the godly Magistrates too that the weake be not offēded thereby In al which we see that they do not so absolutely allow of divorce and marrying againe but that themselues also doe something restraine it lesse or more as euery one is therein persuaded So that if in the end it doe fall out as for my part I thinke that it will that in the written word they haue no warrāt to grant so much as they doe then shall we lesse marvell to see that they doe so much abridge and take short the selfe same thing that otherwise they are so willing to grant 6 When in this sort they haue resolued then are we to see what other things they haue besides which may be some warning vnto vs to take heed that we rest not too much on their iudgements and those may wee account to be of two chief principal sorts First the reasōs alleaged to haue induced them so to determine then the Protestations that they haue ioined therevnto and as it may seeme to qualifie the hardnes of their iudgement therein As touching the reasōs that induced thē so to determine Erasmus when first he opened that passage to himselfe to those that would follow was so carefull to set them downe that it seemeth others did not after thinke it needfull to prosecute the same any farther and so shall we also contēt our selues to goe no farther but only to alleage such reasons as he thought meetest to vse And those reasons that he alleageth me think we may reduce vnto two principall sorts whereof some there are that simply arise out of the matter that is in question others that stand but only by the way of comparison Those that simply arise out of the matter that is in quaestion doe some of thē more specially concerne the substance of it others againe that are taken of such matters as are but accedētary therevnto Those that concerne the substance of it are all such discommodities as commonly haūt disorderly marriages especially those wherein the bond of wedlocke is brokē which he thinketh to be so many and great that S. Paule himselfe would haue borne more with them in that matter as he is persuaded if it had beene propounded vnto him Quod si Paulo saith he proposita fuisset huiusmodi causa stultus cum stulta puer cum puella contraxit intercesserunt lenae vinum temeritas arte in nassam inducti sunt c nihil inter coniunctos convenit tunta est morum ingeniorum dissimilit udo rixae iuges odium immedicabile timetur venenum timentur caedes nihil nō malorum expectatur neuter coelebs potest vivere c. fortassis pro causae circumstantiis aliud responderet Apostolus nonnihil relaxaret de rigore cōsilii superioris suáque scripta civilius opinor nobis interpretaretur quà m nos interpretamur that is But if this case had bin propounded to Paule one foole with another a boy and a wench haue married together bawdes drunkennesse rashnesse were doers therein by craft they were so far intangled being so married now they agree not so divers are they in their waies and disposition continuall chidings extreame hatred poisoning and murder are feared also and they looke for none other but for all manner of evill each from other neither of them can liue single it may be that according as the circumstances of the case should require the Apostle would giue some other answere would let downe a good part of the rigor of his former advise and would interpret his writings vnto vs more curteously then we our selues doe In which his speech though there be some inconvenience besides yet leaving that to his proper place now I bring it in but only to this end to shew of what force he tooke the calamities of disorderly marriages to be to the matter he hath in hand namely to breake of and to marry againe For so he saith Si cohaerent bis perit uterque si mutetur coniugium spes est utrumque fore incolumem that is If still they abide together each of them doth certainely perish if they may breake óf and marry againe there is good hope that both shall be safe Those matters that are but accidentarie therevnto and out of which he draweth some reasons likewise are the Scriptures therevnto appertaining and the iudgement of others thereon Of the Scripture he saith videbam Scripturam hac in parte vt plerisque esse perplexam ancipitem that is that he saw the Scripture to be in this point as in many others intricate and doubtfull and therevpon belike accounted that he might bee the boulder to afford his patronage to this when as hee thought that the Scripture would not bee against him therein Out of the iudgement of others he chuseth out two severall considerations one that the olde and the new did not agree together the other that such things as were obiected by those that were of the cōtrary minde might easily be answered For the former he saith Videbam veteres interpretes doctissimos à recentioribus dissidere and for the latter that he saw likewise ea quae obijciuntur facilè posse dilui citra nostrae religionis injuriam and so reasoning from these as I doe conceaue him out of the former that it should be no new nor absurd thinge for him neither to dissent from others herein and out of the latter that there were no danger of hurt to come thereby when as by it our religion should be nothing impaired Those reasons of his that doe stand only by the way of comparison are of two sorts also some that stand in comparisō of persons only others that compare the matter in quaestion with others not vnlike decided already The persons are of two sorts likewise the Church or whole Body of the faithfull and the Bishop of Rome then the supposed Head of the same in earth among vs. From the Church he draweth two reasons one of the authoritie of it that Christ did giue it the other of the good direction that it hath by the Spirit of Christ her husband For the former he saith Videbam quanta sit authoritas Ecclesiae à Christo tributa cui dederit claves regni coelorum and so that she might well set it downe by the authority to her committed and for the latter that hee accounted with himselfe Ecclesiam habere sui sponsi Spiritum neque posse non rectè statui quod ad hominum salutem illo authore statueretur and so gathering thereby that if shee should take such order it must needs be well ordained From the Pope hee draweth other two reasons likewise one of a speciall good likelyhood that he would be most willing to helpe in time of need the other of the abilitie or power that he conceaueth him to haue to doe good therein Of the former of these he saith Videbam quà m esset
little groundworke they haue even in those that are their leaders themselues may partly appeare in that they are so much crossed by others as therein they are but especially in that which thēselues haue set downe for that matter That they haue little groundworke in them if they be so much crossed therein by others as they are may likewise appeare if we consider but these two things first how farre they are crossed therein then what it is that followeth thereon To see how farre they are crossed herein wee shall neede to goe no farther then to the plaine confession of one of themselues Erasmus by name Who immediatly after his very entrance vnto that speciall discourse of his doth plainely acknowledge the generall iudgement of all Christendome to bee against that which he was then to propound to be further examined Scio saith he receptissimum esse inter Christianos ubi semel coijt matrimonium nullo pacto posse dirimi nisi morte alterius I know saith he that it is the generall or most receaved opiniō of all Christians that whē marriage is once made it can no way be broken againe but only by the death of one of the parties And as here in generall tearmes he acknowledgeth the iudgement of the whole Church or of all the people of God generally to be against that presupposed libertie so in the next sentence following descending to particulars he acknowledgeth there likewise that that is the iudgement both of Chrysostome and of the old Latines and of S. Augustine especially and that the same iudgement of theirs is confirmed by the constitution of Bishops and by the authority of the Lawes Decretall and allowed of by the consent of the Schooles of Divinitie So himselfe granteth that hee findeth against that opinion where vnto notwithstāding he inclineth many great Fathers even all the Latines generally the Ecclesiasticall lawes also and in effect Divinity too then the which I thinke we need no more for the reasonable proofe of that assertion then so plaine a testimonie of so speciall a patron of that persuasion Wherein though divers of them besides haue beene more sparing then to slip any so plaine a testimonie belike least so they might further let downe in the minds of many the credit of their cause then themselues were able any way to raise it againe yet neither doe they reproue him for it and besides both Peter Martyr abroad one other of our own at home by very good right of speciall account for many good parts with the learned and godly among vs haue set down somewhat not much abhorring from the same The former of them Non reperies in veteri Testamento ullos celebres aut laudatos viros divortio vsos esse quantum historiae sacrae referant that is Thou shalt not finde in the olde Testament any of the better sort of men to haue vsed the libertie of divorce so far as the holy Scriptures doe testify The latter of them that S. Augustine the Schoole Divines the Canonists and the Church of Rome though in case of adulterie they allow of divorce yet allow they not to marry againe And it is sufficiently knowne vnto vs that though divers particular persons there be among vs of other iudgement and divers of them otherwise both learned and godly yet that forme of government which we haue all generally agreed vnto to bee in such case observed of all as by our lawes both Ecclesiasticall and Civill appeareth is directly against such marrying againe though divorce be for no lesse then for adultery That which followeth vpō it is this that vnlesse those that are for it haue such places for them as are cleere and without exception they can prevaile but little therein but must needs leaue the better end of the staffe vnto others For if themselues wil not deny but that there be many against it and as many as there be with it or rather more then as the scales when they hang indifferently doe shew that the things that are weighed therin are of one the selfe same weight but when they vary that then the one of thē needeth more weight to be added so howsoever that if our voices were even or the matter but in quaestion among vs not over-ruled then the allegations of either partie might be alike esteemed of those that stand indifferent yet when as it may very well be doubted that they are many more against it then there be for it and the matter is with vs over-ruled against them then vnlesse their proofes be the better they may not looke to evict it from those whome they plainely finde in possession already The evidence indeed may proue tobe such that neither the greater number of voices nor possession of old may stand against it but vnlesse it be such whosoever it is that would claime thereby may looke for no more thē it will be able in equitie and truth to win vnto him 5 Of that which themselues haue set downe for that matter a good part respecteth most their owne iudgmēt therein the residue those places out of which they doe gather it In so much of it as most respecteth their owne iudgement therein we are first to note what it is that they haue brought vs then to advise our selues thereon how far forth wee may take to our selues the advantage of it That which they haue brought vs is of two sorts either to shew vs how hardly and doubtfully they are resolued or such other things as follow thereon that may be some warning vnto vs besides to take heed that we rest not too much on their iudgement As touching the former namely those hard and doubtfull resolutions of theirs I take it that the best order will be to take those whome I meane to alleage in such order of time as wherein themselues did write And so beginning with Erasmus first he began his Annotations on the new Testament 1515. in which booke that Treatise of his is that he wrote of this matter In which he is so far from allowing of that course absolutely that he doth no further plead for it but whereas the woman is flagitiis operta quibus maritus nec causā dedit nec mederi possit and after againe qui nihil est commeritus after this also that nihil non frustra tentatum sit and yet notwithstanding that then also it be not done by themselues or any other private persons but ubi res erit acta per Episcopos aut per probatos graves Iudices that is that the wife that so must be put away must bee a very bad woman that her husband that may put her away never gaue her occasion to any lewdnesse neither is able now any way to help it nor ever deserved any such ill dealing of her after this also that first hee must haue tried all good meanes
hominum that is Christ thinketh not much for one sheepe only to goe vp and downe every where seeking that hauing found it he may bring it home againe even on his shoulders and shall we thinke much to assay whether any way we may be able to helpe those that are ready to perish especially when as Christ is the author of safety and mens lawes should bee of no further force but so far as they tend to the good of men And a little before somewhat more plainely Iam nemo poterit inficiari saith hee leges Christi multo aequissimas esse c. Wherevpon he inferreth An igitur aequum videtur vt maritus cum vxore flagitiis operta quibus nec causam dedit nec mederi possit cogatur vivere cum qua vivere non sit vivere aut si divertat compellatur omnem aetatem orbus destitutus ac velut eviratus degere that is Now there is no body that can deny but that the lawes of Christ are most vpright c. But then may this be accouÌ„ted to stand with any equity or right that the husbaÌ„d should be compelled to liue with a woman that is so marvelous ill when as he never gaue any iust cause of that her lewdnesse neither ever was able to make her better with whome to liue is to be accounted no life at all or if he leaue her that then hee should be compelled all his life long to liue out of hope of propagatioÌ„ without his helpe and as it were to be turned out even of his very manhood it selfe Beza likewise if the woman after divers pardons doe yet offend againe in such case quid iniquius saith he quam innocentis quivratur netum quidem rationem habere that is What is more vniust then even thén also not to haue anie care of the innocent partie That inconvenience that coÌ„cerneth others also is in like sort noted by Beza that if divorce for adulterie mariage againe were so far restrained it would make both harlots more bolde ready to offend those that had the wrong quietly to put it vp and not to seeke the punishment of it Now of what force these reasons are may soone be espied of any that will a little marke them both that which standeth vpon the abuses going before and those others that stand vpon the inconveniences that follow after For as touching that which standeth vpon the abuses going before as I haue noted so much already that if so we should vse it it would be but a weake reason to vrge any to be of that opinion so in it selfe it is cleere indeed that the abuses themselues were to bee amended and by force of good lawes or by good government to be taken away and that no such liberty is to bee graunted for redresse thereof as may not stand by vndoubted warraÌ„t of the word of God So that if they suppose this to be such which now they do vrge theÌ„ though they do require no more then iustly they may generally yet therein they misâ—e that first they take such holde of this liberty before they haue found it to be by the word of God allowed vnto them The like may be said of the first sort of inconveniences also such as concerne both the parties indiffereÌ„tly and of the last likewise which were such as concerned others withal But for the middle fort such as concerne the innocent parties which seeme to bee the strongest of all although it cannot be denied but that their case is hard and much to be pittied withall yet as themselues do graÌ„t that they cast no further to helpe them then it may stand with the written worde and so are therein but only so weake as in the other so is it further to be coÌ„sidered that even those inconveniences of which they would so gladly ease the innocent parties may be either so iust chasticements or so needfull exercises for them that we are not so much to cast how to ease them therein by taking of that burthen from them as to incourage them patiently to beare those crosses of theirs and to teach them that it is their duties so to do So for these reasons we are to suspeÌ„d our iudgements awhile vntil we see these two things first that such liberty of divorce for adultery and marrying againe doth vndoubtedly stand with the word of God then that those other inconveniences as they are called are no such things as of duty should be sustained Otherwise it is very cleere that these reasons also doe nothing hold 18 Those other things that are of a kind or so neere vnto these as that out of them they draw certaine reasons for these likewise are divers some of them such as from which they reason as from the like and some others such againe as from which they reason as from the lesse vnto the greater Those that are such as from which they reason as from the like are most of them taken out of the opinions or practise of men but some of them also out of the word of God it selfe Of the former sort are those whereof Erasmus bringeth reasonable good store as namely that the opinion of Iohannes Andreae is matrimonium antequam intercesserit copula posse dirimi non solum ob professionem vitae monasticae verum etiam sola Romani pontificis authoritate that is that espousals before the parties haue laine togither may bee dissolved againe not only for the professioÌ„ of the monastical life but also even by the authoritie of the Bishop of Rome alone without any thing els Againe out of Hostiensis Augustinus and Pope Lion quod lapsus in haeresim dirimat matrimonium etiam consummatum ita dirimat ut jus sit ei qui perstiterit in fide alteri jungi that is that to fal into heresie dissolveth matrimonie even consummate also and dissolveth it so cleane that it is lawful for the party that abideth in the faith to marrie an other Thirdly that Zacharias the Pope dirimat matrimonium ob rem habitam cum sorore vxoris that is doth break of the bond of marriage if the husband hath had to do with his wiues sister and farther graÌ„teth leaue to the wife if she did not consent to marrie againe Lastly so farre as I thinke needful to alleadge at this present that Hostiensis making a question an Ecclesia possit hodie statuere ut altero fidelium prolapso in haeresim possit alter conjugum transire ad nova vota definit posse that is that setting the question whether the Church may at this day take order that if one of the parties that are married fal into heresie then may the other marrie againe hee resolveth that the Church may so do And then having shewed by those and such like what opinions there haue been not vnlike as he taketh it in matters of marriage to that which he moveth he is bold to goe vnto