single state in theim that haue the gift of God pronouncyng it as ye saie wicked and abhominable and that thei should terme single life to be the doctrine of Diuilles and the inuention of Antechrist Be not these your woordes master Doctor Is not this your charge wherewith you falsly bourden the Protestantes Sir thei saie with saincte Paule that the prohibition of Matrimonie to them that haue not the gifte cometh of the doctrine of Deuilles speakyng lyes in hypocrisie Surely thei were very ignoraunt and blinde if thei should so write as you faine of theÌ„ where belike ye would haue the writers of your Churche to bee beleued and to write nothyng vnaduisedly and to ensue nothyng but pure holinesse and perfecte virginitie who can not erre as of the heade of your Churche ye doe plainlie affirme that it is impossible for them to erre in doctrine for that thei be the Uicars of Christ successours of Peter folowers of the Apostles equall with theim as some of them write in aucthoritie Augusti de anchona and yet not bound to succede them in holinesse of good life and that thei make lawes of prohibition of mariage and yet be no Taâ—ianistes and that thei maie apply or rather abuse the textes of Scripture speakyng againste the workes of the fleshe Qui iÌ„ carne funt c. contrary to the fruictes of the spirite to the estate of wedlocke and yet will not bee noted faultie in the condemnation of Matrimonie and that their Canons be of so high aucthoritie excellyng the scriptures that the scriptures doe but counsell virginitie and single life but their Canons doe commaunde it as this Doctor in his precise circumspection writeth But I praie you sir whose fault is it that the conteÌ„pt of Christes true religion is issued forth of the coÌ„teÌ„pt of his ministers If ye doubt therof heare Leo the first who crieth out against theÌ„ which coÌ„mit the Pastorall dignitie Episto 44. to the vnworthie Heare ye what he saith NoÌ„ est hoc inquit coÌ„suiere populis sed nocere nec prestare regimeÌ„ sed augere discrimeÌ„ principatus queÌ„ aut seditio extorfit aut ambitus occupauit ipsius inicij sui est perniciosus exeÌ„plo difficile est vt bono peragaÌ„tur exitu quae malo suÌ„t iÌ„choata principio This maner doyng saith he is not to prouide for the saftie of the people but to destroie them this is not to performe good gouernaunce but to encrease the coÌ„mon perill for gouernaunce wonne by sedition or obtained by ambition is hurtfull for the example of the attempte and harde is it that any thyng should haue any good ende whiche is begonne in so euill a foundation In Acta Apost con 3. And where is the faulte to be laied of these vnworthie Ministers vpon the Patrons or vpon the Ordinaries lette Chrisostome be iudge if the Prieste or Deacon do commit anie offeÌ„ce the crimes of them all do redounde vpon their heades saieth he who did admitte them Further ye saie that the losse of the Priestes estimatioÌ„ is chiefly risen of the vnabilitie and vnworthines of the Priestes Alas why is it not then forseen of the Ordinaries to prouide chast Priestes in chaste Matrimonie rather thâ—n by the filthines of their liuyng so to shame their state and deface Christes religion But when I praie you was religion more in honour then when Priestes wéere maried at will without compulsion though diuerse others hauing the gifte of soole lief continued in their gifte not despisyng others who for conscience sake fledde to the institution of matrimonie so charged by sainct Paule qui se non continet nubat melius est nubere quaÌ„ vri he that can not liue chaste lette hym marie for it is better to take a wife then for to burne in filthie lustes When kept thei their vessels in honore sanctificatione in honour and sanctification more safely then when thei had the libertie of mariage for the perill of incontinencie when was hospitalitie and residentie better kept then when the Pastor had his familie in a place certain to moue hym homeward when were their houses kept in better reparations then when thei wéere resident when had the people more relief by them then when thei kept houses But ye write that the libertie of mariage should induce a dissolute liuyng of the Clergie and ye saie that mariage offered to an incontinent minister is but to offer present poyson to destroie the hoole bodie Is this the spirite of holynes that forceth you to write such impieties or the spirit of errour cleane contrarie to Paules spirite Ad Heb. 13. who affirmeth Matrimonie to bee honourable in all persones and the bedde vndefiled But yet ye saie that this forsed chastitie was by the counsailes confirmed by all thauncient writers approued and that this libertie of mariage tendeth altogether to the contempt of the holy institution and therby also to the ouerthrowe of Christes religion and that this teaching of mariage began with Lecherie continewed with couetise and ended in treason these be youre owne slaunderous wordes Master Martin Whiche howe true thei bee the worlde maie sone Iudge But thus ye vtter the malice of your stomacke so beyng gladed to hurie others And suerlie if malice should take place all wéere awrie Actum esset vt inquit Erasmus in rebus humanis si malitiae par animo suppeteret nocendi facultas It weere the ruine and ouerthrowe of all mens fortunes if man had like power to hurte in deede as his malice were readie to wishe the same And thus hauyng rehearsed the sentence of Erasmus ye shall heare moreouer his iudgemente in this matter whiche wee haue in hande whereby wee maie then consider whether this learned Diuine should speake more truely then your M. Martin a poore selie Lawier vtteryng your determination so arrogantly thus he writeth ex vita sacerdotum palà m dedecorosa palà m coÌ„temnitur eorum doctrina inde perit fructus verbi dei Quòd si ijs qui non continent concederetur matrimonium ipsi viuerent quietius populo cum aucthoritate predicareÌ„t verbum dei Of the open filthie life of priestes their doctrine is dispised whereby the fruict of Gods worde is lost But if Matrimonie were grauÌ„ted to suche as liue not chastely bothe should thei liue the more quiete in conscience and should thereby preache the woorde of God with more aucthoritie vnto the people Loe this is Erasmus iudgemente What an impudent boldnes is it then for a yonge poore Ciuilian or to an olde indurate Canonist to affirme the contrary of that which so auncient and knowen learned diuine after his longe deliberation in Ecclesiasticall causes hath pronounced And what a lewdnesse is it to ascribe to the protestantes that thei should commonly holde emongest themselues that no wight can liue chaste where in deede thei teache with saincte Augustine De virgini cap. xl xli that that man maie
all that thei haue and paiment to bee made What will he saie trowe you Is this the learnyng and discretion prescribed vnto your fatherly aucthorities by the Quéenes highnes in her Commission that is séen in the order of your executions againste all learnyng without pitie to spoile learnyng Against all discretion to proceade without all order of lawe not discernyng man from man cause from cause state froÌ„ state You haue been iudged heretofore in all other realmes not comparable but farre excellyng all other realmes for worthines of learnyng for fatherly grauitie and exactnesse of iudgemente And shall now a little prefract wilfulnes of a fewe of your Comisaries ouertourne all your glories O fathers maie your children saie If we be deceiued by you we be deceiued ye haue béen our teachers leaders and guides By you were wee induced to credite the supremacies aucthoritie to bee able to doe what so euer the vsurped aucthoritie as ye tolde vs was wont to doe in decreyng and dispensyng your owne practises froÌ„ tyme to tyme made vs bolde to put vs vnder that defence of aucthoritie which openly ye semed moste willynglie to bée vnder And to be releaued with that medecine of dispensation which we with our eyes sawe your selues seke so muche to so ofte and so euery where enioiyng the like your selues hauyng no other hold for the possession of your estates once by you renounced resumed againe vnder that aucthoritie then suche as we thought to haue been as good for our assuraunces in our like liuynges And as wee knowe the whole Cleargie at this daie enioyeth the same without quarell of Canon or checke of any forren Lawe Upon the readyng and expending of your learned bokes orations and sermons openlie published and ofte imprinted did wee the kynges ignoraunt subiectes depende wholie as committyng our trust to your greate learnynges and franke confessions wee learned in your boke set forthe intitled De regia ecclesiastica aucthoritate how we should esteme the kynges high aucthoritie in his courte of Parliament There did ye plainly learne vs how to take the Canons of the Churche and how before tyme thei haue been vsed allowed and repelled againe by consente of the people and particular realmes and did no further or otherwise binde but as the kyng and his people receiued them By your orations did we learne that the Prince hath it incidently in roiall aucthoritie and belonging to his croune by Gods worde to coÌ„stitute lawes to abolishe lawes to vse any Ecclesiasticall lawes at free will at pleasure lo longe as thei were thought meete for his policie and those to be of so strong validitie that no forren power ought once to conuell them or to disturbe them And to these and many other suche thinges haue we not onely been induced by the force of the learnyng and aucthoritie of some one twoo or three of you but it hath been deliuered vnto vs as doctrine of saluation to credite this saied aucthoritie of our and your soueraigne in his realme by the whole consent and subscription of all and euery one of you with diuerse others ioyned vnto you In your booke intituled The institution of a Christian man presented by your whole aucthorities to the kyng of famous memorie kyng Henry the. viij where in the preface ye affirme to his highnes with one assent by all your learnynges that the saied treatise is in all pointes concordante and agreable to holie scripture yea suche doctrine that ye will and desire to haue it taught by all the spirituall pastours to all the kynges louyng subiectes to be doctrine of faithe And there entreatyng of the Sacrament of Orders ye desire to haue it taught that we be in no subiection to the bishop of Rome and his statutes but merely subiecte to the kynges lawes vnder his onely territorie and iurisdiction And that the Canons and rules of the Churche were therefore alowable in the realme because the assent of the kyng and of the people accepted the same And that Priestes and Bishops whatsoeuer neuer had any aucthoritie by the Gospell in matters Ciuill and Morall but by the graunt and gifte of Princes and that it was alwaie and euer shal be lefull vnto Kynges and Princes and to their successours with the consente of their Parliamentes to reuoke and call again into their owne handes or otherwise to restraine all their power and iurisdiction geuen and permitted by their aucthoritie assente or sufferaunce c. without the whiche if the Bishop of Rome or any other Bishop whatsouer should take vpon them any aucthoritie or iurisdiction in suche matters as be Ciuill as matters of Mariages for the tymes and persones bee confessed in your learnynges to bee no doubte saie ye that Bishop is not worthie to be called a Bishop but rather a tyraunt and an vsurper of other mennes rightes contrary to the Lawes of GOD and is to bee reputed a subuertor of the kyngdome of Christe yea besides these thynges and many other ye put it in our Crede and belief as an article of saluation and damnation that the Churche of Englande is as well to be named a Catholike and Apostolike Churche as Rome Churche or any other Churche where the Apostles were residente And ye will vs to beleue in our faithe that there is no difference in superioritie preemineÌ„ce or aucthoritie one ouer the other but be all of equall power and dignitie And that all Churches be free from the subiection and iurisdiction of the Churche of Rome And that no Churche is to be called Scismaticall as variyng from the vnitie of the Churche of Christe if it persiste in the vnitie of Christes faithe hope and charitie and vnitie of Christes doctrine and sacramentes agreable to the same doctrine Oh fathers if this doctrine bee thus set forthe by your whole aucthoritie presented by the subscription of al your names and since the time of your presentyng thereof by the space almoste of .xx. yeres neuer reuoked but continuallie from tyme to tyme taught by this booke and by other suche declarations Can ye of reason in your consciences allowe your officers thus to entreate your priestes and curates that vpon your so earnest doctrine aduisedly obtruded and forced to your faith haue doen as theâ—haue doen in the state of their liues not on their owne heades but vpon your heades aucthorities and warrantise of lawe so stablished by you to pertaine to the kynges croune If ye were deceiued or induced after so deliberate a consultation whiche were greate pitie to espie in your aucthorities beyng the self same men that bee still in office to call vs at this daie to God to truthe to doctrine of saluation and maie require of vs to credite you if wee will bee saued Shall we onely beare the heauie burthen of your ouersight and ye your selues as it were winnyng honour estimation and aduauncemente by your doynges Might not your escapes in your assertions haue béen more merciful in sute to
Doue vseth not this she lyueth of the frute of the earth her feedyng is without hurte And that Churche saieth sainct Hierome is to be counted the catholyke Churche whiche by the helpe of Gods grace wandereth not from the path and trade of the Apostles traditions Againe he saieth â—4 q. 3. TraÌ„sferunt principes inde terminos quos posuerunt patres eorum quando immutant mendatio veritatem aliud predicant quam ab Apostolis acceperunt c. The heade men and rulers doe remoue the markes and dooles whiche their auncetours haue laied when thei chaunge the truthe into lyes and preache other thinges then suche as thei haue receiued of the Apostles Therefore if the Churche of Englande can declare her self to prâ—ceade nigher the rules of the Apostles then that Churâ—he whiche of duetie chalengeth the onely name it must bee preferred before that priuate Catholike congregation as this aucthour bringeth in twoo aucthorities Cap. â— lraÌ„ f. 1. Panorm â—ignifi de elect Dist. 31. â—â—ena of Ireneus and Origen for his purpose whiche subuerteth all his pretence Yea thei confesse the Lawes them selues that one laye man hauyng scripture or a reasonable cause is more to bee receiued then a whole Uniuersitée together without the same For the Churche is not so builded vpoÌ„ Peters person or yet vpon his See but vpon that sure confession whiche came from hym that article of the faithe whiche he confessed thou art Christe the soonne of the liuyng God so that Christe builded his Churche Distinc. 19. Ita dominus vpon hym self saieth the Canonistes them selues This aucthour cometh all to late therefore what poste haste so euer he make or how so euer he vse to blinde this age with Romishe articles of their faithe saiyng The Churche of Rome can not erre though thei remoue the markes of the Apostles preceptes And that it muste bee euer presumed that the Pope is all holie and maie not bee iudged and can not erre that his saiynges are of equall aucthoritie with Christes doctrine and his deedes must be interpreted Distinc. 40. N◠〈◊〉 as the murther of Samson and the felonie of the Iewes and as the adulterie of Iacob For it were a kinde of Sacrilege to call his facte into disputation with infinite more suche articles as be euery where in his decrees and Canonistes writynges But yet I thinke this aucthour vrge still vpon me for the diuersitie of Priestes mariyng before order and after order and will require what Counsaile what Canon what example I can alledge that a priest euer maried To make shorte answere till we come to particular debatement of these causes as thei bée sundrie in nature so ought thei to bee sonderlie entreated and not craftely mixte and chopte in together to blinde the vnlearned reader Firste I aunswere with the woordes of a Catholike writer in a like cause Quid si destituamur exemplo hominum si habeamus praeceptum dei What maketh matter though wee had no example of man if we haue a precepte of God and a confession of his Apostle lefte yet saffe vnto vs as Alfonsus Episcopus Canariensis saieth yea after our orders and promise whatsoeuer it bee Secondly I saie that by dispensations of the Busshoppes of Roome diuerse and many haue as well maried after orders as after priuate vowes and solempne vowes to as shall be aduouched good store of suche examples out of authentike stories some examples of others that maried after their order without dispensation and not thought to bee the lesse Catholike for it Thirdlie I can alledge to this Englishe writer twoo Englishe actes of Parliament so assented vnto by the subscription of the whole Clergie by the whole body of the Imperiall state of the realme whiche I will here after proue to bee of as good value and aucthoritie for the defence of their mariages whiche were made by theim as a greate sorte of his Synodes and generall Counsailes to that he reporteth in his Booke so thicke in euery leaffe as though scripture were vtterly to bee layed a side to geue them roume And I maruell muche what this writer meaneth beyng an Englishe man and offereth his seruice so ready to the Queenes maiestis that can enuie the crowne of Englande of that prerogatiue that is by Goddes woorde incident therevnto beyng so ofte proued and confessed yea and sworne vnto by the whole Realme and so muche stablished by the learned assertions sermons orations and other writynges of the aunciente Fathers and moste catholike men that be at this daie knowen and had in reuerence and aucthoritie for their greate wittes learnyng and grauitie of life by the space of twentie yeres perpetually inculked whiche now to call againe into question maie entaÌ„gle many a good mannes conscience in the Realme who were moste chiefly induced by them bothe to swere yea and to ieoperd their soules therein and many be departed in the same belief already Moreouer I would wishe this professour of Ciuill to consider or at the least the gentle reader to note with what charitée he could so slaunder his owne countrie men the Queenes subiectes to her grace in his Preface with so odious accusations of inceste heresie coueteousnesse and because he would leaue nothyng behinde to promote them to the Queenes graces credeÌ„ce with treason also and malice to her grace and that without exceptioÌ„ of any one man entred into the said state of mariage who as thei bee many so had thei diuerse respectes in their doynges and haue at this daie diuerse cogitations in their hartes And though he could charge some or many with the saied crimes as God be thanken I thinke his owne conscience telleth hym that his penne lied and as I truste is not the suspition of a great many of as good hartes to the Queenes highnesse as he Thrasonically bloweth out in his Booke to beare her yet he eccepteth none but vniuersally and singularly chargeâ—h all in assertion solempnely pronounced with no further proofe but ipse dixit And where was his remembraunce to ieoparde the fame of many other of the same coote whom I am suer he fauoureth well enough notyng Heresie and Lecherie so ioyntly to bée knit together that wher the one is their is the other as sisters inseparable So that by this mans assertion beyng one of the principall and first articles wherevpon he growndeth all the buyldyng of his booke wee muste nedes beleue that where vnchaste lyfe is there is Heresie couertly couered Lette hym consider if this principle bée resolued whyther and howe farre the worlde can soone iudge it goeth In verie deede his assertion hath some grounde of aucthoritie beside that he bryngeth in of Simon magus out of Epiphanius For Chrysostome writing vpon the first to Tymothe the .4 of suche as shall depart not from the Bushop I saie but from the faieth geuyng hede to the spirites of erroure c. Hic loquitur saieth he de Manichaeis Encratitis Marcionitis
into Asia and Affrica and bryng in Panim priestes to set out the matter There is nothyng in your booke written or vnwritten deuised by your owne braine or surmised by heare saie but ye make strong argumentes for your owne vaine and feble cause But briefly to answere this wittie deuise of the difference of the tyme till a â—uller debatemente of that poincte I shall answere as once sainct Hierom was answered in a matter of Priestes and Bisshoppes wiuyng and orderyng by a certaine disputer who defended the constitution of the churche as it was then and as it is at this daie where S. Hierome is on the contrary part holdyng that to haue one wife before Baptisme and a seconde wife after was not therefore an impedimente to be admitted to Priesthode Epistola ad Oceanum or to a Busshoppes office Nonne legisti ab Apostolo vnius vxoris virum assumi in sacerdotium rem noÌ„ tempora definiri that t s Doest thou not reade saieth he that by the Apostles aucthoritie the husbande of one wife is to bee chosen into Priesthode and that the cause and matter is thereby defined and not the tyme If this catholike disputer would haue the saiyng of S. Paule to bee weighed in the nature of the order and mariage rather then drawen to the circumstaunce of tyme and that he must bée the husbande but of one wife either before or after Baptisme at the tyme of his orderyng and therefore maie be eligible to be a priest or bushoppe And as sainct Hierom hym self writeth afterward that it is rather loked for in a priest or Busshop what he is for the tyme presente then what he hath been why not as well maie sainct Paules text and aucthoritie serue for a prieste and a busshoppe to be lawfully qualefied if he be the husbande but of one wife whether he had his wife in the tyme he was no prieste or he take a wife in the tyme after he bée in his priesthode So he be as it is said the husbande of one wife yea successiuely Wherewith ye maie quarell by aucthoritie of some expositours though not with the manifest woorde of God But to be the husbande onely of one wife before order and after order once for all as ye saie the Greeke Churche vseth to doe ye can not quarell rightly by Goddes worde nor yet by reasonable aucthoritie of mannes Lawe or Canon in suche necessitie as ye force and inferre of their saiynges As for the other peece of Nicene Canon where it is saied that accordyng to thauncient tradition of the Churche suche as were not as yet maried and were partakers of holy order should from thence for the contracte no mariage And as for the Canon of the Apostles whiche ye stande so strongly to or yet for the saiyng of sainct Augustine immediatly folowyng the place whiche is here before alledged leste ye should cauill as ye doe that I lefte out the pithe of the matter and would slide sleightly ouer the whole place of the aucthoritie and bryng theim in by patche meales with violent wrestyng as ye vse to doe I will heareafter bryng them put them all together to the iudgement of the reader to geue sentence betwixt vs how farre thei weye in this cause Yet in the meane tyme to make some insinuation to you of sainct Augustines question note ye well his woordes not as a subtile Lawier but like a Diuine and wreste not sainct Augustines licet Cap. 4. haÌ„ E. ii a. Vt notatur ca. â—i Christus de IureturaÌ„â—o and non licet out of their nature as ye doe Quaedam illicita sunt in sui natura quaedam ciuiliter .i. iure positiuo vel consuetudinario quaedam sunt simoniaca quia prohibita quaedam sunt prohibita quia simoniaca Quid autem liceat aut quid non liceat pleni sunt libri scripturarum August in Psa. 147 qui confirmat vectes portarum c. Some thynges are vnlawfull of their owne nature and some by Ciuile constitution that is by positiue lawe Some thynges are Simonicall because thei are forbiddeÌ„ and some are forbidden because thei are Simonical but what is lawfull and what not lawfull is fully set out in the bookes of scripture And then againe note if S. Augustine openeth not his mynde by the like licet and non licet Saiyng AntequaÌ„ Ecclesiasticus quis sit licet ei negotiari facto iam non licet That is Before one hath taken vpon hym the state of an Ecclesiasticall persone he maie geue hym self to worldly affaires but afterward he maie not In like maner Consilium Aurelianense saieth Episcopum presbyterum aut diaconum canes ad venandum aut accipitres NoÌ„ licet 〈◊〉 negotiari intâ—resse ludis c. Distinct. 88 per totum aut huiusmodi res habere non licet It is not lawfull for a Busshop Priest or Deacon to haue houndes haukes or suche like Now call to your remembraunce how your Lawe qualifieth this licet and non licet till we tell you more in this matter In your expendyng if ye take not quid pro quo ye shall doe the better But because the reader maie further heare what saith S. Hierome in the defence of his opinion as is spread in the processe of his saied Epistle and that the prudent reader maie expeÌ„de whether his Rhetorike might not bee applied againste the aduersaries of this cause as well as he vsed it in the like cause I will reporte his woordes what he writeth further there and leste ye should mistake the Epistle I will shewe you how it beginneth Thus therfore he writeth Nunquam fili Oceane fore putabam vt indulgentia principis calumniam sustinerer reorum de car ceribus exeuntes post sordes ac vestigia cathenarum dolereÌ„t alios relaxatos In EuaÌ„gelio audit inuidus salutis alienae Amice si ego bonus quare oculus tuus nequam est Conclusit deus omnia sub peccato vt omnibus misereatur vt vbi abundauit peccatum superabundet gratia Caesa sunt Aegypti primogenita ne iumentum quidem Israeliticum iÌ„ Aegypto derelictum est consurgit mihi Caina haeresis atque olim emortua vipera contritum caput leuat Quae non ex parte vt ante consueuerat sed totum Christi subruit Sacramentum c. Dicit enim esse aliqua peccata quae Christus non possit purgare sanguine suo tam profundas scelerum pristinoruÌ„ inherere corporibus atque animis cicatrices vt medicina illius attenuari noÌ„ queant quid aliud agit nisi vt Christus frustrà mortuus sit c. A paraphrasis of the same By swéete sainct Mary and good sainct Martine to I would neuer haue thought gentle master Martine that it would euer haue come to passe that the graunte and concession of that moste Christian Prince kyng Edward in his high Courte of Parliamente grounded vpon Goddes almightie woorde should euer haue been
ne postquam in Christo credederint noceat eis ê™ aliquaÌ„do non concubinas nec meretrices sed vxores habuerunt Recolat vnusquiâ—que conscientiam fuam totius vulnera plangat aetatis Audiat increpantem Iesum hypocrita eijce primum trabem de oculo tuo tunc videbis eijcere festucam de oculo fratris tui Verè Scribarum Phariseorum similes culicem liquanres Camelum glutientes Decimamus mentham anetum dei iudicium praetermittimus Quid simile vxor scortum Imputatur infoelicitas coniungis mortuae libido meritricia coronatur Ille si prior vxor viueret aliam coniugem non haberet Tu vt passim caninas nuptias iungeres quid potes excusare Forsitan timuisse te dicas ne si matrimoniuÌ„ copulasses non posses aliquando clericus ordinari I lle in vxore optauit liberos tu in meretrice sobolem perdidisti Illi scriptum est honorabileâ— nuptiae tibi legiâ—ur fornicatores iudicabit deus Ipse proijciet in profundum maris omnia peccata nostra Quomodo in lauachro omnia peccata merguntur si vna vxor supernatat Beati quorum remissae sunt iniquitates quorum tecta sunt peccata Beatus vircui non imputabit dominus peccatuÌ„ Arbitror ê™ possumus nos huic aliquid cantico iungere Beatus vir cui noÌ„ imputabit dominus vxorem c. Ab omnibus inquit mundabo vos sordibus in omnibus nihil praetermittitur Si sordes emundantur quanto magis munditiae non coinquinantur If all suche qualities saieth he whiche be required in the coÌ„secration of a Bushoppe be no preiudice to hym at his consecration though he had theim not before Baptisme for it is rather required what he is now for the tyme presente and not what he hath been why is onely the name of a wife a stop to him whiche onely was no offence All whoredome all maner of wickednesse againste God murtheryng of parentes and inceste c. bee purged and wasshed awaie in Christes water and Baptisme and shall the spottes of a wife remaine still Shall whoredome bee preferred before mariage And there in that place sainct Hierom doeth vehemently inueye against suche as rekoneth it a greate faulte to haue a wife but to haue whores and concubines thei are not so muche greued therewith saiyng Let them heare that are Gentiles Let them harken that are yet scholers in Christes schoole Lette them beware thei marie not wiues before thei bee Baptised Let them take heede thei ioyne not them selues in mariage Let them rather take women at all aduenture and haue children in common Yea let theim beware by any meanes the names of wiues leste after thei come to beleue in Christe it be hurtfull vnto them that thei neauer had coÌ„cubines and whores but had Lawfull wiues Lette euery one examine his owne conscience and bewaile the woundes of his whole age And then heare the Lorde Iesus ratyng them thus O hypocrite cast out firste the beame out of thyne owne eye and then shalte thou see to pull out the mote from thy brothers eye and woe bee to you Scribes and Pharisies hypocrites ye tithe Mint and Anise and haue left the weightier matters of the law vndoen ye blind guides whiche straine out a Gnatte and swallowe a Camell what similitude is there betwixte a whore and a wife The hauyng of a wife saith he is muche charged for a miserable case and the whores lecherie is aduaunced c. Let vs vnderstand the Apostle not in the honourable testification onely and qualitie of hauyng one wife but in all other qualities whiche he there rehearseth I will saith God clense you from all filthinesse If filthinesse be clensed how muche more is clennesse meanyng mariage not defiled How be all offences drowned in the water of Baptisme if a wife onely swimme a loft It is saied saieth he in the Psalme Blessed are thei whose sinnes bee remitted Happie is that man to whoÌ„ the lorde wil not lay his sinne to his charge Belike nowe saieth he wee muste ioyne and adde some thyng more to this verse and saie Blessed and happie is the manne to whom the lorde will not laie his wife to his charge and so forth A Busshop saieth he maie not bee a newe conuerse a yonglyng in learnyng and life c. I can not saith he maruell enough to se how greate the blindnesse of men is to brabble of wiues married before Baptisme and to drawe that thyng whiche is dead in Baptisme or rather reuiued in Christe to accusation where as so euidente a precepte is obserued of no man Yesterdaie but a Nouice vnder instruction to daie a Busshop At night a iester in a gamplaie at mornyng a Prieste at the aultere Was the Apostle ignoraunt of our brabling cauillations saieth he Knewe he not the childishenesse of our argumentes and reasons He that saied the husbande of one wife euen very he also commaunded that he should be without blame sober prudent honestly apparelled harborous a teacher modeste no dronkarde no fightex no quareller not couetous no yonglyng at all these saieth he wee shutte our eyes but at a wife wée sette them wide open In conclusion saieth he when thei obiecte againste vs a wife before Baptisme let vs require at their handes all suche thynges whiche be charged them after Baptisme thei passe awaie lightly thynges that bee vnlawfull and laye to greate blame that is graunted and lawfull Thus and in many more suche wordes doeth sainct Hierom spende his whole Epistle whose wordes the rather I desire to be expended because this Doctor and Ciuilian bryngeth hym solempnely in for a great aucthoritie in the partes of his disputation whom I dare saie this writer wil not allowe in this poinct howe vehemently and earnestly soeuer he speake And if he reiected sainct Hierom in this opinion as not to be holden as their owne lawe doth so condempne hym in dede we maie be as bold to excepte againste hym in his other saiynges wrytten againste the woorde of God Or at the least waie when sainct Hierome is drawen out of one place of his writyng we may be bolde to answere him with himself or with some other of as good aucthoritie as hymself if we wante Gods worde in the particularitie of any matter in our disputation But certen it is that S. Hierome in this poinct coÌ„dempneth all the late catholike churche and calleth them Hypocrites and superstitious to their faces with the words aforesaid Ca. 1. And writyng furthermore vpon Titus he saieth many supposeth more superstitiously then truelie that thei whiche in their gentilitie had one wife and after her departure maried an other after thei were Christianed may not bee chosen to priesthode Whiche if it were to be obserued rather suche should be hold backe from beyng bushops whiche before folowed their lecherous lustes abrode with harlottes and after their regeneration toke one wife And muche more detestable it is to be
votum negatiuum Now saie thei the priest if he Marrie he surely breaketh his vowe and is in great daunger but if he committe but adulterie or fornication he breaketh no vowe for he vowed but the abiuration of Mariage and no refusall of fornication though peraduenture Chastitee maie bee thought to be annexed to his order by some scrupulous Pope-holy obseruation But yet in greate disputation emong theim whether single fornication be sinne or no and greate argumentes pro contra and long occupied in the Schooles yet at the worste he breaketh no vowe nor is any heretique as the Prieste that taketh a wife Suche conclusions beyng so openly expressed in summarie bookes it is no maruaile though thei repente so seldome and though thei them selues can not trust well one an other of chaste liuyng For Nicholas Panormitan beyng an head Lawier and in chief aucthoritie emong them sawe so little cause by his experience to bee out of suspition towarde the Clergie that he geueth a rule to spirituall iudges in this cause saiyng that an othe maie neuer be geuen to hym of whom maie bee taken a vehement suspicion that he will breake it and there vpon geueth a greate charge to the Ordinarie that he compell not the Clergie to sweare to forsake their Concubines the Iudge synneth deadly saieth he to offer and exacte suche othes And Alexander the third Extra de cohab cleri mulie prescribeth it as a Lawe that the Clergie ought not to bee compelled to abiure their concubines Thei bothe sawe what presumptions might be taken that thei would neuer forsake them yea there is nothyng more earnestly restrained in their Canons then that any Priestes should haue any womeÌ„ in their houses where at the tyme of Nicene Counsaile and in Ciprians daâ—es thei were yet contented that priestes had in their houses their mothers their doughters or sisters or their wiues but yet no maide beside So in the latter daies it was decréed in a Counsaile at Magunce that thei should haue neither sister aunte nor mother in their companie For saieth the Counsaile it is well knowen that by the instigation of the Deuill abhomination hath been committed with theim Thus though theim selues were neuer of that belief for thei sawe by inuincible experience alwaie the contrary so that thei could not truste thereto them selues yet the laitie muste beleue their chastitée to be of the old auncient faithe of the churche that thei maie not bee euill thought of and so commaunded by Nicholas the first in his rescriptes Tit. 14. de presbyteri distinct 28 consulenduÌ„ de presbyteris Vobis qui laici estis nec iudicandum est nec de vita eorum quicquam inuestigandum Of the priestes you that be laye people maie not once iudge of theim nor yet to make any serche of their liues And to proue that it was the common faithe many hundreth yeres ago and so accepted by the examples of the higheste potentates of the worlde as of one of the moste and firste Christian Emperours that euer was or euer shall bee thus it is there written what he would dooe if he sawe a Busshoppe lye in bedde with an other mannes wife as Nicephorus telleth the storie In scripturis narratur Constantinum Imperatorem dixisse Vere si vidissem proprijs oculis sacerdotem dei c. peccantem chlamidem meam expoliarem cooperirem eum ne ab aliquo videretur c. It is tolde in the scriptures that Constantine the Emperor said thus Truely if I should see with myne owne eyes Goddes Prieste or any of those that bee in the habite of Religion to sinne I would doe of my clocke or purple Robe and would couer hym that no man should se him Lo this ConstaÌ„tine was our countrie man the rather should Englishe menne be good to Priestes Concubines I thinke it would be a greate while ere this holy Martin of his Ciuilitée would extende his charitee so farre as to cast to poore maried priestes any parte of his cloke to couer their lawfull Matrimonie from the eyes of enuious and ignoraunt people as this Emperour of his charitée would couer the Priestes harlottes But it maketh no matter seyng that Elie the Prophet hath caste downe the cloke of Gods woorde to defende the maried Priestes from the colde frosen hartes of wicked ignoraunte Lawiers and captious Sophisters Thei neede care the lesse to come vnder his patched beggars Cloke But let vs heare what is more saied to the aduauncemente of the catholike faithe The self same Constantine beyng presidente in the holie Counsaile of Nice when he heard that there should be brought to hym coÌ„plaintes of certaine Bushoppes saied openly Vos a nemine diiudicari potestis quia ad dei solius iudiciuÌ„ reseruamini Ys maie not be iudged of any man for ye bée reserued to the iudgemente of God a lone which catholike saiyng sainct Gregorie reporteth to Maurice the Emperoure with some further circumstaunce thus The Ecclesiasticall storie saieth he witnesseth that when there were presented certaine libelles of accusation againste certaine Busshoppes to Constantine of Godlie memorie he tooke them in his handes Not the Bushoppes but the Lâ—bels and he called the self same bushoppes before hym and castyng them into the fire saied goe ye and order your owne Counsailes emong your selues Ego vos non iudicabo a quibus debeam ipse iudicari I will not geue iudgemente ouer you of whom I ought in myne owne persone to be iudged For it besemeth not our worthinesse that we should iudge Gods In whiche senteÌ„ce saith Gregorie he wrought hym self more honor by his humilitée then he did to theim to whom he shewed suche reuerence Although yet my Lorde of Winchester write quam vocem presentis reuerentia virtutis non potestatis aliquaÌ„do expresserat whiche saiyng declared more the humilitée of his preseÌ„t vertue then expressed the truthe of his aucthoritie The vtteryng of whiche his affection ought not so to be forced saieth my lorde that ye should mocke out or defeate the charge committed by God to the Princes aucthoritie Dioretus lib. i. cap. xx reporteth an other maner of saiyng by hym spoken whereof thei liâ—â—e to make no greate boste to the Bushoppes of Nicomedia Si habemus Episcopos castos orthodoxos humanos gaudemus si quis audacter inconsulteque ad memoriam ac laudem pestiuÌ„ illarum exarserit illius statim audatia ministri dei hoc est mea executione coercebitur If we finde the Bushops chaste catholique and curteous we will be glad but it any will boldly and rashely reuiue again by his furiousnesse the pernicious examples that be paste his presumption shall bee restrained by iuste execution of my self that am Goddes minister But these saiynges bee nothyng so pleasaunt nor so often vttered of Emperours and kynges as that other whiche Pope Paule the thirde in his admonition to Charles Emperour that now is could repeate again as his predecessours hath alwaies been wonte
woorde And furthermore where Doctour Martine in the same place of his Booke telleth you that the Heretiques in Spaine abhorred to weare crownes and to go in priestes gownes If ye will knowe the trueth of this matter ye muste either stande to his credence that he can not lye and that all is aucthoritie that he speaketh Or els if ye be more froward and will not bee aunswered then ye maie goe into Spaine and looke ouer the Chronicles your self or els peruse ouer the Counsails that were kept at Tollet in Spaine as there bee a good dosen with the more that haue been kept there and so reported in the volumes of the Counsailes hauing some of them aboue three score Canons apeece and some one of these Canons as long almost as the whole foure score and foure Canons that be ascribed to the Apostles But yet here is a prudence While you that be soe slowe in credit except ye see it proued in deede truely thus stand in a mameryng of his doctrine he winneth a good tyme in the hartes of other gentle readers of his booke And so when thei be grounded in their opinion then ye come to late to staâ—e them when it is so déepely suncke in their heades alreadie Well First note how he saieth that as soone as the Nazareans made their vow thei shore of streight waie their heâ—re M. Martine what deuine in Paris tolde you that In scripture ye shall find that all the tyme of their vowe thei kept on their heere still and did not shaue it of As SaÌ„pson â–ª was a Nazarean of whoÌ„ it is writteÌ„ a Iud â–ª 13. es 16 Oâ—igines in leuiti ca. 20. ho. 11 De nazâ—reis scripta sunt vt comani â—aâ—â—tis nutrirent nec ascenderet serâ—â—â—uper caput 〈◊〉 toto voti sui tempore Ibid. nazareorum vota non perpetua Ferrum nunquam ascendit super caput meum quia Nazareus id est Domino consecratus sum There neuer came Raser vpon my head because I am consecrated to the Lorde So that this is an vntrue and an vnlearned surmise to saie that thei shore of their heere as sone as thei had vowed and that thei wer shorne in the tyme of their vowe Where it is plain that thei did not shaue their heades till their vowe was past and finished As apeareth manifestlie in the sixt of the numbers Moreouer the name of Nazareans was not giuen them for shauyng of their heere but for the contrarie That is for the norishyng of their heere For b Epiphanius â—uÌ„tra 〈◊〉 li. 3. to 2 Hâ—râ—si 80. pag. 317. hoâ— testatur de Nazarâ—is Vbi seribit historia Eccesiastica Petri Comestoris vnde sorte quidam pingant christiÌ„s AploÌ„s crinitos Idem coÌ„firmat Breuiloquus aegregius author iÌ„ verbo Nazareus Ibid. idem Petrus ca. 8. dicit Leuitas rafisse omnes pilos carnis sue in 〈…〉 capillâ— Nezer signifieth in Hebrue as some men deriueth the worde Comam that is the heere or bushe of a mannes head And Nazareus quasi dicas Comatus A Nazarean is as if thou shuldest saie one that kéepeth on his heere and suffereth it to grow still As Moyses saieth Nume 6. Omni tempore consecrationis suae nouacula non ascendet super caput eius c. Sanctus erit crescente caesarie capitis eius All the tyme of his consecration there shall no raser passe vpon his heade he shall be holy sufferyng the heere of his head to growe c 〈…〉 redire poterâ—t Then ye see how aptlie the Priestes of England foloweth the examples of the Nazareans in shauyng their littell crownes on their heades It should be rather a token if suche trisles should be aduouched for argumentes that priestes be no votaries and that it is well proued by the shauyng of their heere in their crownes folowyng the examples of the Nazareans which after their vowe was doen and performed did shaue their heades God commaunded the Priest in the Leuiticall lawe as appeareth Leuit. xxi that thei should shaue neither head nor beard because suche shauyng was a signe of heathen and Idolatrous Priestes who vsed so to dooe in the seruice of their false Gods And for this cause saie the expositors was it so commaunded to the detestation of their Idolatrie and that Goddes Priestes should bee vnlike to them And for this cause also writeth some Interpretatours did not the Nazareans shaue their heades in the tyme of their consecration And that the pagane Priestes did vse that rite Chap. 6. it maie appeare both in the prophet Baruch as also in the 55. Chapiter of the counsaile holden at Liberta If ye now expende this matter ye maie note how muche learned diuinitie appeareth to bee in this Ciuilian and how good a signification he hath brought vs to for englishe Priestes holy crownes Ye see then that thei can not bee like the Nazareans except he referreth this maner of shauyng to the facte of Sampson a Nazarean who because he doted so muche vpon the strumpet Dalila and bewraied Gods counsaile to her she thervpon shaued him in the crowne as thei saie and confounded hym wherby his strength was abated and the spirite of God departed from hym and he was afterward one spirite with an harlot And so he forsaking the institution of God by sufferyng his heere of coÌ„secration to be shorne from hym whiche should haue growen stil all the tyme of his vowe God forsooke hym he was caste into the handes of the Philistines who throughe his owne folly deluded hym most shamefully and made a laughyng stocke of hym and so by that meanes he gaue the occasioÌ„ that gods name was spitfullie blasphemed Whereof yet at the last he repented and died constantly in reuengyng Goddes enemies But peraduenture Martine ment of those Nazareans of whom sainct Augustine speaketh De heresibus Heresi 9. who though thei confessed Christe to bee the sonne of God yet thei obserued the Iewishe constitutions of the law carnallie not spiritualy Whose disciples yet to be peraduenture would not muche mislike those crowned Priestes forasmuche as that smalie Iewishe faulte maie bee seen in their holy father of whom thei beare that marke For Pope Gregorie the seconde beyng asked of Boniface thapostle of the Germans whether thei might eate Horses yea or naie He aunswered that it was vnlawfull to a christen man to eate any horse either tame or wild for it was vncleane and accursed And the same Boniface asking of Pope Zacarie what foules and beastes thei should eate and after what time Lard should be eaten To the first he answered that Pies Choughes and Storkes ought vtterly to be eschued of christen men but muche more Graies Hares Horses of the wood must be refused And further seÌ„deth hym in these doubtes to the scripture emong the Iewes constitutioÌ„s As for the Lard he writeth to hym although he haue no scripture for it yet he doeth aduise him that it be not eaten before it be
yet I owe that thyng most chiefely to my mother Churche of Canterbury and therevpon I iudge that he ought to make his canonicall profession to the Church of Canterburie for I was present when that my brother Thomas the elder his vncle xxxvij yeres past Archbishop of Yorke was dryuen by inuincible argumentes to make his profession to Lanfranc then archbyshop of Canterburie and his successours Whiche sentence yet of his father though the kyng and the byshoppes dyd well alowe and with expendyng the recordes of the same yet the sayd Thomas the younger elect woulde not so submit hym selfe Thomas stobues in catologo Ebor. ca. 52. Wherevpon the kyng beyng moued pronounced that eyther he shoulde do it or els he woulde discharge him of the Byshopricke and not only lose his fauour but also he woulde expell all his kinrede out of the Realme Wherevpon Sampson byshop of Worcester his naturall father and Richarde Baiocense his brother so nye of kinrede were instaunt vppon hym And though that Ranulph byshop of Durham promysed the kyng a thousand marke in money and to the Queene a hundred yet it auayled nothyng saith the storie for the kyng would not be corrupted with money and so at the laste the sayde Thomas made his profession and lyued but v. yeres in his dignitie and dyed a young man as the storie saith beyng a very corpulent man If the reader wyll nowe vnderstande what successe this foresayde decree of Anselme had after his death thus wryteth the storie That though the decree was somewhat calde on after hym by the kynges commaundement yet he relented and so it folowed saith he that the priestes toke their wyues agayne which they had or els renouncyng their former toke others and freely maried harlottes so saith the muncke In which discourse he maketh insinuation that standing the tyme of the prohibition thers were both fornicatours and adulterers and such as committed incest with their nygh kynsefolke not onlye with their sisters but also with their owne daughters so that saith he though this good father after the example of the feast maker called many to the feast yet in no respect was there any effectuous obedience geuen vnto his wordes For saith he let hym reade that wyll the text of this councell at London and well consider the statutes therof and let hym then iudge who it is that obeyeth them who it is that fulfylleth them or what he is that accompteth them not vayne So that the priestes and the prebendaries obteyned so muche with their Byshops and Archdeacons that suche priestes as dyd relinquishe dyd returne againe to their wyues as is sayde before Whiche sayde matter is here brought in not as alowyng any thyng that was committed agaynst the precepte of God but to shewe what speede hadde this his decree in his lyfe tyme and what successe this vnreasonable tradition hadde after his lyfe If you woulde knowe the cause or grounde that might moue this father Anselme otherwise learned and of austere conuersation although in this to be feared rather to be of the number of them of whom Saint Paul saith In hypocrisi loquencium mendatium cauteriatam habentium suam conscientiam prohibentium nubere c. Forsooth his redy good wyll and accesse to the holy father of Rome the supportation that he founde there the spiced conscience he had in his wrong obedience vnto that sea esteemyng hym so hyghly supra id quod colitur made hym to esteeme his prince the lesse ii Thess. ii and from tyme to tyme troubled and endaungered his Realme in his office to the disquiet of the people enducyng in his bronded conscience fedities and enormities innumerable Whiche his blynde zeale not accordyng to knowledge Henrie Beuclarke well vnderstandyng dyd not only staye his importunitie but also resisted the popes auctoritie to his owne face doing in his princely estate as appertayned to his kyngly ryght Though that Anselme the popes proctor dyd aunswere that he would not for the price of his head consent to the kyng agaynst the popes prohibitions except it were dispensed withal agayne by the sayde pope vpon the kynges wordes Quid mihi de meis cum papa quae antecessores mei hoc in regno possiderunt mea sunt hec si quis auferre mihi voluerit quod inimicus meus sit omnis qui me diligit certissime nouerit What haue I to do with the pope concernyng myne owne That which myne auncestours haue possessed in this Realme be myne whosoeuer woulde take these from me let all that loue me certaynely knowe that he is myne enemie Which stout wordes of his so spoken might declare what he knewe Surely he was like for his knowledge to haue done as much in expellyng his vsurped aucthoritie yf oportunitie of tyme had serued hym as his successour long after hym kyng Henrie the eyght brought about and finished Whiche thyng is well signified by the wordes of his owne letters written to kyng Henrie Edmer wherein Pascall the pope complayneth that he dyd in his Realme all as pleased hym and that he restrayned the messengers and letters of the sea apostolyke that they coulde haue no passage or be permitted to enter into the Realme without his suffraunce and further Pascall chargeth hym that without the knowledge of the popes holynes he doth kepe synodall councels where he insinuate that all the wayghtie causes of the Churches throughout his whole prouince should be determined by the vicars and the deputies of his holy sea And further he chargeth hym that besyde his auctoritie he presumed to make translation of Bishoprickes at his pleasure which sayth he can not be done without the licence of the sacred holy sea of Rome And farther to set out howe the knowledge of this kyng made him well to vnderstannde his vsurped auctoritie in his Realme and well perceauyng howe the Realme was wont to be abused by shamefull exactions and expilations which his legates vsed to do within the same was weery of the sayde abused aucthoritie Wherevpon pope Calixtus after his councell holden at Remis anno dn̄i 1119. came vnto Gisortiū Edmer to speake with the king had conference with him When the kyng had obteyned of that pope to haue all such customes which his father had in England in Normandie and especially of all other that he should not suffer any man to vse the office of a legate at any tyme in Englande except him selfe did require the same for such matters which coulde not be ended by the byshop of Canterburie and the other byshoppes of the Realme All which thynges sayth the storie beyng thus determined the pope doth make request to the kyng for his loue to be frendly vnto Thurstone Archbyshop of Yorke to restore hym to his Byshopricke Wherevnto the kyng aunswered that he woulde neuer do it whyle he lyued for he saith he hadde so promised vppon his fayth Whervpon Calixtus dyd aunswere Ego apostolicus sum si
of the cleargie in their booke wherein they instructe a christian man to lyue godlye that it was lawfull for hym by gods worde to abrogate canon lawes repugnaunt to the lawes of the Realme and affirmyng further by testimonie of olde wryters that whatsoeuer was so enacted in this Englyshe churche had sufficient strength aucthoritie and power beyng a catholike and an apostolyke churche in it selfe the rather for doing their endeuour to returne all the order of the primatiue church agayne and therfore beyng more agreeable to Christes doctrine makyng more to edifiyng and benefite of Christes church What learned men standyng only to learnyng and reason can iustly eyther impugne the late state and order in this behalfe taken in the raigne of the noble prince king Edwarde the sixt or yet can reasonably suggill the doctrine and assertions published and set out in the dayes of that famous prince kyng Henrie the eyght by al his best learned cleargie as makyng way and preparation by their wrytynges and preachynges to put in execution that which was of late so vsed and practised If the fathers of Rome Churche diuers of the best learned by their prudence thought it meet to release the rigour of canons and rules of the churche whervpon they sometyme did dispence in diuers cases of great importaunce geuyng theyr assent before they were done sometyme bearyng and tolleratyng many thynges passed without auctoritie after they were done If their scribes and registers expositors of their lawe leaned alwayes to the equitie of the lawes fauourablie expoundyng them to the moste benefite and sauegarde of suche as were offenders agaynst Goddes morall lawes If the head fathers and pastors of other churches in their pastorall prudence vsed their tollerations in such cases as Origen doth testifie that the bishoppe in Alexandria permitted without agaynst the scripture a maryage to be made with a certaine woman in respect of her infirmitie as Millane churche and Constantinople churche vsed in the election of their bishoppes Ambrose Nectarius contrarie to the rule of the apostle as not yet christened as is before rehearsed And if that sayde holy bishop Ambrose dyd in his churche permit priestes to be maryed as Barnardinus Corius in his chronicle maketh report saith further that one Henribaldus Cotta a lawyer by profession beyng one of the first that woulde forbyd priestes to marry wyues was slayne of them for his importune extremitie Whiche thyng is reported of Ioannes Neuisanus doctor of lawe in his booke entituled Silua nuptialis where he aleageth howe the canonistes and schole men racke violently the lawes scriptures and gospels in this cause agaynst the true sense of the wordes and aduoucheth further that these canonistes make large thonges of other mens leather euen lyke saith he as the strumpet dyd of an other bodies chylde and that because they haue no wyues them selues Who when they haue any be aboue al other men burnyng in the fire of gelosie as he bryngeth his auctoritie therfore But nowe thus they speake saith he because them selues hauyng not only one paramour but haue many wyues and paramours and otherwhyles concubines also at one tyme together Whervpon he wysheth the lawe of continencie to be remitted and bryngeth in to ioyne with hym in this his iudgement not only the famous lawyer Panormitan but that notable man Felinus also with others And furthermore he affirmeth that the reasons of the canonistes of these dayes do proue that priestes after they be ordered may not marry be to no purpose because saith he they be grounded in couetousnes whiche is not conuenient to the true folowers of Christe And there in that his disputation he citeth diuers doctors who do disclose the corrupte intention of the canonistes in deprauyng and falsyfying the letter textes of Ambrose other doctors in the same cause If the churche of Ptolomais attempted so muche agaynste Christes religion and his apostles consentyng to electâ— a platonicall philosopher miscredityng the principall articles of our fayth and that after his open protestation that he woulde not as then either relinquishe his opinion or yet his wyfe and was accepted with them both What wyse man indued with any consideration of christian pollicie can iustly quarrel with the head pastor of our churche of Englande to tollerate thynges standing against no scripture at all so passed as they be Yea though they should vse more mercie and clemencie towarde the miserie of those ministers then some euyll and vncharitable instigatours woulde wishe they dyd If the vniforme assent and consent of wryters haue attributed so large auctoritie to counselles and bishoppes decrees to dispence so vniuersally that they say a bishop a mere diocesan may dispence with heretickes that other may the sooner returne agayne with scismatickes with simoniackes with suspended and excommunicates with adulterers with murtherers in theft in sacrilege in deacons matrimonie for afterwardes to be contracted with their protestation in priestes matrimonies alredy contracted so it be with a virgin and that he may dispence in orders and dignities vnder the state of a bishop If he ought saith the lawe as bounde by necessarie constraint of spiritual gouernaunce to dispence either in such cases where either some greater commoditie to folowe may be hoped or where the peryll of some greater inconuenience may be feared and sometyme in respecte of the multitude and to auoyde sclaunder of offence that els might be taken What may be gathered hereof by the wise reader and what auctoritie is and may be iustly thought to be resiaunt in the whole order and seignorie knit and conioyned al wholly togethers in one yf so muche be graunted to euery one of them seuerally alone If the Canons of one councell be drawen commonly to expounde an other as one lawe to declare an other then where it is decreed in the fourth councell at Tollet Quod Clerici qui sine consultu Episcopi sui vxores duxerint c. seperari eos a proprio Episcopo oportebit That clarkes that without councell or consent of their byshops haue maryed wyues c. must be seperated by their owne byshop agayne Howe reasonably then do these men crie for seperation of such of the Cleargie who dyd not vpon their owne heades attempt the state they be in and diuers of them neyther without the counsell nor yet instigation of their onely proper Diosesant but with the consent and aucthoritie of the whole order of all the Metropolitanes and Diocesantes in Englande in their deliberat consultation first among them selues and after so exhibited to the state of the Parliament afterwarde in their priuate diocesses commendyng the statutes passed and sendyng their Chaplaynes abrode in their diocesses to declare the commendations and necessitie of the same as be yet at this day auncient Bishoppes styll alyue remaynyng that can beare witnesse of this whiche is here affirmed yf they were therto required Last of all where that noble prince of famous memoriâ— kyng Henrie the