axed the prestes that pre­sented them only / whether the childern were taught the profession of their baptim. And they answered ye. And [...]o vppō their wordes they cōfirmed them with out apposinge. when they no lē­ger apposed them / the prestes no lenger taught them / but committed the charge to their godfa­ther and godmothers / and they to the father ād mother / dischargynge thē selues by theyr awne auctorite with in halfe an houre

And the father and mother taught them a m [...]n [...]us [...]a [...]n pater noster and an Aue and a crede. Which gibbresh euery popiniaye speak­eth with a sundrye pronunciacion and facion / so y^t one pater noster semeth as many langua­ges all most as the [...]e be tonges that speake it. How be it / it is all one / as longe as they vnder­stonde it not. And in processe as the ignoraunce g [...]w [...] / they brought them to confirmacion streigh▪ from baptim: so that now oftimes they be vo [...]owed and bysshoped both in one daye / that is / we be confirmed in blindenesse to be kept frō knowlege for euer. And thus are we come in to this damnable ignoraunce and ferce wrathe of god thorow oure awne deseruinge / because when the trueth was told vs we had no loue ther­to. And to declare y^u full & sett wrath of god vp­pon vs / our plates whō we haue exalted ouer vs to whō we haue geuē al most al we had / haue perswaded y^• wordly princes (to whom we haue [Page xlv] submitted our selues and geuen vpp our po­wer) to deuoure vpp body and soule / and to ke­pe vs / downe in darkenesse / with violence of swerde / and with all falshed and gyle. In so moch that if any do but lift vpp his nose to smell aftir the trueth / they swapp him in the face with a fire brande to sengge his smellynge / or if he open one of his eyes to once loke towarde the light of gods worde / they bleare and dase his sight with their false iuglynge: so that if it were possible / though he were gods electe / he coude not but be kepte doune and perish for lacke of knowlege of the trueth.

And in like maner / because christ had insti­tute the sacrament of his body and bloude / to kepe vs in remembraunce of his bodye breakinge and bloud shedynge for oure synnes / therfo­re went they and sett vpp this facion of y^e mas­se and ordeyned sacramentes in the ornamētes therof to signifie and expresse all the rest of his passion. The amice on the heed is the kercheue Amice that Christ was blynd [...]olde [...] with / when y^e sou­dioures buffeted him and mocked him sayenge: prophete vn to vs who smote the? But now it maye well signifie y^t he that putteth it on / is blynd and hath professed to leade vs aftir him in darkenesse / acordynge vn to the begynnynge of The flappe on the amice. The albe his playe. And the flappe theron is the croune of thorne. And the albe is the white garmēt y^t herode put on him / sayenge he was a fole because he held his peace and wold not answere him. And the .ij. flappes on the sleues and the other The flappes on y^• albe. The fanō The stole ij. on the albe beneth ouer agenst his fete behind and before / are the .iiij. nayles. And the fanon on his hand / the cord y^t his handes were bound with: And y^• stole the rope where with he was [Page] bounde vn to the piler / when he was scorged: The cor­porescloth the altars. And y^• corporiscloth / the sindon wherin he was buryed: & the altare is the crosse or haply y^• gra­ue and so forth. And the caftynge abrode of his hādes / the splayenge of Christ vppon the crosse And the [...]ight and stickinge vpp of candels and Candels beringe of candels or tapers in procession hap­plye signifyed this texte. Mat. v. ye be the light Mat. 5. of the worlde / and let youre light so shyne befo­re men / that they maye se youre good workes & Salt glorefye youre father which is in heven. And y^• salt signifyeth the wysdome of Christes doctri­ne / and that we shulde therwith salt oure dedes and do nothinge with out the auctorite of god­des worde. So that in one thynge or other / w­hat in the garmentes and what in the gestures all his playde / in so moch y^t before he will goo to masse / he wilbe sure to sell him / lest Iudases ☞ parte shuldbe left out.

And so thorow out all the sacramentes / ceremonies or signes (.iij. wordes of one significa­cion) there were significacions vn to them at the beginninge. And so longe as it was vnder­stond what was ment by them and they did but serue the people and preach one thinge or a no­ther vn to thē / they hurted not greatly / though that the fre seruaunt of Christ ought not to be Austyne brought violently in to captiuite vnder the bondage of tradicions of men. As. S. Augustine cō­playneth in his dayes / how that the condicion & state of the Iewes was moare easy then y^e christens vnder tradicions: so sore had the tyranny of y^e shepardes in vaded y^• flocke all redy in those dayes And thē what iuste cause haue we to cōplayne oure captiuite now / vn to whose yocke [Page xlvj] from that tyme hitherto / evē .xij. hundred yeres longe / hath euer some what moare wayght be­ne added to / for to kepe vs downe and to con­firme vs in blindnesse? how be it / as longe as y^• significacions bode / they hurted not the soule / Out of y^• cerimoni­es sprange the igno­raunce off y^• scriptu­re though they were paynful vnto y^e body. Neuer the lather I impute this oure greuous faull in to so extreme and horrible blyndnesse (wher in we are so depe and so dedly brought a slepe) vn to nothinge so moch as vn to the multitude of ceremonies. For assone as the prelates had sett vpp soch a rable of ceremonies / they thought it superfluous to preach the playne texte any lon­ger and the law of god / feith of Christ / loue to­ward oure neyboure and the ordir of oure iusti­fienge & saluacion / for as moch as all soch thyn­ges were playd before the peoples faces dayly in the ceremonies and euery child wist the mea­nynge: but gott thē vn to allegories / faynynge thē euery man aftir his awne brayne / with out rule / all most on euery silable / and from thence vnto disputynge and wastinge their braynes a­boute wordes / not attendynge the significaciōs vntyll at the last the laye people had lost the meaninge of the ceremonies and the prelates the vnderstondynge of the playne texte / and of the Greke Latine and specially of the Hebrue which is most of nede to be knowen / and of all phrases / the propir maner of speakynges and boro­wed speach of the Hebrues.

Remenbir ye not how with in this .xxx. yeres and ferre lesse / and yet dureth vn to this da­ye / the olde barkynge curres dunces disciples and like draffe called scotistes / the childern of darkenesse / raged in euery pulpyt agenst [Page] Greke Latine and Hebrue / and what sorow y^• scolemastirs that taught the true Latine tonge had with them / some betynge the pulpyt with their fistes for madnesse and roringe out with open ād fominge mouth / that if there ware but one tirens or virgill in the world and that same in their sleues and a fire before them / they wold burne them therin / though it shuld cost them their liues / affirmynge that all good lerninge decayed and was vtterly lost sens men gaue then vn to the Latine tonge? ye and I dare saye / y^t there be .xx. thousand prestes curattes this da­ye in Englond and not so few / that can not ge­ue you the right English vn to this texte in y^• pater noster / fiat voluntas tua sicut in celo & interra and answere therto.

And assone as the significacion of the cere­monies was lost / and the prestes preached christ no lenger / then the comen people began to wax mad and out of their mindes vppon the ceremonies. And that trust and confidence which the ☞ ceremonies preached / to be geuen vn to Gods worde and Christes bloude / that same they tur­ned vn to the ceremonie it selfe as though a mā were so mad to forgett that the bosh at the ta­uern dore did signifie wine to be solde within / but wold beleue that the bosh it selfe wold que­nch his thirste. And so they became seruantes vn to the ceremonies / asscribynge their iustifien­ge and saluacion vn to them supposynge that it was nothynge else to be a christen man / then to serue ceremonies / and him most christen that most serued them / and contrary wise him that was not popish & ceremoniall / no christē mā at all. For I pray you / for what cause worshepe we our spiritualtie so▪ hiely or wherfore thynke [Page xlvij] we their prayars better then the pore laye mēs / then for their disgysynges and ceremonies? ye and what other vertue se we in the holiest of them / thē to wayte vppō dumme supersticious ceremonies?

yee and how cometh it that a poore laye man hauinge wife and .xx. children and not able to fynde them / though all his neybours know his necessite / shall not gett with bedgynge for Christes sake / in a longe somers daye / ynough to fynde them .ij. dayes honestly / when iff a disgysed monster come / he shall with an houres lyenge in the pulpit / gett ynough to fynde .xxx. or .xl. stur­dy lubboures a moneth longe / of which the weakest shalbe as stronge in y^• bely when he cometh vn to the manger / as the mightiest porter in y^• wey housse or best courser that is in the kynges stable? Is ther any other cause then disgisynge and ceremonyes? For the dedes of the ceremo­nies we count better then y^• dedes which god cōmaundeth to be done to our neyboure at his nede Vvho thinketh it as good a dede to fede y^• pore / as to stecke vpp a candle before a poste or as to sprencle him selfe with holy water? Nether is it possible to be other wise / as longe as the si­gnificaciō is lost. For what other thinge can y^• people thinke / thē that soch deades beordeyned of god / and because as it is euident / they serue not our neyboures nede / to be referred vn to y^• person of god and he though he be a spirite / yet serued therwith? And then he can not but forth on dispute in his blynde reason / that as god is greater then mā / so is that dede that is appoynted to serue god greater than that whych ser­ueth man. And then when it is not possible to thinke them ordeyned for nought / what can I [Page] wother wise thynke then y^t they were ordeyned to iustifie and that I shuld be holy therby / acordynge to y^t popis doctrine / as though god were better pleased when I sprinkle my selfe with water or sett vpp a candle before a blocke / then iff I fedde or clothed or holpe at his nede him / whom he so tēderly loueth that he gaue his awne sonne vn to the deeth for him / and commaunded me to loue him as my selfe?

And when the people beganne to runne y^• waye / y^e prelates were glad & holpe to heue aftir with sotle allegories & falsifienge the scripture / & went & halowed the ceremonies / to make them moare worshepful / y^t the laye people shuld haue thē in greater estimacion & honoure / & be afray­de to twich thē for reuerēce vn to the holy charme y^t was saide ouer thē / & affirmed also y^t christes deeth had purchased soch grace vn to y^e ce­remonies to forgeue sinne & to iustifye. O monstre / Christes deeth purechased grace for mans soule / to repent of euell & to beleue in Christ for remission of synne / & to loue the lawe of god ād his neyboure as him selfe / which is y^• true wor­shepynge of god in the spirite / & he died not to purchesse soch honoure vn to vnsensible thyn­ges / y^t mā to his dishonoure / shuld doo them honourable seruice & receaue his saluaciō of thē₊

This I haue declared vn to you / y^t ye mighte se & fele euery thinge sensibly. For I entend not to leade you in darkenesse. Nether though twise .ij. cranes make not .iiij. wild gees / wold I therfore y^t ye shuld beleue y^t twise .ij. made not iiij. Nether entend I to proue vn to you y^t Paules steple is the cause whi temes is broke in ab­out Erith / or y^t teynterden steple is the cause of Teynterden steple. the decaye of sandwich hauen as Master Mo­re [Page xlviij] iesteth. Neuer the lesse this I wold were per­suaded vn to you (as it is true) y^t the bildynge of them & soch like / thorow the false faith that we haue in them / is the decaye of all the hauens in Englande & of all the cities / townes / hie wa­yes & shortly of the hole comē wealth. For sens these false monstres crope vpp in to oure cōsciēces & robbed vs of the knowlege of oure sauioure Christe / makynge vs beleue in soch pope holy workes & to thynke y^t ther was no nother wa­ye vn to heuen / we haue not ceased to bylde them albayes / cloysters / coleges / chauntrees ād cathedrall churches with hie steples / striuinge & enuienge one a nother / who shuld do most. And as for the dedes / that pertayne vn to oure ney­boures and vn to the comen wealth / we haue not regarded at all / as thinges which semed no holy workes or soch as god wold once loke vp­pon. And therfore we left them vnseneto / vntyl they were past remedie or past our power to re­medie them / in as moch as our slow belies with their false blessynges had iugled a waye from vs / y^t wherwith they might haue bene holpen in dew season. So that that syly pore man / tho­ugh he had haply no wisdome to expresse his mynde / or that he durst not / or that master Mo­re fa [...]ioneth his tale as he doeth other mennes to iest out the trouth / sawe y^t nether good win­sandes ner any other cause alleged was the de­caye of sandwich hauen / so moch as y^t the people had no lust to maynetene the comē wealthe / for blynde deuocion which they haue to popeholy workes, ☜

of their hertes. For as they write / so they bele­ue. Other felynge of y^• lawes of god ād feyth of chryst haue they none / th [...]n that theyr God the pope so sayth. And therfore as the pope preacheth with hys mouth only / even soo beleue they wyth theyr mouth only what soeuer he preacheth / with out moare a doo / be it neuer so abhominable / and in theyr hertes consent vnto all their fathers wekednesse and folow hym in theyr de­des as fast as they can runne₊

The turkes beinge in numbre .v. tymes mo then we knowlege one God and beleue many thynges of God moued only by the auctoryte of theyr elders and presume that God wyll not let so greate a multitude erre so longe tyme. And yet they haue erred ād bene faythlesse thys viii. hundred yeres. And the Iewes beleue thys daye / [...] moch as the carnall sorte of them euer beleued / moued also by the auctoryte of theyr elders only / and thynke that yt ys impossyble for them to erre / beynge Abrahams seed and the chyldern of them to whom the promysses of all that we beleue were made. And yet they haue erred and bene faythlesse thys .xv. h [...]dred yeres. And we of lyke blyndnesse beleue only by y^• auctoryte of our elders and of lyke pryde thynke that we can not erre / beynge soch a multytude. And [...] we se how God in the olde testament did le [...] the greate multitud [...] [...]e / reseruynge alwaye a litle flocke to call the other backe agayne and to testifie vnto them the right waye₊

¶ How this word church hath a double interpretacyon

T [...] ys therfore a sure conclusyon / as pa­ul sayth. Ro. ix. that not all they that are of Israel are Israelites / neyther because they be Abrahās

ij.

In the seconde chapter / besy­des worshepinge that it is vntrue this vse to haue bene euer sens the tyme of the appostles / he maketh many sophisticall reasons about worshepinge of sayntes reliques and images / and yet declareth not with what maner worshepe / but iugleth with y^• terme in comune / as he doeth with this worde church and this word faith / when the wordes haue diuers significaciōs: for al faythes are not one maner faith and so forth / and therefore he begylyth a mans vnderstondinge. As if a man said / the boyes will was good to haue geuē his father ablowe / and a nother wold inferre / that a good wyll coude be no synne / and conclude / y^t a man might lawfully smite his father. Now is good wyll taken in one sens in the maior and in a nother in the minor / to vse scolars termes / & therfore the conclusion doeth mocke a mās witte. Thē disputeth he / the seruaunt is honowred for the masters sake / and what is done to the pore is done to Christ (as the popish shall once fele / for their so robbynge them) And the .xij. appostles shall haue their setes and sitte and iud­ge with christe (as shall all that here preach him truely as they did) and Mary that powred the oyntement on christes heed before his passion; [Page] hath hir memoriall / ād therfore we ought to sett candles before images. First I axe him by what rule his argument holdeth. And secondaryly I answere that the true worshepynge of saintes True worshepynge of saintes is their memorial / to folow them as they did christe. And that honoure we geue them and so do not ye popish / but folow the steppes of youre father the pope / as he doeth the steppes of his fa­ther y^e deuell. And as for stekinge vpp of cādels / I answere that God is a spirite and in the spi­rite must be worsheped only. faith to his promi­ses and loue to his lawes and longynge for the life that is in his sonne are his due honoure ād True worshuppinge of go [...] seruice. All bodyly seruice must be referred vn to oure selues and not vn to the person of God immediatly. All outward thynges which we receave of god ar geuen vs / to take oure partes with thankes and to bestow the rest vppon oure neyboures. For god vseth no soch thinges in his awne person / but created them for to geue them vs / that we shuld thanke him / and nor to recea­ue them of vs / to thanke vs: for that were our prayse and not his. Fastynge / watchynge / wol­ward goinge / pilgrimage and all bodyly excercice must be referred vn to the taminge of y^e flesh Bodelye exercyse▪ only. For as god deliteth not in the tast of mete drinke / or in y^e sigthe of gold or seluer / no moare doeth he in my fast and soch like / that I shuld referre them vn to his person / to do him a plea­sure with all. For god in him selfe is as good as he can be and hath all the delectacion that he cā haue. And therfore to wish that god were bet­ter then he is or had moare pleasure then he hath / is of a worldely imaginacyon

And al the spirites that be in heuen are in [Page l] as good case as they can be & haue all y^• delectaciō they can haue / & therefore to wish them in better case or to studie to doo them more pleasure then they haue / is fleyshly minded popishnesse. The pleasure of them that be in heuen is / that we herken to God and kepe his commaunde­mentes / which when we doo / they haue all the pleasure that they can haue in vs. If in this li­fe / I sofre hell gladly / to winne my brother to folow god / how moch moare if I were in heuen shuld I reioyce that he so did? If in this world whē I haue nede of my neyboure / by the reason of mine infirmites / yet I seke nought of him / saue his wealth only / whate other thynge shuld Iseke of him / if I were in heuē ▪ where he can do me no seruice ner I vse any pleasure that he cā do me?

THe deuel desyred to haue his imaginaciōs worsheped as god / & his popish childern desyre y^• same / and cōpell men so to honoure thē / and of their deuelish nature describe they both God and his saintes And therfore I saye / al so­ch fleshly imaginacions / as to fast the wenisda­ye in y^• worshepe of. S. Ihon or of. S. katerine or what saynt it be / or to fast sayntes euēs or to goo a pilgremage vnto their images or to offer to them / to doo them pleasure / thinkynge therby to obteyne their fauoure and to make speciall aduocates of them / as a man wold winne the fauoure of a nother with presentes ād giftes / and thinkynge that if we did it not / they wold be angrie / are playne Idolatrye and [Page] imageseruice / for the saint deliteth in no soch. And when thou stekest vpp a candle before the image / thou mightest with as good reason ma­ke an holow hely in the image and powre in meate Candle. and drincke. For as the saynt nether eateth ner drincketh / so hath he no bodyly eyes to delyte in the light of a candle.

A nother is this / god geueth not the promises that are in Christ for bodyly seruice / but of his mercy only / vn to his awne glorie. ye and of the fathers goodnesse doo all naturall childern receaue Axe a litle boye / who gaue him his gaye cote / he answereth / his father. Axe him whi / and he answereth / because he is his father and lo­ueth him / and because he ys his sonne. Axe him whether his father loue him / and he saith ye. Ax him how he knoweth it and he saith / because he geueth me this or that. axe him whether he loue his father / he saith ye. Axe him whi / he saith / for his father loueth him and geueth him all thyn­ge. Axe him why he worketh / he answereth / his father will so haue it Axe him whi his father geueth not soch ād soch boyes cotes to. Nai saith he / they be not his sonnes / their fathers must geue them as myne doeth me. Goo now ye popish bond seruauntes ād receaue youre rewarde for youre false workes and robbe youre bethern & raigne ouer them with violence and cruell tirā­ny and make them worshepe youre pilars / polaxes images and hattes. And we will receaue of the mercifull kyndnesse of oure father and will serue our brethern frely / of very loue and wilbe their seruauntes and sofre for their sakes. And therto oure good dedes which we do vn to ou­re neybours nede / springe out of oure rightwysenesse or iustifienge / which is y^e forgeuenesse of [Page lj] oure synnes in Christes bloude / and of other ri­ghtwysnesse knowe we not before god. And cō­trari wise youre rightwysnesse or iustifienge w­hich stondeth / as youre faith doeth / with all wekednesse / springeth out of youre holy workes which yee doo to no man frely saue vn to paynted postes.

And when he allegeth the sacrifices of the sacrifices. old law / I saye they were sacramētes and preached vn to the people (as no dout / oure candels once were) and were no holy werkes to be re­ferred vn to gods person to obtayne his favoure / and to iustifie the people / and that the people shuld doo them for the werkes selues. And whē the people had lost the significacions and loked on the holynesse of the dedes / to be iustified therby / they were imageseruice and hatefull to god and rebuked of the prophetes / as it is to se tho­row out all the old testament.

Then he iugleth with a texte of. S. Paule Rom. xiiij. let eueriman for his parte abounde / one in this Idolatrie and a nother in that: whē the sens of the texte is / let euery man be sure of his awne conscience / that he doo no thinge / ex­cepte he know well and his cōscience sarue him that it maye be lawfully done. But what care they to abuse gods worde and to wrest it vn to the contrary?

And in the last end / to vtter his excellent blindnesse / he saith / the wiseman Luther thin­keth that if the gold were taken from the reli­ques / it wold be geuen vnto the pore immediatly / when he seith the contrary / that they which haue their purses full will geue y^e pore (if they geue ought) ether an halfe peny or in his contre the iiij. parte of a ferthynge. Now I axe master [Page] Mores conscience / seinge they haue no deuociō A sure to­ken of a false faith ād image­seruice vn to the poore which are as christes awne per­son and for whom Christe hath sofered his pas­sion that we shuld be kynd to them and whom to visett with oure almes is gods commaundement / with what minde doo they offer so grea­te treasure / to y^• garnessinge of shrmes / images and reliques? It is manyfest that they which loue not gods commaundement / can do nothynge godly. Vvherfore soch offeringes come of a fal­se faith / so that they thinke them better then workes commaunded by god ād beleue to be iustified therby. And therfore are they but image­seruice.

And when he saith / we might as well rebuke the powringe of the annoyntment on Chri­stes heed. Nay / Christe was thē mortall as well as we / and vsed soch thinges as we doo / and it refreshed his body. But and if thou woldest now powre soch on his image to doo him plea­sure / I wold rebuke it.

iij.

IN the third Chapter he bringeth in mira­cles done at. S. Steuēs tōbe. I answere y^• miracles. the miracles done at saintes tombes / were done for the same purpose y^t the miracles which they did whē they were aliue / were done: evē to pro­uoke vn to the faith of their doctrine / and not to trust in the place or in bones or in the saint. As Paul sent his napken to heale the seke / not that men shuld put trust in his napkin / but be­leue his preachinge.

And in the olde testament Eliseus healed Naaman the hethen man in the water of Ior­dayne Heliseus. [Page lij] / not to put trust in the water or to praye in that place / but to wonder at the power of god and to come and beleue / as he also did. And that his bones / when he was deed / reysed vpp a deed man / was not done that men shuld pray to him: for that was not lawfull then / by their awne doctrine / nether to put trust in his bones. For god to avoyd all soch Idolatrie / had polu­ted all deed bones / so that whosoeuer twitched a deed bone / was vncleane and all that came in his companye / vntyll he had washed him selfe: in so moch that if a place were abvsed with offeringe vn to Idoles / there was no beter remedie then to scater deed bones there / to driue the pe­ople thence / for beinge defiled and poluted. But his bones did y^t miracle / to testifie that he was a true prophete and to moue men vn to y^• faith of his doctrine.

And even so miracles done at the holy crosse / were done / to moue men vn to the faith of him that died theron / and not that we shuld beleue in the wodde.

He saith that pilgrimes put no trust in the place / as necromancers doo in their circles / and saieth he wotteth not what / to mocke out y^• texte pilgrima­ges of our sauioure of prayenge in the spirite. And in the ende he cōfoundeth him selfe sayen­ge / we reken oure prayers moare pleasaunt in one place then in a nother. And that must be by y^• reason of the place / for god is as good in one place as in a nother and also the man. Moro­uer where a man pleaseth god best / thither is he most bounde to goo. And so that imaginacyon bindeth a man to the place with a false faith / as nicromancers trust in their circles.

And agayne if god had said that he wold moare heare in one place thē in a nother / he had bound him selfe to the place. Now as god is li­ke good euery where generally so hath he made his testament generally / whersoeuer mine hert moueth me and am quiet to pray vn to him / there to heare me like graciously.

And if a man laye to oure charge / that god bound them vn to the tabernacle and aftir to y^• Temple temple in the old testament. I saye that he did it not for the places sake / but for the monumen­tes and testimonies / that their preached y^• wor­de of god vn to them / so that though the pre­stes had bene negligent to preach / yet shuld soch thynges that there were haue kepte the people in the remembraunce of the testament made be­twene god and them. Vvhich cause and soch li­ke only shuld moue vs to come to church / and vn to one place moare then a nother. And as lō­ge as I come moare to one place then a nother by cause of the quietnesse or that some thynge preacheth gods worde moare liuely vn to me there than in a nother / the place is my seruaunte and I not bonde to it: which cause and soch like taken awaye / I can not but put trust in y^• place as necromancers doo in their circles / & am an imageseruer ād walke aftir myne awne imaginacion and not aftir gods worde.

And when he saith / we might as well moc­ke the obseruaunce of the paschall lambe. I answer / Phascall lambe. Christ oure paschall lambe is offered for vs and hath deliuered vs as Paul saith. 1. Cor. v. whose signe and memoriall is the sacrament 1. Cor. v of his body and bloude. Morouer we were not deliuered out of Egypte. And therfore in as [Page liij] moch as we be ouerladen with our awne / I se no cause why we shuld become Iewes / to obserue their ceromonies to.

And when he saith holy straunge gestures. I answere / for the holynesse I wyll not swere: Holy stra­unge ge­stures. but the straungenesse I dare well avowe. For euery prest maketh them of a sundrie maner ād many moare madly then the gestures of Iackanapes. And when he saith that they were left from hand to hand sens the appostles tyme / it is vntrue. For the appostles vsed the sacramēt as Christ did / as thou maist se. 1. Corin. xj. Morouer the appostles left vs in the light and taught 1. Co. 11. vs all the counsell of God / as Paule wittenesseth Actes. xx. and hid nothinge in straunge holy gestures and apes playe the significacions wherof noman might vnderstonde.

And a Christen man is moare moued to pi­tie saith he / at the sight of the crosse / then with out it. If he take pitie as English men doo / for Pitie compassion / I saye / that a Christen man is moued to pitie when he seith his brother beare the crosse. And at the sight of the crosse / he that is lerned in god / wepith not Christe with ignoraunt wemen / as a man doeth his father when he is deed: but morneth for his synnes / and att the sight of the crosse comforteth his soule with the consolacion of him that died theron. But their is no sight whether of the crosse or ought else / that can moue you to leue youre wekednesse / for the testamēt of god is not written in youre hertes. And when he speaketh of prayenge at church who denyeth him that men might not praye at church or that the church shuld not be a place of prayar? But that a man coude not praye saue [Page] at church / and that my prayars were not hearde as wel elsewhere / If I prayed with likeferuentnesse and stronge faith / is a false lye.

And when he speaketh of the presence of god in the temple. I answere that the prophe­tes testified / how that he dwelt not there / and so doeth Paul Actes. xvij. ād so doeth Steuen Actes. vij. and Salomon. iij. Of the kinges. viij Actes. 17. Actes. 7 9. Regū. 8 And no doute as the mad Iewes mēt / he dwelt not there / ner as we moare mad suppose also. But he dwelled there only in his signes sacra­mentes / ād testimonies which preached his worde vn to the people. And finally for their false confidence in the temple / god destroyed it. And no doute for oure false faith ī visitynge the monumentes of Christe / therfore hath god also de­stroyed them and geuen the place vnder the in­fideles.

And when he speaketh of the piler of fire & cloude. I answere / that god was no nother wi­se The piler of fire present there then in all fire and in all cloudes saue that he shewed his power▪ there specially by the reason of the miracle / as he doeth in the eyes of the blynde whom he maketh se / and yet is no nother wise present in those eyes then in other / ner moare there to be prayde to then in other. And in like maner he is no moare to be prayed to where he doeth a miracle then whe­re he doeth nonne. Nether though we cannot but be in some place / ought we to seke god in any place / saue only in oure hertes and that in verite / in faith hope and loue or charite acor­dynge to the worde of his doctrine.

And oure sacramentes / signes / ceremonies images / reliques and monumentes ought to be [Page liiij] had ī reuerence so ferfoth as they put vs in minde of gods worde and of the ensample of them that liued therafter and no further.

And the place is to be sought and one to be preferred before a nother for quietnesse to praye and for liuely preachynge and for the preachyn­ge of soch monumentes and so furth And so longe as the people so vsed them in the olde testa­ment / they were acceptable and plesaunt to god and god was saide to dwell in the temple. But when the significacions beinge lost / the people worsheped soch thynges for the thinges selues / as we now doo / they were abhominable to god and god was saide to be no lenger in the tem­ple.

iiij.

ANd in the .iiij. he saith / y^• god setteth moare Place by one place then a nother. Vvhich doc­trine besydes that it shuld bynde vs vn to the place and god therto and can not but make vs haue confidence in the place / is yet false. For first god vn to whose worde we maye adde nought / hath geuen no soch commaundement ner made any soch couenaunte. Nether is Christ here or there saith the scripture / but in oure hertes Mat. 24. is the place where god dwelleth by his awne testimonie if his word be there.

And when he proueth it / because god doeth a miracle moare in one place then in a nother I answere / if god wyll doo a miracle / it requireth a place to be done in. How be it he doeth it not for the place but for the peoples sakes whom he wold call vn to the knowlege of his name / and not to worshepinge him moare in one place thē in a nother₊

As the miracles done in Egipte / in the redse / in mount Sinay and so forth were not done that men shuld goo in pilgremage vnto the places to praye there / but to prouoke them vnto the true knowlege of god / that after warde they myght euer praye in the spryte / where soeuer they were. Christ also did not his miracles that men shuld praye in the places where he did thē / But to stere vpp the people to come and heare the worde of their soules health. And when he bringeth the miracle of Siloe / I answere / that Siloe Ioan 4. &. 9. the sayde miracle and that christ sent the blynd thither to receaue his sight / were not done / that men shuld praye in the pole: but the seconde miracle was so done / to declare the obedient faith of the blinde ād to make the miracle moare knowen / ād the first for the worde of God / that was preached in the tēple / to moue the contre abou­te to come thither and lerne to knowe God / and to become a liuely temple / out of which they might euer praye and in all places. Nether was y^• miracle of lazarus done / that men shuld moare praye in that place then in a nother / but to shew christes power and to moue the people thorow wōderinge at the miracle / to herken vnto gods worde and beleue it / as it is to se playnly₊

Morouer God so loueth no church / but that the parish haue libertie to take it downe and to byld it in a nother place: ye and yf it be tymbre to make it of stone and to alter it at their plea­sure. For the places / ye and the images must serue vs and not god which is a spirite and careth for none moare then other ner is other wise present in one then in a nother. And likewise ys yt of sayntes bones we maye remoue them who­ther we will / ye and kreake all images therto ād [Page lv] make newe / or yf they be abused / put them out of the waye for euer / as was the brasen serpent So that we be lordes ouer all soch thynges ād they oure seruauntes. For if the sayntes were oure seruauntes / how moch moare their bones It is the hert and not the place that worshepe­th god. The kechē page turninge the spitt maie haue a purer hert to god / then his Master at church / and therfore worshepe God better in y^• kechen / then his master at church. But when wyll. M. More be able to proue y^t miracles done at sayntes tombes / were done that we shuld praye vnto the sayntes / or that miracles done by deed saintes whych a liue nether preached gods worde ner coude doo miracle are done of god?

God loueth none angell in heuen better thē The father ca­reth most for y^e yoūgest the greatest sinner in erth that repenteth and beleueth in christ. But contrary wyse careth most for the weakest and maketh all that be perfecte their saruauntes / vntyll as paul saith. Eph. iiij they be growen vpp in the knowlege of god in to a perfecte man and in to the measure of age Ephe. 4. of the fullnesse of christ / that is / that we know al the misteries and secretes that god hath hyd in christ / that we be no moare childern wauerynge with euery wynde of doctrine / thorow the sotiltie and wilinesse of men that come vppon vs to bringe vs in to erroure or begile vs. So ferre it is of that he wold haue vs kept downe to serue images. For with bodyly seruice we cā serue no thinge y^t is a spirite. And therto if it were possyble that all y^e angeles of heuē coude be mine enimies: yet wold I hold me by the testament that my mercyfull and true father hath made me in the bloude off my sauyoure / and so come vnto [Page] all that is promised me and christ hath purchased for me / and geue not a straw for them all₊

v

IN the .v. chapter he falleth frō al y^t he hath so longe swette to proue & beleueth not by the reason of y^• miracles / but by y^• comē consent of the church ād y^t many so beleue. This man is of a ferre other complexion thē was the prophete Elias. For he beleued a lone as he thought / agēst the consent by all likelyhod / of .ix or .x. hundred thousand beleuers. And yet. M. Mores church is in no nother cōdicion vnder the pope / then was that church agēst whose cōsent Elias beleued a lone vnder y^e kinges of Samary₊

vi

IN the, vi. chapter & vnto y^e. xviii. heproueth all most nought saue y^t which neuer mā denied him / y^t miracles haue bene done. But how to know the true miracles from the false were good to be knowen which we shal this wise do if as we take those for true sacramētes and ceremonies which preach vs gods worde / euē so we count them true miracles only which moue vs to herken therto₊

xvi

COncerninge his .xvi. chapter of the mayde of Ipshwcih / I āswere / y^t Moses warned The mayde of Ip­swich hys Israelites y^t false miracles shuld be done to proue thē / whether their hertes were fast ī y^• lorde. And euē so christ ād y^• apostles shewed vs before y^t lienge miracles shuld come / to peruerte y^• very electe / if it were possyble. And therfore we must haue a rule to know the true miracles frō the false / or else it were impossible that any man shuld scape vndisceaued and cōtinue in the true [Page lvi] waye. And other rule then thys ys there not: true miracles that the true are done / to prouoke men to come and herken vnto gods worde / and the false to cōfirme doctrine that ys not gods worde. Now yt ys not Gods worde if thou reade all the scripture thorowe out / but contrary therto / that we shuld put soch trust and confidēce in our blissed lady as we doo / and cleane agenst the testament that is in christes bloude. wherfore a man nede not to feare / to pronoūce that the deuell dyd yt to mocke vs with all₊

Neuer the later let vs compare the mayde of Ipswich and the maide of kent to gether. The mayde of kent First they saye that the maide of Ipswich was possessed with a deuell & the maide of kent with the holy goste. And yet the tragedies are so ly­ke the one to the other in all poyntes / that thou cowdest not know the holy gost to be in the one and the deuell in the other by any dyfference of workes. But that thou mightest with as good reason saye that the deuell was in both / or the holy gost in both / or the deuell in the mayde of kent ād the holy gost in the mayde of Ipswich For they were both in like traunses / both raue­shed from them selues / both tormented a lyke / both disfigured / lyke torreble ougly and grysely in sight / and theyr mouthes drawen a syde / euē vnto the very eares of thē / both enspyred / both preach / both tell of wonders / wilbe both caryed vnto our lady / and are both certified by reuela­cyon that our lady in those places and before those images shuld deliuer them₊

Now as for the mayde of Ipswych was possessed off the deuell by theyr awne con­fession. [Page] Vvhence then came that reuelacion / y^• she shuld be holpe and all hir holy preachinge? Iff of the deuell / then was the myracle and all of the deuell. Iff of the holy gost / then was she inspired with the holy gost and had the deuell within hir both at tonce. And in as moch as the mayd of kent was inspired by the holy gost by The may­de of kent. their confession / whence came that stopppnge of hir throte / that rauinge / those greuouse panges that tormentynge / disfigurynge / drawing of hir mouth awrye ād that ferfull and terreble countenaunce? If of the holy gost / and then whi not the revell and gamboldes of the maide of Ipswich also? and thē what mater maketh it whether a man haue the deuell or the holy gost in him. If ye saye of the deuell / then had she likewise both the deuell and the holy gost both at tonce. Morouer those possessed which Christ holpe avoyded christ and fied from him / so that other which beleued were fayne to bringe them vn to him agenst their willes. For which causes and many moo that might be made / thou maist conclude / that the deuell vexed them and preached in them / to confirme fayned confession and do me ceremonies and sacramentes with out significacion and damnable sectes / and shewed them those reuelacions. And assone as they were brought before oure ladies image / departed out of them / to delude vs and to turne oure faythes from Christ vn to an old blocke. As we reade in the legend of S. Bartholomewe / how y^e deuels hurte men in their lymmes and assone as they s. Bartholomewe were brought in to a certayne temple before an Idole / their they departed out of them ād so begyled [...]he people makynge thē beleue y^t the Idole ha [...] healed them of some naturall diseases₊

Now be it let it be the holy gost that was in the maide of kent. Then I praye you what thinge worthy of so greate prayse hath oure ladye done? Our lady hath deliuered her of the holy gost & ēptyed her of moch hie lerninge which as a goodly poetisse / she vttered in rimes. For ap­pose her now of christ / as scripture testifieth of him / and thou shalt finde her clene with out ryme or reason. The mayde was at home also in heuenly pleasures / and our lady hath deliuered her out of the ioyes of Orestes and brought her in to the miseries of middell erth agayne₊ Orestes

xvii

AS for dulia / yperdulia and latria / though he shew not with which of them he wors­heped the cardinalles hatt / ys answered vnto hym all ready₊

xviii.

IN the xviii. where he wold faine proue y^t y^• popes church can not erre / he allegeth thynges Tradycyons wherof he myght be asshamed / yf he were not past shame / to proue that the bisshopes haue auctorite to lade vs with tradicions nether profitable for soule nor body. He bringeth a false allegorie vppon the ouerplus that the Samaritane if it were layde out / promised to paye when he came agayne / for the bysshopes tradicions. Allegory. Nay. M. More / besydes that allegories which euery mā maye fayne at his pleasure can proue nothynge / Chryst interpreteth it him selfe / that it betokeneth a kynde mynde and a louinge neyboure / whych / so loued a straunger / that he ne­uer left carynge for hym / both absent as wel as present / vntyll he werefull hole and comen out of all necessite₊

It signifieth that the prelates / if they were [Page] true apostles and loued vs after the doctrine of christ / wold sell their myters / croses / plate / shry­nes / iuels and costly showes to socoure the pore and not robbe them / of all that was offered vn to them / as they haue done: and to repare thyn­ges fallen in decaye and ruine in the comen welth / and not to bedger the / realmes wyth false Idolatrye and imageseruice / that they haue not lefte them where wyth to beare the cost of the comen charges₊

And Morouer when the scribes and pha­reses taught their awne doctrine / they satt not vppō Moses sete / but on their awne. And therfore christ (so far it is off that he wold haue vs herken vnto mans doctryne) sayde / bewarre of the leuen of the scribes / phareses and saduces which is their doctrine ād rebuked thē for their doctrine and brake yt hym selfe and taught hys dysciples so to doo and excused them / and sayd of all tradicions / that what soeuer his heuenly father had not planted / shuld be plucked vp by the rotes And therto all the persecucion that y^• appostles had of the Iewes / was for breakyn­ge of tradycyons₊

Oure prelates ought to be oure saruauntes as the appostles were / to teach vs christes doc­trine / and not lordes ouer vs / to oppresse vs with theyr awne. Peter calleth it temptynge of the holy goste actes. xv. to lade the hethen with ought a boue y^t whych necessite and brotherly Actes. 15. loue required. And paul rebuketh his corinthi­ans for their ouer moch obedience and the ga­lathyans alsoo and warneth all men to stonde fast and not to sofre them selues to be brought in to bondage₊

And when he sayth peter and paul com­maunded vs / to obey oure superioures. That ys trouth / they commaunded vs to obey the tēp [...]rall swerde whych the pope wyll not. And they commaunded to obey the bysshopes in the doctrine of christe and not in their awne. And we teach not to breake all thynges rashly / as M. More vntrulie reportethon vs (which is to be sene in oure bokes / if mē wil loke vppon thē Tradycy­ons Of tradicions therfore vnderstond generally. He that maye be fre is a fole to bonde. But yf thorow wilinesse / thou be brought in to bonda­ge: then yf the tradicion hurte thy soule and the fayth / they are to be broken immediatly / thou­gh wyth the losse of thy lyfe. If they greue the body only / then are they to be born tyll god ta­ke them off / for breakynge the peace and vnite.

Then how sore maketh he christes burthen If yt be so sore / why is Master More so cruell to helpe the bysshopes to lade vs with moare? But surelye he speaketh verye vndiscretelye. For christ did not lade vs with one sillable mo­are thē we were euer boūde to / nether did he saue interpret y^• law trulye. And besides y^t / he ge­ueth vn to al his / loue vnto the law: which loue maketh all thynges easye to be born that were before impossible₊

And when he saith / ye be y^• salt of the erth t. Mat 5. was spoken for the bysshops ād prestes only yt ys vntrue / but yt was spoken generally vn to all that beleue and know the trueth / that they shulde be salt vnto the ignoraunt / and the per­fecter vn to the weker / ech to other euery man in hys measure. And Morouer yf yt be spo­ken vn to the prelates only / how fortuneth yt ☜ that Master More ys so busye to salte the [Page] world with his hie lernynge? And last of all the salt of oure prelates which ys theyr tradycions and ceremonyes wyth out sygnificacion ys vn­sauerye longe a goo / and therfore no moare worth but to be cast out at the dores and to be tro­den vnderfote₊

And that he sayth in the ende that a man maye haue a good faith with euell liuinge / I haue proued it a lie in a nother place. Morouer fayth / hope ād loue be iii. sisters y^t neuer can de­parte iii. sisters in this worlde / though in the worlde to come loue shal swalowe vp y^e other two. Nether can the one be strōger or weker thē that other. But as moch as I beleue so moch I loue and so moch I hope: ye ād so moch I worke₊

xix

IN the .xix. he proueth y^t prayinge to saintes is good & miracles y^t cōfirme it are of god or els y^e church saith he doeth erre. It foloweth in dede or y^t y^• popis church erreth. And whē he saith it is sinne to beleue to moch I saie we had y^e moare nede to take hede what we beleue and to serch gods worde the moare dylygently that we beleue nether to moch ner to litle₊

And whē he saith god is honoured by prayenge to saintes because it is done for hys sake: I answere / if it sprange not out of a false faith but of the loue we haue to god / thē shuld we loue god moare. And morouer in as moch as all oure loue to god spryngeth out of faith / we shulde beleue and trust god. And then if oure fayth in god were greater then oure feruent deuocyon to sayntes / we shulde praye to no sayntes at all / seynge we haue promyses of all thynges in oure sauyoure Iesu and in the sayntes none at all₊

IN the .xxv. how iugleth he / to proue that al y^t perteyneth vn to y^e faith / was not writtē / alleginge Ihon in the laste / that the world cou­de Ioan 21. not conteyne the bokes / if al shuld be writtē. And Ihon meaneth of y^• miracles which Iesus did ād not of the necessarie poyntes of the [...]aith

And how bringeth he in the perpetuall virginite of oure ladye which though it be neuer so true / is yet none article of oure faith / to be saued by. But we beleue [...]t / with a story faith / because we se no cause resonable to thinke the contrary

And when he saith many misteries are yet to be opened / as the cominge of antichriste. Naye verelye y^e babe is knowne well ynough ād al Pope. the tokens spide in him which the scripture de­scribeth him by.

And when he allegeth Paules tradicions to the tessalo / to proue his phantasye. I haue answered rochester in the obedience / that his tra­dicions were the gospell that he preached.

And when he allegeth Paul to the corin. I Masse saye that Paul neuer knew of this word Masse. Nether cā any man gather there of any stra­unge holy gestures / but the playne contrary ād that there was no nother vse there thē to breake the breed amōge them at soper / as christ did. And therfore he calleth it christes soper and not Masse.

There was lerned the maner of consecraci­on. A greate doute / as though we coude not ga­ther of the scripture how to do it. And of the water that the prest mingleth with the wine. A greate water. [Page] doute also and a perelouse case if it were left out. For ether it was done to slake the hete of the wine or put to after / as a ceremonie / to sig­nifie that as the water is chaunged in to wine / so are we chaunged thorow faith as it were in to christe and are one with him / how be it all is to their awne shame / that ought shuld be done or vsed amonge vs christen / where of noman wist the meaninge. For if I vnderstōde not the meanige / it helpeth me not. 1. corin. xiiij. and as experience teacheth. But if oure sheperdes had 1. Cori. 14 bene as wel willynge to fede as to shere / we had neded no soch dispicience / ner they to haue bur­nt so many as they haue.

And as for that he allegeth out of the epi­stle ot Iames for the iustifienge of workes. I haue answered in the Mammon agenst which he can not hisse / and will speake moare in the .iiij. boke.

And as for the Saboth / agreate mater / we Saboth be lordes ouer the saboth and maye yet chaun­ge it in to y^e monedaye or any other daye / as we se nede / or maye make euery tenth daye holy dage only if we se a cause why / we maye make .ij. euery weke / if it were expedient & one not ynough to teach the people. Nether was there any cause to chaunge it from the saterdaye then to put difference betwene vs and the Iewes and left we shuld become seruauntes vn to the daye aftir their supersticion. Nether neded we any holydaye at all / if the people might be taught with out it.

And when he axeth by what scripture we know that a woman maye christen. I answere / whi wemē baptise if baptim be so necessary as they make it / then [Page lx] loue thy neyboure as thy selfe doeth / teach we­men to baptise in tyme of neade: ye and to teach ād to rule there husbādes to / if they be besydes them selues.

And when he saith that of likelyhode / the laye people vnderstode the gospell of Ihon and Paules pistles better then greate clerkes now. I answere / the moare shame is theirs. How be it ther be .ij. causes why: the one is their diligēt sheringe: and a nother / they denye the iustifien­ge whi y^e pre­lates vn­derstond not the sc­ripture of faith where of both Paule and Ihon doo entreate and all most of nothynge else / if the significacyon of oure baptime which is the lawe of god and faith of christ / were expounded trulye vnto vs / the scripture wolde be easye to all y^t exercised them selues there in. And sir in as moch as the prelates care so litle for the losse of y^• vnderstondynge of the scripture and to teach the people / how happeneth it / that they care so sore for a bald ceremonie / which the significacion lost / though christ him selfe had institute it / we coude not obserue with out a false faith & without hurtynge of oure soules?

And finally to rocke vs a slepe with all / he saith / y^t he shall neuer spede wel / that wil seke in y^• scripture whether our prelates teach vs a true faith / though ten preach ech contrary to other in one daye. And yet christ for all his mira­cles ye cā not spede wel if ye trye the doctrine of oure prelates by y^• scripture. sendeth vs to y^e scripture And for all Paules miracles / the Iewes studied the scripture y^e diligenterly / to se whether it were as he saide or no. How be it he meaneth / that soch can not spede wel because the prelates will burne them excepte M. More helpe them ād make them for­swere christ before hande.

IN the .xxvij. he bringeth Paul exhortynge to agre & to tell al one tale in y^e faith which can not be saith Master More / excepte one be­leue by the reason of a nother. yes verelye we al beleue that the fyre is hotte and yet not by the reason of a nother and that with a moch surer knowlege then if we beleued it the one by y^• tellynge of a nother. And euen so they that haue y^• law of god written in their hertes and are tau­ght of the spirite to know synne and to abhorre it / and to fele the power of the resurreccion of christ / beleue moch surer then they that haue no nother certente of their faith / thē the popis pre­achynge confirmed with so godly liuinge

And it is not vnknowne to M. More that the churches of late dayes ād the churches now beinge haue determined thinges in one case the one cōtrarye to y^e other / in soch wyse that he cānot denye but y^• one hath or doth erre: y^• which case I coulde shewe him if I so were minded. y^• church must she­we a reasō of their doctrine. The olde popes / cardinalles and busshopes sa­yed yee to the thinge that I meane / where vnto these y^t now raigne saye naye. Now sir if you gather a generall counsell for y^e matter / the churches of fraunce and Italye will not beleue the churches of spayne & douchlonde because they so saye: but will aske how they proue it. Ney­ther will Louayne beleue Parise / because they saye that they can not erre / but will heare first their probaciō. Also how shal we know y^t y^e old pope & his {pre}lates erred / because these y^t are now so saye? whē y^• old pope liued we were as moch bound to beleue y^t he coude not erre / as we be now that this cā not: wherfore you must graunt me / y^t god must shew a miracle for y^e tone parte / or else they must brynge autēticke scripture.

Now sir god hath made his last and euer­lastinge testament / so y^t all is open / and no moare behynde then the apperinge of Christe agay­ne. And because he will not stere vpp euery daye a new prophete with a new miracle to confirme new doctrine or to call agayne the old that was forgotten / therfore were all thynges necessarye to saluacion comprehended in scripture euer to endure. By which scripture the counseles generall and not by open miracles / haue concluded loch thinges as were in them determined / as stories make mencion. And by the same scripture we know which counseles were true ād whych false. And by the same scripture shall we / if any new question arise / determine it also. Abraham Luk. 16. answered the rich man / they haue Moses and the prophetes / let them heare them / and saide not / they haue the scribes and the phareses w­hom they shuld heare preachynge out of the se­te of their awne doctrine with out scripture.

And when he allegeth / he that heareth you heareth me / and if any man heare not y^e church Luke. x. take him for an hethen / concludynge that we Mat. 18 must beleue whosoeuer is shauen in all that he affirmeth with out scripture or miracle / I wold fayne wete in what figure y^t silogismus is ma­de. Christes disciples taught Christes doctrine confirmynge it with miracles / that it might be knowen for gods and not theirs. And euen so must the church that I will beleue shew a miracle or bringe autenticke scripture that is come from the appostles which confirmed it with miracles₊

xxix.

IN the .xxix. he allegeth y^t christ saide not y^• holy gost shall write / but shall teach. It is [Page] not the vse to saye / the holy gost writeth / but inspireth the writer. I maruayle that he had not brought / as many of his brethren doo / Mat­thew in the last / where Christ commaunded the appostles to goo and teach all nacions / and sai­de Mat. 28 not write. I answere / that this precepte / loue thy neyboure as thy selfe and god aboue all thynge went with the appostles and compelled them to seke gods honoure in vs / and to seke al meanes to continue the faith vn to the worldes ende. Now the appostles knewe before that he­resies shuld come / and therfore wrote / that it might be a remedie agenst heresies / as it well appereth Ihō. xx. where he saith / these are written / Iona. 20. 1. Ioan. 2. that ye beleue and thorow beleffe haue life. And in the seconde of his first pistle he saith / these I write because of thē that deceaue you. And Paul and Peter therto warne vs in many pla­ces. wherfore it is manifest / that the same loue compelled them to leue nothynge vnwritten y^t shuld be necessarily requyred / and that if it we­re left out / shuld hurte the soule₊

And in the last Chaptre to make all fast / he bringeth in the kinges grace how he confuted Marten Luther with this conclusion / y^• church can not erre: where vn to I will make none an­swere for feare to displease his grace / neverthe­lesse because Marten coulde not soyle it / if his grace loke well vppon the matter / he shall fin­de that god hath assoyled it for him in a case of his owne.

And vppon that master More concludeth his first koke / that whatsoeuer the church / that is to wete / the pope and his brode saye / it is go­ds worde / though it be not written ner confir­med with miracle ner yet good liuinge / ye and [Page lxij] though they saye to daye this and to morow y^• cōtrarie / all is good ynough and gods worde: ye and though one pope cōdeme a nother (ix. or. x. popes arow) with all their workes for hereti­kes / as it is to se in the stories / yet all is right & ☜ none erroure. And thus good night and good rest / Christ is brought a slepe and layde in his graue and the dore seled to / and the men of ar­mes aboute the graue to kepe him doune with polaxes. For that is the surest argument / to hel­pe at nede and to be rid of these babillinge here­tikes / that so barke at the holy spiritualtie with the scripture / beinge therto wretches of no reputacion / nether cardenales ner bisshopes ner yet greate benefised men / ye and with out totquottes and pluralities / hauynge no holde but the very scripture / whervnto they cleaue as burres so fast that they can not be pulled awaye saue with very singgynge them of₊

¶ A sure token that the pope is antichriste.

ANd though vn to all y^• argumētes & {per}suasuasiōs Antichrist which he wold blinde vs with / to beleue y^t the pope with his secte were the right church / and that god for the multitude will not sofre them erre / we were so simple that we saw not the sotiltie of the argumentes ner had wordes to solue thē with / but oure bare faith in ou­re hertes yet we be sure and so sure that we can therin not be disceaued / and doo both feale and se that the conclusion is false and the contrary true₊

For first Peter saith .ij. Peter. ij. there shal be false teachers amonge you whych shall se­cretly 2. Pet. 2 brynge in damnable sectes / denyenge the lorde that bought them / and many shall [Page] folow their damnable wayes / by whom the waye of trouth shalbe evel spoken of / and with fayned wordes they shall make marchaundice ouer you? Now saith Paul Roma. iij. the law spea­keth vn to them that are vnder the law. And Rom. 3. euen so this is spoken of them that professe the name of christe. Now the pope hath .x. thousand sectes cropen in / as pied in their consciences as in their cotes / settynge vpp a thousand maner workes to be saued by / whych is the denyenge of Christe. And we se many and all most all together folow their damnable wayes. And in y^t Peter said that they shall rayle and blaspheme the trueth / it foloweth that there shalbe a litle flocke reserued by the hand of god to testifie y^e trueth vn to them or else how coude they rayle on it? And it foloweth that those raylars shal­be the mightier parte in the world / or else they durst not do it. Now what truth in christ doeth not the pope rebuke and in settynge vpp false workes denie all to gether? And as for their fayned wordes / where findest thou in all the scrip­ture purgatory / shrift penaunce / pardon / pe­na culpa / yperdulia ād a thousande fayned ter­mes moo? And as for their marchaundice / loke whether they sell not all gods lawes and also their awne / and all synne and all Christes me­rites and all that a man can thynke. To one he selleth the faute only and to a nother the faute and the payne to / and purgeth his purse of his money and his braynes of his wittes / and ma­keth him so beestely / that he can vnderstonde no ☞ godly thynge.

And Christ saith Mathew. xxiiij. their shal false anoynted arise and shew signes and wonders: y^t is / they shall shew miracles and so pre­uayle Mat. 24. [Page lxiij] that / if it were possible / the electe shuld be brought out of the true waye. And these false annoynted / by the same rule of Paul and in y^t christ saith also that they shal come in his name must be in the church of christ and of them that shall call them selves Christen / and shall shew their wonders before the electe and be a sore tē­ptacion vn to them / to bringe them out of the waye. And the electe which are few in compari­son of them that be called and come faynedly / shall amonge that greate multitude bekepte by y^e mightie hande of god agenst all naturall possibilite. So that the church and very electe shall neuer be soch a multitude to gether by them selues with out persecuciō and temptaciō of their faith / as the greate multitude vnder the pope is which persecute and sofre not. And these which the pope calleth heretikes shew no miracles / by ther awne cōfessiō / nether ought they / ī as moch as they bringe no new lerninge ner ought saue the scripture which is all redy receaued and cō­firmed with miracles. Christ also promiseth vs nought in this world saue persecucion for 1. Cor. 10 oure faith. And the stories of the olde testa­ment are also. by Paulus. 1. Cor. x. oure ensam­ples. And there / though god at a tyme called with miracles a greate multitude / yet the very chosen that receaued y^e faith in their hertes / to put their trust in God alowe and which endu­reth in temptacions were but fewe and euer oppressed of ther false brethern and persecuted vn to the deeth and dreuen vn to corners.

And when Paul. ij. Tessa. ii. saith that An­tichristes 2. Tessa. 2▪ cominge / shalbe by the workynge of sathan with all power / signes and wonders of falshed and all disceaueablenesse for them that perish [Page] / because they conceyued not loue vn to the trouth / to besaued by / & therfore shall god send thē stronge delusion or gyle / to beleue lies: y^• texte must also pertayne vn to a multitude gathe­red to gether in Christes name of whych one parte & no doute the gretter / for lacke of loue vn to the trouth y^t is in Christe / to liue therafter / shall faull in to sectes & a false faith vnder y^• name of Christe & shalbe induratt and stablished therin with false miracles to perish for their vn kyndnesse. The pope first hath no scripture y^• he dare abyde by in the light / nether careth / but blasphemith that his word is truer then y^• scri­pture. He hath miracles with out gods worde / as all false prophetes had. He hath lyes in all his legendes in all preachinges and in all bokes They haue no loue vn to the trueth. which ap­pereth by their greate synnes y^• they haue sett vpp aboue all the abhominacion of all y^• hethen y^t ever were / & by their longe continuaunce the­rin: not of frailte: but of malice vn to the trueth & of obstinatt lust & selfe will to synne. Vvhych appereth in .ij. thynges: the one / y^t they haue gotten them with wiles & falsehed from vnder all lawes of man & even aboue kinge & emproure / y^• no man shuld constrayne their bodies & bryn­ge them vn to better ordir / that they maye syn­ne frely with out feare of mā. And on the other syde / they haue brought gods worde aslepe / y^t it shuld not vnquiet their consciences / in so moch y^t if any man rebuke them with that / they persecute him immediatly and pose him in their false doctrine & make him an heretike ād burne him and quench it.

And Paul saith .ij. Timothe. iij. in the later dayes there shalbe perelous times For ther shalbe [Page lxiiij] men y^t loue thē selves / couetous / hye minded proud / raylars / disobedient to father & mother / vnthākfull / vngodly / churlish / promise breakers accusars or pick quareles / vnlouinge / dispicers of the goode / traytours / hedy / puffed vpp and y^t loue lustes moare then god / hauynge an appe­raunce of godlynesse / but denienge y^• power therof. And by power I vnderstonde the pure faith in gods worde which is the power & pith of all godlynesse & whēce all y^• pleaseth god springeth And this texte pertayneth vn to thē y^t professe-Christe. And in y^t he saith hauinge an apperaunce of godlynesse & of that foloweth in the texte / of this sorte ar they y^t entre in to mens howses & lead wemen captiue laden with synne / everaxynge & neuer able to atteyne vn to the trueth (as our hearers of confessions doo) it appereth y^t they be soch as wilbe holier then other & tea­chers & leaders of the rest. And loke whether there be here any sillable y^t agreeth not vn to oure spiritualtie in the hiest degre. Loue they not thē Loue thēselves. selues their awne decrees ād ordinaunces / their awne lies and dreames and despice all lawes of god and man regarde noman but them only y^e be disgysed as they be? And as for their coue­tousenesse Couetous which all the world is not able to sa­tisfie / tell me what it is that they make not sarue it? in so moch that if god punish the world with an evell pocke / they immediatly paynt a blocke & call it Iob to heale y^• disease in stede of ☜ Hyemyn­ded Proude warnynge y^e people to mend their lyuinge. And as for their hye minde & pride / se whether they be not aboue kynges & emproure & al the names of god / and whether any man maye come to be­are rule in this world excepte he be sworn to thē and come vpp vnder them₊

And as for there raylynge loke in their ex­communicacion Railars and se whether they spare kinge or emproure or the testament of god And as for obedience to father and mother / Nay / they be disobedieent. immediatly vnder god and his holy vicar y^e po­pe / he is their father ād on his ceremonies they vnthankefull must wayre And as for vnthankefull / they be so kynde / that if they haue receaued a thousand pound londe of a mā / yet for all that they wold not receaue one of his off springe vn to a nigh­tes herber at his nede / for their founders sake. And whether they be vngodly or no I reporte Vngodlye Churlysh. me vn to the parchment. And as for churlishnesse / se whether they will not haue their causes vēged / though it shuld cost hole regions / ye and al christendome / as ye shall se and as it hath cost halfe christendome all redie And as for their promise Promyse brakers. or trucebreakynge / se whether any appoyntement maye endure for their dispensacions / be it neuer so lawfull / though the sacrament were receaued for the confirmacion. And se whether they haue not broken all the appoyntementes made betwene them ād their founders. And se Accusars. whether they be not accusers and traytours also of all men / and that secretly and of their ve­ry awne kynges and of their awne nacion. And as for their heedinesse / se whether they be not Heedye prone / bold and runne hedelonge vn to all mis­cheue / with out pitie and compassion or caringe what misery and destrucciō shuld fall on other men / so they maye haue their present pleasure fulfilled. And se whether they loue not their lustes / that they will not be refrayned from them Louinge lustes. Apperaunce of godliuesse. ether by any law of god or mā. And as for their apperaunce of godlynesse / se whether all be not gods seruice that they fayne / ād se whether not [Page lxv] all most all consciences be captiue ther to. And it foloweth in the texte / as the sorserers of Egipte resisted Moses / so resisted they the trueth. They must be therefore mightie iugulars. And to poynte the popish with the fingre he saith / men ar they with corrupte mindes and casta wayes concerninge faith / that is they be so fleshly minded / so croked so stoborn and so mōstrouse shapē / that they can receaue no facion to stonde in any buyldynge that is groūded vppō faith / but when thou hast turned them al wayes and done thy best to hew them and to make them frame / thou must be fayne to cast thē out with y^• turkes and Iewes / to serue god with the ima­geseruice of their awne false werkes. Of these and like textes and of the similitudes that christ ☜ maketh in the Gospell of the kingdome of heuē it appereth / that though the holy gost be in the chosen and teacheth them all trueth in Christe / to put their trust in him / so that they can not erre therin / yet while the world stondeth / God sh­all neuer haue a church that shall eyther persecute or be vnpersecuted them selues any season / aftir the fassion of the pope. But there shalbe in the church a fleshly seed of Abraham and a spi­rituall / a Caim and an Abel / an Ismaell and an Isaac / an Esau and a Iacob / as I have sayde / a worker and a beleuer / a greate multitude of them that be called and a small flocke of them that be electe and chosen. And the fleshlye shall persecute the spirituall / as Caim did Abel and Ismaell Isaac & soforth / and the greate multi­tude the smal litle flocke and antichrist wilbe euer the best christen man.

SO now the church of god is dowble / afles­hly This wo­rd church is takē .ij. maner wayes. and a spirituall: the one wilbe and is nor: the other is and maye not be so called / but must be called a lutheran / an heretike and soch like. Vnderstonde therfore / that god when he calleth a congregacion vn to his name / sendeth forth his mesingers to cal generally. which mesi­ngers bringein a greate multitude amased & as­tonied with miracles and power of the reasons which the preachers make / ād ther with be com­pelled to confesse that there is but one god of power and might aboue all and that Christ is god and man and borne of a virgin and a thousand other thinges. And then the greate multi­tude that is called and not chosen / whē they haue gotten this faith comune as well to the deu­els as them and moare strongly persuaded vn­to the deuels then vn to them / then they goo vn to their awne imaginacions sayenge: we maye no lenger serue Idoles / but god that is but one. And the maner of seruice they fett out of their awne braynes and not of the word of god / and serue god with bodily seruice as they did in ti­mes past their Idoles / their hertes seruynge th­eir awne lustes still. And one will serue him in white / another in blacke / a nother in greye ād a nother Frires ☞ in pied. And a nother to doo god a plea­sure with all / wilbe sure / that his showe shal haue .ij. or .iij. good thicke soles vnder and will cut him aboue / so that in somer while the wether is whott / thou maist se his bare fote and in winter his socke. They wilbe shorn and shauen ād Saduces: that is to saye / rightewes / and phareses / that is / seperated in faciōs from all wother mē. ye and they will consecrat them selues all to ge­ther vn to god and will annoynte their handes [Page lxvi] and halowe them as the chalice / from all maner laye vses: so that they maye serue nether father ner mother master lord or prince / for polutynge them selues / but must wayte on god only / to gather vpp his rentes / tithes / offeringes and al ot­her duties. And al the sacrifice that come they consume in the altare of their belies and make Cal [...] of [...] / that is / a sacrifice that noman maye haue parte of▪ They beleue that there is a god: Col [...]▪ But as they can not loue his lawes / so they ha­ue no power to beleue in him / But they put th­eir trust and confidence in their awne workes & by their awne workes they wilbe saued / as the rich of this world / when they sue vn to greate men / hope with giftes and presentes to obtay­ne their causes. Nether other seruinge of God know they / saue soch as their eyes maye se and their belies feale. And of very zele they wilbe gods vicars and prescribe a maner vn to other and aftir what facion they shall serue god / and compell them therto / for the avoydinge of Idolatrie / as thou seist in the phareses.

But litle flocke / as sone as he is persuaded that there is a god / he runneth not vn to his awne imaginacions / But vn to the mesinger that called him / and of him axeth how he shall serue god. As litle Paul acte. ix. when christ had ouerthrown him ād taught him in his nett: axed sa­yenge: Actes. 9 lord what wilt thou that I doo. And as the multitude that were conuerted actes. ij. ax­ed of the apostles what they shulde doo. And Actes. [...]. the preacher setteth the lawe of god before thē / and they offer their hertes to haue it written therin / consentinge that it is good and right­wysse.

And because they haue runne cleane contrary vn to that good law they sorow and morne / and because also their bodies and flesh are oth­erwise disposed. But the preacher comforteth them and sheweth them the testament of Chri­stes bloud / how that for his sake all that is done is forgeuen / and al their wekenesse shalbe taken a worth vn tyll they be strōger / only if they repent and will submitte them selues to be sco­lars and lern to kepe this law. And litle flocke receaueth this testament in his hert and in it walketh and serueth God / in y^• spirite. And frō hence forth al is christ with him / ād christ is his ād he christes. Al that he receaueth / he receaue­th of christe / and all that he doeth / he doeth to christe. Father mother / master / lord & prince ar ☞ christ vnto him / ād as christ he serueth thē withal loue. His wife / childern / saruauntes and subiectes are christ vn to him / and he teacheth then to serue christ and not him selfe and his lustes. And if he receaue any good thinge of man / he tāketh God in christ / which moued the mans herte. And his neyboure he serueth as Christ in all his nede / of soch thynges as god hath lent / be­cause that all degrees are bought as he is / with christes bloude.

And he wil not besaued / for seruinge his brethern / nether promiseth his brethern heuē for seruinge him. But heuen / iustifiēge / forgeuenesse all gyftes of grace and al that is promised them they receaue of Christ and by his merites frely. And of that which they haue receaued of christ they serue ech other frely as one hād doeth y^e other / sekinge for their seruice nomoare then one hand doeth of a nother eche the others health / wealth helpe / ayde / succoure and to assiste one a [Page lxvij] nother in the waye of christ. And god they serue in the spirite only / in loue / hope faith and dreade

Vvhen the greate multitude that be called and not chosen / Caim / Ismael / Esau ād carnall Israel that serue God night and daye with bo­dyly seruice and holy workes soch as they were wont to serue their Idoles with all / behold litle flocke that they come not forth in the seruice of god / they rore out / where art thou? whi com­est thou not forth & takest holy watere? wherfore saith litle flocke. To put awaye thy sinnes. Nay brethern / God forbid that ye shuld so thinke / Christes bloud only washeth awaye the syn­nes of all that repent and beleue. Fire / salt / wa­ter / bred / oyle be bodyly thynges / geuē vn to mā ☜ for his necessite and to helpe his brother with / & god that is a spirite cā not be serued therwith. Nether can soch thinges enter in to the soule to purge hir. For gods worde only is hir purgaci­on. No saye they / are not soch thinges halowed. And saye we not in the halowenge of them that whosoeuer is sprinkled with y^e water or eateth of the bred / shall receaue health of soule and boby? Sir the blessynges promised vnto Abraham for all nacions are in christ / and out of his bloud we must sett them / ād his word is the breed / salt and water of oure soules. God hath geuen you no power to geue thorow youre charmes soch vertue vn to vnsensible creatures / which he ha­th halowed him selfe and made them all cleane (for the bodyly vse of them that beleue) thorow his worde of promese and permission and oure thākes geuinge. God saith / if thou beleue saynt Ihons Gospell / thou shalt be saued / ād not for the beringe of it aboute y^• with so many crosses / [Page] or for the obseruinge of any soch obseruances₊

God for thy bitter passion rore they out by and by / what an heretike is this? I tell the that holy church nede to allege no scripture for them for they haue the holy gost which inspireth thē euer secretly / so that they can not erre whatsoe­uer they saye / doo or ordayne Vvhate wilt thou despice the blessed sacramentes of holy church wherwith god hath bene serued this .xv. hun­dred yere (ye verely this .v. thousand yeres / evē sens caim hithirto / and shall endure vnto the ☞ worldes end / amonge them that haue no loue vn to the trueth to be saued therby) thou art a stronge heretike and worthy to be burnt. And then he is excomunicat out of the church. If li­tle flocke feare not that bogge / then they goo strayght vn to the kinge. And it like youre gra­ce / perelons people and sedicious / and euen ynough to destroye youre realme / if ye se not to thē betimes. They be so obstinat and tough / y^t they will not be conuerted / and rebellious agēst god and the ordinaunces of his holy church. And how moch moare shall they so be agenst youre grace / if they encrease and grow to a multitude. They wyll peruert all and suerly make new la­wes and ether subdue youre grace vn to them or rise agenst you. And then goeth a parte of litle flocke to potte and the rest scather. Thus hath it euer bene and shall euer be / lett noman therfore di­sceaue him selfe. ☜ ☞ ♣

iii.

IN the thrid chapter and in the chapter fo­lowynge / he vttereth how fleshly minded he is / and how beestly he imageneth of God / as Paule saith. 1. corin. 2. the naturall man can not 1. Corin. 2 vnderstond the thinges of y^• spirite of God. He thinketh of God / as he doeth of his cardenall / that he is a monstre / pleased when men flater him / and if of whatsoeuer frailte it be / men breake his commaundementes / he is then raginge mad as the pope is and seketh to be venged. Naye / God is euer fatherly minded toward the electe membres of his church. He loued them yer the world beganne / in Christ. Ephe. 1. He loueth them / while they be yet evell and his enimies in their hertes / yer they be come vn to the Roman. 5 knowlege of his sone christe / and yer his law be written in their hertes: as a father loueth his younge sonne / whyle he is yet euell and yer it know the fathers law to consent therto.

And aftir they be once actually of his chu­rch and the law of God and faith of christ writ­ten in their hertes / their hertes neuer synne any moare / though as Paule saith. Roman. vij. the Roma. 7. flesh doeth in them that the spirite wold not. And whē they synne of frailte / God ceaseth not to loue them styll / though he be angrie / to put a crosse of tribulacions vppon their backes / to purge them and to subdue the flesh vn to the spirite or to al to breake their consciences with threateninge of the lawe ād to feare them with hell. As a father when his sonne offendeth him feareth him with the rod / but hateth him not.

God did not hate paul / when he persecuted but had layd vpp mercy for him in store / though he was angre wyth hym to scorge hym and to teach him better. Nether were those thynges layd on his backe which he after sofered / to make satisfaccion for his foresinnes / but only to serue hys brethern ād to kepe the flesh vnder. Nether The new life doeth tame the flesh and serue hyr neyboure did god hate Dauid when he had synned / though he was angre with him. Nether did he after sofre to make satisfaccyon to god for hys olde synnes / but to kepe his flesh vnder and to kepe hym in mekenesse and to be an ensample for oure lernynge₊

iiii

IN the fourth saith he if the church were an vnknowen companie / how shuld the infy­deles / yf they longed for the faith / come therby? God seketh vs and we not hym O whother wādereth a fleshly mīde / as though we first sought out god. Nay / God knoweth his and seketh them out and sendeth his mesingers vnto them and geueth them an hert to vnderstonde. Dyd the hethen or any nacyon seke chryste? Nay / christ sought them and sent hys appostles vnto them. As thou seyst in the storyes from the begynnynge of the worlde and as the parables and similitudes of the gospell de­clare₊

And when he saith / he neuer foūde ner herd of any of vs / but y^t he wold forswere to saue his life. Answere / the moare wrath of god will light on thē / that so cruelly delite to tormēt thē ād so craftely to begyle the weake. Neuer thelesse yet Sir Thomas hittō it is vntue. For he hath hearde of sir Thomas hitton whō the bisshopes of Rochester and caūterbury slew at maydstone ād of many y^t sofered in braband holland and at colen and in all [Page] quarters of douchlonde and doo dayly₊

And when he saith that their church hath The pope hath no marters many marters / let him shew me one / y^t died for pardons / ād purgatory y^t the pope hath fayned / and let hym take the mastrie₊

And what a doo maketh he / that we saye / there is a church that sinneth not and that the­re is no man but that he sinneth / which are yet 1. Ioan. 3. both true. we read .i. Ihon. iii. he that is born of god synneth not. And Eph. v. men loue youre wives as the lorde doeth the church / and gaue him selfe for her / to santifie her and to clense hir in the fountaine of water thorow the worde / ād to make hir a glorious church vn to him selfe / with out spott or wrincle.

And i. Ihon. i. If we saie / we haue no sinne we disceaue oure selues and make him a lyer ād hys worde is not in vs. Master More also wyl not vnderstond that the church ys some tyme The chu­rch is double taken for the electe only which haue the law of god written in their hertes ād fayth to be saued thorow christe written there also. whych same for all that saye wyth paul / that good which I wold / that doo I not. but that euell which I hate / that do I: so it is not I that doo it but sinne that dwelleth in my flesh₊

And Gala. v. the flesh lusteth cōtrary to y^• Gala. 5. spirite and the spirite contrary to the flesh / so y^t these two fightynge betwen them selues / ye cannot doo what ye wolde. For they neuer cōsent that synne is good ner hate the law ner cease to fight agenst the flesh / but assone as they be faullen / rise and fight a fresh. And that the church ys some tyme taken for the commē rascall of all [Page lxx] that beleue / whether wyth the mouth only and carnally with out spyryte nether louinge y^• law in their hertes nor fealinge the mercy that is in christ / but ether runne all to gether at ryott or kepe the law with cauteles and exposycions of their awne fayninge & yet not of loue but for feare of hell / as the theues do for feare of the galo­wes / and make recompence to god for their synnes wyth holy dedes₊

He also wyll not vnderstonde / that there be Two maner faith­es twoo maner faythes: one / that ys the faith off the electe / whych purgeth them of all their syn­nes for euer. As ye se Ihon. xv. ye be cleene sayth christ / be the reason of the worde: that is / thorow beleuinge christes doctryne. And Ihon. i. Iohan. 15. he gaue them power to be the sonnes of God / thorow beleuinge in hys name. And Ihon. iii. he that beleueth the sonne hath euerlastynge lyfe / and a thousand like textes₊

And a nother of them that be called ād neuer electe. As the fayth of Iudas / of symon ma­gus / of the deuel / and of the pope. In whose hertes the law of god ys not wrytten / as it appe­reth by their workes. And therfore when they beleue many thynges of christe / yet when they come vnto y^e saluaciō that is in his bloude / they be but Iewes and turkes and forsake christ ād runne vn to the iustifienge of ceremonies wyth the Iewes and turkes. And therfore they re­mayne euer in synne within in theyr hertes.

Vvhere the electe hauinge the law written in their brestes and leuinge it in their spirites / synne there neuer / but with out in y^e flesh Agēst which sinne they fight cōtinually & minishe it daily [Page] with y^• helpe of y^• spirite / thorow prayar / fastynge and seruinge their neybours louingly with all maner seruice / out of the law that is written in their hertes. And their hope of forgeuenesse is in Christe only / thorow his bloude and not in ceremonyes.

v.

ANd vn to his .v. Chapter I answere / by y^• The pope hideth the scripture▪ pope y^• scripture is hid ād brought in to ignoraunce & the true sens corrupte And by thē y^t ye call heretikes we knowe the scripture and y^• true sens theroff. And I saye / that the pope kepeth the scripture as did the phareses / to ma­ke marchaundice of it. And agayne / that y^• he­retikes become out of you / as out of y^• scribes & phareses came the appostles and Christ him selfe and Ihon Baptiste / and that they be plucked out of you and graffed in Christe and bilt vppō the fundacion of the appostles and prophetes.

And in the end / when he saith that the heretikes The here­tikes be faulē out of the mist be faullen out of Christes mistical bodi w­hich is the pope and his. I answere that ye be a misticall body and walke in the mist and will not come at the light / and the heretikes be de­parted out of youre mist and walke in the clere light of gods worde.

vj.

IN the .vj. he saith that the heretikes be all nought / for they all periure & abiure. He yet saieth vn true. Many abyde vn to y^• deeth. Many for their wekenesse ar kepte out of youre handes. whi many faull Many for their ouer moch boldnesse ī their awne strēgth be deliuered in to youre handes & fall in the flesh / their hertes abydinge still in y^• trueth as Peter & thousandes did / & aftir repēt [Page lxxj] & be no lesse cristē thē before though ye haue thē in dirision vn to youre awne damnacion. And many because they come to Christ for fleshly li­berte and not for loue of the trouth / fall as it becometh them / vnder youre handes: as Iudas & Balam / which at the begynnynge take christes parte / but aftirward when they finde ether los­se or no vauntage they gett them vn to the con­trary part and are by profession the most cruelle ennimies & sotellest persecuters of the trouth. Loke Master More and rede and marke well₊

vij.

IN the .vij. he saith / that he hath holy sain­tes and holy counsels on his side. Name y^• sayntes and proue it. Name the counsells ād y^• Counsels holy prelates there of. Thou shalt shew me no nother popes or cardenales / then soch as we haue now / that wyll obey nother god ner man / or any law made by god or man: but compell all men to folow them / strengthynge their kingdo­me with the multitude of all misdoars.

He saith also that good and bad worshe­pe saintes / y^e good well and the bad evell. How cometh it then / that ye shew not the difference & teach to doo it wel? I se but one facion amonge all the popish.

And finally he saith he is not bounde to answere vn to the reasons and scripture that are layde agenst them. It is ynough to proue their part / that it is a comen custume ād that soch a ☜ multitude doo it / and so by his doctrine y^• tur­kes are in the right waye.

IN the .viij. he saith / the saintes be moare Saintes. charitable now then when they liued. I answere / Abraham was while he liued as charita­ble as y^e best. And yet deed / he answered him / y^• prayed him / they haue Moses and the prophe­tes / lett them heare them. And so haue we / not Luke. 16. Moses and the prophetes only / but a moare clere light / euen Christ and the appostles / vn to w­hych if we herken we be saintes all ready.

And to proue that they in heuen be better then we in erth / he allegeth a texte of oure saui­oure Luke. vij. that the worst in heuen is better then Ihon Baptist. Now the texte is / he that is lesse in the kingdome of god is gretter then he. Vve that beleue are gods kingedome. And Luke. 7. he that is left (in doenge seruice vn to his bry­thern) is euer the grettest aftir the doctrine of Christe. Now Christ was lesse then Ihon for he did more seruice then Iohan / and therfore greater then he. And by their awne doctrine there was no sainte in heuen before y^e resurreccion of Christe / but what care they what they saye / blinded with their awne sophistrie.

Morouer cursed is he that trusteth in ought saue god saith the texte and therfore the saintes wold haue no man to trust in them whyle they were a liue. As Paul saith. 1. Corin. iij. what is Paul saue youre saruante to preach Christe. Did Paul die for you? were ye baptised in the 1. Cor. 3. name of Paul? Did I not marie you to Christ / to put youre trust in him? And againe let nomā reioyce or trust in man / saith he. For all are youres whether Paul / or Appollo or Cephas: whether the world / life / deeth / presen thynges or thynges to come: all are youres & ye are Christes / [Page lxxij] and christ is gods. If my faith be stedfast in the promises that I haue in Christes bloud / I nede but to praye mi father in Christes name and he shall send me a legion of angels to helpe me: so that my faith is lorde ouer the angels and ouer all creatures to turne them vn to my soules health and my fathers honoure / and maye be subiecte vn to no creature / but vn to gods worde in oure sauioure Christe only. I may haue no trust therfore in the saintes. If ye saye / ye put no trust in them / but only put them in remem­braunce of their dutie / as a man desyreth his neyboure to praye for him / remembring him of his dutie / and as when we desyre our brethern to helpe vs at oure nede. That is false / for ye put trust in all youre ceremonies and all youre holy dedes and in whosoeuer disgyseth him selfe and altereth his cote from the comune faciō / ye and euen in the cotes of them that be not yet saintes / aftir youre doctrine.

yf a prest said masse in his gowne / wold ye not rise agenst him and slee him / and that for y^e fal­se faith that ye haue in the other garmētes. For what honoure can those other garmentes doo to god moare then his gowne or profit vn to youre soules / seinge ye vnderstōde nought therby? And therto in the collectes of saintes ye sa­ye / saue me God and geue me euerlastinge life for the merites of this or that saint / euery man aftir his phantasie chosynge him some one sainte singularly to be saued by Vvith which colle­tes I praye you shew me how stondeth y^• deeth of Christe? Paul wold saye that Christ died in vayne if that doctrine were true.

And therto in as moch as ye saye / y^• saintes [Page] merite or deserue not in heaven / but in this world only / it is to be feared / lest their merites besore wasted and the deseruinges of many al spent thorow oure holy fathers so greate liberaltye.

Abraham and the prophetes / and the appo­stles and many sens praide to no saintes & yet were holy ynough.

And when he saith / they coude helpe when they were aliue. That was thorow their faith in beleuinge the promise. For they had promi­ses y^t they shuld doo soch miracles to stablish their doctrine and to prouoke vn to Christ / ād not vn to them selues.

And when he proueth that the saintes be M. More destroyeth the resur­reccion in heuen in glorie with Christ all ready sayenge if god be their god they be in heuē / for he is not the god of deed. There he steleth awaye Chri­stes argument where with he proueth the resurreccion / that Abraham and all saintes shuld rise againe & not that their soules were in heuē which doctrine was not yet in the worlde. And with that doctrine he taketh awaye the resurreccion quite / and maketh Christes argument of none effecte. For when Christe allegeth the scripture that god is Abrahams god / and addeth to / that god is not the god of the deed / but of the liuin­ge and so proueth that Abraham must rise agayne: Mat. 22 I deny christes argument and saye with master More / that Abrahā is yet aliue / not becau­se of the resurreccion / but because his soule is in heuen. And in like maner Paules argument vnto the Corrinthians is nought worth. For whē he saith / if there be no refurreccion / we be of all 1. Cor. 15 wretches the most miserablest. Here we haue no pleasure / but sorow / care / and oppression. And therfore if we rise not agayne / all our soferinge [Page lxxiij] is in vayne. Nay Paul / thou art vnlerned: goo to master More and lerne a newe waye. Vve­be not most miserable / though we rise not agayne / for oure soules goo to heuen assone as we be deed / and are there in as greate ioye as christ that is rysen agayne And I maruell that Paul had not comforted the Tessalonians with that doctrine / if he had wist it / that y^• soules of their deed had bene in ioye / as he did with the resur­reccion / 1. Tessa. 4 that their deed shuld rise agayne. If y^• soules be in heuen in as greate glorie as the angels aftir youre doctrine / shewe me what cause shulde be of the resurreccion.

And when he saith / whether the saintes do it them selues / or by intercession made to god / it maketh no mater / so we be holpe / it appereth bi his doctrine / that all is good that helpeth / though a mā praye vn to the deuell / by whom many be holpe. Now in Christ we haue promises of al maner helpe & not in thē. where then is our faith to be holpe by Christ when we hope to be holpe by the merites of saintes? So it appereth that the moare trust we haue in saintes / the lesse we haue in Christe.

And when he bringeth in a similitude that we praye phisions / though god can helpe vs / ād Phisiciōs therfore we must praye to saintes. It is not li­ke / for they haue naturall remedies for vs whyth we must vse & not tēpte god. But the saintes haue no naturall remedies ner promise of su{per}­natural. And therfore it can be but a false supersticious faith. And where no natural remedie is there god hath promised to help them y^t beleue in him. And moreuer whē I praye a phisiō or surgion and trust to be holpe by them / I dis­honoure god / excepte I first praye to god ād be­leue [Page] that he will worke with their doctrine and medicines & so receaue mine health of y^• hōd of God. And euen so when I praye to man / to helpe me at mine nede / I synne excepte I complayne first to god & shew him my nede & desyre him to moue one or a nother to helpe me / and then when I am holpe / thanke him and receaue it of his hāde / in as moch as he moued the herte of him that holpe me and gaue him wherewith ād a cōmaundemēt to doo it. M. More Christ is not dishonoured because y^t they which here preach him truly / shall sitte ād iudge with him. Vindale. That to be true y^• scripture testifieth / but what is that to youre purpose that they which be deed can heare vs and helpe vs? How be it / if master More shuld describe vs those setes / Iam sure he wold paynte them aftir the facion of my lorde cardenales holy cheyar / as he doeth God aftir y^• similitude of worldely tirātes and not accordinge to his awne worde. For they that be worldely & fleshly minded can but fleshly imagen of god all to gether like vn to y^• similitudee of worldely thinges. Master More. The apostles and saintes were prayd so when they were aliue ād god not dishonoured. Tindale. what helpeth that your carnall purpose. I haue answered you vn to that and manye th­ynges moo in the obedience and other places agenst which ye replye not / but kepe youre tune ād vn to al thynge singe kokow / kokow / we be the church and can not erre. The appostles had 1. Cor. 3. gods word for all that they did ād ye none. And yet many dishonoured god and christ for theyr false trust and confidence which they had in the appostles as thou maist se by paul to y^• corinthi.

Then he breaketh forth in to opē blasphemy [Page lxxiiij] and sayth that it behoueth vs to praye vn to More dr [...] ueth from god. saintes and that god will else not heare vs / for oure presumptuouse malapertenesse. So it is now presumptuous malapertenesse to trust in gods worde and to beleue that god is true. Pa­ul Hebr. 4. teacheth vs to bebolde to goo vn to god and sheweth vs good cause in Christe / whi we so maye and that god wold so haue vs. Nether is there any cause to kepe vs backe / saue that we loue him not ner trust him. yf a man saye / oure synne shuld kepe vs backe. I saye if we repent & beleue in Christ / Christ hath taken thē awaye and therfore thorow him we maye be bolde. And Christ saide at his last soper Ihon. xvj. I saye not that I will praye for you vnto my fa­ther Ioan. 16. for my father loueth you. As who shulde saye / be not afrayed ner stonde with out the dores as dastard: but be bold and goo in to my fa­ther youre selues in my name / and shew youre complayntes / for he now loueth you / because ye Ephe. 2. loue my doctrine. And Paul sayth Ephe. ij. we haue al an open waye in thorow him / and are now no more forennars or straungers but of y^• howshold of god. Of god therfore we be bold as of a most louinge and mercifull father / abo­ue all the mercy of fathers. And of our sauiou­re Iesus we be bold / as of a thynge that is on­re awne and moare oure awne then oure awne skynnes / and a thynge that is so soft and gent­le / that lade we him neuer so moch with oure synnes / he can not be angre ner cast them from off / his backe / so we repent and wyll mend. But Master More hath a nother doctrine to driue vs from god and to make vs tremble and be afferde of him.

He likeneth god to worldly tirantes / at who­me [Page] no man maye come / saue a few flaterars w­hych ministre vn to them all voluptuousnesse and sarue their lustes at all poyntes which fla­terars must first be corrupte with gyftes / yer a man may come at the kinge. Thē he saith / a mā M. More is agēst y^e popes profite maye praye to euery deed man. That me thin­keth shuld be agenst the popes doctrine and profite also. For he will haue no man prayed to vn­tyll he haue canvesed him / I wold saye / canonised him / and tyll god or at the lest waye the de­uell haue shewed miracles for him.

Then he bringeth how one that was deed and in the inuisible purgatory holpe a nother y^t purgatori was aliue and in the visible purgatory This is a straunge case / that a man there maye helpe a nother and not him selfe And a moare straunge case that god heareth a man here for him selfe / beinge in his awne purgatory and helpeth him cleane out / or caseth him if it be to sore. But ād he be in the popes purgatory god will not hea­re him for him selfe / and that because the pope might haue somewhat to deliuer him. And the straungest case of all is that the pope is allmy­ghty there and god can do there nought at all as the pope can not here in this purgatori. But because this is not gods worde ner like godis doctrine / I thinke it no damnable synne to be­leue it poetrie.

Then how ye maye praye for them and to them / tyll they be canonised: and when they he Canoni­synge. canonised / but to them only / for then ye be sure y^t they be in heuen. By what token? I maye be as sure by the canonisynge / as I am that all the bisshopes which the pope confirmeth / be ho­ly men / and all the doctours that he maketh wel lerned / and that all the prestes which he annoynteth [Page lxxv] haue the holy gost. If ye saye / because of y^• miracles / then doo men wronge t [...] praye for kinge henry of windesore at cambryge and Eton. For he / as men saye doeth miracles. And also if kinge henrye of win sore. the miracles certifie vs / what nedeth to by the popis canonisynge?

ix.

IN the .ix. he putteth no ieopardy to praye to him that is damned and to steke vpp a candle to him ner I trow vn to the deuell ther­to / if he might haue a vauntage by him.

Then he maketh no ieopardie to doo and beleue whatsoeuer an open multitude called godes church doeth and beleueth. For god will haue an open church y^t can not erre. For saith he / when the Israhelites fell to Idolatrie / the true church remayned in Hierusalem amonge y^• Ie­wes. First I saye / if a man had no beter vnder­stondinge thē M. Mores doctrine / he coud not know whether were y^• true church / the Iewes or the Israelites. For the Israelites were in nūbre .v. tymes moo then the Iewes and worshe­ped god / though as present in the image of a calfe / as the Iewes for the most part / present in y^• arcke of testimonie. And secondarily he saith false. For the Iewes were faullen in to open Idolatrie a thousand tymes worse then the Israelites / even in their very temple / as it appereth by open stories and bi the Prophetes: so that for their open Idolatrie / whych they wold for no preachynge of the prophetes amende / their pre­stes therto resistynge y^• prophetes and coragynge the people in their wekednesse / god sent them captiue out of the lande. ye and the people erred in folowynge the scribes and phareses and the [Page] open multitude called Gods church / at the co­mynge of Christ / as it is to se in the gospell cō­trary▪ vn to Master Mores deceyttull poetrye And againe / god reserued him a litle flocke euer in Israel and had euer prophetes there / sometyme openly and some tyme in persecucion / y^• euery man must hide him selfe and kepe his fa­ith secret: and euen in the houses of the euell kyngesboth of Iewri and also of Israel he had good people / and that amonge the hie officers / but secretly / as Nycodemus amonge the phareses. So that the very church was euery where oftimes in capciuite and persecuciō vnder their brethern / as we be vnder oures in the kingedo­me of the pope.

Then he putteth no ieopardy to worshupe an vnconsecrated hoste. But with what wors­hupe mē shuld worshepe the consecrated doeth he not teach / nether the vse of that sacrament or any other / ner how ought maie be worsheped but teacheth only y^t all thynges maye be wors­heped / and sheweth not the right worshepe from the false.

Then he noteth Paule. 1. Corin. 1. how he exhorteth vn to agre only / but not on the trueth or on the good / but only to agre a greate multi­tude 1. Cor. 1. to gether. O this depe blindenesse. Did not Paul first teach them the true waye? And did he not instructe them anew in the true wa­ye and in the saide epistle rebuke the false confi­dence that they had in men / the cause of all their dissension and all erroures that were amonge them?

Then he saith / the Iewes had saintes in honoure / as the Patriarkes and Prophetes. Vve teach to dishonoure none: But y^• Iewes prayd [Page lxxvj] to none.

More. Christ rebuked not the Phareses for garnishinge the sepulchres of the prophetes but for that they folowed the condicions of them that slew them. Vindale. yes & for their false trust in soch werkes as we doo you And ye Sir thynke that ye deserue heuen in worshepynge the saintes bones / and be as redy to sle them y^• beleue / teach and liue as the saintes did / as youre fathers were to sle them: besydes that ye worshepe saintes that folowed Christ aftir the en­sample of youre holy cardenall / of whom I doute not but that ye wil make a god in processe of tyme also.

Then repeteth he for forgettynge / how Eliseus bones reysed vpp a deed. That was to cōfirme his preachinge only. For the Israelites / as weked as they were / nether prayed to him / nether kissed his bones / ner offered ner steked vpp candels before him. Vvhich thynge if they had done in the kingdome of the Iewes / I doute not but that some good kynge wold haue burnt his bones to asshes / as wel as the brasen serpēt / that was as greate a relique as deed bones And Christ shewed miracles at the findynge of the crosse. That was to stablish the faith of Christ es deeth & that it shuld be a memory of his deeth / and not that we shuld trust in y^e wod as we doo. For whych false abuse / the hole lan­de where Christ did his miracles / is destroyed₊

Then he allegeth the woman that was healed / thorow twitchinge of Christes cote / becau­se we shuld worshepe it. Vvhen Christ said hir faith hath made hir hole / not in the cote / but in Christe.

And the miracle was shewed / to prouoke to the worshepinge of the preachynge and not of the cote. Though to kepe the cote reuerently in the memoriall of the dede / to prouoke vn to the faith of Christ were not evell of it selfe. And Paule by youre doctrine / sent his napken to heale the seke / that men shuld shrine his sne­ueled napken / and not to beleue his preachinge.

x.

THe .x. chapter of sent walary is mete for y^• auctor and his worsheple doctrine.

xj.

IN the .xj. he iugleth with this misticall terme latria. I answere / god is no vayne na­me / but signifieth one that is almightie / all mercifull / all true and good. which he that beleueth will goo to god / to his promises and testament and not folow his awne imaginacions / as Master Latria Mores doctrine teacheth.

He saith that bodyly seruice is not latria. No but bodyly seruice done and referred vn to him which is a spirite / is Idolatria▪

He trusteth y^t men know the image from y^e saint. I axe M. More whi god did hide Moy­ses body and diuers other. The Iewes wold Moses. haue knowen y^t Moses had not bene god an y^t Moses bones had not bene Moses. And they knew y^• the brasen serpent was not god / and y^t the golden calues were not god / and that wod and stone were not god. But Sir there is euer a false imaginacion by. The world because they can not worshepe god in the spirite / to repent off euell and to loue the lawe and to beleue that he wyll helpe at all nede / ther­fore runne vn to theyr awne imagynacyons [Page lxxvij] and thinke that god for soch seruyce as they doo to images / will fulfill their worldly desyr­es: for godly can they nought desyre. Now God is a spirite ād wilbe worsheped in his worde only which is spirituall / and wil haue no bo­dylye seruice. And the ceremonies of the olde law he set vpp / to signifie his worde only and to kepe the people in minde of his testament. So that he which obserueth any ceremonie of any other purpose is an Idolater / that is / an image seruer.

And when he saith / if men axe wemen whether it were oure lady of walsingam or Ipsewich that was saluted of Gabriel or that stode by Christ when he henge on the crosse / they will sa­ye nether nother Thē I axe him what meaneth it / that they saye oure lady of walsynggam pra­ye forme oure lady of Ipswich praye for me our lady of wilsdon praye for me / in so moch that some which reken them selues no small foles / make them roules of halfe an houre lōge / to praye aftir y^t maner. And they that so praye / thou maist besure / meane oure lady that stode by y^e crosse / and hir that was saluted therto

Then he reherseth many abuses / and how Processi­ons wemen singe songes of ribaudrie in processions in cathedrall churches. vn to which abhomina­cious yet our holy church that can not erre / consent with full delectacion. For on the on syde they will not amend the abuse. And on the oth­er syde they haue hired. M. More to proue with his sophistrie / that the thynges ought not to be put doune.

Then he bringeth in how the wild Irish ād wyld irish welch men the welch praye / when they goo to stele. And ax­eth [Page] whether / because they abuse prayar / we shu­ld put all prayenge downe. Naye M. More / it is not like. prayar is gods commaundement / ād where faith is / there must prayar nedes be and cā not be awaye. how be it / thinges that are but mennes tradicions and all indifferent thinges which we maye be as well with▪ out as with / maye welbe put doune for their dishonouringe of god / thorow the abuse. we haue turned kissinge in the church in to the pax. Vve haue put do­ne watchinge all night in the church on saintes even [...] / for the abuse. And Ezechias brake y^• brasen serpent .iiij. of kinges. xviij. for the abuse. And euen so / soch processions and the multitu­de Ezechias of ceremonies and of holidayes to / might as wel be put downe. And the ceremonies that be left wold haue their significacions put to them & y^• people shuld be taught them. And on y^• sōdayes gods word wolde be truly preached, which if his holy church wold do / nether the Irish ner yet the welsh wold so praye. By which prayen­ge and other like blindnesse / Master More maye se / that buzssynge in latine on the holy dayes helpeth not y^• hertes of the people. And I wondre that M. More can laugh at it and not ra­ther wepe for compassion / to se the soules for which christ shed his bloude / to perish. And yet I beleue that youre holy church wil not refuse at ester to receaue the rithes of all that soch bli­nd people robbe / as wel as they dispence with all false gotten good that is brought them / And will laye the ensample of Abraham and Mel­chisede [...] for them.

xij.

IN the .xij. he allegeth that. S. Hierom and Augustine prayed to sayntes / and conclu­deth / that if any secte be one better thē a nother they be the beste. I āswere / though he coude proue that they prayed to saintes / yet coude he not proue him selfe therby of the best secte ner that it were good therfore to praye to saintes. For first the apostles / patriarkes and prophetes ☜ were sure to befolowed / which prayed to non­ne. And agayne / a good man might erre in many thynges and not be damned / so that his erroure were not directly agenst the promises that are in christes bloude / nether that he held them maliciously. As if I beleued that the soules were in heuen immediatly and that they praid for vs / as we doo one for a nother / and did beleue that they herd all that we sprake or thought / ād vppon that prayed to some saint / to praye for me / to put him in remembraunce only / as I praye my neyboure / and with out other trust or cō­fidence and though al be false / yet shuld I not be damned / so longe as I had no obstinacie therin / for the faith that I haue in christes bloude shuld swalowe vp that erroure / tyll I were better taught / but master More shuld haue alleged the places where they prayed vn to sayntes

And then he allegeth agenst him self / that y^• miracles were wrought by god / to confirme his doctrine and to testifie that the preacher therof was a true mesinger. But the miracles that cōfirme praienge to saintes / doo not cōfirme gods doctrine. But mānes imaginacions. For there was neuer man yet that came forth and sai­de / loo / the soules of the sayntes that be deed [Page] be in heuen in ioye with christe and god wil that ye praye to them. In token wherof / I doo thys or that miracle₊

And when he triumpheth a litle after / as though all were wonne saynge / if oure old holy doctoures were false and their doctrine vntrue and their miracles fayned / let them come forth and doo miracles them selues and proue oures fayned. Sir / ye haue no doctours that did miracles to stablish youre worshepynge of images and so forth. youre doctrine is but the opinion of faithlesse people / which to confirme the deuel hath wrought moch sotilte. And as for the miracles done at sayntes graues and at the presens of reliques / as longe as true miracles endured and vntyll the scripture was autentickly rea­ceaued / wher done to confirme the preachinge y^t soch saintes had preached / whyle they were alyue. And therto the miracles which witches doo / witches we cōfoūde not with other miracles / But with scripture we proue them not of god / but of the deuel / to stablish a false fayth and to leade from god / as youre doctrine doeth. And likewise where we can confunde youre false doctryne wyth autenticke and manifest scripture / there nede we to doo no miracle. we bringe gods testamēt confirmed wyth miracles for al that we doo / ād ye ought to require no moare of vs₊

And in like maner do ye firste geue vs au­tenticke scripture for youre doctrine If ye haue ☞ no scripture come forth ād preach youre doctryne and confirme it wyth a myracle. And then if we brynge not autenticke scripture agenst you or confounde youre myracle wyth a greater as Moses dyd the sorsecars of Egypte / we wyll beleue you₊

And when he speaketh of tryal of miracles what doo ye to trie youre miracles / whether th­ey be true or fayned. And besydes y^• / gods worde which shuld be the triall / ye refuse and do al that ye can to falsifie it₊

And when he speaketh of sectes of herety­kes / sectes I āswere / that they which ye call heretikes beleue all in one christe / as the scripture teache­th / and ye in all thinge saue christe. And in youre false doctrine of youre awne fayninge with out scripture / ye haue as many sundrie sectes as all Monkes and freres and studentes in diuinite in all youre vniuersites. For first yer ye come to diuinite / ye be all taught to denye the saluacion that is in christe. And none of you teacheth a nother so moch as the articles of youre fayth But folow all most euery man a sundrie doctoure and in the scripture his awne brayne / framinge it euer after the false opynyons whych he hath professed yer he come at it₊

And when he saith that god wold sone vt­tur fayned miracles. I answere / God hath had at all tymes one or a nother to improue youres wyth gods worde. And I axe whether Maho­metes fayned myracles haue not preuayled .viii hundred yeres. And youre abhominable dedes worse then the turkes testifye that ye loue the trouth lesse thē they. And vn to them y^t loue not The cau­se of false miracles the trueth hath god promised by the mouth off paul. ii. Thessolo . ii. to send thē aboundaūce ād strength of false miracles / to stablysh them in lies and to dysceaue them and leade them out off the waye / so that they can not but perysh / for their vnkyndnesse / that they loued not the trueth / to lyue therafter and to honoure god in thir membres₊

And when he saith the heretykes haue no myracles. I answere / they nede not / so longe as they haue autenticke scripture₊

And when he sayth God sheweth no miracles for the doctours of the heretikes. No moa­re he nedeth not / for all they preach / ys the scripture confirmed with miracles / and receaued many hundred yeres agoo. And therefore God ne­deth not to shew miracles for them whyle they lyue to strength theyr preachynge. And to shew myracles for them when they be deed / to moue the people to praye to them ād to put their trust in them / as ye doo in youres / were to make thē Idoles and not sayntes₊

And when he speaketh of miracles done in theyr church in tyme of persecucyon. I answe­re / those were not the miracles of youre church but of them that beleued the scripture and sofered for it / as the heretykes doo now. For ye had neuer persecucyon for youre false doctrine / which ye haue brought in besides the scripture / ner any that died for it: But ye persecute and slee / whosoeuer wyth Gods worde doeth rebuke it. And as for youre awne myracles of whych ye make youre boost / ye haue fayned them so gro­sly thorow out all youre legendes of sayntes / that ye be now asshamed of them and wold fayne be ryd of them if ye wyst how with honeste / and so wolde ye of a thousand thynges which ye haue fayned. And the cause why heretykes fayne no miracles as ye do / ys that they walke puerly and entend no falshed₊

And whi y^• deuel doeth none for thē / ys that they cleue fast to gods worde whych the deuell [Page lxxx] hateth and can doo no miracles to further it / But to hindre it / as he doeth with you. Rea­de the stories of youre popis and cardenales / & se whether the deuell hath not holpe them vnto their hie dignities. And loke whether youre holy bysshopes come any other wyse vn to their promociōs / thē by seruinge y^e deuell / in settinge all christendome at variaunce / in sheddynge bl­oude / in bringynge the comen wealth to tyran­ny and in teachinge christen princes to rule mo­are cruelly then did euer any hethen / contrary vn to the doctrine of christe

And as for the turkes and sarasenes that ye speake of / I answere that they were christen once / at the lest waye for the most parte. And because they had no loue vn to the trouth to liue ther aftir as ye haue not / God did send them false miracles to carye them out of the right waye as ye be. And as for the Iewes / whi they byde out / is only because they haue sett vpp their a­wne rightewesnesse / as ye haue / and therfore cānot admitte the rightewesnesse that is in Chri­stes bloude / as ye can not and as ye haue for sworne it.

And when he saith / in that they haue miracles and the heretikes none / it is a sure signe y^• they be the true church and the heretikes not. Had ye gods word with youre miracles and the heretikes doctrine were with out / thē it we­re true. But now because ye haue miracles wi­th out gods worde / to confirme youre false imaginacions / and they which ye call heretikes haue Gods word confermed with miracles / fyve hundred yeares to gether / it is a sure [Page] signe that they be the true church and ye not / in as moch also as christ saith / that the disceauers shall come with miracles: ye ād in his name therto / as ye doo. For when christ sayth their shall come in my name that shall saye he him selfe is Christe / who is that saue youre pope / that wil­be christes vicar and yet maketh men to beleue in him selfe / in his bolles and calues skinnes ād Mat. 24. in what soeuer he listeth. And who be those false annoynted that shall come with miracles to di­sceaue y^• electe if it were possible / saue youre po­pe with his gresiamus?

And when he repeteth his miracles / to pro­ue that the old holy doctours were good men in the right beleffe. I answere agayne / that the doctours which planted gods worde watered it with miracles / while they were aliue. And when they were deed God shewed miracles at their graues / to confirme the same / as of Heliseus. And that continued till the scripture was ful receaued ād autenticke. But ye can not shew / ner shall / any doctoure which beinge aliue preached youre false doctrine confirminge it with mira­cles / as god doeth his scripture

Then saith he / God had in the old testamēt good men full of miracles / whose liuinge a man might be bold to folow and whose / doctrine a man might be bold to beleue be reason of their miracles / and then iugleth sayenge: if god shuld not so now in the new testament haue doctours with miraches to confirme their doctrine and liuinges / but contrary wise shuld bringe to passe or sofre to be brought to passe with false mira­cles / that his church shuld take ypocrites for saintes / which expounded the scripture falsly / thē shuld he disceaue his church and not haue his [Page lxxxi] spirite present in hys church / to teach them all trouth / as he promised them. I answere / god so fereth not his church to be disceaued: But he so fereth the popes church because they haue no whi the pope fell. loue vnto the trouth / to liue after the lawes of god / but consent vnto all iniquite / as he sofe­red the church of Mahomete. Moare ouer the gift of miracles was not all waye amonge the preachers in the olde testament. For Ihon baptist dyd no miracle at all. The miracles were ceased longe yer christe. And as for you in the popes kingdome had neuer man that ether confirmed gods doctrine / or youre awne with myracles. All youre sayntes be first saintes when they be deed and then doo first miracles / to confirme tithes & offerynges & the poetry which ye haue fayned / and not true doctrine. For to cō­firme what preachynge doeth Saint thomas of canterburie miracles? He preached neuer ner S. Thomas of cāterbury liued any other life then as our cardenall / and for hys mischeue died a mischeuous deeth. And of our cardenall / if we be not diligent / they wyll make a sainte also and make a greater relike of his showe then of the others₊

And of youre deed saintes lat vs take one Thomas de aquino for an ensample. Thomas de aquino is a saynt full of miracles / as freces tell. And hys doctrine was / that our lady was borne in originall sin­ne. Dunce And dunce doynge no miracle at all / because I suppose no mā wotteth where he lieth / improueth y^t with his sophistrie ād ▪ affirmeth y^e cōtrary. And of y^• cōtrary hath the pope / for the deuotion of that the graye frires gaue him / ye maye well thynke / made an article of the fayth₊ ☜

And finally as for the miracles / they ar to [...]ake a man astonied ād to wonder and to dra­we Miracles [Page] him to heare the worde ernistly / rather then to write it in his herte. For whosoeuer hath no no ther fealynge of y^• law of god that it is good / then because of miracles / the same shall beleue in Christe / as did Simon Magus and Iudas: and as they that came out of Egipte with Moses / and fell awaye at euery temptacion / & shall haue good werkes like vn to our popes / bissho­pes and cardenales. And therfore when the scripture is fully receaued / there is no nede of miracles. In so moch that they which wyll not bele­ue Moses and the prophetes when the scriptu­re is receaved / the same wilbe no true beleuers by the reason of miracles / though one arose frō deeth to life to preach vn to them by the testimonie of Christe.

And agayne / how doeth S. Hierom / Augustine / Bede and many other old doctoures that were before the pope was cropt vpp in to the c [...] sciences of men and had sent forth his demnable sectes / to preach him vnder the name of christe / as christ prophisied it shuld be / expoūde this texte / thou arte Peter and vppon this rocke I wyll byld my church / and this texte / Peter sede Mat. 16. my shepe / and all power is geuen me in heuen & in erth / and innumerable soch textes cleane contrary Ioan. 21 vnto al those new old holy doctours that haue made y^• pope a god? They knew of no po­wer that man shuld haue in the kyngdome of Christ / then to preach Christ truly. They knew of no power that the pope shuld haue to send to purgatory or to deliuer thēce / nether of any pardons ner of any soch confessiō as they preach & teach / nether were many that are articles with you / articles of their faith. They al preached forgeuenesse of synnes thorow repentaunce to wa [...] de [Page lxxxij] the lawe and faith in oure sauioure Christe / as all the scripture playnly doeth and can no notherwise be taken / and as al the hertes of as many as loue y^• law of god / doo fele / as surely as the fingre feleth the fire hote. ♣ ☜

ij.

IN the ende of the seconde chapter he brin­geth in Euticus that fell out at a window Actes. xx. whō saith he. s. Paulis merites did recouer. Euticus Verely Paule durst not so saye / but that Christes merites did it. Peter sayth Actes. iij. ye men of Israel why gase ye and stare vppon Actes. 3 vs / as though we by our power and godlynesse had made this man goo. Naye / the name of Ie­sus and fayth that is in him / hath geuen him strength and made him sounde: And euen here / it was the name of Iesus thorow paules faith that did that miracle and not Paules merites / though he were neuer so holy.

iij.

IN the .iij. chapter he sayth that bilneyes iudges which he yet nameth not for feare of sclaunderynge them / were indifferent. Naye / they that take rewardes be not indifferent. For Iudg [...] rewardes and giftes blynde the eyes of the seinge and peruerte the wordes of the righteous Deute. xvij. Now all that be shoren take grea­te Deu. 17. rewardes to defende pilgremages / purgatory and prayenge vn to sayntes: even the third parte I trow of all christendome. For all they haue they haue receaued in the name of purgatory & of saintes / and on that fundacion be all their bisshoprikes / albeyes / coleges & cathedral churches bylte. If they shalbe indifferēt iudges / they must be made seruauntes and doo saruice as their dutie is. And when they haue done a quarters saruice ▪ thē geue them wages as right is / vnto every man that laboureth in christes heruest a sufficient liuynge and no moare / and that in y^• na­me of his laboure and not of sayntes and so forth. And then they shalbe moare indifferent iudges / when there cometh no vauntage to iud­ge moare on one syde then a nother.

iiij.

IN the ende of [...] fourth he sayth the man toke an oth secretly ād was dismissed with secret penaunce. O ypocrites / why dare ye not doo it openly?

v.

IN the .v. the mesinger axeth him whether he were present. And he denyeth and sayth euer he hearde saye. Alas sir whi take you bry­bes to defende that you knowe not / why suffre you not them that were present and to whom the mater perteyneth / to lye for them selues?

Then he iesteth out the mater with wilken and simken / as he doeth Hunne and euery thinge / because men shuld not consydre their fals­hed ernestly. Vvherin be hold his sotle convey­aunce. He axeth what if simkē wold haue swor­ne that he saw men make those printes. Vvhe­re vnto Master More answereth vnder the name of / quod he / that he wold swere / that besydes the losse of the wager / he had lost his honestye & his soule therto. Beholde this mannes gravite / how coude you that doo when the case is possi­ble. you shulde haue put him to his proues and bydde him brynge recorde.

Then saith he the church receaueth no man conuicte of heresie vn to mercy / but of mercy re­ceaueth ☞ him to opē shame. Of soch mercy / god geue them plentye that are so mercyfull.

Then he sheweth how mercyfull they were to receaue the man to penaunce that abode styll in periury and deedly synne. O shamelesse ypo­crites how can ye receaue in to the congregaciō of christe an open obstinat synner that repēteth not / whē ye are commaunded of christ to cast all soch out? And agayne of scribes and phareses / by what ensample of christe and of his doctrine can ye put a man that repenteth vn to open shame and to that thinge where by euer aftir he is had in derision amonge his brethern of whom he ought to be loued and not mocked. ye might enioyne honest thinges / to tame his flesh / as prayer and fastynge and not that whych shuld be to him shame euer aftir and soch as ye youre selues wold not doo₊ ☜

vij.

IN the .vij. chapter he maketh moch to doo swerynge. aboute sweringe and that for a sotle pur­pose. Notwithstondinge / the trueth is / that no iudge ought to make a man swere agenst his wyll for many inconuenientes. If a man recea­ue an office he that putteth him in the rowme ought to charge him to doo it truly and maye & happly ought to take an othe of him. If a man offer him selfe to beare wittenesse / the iudge maye and of some haply ought to take an oth of them: but to compell a man to beare wittenesse ought he not. And Morouer if a iudge put a mā to an othe that he shall answere vn to all that he shalbe demaunded off / he ought to refuse. How be it if he haue sworn / and thē the weked iudge axe him of thynges hurtefull vn to his neyboure and agenst the loue that is in Christe / then he must repent that he hath sworn / but not synne agayne and to fulfyll his othe. For it is agēst gods commaundement / that a man shuld hurte his neyboure that hath not deserued it₊

viij.

VN to church / prest / charite / grace / confessiō and penaunce is answered him in the be­gynnynge of the boke. And when he sayth Tin­dale was confederatt with Luther that is not trueth₊

ix.

THen his .ix. chapter is there nothynge mo­are folishe. For if he wold haue any wyse man to beleue that my translacion wold destroye the masse any other wyse then the latine or greke texte / he shuld haue alleged the place and howe₊

xj.

IN the .xj. chapter Master More will not defende the liuinge of our spiritualtie / be­cause it is so open that he can not. And as litle shuld he be able to defende their lies / iff y^• light were abrode that men might se. And as he cannot deny them abhominable / so can he not deny them obstinat and indurat therin / for they haue bene oft rekuked with gods worde / but in vay­ne. And of soch the texte is playne that they can not vnderstonde the scripture. And yet M. More wyll receaue rewardes to dispute agenst the heresies of some soch as be cast out of Chri­stes church by soch holy patriarkes / whose liuēges he him silfe can not prayse. As holy Iudas / though the prelates of his church that is y^• pharises Iudas. were neuer so abhominable / yet because. Christes doctrine was condemned of them as of gods church that coude not erre / and all that beleued on him excomunicat / he was bold to saye. Quid vultis mihi dare et ego tradam eum vobis? That is / what will you geue me and I will deliuer him vn to you?

xij.

IN the .xij. he hath one conclusion / that the Prayars of an evell preest pro­fite not. prayars of an evel preest profite not. which though be true / yet the contrary is beleued amōge a greate mayny / in all quarters of englonde / so blynd be the people and wotte not what prayar meaneth. I haue hearde men of no small reputacion saye yer this in greate audience / that it maketh no mater whether y^• prest were good or bad so he toke money to praye as they scaldē praye with out / for he coude not hurte y^• prayer were he neuer so noughty.

And when he saith that the euell preest hurteth vs not so moch with his lyuynge / as he profiteth [Page xciij] vs with ministrynge the sacramentes. O worldlye wisdome / if a man lead me thorow a ieoperdous place by daye / he can not hurte me so greatly as by night. The turke seith y^t mur­ther / thefte / extorcion / oppression / and adultery be synne. But when he leadith me by the dar­kenesse of sacramentes with out significacion / I can not but ketch harme and put mi trust ād confidence in that which is nether god ner his worde. As for an ensample / what trust put the people in anoylynge & how crie they for it / with no nother knowlege then that the oyle saueth them / vn to their damnacion and denyenge of Christes bloude?

And when he saith the preest offereth or sa­crificeth Christes body. I answere / Christ was Sacrifice offered once for all as it is to se in the epistle to the Hebrues. As the prest sleeth Christ / breaketh Hebr. 10. his body and shedith his bloude / so he sacrifi­ceth him and offereth him. Now y^• preest sleeth him not actually ner breaketh his body actualy ner shedith his bloude actually nether scorgeth him and so forth / thorow out al his passion: but representeth his sleinge / his body breakynge ād bloudshedynge for my synnes and all the rest of his passion and playeth it before myne eyes only. Vvhich significacion of the masse / because the people vnderstonde not / therfore they recea­ue no forgeuenesse of their synnes therby / and therto can not but ketch hurte in their soules / thorow a false faith as it well appeareth / how euery man cometh therto for a sundrye imagi­nacion / all ignoraunt of the true waye.

Let no man begyle you with his iuglynge sophistrie. Oure offeringe of Christ is to beleue in him / and to come with a repentinge herte vn [Page] to y^• remēbraunce of his passion and to desyre god the father for the breakynge of Christes body on the crosse and shedynge of his bloude and for his deeth and all his passions / to be mercy­full vn to vs and to forgeue vs acordynge vnto his testament and promise. And sowe recea­ue forgeuenesse of oure synnes. And other offe­rynge or sacrifisinge of Christ is there now no­ne. Vvalke in the open light and felynge & lett not youre selues be led with iuglynge wordes as mules and asses in whych there is none vn­derstondinge₊

M. Deacons were had in price in the ol­de More Deacons. Tindale tyme T. For the deacons then toke the care of all the pore and sofered none to goo a beg­gynge / but prouided a lyuynge for euery one of them. Vvhere now they that shulde be deacons make them selues prestes and robbe the pore of landes / rentes / offerynges and all that was ge­uen them / deuourynge all them selues and the pore dienge for hongre.

M. prestes be dispised because of the multitude. T. if there were but one in the worlde as mē More. Hreestes. Tindale More. Tindale saye of the fenix / yet if he lyued abhominably / he coude not but be dispised₊

M. a man maye haue a good faith coupled with all maner synne. T. a good faith puteth a­waye al synne / how then can alwaye synne dw­ell with a good faith? I dare saye / that Master 1. Ioau. 4. More durst affirme / that a man might loue god and hate his neyboure both at tonce / and yet S. Ihon in his epistle wyll saye that he sayeth vntrulye. But Master More meaneth of the best fayth that euer he felte. By all lyklyhod he knoweth of no nother but soch as maye stonde with all wekednesse / nother in him selfe ner in [Page xciiij] his prelates. wherfore in as moch as their faith maye stond with all that Christ hateth / I am sure he loketh but for small thanges of god for his defēdynge of them. And therfore he playeth suerly to take his rewarde here of oure holy patriarkes.

M. few durst be prestes in the old tyme. T. More. Tindale then they knew the charge and fered god. But now they know the vauntage & dread him not.

M. if the lawes of the church were executed which tyndale and Luther wold haue burnt / it More Tindale wolde be better. T. iff the testament of oure sa­uioure might be knowen for blinde wretches & couetous tirantes / it wold write the law of god in all mens hertes that beleued it / and thē shuld men naturally and with out compulsion kepe all honestie. And agayne / though the popis law coude helpe / is not yet no law as good as a la­we vnexcuted?

xiij.

IN the .xiij. he rageth and fareth exceadyn­ge Prestes maye haue wives. foule with him selfe. There he biteth / sucketh / gnaweth / towseth / and mowseth tindale. There he weneth that he hath wonne his spo­res ād y^t it is not possible to answere him. And yet there / because he there most stondeth in his awne conseyte / I doute not vn to them that be lerned in Christe to proue him moste ignoraunt of all and cleane wyth out vnderstondynge of godly thynges. And I saye yet / that as no woman ought to rule a mans office / where a man is present / by y^• ordir of nature / & as a younge mā ought not to be chosen / to ministre in y^• chu­rch / where an olde mete for the rowme maye be had / by y^• ordir of nature / euen so it was Pauls meaninge / to preferre y^• maried before y^• vn maried [Page] / for the inconuenientes that might chaunce by the reason of vnchastite / which inconuenien­tes Mastre More mighte se with sorow of herte (it he had as greate loue to Christ as to other thinges) to happen dayly vn to the shame of Christes doctrine / amonge prestes / freres and monkes / partly with open whores / partly with their so domitrie wherof they cast ech other in y^• teeth dayly in euery abbey / for y^• least displeasure / y^• one doeth to a nother. M. More might se what occasions of vnchastite begeuen vn to y^• curates euery where by the reason of their offi­ce and dayly conuersacion with the maried.

And when he sayth neuer man coude fin­de that exposicion tyll now / there he sayth vn­true. For. S. Hierom him silfe saith y^• he knew them that so expounded the texte / and rebuked s. hierome. them of Rome because they wold not admit­te in to the clargye them that had had two wy­ues / the one before baptim and the other aftir sayenge: if a man had kylled .xx. men before his baptym / they wold not haue forboden him / and why then shuld that which is no synne at all be a lett vn to him. But y^• god of Rome wold not heare him. For sathan began then to worke his misteries of wekednesse.

And when he sayth / he that hath .x. wiues hath one wife. I saye that one is taken by the vse of speakynge for one only. As when I saye / I am content to geue the one / meanynge one only. And vnto him that hath no helpe / is there one helpe / to loke for no helpe / where one helpe is taken for one only / and many places else.

And when master More saith / he that hath had .ij. wiues one after a nother maye not be preest / and that if a prestes wife dye he maye not [Page xcv] haue a nother if nede be / or that if he were made preest hauynge no wife / he might not aftir ma­rie iff he burnt / I desyre a reason of him. yf he saye / it hath bene so the vse: then saye I an hore is better then a wife / for that hath bene the vse of oure holy father many hundred yeres. But I affirme vn to Master More y^• contrary. And I saye first with Paule / that the kyngdome of god is not meate and drynke / and by the same Rom. 14. reason nether husbonde or wife / but the kepin­ge of the commaundementes and to loue euery man his neyboure as him selfe. And therfore as meate and drynke ware ordeyned for mans ne­cessite / and as a man maye eate & drynke at all nedes in all degrees / so ferre as it letteth him not to kepe the commaundementes and to loue his neyboure as him selfe: even so was the wi­fe created for the mans necessite / and therfore maye a mā vse hir at all his nede in all degrees / as ferre as she letteth him not to kepe gods law which is no thinge else by Paules lernyn­ge / then that a man loue his neyboure as him selfe. Now I desyre a reason of master Mores doctrine / what doeth my seconde wife or my third hinder me to loue my neyboure as mi sel­fe and to doo him seruice agenst I come to be preeste? Vvhat let is youre seconde wife to you to serue oure holy father the pope moare then youre first wold haue bene? And in like maner if my first wife dye / when I am preest / why maye I not loue my neyboure and doo him as good seruice with the seconde as with the firste? And agayne / if I be made prest hauinge no wife and aftir burne / & therfore marie / why maye I not loue my neyboure and serue him with that wi­fe / as well as he y^• brought a wife with him?

It was not for nought that paul prophesy­ed that some shuld departe from the fayth / and 1. Timo 4 attende vnto disceueable spirites and deuelysh doctryne forbiddynge to mary and to eate meates which god hath created to be receaued with thankes of them that know the trouth / to bye dyspensacyons to vse lawfull mete and vnlawfull wyves₊

If I axe Master More whi he that hath the seconde wite or hath had .ii. wives may not be a prest / or whi if a prestes first wyfe die / he maye not mary the seconde / he wyll answere because Apparent godlinesse whi the prest maye not haue the secon­de wyfe the prest must represent the misteries or secret properties and vnion of christe the only husbonde of his only wife the crurch or congrega­cion that beleueth in him only. That is / as I haue in other places sayde / the scripture describe­th vs in matrimonie the misteries and secret benefites which God the father hath hyd in christ for all thē y^• be chosen and ordeyned to beleue & Christes benefytes towardes vs are fi­gured by matrimo­nye. put their trustes in hym to be saued. As when a man taketh a wife he geueth hir him selfe / his honoure / hys riches and all that he hath and maketh her of equall degre vn to him selfe: if he be kinge and she before a beggers doughter / yet she is not the lesse quene and in honoure a boue all other / if he be emproure she ys empresse and honoured of men as the emproure and parteta­ket of all. Euen so yf a man repent and come & beleue in christ to be saued from the damnacy­on of the synne of which he repenteth / christ ys hys awne good immediatly: christes deeth / pay­ne / prayar / passion / fastynge and all his merites are for that mans synnes a full satisfaccyon ād a sacrifice of might and power to absolue hym a pena et a culpa: christes enheretaunce / hys loue [Page xcvi] ād fauoure that he hath with god his father are that mans by and by / and the man by that mariage is pure as christ and cleane wyth out synne / and honourable / glorious / well beloued and in fauoure thorow the grace of that maria­ge. And because that the prest must represent vs thys significaciō / is the cause whi a preest maye not haue the seconde wife saye they whych po­pish reason hath disceaued many wise / as who cā be but disceaued in some thinge / if he receaue all hys doctrine by the auctorite of hys elders / excepte he haue an occasion as we haue to run­ne to Moses and the prophetes and there hea­re and se with oure awne eyes ād beleue no lenger by the reason of oure forefathers / when we se them so shamfully begild them selues and to begile vs in a thousande thinges whych the turkes se₊

Now to oure purpose / iff thys doctryne be true / then must euery preest haue a wyfe or haue had a wife. For he y^t neuer had wife cā not represent vs this. And againe he that hath an hore or a nother mans wyfe / hath lost this propirte ād therfore ought to be put downe.

And agayne / the seconde mariage then of no man is or can be a sacrament by that doctry­ne. And yet I will describe you the mariage off christ as well by hys mariage that hath had .ix. wiues and hath now the tenth / as by his that hath now the firste₊

O wil they saye / his wife was no virgin or he whē they were maried. Sir the significacyon stondeth not in y^• virginite but in y^• actual wedlocke. we were no virgēs whē we came to christ but comē hores beleuinge in a thousand Idoles

And in the seconde mariage or tenth and ye will / the man hath but one wife and all his is hirs / and his other wiues be in a lande where is no husbonde or wife. I saye therfore with Pa­ul that this is deuellish doctrine and hath a si­militude of godlynesse with it but the power is a waye. The myst of it blindeth the eyes of the simple and begyleth them / that they can not se a thousande abhominacions wrought vnder y^• clocke.

And therfore I saye still / that the apostles meaninge was that he shuld haue a wife / if ha­ply his age were not y^• gretter / and that by one wife he excludeth them that had two and them that were defamed with other saue their aw­ne wiues / and wolde haue them to be soch as were knowen of vertuouse liuynge / for to doo reuerence and honoure vn to the doctrine of Christe. As it appereth by the wedowes whych he excludeth before .lx. yeres for feare of vncha­stite wedowes and admitteth yet none of that age excepte she were well knowen of chast / honeste and godly behauoure / and that to honoure gods worde with all / than whych the pope hath nothynge moare vile. And when Master More to mocke / bringeth forth the texte of the wedowe / that she must be the wife of one man. I answere for all his iestyuge / that Paul excludeth not hir y^t had x. husbādes one aftir a nother / but hir that had ij. husbandes attonce. And when More laugh­eth at it / as though it had neuer bene the gyse. I wold to god for his mercy that it were not y^• gyse this daye / and then I am sure his wrath wold not be so greate as it is. Paul meaneth only y^• he wold haue no diffamed woman cho­sen wedowe for dishonourynge y^• worde of god [Page xcvij] and the congregacion of Christ / and therfore excludeth comen wemen and soch as were dyffa­med besydes their husbandes and haply the de­uorced therto. And that I proue by the same doctrine of Paule / that the kyngdome of god is no soch busynes but the kepynge of gods commandementes only and to loue one a nother. Now loke on the thynge and on the office of y^• wedowe. It was but to wayte on the sicke and pore people ād to washe straungers fete. Now the wedowes of .x. husbādes must haue be founde of the cost of the congregacion / iff they were destitute of frendes / as all other pore were / though in tyme passed they haue bene diffamed persons.

But vnder .lx. wold Paul let none ministre for feare of occasions of vnchastite / and therto none but soch as were well knowen of honeste liuynge and of good reporte. Now in as moch as the wedow of .x. husbandes must be founde of the comen cost at hir nede / what vnclennesse is in hir by the reason of hir seconde husbonde / that she is not good ynough to be a seruaunte vn to the pore people / to dresse their meate / to wash their clothes / to make their beddes and so forth and to wash straūgers fete / that came out of one congregacion vn to a nother a bou­te busynesse / and to doo all maner seruice of lo­ue vn to her pore brethern and sisters. To ha­ue had the seconde husbande is no shame amō­ge the hethen: it is no shame amonge the christē for when the husbonde is deed / the wife is fre to mary to whom she wyll in the lorde / and by as good reason the husbande / and of right who moare fre then the preeste? And therfore they shame not our doctrine ner oure congregacion / [Page] ner dishonoure god amonge the hethen or wea­ke Christen. Now when we haue a playne rule that he whych loueth his neyboure as him selfe kepeth all the lawes of god / lett him tell me for Roma. 13. what cause of loue towarde his neyboure / a wedowe of two lawfull husbandes maye not doo seruice vn to the pore people₊

Vvhy maye not a wedowe of .l. doo seruice vn to the pore? paule whych knitteth no snares ner leadeth vs blinde ner teacheth vs wyth out a reason geuynge of his doctrine / answereth / for feare of occasions of euell / lest she be tempted or tempte other: And then if she be taken in mi­sdoenge / the doctrine of Christ be euell spoke of therto and the weake offended.

And when Master More mocheth wyth my reason that I wolde haue euery preest to haue a wife because fewe mē can liue chaste / I an­swere / that if he loued the honoure of Christ ād his neyboure as he doeth his awne couetous­nesse / he shuld finde that a good argumente. Paul maketh the same and moch moare sclen­derly then I after youre sophistrie. For he dis­puteth thus / some younge wedowes do disho­nest the congregacion of Christe and his doctrine / therfore shall no younge wedow at all mini­stre in the comune seruice therof: But shall all be maried and bere childern and serue their husbandes. And it is a fer lesse rebuke to the doctri­ne of Christ and his congregaciō / that a womā shuld doo amisse / then the bisshope or preest. I am not so mad / to thinke that there coude no prest at all liue chaste. Nether am I so folish to thynke that there be not as many wemen that coude liue chast at .l. as {pre}stes as .xxiiij. And yet though of a thousande wedowes of .l. yere olde [Page xcviij] ix. hundred .xc. and .ix. coude lyue chast / Paul be­cause he knoweth not that one / wyll lett none at all ministre in the comen seruice amonge oc­casion of vnchastite. Christes appostles consydered all infirmities and all that might hindre the doctrine of Christe / and therfore did their beste to preuent all occasions. Vvherfore as fish is no better then flesh / ner flesh better then fish in the kyngdome of Christ / euen so virginite wed­locke and wedowed are none better then other to be saued by in their awne nature or to plea­se good with all / but with whatsoeuer I maye best serue my brethern / that is euer best acordinge vn to the tyme and facion of the worlde. In persecucion it is good for euery mā to liue chast can he / and namely for the preacher. In peace when a man maye liue quietly and abyde in one place / a wife is a sure thynge to cutt of occa­sions₊

Then he wold make it seme that prestes wiues More. ☜ Tindale were the occasions of heresies in almanye. Naye / they fell first to heresies and then toke wiues / as ye fell first to the popis holy doctrine and then toke whores.

M. the church byndeth no man to chastite. T. More. Tindale of a trueth / for it geueth licence to who soeuer wyll / to kepe hores / ād permitteth to abuse mēs wiues and sofereth sodomitrie / and doeth but only forbid matrimonie₊

And when he sayth / chastite was allmoste receaued by generall custome / before the law Thre lye [...] at once was made: one lye. And good fathers did but geue their aduise therto: a nother lye. And it was ratified and receaued wyth the consent of all christendome: the third lye.

They dyd well to chose a poete to be their [Page] defender. First it was attempted in generall counsell and resisted by holy fathers whych yet them selues were neuer maried / sayenge y^t men might not knitte a snare for their weake brethern / agenst the doctrine of Christ and his appostles. Nether coude it be brought to passe / vntyll the pope had gott the emproures swer­de out of his hande. The grekes which were y^• one halfe of christendome then I suppose / wold neuer admitte it.

Now godly loue wold neuer sofre them to consent that we shuld be bound vn to y^t bur­thē which they thē selues coude not beare as M. More in a nother place affermith y^t they dyd. And agayne / we haue manyfest stories that it was brought in with violēce of swerde ād that all the prestes of germany were cōpelled to put awaye their wiues. And we finde that whersoeuer the pope raygneth / he came in with discea­uinge the kynge of the contre and thē with his swerde compelled the reste. The pope came but now late in to wales to raygne / there ouer the bisshopes and prestes / and that with the swerd of the kinge of Englonde₊

And yet though all the clergie of christen­dome had graunted it / all the church had not made it ner yet the tenth parte of the church. The laye people be as well of the church as the prestes. Nether can all the prestes in the world of ryght make any lawe wherin their parte ly­eth with out their consent. Now it perteyneth vn to the comen people and most of all vn to y^• weakest / y^t their prestes be endued with all ver­tu and honestie. And the chastite of his wife / do­ughter ād seruaunt perteyneth vn to euery particular man / whych we se by experience defiled [Page xcix] dayly / by the vnchaste chastite of the spiritual­tye₊

Vvherfore if the parishes or any one pa­rish / after they had sene the experience what in­conuenientes come of their chastite / wold haue no curat excepte he had a wife to cutt of occa­sions / as Paul when he had sene y^t proffe / wold haue no younge wedowes ministre / who saue a tirant / shuld be agenst them?

Morouer the generall counsels of the spiri­ritualtye Generall counsell ar of no nother maner sens the pope was a god then the generall parlamentes of y^• temperaltie. Vvhere no man dare saye his mynde frely and liberally for feare of some one and of his flaterars.

And loke in what captiuite the parlamētes Parlia­ment. be vnder the priuatt counsels of kynges / so are y^e generall counsels vnder the pope and his cardenales. And this is the maner of both. Some one two or there wilie foxes that haue all other in subieccion / as ye haue sene in my lorde carde­nall / imagen / not what ought to be / but what they lust to haue & conceaue in their awne braynes and goo with child / some tyme a yere .ij. iij. iiij. v. vj. or .vij. and some tyme .xx. and a boue / castynge / can vesynge and compasynge for the birth agenst oportunite: openinge the mater priuely vnder an oth a litle and a litle vn to certayne secretaries whose parte is therin / as they finde men of actiuite and of corage / prepared to sel soul and body for promocion.

And the mater in the meane tyme is tur­moyled and tossed amonge them selues: and persuacions and sotle reasons ar forged to blinde the right waye and to begyle mens Wittes. And [Page] whom they feare to haue aduersaries able to resiste them / for soch meanes ar sought / to brynge them in vn to their partie or to conuey thē out of the waye. And when oportunite is come / they call a counsell or parlament vnder a contrary pretence. And a masse of the holy gost / whō they desyre as ferre awaye as were possible / is son­ge and a goodly sermon is made / to blere mens eyes with all. And then sodenly other men vn­prouided / the mater is opened / aftir the most sotle maner. And many are begyled with sotle ar­gumentes and craftie persuasions. And they y^t hold harde agenst them ar called asyde and re­soned with aparte and handeled aftir a facion / and partly entised with fayre promises ād partly feared with cruell threatenynges / and so so­me ar ouercome with syluer sylogismoses and other for feare of threateninges are dreuē vnto silence / And if any be founde at the last / y^t wyll not obeye their falshed and tiranny / they rayle on him and ieste him out of countenaunce and call him opinatiue / selfeminded and obstinat / ād bere him in hand that the deuell is in him that he so cleueth vn to his awne witte / though he speake no sillable then gods worde / and is axed whether he wilbe wyser then other men. And in the spiritualtye they excomunicat him & ma­ke an heretike of him. And this to be true in the clargies chastite is as clere as the daye by manifest chronicles / in so moch that the prelates of Rome / were a brewenge it a boue an hundred yeres and I wott not how longe lenger / yer they coude brynge it to passe / and yet in vayne till they had gotte the emproures swerde to proue that it was most expedient so to be. And for what entent? to brynge all vnder the pope / and [Page C] that the prelates of all landes might as y^• olde why pree­stes maye haue no wyues. maner was / come and wayte on y^• pope at Ro­me / where he prepared them hores ynow.

And that his sworen prelates in euery lan­de / might the moare conueniently wayte in kynges courtes / to ministre the comen welth vn to the popis pleasure and profite. For had y^e clar­gie kepte their wiues / they coude neuer haue come vn to this aboue where they now be / and to these pluralities / vnions and totquottes. For their is no laye man though he were neuer so e­vell disposed / that coude for his wife and chil­dern haue leyser to contriue soch mischeue and to runne from contre to contre / to lerne falshed and so tilte / as our spiritualtye doo / which with out feare of god and shame of man / kepe who­res whersoeuer they come. And thus ye se that the clargies chastite perteyneth as moch vn to the temporalte as vn to the spiritualte.

And a nother is this / no power amonge thē y^t professe the trouth / maye bynd where god lo­wseth / saue only where loue and my neybours necessite requireth it of me. Nether can any po­wer now bynd them to come / but they may frely kepe or breake / as the thynge is hurtfull or expedient. Nether can there be any bonde where loue and necessite requireth the contrary. So that this law / loue thy neyboure / to helpe him as thou woldest be holpe / must interpret all mās lawes.

As if I had sworn younge or vnwysely that I wold liue chaste and all the world had bound me / if afterward I burnt and coude not ouercome the passion / I ought to mary.

For I must condicyon my vowe and shew Vowes. [Page] a cause of it therto. I maye not vow for y^• cha­stite it selfe as though it were sacrifice to plea­se god in it selfe / for that is the Idolatrie of he then. I must therfore vowe to doo my neybou­re seruice (which in that case he maye not require) or to geue my selfe moare quietly to prayer & studie (which is not possible as longe as I bur­ne & the mynd wyll not be quiet) or that I ma­ye the better kepe the lawes of god whych if I burne I stond thorow my chastite in moare ieoperdie to breake and to hurte my neyboure and to shame the doctrine of christe. And in like ma­ner / If I had forsworen fleshe & all the world had bound me / yet if necessite require it of me / to saue my life or my health / I ought to breake it. And agayne though I had sworn chastite / ād the comen wealth or the necessite of a nother required the contrary / I must breake it. But on y^e one syde / of all y^t euer burnt in the popis cha­stite / he neuer gaue prest licēce to take wife / but to kepe hores only. And on the other syde / all y^t vow any vow / doo it for the thynge it selfe as though it were as I said seruice or sacrifice to god that had delite in the dede / as younge chil­dern haue in apples / and y^• for that dede they shall haue an hier rowme in heuen thē their neyboures / which is the Idolatrie of the hethē / w­hen he ought to bestow his vow vppō his ney­boure to brynge him to heuen and not to envye him and to seke therby an hier rowme not ca­rynge whether his neyboure come thither or no And finally to burne and not to wyll vse the naturall remedye that god hath made / is but to tempte god / as in all other thynges. But and if god haue brought the in to a strayte and ha­ue therto taken the naturall remedye from [Page Ci] the / then to resiste and to crie vn to God for hel­pe and to sofre / is a signe that thou louest gods lawes. And to loue Gods law is to besure that thou art Gods child electe to mercie. For in all his childern only / he writeth that token

And then he saith / euery man hath his cho­yce whether he wilbe preest or no. But what nettes and snares doeth antichrist laye for them? First his false doctrins / where with theelders be gyled / compell their childern and sacrifice them / The pop­es snares. to burne in the popis chastite with no nother mynde / thē those old Idolaters sacrificed their 1 childern vn to the false god Moloch: so y^t they thinke / by the merites of their childerns burninge / after the popes false doctrine / to please god and to gett heuen / cleane ignoraunt of the testa­ment made in christes bloude.

Then what a multitude ar blinded and drawen in to the nett / with the bayte of promociō / 2 honoure / dignite / pleasures / fredome and liber­te to synne and to doo al mischeue vnpunished / thinges which all evell that feare not god doo desyre?

And what a numbre brought vpp ydely vn 3 to .xx. and aboue / then put their heedes in his halter / because they haue no nother craft to gett their liuinges & not because they can liue chaste.

Also some liue chast at .xxiiii. which same burne at .xxx. And that to be true dayly experiē­ce 4 teacheth and good naturall causes therbe.

And then loke on the appostles lerninge & ordinaunce. when one or .ii. younge wedowes 5 had broken there chastite / he wold neuer after let any moo be chosen of the same age. How co­meth it then that the pope for so many hundred thousandes that miscary / wil nether breake the [Page] ordinaunce or mitigat it / or let any goo backe / but if any burne / sendeth them vn to the shame of christes doctrine and offendinge ād hurte off his church and neuer vn to the lawfull remedie of mariage₊

And when Master More calleth it heresie / to thinke that the maried were as pleasant to god as the vnmaried / he is surelye an heretyke that thynketh the contrary. Christes kingdome is nether meat ner drinke ner husband ner wife ner wedow ner virgin / but the kepynge off the commaundementes and seruinge of a mans neyboure louingely by the doctrine of S. paule. where not to eate helpeth me to kepe the com­maundementes better then to eate / there yt ys better not to eate then to eate. And where too eate helpeth me to kepe the commaundementes and to doo my dutie vn to my neyboure / there it is better to eate then not to eate. And in like case where to be with out a wife helpeth moa­re to kepe the commaundementes and to serue a mans neyboure / there yt is better to be vnmaried then maried / and where a wife helpeth too kepe the commaundementes better then to be­with out / there it is better to haue a wife then to be with out. That herte only whych is rea­dye to do or lett vndone all thynges for his neyboures ☞ sake / is a plesaunt thynge in the syght of god₊

And when he wyll haue the prestes to liue chaste / for reuerence off the sacramentes yt ys deuellish doctrine hauinge the similitude of godlynesse / but the pith and mary is awaye. If he meane water / oyle salt and soch like / then is the [Page Cij] wife with hir body ād all hir vses in the lawes of god / incomparable purer and holyer. If he meane the sacrament of christes body / I answere / that the handes defile not the man ner ought that goeth thorow the handes be they neuer so vnwashe / by the testimonie of christe / and moch Mat. 15. lesse can they then defile christe.

Morouer the prest twitcheth not christes natural body with his handes by yours awne doctrine / ner seith it with his eyes / ner breaketh yt with his fingers ner eateth it wyth hys mouth ner chammeth yt wyth hys teeth ner drinketh his bloude with his lippes / for christe is impas­sible. But he that repenteth towarde the law The sa­cramēt of the altare ād how it must be receyved of god / and at the sight of the sacrament or off the breakinge / felynge / eatynge / chamminge or drinkinge / calleth to remembraunce the deeth of christe / his body breakynge and bloudshedynge for our synnes and all hys passion / the same ca­teth our sauioures body and drinketh his bloude thorow faith only and receaueth forgeuenes­se of all his synnes therby / and other not. And all that haue not this doctrine of the sacrament come therto in vayne. And therfore there is no moare cause that he which sayeth y^• masse shuld lyue chast then he that heareth it / or he that ministreth y^• sacrament / then he y^t receaueth it. It is to me greate maruell that vnlawfull whore dome couetousnesse and extorsion can not defy­le their handes / as well as lawfull matrimonie ☜ Cursed therfore be their deuellish doctrine with false apperinge godlinesse the frute and power awaye / out of the hertes of all christen men₊

And when he bringeth the ensample of the hethen / I praise him. For y^• hethen because they [Page] coude not vnderstond god spiritually / to serue him in the sprite to beleue in him ād to loue his lawes / therfore they turned his glorie vn to an image and sarued him after their awne imagi­nacion with bodyly seruice as the hole kingdo­me of the pope doeth / hauinge lesse power to serue him in spirite than the turkes. For when the hethen made an image of the axes or feuers ād sacrificed therto / they knew that the image was ☞ not the feuers / but vnder the similitude of the ymage / they worsheped y^t power of god which plaged them with the feuers / wyth bodyly ser­uice / as the pope doeth aboue al the Idolaters that euer were in the worlde. As when we paynte saint Micael weyenge the soules and steke S Micael wayeth y^• soules vpp a candell to flater him and to make him fa­uourable vn to vs / ād regarde not the testamēt of christ ner the lawes of god / because we haue no power to beleue ner to loue the trueth. And euen so to referre virginite vn to the person of god / to please him therwith is false sacrifice ād hethenish Idolatrie. For y^• onely seruice of god is to beleue in christ and to loue the lawe. wherefore thou must referre thi wedlocke / thi virgini­te ād all thi wother deades vn to the kepinge of the lawe and seruinge thy neyboure only. And then when thou lokest with a louinge herte / on the law that saith breake not wedlocke / kepe no whore and so forth / and findest thi body weake and thine office soch that thou must haue cōuersacion with mens wiues / doughters ād seruaūtes / then it is better to haue a wife then to bew­ith out. And agayne if thou se seruice to bedo­ne that thou canst not so wel do with a wife as with out / then if thou haue power to be with out it is best so to be / and in soch like. And else y^• [Page Ciij] one is as good as the other and no difference. And to take a wife for pleasure / is as good as to absteyne for displeasure

And when Mastre More seith no nother cause / why it is not best y^t oure spiritualtie we­re all gelded / then for losse of merite in resistyn­ge / besydes that that imaginaciō is playne Idolatrie / I hold M. More begylde / iff all we reade of gelded men be true and the experience we se whether it were best y^t prestes were gel­ded in other bestes. For then the gelded lust in their flesh as moch as the vngelded. which if be true / then the gelded / in y^t he taketh soch greate pay­ne in geldynge / not to minysh his lustes but if lustes ouercome him / yet that he haue not were with to hurte his neyboure / deserueth moare then the vngelded. And thē it were best that we ate and dronke and made oure flesh stronge y^t we burned / to deserue in resistynge / as some of youre holy sayntes haue layd virgens in their beddes / to kendle their corage / that they might ☜ after quench their hete in colde water / to deser­ue the merite of holy marters

And when he saith / the prestes of the olde law absteyned from their wiues when they ser­ued in the themple. Many thynges were forboden them / to kepe them in bonde and seruile feare and for other purposes. And yet I trow he findeth it not in the texte that they were forbo­den their wiues. And when he imageneth so because zacharias / when his course was out / gatt him whom to his howse I thynke it was better for him to go to his howse / then to send for his howse to him he was also olde and his wife to. But and if they were forboden / it was but for a tyme / to geue thē to prayar / as we might doo right well ād as well as they. But I read that [Page] they were forbodē to drinke wine & stronge drinke / Leuit. x. when they ministred: of which oures powre in with our measure

M. More. christ liued chast and exhorteth vn More Tyndale. to chastite. Tindale. we be not al of christes complexion / nether exhorteth he to other chastite thē wedlocke / saue at a tyme to serue oure neybou­res. Now the popis chastite is not to serue a mans neyboure / but to runne to riotte and to carie a waye with him the liuynge of the pore and of the true preacher / even the tythes of .v. or .vi. parishes and to go and ether dwell by a stues or to carye a stewes with him / or to corrupte other mennes wiues

Pannutius a man that neuer proued mari­age panutius is praysed in the stories / for resistynge soch doctrine with gods worde in a generall counsel before the pope was a god. And now M. More a mā that hath proued it twise is magnified for defendynge it with sophistrie. And ageyne me semeth that it is agreate ouer sight of M. More to thinke that christ though he were neuer ma­ried wold not moare accepte the seruice of a maried man that wold moare saye trouth for him then they y^t abhorre wedlocke: in as moch as y^• spiritualte accepte his hūble saruyce & rewarde his merites with so hye honoure / because he cā better fayne for them / thē any of their vnchaste / I wold saye awne chast people / though he be bigamus and past the grace of his necke verse.

And finally / if M. More loke so moch on y^• pleasure that is in mariage / why setteth he not his eyes on the thankes geuynge for that plea­sure and on the pacience of other displeasures.

xiiij

M. Vvicleffe was the occasion of the vttur M. More subucrsion of the realme of Bohem / both in faith and good liuynge and of the losse of many a thousand liues T. the rule of their faith ar Tyndale. christes promises / and the rule of their liuynge gods lawe. And as for losse of liues / it is trouth that the pope slew I thynke an hundred thou­sande of them because of their faith and y^t they wold no lenger serue him. As he slew in englonde many a thousande / and slew the true kynge and sett vpp a false vn to the effusion of all the noble bloude ād murtherynge vpp of the comi­naltie / because he shulde be his defender.

M. The cōstitucion of the bisshopes is not y^t M. More y^• scripture shall not be in englysh / but that no man maye translate it by his awne auctorite or reade it / vntill they had approued it. T. if no tr­anslation Tyndale shalbe had vntill they geue licence or till they approue it / it shall neuer be had. And so it is al one in effecte. to saye there shalbe none at all in englysh / and to saye / tyl we admitte it / seinge they be so maliciouse that they wil none admitte / but fayne al the cauellacions they cā / to proue it were not expedient. So that if it be not had spite of their hertes it shal neuer be had And therto / they haue done their best to haue had it enacted by parlament / that it shuld not be in englysh

xv.

HE iesteth out hunnes deeth with his poe­trie Hunne where with he bylte vtopia. Many greate lordes came to baynardes castell (but all namelesse) to examen the cause (as the [Page] credible prelates so wel lerned / so holy and so indifferent which examined bilney and Arture / be also all namelesse) M. More Horsey Tyndale.

M. Horsey toke his pardon / because yt is not good / to refuse gods pardon and the kynges. T. Gods pardon can no man haue excepte he knowlege him selfe a synner. And euen so he that receaueth the kynges yeldelth him selfe giltie / And morouer it is not possible that he which putteth his trust in god / shulde for feare off the xii. men or of his iudges / receaue pardō for that he neuer was fautie vn to the dishonouringe of our sauioure Iesus / but wold haue denied it rather vn to the deeth₊

And therto / iff the mater were so clere as ye iest it out / then I am sure the kynges graces both curtesie and wysdome / wolde have char­ged the iudges to haue examined y^• euidence la­yed agenst him diligently and so to haue quitte him with moare honestie then to geue him par­don of that he neuer treaspased in / and to haue rid the spiritualtye out of hate ād all suspyciō₊

Then saith he hunne was sore susspecte of Hunne heresie and conuicte. And after he saith hunne was an heretike in dede ād in perell so to be proued. And thē how was he conuicte? I herde sa­ye / ☞ that he was first conuicte / whē he was deed end then they did wronge to burne him / til they had spoken with him / to wete wether he wolde abiure or no₊

M. the bisshope of london / was wyse / vertuous and conynge. T. For all those .iii. yet M. More Tyndale Doctoure Colet he wold haue made the old deane Colet of paules an heretyke / fōr translatynge the Pater noster in englyshe / had not the bysshope of canter­bury holpe the deane₊

xvi. Old tran­slation.

The messinger axeth hym / if there be an olde lawfull trāslacion before wicleffes / how happeneth it y^t it is in so few mens handes / se­inge so many desyre it? He answereth the prin­ter dare not print it and then hange on a dout­ful triall / whether it were trāslated sens or before. For if it were translated sens / it must be first approued.

VVhat maye not Master More saye by a­uctorite of his poetrie? there is a lawfull transl­acion that noman knoweth which is as moch as no lawfull translacion. Vvhi mighte not the bisshopes shew which were that lawful translacion and lat it be printed? Naye if that might haue bene obteyned of them with large money it had be printed ye maye besure longe yer this. But sir answere me here vn to / how happeneth that ye defendars trāslate not one youre selues / to cease the murmoure of the people / and put to youre awne gloses / to preuent heretikes? ye wo­ld no doute haue done it longesens / if ye coude haue made youre gloses agre with the texte in euery place. And what can you saye to this / how that besydes they haue done their best to disa­null all translatynge by parlament / they haue disputed before the kinges grace / that is it perelous and not mete and so concluded that it shal not be / vnder a pretence of deferrynge it of cer­tayne yeres. where Master More was their speciall orator / to fayne lyes for their purpose.

M. nothinge discorageth y^t clergie so moch More Tindale. as that they of the worst sorte most calleth after it. T. it might wel be / phareses full of holynesse longe not after it / but publicans that hongre after mercie myght sore desyre it. How be it / it is [Page] in very dede a suspecte thinge ād a greate signe of an heretike to require it₊

Then he iugleth wyth allegories. Syr / Mo­ses deliuered thē al y^t he had receaued of god ād that in y^e mother tonge / in which all y^t had the hert therto studied & not y^• prestes only as thou mayst se in the scripture. And y^• apostles kepte nothinge behide / as paul testified actes. xx. how he had shewed thē all y^• counsell of god ād had kepte nought backe Shuld y^• laye people lesse herken▪ vnto y^• exposicions of the prelates in doutfull places / if the texte were in their handes when they preached?

M. y^• Iewes geue greate reuerēce vnto y^• bible & we sit on it. T. y^• pope putteth it vnder his M. More Tindale fete & treadeth on it / in tokē y^t he is lorde ouer it that it shulde sarue him / & he not it. M. God hath ordeyned y^• ordinaries for chefe phisiciōs M. More Tindale T. they be lawiers ordeined of y^e pope / & can no moare skill of y^• scripture thā they y^• neuer sa­we it: ye and haue professed a cōtrary doctrine. They be right hangemē to murther whosoeuer desireth for y^t doctrine y^t god hath geuen to be the ordinary of our faith and liuinge.

And whē he maketh so greate difficulte ād hardnesse in paules pistles. I saie / it is impossy­ble to vnderstōd ether peter or paul or ought at al in y^• scripture / for him y^t denieth y^• iustifiēge of faith in christes bloude. And agayne it is im­possible to vnderstōde in y^• scripture moare thē a turke for whosoeuer hath not the law of god written in his herte to fulfil it. Of which pointe ād of true faith to / I feare me y^t you are voyde ād empte with all youre spiritualtie / whose de­fender ye haue takē vppon you to be / for to mocke out the trouth for lucre and vauntage₊

iiij.

THe fourth chapter is not the first poetrie that he hath fayned₊

v.

IN the ende of the fifte he vntrulye repor­teth / that Marten saith / no man is bound to kepe any vowe. Lawfull promises arte to be kepte and vnlawfull broken₊

IN the beginnenge of the .vi. he discrybeth marten aftir the ensample of his a awne nature / as in other places he discribeth god af­tir the cōplexion of popes cardenals and worldly tirantes

M. Marten will abyde but by the scriptu­re More. Marten Tindale only. T. and ye will come at no scripture only: And as for the old doctours ye wyll heare as litle / saue where it pleaseth you / for all youre crienge / old holy fathers. For tel me this / whi haue ye in englonde condēned the vnion of doctours Vnion but because ye wold not haue youre falshed disclosed by the doctrine of them.

M. they saye / that a christen man is dischar­ged More. of al lawes spirituall and temperall saue y^• Tindale gospell. T. ye iugle / we saye y^t no christen man ought to bynde his brother violently / vn to any lawe wher of he coude not geue a reason out of How ferre a christen mā is boūde to suf­fre christes doctrine ād out of the lawe of loue. And on the other syde we saye / that a christē man is called to sofre wronge and tiranny (though no man ought to bynde him) vntill god rid vs therof: so fer yet as the tiranny is not directly agēst the law of god and faith of Christe / and no further.

M. marten was the cause of the destruccion of the vplondish people of germanie. T. that is More Tindale false for thē he coude not haue escaped him selfe Marten was as moch the cause of their cōfusion / as Christ of the destruccion of Ierusalem. The duke elector of saxon cam from the war­re of those vplondish people and other dukes with him / in to Vvittenberge where Marten is / with .xv. hundred men of armes / so that Marten if he had bene gyltie / [...] not ha­haue [Page Cxvij] gonne quite. And therto all the dukes and lordes that cleaue vn to the worde of god thys daye / were no lesse combred with their comē people then other men₊

Then after y^• lowdest maner he setteth out the cruelnesse of the emproures soudioures whych they vsed at Rome: but he maketh no men­cion of the treason which holy church wrought secretly / were with the men off warre were so set on fire₊

viij.

M. what good dede will he do / that beleueth M. More marten / how that we haue no frewill to do any good with the helpe of grace? T. O poe­te Tyndale with out shame₊ M. what harme shal he care to forbere / that beleueth M. More luther / how god alone / with out oure will worketh all the misheue that they doo. T. O naturall Tyndale. sonne of the father of all lies₊ M. what shall he care / how longe he liue in synne More that beleueth luther / that he shall after thys life / fele nether good ner evell in bodye ner sou­le vntyll the daye of dome? T. Christ and hys Tyndale. appostles taught no nother / but warned to loke for christes cominge agayne euery houre. which cominge agayne / because ye beleue will neuer be therfore haue ye fained that other marchaūdice

M. Martens bokes be opē / if ye will not be M. More Tindale leue vs. T. Naye / ye haue shutt them vpp and therfore be bold to saie what ye liste₊

M. they liue as they teach ād teach as they M. More Tindale liue. T. but nether teach ner liue as other lye on them₊

ix

M. though the turke offer pleasures vn to M. More▪ the receauers ād deeth vn to the refusers of his [Page] secte (as the pope doeth) yet he sofereth none to breake their promises of chastite dedicat to god (though haply they vse no soch vowes / and as the pope wyll not excepte it be for monye) but luther teacheth to breake holy vowes. T. luther Tyndale teacheth that vnlawfull vowes grounded on a false fayth vnto the dyshonourynge of god are to be broken ād no nother. And agayne cōstray­ned seruice pleaseth not God. And thridly you­re pope geueth licence and his blessynge to breake all lawfull vowes / but with the most vnlawfull of all will ye not dispence₊

Then he bringeth forth the ensample of the hethen / to confirme the popis chastite. And no wronge / for the same false imaginacion that the hethen had in theirs / hath the pope in hys. Vn­derstonde therfore / If thou vow ane indifferent vowes thynge / to please god in hys awne person / he receaueth not thyne Idolatrie: for hys pleasure ād honoure is / that thou shuldest be as he hath made the / and shulde receaue all soch thynges of hys hand and vse them as ferforth as they were nedfull and geue him thankes and be boūde to him: ād not that thou shuldest be as thou haddest made thy selfe. and that he shulde receaue soch thynges off the to be bounde to the / to thanke the and rewarde the. And agayne / thou must geue me a reason of thy vow out off the worde of God. Morouer when thou vowest lawfully thou maist not do it precyselye / but all waye excepte / yf thyne awne or thy neyboures necessite required the contrary. As yf thou haddest vowed neuer to eate flesh or drinke wine or stronge drinke / to tame thi flesh / and thou afterwarde fellest in disease so that thy body in that behalfe were to tame or that there coud no no­ther [Page Cxviij] sustinaunce be gotten. Then thou must in­terpret soch cases excepte / though thou madest no mencion of thē / at the makinge of thi vow. Some mā wdld saye / other shifte might be ma­de: what thē? If other drinke as whote as wine & of the same operacion / and other meate of the same power and vertue as flesh is / must be had / whi shuldest thou forswere wine or fleshe / sein­ge it is now no lēger for y^• taminge of they bodi And so forth of al wother / as I haue aboue de­clared₊

And when he bringeth in the apostles / marters / cōfessoures and .xv. hundred yeres / it is cleane contrary. For they had no soch false imagi­naciō of chastite or of any other worke: but they vsed it to serue their neyboure and to avoyde trouble in time of persecuciō and to be eased of that hurthē y^t was to heuy for their weake shulders and not to cōpell god to thāke thē for y^• li­berte for which they be bound to thanke him₊

x

IN the tenth he inveyeth and rayleth agēst Frewyll that which nether he ner any fleshly myn­ded papiste cā vnderstōde / as they haue no power to consent vnto y^t lawes of god. which herein appereth / y^t they cōpell their brethern which be as good as they to do & beleue what they lust ād not what god cōmaundeth. He affirmeth y^t marten saith how that we do no synne oure selues wyth oure awne wylle / but that god synneth in vs and vseth vs as a deed instrument and for­seth vs ther vn to and damneth vs / not for oure awne deedes but for hys / and for hys awne pleasure / as he compelleth vn to synne for hys pleasure or rather he for hys pleasure synneth in vs. I saye / that a man synneth voluntaryly. [Page] But the power of the will and of the dede is off god and euery will and deed are good in the nature of the dede and the euelnesse is a lacke that there is / as the eye / though it be blinde is good in that it is soch a member created for soch a good vse: but it is called euell for lacke of sighte. And so are oure dedes euell because we lacke knowlege and loue to referre them vn to the glorie of God. which lacke cometh of the de­uell that blyndeth vs with lustes and occasiōs that we can not se the goodnesse and rightwys­nesse of the law of god and the meanes how to fulfill it. For coud we se it and the waye to doo it we shuld loue it naturally as a chyld doeth a fayre apple. For as a child when a man sheweth him a fayre apple and wyll not geue it hym we­peth / so shuld we naturaly morne whē the members wold not come forwarde to fulfyll the law acordynge to y^• desyre of oure hertes. For pau­le saith .ii. Cor. iiij. if our gospell be hid / it is hyd vnto them that perish / amonge which the God 2. Cor. 4. of this world hath blinded the wittes of the vnbeleuers / that the light of the glorious gospell of christ shuld not shyne to thē. And christ saith that the briddes eate vpp the seed sowen vppō the waye and interpreteth by the seed the worde / and by the foules / the deuell. So that the deuel blindeth vs with falshed and lies which ys our worldly wisdome / ād therwith stoppethout the true light of gods wisdome / which blindnes is the euellnesse of all our dedes₊

And on the other syde / that a nother mā loueth the lawes of God and vseth the power y^t he hath of God well / and referreth his wyll and hys dedes vn to the honoure off God / cometh off the mercy off God which hath oppened hys [Page Cxix] wittes and shewed him light to se the goodnes­se and rightwysnesse of the law of god and the waye that is in Christ to fulfill it. wherby he loueth it naturally & trusteth to doo it. why doeth god open one mās eyes and not a nothers? Paul Roma. ix. forbiddeth to aske that why. For it is to depe for mans capacite. God we se is ho­noured therby and his mercy sette out & y^• moare sene in the vesels of mercy. But the popish can sofre god to haue no secret hid to him selfe. They haue serched to come to y^• botome of his botomlesse wisdome / and because they can not attayne to that secrete and be to proude to let it alone / and to graunt thē selues ignoraunt with the appostle that knew no nother then Gods glorye in y^• electe / they goo and sett vpp frewyll with the hethen philosophers & saye that a mās frewyll is the cause why god choseth one & not a nother / contrary vn to all the scripture. Paul saith it cometh not of y^• will ner of the dede / but of the mercy of god. And they saye y^t euery man hath at the least waye power in his frewyll / to deserue that power shuld be geuen him of god to kepe the lawe. But the scripture testifieth y^t Christ hath deserued for the electe euen then when they hated god / that there eyes shuld be opened to se the goodnesse of the lawe of God and the waye to fulfill it / and forgeuenesse of al that is passed where by they be drawen to loue it and to hate synne₊

I axe the popish one question whether the wyll can preuent a mans wytte and make the witt se the rightwesnesse of y^• law and y^• waye to fulfil it in christ? If I must first se the reason why yer I can loue. how shall I wyth my wyll doo that good thynge that I know not of? how [Page] shall I thanke god for the mercy that is layed vpp for me in christ / yer I beleue it? For I must beleue the mercy yer I can loue y^• worke. Now faith cometh not of oure frewyl / but is the gyft Faith of god geuen vs by grace yer therbe any wyl in our hertes to doo the lawe of god. And whi god geueth it not euery mā I can geue no rekeninge of his iudgementes. But well I wott / I neuer deserued it ner prepared my selfe vn to it / but ran a nother waye cleane contrary in my blyn­denesse / ād sought not that waye / but he sought me and found me out ād shewed it me and therwith drew me to him. And I bow the knees of myne herte vn to god nyght and daye / that he wyll shew it all other men. And I sofre all that I can to be a seruant to open theyr eyes.

For well I wott they can not se of them sel­ues before God haue preuented them wyth his grace. For Paul sayth Philip. 1. he that began Philip. 1. a good werke in you shall continue or bringe it vn to a full ende / so that God must begynne to Phil. 2. worke in vs. And Philip. ij. God it is that worketh both the willynge and also bryngynge to passe. And it must nedes be / for god must open mine eyes & shew me some what & make me se y^• goodnesse of it / to draw me to him / yer I can loue / consent or haue any actuall wyll to come. And when I am willynge / he must assiste me ād helpe to tame my flesh / & to ouercome the occa­sions of the worlde & the power of the fendes. God therfore hath a speciall care for his electe ▪ Mat. 24. in so moch y^t he wyll shorten the weked dayes for their sakes in which no man / if they shuld cōtinue / might endure. And Paul sofereth all fo [...] the electe .ij. Timothe. ij. And gods sure fundacion stondeth sayth Paul / god knoweth his. S [...] [Page Cxx] that refuse the trouth who shall / god wyll kepe a nūbre of his mercye / & call them out of blyndnesse / to testifie the trueth vn to the rest / that their damnacion maye be with our excuse₊

The turcke / the Iew and the popish bild vppon frewyll and asscribe their iustifienge vn to their workes. The turke when he hath synned / runeth to the purifienges or ceremonies of Mahomete / and the Iew to the ceremonies of Moses / and the pope vn to his awne ceremonies / to fette forgeuenesse of their synnes. And the chri­sten goeth thorow repentaunce towarde the la­we / vn to the faith that is in Christes bloude.

And the pope saith that the ceremonies of Moyses iustified not / cōpelled with the wordes of Paul. And how then shuld his iustifie? Mo­ses sacramentes were but signes of promises of fayth / by whych fayth the beleuers ar iustified / and euen so be Christes also. And now because the Iewes haue put out the significacions of their sacramentes and put their trust in y^• workes of them / therfore they be Idolaters / and so is the pope for like purpose. The popesayth that Christ dyed not for vs but for the sacramētes / to geue them power to iustifie. O Anti­christe₊

xj.

HIs, xj. chapter is as true as his storie of Doctor ferman. vtopia and all his other poetrie. He mea­neth doctoure Ferman person of hony lane. w­hom after they had handelled after their secret maner and disputed wyth secretly and had ma­de him swere y^t he shuld not vtter how he was dealte wyth / as they haue made many other / then they contriued a maner of dispicions had [Page] with him / with soch opposicions / answerynges & argumentes as shuld serue only to sett forth their purpose. As master More thorow out all his boke maketh / quod he / to dispute and moue questions after soch a maner as he can soyle thē or make them appere soyled / and maketh him graunte where he listeth and at the last to be cōcluded and led wother Master More wyll ha­ue him. wherfore I wyll not reherse all the ar­gumentes / for it were to longe / and is also not to be beleued that he so made them or so dispu­ted with them / but that they added and pulled awaye and fayned as they liste as their gise is. But I wyll declare in light that which Master More ruffeleth vpp in darkenesse / that ye maye se their falshed₊

First if ye were not false ypocrires / why had ye not disputed openly with him / that y^• world might haue hearde and born recorde / that that whych ye now saye of him were true? what cause is there y^t the laye people might not as well haue hearde his wordes of his awne mouth / as reade them of youre wrytynge / excepte ye were iuglynge spirites that walke in darkenes­se?

Vvhen Master More saith the church teacheth that men shuld not trust in their workes / it is false if he mene the popis church. For they teach a man no trust in domme ceremonyes and sacramentes / in penaunce and all maner wor­kes that come them to profite / whych yet hel­pe not vnto repentaunce ner to fayth ner to lo­ue a mans neyboure₊

Master More declareth the meaninge of no sentence he describeth the propir significacion of no worde ner the difference of the significa­tions [Page Cxxi] of any terme / but runneth forth contu­sedly in vnknowen wordes and general termes And were one worde hath many significacions he maketh a man some time beleue that manye thinges are but one thynge / ād some time he leadeth from one significacion vn to a nother and mocketh a mās wittes. As he iugleth with thys terme church / makynge vs in the begynnynge vnderstonde all that beleue and in the conclusy­on the prestes only. He telleth not the office of y^e lawe / he describeth not his penaūce ner the ver­tue therof or vse / he declareth no sacrament / ner what they meane ner the vse ner wherin y^• frute off confession stondeth / ner whence the po­wer of the absolucion cometh / ner wherein it resteth / ner what iustifiēge meaneth / ner the ordirner sheweth any diuersite of faithes / as though all faithes were one faith and one thinge₊

Marke therfore / the waye towarde iustifienge or forgeuenesse of sinne / is the lawe. God causeth The order of iustifienge. the lawe to be preached vn to vs and wry­teth yt in oure hertes and maketh vs by good reasons fele that the lawe is good ād ought to be kepe ād that they which kepe it not are wor­thy to be damned. And on the other syde I fele that there ys no power in me / to kepe the lawe where vppō it wold shortly folow that I shud dyspeare / if I were not shortly holpe. But God which hath begon to cure me and hath layde that corosy vn to my sores / goeth forth in hys cure / and setteth hys sonne Iesus befo­re me and all hys passyons and deeth / and saith to me: thys is my dere sonne / and he hath prayed for the and hath sofred all thys for the / and for hys sake I wil forgeue the al that thou hast done agenst thys good lawe / and I wyll heale [Page] thy flesh and teach the to kepe thys lawe / if thou wilt lerne And wyll beare wyth the and take al a worth that thou doest / tyll thou canst doo better. And in the meane season / not wythstondynge thy wekenesse / I wyll yet loue the no lesse then I doo the angels in heauen / so thou wylt be delygent to lerne. And I wyll assiste the ād kepe the and defende the and be thy shilde and care for the

And the herte here begynneth to mollyfye and wax softe ād to receaue health and beleueth the mercy of God ād in beleuynge is saued frō feare of euerlastynge deeth and made sure off euerlastynge lyfe / and then beinge ouercome wyth thys kindnesse / begynneth too loue agayne and to submitte hyr selfe vn to the lawe of God to lerne them and to walke in them₊

Note now the ordyr / first God geueth me light to se the goodnesse and ryghtwysnesse off the lawe and mine awne synne and vnryghtwesnesse. Out of whych knowlege springeth repentaunce. Now repentaunce teacheth me not that the law ys good / and I euell / but a lyght that y^• spyryte off God hath geuen me / out off whych lyght repentaunce springeth₊

Then the same spirite worketh in myne herte trust and confidence to beleue the mercye of God and hys trueth / that he wyll doo as he hath promised▪ whych beleffe saueth me. And immediatly out of that trust springeth loue to­warde the lawe of god agayne. And what soe­uer a man werketh of any other loue then thys it pleaseth not God / ner is that loue Godly. Now loue doeth not receaue thys mercy but [Page Cxxii] fayth only / out of which fayth loue springeth / by which loue I power out agayne vppon my neyboure that goodnesse wych I haue receaued of God by fayth. Here of ye se that I can not be iustified wyth out repentaunce ād yet repentaūce iustyfieth me not. And here of ye se that I can not haue a faith to be iustified and saued / excepte loue springe therof immediatly / and yet loue iustifieth me not before God. For my natu­rall loue to god agayne doeth not make me first se and fele the kyndnesse of God in christ / but fayth thorow preachinge. For we loue not God first / to compel him to loue agayne: but he loued vs first and gaue hys sonne for vs / y^t we might 1. Ioan. 4 se loue and loue agayne / sayth sent Ihon in hys first epistle. whych loue of God to vs warde we receaue by Christ thorow fayth saith Paule. And thys ensample haue I sett out for them in dyuers places / but their blinde popysheyes ha­ue no power too se it / couetousnesse hath so blinded them. And when we saye fayth only iustify­eth vs / that ys to saye / receaueth y^• mercye wherewyth God iustifyeth vs and forgeueth vs / we meane not fayth whych hath noo repentaunce and fayth whych hath no loue vn to the lawes off God agayne and vn to good werkes / as wyked ypocrytes falsly belie vs?

For how then shulde we sofre as we doo all mysery / too call the blynde and ygnoraunte vn to repentaunce and good werkes / whych now doo but consent vn to all euell and studye mischeue all daye longe / for al theyr preachynge their iustifyenge of good workes. Let Master Moore ymproue thys wyth hys sopystrye and sett forth hys awne doctryne that we maye [Page] se the reason of yt and walke in light₊

Herof ye se what faith it is that iustifyeth what fay­th iustify­eth vs. The faith in christes bloude of a repentinge herte towarde the lawe doeth iustifie vs onli ād not all maner faythes. ye must vnderstond therfore / that ye maye se to come out of Mores blinde mase / how that there be many faithes and y^t all faythes be not one fayth / though they be all called with on generall name. There is a story fayth with out felynge in the herte / where with I maye beleue the hole story of the byble ād yet not sett myne herte ernestly therto / takynge yt for the sode of my soule / too lerne to beleue and trust God / to loue him / breade him ād feare him by the doctrine and ensamples therof / but to se me lerned and to know the story / to dispute and make marchaundice / after as we haue en sam­ples ynowe. And y^• faith wherwith a mā doeth miracles / is another gyft then the fayth of a repentinge herte to be saued thorow christes bloude / and the one no kynne too the other though Master More wold haue them so appere. Nether is the deuels fayth and the popis faith (where wyth they beleue that there ys a god ād that chryst ys and all the story off the byble and maye yet stonde wyth all wekednesse and full consent too euell) kynne vnto the fayth of thē that hate evell and repent off their mysdedes and knowlege their synnes and be fled with ful hope and truste off mercye vn to the bloude off Christ₊

And when he sayth / yf fayth certyfye ou­re workes hertes that we be in the fauoure off God ād oure synnes forgeuen and become good yer we doo good werkes / as the tre must be first good [Page Cxxiij] per it bringe forth good frute / by christes doctri­ne then we make good workes but a shadowe where with a mā is neuer y^• better. Naie Sir we make good werkes / frutes where by oure ney­boure is the better and wherby God is honou­red and oure flesh tamed. And we make of them sure tokens where by we know that our faith is no fayned imaginacion and deed opinion made with captiuynge oure wyttes after the po­pis tradicions / but a lyuely thinge wrought by the holygoste.

And when he disputeth / if they that haue Alone faith / haue loue vn to the law and purpose to fulfill it / then fayth alone iustifieth not / how will he proue that argumēt? he iugleth with this worde alone: and wold make the people beleue that we said / how a bare faith that is with out all other companye / of repentaunce / loue and o­ther vertues / ye and with out gods spirite to / did iustifie vs / so that we shuld not care to doo good. But the scripture so taketh not alone ner we so meane / as Master More knoweth well ynough. Vvhen an horse bereth a sadell and a similitude man therin / we maye well saye / that the horse only and alone bereth the sadell / and is not ho­lpe of the man in beringe therof. But he wold make men vnderstonde that we ment / the hor­se bare the sadell emptie and no man therin: let him marke this to se his ignoraūce / which wold god were not coupled with malice. Euery man that hath witte / hath a will to and then by ma­ster mores argument / witte only geueth not the light of vnderstondynge. Now the conclusion is false ād the contrary true. For the witte with out helpe of the will geueth the light of the vnderstondynge / nether doeth the will worke [Page] at all / vntyll the wytt haue determined thys or that to be good or bad. Now what is faith saue a spirituall lyght of vnderstōdinge ād an inwarde knowlege or felynge of marcie. Out of whych knowlege loue doeth springe. But loue brou­ght me not that knowlege / for I knew yt yer I loued. So that loue in the processe off nature to dyspute from the cause to the effecte helpeth not at all to the felynge that God is mercifull to me no moare than the louynge herte and kynd be­havoure of an obedyent wyfe to hir husbonde / maketh hyr se hys loue and kyndenesse to hir / for many soch haue vnkynde husbandes. But by hys kynde dedes to hir doeth she se his loue. Euen so my loue & dedes make me not se Gods loue to me in the processe of nature: but hys kynde dedes to me / in that he gaue his sonne for me maketh me se his loue and to loue agayne₊

Oure loue and good werkes make not god first loue vs / and thaunge hym from hate to lo­ue / as the Turke / Iew and vayne popish mea­ne but hys loue and dedes make vs loue and chaunge vs from hate to loue. For he loued Roma. 5. vs when we were euell and hys enimies as testifieth Paul in dyuers places and chose vs to make vs good and to shew vs loue ād to draw vs to hym / that we shuld loue agayne.

The father loueth hys chyld / when yt hath no power to doo good and when yt must be so­fered to runne after the awne lustes wyth out lawe / ād neuer loueth yt better thē then / to ma­ke yt better and too shewe yt loue / to loue agayne. yf he coude se what ys wrytten in the fyrst pistle of Ihon / though al the other scripture were layed aparte / he shuld se all thys₊

And ye must vnderstonde / that we sometyme dispute forwarde / from the cause to the effecte and some tyme backwarde from the ef­fecte to the cause / and must beware that we be not therwith begyled / we saye somer is come ād therfore all is grene / and dispute forwarde. For somer is the cause of the grenesse. The saye the ☜ trees be grene / and therfore somer is come / and dispute backwarde from the effecte to the cau­se / For the grenetrees make not somer / but maketh somer knowen. So we dispute back­warde / the man doeth good dedes and profita­ble vn to his neyboure / he must therfore loue god: he loueth god / he must therfore haue a true fayth and se mercye.

And yet my workes make not my loue ner my loue my fayth ner my fayth Gods mercye: But contrary / Gods mercye maketh my fayth and my fayth my loue and my loue my workes. And if the pope coude se mercy and worke of loue to his neyboure and not sell his workes to god for heuen after Master Mores doctrine / we neded not so sotle disputynge of fayth₊

And when Master More allegeth Paul to the Corinthians / to proue that fayth maye be wyth out loue / he proueth nothynge / but iu­gleth only. He sayth it is euident by the wordes of Paul / that a man maye haue a fayth to doo miracles wyth out loue and maye geue all his good in almes with out loue / and geue his bo­dy to burne for y^• name of Christe / and all with out charite. Vvell I wyll not stycke wyth him: he maye so doo wyth out charite and wyth out fayth therto. Then a man maye haue fayth wyth out fayth. ye verely because there be many differences of fayth / as I haue sayde / [Page] and not all faythes one faith / as master More iugleth. we read in the workes of S. Cipria­ne / Cipriane that there were marters that sofred marterdom for the name of christ al the yere longe / and were tormented and healed agayne and then brought forth afreshe. which marters beleued / Marters that sofe­red al a yere longe as ye doo / that he payne of their marterdome shuld be a deseruinge and merite ynough / not only to deserue heuen for them selues / but to make satisfaccion for the synnes of other men therto / and gaue pardons of their merites after the ensample of the popis doctrine and forga­ue the synnes of other mē which had openly denyed christe / and wrote vn to Cipriane / that he shuld receaue those men that had denied christe in to the congregacion agayne / at the satisfacci­on of their merites. For which pride Cipriane wrote to thē & called them the deuels marters ād not Gods. Those marters had a faith with out faith. For had they beleued that all mercy is geuē for christes bloudeshedynge / they whold haue sent other men thither / ād wold haue sofe­red their awne marterdom for loue of their neyboures only / to sarue them and to testifie the trueth of god in oure sauioure Iesu / vnto the worlde / to saue at the least waye some / that is to wete / the electe / for whose sake Paule sofereth al thinge and not to winne heuen. yf I worke for a worldely purpose / I get no rewarde in heuen: euen so if I worke for heuen or an hier pla­ce in heuē I gett there no rewarde. But I must doo my worke for the loue of my neyboure / be­cause he is my brother and the price of Christes bloude and because christe hath deserued it ād dysyreth it of me / and then my rewarde is greate in heuen.

And all they whych beleue that their synnes be forgeuen them and they receaued as the scripture testifieth / vn to the enheritaunce of heuen for Christes merites / the same loue christ & their brethern for his sake and doo all thynge for the­ir sakes only / not once thynkinge of heuen / whē they worke / but on their bretherns neade. when they sofre them selues aboue might / then they comforte their soule with the remembraunce of heuen / that this wrechednesse shall haue an ende and we shalt haue a thousandfold pleasures ād rewardes in heuen / not for the merites of oure deseruynges but geuen vs frely for Christes. And he that hath that loue hath the right faith And he that hath that faith hath the right loue. For I can not loue my neyboure for Christes sake / excepte I first beleue that I haue receaued soch mercy of Christe. Ner can I beleue that I haue receaued soch mercy of Christ / but that I must loue my neyboure for his sake / seinge that he so instantly desyreth me₊

And when he allegeth. S. Iames / it is an­swered him in the mammon / and. S. Augustine Iames. [...]. answereth him. And saynt Iames expoundeth him selfe. For he saith in the first chapter / God whych begatt vs of his awne wyll with y^• worde of trueth which worde of trueth / is his pro­mises of mercye and forgeuenesse in oure saui­oure Iesus / by whych he begatt vs / gaue vs li­fe & made vs a new creature thorow a fast fayth And Iames goeth and rebuketh the opinion & false fayth of them that thynke it ynough to be saued by / iff they beleue that there is but one god and that Christ was borne of a virgen and a thousand thynges whych a man may beleue. and yet not beleue in Christe / to be saued from [Page] sinne thorow him. And that Iames speaketh of a nother fayth then at the begynnynge appe­reth by his ensample. The deuelles haue fayth saith he: ye but y^• deuels haue no fayth y^t can repent of euell or to beleue in Christ / to be saued thorow him / or that can loue god ād worke his will of loue. Now Paul speaketh of a faith y^t is in Christes bloude to be saued therby / which worketh immediatly thorow loue of the benefi­te receaued. And Iames at the beginninge speaketh of a faith that bydeth trienge sayenge / the trienge of youre fayth worketh or causeth pa­ciens. But the faith of the deuels wyll byde no trienge / for they wyll not worke gods wyll be­cause they loue him not. And in like maner is it of the fayth of them that repent not or y^t thyn­ke them selues with out synne. For except a mā fele out of what daunger Christ hath delyue­red him / he can not loue the worke. And ther­fore Iames saith right / that no soch faith that wyll not worke can iustifie a man.

And when Paul saith faith only iustifieth: and Iames / that a man is iustified by werkes and not by fayth only / there is greate difference betwene Pauls only and Iameses only. For Paules only is to be vnderstonde / that fayth iustifieth in the hert and before god / wyth out helpe of werkes / ye and yer I can worke. For I must receaue life thorow fayth to worke wyth / yer I can worke. But Iames only is this wise to be vnderstonde / that faith doeth not so iusti­fie / that no thynge iustifieth saue fayth / For de­des How workes iuste­fye doo iustifie also. But fayth iustifieth in the herte and before god / and the dedes before the world only and maketh the other sene as ye maye se by the scripture.

For Paul saith Roma. iiij. if Abraham ha­ue workes / he hath wherof to reioce / but not before god. For if Abraham had receaued those promises of deseruynge / then had it bene Abra­hams prayse and not gods / as thou maist se in Roma. 4. the texte: nether had god shewed Abraham mercy and grace / but had only geuen him his dutie and deseruinge. But in that Abraham receaued all y^• mercie that was shewed him / frely thorow fayth / out of the deseruinges of the seed y^t was promised him / as thou maist se by Genesis and by the gospell of Ihon / where Christ testifieth Ioan. 8. that Abraham saw his daye and reioysed / and of that ioye nodoute wrought / it is gods pray­se / and the glory of his mercye. And the same maist thou se by Iames / when he saith Abrahā offered his sonne / and so was the scripture ful­filled / that Abraham beleued / and it was reke­ned him for rightwysnesse and he was therby made gods frende.

How was it fulfilled? before god? Naye / it was fulfilled before god manye yeres before / & he was gods frende many yeres before / euē frō the first appoynttment that was made betwe­ne god and him. Abraham receaued promises of all mercie and beleued and trusted god & went & wrought out of that faith. But it was fulfilled before vs which can not se the herte / as Iames sayth / I wyll shew the my fayth out of my wor­kes / and as the angell said to Abraham / now I know that thou dreadest god. Not but that he knew it before / but for vs spake he that / whych can se nought in Abraham moare then in other men / saue by his workes₊

And what workes ment Iames? verely y^• workes [Page] of mercye. As if a brother or a sister lacke cayment or sustinaunce and ye be not moued to compassion ner fele their diseases / whate fayth haue ye then? No faith (be sure) that feleth the mercye that is in Christe. For they that fele y^t / be mercifull ageyne and thākefull. But loke on the werkes of oure spiritualtie which wyll not only be iustified with werkes before the world / but also before god. They haue had all christen­dome to rule this .viij. hundred yeres / and as they only be annoynted in y^• heed / so haue they only bene kynge and emproure and haue had al power in their handes and haue bene the doers only and the leders of those shadowes that ha­ue had the name of princes / and haue led them whother they wolde ād haue brethed in to their braynes what they listed. And they haue wrou­ght the world out of peace and vnite and euery man out of his wellfare and are become alone well at ease / only fre / only at liberte / only haue all thynge and only do nought therfore / only laye on other mennes backes and beare nought them selues And the good werkes of them that wrought out of faith and gaue their goodes ād landes to finde the pore them deuoure they al­so alone. And what workes preach they? Only that ar to them profitable and wherby they rai­gne in mens consciences as god: to offer / to ge­ue to be prayed for ād to be deliuered out of purgarory and to redeme youre synne of them / and to worshepe ceremonies and to be shryuen and so forth₊

And when Master More is come to himselfe & sayth the first fayth and the first iustifienge is geuen vs with out oure deseruinge. God be thanked / and I wold fayne that he wold describe [Page Cxxvij] me what he meaneth by the seconde iusti­fienge. I know no moare to doo / then when I haue receaued all mercy and all forgeuenesse of Christ frely / to goo and powre out the same vppon my neyghboure₊

M. Dauid lost not his faith / when he committed adultery. T. No / and therfore he coude not More. David. Tindale continue in synne / but repented assone as his faulte was told him. But was he not reconsyled by fayth only / and not by dedes? sayd he not haue mercy on me lorde for thy greate mercye and for the multitude of thy mercies put awaye my Psal. 51 synne. And agayne / make me heare ioye & glad­nesse / that the bones which thou hast brokē maye reioyse. That is latt me heare thy voyce that my synne is forgeuen and then I am saffe and wyll reioyse. And afterward he knowlegeth y^t god delyteth not in sacrifices for synnes / but y^• a troubled spirite and a broken herte is that w­hych god requireth. And when the peace was made / he prayeth boldly and familiarly to god / that he wold be good to Sion and Ierusalem / and sayth that then last of all when god hath forgeuen vs of mercy / and hath done vs good for our euell / we shall offer sacrifice of thankes to him agayne. So that our dedes are but thankesgeuynge▪ when we haue sinned / we goo with a repentynge herte vn to Christes bloude / and there wash it of thorow faith. And oure dedes are but thankes geuenge to god to helpe oure neyboures at their nede / for which oure neyboures and ech of them owe vs as moch agayne at oure nede. So that the testament of forgeuenesse of synnes / is bylt vppon faith in christes bloude and not on workes. Master More wyll run­ne Pena cul­pa. to the pope for forgeuenesse a pena & culpa. [Page] By what merites doeth the pope that? by Christes. And Christ hath promised all his merites to them that repent & heleue and not geuē them vn to the pope to sell. And in youre absolucions ye oft absolue wyth out ioynynge of penaun­ce. He must haue a purpose to doo good werkes wyll ye saye. That condicion is sett before him to doo / out of the mercy that he hath receaued & not to receaue mercie out of them. But the po­pish can not repent out of the hert. And therfo­re can not fele the mercie that faith bryngeth / & therfore cā not be mercifull to their neyboures to doo their werkes for their sakes. But they fayne them a sorow for their synne in whych they euer continue and so morne for them in the mornynge that they laugh in them yer middaye agayne. And then they imagen them popish de­des / to make satisfaccion to God and make an Iodole of him₊

And fynally that good workes / as to geue almes and soch like / iustifie not of them selues / workes of thē selues iustefye not is manifeste. For as the good which are taught of god doo them well / of very loue to god and Christ and of their neybours for Christes sake / even so the euell doo them of vayne glorie and a false faith wykedly / as we haue ensamples in y^• phareses / so that a man must be good yer he cā doo good. And so is it of y^• purpose to doo thē: Ones purpose is good and a nothers evell: so that we must be good yer a good purpose come How thē / to loue the law of god and to consent therto and to haue it written in thine hert and to professe it / so that thou art ready of thyne awne accorde to doo it and wyth out compul­tion / is to be righteous: that I graunt and that loue maye be called rightwysnesse before God [Page Cxxviij] passiue and the life and quickenesse of the soule passiue. And soferforth as a man loueth the law of god / so fersorth he is righteous / and so moch as he lacketh of loue toward his neiboure after the ensample of Christe / so moch he lacketh of rightwysnesse. And that thynge whych maketh a man loue the lawe of god / doth make a man righteous and iustifieth him effectiuely and ac­tually and maketh him alyue as a worke man & cause efficient. Now what is it that maketh a man to love? verely not the dedes / for they fo­low and springe of loue / if they be good. Nether the preachynge of the law / for that quickeneth not the herte Gala. iij. but causeth wrath Rom. iiij. and vttereth the synne only Romanorū. iij. And therfore sayth Paule that rightewysnesse spryngeth not out of the dedes of the law in to the herte / as the Iewes and y^• pope meane: but contrary the dedes of the law sprynge out of y^• rightwysnesse of the hert if they be good. As whē a father pronounceth the law / that y^• child shall goo to scole / it saith naye. For that killeth his hert and all his lustes / so that he hath no power to loue it. But what maketh his herte ali­ue to loue it? verely fayre promises of loue and kindnesse / that it shall haue a gentle scolemaster and shall playe ynough and shall haue many gaye thynges and so forth. Even so the preachyn­ge of fayth doth worke loue in oure soules and make them aliue and draw our hertes to God. The mercye that we haue in Christ doeth ma­ke vs loue only and only bryngeth the spirite of life in to our soules.

And therfore saith Paul / we be iustified by fayth and by grace with out dedes: that is / yer [Page] the dedes come. For faith only bringeth / the spirite of life and deliuereth our soules from feare of damnacion / which is in the law and euer maketh peace betwene god and vs / as oft as there is any variaunce betwene vs. And finally when the peace is made betwene god and vs and all forgeuen thorow faith in Christes bloude / and we begynne to loue the lawe / we were neuer the nere excepte faith went with vs / to supplye out the lacke of full loue / in that we haue pro­mises / that that litle we haue is take aworth & accepted tyll moare come. And agayne when our frailtie hath ouerthrowen vs and feare of damnacion invadeth our consciences / we were vtterly lost / if fayth were not bye to helpe vs vpp agayne / in that we are promised that whēsoeuer we repent of euell and come to the right waye agayne / if shalbe forgeuen for Christes sake. For when we be fallen / there is no testamēt made in werkes to come / that they shal saue vs And therfore the werkes of repentaunce or of the sacramentes can neuer quiet our conscien­ces and deliuer vs from feare of damnacion. And last of all in temptacions tribulacion and aduersites / we perished dayly excepte fayth wēt with vs to deliuer vs / in y^t we haue promises / y^• god wyll assiste us / cloth vs / fede vs and fight for vs and rid vs out of the handes of oure enimies. And thus the rightewysse liueth euer bye ☞ faith / evē from faith to faith / that is / as sone as he is deliuered out of one temptacion a nother is sett before him to feighte agenst and to ouer come thorow fayth. The scripture sayth / bles­sed is the man whose transgression is forgeuen & his synnes hid / and vn to whom y^• lorde reke­neth not vnrightwysnesse. So y^t the only rightwysnesse [Page Cxxix] of him that can but synne ād hath nought of hym selfe to make amendes / is the forge­uenesse of sinne / which faith only bringeth. And as forsorth as we be vnryghwese / faith only iu­stifieth vs actiuely and else nothinge on our partie. And as ferforth as we haue synned / be in sinne or do synne or shall synne / so ferforth must fayth in christes bloud iustifie vs only and else no thynge To loue / is to be rightwesse so ferforth as thou louest / but not to make rightwesse / ner to make peace. To beleue in christes bloud with a repentinge hert is to make rightwesse and the only makynge of peace and satisfaccion to goo warde. And thus because termes be dar­ke to them that be not experte and excercysed / we all waye sett out our meanynge wyth clere ensamples / reportynge our selues vn to the her­tes and consciences of all men₊ More. Tyndale▪

M. the blasphemous wordes of luther seme to signifie / that both saynt Ihon baptiste & oure ladie were synners. T. Ihon baptiste sayde too christ. Mat. iij. I had nede to be baptised of the and comest thou to me? wherof did Ihon con­fesse that he had nede to be washed and purged by chryste / off hys holynesse and good dedes? when Ihon sayd / behold the lambe off god that taketh awaye the synne of the worlde / he was not off that sorte ner had any synnes to be takē awaie at any time / ner any parte in christes bloude whych dyed for synners only. Ihon came too restore all thynge sayth christ. That is / he came to enterpret the law of God truly and to proue all flesh synners / too send them to Christe / as paul doeth in the begynnynge off the Romans. whych law if Master More coude vnderstonde how spirituall yt ys and what ye requireth off [Page] vs / he wolde not so dyspute. And yf there were no imperfectenesse in oure ladies dedes / whi did christ rebuke hyr Ihon. ij. when he ought rather to haue honoured hys mother / and why did he make hir seke him .iij. dayes. Chrisostimus dare Chrisostymus saye / that our lady was now & then taken wyth a litle vayne glorie. She loked for the promises off hym that shulde come and blesse hyr / from what? She beleued to be saued by christ / from what? Thys I graūt / that our lady / Ihon baptiste / Isaac / Iacob / Ioseph / Moses and many lyke / dyd neuer consent too synne / to folow it: But had the holy gost from the bygynnynge. Neuer the later whyle they folowed the spirite and wrought theyr best / yet chaunces met them by the waye and temptacyons / that made theyr werkes come some tymes vnperfectely too pas­se / as a potter that hath hys craft neuer so well / meteth a chaunce now and then / that maketh hym facyon a pott amisse. So that I thinke the perfectest of them all as we haue ensamples off some / were compelled to saye wyth Paull / that good that I wold / I doo not and that euell y^t I wolde nott / that I doo. I wolde not sweere on a boke that yf our lady had bene letslipp as woother were and as harde apposed wyth as present deeth before hyr eyes / that she wolde not haue denyed some thynges that she knewe true▪ ye but she was preserued by grace that she was not. No but though she were kepte by grace from the outwarde dede / yet yf theyr were soch wekenesse in hyr flesh / she had synne And the grace was / that she knew yet and was meke too beleue in chryst / too h [...]ue yt forgeuen hyr and too be preserued that yt shulde not bud forth. Ihon the euangelyst / when he was as [Page Cxxx] holy as euer was Ihon the baptyst said / yf we▪ 1. Ioan. 1. saye we haue no synne / we dysceaue oure sel­ues₊

Then he compareth faith and dedes too ge­ther and wyll that fayth shulde stonde in no beter seruice off ryght then dedes. yes / for the dedes workes a­re vnder the lawe be examined by the law / and therfore yt ys not ynough too doo them only / or to doo them wyth loue: but I must doo them wyth as greate loue as christ dyd for me / and as I receaue a Faith ys vnder no lawe good dede at my nede. But fayth ys vnder no lawe / and therfore be she neuer sofeble / she shal receaue acordynge too the trueth off the pro­myser₊

M. what thynge coude we axe god of ryght because we beleue hym? T .verely all that he More. Tyndale promyseth / maye we be bold to axe of right and dutye and by good obligation₊

M. Ferman said that all workes be good ynough in them that god hath chosen. T. I am More Tindale sure yt ys vntrue / for their best be not good ynough / though God forgeueth them their euell of hys mercye / at the repentaunce of theyr her­tes₊

Then he endeth in hys scole doctryne con­trary vn to all the scripture / that god remitteth not the synne of his chosen people / because that he hath chosen them or of hys mercye / but off a towardnesse that ys moare in one then in another sayenge God sawe before that Peter shuld repent and Iudas wolde dyspeare / and therfo­re chose Peter. If God chose Peter because he dyd repent / why chose he not Iudas to / which repented as moch as he and knowleged hys synne and brought the money agayne? O thys [Page] blyndenesse / as god had wrought nothynge in the repentaūce of peter. Sayd not christ before / Luce. 22. that peter shuld faull. And sayd he not that he had prayed for hym that he shulde be holpe vpp agayne? Christ prayed a stronge prayer for pe­ter to helpe hym vpp agayne and sofred a stronge deeth therto. And before his deeth he committed them vn to hys father saynge I haue kepte Ioan. 17. them in thy name & I departe / kepe thē now frō euell. Peter had a good hert too god and loued his lawe and beleued in christe and had the spirite of god in him which neuer left him for all his faull. Peter sinned of no malice / but of frailtie & soden feare of deeth. And the goodnesse of God wrought hys repentaunce ād all the meanes by whych he was brought vpp agayne at christes requeste. And Iudas was neuer good ner came to christ for loue of his doctrine / but of couetousnesse / ner dyd euer beleue in christe₊

Iudas was by nature and birth (as we all Iudas. be) heyre of the wrath of god / in whom the deuel wrought hys will and blynded hys hert with Ignoraunce. In which ignoraunce and blyndnes­se he grue / as he grue in age and fell deper and deper therin / and therby wrought all hys wekednesse and the deuels wyll and perished therin. From whych ygnoraunce god purged peter off hys mercye and gaue hym light and hys spirite too geuern hym / and not of any towardnesse that was in peter off his awne byrth: but for the mercy y^t we haue in the birth of chrystes deeth₊

And how wil M. More proue y^• god choseth not off hys goodnesse but off oure towardnesse? [Page Cxxxi] what good towardnesse can he haue and ende­uoure that is all to gether blynde and caried a­waye at the wyll of the deuell / tyll the deuell be cast out? At we not robbed of all towardnesse in Adam and be by nature made the children of synne / so that we synne naturally and to synne is our nature? So y^• as now / though we wold doo well / the flesh yet synneth naturally nether ceaseth to synne / but so ferforth as it is kepte vnder with violence: euē so once our hertes synned as naturally wyth full lust and consent vn to the flesh / the deuel possessynge our hertes ād kepynge out the light of grace. Vvhat good towardnesse and endeuoure can we haue to hate synne / as longe as we loue it? what good towa­rdnesse can we haue vnto the wyll of god / why­le we hate it and be ignoraunte therof. Can the wyll desyre that the witte seith not? Can y^• will longe for and sigh for that the wytt knoweth not of? Can a man take thought for that losse y^t he wotteth not of? what good endeuoure can the turkes childern / the Iewes childern and the popis infantes haue / when they be taught all falshed only wyth lyke persuasions of worldly reason / to be all iustified with werkes? It is not therfore as Paul sayth / of the runnynge or willynge Roma. 9 but of the mercye of god / that a mā is called and chosen to grace₊

The first grace / the first fayth and the first iustifienge is geuen vs frely sayth Master More. whych I wold fayne were how it wyll stond with his other doctrine / and whether he meane any other thynge by chosynge thē to haue gods spirite geuen me and fayth to se the mercie that is layd vpp for me and to haue my synnes for­geuen with out all deseruynge and preparynge [Page] of my selfe God did not se only that the these y^• was saued at christes deeth / shuld come thither / but god chose him to shew his mercie vn to vs that shuld aftir beleue / and prouided actually and wrought for the bringynge of him thither that daye / to make him se ād to receaue the mercie that was layed vpp for him in store / before y^• world was made

xij.

In the .xij. in chafinge him selfe to hepe lye vppon lye / he vttereth his feleable blindnesse. For he haxeth this questiō wherefore serueth exhortacions vn to fayth / if the hearers haue not libertye of their frewyll / by which together wi­th gods grace a man may laboure to submitte the rebellion of reason vn to the obedience of Frewill faith and credence of the worde of God. whereof ye se / that besydes his graunt that reason rebelleth agenst faith / contrary to the doctrine of his first boke / he will that the will shall compell the witte to beleue. which is as moch to saye y^t the carte must draw the horses ād the sonne be­gett the father / and the auctorite of the church is greather then gods worde. For the will cannot teach y^• witt ner leade hir / but foloweth naturally: so that what soeuer the witt iudgeth good or euell / that the wyll loueth or hateth. If the witte se and leade streight / the will foloweth If the witt be blinde and lead amisse / the will foloweth cleane out of the waye. I can not loue The wit­te leadeth the will. gods worde before I beleue it / ner hate it / befo­re I iudge it false and vanite. He might haue wiselier spokē on this maner / wherefore serueth the preachynge of faith / if the witt haue no power to draw the will to loue that which the witte iudgeth true and good. If [Page Cxxxij] the will be nought / teach the witt better and y^• will shall alter and turne to good immediatly. Blindnesse is the cause of all euel and light the cause of al good: so that where the faith is right there the herte cānot consent vnto euell / to folowe the lustes of the fleshe / as the popes faith doeth. And this conclusion hath he halfe a do­sen tymes in his boke / that the will maye com­pell the witt and captiuate it / to beleue what a man lusteth. verelye it is like that his wittes be in captiuite ād for vauntage tangled with oure holy fathers sophistrie.

His doctrine is aftir his awne felynge and as the profession of his herte is. For the popish haue yelded them selues / to folowe the lustes of their fleshe / and compell their witte to absteyne from lokynge on the trouth lest she shuld vnquiet them ād draw them out of the podell of their filthie voluptuousnesse. As a carte that is ouerladen goinge vp an hill draweth the horses backe / ☜ and in a tough mire maketh thē stonde styll. And then the carter the deuel which driueth thē is euer by and whistelleth vn to them and bid­deth them captiuatt their vnderstondynge vn to profitable doctrine for which they shall haue no persecucion but shall raigne and be kynges and enioye the pleasures of the worlde at their awne will.

xiij.

In the .xiij. he saith that y^• clergie burneth no man. As though y^e pope had not first found y^e lawe / & as though al his {pre}achers babled not y^t in euery sermō / burne these heretikes burn thē [Page] for we haue no nother argument too conuince them and as though they comppelled not both kinge and emproure to swere that they shall so doo / yer they croune them₊

Then he bryngeth in prouisions of Kynge Kinge Hēry the .v. Henry the .v. Of whom I axe. M. More whe­ther he were ryght heyre vn to englonde or held he the lande wyth the swerde as an hethen ty­raunte / agenst all ryght. whom the prelates / lest he shulde haue had leyser too herken vn to the trouth / sent in to fraunce / too occupie hys myn­de in warre / and led him at their wil. And I axe whether his father slew not his lege kinge and true enheretoure vnto the croune and was therfore set vpp of the bisshops a false kinge to maynetene theyr falsehed? And I axe whether after that weked dede / folowed not the destruccion of the comenaltie ād quenchynge of all the noble bloude

xiiii

In the .xiiii. he affirmeth that Martē luther saieth it is not lawfull to resiste the turke I wōdre that he shameth not so to lye seynge y^t mar­ten ☞ hath written a singular tretice for the cōtrarye. besydes that in many other workes he pro­ueth it laufull / if he invade vs.

xvi

In the .xvi. he allegeth counsels. I axe whe­ther counsels haue auctorite to make articles of the faith with out gods worde / ye ād of thynges improued by gods worde?

He allegeth Augustine / Hierom and Cipriane. Let him put their workes in english and. S. prosperus with them. whi damned they the vnion of doctoures / but be cause the doctours are agenst them

And when he allegeth marters / lett him shew one and take the calfe for his laboure.

And in the end he biddeth bewarre of them y^• liue well in any wise. As though they whych liue euell can not teach amisse. And if y^• be true then they be of the surest syde. ☜

M. when Tindale was apposed of his doc­trine / yer he went ouer se / he said and sware / he More. mēt no harme. T. he sware not nether was the­re any man that required an oth of him: but he Tindale swereth now swereth by him whom he trusteth to be saued by / that he neuer ment or yet meaneth any other harme then to sofre all that god hath pre­pared to be leyd on his backe / for to brynge his brothern vn to the light of our sauiour Ihesus which the pope thorow falshed and corruptyn­ge soch poetes as ye are (ready vn to all thynge for vauntage) leadeth in the darkenesse of deeth

M. Tyndale doeth know how that. S. Augustine & S. Hierom doo proue with holy scriptu­re More that confession is of necessite vn to saluacion T. y^• is false if ye meane eare confessiō. whi allege ye not y^• places where? But ye knowe by. S. Tindale Hierom and other stories and by the conuersa­cion with Erasmus / how it come vpp and that the vse was once ferre other then now.

M. I meruell that Tyndale denieth purga­tory / excepte he entende to goo too hell. T. he entēdeth to purge here vn to the vttermost of his More. purgatory Tyndale. power and hopeth that deeth wyll ende and fy­nish his purgacion. And if there be any other purgynge / he wyll committe it to god and take it as he findeth it / when he cometh at it / & in the meane tyme take no thought therfore / but for this that is present where with all sayntes we­re purged & were taught so to be. And Tyndale [Page] maruelith what secret pilles they take to purge thē selues which not only wil not purge here with y^• crosse of christe / but also bye out their pur­gatory there of y^e pope / for a grote or .vi. pens₊

xviij

M. the clergie doeth nothynge vn to y^• heretikes but as y^• holy doctours did. T. yes ye put More. Clargye Tyndale. thē in youre presones and diote thē and handle thē after youre facion as tēporall tiraūtes / and dispute with thē secretly & wil not come at light And ye sle thē for rebukynge you with Gods worde / and so did not the old holy doctours. If a man sle his father / ye care not. But if any mā Note twich one of you though he haue neuer so grea­te an occasyon geuen hym / ye curse him / and yf he wyll not submitte him selfe vn to youre pu­nishement / ye leaue him vn to the temporall power whom ye haue hyred with the spoyle of his goodes to be youre hangman / so that he must lose hys lyfe / for geuinge one of you but a blow on the cheke₊

M. Saynt paul gaue .ii. heretikes vn to the More. deuell whych tormented their flesh which was no small punishment and haply he slew thē. T. Tindale O expounder of y^• scripture like hugo charēsys which expoundeth hereticū hominē deuita / take the heretike out of his life. we reade of no pay­ne that he had whom the Corinthians excomu­nicat and gaue to sathan / to sle hys flesh / saue that he was asshamed of hym selfe and repen­ted / when he saw hys offence so ernistly taken and so abhorred. But ye because ye haue no po­wer to delyuer them to sathan to blynde theyr myndes / ye deliuer them to the fyre to destroy their flesh / that no moare is sene of them after then the asshes₊