Selected quad for the lemma: blood_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
blood_n	new_a	remission_n	sin_n	6,816	5	4.9786	4	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A02359	Three rare monuments of antiquitie, or Bertram, priest, a French-man, of the body and blood of Christ, (written 800 yeares agoe) with the late Romish purging thereof: Ælfricus, Arch-bishop of Canterburie, an English-man, his sermon of the sacrament, (preached 627 yeares agoe:) and Maurus, abbot, a Scots-man, his discourse of the same (820 yeares agoe:) all stronglie convincing that grosse errour of transubstantiation. Translated and compacted by M. VVilliam Guild, minister at King-Edward; De corpore et sanguine Domini. English. Abridgments	Ratramnus, monk of Corbie, d. ca. 868.; Guild, William, 1586-1657.; Aelfric, Abbot of Eynsham. Sermo de sacrificio in die Pascae. aut; Rabanus Maurus, Archbishop of Mainz, 784?-856. De sacramento Eucharistiae. aut	1624 (1624)	STC 12492; ESTC S103528	49,280	152

Image the resemblance of that whose similitude it representeth they signifie then the thing whose Images they are and doeth not showe the same in it selfe manifestlie Which while they are so it is evident that this bodie and blood are the pledges and resemblances of that to come that that which is shown vnto vs by a similitude now shal bee clearlie revealed vnto vs in tyme to come It is one thing then which is done nowe and another which shall bee manifested heereafter Wherefore it is the bodie and blood of Christ which the Church celebrateth but as a Pledge and resemblance the veritie it selfe shall bee when neyther Pledge nor representation but He him selfe shall clearlie appeare And in another place he sayth O LORD accomplishe in vs that which THY Sacramentes contayne that that which wee nowe celebrate in resemblance wee may bee partakers also of the veritie of the thinges them selues Hee sayeth then that these thinges are celebrated in resemblance that is by similitude and not by the manifestation of the thing it selfe So that the resemblance and the veritie of the thing it selfe are there distinguished Wherefore the body and blood of Christ which is nowe celebrated in the Church differeth from that bodie and blood which is knowne to bee glorified in Christ his bodie by his resurrection And this bodie which is celebrated in the Church is but a Pledge and resemblance of that but that is the veritie it selfe This is done while wee come to that but when wee come to that this shall bee remooved It is manifest then that there is great difference betweene them as much as there is betweene a Pledge and that wherefore it is given and as much as there is betweene an Image and that which it representeth and as much as there is betweene the resemblance of a thing and the veritie it selfe Wee see then that there is great difference betweene the mysterie of the bodie and bloode of Christ which is taken in the Church by the Faythfull and that which was borne of the Virgine which suffered which was buried which rose againe and went to heaven and now sitteth at the right hand of the Father For this which is celebrated in this mortall Iourney is taken spirituallie because fayth believeth that which it seeth not and spirituallie feedeth the soule and gladdeneth the heart and giveth eternall lyfe and immortalitie while that is not taken heede vnto which feedeth the bodie and is torne with the teeth and broken in pieces but that which is spirituallie taken and by fayth apprehended But that bodie wherin he suffered which rose againe and is his proper bodie which hee tooke of the Virgine was palpable and visible after his resurrection as hee him selfe sayeth vnto his Disciples Wherefore are yee troubled and wherefore doe cogitations enter into your heartes Looke to mine Handes and Feete if I bee not the same Man handle and see because a spirit hath not flesh and bones yee see mee haue Let vs also heare what holie Fulgentius sayeth in his Booke concerning Fayth Gripe stedfastlie sayeth hee and doubt no-wyse that the onelie begotten Sonne of God was made flesh that he offered him selfe vp in a Sacrifice acceptable to God to whome with the Father and the holie Spirit the Patriarches Prophets and Priestes in tyme of the Olde Testament sacrificed Beastes and to whom now in the tyme of the new Testament with the Father and the holie Spirite who maketh but one God-head the Sacrifice of bread and wine is through faith and charitie offered by the Catholicke Church throughout the world In these carnall Sacrifices there was a representation of the flesh of Christ which he was to offer for our sinnes being without sinne him selfe and of his blood which he was to offer 〈◊〉 the remission of our sinnes But in this Sacrifice is a Thanks-giving and commemoration of the bodie of Christ which hee offered for vs and of his blood which hee shed for vs concerning which the blessed Apostle Paul sayeth in the Acts of the Apostles Take heede therefore vnto your selues and to all the flocke over which the holie Ghost hath made you over-seers to feede the Church of God which hee hath conquest with his owne blood In those Sacrifices then it was showne figuratiuely what was to haue bene given vnto vs but in this Sacrifice is clearelie showne what is alreadie given vnto vs. Saying then that it was signified in those Sacrifices what was to bee given vnto vs but in this Sacrament that wee should commemorate that which is alreadie given hee showeth evidentlie that as that had a figure of the things to come so this should haue a resemblance of thinges alreadie by-gone By which wordes also he declareth manifestlie what great difference is betweene the bodie of Christ which suffered and that bodie which serveth for the commemoration of his death and suffering for the one was his true and proper bodie having no mysticall signification nor resemblance of any other thing in it but this other is mysticall showing one thing outwardlie by figure and inwardlie representing another thing vnto vs by the vnderstanding of faith Let vs bring one testimonie yet of Sainct Augustine which will confirme the thing we haue said put an ende also to our present Discourse In that Sermon which he made vnto the people concerning this Sacramēt of the Altar he saith That which yee see on the Altar of God yee saw it this night by-gone but yee heard not yet what it was or what it meaned and of howe great a thing it was a Sacrament That which yee see then it i● bread and wine which your eyes point foorth vnto you but that which your fayth is to bee instructed in is this That that Bread is the Bodie of Christ and that Cup the Blood of Christ. This is shortlie sayde which perhaps would suff●ce your fayth but your fayth requireth instruction for the Prophet sayeth Except ye● belieue ye shall not vnderstand Yee may then say vnto mee Thou hast commanded vs to belieue declare vnto vs that wee may vnderstand for this cogitation may enter into the mynde of anie man wee know whence our Lord Iesus tooke flesh to wit of the Virgine Marie being an Infant he sucked hee was nowrished hee came vnto youth-head hee suffered persecution of the Iewes hee hung vpon a Tree hee was killed taken downe from the Crosse hee was buried and rose againe the third day at his appointed time he went to the Heavens and lifted vp his bodie thither from whence hee is to come to judge the quicke and the dead there he is presentlie at the right hand of his Father sitting howe then can this bee his bodie or this Cup or that which it containeth his blood Brethren these thinges are called Sacramentes because in them there is one thing seene and another thing is vnderstood that which is seene hath a corporall shape but that

wherefore heere is pointed foorth a figure but in the preceeding speaches the literall veritie that is the plaine and open meaning in a cleare discourse is manifestlie showne But let VS returne to that for whose cause these thinges are formerlie spoken to wit to the consideration of the Bodie and Blood of Christ For if the mysterie thereof bee celebrated without anie figure it is not convenientlie called a mysterie seeing that cannot bee called a mysterie wherein there is no secret thing nothing removed from our corporall senses nothing hid with some coverture or other But that bread which by the administration of the Priest is made the Bodie of Christ showeth one thing to the outward senses of men and cryeth another thing inwardlie to the soules of the Faythfull Outwardlie the Bread is that selfe-same which it was before for wee see that same shape and colour and that same savour thereof is also perceived but inwardly a farre more different precious and excellent thing is intimated and exhibite because it is heavenlie and divine that is the Bodie of Christ is showne vnto vs which is not seene with these fleshlie eyes but is seene and taken and eaten by the looking on of a faythfull soule The Wine also which by the Priestlie consecration is made the Sacrament of Christs Blood representeth one thing outwardlie and containeth another thing inwardlie for what see wee outwardly but the substance of Wine taste it and it is Wine smell it and it savours Wine looke to it and you shall beholde the colour of Wine But if it bee considered inwardlie in the mynde it tasteth not as Wine but as the Blood of Christ vnto the Believers soules and is acknowledged so while it is seene and is approven while it is so smelled These things to bee so it is manifest seeing no man can denye the same because that Bread and that Wine figuratiuelie onelie is the Bodie and Blood of Christ for in that Bread as is clearelie seene there is no flesh knowne to bee in it or in that Wine anie drop of blood to bee pointed foorth while as after this mysticall consecration they are not-with-standing neyther called Bread nor Wine but the Bodie and blood of Christ. For if according to some there bee nothing taken figuratiuely in this Sacrament but all bee considered according to the ●oresaide verball veritie or literall meaning then faith worketh nothing heere because there is nothing heere considered spirituallie but all whatsoever is taken corporallie And seeing fayth according to the Apostle Heb. 11. 1 is an evidence of things which appeare not that is not of those substances which are seene we shall get nothing heere by fayth because whatsoever is heere falleth vnder and wee judge it with our corporall senses There is nothing more absurd also than to take that bread to bee flesh carnallie or to say that that Wine is Blood reallie for so it will not bee a mysterie seeing there is no secret nor hid thing in this sort of speach anie way contained How likewise are these sayde to be the Bodie and Blood of Christ seeing there is no change vnderstood to bee made of them for all 〈◊〉 change is either from that which is not into that which is or from that which is into that which is not or from that which alreadie is into another which in like manner is But in this Sacrament if the trueth in simplicitie be onelie considered and none other thing bee believed by the senses than that which they see there shall none alteration heere bee seene to bee made For neither is there a change out of that which was not into that which is which manner of change is seene in things growing seeing they were not before but that they may haue a being they are changed from not being into that which hath a being But this Bread and Wine were before they were turned into the bodie and blood of Christ. Neither is there such a mutation as of that which hath a being changing into that which hath no being which sort of alteration is in thinges perishing by decaying for whatsoever decayeth first of necessitie had some being neither can that suffer such an alteration which never had a being Now that this sort of alteration is not in the Sacrament is cleare lykewyse because according to the trueth the forme of the creature which it had before is knowne as yet constantlie to remaine Also there is an alteration which is of that which hath a being into that which lyke-wyse hath a being which sort is seene in things suffering a change in their qualities onelie the substance remaining as when that which was white is changed into that which is blacke but neither is this alteration known to be made in this Sacrament for there is nothing found heere to bee changed neither in touching nor colour nor favour If therefore there bee nothing heere changed the elements are none other than that they were before But heere the Bread and Wine are other things because the bread is made to bee the bodie and the wine the blood of Christ for so saith he himselfe Take eate this is my bodie and so of the Cup Take drinke this is the blood of the new Testament c. Wee must then demande of them who will vnderstand nothing heere figuratiuelie but all things to consist in verball simplicitie wherein this alteration is made seeing they are not nowe these thinges which they were before to wit bread and wine but are the bodie and blood of Christ for according to the forme and shape of visible thinges both these haue in themselues substantiallie none alteration and if they haue suffered no alteration they are nothing else but that which they were before Wherefore Renowned Prince your Highnesse seeth to what point these of the contrarie opinion are driven for they denye that which they are thought to affirme and that which they belieue they are found to destroy For they confesse truelie that it is the bodie and blood of Christ and when they say this without doubt they graunt that the bread and wine is not that nowe which they were before and if they bee other than they were then they are changed seeing that cannot bee denyed Let them therefore tell wherein they are changed for we see nothing corporallie to be changed in them of necessitie then they must confesse either that they are changed in some other respect to wit in vse and consequentlie not to bee that which they otherwise are seene to bee in veritie but another thing which they are not seene to be according to their owne proper and substantiall existence Or if they will not confesse this they shall bee constrayned to denye that they are the bodie and bloode of Christ at all which not onelie is abhominable to say but to thinke onelie But because they will confesse that they are the bodie and blood of Christ neither could they haue

beene so except the change had beene to the better neither is that change corporallie but spirituallie made of necessitie the speach thereof is figuratiue because vnder the vaile or curtaine as it were of corporall bread and wine is convoyed vnto the soule the spirituall bodie and bloode of Christ Not that these are the existences of two diverse things to wit as of a bodie and a spirit but one and that same selfe thing according to one consideration is a sort of bread and wine and according to another is the bodie and blood of Christ according to that as they are touched corporallie they are kyndes of corporall creatures but according to that power whereby they are made so spirituallie they are the mysteries of the bodie and blood of Christ. Let vs consider also the Laver of holie Baptisme which worthilie is called the fountaine of life because it reformeth the commers vnto it by the newnesse of a better life and gif●eth them that are dead in sinne with liuelie grace and righteousnesse according to that it is the element of water hath it that power and yet except it had the vertue of Sanctification it could not wash away the blot of sinne and except it contained the strength of life it could no wise giue life to the dead not in the flesh I meane but in the soule And yet if wee consider in that fountaine onelie that which our bodilie eye perceiveth it is seene to bee a moyst element subject to corruption having no power but to wash onelie the bodie but the accessorie vertue of the holie Spirit by priestlie consecration maketh it pithie not onelie to wash away the filth of the bodie but also to purge by a spirituall grace the foulenesse of the soule Beholde then in one and that same element wee see two contrarieties to remaine that is that which is subject to corruption to giue incorruption and that which hath no lyfe to giue lyfe It is manifest then into that fountaine to be both that which the corporall senses seeketh and therefore to bee changeable and corruptible and againe that also to bee in it which onelie sayth beholdeth and therefore cannot bee corrupted nor suffer the losse of lyfe If thou consider it as it washeth outwardlie it is an element but if thou weigh it as it cleanseth inwardlie it is the power of lyfe of sanctification and immortalitie Therefore in the proper nature thereof it is corruptible water but in the mysterie thereof and holie vse it is curing grace even so that which is called the bodie and blood of Christ in the outward show considered it is a creature subject to mutabilitie and corruption but if wee consider the vertue of the mysterie thereof it is life giving immortalitie to the partakers thereof These thinges then are not all one as they are seene and as they are believed for according to that as they are seene they beeing corruptible they feed the bodie which is corruptible but as they are believed beeing immortall they feede our soules to immortal●●ie The Apostle also writing to the Corinths sayeth I would not Brethen that you should bee● ignorant that all our Fathers were vnder the Cloude and all passed though the Sea and were all baptized vnto Moses in the Cloude and in the Sea and did cate the same spirituall meate and drinke the same spirituall drinke For they dranke of that spirituall Rocke that followed them and that Rocke was CHRIST Wee perceiue then that the Sea and the Cloude did carrie a figure of Baptisme and that our Fathers in the olde Testament haue beene baptized in them Now could the Sea in that it was an element haue in it the vertue of Baptisme or could the Cloude in that respect it did kythe the thickest part of the aire sanctifie the people Neither can we say that the Apostle speaking in Christ hath sayde vntruelie that our Fathers were baptized in the water and in the cloude And albeit that Baptisme did not represent the same forme of Baptisme of Christ which is nowe vsed in the Church daylie yet notwithstanding no man in his wits can denye but it was a sort of Baptisme and in it our Fathers to haue beene baptized except madlie he presume to gaine-say the Apostles wordes Therefore the sea and the cloud in that they are naturall bodies giue not the cleannesse of sanctification but according to that they contained in them invisiblie the sanctification of the holie Spirit for there was in them a visible forme which might appeare to the corporall senses of all not in similitude but in the veritie it selfe and inwardlie a spirituall power shyned which appeared not to carnall eyes but to the eyes onelie of the soules of the godlie Like-wyse the heavenlie Foode which rayned from Heaven and the water that gushed from the rocke was corporall and fedde and watered the people corporallie yet not-with-standing the Apostle calleth that M●nna and the water Spirituall Food Wherefore serveth this Because there was a spirituall power of the word of GOD in these substances which did feede and water rather the soules of the believers than their bodies And altho that meate and drinke fore-shewed the mysterie of the bodie and blood of Christ then onelie to come which the Church nowe celebrateth as come not-with-standing the holie Apostle affirmeth constantlie That our Fathers did eate that same spirituall foode and did drinke that same spirituall drinke Perhaps then thou wilt aske what hee meaneth by that same spirituall meate and drinke To wit Even that same which the Children of the faythfull eate and drinke now-a● dayes in the Church for wee must not conceiue diverselie heere because one and that selfe-same CHRIST who fed the people in the Desart being baptized in the water and the clowde hee watered them then with his bloode which hee gaue them to drinke and fed them then with his flesh and nowe in the Church of the Faythfull hee feedeth his people with the same bread of his bodie and giveth them the same water of his bloode both for drinke and nowrishment Which thing the Apostle did goe about to signifie when hee sayde That our Fathers did eate that same spiritual food and dranke that same spirituall drinke and therefore hee did consequentlie adde That they dranke of that Spirituall Rocke which followed them and the Rocke was CHRIST that wee might there-by vnderstand that Christ in the Desart did consist in that spirituall Rocke and gaue to the people the water of his bloode Who there-after having taken flesh of the Virgine hath given him selfe in our tyme vnto the death of the Crosse for the saving of the faythfull and since that tyme hath shed the water of his blood where-by not onelie wee might bee redeemed but also where-of wee might plentifullie drinke A wonderfull mysterie indeed because incomprehensible and inestimable Hee had not as yet taken on the shape of Man Hee had not as yet tasted of Death for the

safetie of the Worlde Hee had not as yet redeemed vs with his precious blood when alreadie our Fathers in the Desart by Spirituall Food and invisible Drinke did eate his bodie and drinke his blood as the Apostle t●stifyeth when hee affirmeth our Fathers to haue eaten that same Spirituall Food drunken that same Spirituall Drinke Not that how the same was done is to bee inquired but Fayth that it was so done is to bee acquired For that selfe-same GOD who in his Church by his Almightie power changeth the Bread and Wine into his Flesh and Blood after a Spirituall manner that selfe-same GOD I saye turned in the verie like sorte the Manna which rayned from Heaven into his owne bodie vnto them invisiblie and turned the water gushing out of the rocke into his owne blood Which thing David vnderstanding hee declared the same manifestlie beeing instructed by the holie Ghost saying that Man did eate the bread of Angels For it is a thing to bee laughed at to suppose that that corporall Manna given to the Fathers doeth feede that heavenlie hoaste or that they doe eate anie such meate who are filled with the Banquets of that Heavenlie worde The Psalmist surelie showeth or rather the Spirite of God speaking by the Psalmist either what our Fathers by that heavenlie Manna did receiue or what the faythfull nowe in the mysterie of the bodie and blood of Christ ought to conceiue and belieue In both these surelie Christ him selfe is meant who feedeth the soules of the earthlie believers and is the meat of the heavenlie Angels and both this is done not with a corporall tasting nor by a bodily foode but by the vertue of the spirituall word And vvee vnderstand by the Evangelistes rehearsing that our Lord Iesus Christ before that hee suffered taking bread gaue thanks and gaue to his disciples saying This is my Bodie which is given for you doe this in remembrance of Mee Likewyse He tooke the Cup after Supper saying This Cup is the New Testament in my Blood which is shed for you Where wee see that Christ as yet had not suffered and yet the mysterie of his bodie and his blood was alreadie celebrated for wee thinke not that anie of the faythfull will doubt that that bread was made the bodie of Christ which giving to his disciples hee sayeth thereof This is my Bodie which is given for you Neither that they will doubt that that Cup doeth containe the blood of Christ sacramentallie to wit concerning the which hee sayeth also This Cup is the new Testament in my blood which shal be shed for you So that a little before hee suffered hee could thus haue changed that substance of bread and creature of wine into his owne bodie which was to suffer and into his blood which was to be shed and so also he was able to convert that heavenlie foode after the same manner that rained in the wildernesse and that water which gushed out of the Rocke into his bodie and blood albeit that long after hee was incarnate and his flesh was to hang vpon the Crosse for vs and his blood was to bee shed for our ablution Heere also wee ought to consider how the words are to bee taken which himselfe sayeth Except yee eate the flesh of the Sonne of man and drinke his blood yee haue no lyfe in you Hee sayeth not that his flesh which did hang vpon the crosse should be cutted in pieces and eaten by his Disciples or that his blood which was to bee shed for the redemption of the worlde was to bee given to his Disciples to drinke for that were a facinorous and an abhominable thing if either his blood were so drunken or his flesh eaten according as that grosse and incredulous people thought Wherefore in the words following hee sayeth to his Disciples who indeede believed his words but not as yet had throughlie pearced vnto their right meaning Doeth this sayeth hee offend you what therefore if yee shall see the Sonne of man going vp where hee was before As if he would haue sayde Yee shall not thinke that my bodie is to bee divyded in partes amongst you to bee eaten corporallie or my blood to be so drunken when after my resurrection yee shall see mee going vp to the heavens with the whole fulnesse of my bodie and blood then ye shall vnderstand that my flesh is to be eaten by the faythfull not as these grosse and incredulous people doe thinke but truelie and in a mysticall manner bread and wine being converted sacramentallie to wit into the substance of my bodie and blood to bee taken by the faythfull And thereafter hee lyke-wyse sayeth It is the Spirit that quickeneth the flesh profiteth nothing Hee sayeth the flesh profiteth nothing that way as the incredulous Capernaites vnderstood for other-wise it giveth lyfe as it is taken in a mysterie by the faythfull And hee showeth manifestlie himselfe wherefore this is when hee sayeth It is the Spirit that quickneth Therefore in this mysterie of the bodie and blood of Christ there is a spirituall operation which giveth lyfe without the which operation these mysteries profite nothing because they may feede the bodie indeede but they cannot nowrish the soule But heere aryseth a question which sundrie doe propone affirming That these thinges are not figuratiuelie to bee vnderstood but according to the verie literall veritie which while they say they withall gaine-say the writings of the holie Fathers Sainct Augustine one of the chiefe Doctors of the Church in his third Booke concerning the doctrine of Christ writeth so Except yee eate sayeth our Saviour the flesh of the Sonne of man and drinke his blood yee shall not haue lyfe in you Hee seemeth to command a wicked and facinorous fact but hee doeth not so for he speaketh figuratiuelie commanding vs to communicate of the Passion of the Lord and that wee should profitablie and comfortablie lay it vp in our mynde That his bodie was crucified and wounded for vs. Wee see then that Augustine sayeth that the mysterie of the bodie and blood of Christ is to be celebrated by the faythfull vnder a figure or in resemblance for to eate his flesh and drinke his blood carnallie it is not a point of Religion but of wicked villanie amongst whom were these who in the Gospell vnderstanding the wordes of our Saviour carnallie departed from him and went no longer with him Lyke-wyse Augustine in that Epistle which he wryteth to Bishop Boniface amongst other things saith this to wit When Easter approacheth wee vsuallie say that the morrow is the day of the Lords Passion when not-with-standing hee hath suffered manie yeares agoe neither was that Passion of his but once and vpon the Sabbath thereafter wee say This is the day of the Lords Resurrection when notwithstanding manie yeares are by-past since hee arose Wherefore no man will bee so foolish as to accuse vs because wee call these dayes so but according

proceede from the Vine-grape by the sanctification of the holie mysterie is made the blood of Christ not visiblie as is vsuall is substantiall conversions but as the same Father sayeth by the invisible operation of the holie Ghost And because they are a farre more different thing by the invisible power than they appeare outwardlie and are seene to bee hee distinguisheth them while he saith that the bread and wine are therefore compared to the bodie and blood of Christ because as the substance of the visible bread and wine nowrisheth and cheareth the outward man so the worde of God which is the liuelie bread by the participation thereof refresheth in like manner the soules of the faythfull By saying of which things hee confesseth plainlie that whatsoever is taken outwardlie in the Sacrament of the Bodie and Blood of our Lord it is meete for the refreshment of the bodie onelie but the word of God which is the invisible bread beeing invisiblie present in that Sacrament doeth feede the soules of the faythfull invisiblie quickning them by the participation of himselfe Hence it is that the same divine Doctor sayeth that it is a Sacrament in anie celebration when the action is so performed that some thing is vnderstood to be signified which is to bee holielie taken By saying which hee showeth that all Sacramentes in holie matters doe containe some mysticall thing and that it is one thing which is seene by our outward eyes and another thing which is inwardlie to bee vnderstood by our mynds And after this hee showeth what Sacraments are to bee celebrated by the faythfull to wit Baptisme and that of the Bodie and Blood of Christ. Which are called Sacramentes because vnder the covering of the corporall thinges in these Sacramentes the divine vertue more secretlie worketh salvation Whence it is that from their secret and sacred vertue they are called Sacraments And thereafter hee sayeth that in the Greeke they are called MYSTERIES because they haue a secret and hid nature and disposition with them What then are we taught here but that these things which are sayd to bee the bodie and blood of our Lord are therefore called mysteries because they haue a secret and hid disposition and qualitie that is that one thing they show outwardlie and another thing invisiblie they worke inwardlie From this they are also called Sacramentes because by the covering of corporall things the heavenlie power more secretlie dispenseth the salvation of the faithfull partakers Out of all then which hath bene formerlie spoken wee haue showne vnto you that the bodie and blood of Christ which is taken in the Church by the mouth of the faythfull are signes and figures according to their visible shape but according to their invisible substance that is according to the power of the heavenlie word they are the bodie and blood of CHRIST truelie whence it is that according as they are seen as the visible creatures they nowrish the bodie but according to the vertue of the more powerfull substance they both nowrish and sanctifie the soules of the faythfull WE must looke now to the drift of the second Question consider if that same bodie which was borne of the Virgine and suffered died and was buried and sitteth now at the right Hand of the Father bee that which is taken by the mouth of the faythfull daylie in the mysterie of the Sacrament Then let vs aske at Sainct Ambrose what hee doeth thinke concerning this matter for hee sayeth in his first Booke of the Sacramentes Surelie it is a wonderfull thing that God rained downe heavenlie Food vnto our Fathers and that they were daylie nowrished vpon celestiall meat whence it is sayde that Man did eate the bread of Angels and yet they who did eate that bread died all in the Desart But that meate which thou takest and that bread of life which came down from heaven furnisheth the nowrishment of everlasting lyfe and who-so-ever eateth this bread hee shall never die and this bread is the bodie of Christ. Looke then in what respect it is that this holie Doctor sayeth that Christes bodie is foode which the faythfull receiue in the Church for hee sayeth that bread of lyfe which came downe from heaven furnisheth the nowrishment of everlasting lyfe Now I aske if it furnisheth that nowrishment as it is seene or as it is taken corporallie as it is chewed with the teeth swallowed with the mouth and received in the stomacke Not. For that way it should feed the flesh onelie which is mortall neyther giveth it anie immortalitie that way nor can it bee sayde that who-so-ever eateth this bread so shall not die for ever for that which the bodie receiveth is corruptible neither can it availe vnto eternall lyfe because that which is subject to corruption cannot giue eternitie Therfore in that bread there is a lyfe which is not seene with these corporall eyes but which wee beholde with sight of fayth and that is that heavenlie bread which came downe from heaven and concerning the which it is sayd who-so-ever eateth this bread shall liue for ever which is the bodie of our Lord. Also in the wordes following when hee was speaking of the almightie power of Christ he sayeth so The word of God that might of nothing make that which was not can Hee not change these thinges which are into that vvhich they were not For it is not a greater matter to create new things than to change natures Sainct Ambrose then sayeth that there is in the Sacrament of the bodie and blood of our Lord a mutation made marveilouslie because divinelie and ineffablie in respect it is an incomprehensible mysterie Let them tell then sayeth he who will haue nothing vnderstood according to an internall secret vertue but all to bee esteemed after an outward and visible manner onelie wherein this mutation is made for according to the substance of the creatures they are that same thereafter which they were before the consecration they were first bread and wine vnder the which shape they beeing consecrated are seene still so as yet to remaine It must be inwardlie then that they are changed by the mightie power of the holie Spirit and that which fayth beholdeth feedeth the soule onlie and furnisheth the nowrishment of eternall lyfe Also in the words following he sayeth Wherefore seekest thou the order of nature in the bodie of Christ aboue the order of nature our Lord was borne of the Virgine Marie But heere then aryseth the hearer and sayeth that that is the verie bodie of Christ which is seene and that is his blood which is drunken neither that we must aske how it is so but that wee must belieue that it is so Thou seemest for-soothe to thinke well but if thou weigh diligentlie the force of the wordes thou believest indeede faythfullie that it is the bodie and blood of Christ but yet if thou wouldest vnderstand aright thou shalt finde that

treated of in another place and part we shal now declare to wit that which belongeth to the holie Housell Christen men may not now keepe that olde Law bodilie but it behoveth them to know what it ghostlie signifi●th That Innocent Lambe which the olde Israelites did then kill had signification after ghostlie vnderstanding of Christs suffering who vnguiltie shed his holie blood for our redemption Heere-of sing Gods servantes at everie Masse Agnus Dei qui tollis peccata mundi miserere nobis that is in our speach Thou Lambe of God that takest away the sinnes of the world haue mercie on vs. Those Israelites vvere delivered from sudden death and Pharaohs bondage by the Lambes offering which signifyed Christes suffering thorowe which wee are delivered from ever-lasting Death and from the Devils cruell reigne if wee rightlie belieue in the true Redeemer of the whole Worlde even Christ the Saviour That Lambe was offered in the Evening and our Saviour suffered in the last Age of the Worlde This Age of the corruptible Worlde is reckoned to the Evening They marked with the Lambes blood vpon the Doores and vpper postes 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 THAV that is the signe of the Crosse and were so defended from the Angell that killed the Aegyptian first-borne And we ought to marke our Fore-heads and our Heartes with the Bloode of our Lordes Suffering Those Israelites did eate the Lambes flesh yearlie at Easter time when they were delivered And wee receiue Christes bodie ghostly and drinke his bloode when wee receiue with true beliefe that holie Housell That tyme they kept yearelie at Easter seaven dayes with great worship when they were delivered from Pharaoh and departed from that I and. So also Christen men keepe Christes Resurrection at the tyme of Easter seaven dayes because thorow his Suffering and rysing wee are delivered and are made cleane by going to this holie Housell as Christ sayeth in his Gospell Verilie verilie I saye vnto you Yee haue no lyfe in you except yee eate My Eleshe and drinke My Blood Hee that eateth My Fleshe and drinketh My Bloode abydeth in Mee and I in him and hee hath that Ever-lasting Lyfe and I will rayse him vp at the last Daye I am that lyuelie Bread which came downe from Heaven not so as your Fathers did eate Manna in the Wildernesse and died Hee that eateth this Bread liveth for ever Hee blessed then Bread before his suffering and divided it vnto his Disciples thus saying Eate of this Bread It is My Bodie and doe this in My rememberance Also he blessed Wine in one Cuppe and sayde Drinke yee all of this This is My Blood which is shedde for manie in forgiuenesse of sinnes The Apostles did also as Christ commanded that is They blessed Bread and Wine to housell againe afterwardes in his rememberance Even so also their Successoures and all Priestes by Christes Commaundement doe blesse Bread and Wine to housell in his Name with the Apostolicke Blessing Nowe men haue often searched and doe yet often search howe Bread which is gathered of Corne and thorowe Fyres heate baked may bee turned to Christes bodie Or howe Wine which is pressed out of manie Grapes is turned thorowe a blessing to the Lordes bloode Nowe saye wee vnto such men That some thinges bee spoken of Christ by signification and some be thinges certayne True this is and certayne That Christ was borne of a Mayde and suffered death of his owne accorde and was buried and on this Daye rose agayne from Death Hee is sayde to bee Bread then by signification and a Lambe and a Lyon and a Mountayne Hee is called Bread because hee is our Lyfe and Angels lyfe Hee is sayde to bee a Lambe for his innocencie A Lyon for strength where-with hee overcame the strong Devill But Christ is not so not-with-standing after true nature neyther Bread nor a Lambe nor a Lyon Why is then that holie Housell called Christs bodie or his blood if it bee not truelie that which it is called Truelie the bread and the wine which in the Supper by the Priest is hallowed showe one thing with-out vnto humane vnderstanding and another thing with-in vnto believing mindes With-out they are seene bread and wine both in figure and taste and they bee so truelie after their hallowing But Christes bodie and blood by ghostlie mysterie An Heathen Chylde is christened yet hee altereth not his shape with-out though hee bee chaunged with-in Hee is brought vnto the Font-stone sinfull thorowe Adams disobedience And how-be-it hee is washed from all sinne with-in yet hee hath not changed his shape with-out Even so the holie Font water which is called the Well-spring of Lyfe is lyke in shape vnto other water and is subject to corruption but the holie Ghostes might commeth to the corruptible water thorowe the Priestes blessing and it may after wash the bodie and soule from all sinne thorowe Ghostlie might Beholde nowe wee see two thinges in one creature after true nature that water is corruptible moysture and after ghostlie mysterie hath whole-some vertue So also if wee beholde that holie Housell after bodilie vnderstanding then wee see that it is a creature corruptible and mutable but if we acknowledge there-in ghostlie might then vnderstand wee that life is there-in and that it giveth Immortalitie to them that eate it with beliefe Much is between the invisible might of this holy Housel and the visible shape of its proper nature It is naturallie corruptible bread and wine and is by might of Gods word truelie Christes bodie and his blood not so not-with-standing bodylie but ghostlie Much is betweene the bodie of Christ which hee suffered in and the bodie which is hallowed to housell The bodie truelie that Christ suffered in was borne of the flesh of Ma●ie with blood and bone with skin and sinewes in humane limmes with a reasonable soule living But his ghostlie bodie which wee call the Housell is gathered of many Cornes with-out blood and bone with-out limme with-out soule and there-fore nothing is to be vnderstood there-in bodilie but all ghostlie What-so-ever was in that Housell which giveth substance of life that is of the ghostlie might and invisible doing Therefore is that holie Housell called a mysterie because there is one thing in it seene and another thing vnderstoode That which is there seene hath bodilie shape and that which wee doe there vnderstand hath Ghostlie might Certainlie Christs bodie which suffered death and rose againe from death never dieth hence-foorth but is eternall and impassible That Housell is temporall not eternall corruptible and dealed in-to sundrie partes chewed betweene the Teeth and sent downe in-to the bellie how-be-it never-the-lesse after Ghostlie might it is all in everie part Manie receiue that holie bodie and yet not-with-standing it is so all in everie part after Ghostlie mysterie Though some chewe the lesse yet there is no more might not-with-standing in the more parte than the lesse because it is whole in all men after

the invisible might This mysterie is a Pledge and a Figure Christes bodie is Trueth it selfe This Pledge wee doe keepe mysticallie vntill that wee bee come vnto the Trueth it selfe and then is this Pledge ended Truelie it is so as wee before haue saide Christes bodie and his blood not bodilie but ghostlie But now heare the Apostles wordes about this mysterie Paul the Apostle speaketh of the olde Israelites thus writing in his Epistle to faythfull men All our Fore-fathers were baptized in the Cloude and in the Sea and all they did eate the same ghostlie Meate and dranke the same ghostlie Drinke They dranke truelie of the Stone that followed them and that Stone was Christ. Neither was that Stone then from which the Water ranne bodilie Christ but it signified Christ who calleth thus to all believing and faythfull men Who-so-ever thirsteth let him come to Me and drinke from his bowels shall flow liuely water This hee saide of the holie Ghost which they received who believed in him The Apostle Paul saith that the Israelites did eate the same ghostlie Meate and dranke the same ghostlie Drinke because that heavenlie Meate that fed them fourtie yeares and that water which from the Stone did flow had signification of Christs bodie and his blood which now are offered daylie in Gods Church It was the same which wee now offer not bodilie but ghostlie Wee saide vnto you ere-while that Christ hallowed bread and Wine to housell before his suffering and said This is My Bodie and My Blood yet he had not then suffered but so not-with-standing he turned thorow invisible might that bread to his owne bodie and that wine to his owne blood as hee before did in the Wildernesse before that he was borne to be a Man when hee turned that heavenlie meat to his flesh and the flowing water from that Stone to his owne blood Verie manie did eate of that heavenlie Meat in the Wildernesse and dranke that ghostlie Drinke and were never-the-lesse dead as Christ saide and Christ meant not that death which none can escape but that ever-lasting death which some of that folke deserved for their vnbeliefe Moses and Aaron and many others of that people which pleased God did eate that heavenlie Bread and they died not that everlasting death tho they died the common death They saw that that heavenlie Meate was visible and corruptible but they ghostlie vnderstood by that visible thing another Meate and ghostlie received it Our Saviour saith Hee that eateth My Flesh and drinketh My Blood hath ever-lasting Life Now hee bade them not eate that bodie where-with hee was inclosed nor drinke that blood which he shed for vs but hee meant by these words that holie Housel which ghostlie is his bodie and his blood and hee that tasteth it with a believing heart hath that eternall life In the olde Law faythfull men offered to God diverse Sacrifices which had fore-signification of Christs bodie which for our sinnes hee him selfe hath since offered to his heavenlie Father for sacrifice Certainlie this Housell which wee hallow now at Gods Altar is a Remembrance of Christs bodie which hee offered for vs and so him selfe commanded Doe this in My remembrance Once suffered Christ by him selfe but yet never-the-lesse his suffering is daylie renewed at this Supper thorow the mysterie of the holie Housel Therefore wee ought to consider diligentlie how that this holie Housel is both Christs bodie and the bodie of all faithfull men after ghostlie mysterie as wyse Augustine saith of it If yee will vnderstand of Christes bodie heare the Apostle Paul thus speaking Yee truelie be Christs bodie and his members Now is your mysterie set on Gods Table and yee receiue your mysterie which mysterie yee your selues bee Bee that which you see on the Altar and receiue that which yee your selues bee Againe the Apostle Paul sayeth Wee beeing manie are one Bread and one Bodie Vnder-stand now and rejoyce Manie bee one Bread and one bodie in Christ Hee is our head and wee are his limmes And as the Bread is not of one Corne but of manie nor the Wyne of one Grape but of manie So also wee all should haue one vnitie in the Lord as it is written of the faythfull Armie howe that they were in so great an vnitie as tho all of them were one soule and one heart So Christ hallowed on his Table the mysterie of our peace and of our vnitie Hee which receiveth that mysterie of vnitie and keepeth not the band of true peace receiveth no mystery for him selfe but a witnesse against him selfe It is verie good for Christen men that they goe often to housell if they bring with them vnto the Altar Vnguiltinesse and innocencie of heart if they bee not oppressed with sinne To an evill man it turneth to no good but to destruction if hee receiue vnworthilie that holie Housell Holie Bookes commaund that water bee mingled with that wine which shall bee for housell because the water signifyeth the people and the wine Christes blood And there-fore the one with-out the other shall not bee offered at the holie Housell that Christ may bee with vs and wee with Christ the head with the limmes and the limmes with the head Wee would before haue intreated of the Lambe which the olde Israelites offered at their Easter time but that we desired first to declare vnto you of this mysterie and after how wee should receiue it I. That signifying-Lambe was offered at the Easter and the Apostle Sainct Paul sayeth in the Epistle of this present day that Christ is our Easter or Passe-over who was offered for vs and this daye rose agayne from death II. The Israelites did eate the Lambes flesh even as GOD had commaunded them with vnleavened bread and wilde Lettuice So should wee receiue that holie Housell of Christes bodie and bloode with-out the leaven of Sinne and Iniquitie For as Leaven turneth the creatures from their nature so doeth Sinne also change the nature of Man from Innocencie to Vncleannesse And the Apostle hath taught howe wee should feast not in the Leaven of Evilnesse but in the sweete Dough of Puritie and Trueth III. The Hearbe which they shoulde eate with the vnleavened bread is called Lettuice and is bitter in taste So wee shoulde with bitternesse of vnfeigned repentance purifie our myndes if wee will eate Christes bodie IIII. Those Israelites were not wont to eate rawe flesh and therefore God bade them to eate it neyther rawe nor sodden in water but roasted with fyre Hee shall receiue the bodie of God rawe that shall thinke with-out reason that Christ was onelie Man lyke vnto vs and was not God And hee that will after mans wisedome search of the mysterie of Christes Incarnation doeth lyke to him that seetheth Lambes flesh in water because that water in this same place signifyeth mans vnder-standing But wee should vnder-stand that all the mysterie of Christes humanitie was ordered by the power of the holie Ghost And then