whome the papistes counte no parte of their church but schismatikes conuerted the Moscouites first of all vnto the profession of the name of Christ which yet continue in their religion being neither the true faith nor yet popish religion As for the popish church as it is certeine that it hath peruerted and corrupted all partes of the Latine or Westerne Church with Idolatry and false religion so it shal be harde for the papistes to proue that it hath conuerted any Nation from Gentility to the popish religion except some partes of Germanie and them by force of armes rather than by preaching and reaching as appeareth by the conuersion of Liuonia Anno Domini 1200. of Prussia Anno Domini 1254. and of Lithuania Anno Domini 1386. wherefore I conclude that seeing I haue shewed that our Church holding the true doctrine of the Apostles is that which conuerted all nations to true religion and that the popish church hath not conuerted any people to true religion nor all people to the profession of the name of Christ this chalenger whosoeuer he be do the recant The second article conteyneth 4. demandes 1 I aske of him what Church it was which hath induced the Christian people through the whole worlde to geue most humble credit in all points to the holy bookes of the Byble I Aunswere it was the Church of Christ and not the Popish church which hath commended the bookes of holy Scripture to be beleued of all true Christians where soeuer they be although it be the office of the holy Ghost to open the hartes of men and to forme them that they may beleue the scripture to be true like as it is the office of the scripture or worde of God to trie and examine whether it be the spirite of God that perswadeth vs to beleue any thing so the spirite beareth witnesse to the worde and the worde to the spirite As for the popish church it coulde not induce the Christian people to geue credit to the scripture in all pointes because she is contrarie to the scripture in many pointes and euen in the cheefest pointes of Christian Religion namely in pointes concerning the glorie of God and the saluation of mankinde geuing the glory of God to dead men and dumbe Images and denying the mercy of God pourchased by the onely sacrifice of Christes death to be the onely cause of mans saluation Finally seeing it is manifest by the aunswere to the first article that the popish church did not conuerte all nations to the profession of the Christian faith it is euident thereby that the popish church did not induce all them that are called Christians to geue credit to the bookes of the holy Bible as this chalenger woulde haue it to be thought 2 VVhat Church hath had the discerning seuering of them from other writinges of all sortes THe Church of Christ hath not an absolute authority to allow or refuse bookes of the scripture but a iudgment to discerne true writinge from counterfaicts the word of God of infallible verity from the writing of men which might erre this iudgement she hath not of her selfe but of the holy Ghost as for the popish Church it can not be said to haue this iudgemēt of discerning the scripture of God from other writings not only because she is so blind that she can not discerne betwene the Canonical bookes of the scripture from the Apocrypha writings as appereth by receauing the bookes of the Machabees Ecclesiasticus c. to be of equall authoritie with the bookes of the Law Psalmes c. but also because she is so presumptuous as to compel men to beleue that Customes and traditions writinges of doctors decrees of Popes and Councells are equall with the authoritie of God his worde yea are of force to alter and change the lawe of God and the institution of Christ set forth vnto vs in the scripture And although she boast that she receaueth all the bookes of scripture yet this proueth no more that she is the Church of Christ than was the churches of the Arrians Donatistes Nouatians Euthychans other heretikes which receiued the Bible as well as the Popish church 3 VVhat Church hath had the custodie of them and most safely hath preserued them for the necessary vse of God his people and from the corruption of aduersaries as well of Iewes as heretikes of all sortes THe prouidence of God hath alwayes preserued the Scripture both from the violence of tyrants from the falshoode of heretikes and hath neuer suffred the true Church to be destitute of the necessarie vse thereof But the popish church hath not kept the scripture for the necessary vse of the people which hath so kept it in an vnknowen tongue that the people coulde haue no vse much lesse the necessary vse thereof wherefore if this be a note of the Catholike Church to kepe the worde of God for the necessarie vse of God his people it is plaine that the popish church is not the Catholike Church which hath kept the scripture so that God his people coulde haue no vse thereof And if the only custodie of the scripture from corruption of heretikes be a sure note of the Church why is not the Greeke Church the Catholike Church which vnto this day hath kept the scripture as safely as the popish church why are not other Estern Churches of Asia which neuer acknowledged the Pope or popish religion true Churches which likewise haue preserued the scripture as we haue seen of late that the newe Testament is printed in the Syrian tongue at themperours charges for the encrease of Christian faith among them And finally why are not the Iewes the Catholike Church which haue kept the old Testament in Hebrue more faithfully than euer the Papistes And because they boast of safe preseruing of the scriptures all men that are learned in the tongues can testifie in how corrupt a Latin translation they haue kept the scriptures both of the olde and of the new Testament 4 And let the Protestant declare to me that their Congregation hath had from time to time or euer had right herein or any other Church sauing the Catholike Church and I recant OVr Congregation which is the body of Christ hath euer had both right and possession of the inestimable treasure of the word of Christ her heade as appeareth by this that our Church and Congregation beleueth nothing but that she learneth in it acknowledgeth that all thinges profitable to saluation are sufficiently conteined in it and finally in all thinges submitteth her selfe to the iudgemēt of it But the popish church which beleueth many thinges contrarie to the scripture teacheth many thinges beside the scripture necessary to saluation and refuseth to haue her faith doctrine and ceremonies to be iudged by the scripture neither hath neither euer had any right to the scripture though she haue neuer so many bookes of them in possession Wherefore these thinges considered this chalenger
doth recant The third article conteyneth 5. demandes 1 Shew me why our common knowen Church did not as well corrupt the text of the Testament as the true religion conteyned in the same THere may be diuers good reasons shewed why your Church commonly knowen to be the church of Antichrist did not as well corrupt the text of the Testament as the true religion conteined therein First because she coulde not the copies thereof being so many by the prouidence of God dispersed throughout the worlde Secondly because she thought it not so needefull hauing other meanes to worke her deuilish deuise For although she coulde not corrupt the scripture yet it made the lesse matter because she founde meanes to diminish and controll the authority therof by aduancing decrees of men Popes and Councells to be equall or of greater authoritie than the scripture Thirdly because she woulde be lesse in feare to be reproued by the scripture she prouided that the knowledge thereof shoulde be hidden from the vnlearned people by a strange tongue and from the learned by the tedious mazes of questions deuised by her Canonistes and Sententiaries Fourthly because she submitted all interpretation of the scripture to her owne iudgement and therefore woulde not be controlled by the iudgement thereof but woulde alwayes expound it as it liked her best As appeareth by Ockam and Duns who though they confesse that transubstantiation seemeth to them contrary to the scripture and reason yet they beleued it because of the authoritie of the church and for none other cause These are the reasons why the Romish church did not as well corrupt the text of the Testamēt as the true Religion And yet how corrupt that Latine translation is which they woulde needes thrust vpō vs is sufficiently knowen to all learned men euen in such texts as are the most coulerable places for the defence of Popish doctrine I will geue one example for all They alleage the text 1. Cor. 10. Qui stat videat ne cadat He that standeth let him take heede he fall not against the certainetie of faith whereas the Greeke hath not he that standeth but he that thinketh he standeth let him take heede he fall not Thus the popish church cannot altogether excuse her selfe from corrupting of the text of the Testament whether it was of fraude or of ignorance or of negligence the Lorde knoweth 2 Shew me why she kept not so safely and faithfully the true sense of God his word as she preserued the word it selfe BEcause it was against her owne estimation and profit which are the chiefe endes for which popish Prelates mainteyne popish religion Take away the Popes prerogatiue which is contrary to the sense of God his word downe goe Cardinalls Legates Prothonotaries downe goeth all the Court of Rome take away workes of supererogation which are contrary to the Scripture downe goe Abbeys Priories and Chantries Take away the sacrifice of the Masse Purgatory which are contrary to the word of God downe goeth the estimation and gaynes of all the popish clergie And this is the cause why the popish church kept not so safely and faithfully the true sense of God his word as she preserued the word it selfe although she preserued not the word it self in such safetie as becommed the Church of Christ. 3 Shew me why we should beleue the Papistes as you terme them for the word it self and rather you Protestants thā them for the meaning of the word WE doe not chalenge credit to our selues in any poynt so presumptuously as the Papistes that men must beleue it because we affirme it But because we proue it to be true by the worde of god And therefore for the meaning of the word you should beleue vs rather than them because our groundes proues are better then theirs or else we require not to be beleued better than they 4 Shew me why you beleued our Church telling you this to be God his booke will not credit her auouching this to be the true and vndoubted sense of the same booke IF we had no better ground to perswade vs of the authoritie of God his booke than the testimony of your Church you may be sure we would not beleue it But because we haue most stedfast assurance of God his spirite for the authority of that booke with the testimony of the true Church in all ages If you say it is God his booke we beleue you not because you say so but because we know it to be true But if you bring out a false sense we beleue you not because we know it to be false are able to proue by the word of God that it is contrary to the meaning of the holy Ghost To be plaine with you we geue as much credit to your Church as to the deuill When the deuill sayth it is written He shall giue his angells charge ouer thee and with their handes they shall hold thee vp that thou dash not thy foote against a stone We beleue that this is the worde of god But when he auoucheth this to be the meaning of it that we may cast downe our selues from a Church steeple without daunger we doe not beleue him because we know this sense is contrary to an other Scripture which sayth Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. So when you say these wordes are the Scripture of God This is my body We beleue it because we knowe it to be true But when you say this is the meaning of these wordes This bread is turned into my naturall bodye we beleue you not because it is contrary to all places of Scripture which proue the trueth of Christ his humanitie or naturall body Thus I shewe you why we beleue you if you say the Scripture is God his word namely because we know it to be true why we beleue you not saying this is the meaning of it that is because we knowe by the word of God that it is false 5 Last of all Shew me why you beleued the olde known church affirming this to be the word of God and will not beleue her affirming Luther to be an heretike shew me good reason or Scripture for these thinges and I recant IF you meane by the olde Church the primitiue Church whose testimony of the word of God we allow beleue I deny that the primitiue Church did affirme Luther to be an heretike or the doctrine that he taught which we hold to be heresie but I am able to proue that the primitiue Church from which you haue receiued the Scripture affirmeth your doctrine to be heresie your Church the Church of Antichrist But if by the old knowne Church you meane the Church of old knowne to be the Church of Antichrist which is the popish church we beleue the deuill if he speake the trueth and we beleue not an Angell comming from heauen if he bring any other Gospel than S. Paule deliuered to the Galathians Therefore when your
against his wicked doctrine euen as he shoulde be and as these wranglers in the like case must be The place well marked shal serue our turne when so euer we heare them so impudently reiect scriptures because they impugne their heresies which els shoulde be as good scriptures as any booke of the Bible if they either woulde make with them or by any crafty colouring not plainely make against them Thus he sayth Nec ideo liber Sapientiae qui tanta numerositate annorum legi meruit in ecclesia Christi pati debet iniuriam quoniam resistit eis qui pro meritis hominum falluntur rursus omnibus hic liber tractatoribus anteponendus quoniam sibi cum anteposuerunt etiam temporibus Apostolorum proximi egregij tractatores qui eum testem adhibentes nihil se adhibere nisi diuinum testimonium crediderūt in English thus It is no reason that the booke of VVisdom which so many worlde 's together hath bene worthy the reading in the Church of Christ shoulde nowe receiue such wrong at our handes because it plainely resisteth these fellowes that exalt mans merites aboue Gods grace And againe this booke is of more authority then all the expositours in the worlde for the noble writers hard by the Apostles time did much preferre this booke before them selues who alleaging the testimony of that scripture doubted not but they vsed thereby the witnesse of Gods holy word Euen so must we tell our maisters that it were plaine wrong to discredit the history of the Machabees which hath bene in our Bible euer sith Christes time for holy Scripture because it hath an euident testimonie against their false belefe concerning the state of the soules departed which booke is not onely better to be beleued then all Caluins false gloses but of more authority then all holy expositors Out of which booke both S. Augustine others many haue vsed proofe of their matters as of the testimonie of Sacred and holy scripture 2 I will not gaine saye but who so denyeth the authority of the holy Scriptures thereby bewrayeth him selfe to be an heretike as all Papistes doe which I will proue afterwarde But he that admitteth for scripture that which is not proceded from the spirite of God and thereby will auouch for trueth that which is contrary to the vndoubted worde of God is no lesse heretike then he for it is all one sinne to adde to the worde of God and to take from it But M. Allen pretending to proue the booke of Machabees canonicall by authority of the Church when he can not by consent that it hath with the scriptures of God beginneth with the authority of Hieronym in prol Mach. But what he meaneth thereby or what place he noteth I know not But this I knowe that in his Preface vpon the booke of kinges he doth not onely omit it in rehersall of the canonicall bookes but also accompteth it plainely among the Apocryphall Next he alleageth the canons of the Apostles Wise canons I promise you as truely made by the Apostles as the double canons that lie on the tower hyll of London In which are rehersed 3. bookes of Machabees two Epistles of Clemens for canonicall scripture but the Apocalypse of S. Iohn hath no place at all by which it may appeare what Apostles they were that made that canckred canon Then followeth the prouinciall Councell of Carthage the third which nameth the 2. bookes of the Machabees amonge the canonicall scriptures euen as it doth the 5. bookes of Salomon whereas the Church alloweth but 3. namely the Prouerbes the preacher and the Canticles and although you shoulde numbre to these the booke of Wisdome yet can you make but 4. in all that we know of Againe in what sence they did call those bookes canonicall appereth by Augustine that was one of that Councell namely that they maye be reade so it be with iudgement Contra 2. Gaudentij epistolam lib. 2. cap. 23. Et hanc quidem scripturam quae appellatur Machabaeorum non habent Iudaei sicut legem Prophetas Psalmos quibus dominus testimonium perhibet tanquam testibus suis dicens oportet impleri omnia quae scripta sunt in lege prophetis in psalmis de me Sed recepta est ab ecclesia non inutiliter si sobriè legatur audiatur And this scripture of the Machabees the Iewes compte not as the lawe and the prophetes and the Psalmes to whome our Lorde geueth testimony as to his witnesses saying it behoued that all thinges should be fulfilled that were written of me in the lawe and in the Prophetes and in the Psalmes But it is receiued of the Church not vnprofitably if it be soberly reade and harde Here you see that Augustine howsoeuer he alloweth those bookes yet he alloweth them not in full authority with the lawe Prophetes and Psalmes nor with out condition of sobriety in the reader or hearer But Hieronym sayth plainely the Church receiueth them not as canonicall scriptures in his preface vpon the booke of Prouerbes Sicut ergo Iudith Tobiae Machabaeorum libros legit quidem ecclesia sed eos inter canonicas scripturas non recipit Sic haec duo volumina legat ad aedificationem plaebis non ad authoritatem ecclesiasticorum dogmatum confirmandam Therefore euen as the Church readeth in deede the bookes of Iudith Tobias and Machabees but yet receiueth them not among the canonicall scriptures so maye she reade these 2. bookes videlicet Ecclesiasticus and the booke of Wisdome falsely intitled to Salomon for the edification of the people but not to confirme the authority of ecclesiasticall opinions Thus if Augustine doe simply allowe these bookes you haue Hieronym that doth simply refuse them If Augustine saye the Church receiueth them for canonicall Hieronym sayth the Church receiueth them not for canonicall As for Damascene except you woulde stryue with numbre of witnesses I know not why you alleage him being one to whose iudgement as but a late writer in comparison you know we ascribe small credit I might produce against him Athanasius or at leste wise one of elder time then Damascene vnder the name of Athanasius but that I haue alleaged already is sufficient to represse that vaine and vnskilfull insultation that you vse in so many wastfull wordes against vs for refusing the authority of him that abridged Iason the Cyrenians bookes for canonicall scriptures 3 But our aduersary learned not this practise of Pelagius onely for it is an older sore and a common sicknesse to all deuisers of deuilish doctrine as the skillfull in the Churchies affaires may acknowledge For some there were that otherwise coulde not vpholde heresy but by the vtter deniall of all the olde Testament as Carpocrates Ceuerus Manicheus But Marcion and Cerdon reiect all together sauyng Lukes Gospel Now Cerinthus and Ebion make counte of none of all the Euangelicall histories but the Gospell of Matthewe Cerinthus againe and Seuerus
woulde haue robbed the Church of the actes of the Apostles A sect called Alogiani do refuse the Gospell of S. Iohn with the Apocalypse Martine illiricus Caluine and their companions that no man being but an heretique shoulde euer out pricke them will shoulder with the proudest and lifte out of our Bibles the bookes of Machabees with S. Iames Epistle and more when more nede requireth The which Epistle as also the Epistles of Iohn and Iudas were once doubted of not as conteining any matter wherof the trueth was vncertaine but as bookes not knowen to be of like force as canonicall scripture in the impugning of heresies or confirming articles of belefe as all workes be till Gods Church haue published their authority and declared all thinges in them conteined to be of the same credit that the spirite of God is and of Gospell like trueth And by that authority of the Church what booke so euer be allowed though it was not so taken before yet now we must needes accept it sicut vere est verbum Dei as the very word of god And so be these canonicall Epistles and bookes of Machabees as before is declared Here nowe euery man may learne that it is a very daungerous matter to geue lesse credit to any of these bookes or wauer in any point of faith written in them for such fellowes iudgements that nowe amongest them haue lefte vs neither olde nor newe Testament Such stubborne boldenesse had these willfull men in mainteinaunce of mischeuous doctrine VVhose open impudencie was counted handsome conueiaunce of their scholers and adherents which were very many notwithstanding the Catholike Christian men in all ages both meruailed and lamented their blindnesse And yet doubtlesse it is not much to be wondered at to see that man flatly forsake the scripture of God who is not abashed to refuse and condemne that sense and vnderstanding of the Scripture which the whole Church with all her learned men haue euer allowed and counted most holy VVell by the strength of this piller we haue chalenged and saued hitherto for all the barking of bandogges the Scripture of God with the knowne meaning thereof And so I trust we shall doe still from the new aduersaries by the assured promise of thassistance of Gods holy spirite which shall leade vs not onely to the true canonicall Scriptures with the sense of the same but also guide vs in all truth necessary for our saluation Let euery man therefore here take heede how he doubteth of the knowne and certayne sense that the Church of Christ by decree of councell or consent of doctors applyeth to any Scripture least by mistrusting the sayd sense he goe forward vnaduisedly from open deniall of the common to found a priuate meaning of his owne in the stubborne defense whereof when he shall against the truth malipertly stand he goeth vnluckely forward at the end blasphemously reiecteth the blessed word sacred Scripture of God as we haue proued the auncient enemies of truth to haue done and as in these new sect maisters we may to our great dolour see Yet loe euen these are they that in all ages as Vincentius sayth flye in their talke and teaching ouer the law the prophets the Psalmes the Gospell That cry out of pottes pulpits nothing but Gods word the booke of the Lorde the testament of Iesus Christ Paule scripture as it may be supposed and as in th ende it is proued to driue out of doores Paule Scripture Testament and Christ too and not to bring into the peoples heades or heartes the feare and loue of God the holsom precepts of Paules heauenly preaching nor the true meaning of any Scripture VVho being vrged will rather credit a minstrells ballat then the Machabeis or best booke in the Bible But now you may see that whiles these men thought to saue their credits by miscrediting the Scripture they haue wrought so wisely that they haue lost their owne credits both in this poynt and in all other for euer And as they hoped by deniall of Scripture to cloke their errour they haue wonne to them selues the property of an heretike by open shew of their owne folly 3 And euen as vaine friuolous is this discourse that followeth to shew what bookes of scripture were in olde time refused by what heretikes But you thinke to match vs with them for denying the Machabees where vnto you adde the Epistle of S. Iames. If Martine and Illyricus haue some times doubted of that Epistle they are not the first that doubted of it Eusebius sayth plainely it is a counterfect Epistle lib. 2. cap. 23. And yet he was not accompted an heretike I saye not this to excuse them that doubt of it for I am perswaded they are more curious then wise in so doing but whereas you ioine Caluine with them it is because you can not leaue to lye with out shame while you are an instrument to defend diuelish errors with out shewe of trueth For Caluine receiueth it defendeth it expoundeth it and in all his writings allegeth it as canonical scripture Therefore if he were as ill as you compt him yet it were shame to lye on the deuill But we shall not nede to â—ake among the olde heresies to finde what bookes of holy Scripture you Papistes refuse when it is an easy matter to take your owne confessions and bolde assertions by which it is manifest that you doe not as those heretikes which you name reiect some one or two bookes but the whole authority of all the canonicall scriptures For when you affiâ—me that no booke of holy Scripture is canonicall but so farre forth as your Church will allow it who seeth not that you doe abrogate all maiestie and authoritie from the word of God submitting it to the iudgements of men Moreouer when you will not admit any sence of the scripture but such as your Church wil allow although the same be contrary to the plaine wordes thereof what authority doe you leaue to the worde of God which you make to be but a dead lettre vntil you geue it such a sence as it pleaseth you Finally where you make decrees of men either priuate or common customes traditions vnwritten verities in which is no certainety at all not onely equiualent but also oftentimes superior to the auctority of holy scriptures what certainety credit or estimation doe you leaue to the scriptures of God aboue other writinges nay all other writinges are in better case then the scriptures are with you For other writings may be compted the workes of their authors with out your censure the holy Scripture may not be compted the worde of God except you list so to allow it which may as well refuse that which is Gods worde in deede as you receiue and obtrude that which is not the worde of God at all Other writings haue such sence as the authors haue expressed them selues in their workes and maye be gathered by their wordes The
Gods worde or authorities of scriptures but such as is so pitifully wrested and drawen vnto them as euery man may see the holy Ghost neuer ment any such thinge as they gather of them 3 Holde on vpwarde still and Tertullian will witnesse with thee that in that floure of Christes Church with in lesse then CC. yeares of our maisters death Oblationes fiebant annua die pro defunctis That oblations and sacrifice were yearly made at the xij monthes mindes of most men he meaneth both by the sacrifice of the Church and offeringes of the freindes of the departed as there also Repete apud Deum pro cuius spiritu postules pro qua oblationes annuas reddas Call to thy remembraunce for whose soule thou prayes and in whose behalfe thou makes yearly offeringes He speaketh of a freinde of his that practised thus for his wiues departure And in an other place he well declareth the duety of maried persons one towards an other if God by death separate them in sonder Pro anima eius orat refrigerium interim postulat offert annuis diebus dormitionis eius She prayeth for her husbandes soule and obteineth in the meane space ease and offereth euery yeare at the mind day of his passing hense And he letteth not to affirme that the maried couple that practise not thus do not beleue the resurrection Therefore he concludeth thus Nunquid nihil erimus post mortem secundum aliquem Epicurum non secundum Christum quòd si credimus mortuorum resurrectionem vtique tenebimur cum quibus resurrecturi sumus rationem de altetutro reddituri VVhat say you shall we fall to nothing after our death as the Epicure thinketh and not rise againe as Christ teacheth And if we beleue the resurrection of the deade then doubtlesse we shall be bounde to make accompt one of an other as we shall together rise againe Beware here my maisters once againe I must tell you you are going towardes the deniall of the resurrection so many as condemne the vsage of the Church in praying or offeringe for the deade Tertullian sayth you be Epicures in this point and so you be in all others I say you are past priuy muttering in your heartes that there is no God for you are come to plaine Manducemus bibamus cras enim moriemur Let vs eate and be mery we can not tell how longe we lieue I say you must aunswere for parting the affection of man and wife and the one must be countable at the day of iudgement to an other that they procured not the dueties of the deade by right of Gods holy Church for their soules departed Take heede therefore you are warned 3 Nay ho there M. Allen no higher then Tertullian And when we haue examined the testimonies of Tertullian in order as you haue brought them you shall haue small aduantage out of him yea your friendes shall thinke you had bene better to haue made no mention of him For first I must tell you that these three lines which are all that he hath written sounding that way are found in three bookes which all were written by him when he was an heretike separated from the catholike Church And therefore it may well be that all that he speaketh of prayers and oblations for the deade was onely in the conuenticles of the Montanistes of which sect he was an earnest defender rather then in the catholike Church And this coniecture seemeth the more probable because Cyprian which was afterward a catholike Bishop in the same city where Tertullian sometime had liued maketh no mention of prayers for the dead but onely of sacrifice for the Martyrs which was none other but the sacrifice of thankesgiuing lib. 4. Ep. 5. But admit that the Church of God in that time vsed these superstitious prayers and oblations for the deade let vs consider vpon what ground they were vsed The firsâ— place M. Allen allegeth in this forme Oblationes fiebant annua die pro defunctis But Tertullians wordes in libro de corona militis be these Oblationes pro defunctis pro natalitijs annua die facimus We make oblations for the dead for our birthes on the yearly day By which it is euident that M. Allen did not read these wordâ—s him selfe but receiued them of some other mans collection or sound them in some booke of common places But to the matter Tertullian him selfe shall say for me that the same custome with many other which he there rehearseth hath no ground in the holy Scripture Harum aliarum eiusmodi disciplinarum si leges expostules scripturarum nullam inuenies traditio tibi praetendetur autrix consuetudo confirmatrix fides obseruatrix Of those and such like disciplines if you require the lawes of the Scriptures you shall finde none tradition shall be pretended to you to be the author Custome the confirmer and faith the obseruer It is good to take that which is so franckly giuen and more is Tertullian to be commended that confesseth the ground of his errour not to be taken out of the word of God then they that labour to wreâ—t the Scriptures to find that which Tertullian confesseth is not to be found in them I knowe the Papistes will aunswere that tradition is of as good credit as the Scripture is the word of God vnwritten as well as the Scripture is the word of God written But why then doe they not obserue all other things that Tertullian in the same place affirmeth to be tradition if tradition be the word of God why doe they not giue to them that are newly baptised a temper of milke and hony and from the day of their baptisme forbid dayly washing all the weeke after Why doe they not count it a wicked thinge to fast on the Sunday or to pray and worship God on their knees Why doe they not count it a wicked thinge to fast betwene Easter Whitsontide or to pray on their knees all that time Finally why doe not they crosse them selues in the forehead at euery steppe they set forth at comming in at going out at putting on of garmentes at putting on of shoes at washing at the tables at lighting of candles at beddes at stooles and at all thinges what so euer they doe What aunswere can they here make but that their Church may dispense as well with the word of God vnwritten which they cal tradition as she doth against the word of God conteyned in the holy Scriptures So that alwayes what so euer they prate of antiquitie customs traditions vnwritten verities or the word of God vnwritten the authority of their blasphemous church is aboue them all Now to the second testimony alleged out of Tertullian S. Ieronym shall testifie for vs that this booke as the other that followeth was written against the Church so was also his booke de corona militis when he was out of the Church whereby it may
true worship to banish together our fathers faith CAP. XII 1 IN this chapter where he vomiteth out nothing but rayling and lying he doth rather bewraye his owne infirmitie then touch the strength of our cause For being trobled with a sore laxe of the tongue which I take to be a like disease in the mouth that it is in the wombe he gusheth out nothing but bragging and faceing scolding and sclaundering tauntinge and trifling And therefore I will but breefely confute his vanity and turne him to his matches to contend in that kind of quarreling The chiefe argument he sayeth that the Church in times past and Augustine the Churches champion vsed against the Pelagians was to shewe that their heresie was contrary to the publicke prayers of the Church what shoulde I vse many wordes I appeale to the iudgement of all Papistes that haue not loste all vse of naturall reason and indifferent iudgement which either haue reade or will take paines to reade so many workes as Augustine did write against the Pelagians whether of an hundreth arguments that he vseth this insultation be not one of the feeblest which tooke no holde of the Pelagians by force of trueth that is in it but by their owne concession and graunt of that prayer to be godly and them to be of the Church that so prayed But now the controuersie is not onely of the substance of doctrine but of the Church it selfe also And therefore when Augustine had to doe with the Donatistes that challenged the Church vnto them selues he setteth all other tryalles aside and prouoketh onely to the scriptures Therefore M. Allen if you wil teach your schollers to kepe vs at the baye as heretikes you must not teach them to barke and baule nothing but the Church the Church like tinckers curres but you must instructe them to open conningly out of the scriptures how our doctrine is cōtrary to the trueth and yours agreable to the same I do not blame you if you would faine haue that argument of the Church without tryall which is the Church to take place for it woulde ease you and your fellowes of much paine it woulde serue you both for a sworde and a buckler all other bookes arguments and reasons might be layed a side and keepe silence The Church sayth it and we are the Church therefore it is true The scriptures them selues are altogether needelesse where this argument may stand for payment This is so plaine a proofe that the aduersaries shall not be able to saye baffe vnto it In deede they were but sory whelpes that could not say baffe to the bleating of such a calfe as you are which thinke that such a foolish cauill can carry credit with them that haue any cromme of brayne in their heads The Church prayeth so therefore it is true Nay Syr you pray and practise to controle the word of God therefore you are not the Church of god Proue that you doe not so or else prate as long as you wil. And thinke not to dorre vs with Cyprians name where as if you had his iudgement we might be bold to say as the same Augustine hath giuen vs example Nos nullam Cypriano facimus iniuriam cum eius quaslibet literas à canonica diuinarum scripturarum auctoritate distinguimus Neque enim sine causa tam salubri vigilantia canon Ecclesiasticus constitutus est ad quem certi Prophetarum Apostolorum libri pertinent quos omninò iudicare non audeamus secundum quos de caeteris literis vel fidelium vel infidelium liberè vindicemus Contra Cresconium Gram. lib. 2. cap. 31. We doe Cyprian none iniurie at all when we put difference betwene any of his writinges from the canonicall authoritie of the holy Scriptures For not without a cause with so holesome diligence is the ecclesiasticall canon appoynted vnto which certeyne bookes of the Prophets and Apostles doe perteyne which we dare not iudge at all according to which we may freely iudge of all other writings either of faithfull men or infidells And againe in the 32. chapter Ego huius epistolae auctoritate non teneor quia literas Cypriani non vt Canonicas habeo sed eas ex canonicis considero quod in eis diuinarum scripturarum auctoritati congruit cum laude eius accipio quod autem non congruit cum pace eius respuo I am not bound to the authoritie of this epistle because I count the letters of Cyprian not as canonicall scriptures but I consider them by the canonicall scriptures and what so euer I finde in them agreeable to the authoritie of holy Scriptures I take it with his prayse that which agreeeth not I reiect it with his leaue Iudge here gentle reader whether Augustine would or should with any indifferency bind either men to the absolute admitting of Cyprians authoritie wherwith he would not be holden him self and know Allen for a Iangler on Augustines wordes against the meaning of Augustine or any reasonable man. 2 I would learne by what Churches example they haue lefte out of their newe fangled phantasticall seruice the offering and praying for the departed One of them was so impudent to say in an open booke that the Lyturgies of the fathers made all against the Catholikes for the proofe of their false assertions VVherein sir I pray you tell me I woulde call you by your name if I knew who you were there you were ashamed of your owne name therefore ye shall lacke the glory of your assertion But who so euer you be I pray you what affinitie betwixt their office of celebration and yours doe you finde they offer the holy hoste they worship it they shewe it they pray vnto it which of all these doe you they blesse it with the signe of the holy crosse they practise the action vpon an altar how well follow you these they pray for the deade they make inuocation solemnely to sainctes they ioyne with all catholike Churches in the worlde where is your cause here amended or ours not plainely proued If their seruice like you so wel or at least better thē S. Gregories Masse you might with more honestie haue chosed for any one of them then haue forged a newe one of your owne which in deede is directly repugnant to all other rites in the Christian world VVhich you may well terme the seruice of contradiction and damnation as one that neither communicateth with the sainctes in heauen with the soules in purgatory nor with the faithfull a liue And being ashamed of the Latine Church you chalenge an other origine of faith out of the Easte parte as though your matter were well amended if you might shake of that faith and worship which our countrie in her conuersion first receiued and in which till this daye she hath happely lyued and make the heade of our holy tradition vncertaine by referring vs vnto an vnknowen origine 2 He would know by what churches example we haue
VVhere did they gather as in Councells to try the trueth of doubtfull matters AS God gaue them respight from your tyrannie they had conference one with an other and as for doubtes they tried them by the worde of God and not by number of voyces as you do in your councells as for the places where they met is nothing at all materiall at Prage at Lyons at Merindol c. 7 How might Christian men iustly offended with some of their brethern haue sought out your officers or Congregation to make complainct of him YOu are void of all reason that in a persecuted church will require all thinges to be so formall and orderly as in time of peace and quietnes I could choke you with putting like cases of your Church If a number of Papistes be carried prisoners into Barbarie or Turkey what Sacraments what discipline what Iudgement haue they among them if one be offended with his brother how shall he come to your officeâ—s or to your Church to complaine In such cases where the ordinary authoritie of the Church is hindred by persecution or otherwise the rule of S. Paule 1. Cor. 5. may serue and ought to be obserued If any that is called a brother be a fornicator or couetous or an Idolater or a rayler or a drunkard or an extorcioner with such one eate not So that if a Christian be iustly offended with his brother he ought to absteine from his company And if he may haue ordinary authoritie he may complaine further 8 Or how if it had liked any man to haue ben baptized of them or to haue receiued the communion of them or to haue bene married of them or to haue ioyned them selues in Fayth and Religion to them how might I say that secret contemptible and vnknowne company be founde in this case HE must haue sought them out as well as he could if he had bene perswaded that they onely ministred the Sacraments Ecclesiasticall rites sincerely according to the word of God it were no great matter for him to find them seing he knew by whom he was so perswaded and of them might also be informed where he should haue them I maruell you are not ashamed to demauÌ„d these questions as though it were materiall to discusse whether of vs hath the Church to haue the Church so manifest that euery man may see it Doe you not remember how many schismes haue bene euen in the popish church more theÌ„ twenty and sometime two Popes at once sometime three sometime fower which of them should a simple Papist take for head of the Church especially in the 22. schisme which lasted 39. yeares one Pope sitting at Rome an other at Auinion either hauing his court either hauing and making Cardinals either cursing other Or in the 23. schisme when the question was of one of the highest pointes in all popery and is not yet throughly decided among them Whether the Pope be aboue the Councell or the Councell aboue the Pope In the time of these schismes how might a man haue founde out which was the true Church which was Christes vicare in earth which had the right Sacraments and Sacramentalls to which Popes court should he appeale where did the principall Pastors sit in iudgement c. How should councells be gathered which Pope shoulde confirme their actes c When you are able to aunswere these questions for your owne church then you may better require them of ours As for that secrete contemptible and vnknowne company of our Church in the sight of the world was neuerthelesse manifest glorious and knowen to our Sauiour Christ and the liuely members of his body 9 If therefore you can shew me that any man euer sought Iustice or knowledge of trueth sacrament or faith or any helpe of Saluation at the Protestants secret and close congregation or any other where but of Gods knowen Catholike Church I recant ALthough it be to litle purpose to aunswere this demande because it is no reason to say these thinges hath not bene because chronicles make no mention of them yet that all men maye see how farre you ouershoot your selfe I wil partely satisfie your request Charles the great sought knowledge of the trueth of the sacrament of Bertramus Iohn Duke of Lancaster and diuers other noble men were instructed in our Religion by VVickleue The land of Bohemia was conuerted by Iohn Hus and Hieronym of Prage and sought the sacraments of them Finally you alwayes forget the Greeke church which you do not accompt parte of the Catholike church and yet you can not deny but men haue sought Iustice sacramentes faith c. of it Therefore if a man might trust you vpon your worde you recant The 10. article conteyneth in effect but 2. demandes 1 Moreouer I aske whether for all these many hundreth of yeares or euer els before there was any temporall Prince or Potentate that offered to be vnder God a minister of Iustice and an executor of Christian lawes in the right of your Congregation that euer maintained by lawes Ciuill or other your Faith and Congregation and I recant BEfore the general defection it is an easy matter to name you the Emperours and Princes which both offered to be ministers of Iustice in the right of our church and also mainteyned our faith and Congregation by Ciuill lawes as Constantine the greate Iouinianus Valentinianus Theodosius Archadius Honorius Marcianus Iustinianus Mauricius and diuers other But when the kinges of the earth had committed fornication with the great whore of Babylon as the holy Ghost foresheweth Apoc. 17. and 18. it is no preiudice to our cause if we can not shew any of them that haue mainteined our Religion Yet because you make so gentle an offer vpon the triall of such a matter which is of small force either to the hurt of our cause or the maintenance of yours I will let you vnderstande what I haue reade for this purpose Not doubting but other which haue reade much more and seene more auncient histories than I can shew you a great deale more I passe ouer as to well knowen how many of the Grecian Emperors resisted the setting vp of Images in so much that in the Greeke church to this daye they can abide none in their temples likewise I passe ouer Charles the great who wrote a booke against Images which is in printe who also declared that he liked not the heresie of the reall presence and transubstantiation which in his time was in forging in that he called Bertrame to declare his minde of that matter as appeareth by his booke which is also in printe I will not rehearse those princes that contrary to the Popes lawes defended their priestes that were maried For although these and such like defended some parte of the trueth which we holde against you yet lest you should obiect it was but in some one or two pointes I passe them ouer with silence But VVickleue I wene you will not deny
but he was of our Church and Religion And I reade that king Edward the third both in his Parliament holden Anno Domini 1371. and at other times with diuers other noble men defended his cause in so much that so long as he liued all the popish byshops coulde do him no harme yet did he openly inueigh against the Pope calling him Antichrist and all popish doctrine without any couller or dissimulatioÌ„ both in the vniuersitie of Oxeford where he was reader and also in his sermons abroade as appeareth by his bookes and English homilies which yet are coÌ„mon to be seene with vnlesse he had bene supported and maintained by the kinge and other potentates coulde neuer haue continued so long as he did Further haue you not hearde of Zisca and Procopius two mighty Capitaines which defended the Bohemians from the tyrannie both of the Emperour the Pope and almost all the Princes of Germanie For what cause did Paule the second Anno Domini 1466. condemne George a noble and a worthy Prince king of Bohemia for an heretike and depriued him of his kingdome was it not for defending the Protestantes in his dominion Thus you see that some Princes and Potentates haue not onely offered but haue in deed taken in hand to defend our church which you thought vnable to be shewed wherfore I chalenge your promise you must recante The 11. article is so confuse that it is harde to bring it into any certeine numbre of demandes 1 Againe I requier of the Protestants to declare by good histories or by reasonable likelihoode when the true church as they compt theirs decayed I Answer euen in the Apostles time there arose many heresies which did not a litle trouble the Church but immediatly after the Apostles time while the fathers of the church were earnestly occupied in resisting of horrible heresies by the craft of Satan some errors and abuses crept into the true Church of Christ which at the first because they were small and men occupied in greater matters were either not espied or not regarded as may be knowen by the writinges of Iustinus Martyr and Irenaeus two of the most auncient writers sence the Apostles time Iustinus was in this error that he thought that the Angells lusted after women and therefore were turned into Deuills It seemeth also that the Church in his time was in some error about second mariages and diuorcements Irenaeus affirmeth that our Sauiour Christ liued here 50. yeares which he sayeth was receyued of them that heard it euen of the Apostles mouthes Also both he and Papias which was before him and was the disciple of S. Iohn are charged by S. Ieronym in Catalogo Script Eccl. to haue held this error that Christ should raigne a thousand yeares after the Resurrection here in the flesh whereby it is manifest seeing these auncient fathers and pillers of the Church were thus stayned with errors that the Church in their time could not be free from the same And so it is euident that the true Church decayed immediatly after the Apostles times 2 VVhat yeare the Religion of the Papistes came in and preuayled ALthough many abuses and corruptions were entred into the church of Christ immediatly after the Apostles time which the deuill planted as a preparatiue for his eldest sonne Antichrist Yet we may well say that the religion of the Papistâ—s came in and preuailed that yeare in which the Pope first obteyned his Antichristian exaltation which was in the yeare of our Lord 607. when Boniface the third for a great summe of mony obteyned of Phocas the trayterous murtherer and adulterous Emperour that the Bishop of Rome should be called and counted the head of all the Church Since that time that deuilish heresie hath alwayes increased in error vntill the yeare of our Lord 1414. in which the Councell of Constance decreed to robbe the people of the Sacrament of Christ his blood From this time it hath againe decaied being mightely subdued by the bright beames of the Gospell shining in the world and at the length shall be vtterly destroyed 3 VVhether all their true Church was so soundly sleeping that none could preach against it as it first entred WHen the coÌ„ming of Antichrist was in all power of lying signes and wonders in so much that if it were possible the very elect should be deceiued and a general departing from the faith was foreshewed and the Church to be driuen into the wildernes what maruell were it if none of our Church could preach against it as it first entred yet because you speake of the first entring of popish religion which dependeth chiefly vpon the Popes authoritie you shall heare that when it first began to aduaunce it selfe there wanted not some either to preach or write against it When Victor bishop of Rome about the yeare of our Lord 200. passed the bondes of his authoritie in excommunicating of all the Churches of Asia many bishops withstoode him and especially Irenaeus bishop of Lyons and Policrates of Ephesus as witnesseth Eusebius libro 5. cap. 25. Eccle. S. Cyprian also reproueth Cornelius bishop of Rome for that he was moued by threatning of heretikes to receiue their letters did not send them backe into Africa to their own bishop lib. 1. Ep. 3. Also when Stephanus bishop of Rome was bold to communicate with Basilides and Martialis two Spaniards that were iustly excommunicated and deposed by the bishops of their owne prouince sought to restore them Cyprian and his felow bishops of Aphrica being required to giue their aduise gaue counsell that in no wise they shoulde be receiued not a litle blaming Stephanus that beinge far of and ignorant of their cause he would take vpon him to defend such wicked men lib. 1. Ep. 4. Likewise when the same Stephanus threatned excommunication to Helenus and Firmilianus and almost all the Churches of Asia because they thought that such as were baptized by heretikes shoulde be baptized againe he was misliked by Dionysius of Alexandria and diuers other godly bishops as appeareth by his Epistle wrytten to Xystus Euseb. lib. 7. cap. 5. Cyprian also reproueth him very sharply for the same opinion accusing him of presumption and contumacy Epi. ad Pompeium and in his epistle to Quintinus he sayth plainly that Peter himselfe was not so arrogant nor so presumptuous that he would say he held the primacy that other men should obey him as his inferiors When Anastasius Innocentius Zozimus Caelestinus bishops of Rome all on a row chalenged prerogatiue ouer the bishops in Aphrica by forginge a false Canon of the Nicene Councel they were withstoode by all the bishops of Aphrica who decreed that none vnder paine of excommunicatioÌ„ should appeale to any bishop beyond the sea Concil Aphrican cap. 92. and that the bishop of the chiefe see should not be called prince of priestes or highest priest but onely bishop of the chiefe see Conc. Aph. cap. 6. When Celestinus byshop of Rome dealt hardly with the
them to life and placeth them in heauen with christ Ephes. 2. And as for that painfull penaunce that M. Allen complaineth to be so neglected in our tyme he chargeth vs vniustly with the cause thereof For within tyme of mans memory before the light of the Gospell did shine openly we saw no such painfull penaunce commonly but v. ladyes psalters v. pater nosters v. pence to v. poore men in remembraunce of the v. woundes v. fry dayes fast and such like And as for pilgrimage it was but a pastime for such as loued to roue about the cuntryes The hardest penaunce was to pay so deare for the paultry of Monkes merites and Fryers fables Popes pardons and such like Et hinc illae lachrymae This maketh the bitter complaint that this marchaundise will no more be bought but this is the iudgement of God vpon the great whore of Babylon 3 Considering therefore the great spread of contagion that this vntrue doctrine hath wrought both to the euerlasting miserie of heretikes them selues and also to the greuous punishment that almighty God of iust iudgement may take vpon vs that by his great mercy be yet Catholikes because we liue in wanton welth with out iust care or cogitation of our life past Neither doing any worthy fructes of penaunce nor yet endeuouring to make a mendes and recompense by satisfying for our sinnes before of mercy so pardned that to our damnation they can not now any more be imputed but yet for answering in summe parte of Gods iustice and perfect purging of the same sinnefull life past out of all doubte sharpely punishable for these thinges I say and for the stirring vp of the feare of God in my selfe the helpe of the simple the defense of the trueth and thabating of this great rage of sinne and heresie I thought good to geue warning moued therevnto by my frende also to all such as be not them selues able to searche out the trueth of these matters of that temporall or transitory punishment which God of iustice hath ordained in the other worlde for such as woulde not iudge them selues and preuent his heauy hand whiles they here liued our forefathers more then a thousand yeare since called it Purgatory The truth and certaine doctrine whereof I trust through Gods goodnesse so clearely to proue that the aduersary be he neuer so great with the Deuill shall neuer be able to make any likely excuse of his infidelitie And that so done I shall both open and proue the meanes which the Church of God hath euer profitably vsed for the reliefe of her children from the same punishment to the soueraigne good and comfortable for the faithfull soules departed And here I hartely pray thee gentle Reader whosoeuer thou be that shall finde iust occasion vndoubtedly to beleue this article of necessary doctrine euer constantly set forth by the grauest authoritie that may be in earth that as thou faithfully beleues it so thou perpetually in respect of the day of that dreadfull visitation study with feare and trembling to worke thy saluation Let that be for euer the difference betwixt the vnfruitefull faith of an heretike and the profitable beliefe of the true Catholike Christian that this may worke assured penaunce to perpetuall saluation and his vaine presumption to euerlasting damnation And though the matter which I haue taken in hand be nothing fitte for the diet of such delicate men as haue bene brought vp vnder the pleasant preaching of our dayes yet perchaunce change of diet with the sharpnesse of this eager sawse were if they could beare it much more agreable to their weake stomackes Trueth was euer bitter and faulshood flattering For th one by present paine procureth perpetuall wealth thother through deceitfull sweetenes worketh euerlasting woe But as for these pleasure preachers them selues because I feare me they haue indented with death and shaked hands with hell whatsoeuer may be sayd in this case they will yet spurne with the wordes of the wicked Flagellum inundans cum transierit not veniet super nos quia posuimus mendacium spem nostram mendacio protecti sumus Tush the common scourge when it passeth ouer shall not touch vs for we haue made lying our succour and by lying are we garded Yet when the light of the Apostolike tradition shall dase their eyes and the force of Gods truth beare downe their boldnes their owne blacke afflicted conscience by inward acknowledging that truth which they openly withstand shall so horribly torment their mindes that denying Purgatory they shall thinke them selues a liue in hell But gentle Readers pray for them with teares that God of his mighty grace would strike their flesh with his feare And if my poore paine with the prayers of vs all could turne any one of them all from the way of wickednesse it would recompense doubtlesse some of our sinnes and couâ—r a number of my misdeedes And euer whilest we liue let vs praise God that in this time of temptation he hath not suffered vs to fall as our sinnes haue deserued into the misery of these forsakers To whom if I speake sometimes in this treatise more sharply then my custome or nature requireth the zeale of truth and iust indignation towards heresie with the example of our forefathers must be my excuse and warrant I wil be as plain for the vnlearneds sakes as I may the matter suffer And therfore now at the first I will open the very ground as neare as I can of so necessary an article that the ignorance of any one peece may not darken the whole cause Desiring the studious to reade the whole discourse because euery peculiar pointe so ioyntly dependeth of the residewe that the knowledge of one orderly geueth light to all the other And so the whole togither I â—rust shall reasonably satisfie his desire 3 Here as I take it in the second face of the 18. leafe beginneth the 3. matter promised in the argument namely a briefe note of the authors intent c. The chiefe consideration as I gather is for that men endeuour not to make amendes and recompence by satisfying for their sinnes and therefore for answering some part of Gods iustice and perfect purging of the same sinnefull life past there remayneth sharpe punishment after this lyfe I will commit to Christ to be reueÌ„ged the horrible iniury done to his death and bloud shedding which if it be not a full aunswering of Gods iustice and a perfect purging of all our sinnefull life in vaine shall we seeke it else where But I will reason with M. Allen in his owne principles What say you Sir remayneth there some part of Gods iustice to be aunswered by suffering Surely if the passion of Christ will not serue that was the immaculate lambe of God it were straunge that the suffering of a sinnefull man should satisfie the same And if suffering of the party that hath sinned be necessarily required for aunswering some part of
chastisement of our peace was layd vpon him but we say with the prophet Lord if thou looke straightly to our sinnes who were able to abide it but with thee there is mercy therefore thou shalt be feared Psa. 130. But for a stronger proofe there is alleged a place out of Apoc. 18. looke howe high Babylon did exalt her self how delicatly she liued geue her so much woe torment againe Now I promise you I will say M. Allen is a cunning Logitian if he can draw a good argument out of this place to proue that God punisheth his children to satisfy his iustice The whorish church of Rome is iustly condemned to eternal torments for her pride voluptuousnes there ore Gods children are punished to aunswere the iustice of god The people of God are commauÌ„ded to reward Babylon according to her wickednes and to spare her no more then she sâ—ared them in her tyrannye What pertaineth this to the afflictions of Gods Saincts But because this matter toucheth the point he will tary longer with his aduersary demaund why God taketh punishmeÌ„t in this world for sinne already remitted And then he will coÌ„pel him to answere for satisfying of his iustice which if it be not performed in this life it must be in the life to come This is a fine kinde of reasoning M. Allen that you will enforce your aduersary both to aunswere you also to aunswere what you list then you are good enough for him Is this the logicke of Louayne Nay you haue a finer reason then this punishment iudgement for sinne properly appertayneth not to this worlde but to the next life Then would I grossely inferre therfore the temporal paines that the godly suffer in this world be not properly punishments for sinne But it is of mercy and grace that they suffer in this life that I graunt but not to satisfie for their sinnes Of which matter you doe vntruely call Saynct Paule to witnes 1. Cor. 11. as wheÌ„ he is hearde to speake him selfe it will appeare manifestly If we would iudge our selues sayth he we should not be iudged but when we are iudged we are chastised of the Lorde because we shoulde not be condemned with the worlde Here is chastisement to amendement or obstinacy to condemnation but neuer a word sounding toward purgatory here is a manifest difference betwene the iudgement which God exerciseth towards his children which is chastismeÌ„t to auoyd damnation that iudgement by the which the impenitent world is condemned But in the next life you say there is no place for our working but sufferance alone c. what then shal other mens workes auaile when our owne will not serue and yet it is a matter not so fully agreed vpon among you papistes whether a man may merite in purgatory But to take your owne affirmation and not to charge you with dissention of other men because you dissent so much from your selfe who so weigheth the grounde of your first booke must needes confesse that it ouerturneth your second booke if the matter of your second booke be true then is the ground of your first booke false For the ground of purgatory you would make the iustice of God which requireth punishment for sinnes committed in this life but how can that stand if God accept the worke of other men to release them that should suffer by his iustice if these workes wil answere the matter theÌ„ there is no such necessity of purgatory to satisfie his iustice So that one of your bookes is a prety confutatioÌ„ of the other As for the saying of Augustine helpeth you nothing at all onely he sheweth that God punisheth not all sinnes in this world because many are reserued to eternall torments But howe vncertaine his iudgement was concerning purgatory in that Enchiridion ad Laurentium he him selfe most plainly declareth Tale aliquid etiam post hanc vitam fieri incredibile non est vtrum ita sit quaeri potest It is not incredible that such a thing may be after this life and whether it be so or no it may be doubted and either it may be found or else it may be hidde that some faithfull should passe through a certaine purgatory fier c. cap. 69. By which wordes it appeareth that Sathan was but then laying his foundations of purgatory had not yet finished this worke by a great deale and that this was not so graue a doctrine nor so constant a fayth of the fathers as M. Allen boasteth of in the former cap. Fol. 25. 4 But let vs steppe a foote further and yet so much nearer the matter and note well whether we may finde any case where the payment for sinnes remitted passeth the bondes of this life and so required in the next that by playne dealing and orderly proceeding we may the better instruct the simple confound the aduersary and make truth stand vpon it selfe Consider then with me that our first father pardoned of his sinne as I proued before was punished for the same with him all the iust of those dayes not onely in the time of this present mortall life but many hundreth yeares after their departure For whose deliuery the Catholike church holdeth and our Crede teacheth also that our Maister Christ descended downe into hell And that no man here be deceaued he must vnderstand that it was no smal punishment to be banished so many worlde 's togither from the land of the lyuing and to lacke the ioyfull fruition of heauens blisse which of it selfe but that it was not eternall had bene more then all temporall paynes that may be suffered And this to be one of those miseries which our first fathers disobedience wrought and so to be payne for sinne I thinke euery wise man will confesse Yea it was the greatest dominion of sinne that could be for the ouerthrow of which Christ him selfe vouchsafed to enter into the land of darkenes It is called of the Prophet lacus sine aqua a lake without water And of the Apostle Carcer a prison VVhere the fathers be also named vincti tui thyne that were bounde VVhereby we must vnderstand that Christ had a flocke imprisoned and bound for the debt of sinne in an other worlde But that we may make inuincible proofe that this their captiuity was a iust inioyned plage and penalty for sinne we must report what we finde in auncient Irenaeus of this matter And he affirmeth that Adam was iudged and condemned for his wilfull fall till Christes comming in these wordes Necesse fuit Dominum ad perditam ouem venientem tandem despositionis recapitulationem facientem suum plasma requirentem illum ipsum hominem saluare qui factus fuerat secundum imaginem similitudinem eius id est Adam implentem tempora eius condemnationis quae facta fuerat propter inobedientiam And straight after Solutus est condemnationis vinculis qui captiuus ductus fuerat
in them is learned so hath she perpetuall confirmation in the same and nothing contrary vnto her But heresie as she is inuented in mans head so she seeketh confirmation in the reason and authoritie of man which because they haue not full credit with them that professe religion without the authoritie of Gods word at length whē it is fully shaped in the shop of mans brayne then it is brought to the Scripture to see if it can finde any colour by any phrase of wordes wrested from the meaning or by any vayne collection that hath no force of necessary conclusion being content to haue but onely a colde claime vnto the authoritie of Scripture although it haue the whole scope and purpose of the holy Ghost yea often times also manifest wordes against it which difference as it may be found in all heresies so in none more notably then in this errour of purgatory Consider what textes of holy Scripture are alleged for it and you shall see they can not bring one out of which any necessary argument may be framed to proue their cause or which hath not by learned interpretors of the olde time bene otherwise expounded then of their cause As in the text here alleged out of S. Matt. cap. 12. who so euer shall speake blasphemy against the holy ghost it shall not be forgiuen him neither in this world nor in the world to come If the sense were not plaine of it selfe that he which so sinneth shall not obtayne forgeuenes in this life nor be absolued in the last iudgement yet the other Euangelistes doe plainly expound the meaning S. Luke sayth simply he shal not be forgiuen S. Marke saith he hath no remission for euer but is guilty of euerlasting iudgement Neuertheles behold what a wrangling M. Allen maketh about the interpretation of these wordes But I will offer him fayre play he is an auncient maister of art since he writ this booke he hath added tenne yeares to his study of diuinitie in which space he might haue bene a doctour of the same faculty let him with all the diuinitie that euer he studied or with all the artes that euer he professed make a true syllogisme in forme and matter out of this authority to proue that God forgiueth sinnes after this life which are not remitted in this life and I will confesse the doctrine of purgatory with him which otherwise I would not doe to winne all the patrimony of S. Peter that the Pope claymeth in Italy but vntill such tyme as we may obtayne a good argument let vs consider such as we haue He signifieth sayth M. Allen that a man in some case might perhaps not speede of a pardon in this life yet may obtayne it in the next when the matter goeth by perhaps it is good to beware of after claps why M. Allen what sinnes are those of which a man may perhaps not speede of a pardon in this life and yet obtayne it after this life If they be truely repented in this life we haue a warrant of Gods owne mouth without your perhaps that in the same hower they shall be remitted Ezech. 18. 33. But if they be not repented where is your warrant that euer they shall be remitted But I aske againe what sinnes are those that perhapps maye misse of a pardon in this life and obteine it after this life by all likelyhood they must be some great sinnes that perhapps may not speede of a pardon here and yet finde it afterwarde There is no man would thinke otherwise by these wordes nor by the wordes of Christ if he vnderstood them so that some sinnes might be forgeuen after this life but whē all commeth to all The Maister of the Sentence and Gregory before him and M. Allen him selfe woulde alowe no sinnes to be forgeuen after this life but very small and light offences How be it it is plaine that these wordes neither in the worlde to come are added by waye of amplification for it is the purpose of our Sauiour Christ to set forth to the vttermost the heynousnesse of blasphemy against the holy Ghost so that if he had ment that any sinnes might be remitted after this life that were not pardoned after this life he shoulde haue ment the greater and not the lesser for lesse sinnes be soner pardoned and the pardon of greater more hardely obteined But marke the equitie of M. Allen the horrible blasphemer for all the vehemency of Christes wordes by M. Allens iudgement is but in a manner discharged of hope of remission as though he were not simply and altogether excluded And the light offender is turned ouer to purgatory for his remission yet M. Allen will stand vpon the forme phrase of words not knowing that this worlde is taken for all the time that is vnto the ende thereof and the worlde to come not for the state or time of them that are departed vnto the iudgemēt but for the time of eternitye after the ende of this worlde or els the wordes of Christ in Matthew should not be equiualent with the wordes in Marke he shal be guilty of euerlasting iudgement or condemnation which the olde interpretor calleth eternall offence The like forme or phrase of words is vsed by S. Paule to the Ephesians cap. 1. that Christ is exalted aboue euery name that is named not onely in this worlde but also in the worlde to come by which wordes he meaneth the supreme and euerlasting kingdome of Christ which extendeth vnto all eternitie But if a contentious person like to the Valentiniane heretikes or such like woulde inuent monstruous names as those heretikes did and proue by this place that there are names named in the worlde to come that are not named in this worlde shoulde he not haue as good grounde out of this place as the Papistes haue of the other 2 But because we haue to do with fickle marchauntes that will not sticke to brast boldely the bandes of euident scriptures as anone you shalt see and therefore will as I thinke litle be moued with reasonable and playne gathering out of the scriptures nor much esteeme this likelihood as ouer small a proofe in so greate a doubte therefore I will shew my warraunt for this construction that thereby the studious reader may see whome the aduersaries do so rashly contemne herein and whome we haue as authors in this meaning of Christes wordes now recited that neither they may be beleued with out reason and proofe nor we miscredited after so good authority of the auncient writers as neither they for shame nor we of conscience can deny S. Gregory whose authority I may boldely vse against them because they mislike not his iudgement when it may appeare to make for them as in deede it neuer doth he doubted nothing to gather of this our Sauiours speach that sinnes might be forgeuen in the next worlde And thus he writeth for that point De quibusdam leuibus culpis esse
Idolatrie proueth that there is a God but Idolatry is not therefore the true worship of god Of the heresie of the Pharisies that helde Pythagoras opinion of the passing of one soule into diuers bodies may be concluded the immortalitie of the soule but this doth not iustifie that errour of the Pharisies by the heresy of Origines which taught that all men should be saued at length not onely the immortalitie of the soule and the resurrection but also the infinite mercy of God may be concluded which all are true articles yet was not the heresie of Origine true for all this vnlesse M. Allen hath forgotten that olde sophisme which children can solute who so euer sayth you are an asse sayth you are a lyuing creature but he that sayth you are a liuing creature sayth true therefore who so euer sayth you are an asse sayth true And such for all the worlde is M. Allens reason who so confesseth prayers for the deade confesseth that the deade doe liue and shall rise againe but he that confesseth that the dead doe liue and shall rise againe doth not erre therefore he that confesseth prayers for the deade doth not erre 2 But now their aunswere must be here that this booke by which I haue vrged them so farre shall be no scripture And this is the ishue of heresie lo. These men that lightly writh wreast Gods worde from all true meaning to the maintenaunce of their matter being further charged by euidence of the wordes when other conuenient shifte can not be founde they are driuen to refuse vtterly the sacred canonicall scripture of God for notwithstanding their perpetuall bragges of scripture yet there can no scripture holde them but they will either finde a fonde shifte to loose it or els a shamefull stoutnes vtterly to brast and breake it They first seeke by suttelty to vnfasten the bonde of Gods trueth which is euery waye so enwrapped with the testimonies of holy Scripture then as they can not worke by wiles they boldely brast the bandes in sonder Thus when for misconstruing of this plane assertion of the booke of Machabees they can conuey no fit meaning they are driuen to harde shiftes and vnsemely to deny the whole booke to be scripture and therefore in matters of question of no authority In which pointe the authoritie of the Iewes moueth them more in denying the bookes to be in the canon of Gods scripture then the decree of the holy Church for the approuing of the same to be scripture But S. Hierome though he confesse the Iewes not to allowe them yet is bolde to recken them amongest the bookes of the holy Histories not measuring their authority by the canon of the Hebrues but by the rule of Christian councells The Canons of the Apostles will chalenge them from the Iewes and heretikes to be scripture still Innocentius the first in his rehersall of diuine bookes numbreth these of the histories of the Machabees also the Councell of Carthage the third authorisheth them S. Augustine in his bookes De doctrina Christiana numbring all canonicall scriptures with the reste reciteth these also Of which bookes in the xviij of the Citie of God he thus further testifieth Ab hoc tempore apud Iudaeos restituto templo non reges sed principes fuerunt vsque ad Aristobulum quorum supputatio temporum non in scripturis sanctis quae Canonicae appellantur sed in alijs inuenitur in quibus sunt MachabaeoruÌ„ libri quos non Iudaei sed Ecclesia pro canonicis habet From this time he meaneth after the history of Esdras there was no kinges but chiefe gouernours after the restitutioÌ„ repaire of the temple till Aristobulus time of all which time there is no Chronikle nor couÌ„te in the scriptures which be Canonicall but in other that be extant we finde that supplied as in the bookes of Machabees which bookes although the Iewes do not yet the Church of God counteth for canonicall scripture But what shoulde we stande in this point the whole Church of God and euery part or prouince thereof euery learned doctour and vertuous Christian man hath receiued and allowed them for scripture the which constant and perpetuall iudgement of the Church of Christ if any man refuse let him be esteemed an Ethnike Or because he defendeth the Iewes authority against the determination of Christes Churâ—h let him be at this time accompted for a iewe And yet I thinke he ouer shooteth them herein for they confesse the history to be true although not holy Scripture neither haue they found any such errour of doctrine therein conteined as he doth And as for the auncient Christian writers and famous doctours they alleage euen that place to proue the lawefull prayer for Christian soules departed whereby these fellowes take occasion to saie it is no scripture at all As godly Damascenus in these wordes Scitis enim quid dicat scriptura quomodo Iudas ille Machabaeus in Syon Ciuitate regis magni vt cognouit populum sibi subiectum à Palestinis hostibus occisum scrutatione facta inuenta idola in sinibus corum statim pro vnoquoque eorum ad dominum qui ad misericordiam facilis paratus est munera propitiatoria obtulit sane ob summam religionem fraternamque charitatem in hoc facinore vt in omnibus alijs a diuinissima scriptura magnificus admirabilis habebatur You know sayth he what the scripture reporteth how that worthy Iudas Machabeus of Syon the City of the great kinge after he vnderstood certeine of his subiectes to haue bene slaine of the Palestines his enemies and search being made had founde in their lappes idols straight wayes offered to God who is much inclined to mercy for euery of his souldiars so slaine propitiatory oblations â–ª who suerly for that act as proceding of wonderfull religion and brotherly loue and in all other affaires is of the holy writte esteemed mighty and meruelous Longe before this writer did S. Augustine vse the same booke and text of Machabees to proue the prayers sacrifice for the departed in peace In the booke of Machabees sayth he we reade that sacrifice was offered for the deade But if it were in none of the olde scriptures reade at all yet the authority of the vniuersall Church which for this point is plaine were of no small force whereby it is prouided that in the prayers which be made at the altare by the priest to our Lorde God the commemoration of the deade shall haue their place Thus by these auncient authors both the bookes be approued the text it selfe for which our aduersaries vnworthely denied the booke alleaged for the same purpose and the doctrine so sure that if no scripture coulde be founde it would beare out it selfe against all falsehood But this doctor handleth Pelagius the heretique denying the booke of VVisdome to be scripture because there was a sentence out of the fourth Chapter thereof brought
or daunger or to shew their sorrow for prophanation of Gods glory And any of these are more reasonable causes then the superstitious surmise of Beda with his curious conceit of the six ages of the worlde where other make seuen and eight ages 3 And that charitable reliefe of the poore by open almes and doles was also practised for the welth of the departed in the obittes of olde time the scripture it selfe in the fourth chapter of Tobie maketh mention by report of that godly commaundemeÌ„t that the good olde father gaue is sonne herein Panem tuum cum esurientibus comede de vestimeÌ„â—is tuis nudos tege Panem tuum vinum tuum super sepulturam iusti constitue noli ex eo manducare bibere cum peccatoribus Eate thy breade with the hongry and needy and couer with thy clothes the naked Set thy breade and wine vpon the sepulture of the vertuous make not the sinnefull partaker therof which wordes of exhortation can haue no other sense but that as before in the same place he gaue his sonne in charge to bestow vppon all men according to his hability for that there was hope to all charitable almes giuers of Gods mercy so now he warneth him to feede the poore and breake his breade to such especially as should come to the iustes and funeralls of the departed He would neuer haue put him in minde to haue releeued the poore at burialls but for some commodity that might arise to the party deceased for otheâ—wise his charity might haue proffeted the needy at other times as well as vpon mens departure Some tooke foolish occasioÌ„ by this place to set store of meate vpon the graue it selfe where their father or freinde was buried as though the dead had bene desirous of corporall foode The which superstitious error S. Augustine earnestly improueth Other some made great feastes at the daye of their freindes death But the texte is plaine it was the needy and good people that were at those soleÌ„ne exequies or other wise by their prayers might be profitably present in the dayes of memories holden for them which practise was not prescribed as a newe thing to the yong Tobie but it was moued and praised vnto him as a holy vsage of other burialls in those dayes and alwayes before Bona est oratio cum ieiunio elecmosina Prayer is profitable sayth the holy Raphel when it is ioyned with fasting and almes and therefore as the fathers in their prayers for the dead fasted as we haue proued so nowe I doubt not but almes shall crie for mercy at Gods hande for the soule departed vpon whose sepulture these thinges be charitably wroght 3 What else if we had not doles at burialls proued by the example of the Patriarkes all were marred Therefore Tobias must saye for doles But first we haue shewed already by authoritie of Hieronym which is proofe sufficient against the Papist that the Church receiueth not this booke of Tobias for canonicall scripture And secondly if we shoulde receiue it yet here is nothing that helpeth M. Allens cause but his owne simple surmise He sayth in dede the wordes can haue no other sence yet all that he sayeth is not gospell but what if the truer texte of Tobias hath other wordes First in the Greeke there is no mention at all of wine as is in the Latine nor of setting breade and wine vpon the graue of the vertuous but the sence is this As before he exhorted his sonne to feede the hongry with his owne breade and to cloth the naked with his owne garments so nowe he willeth him to spare the breade out of his owne mouth to bury the righteous as he him selfe had done chap. 1. which is a cleere interpretation of this but to geue nothing at all to the vngodly or to be liberall to the rightuous euen to their death and to see them buried honestly As for the iustes and funeralls M. Allen dreameth that the poore came vnto to receiue penny dole or soule breade appeareth in the first and second Chapters how solemne they were when poore Tobie was fayne to steale the bodyes and bury them priuily by night yet vpon that corrupt Latine texte as it should seeme wherevpon M. Allen buildeth they vsed in Affrica to make sumptuous and dronken feastes vpon the graues of men in the places of buriall which they thought not onely to perteine to the honor of the martyrs but also to be some comforte to the soules of the deade This olde superstition Augustine reproueth epist. 64. Aurelio But it is pretily renewed in the funerall feastes of the Papistes as also the selling of oblations for the deade which he in the same place condemneth 4 VVe haue a notable example in the Actes of the Apostles of the force of almes with prayers which wroght life and procured mercy eueÌ„ in the next world For the benefit of faithfull workes and holy prayers will not be limited by the termes of this worlde it will haue course doune so farre as the fellowship of this Christian societie reacheth the deuill and all his abettours can not stoppe the rase thereof The onely shew of certaine cotes with the requeste of the pore widowes that wore them made to Peter the Apostle turned Tabitha to life againe after her departure those garments geuen by her when she was a lieue by the careful trauel of her almes folkes procured reliefe in the worlde to come They warmed the backes of widowes in earth sayth Emissenus and the geuer had comforth of them being gone from the earth It is good we shoulde all learne here that haue receiued benefite of any man in this liefe with loue and carefullnesse not onely in this present worlde but most of all when our frend is departed to represent vnto God before his altare and holy ministers with sorowfull weeping hearty prayer the memory of such thinges as we haue receiued by way of almes or loue at his hand It shall be a soueraigne remedy for his infirmities and the approuedst way to procure Gods mercy that can be The elders of the Iewes making earnest supplication to our Sauiour for the Centurions seruaunt lying in extremitie vsed the memorie of that gentilmans charitable actes in their church as the rediest waye to obteine grace and fauour at his handes They cried out together dignus est vt hoc illi praestes diligit enim gentem nostram synagogam ipse aedificauit nobis Lorde be gratious vnto him he is worthy that benefite for he loueth our nation and hath him selfe founded a Synagoge And S Cyprian sayth notably that good workes make a more effectuall intercession then good wordes he speaketh of the same Tabitha as followeth Circumsteterunt Petrum viduae flentes rogantes pallia tunicas omnia illa quae prius sumpserant indumenta monstrantes nec pro defuncta suis vocibus sed ipsius operibus
conditio sepulturae pompa exequiarum magis sunt viuorum solatia quà m subsidia mortuorum Non tamen ideo contemnēda abijcienda sunt corpora defunctorum maxime que iustorum fidelium quibus tanquam organis vasis ad omnia bona opera sanctus vsus est spiritus Curious prouision for the buriall and the pompe of the solemne obittes be rather done for the solace of the lieue then for helpe of the deade neuerthelesse the bodies of the departed namely of faithfull folkes may not be contemned or cast forth the which the holy Ghost vsed as vessells and instruments of well working By all which thinges it may well be noted that some thinges haue bene vsually practised in funeralls for thankes geuing to almighty God as Hymnes and Psalmes other some for decent comelinesse and solace of the liuinge as the place of the buriall the lights the ringing and such like although euen these things proceeding of loue and deuotion be after a sorte meritorious to the doers and a helpe to them for whome they be procured and good motions and memories of mans duety For which causies those and the like haue bene vniformelie vsed through out the whole Catholike Church from the beginning But the principall thinges perteining to the iustes of the departed be prayers and sacrifice and other such like whereby they are assuredly much proffited by release of their paines So saith S. Augustine in these wordes Non existimemus ad mortuos pro quibus curam gerimus peruenire nisi quod pro eis siue altaris siue eleemosinarum sacrificijs solemniter celebramus Let vs neuer thinke that any other thinge properly apperteineth to the reliefe of the departed sauing the solemne sacrifice of the altar almes and prayer And therefore as the saide holy doctour confesseth the worthinesse of the place where man is buried of it selfe profiteth not at all but in respect of the holy prayers which be there rather made then els where and the patronage of holy martyrs and sainctes to whome he nothing doubteth but intercession may profitably be made for the deceased for which cause as it may appeare by Paulinus men were very desirous euer in the primitiue Church to be buried by some blessed martyrs body And so must we thinke also of buriall by the reuerent holy sacrament that it wonderfully helpeth man not for the placeis sake although the deuotion of the desirer is therin commēdable but because the liuing may there effectually commende the departed to God in the time of the holy sacrifice may be put in remembraunce to call vpon Christes blessed person there present for the soule of that man which with care and study laide his body in the hope of resurrection by the soueraigne holy body that is already risen againe And this was the cause that our forefathers from Christes time till our dayes haue had respecte and desire as occasion serued to be buried there where by ordre prayers and sacrifice were daily had and where the patronage of holy sainctes might best be procured It is a high point of wisdome surely good reader onely to see what godly wisdome our fathers vsed in shew of their zele faith and Christianity As it is an vntollerable arrogancy and a singular signe of infidelity to laugh at and blaspheme those thinges whereof not the prowdest heretike that liueth hath any intelligence at all Obcoecauit enim eos malitia eorum For their owne malice hath blinded them 3 But let vs now followe you into Africa First you allege Augustine in his booke de cura pro mortuis agenda wherin he is so full of doubtes that he knoweth not him selfe what to determine but that he will hold the common opinion receiued in his time But this pasteth M. Allen that you will content your selfe with Augustines authoritie that the pompe of buriall c. profiteth not the deade but that you will haue lightes ringing c. proceding of loue and deuotion to help them for whom they are procured If you may goe beyond Augustine why may not we come short of him But in the 18. chapter he nameth the sacrifice of the aultar to be profitable to the deade This soundeth somewhat like the matter but if it be well marked it maketh nothing for the propitiatory sacrifice of the Masse for euen in the same place he calleth it the sacrifice of almes which is but a sacrifice of thankes giuing And that by this sacrifice he meaneth not the body of Christ nor a propitiatory sacrifice is manifest in his booke de fide ad Petrum diaconum cap. 19. where he sayth that Christ offered him selfe for vs that sacrifice whereby God was reconciled and that the Church offered to Christ the sacrifice of breade and wine in faith and charitie which is a thankes geuing and memoriall of his death The body of Christ is not offered to him selfe but thankes giuing is offered to him for the offering of his body for vs His wordes are Firmissimè tene nullatenus dubites ipsum vnigenitum c. Hold most stedfastly and nothing doubt then that the only begotten sonne of God being made flesh offered him selfe for vs a sacrifice oblation for a sweete fauour vnto God to whom with the father and the holy Ghost by the Patriarches Prophets and Priestes in time of the olde Testament beastes were sacrificed and to whom now that is in the time of the new Testament togither with the father and the holy Ghost with whom his diuinitie is all one the holy Catholike Church throughout all the worlde ceaseth not to offer the sacrifice of breade and wine in faith and charitie For in these carnall sacrifices there was a figuring of the flesh of Christ which he him selfe being without sinne should offer for our sinnes But in this sacrifice there is thankes giuing commemoration of the flesh of Christ which he offered for vs and of his bloode which the same God shed for vs Nowe for the other poynt of inuocation of Sainctes M. Allen affirmeth that S. Augustine neuer doubteth but intercession may be made vnto them for the deade who so euer will take paynes to reade the treatise de cura pro mortuis agenda shall find nothing else but doubtes and questions of that matter as cap. 5. Cum ergo mater fidelis filij defuncti corpus desyderauit in Basilicam martyris poni si quidem credidit eius animam meritis martyris adiuuari hoc quod ita credidit supplicatio quaedam fuit haec profuit si quid profuit Therfore when the faithfull mother desired the body of her faithful sonne departed to be layd in the Church of the Martyr if she beleued that his soule might be helped by the metites of the martyr this that she so beleued was a certeyne supplication and this profited if any thing profited Here Augustine doubteth whether supplications to the Martyr profite any thing or no. Moreuer he can not
so notorious false that it grew to no greate heade at that time or else it was not so much regarded because it was ioyned to that horrible falshood of Arius against the blessed Godhood of Christ Iesus our Sauiour Euery greate wast of religion hath many false opinions knit together amongest which one being as principall ground shadoweth the other lesser branchies as nowe the blasphemy of the holy Sacrificie and Sacrament being the fountaine of their heresies in a maner couereth the meaner puddells of their stinking doctrine And amoÌ„gest other this vnnaturall affection of forbidding the reliefe of the parted seemeth euer to be ioyned as an appendix to other falsehoods For in holy Damascens dayes this secte appeared againe with other false doctrine as a companion of all mischiefe And to proue it to be an heresie he seeketh out the first founder thereof and findeth euen as before that vnder the deuill this Aërius was the father of that faythlesse assertion VVhome he bayteth well fauourdly in a whole oration and so driues the woolfe in to the woodde againe 4 Now at the length commeth the author of this heresie by the testimony of Epiphanius and Augustine But neither of them confuteth it by the Scriptures but by the coÌ„mon error of their tyme I could proue out of Irenaeus and Epiphanius that the first that brought in estimation the figure of the crosse images were the Valentinians Carpocratianes But that is no aunswere to this matter I haue promised to proue that the opinion of purgatory had the same original that the most notable heresies had Tertullian though him selfe an heretike yet truely describeth the originall of heresies in his booke de praescriptionibus aduersus haereses That as true doctrine was receiued from Christ by the Apostles â—o heresie from the deuill by Philosophers and Gentyles Also in his booke de anima he sheweth that all Philosophers which graunted the immortality of the soule as Pythagoras Empedocles and Plato assigned 3. places for the soules departed heauen hell and a third place of purifying Carpocrates as Irenaeus doth testifie was a great admirer of Philosophie in so much that with the imagies which he made of Christ he ioyned the imagies of Pythagoras Plato and Aristotle This heretike learning out of Plato his philosophy that mens soules must be purified after their death inuented a kinde of purgatory out of the opinion of Pythagoras and proued it out of that place of S. Matthew Thou shalt not come forth vntill thou hast payed the vttermost farthing euen as the Papists do Iren. lib. 1. ca. 24. The Heracleonites as Augustine witnesseth came yet a step more towardes the Papistes for they would redeeme their deade after a new maner namely by oyle balme water and inuocation sayd ouer their heades in the Hebrew tongue But Montanus of whom Tertullian receiued his heresie had in all pointes the opinion of the Papistes First that the Patriarkes before Christes comming were in hell that Abrahams bosome was in hell or in the lower parts as M. Allen had rather speake that onely Martyrs and perfect men are priuiledged of God to goe into Paradise that all small offences must be punished after this life where the prison is the vttermost farthing to be payed witnes of this is Tertullian in his booke de anima ca. de inferis c. vlt. an aliquid patiaÌ„tur animae apud inferos c. His words are these after he hath proued that soules may suffer after their death In summa cum carcerem illuÌ„ quod EuangeliuÌ„ demoÌ„strat inferos intelligimus nouissimuÌ„ quadraÌ„tem modicum quodque delictum mora resurrectionis illic luenduÌ„ interpretamur nemo dubitabit animaÌ„ aliquid peÌ„sare penes inferos salua resurrectionis plenitudine per carneÌ„ quoque Hoc etiaÌ„ Paracletus frequeÌ„tissimè coÌ„meÌ„dauit si quis sermones eius ex agnitione promissoruÌ„ charismatuÌ„ admiserit To conclude when we do vnderstand that prison which thing the Gospell sheweth to be hell or the lower partes and do expound that the vttermost farthing which is euery small fault must there be punished with delay of resurrection no man shall doubt but that the soule in hell doth suffer somthing sauing the fulnes of the resurrection by the flesh also And this the comforter hath often times commended if any man will admitte his sayings by acknowledging of the promised gratious giftes By the comforter he meaneth the spirite of Montanus whose heresie he defended And therefore it is not otherwise to be thought but that the Montanistes vpon the ground of this opinion not content with the oblations for the deade which the Church then had by peruerse emulation of the Gentiles and yet were but oblations of thankes giuing as they could be no other for the birth dayes they added also prayers for the spirites of them that were deade whereof Tertullian maketh mention in his bookes de castitate de Monogamia which were both written to heretikes of his sect and by those prayers laboreth to proue that second mariages are not lawfull Also in his booke de anima before named though for an other purpose he rehearseth a miracle of a woman whom he knew of his sect for none other he couÌ„ted of the Church which after she was deade and prepared to buriall by prayer of the Priestes at the first beginning of his prayer she tooke vp her handes from her sides and held them vp as they that vse to pray and when the office of buriall was ended layd them downe agayne This miracle I take to haue bene an illusion of Sathan to confirme that new opinion that prayers profited the deade as that also which he reporteth of heare say of some of his sect that when two bodies should be buried in one graue the one lay further and made roome for the other which was no doubt a sleight of Satan to commend the vnitie of heretikes And that the practise of the Church for oblations for the deade at the yearly day of their birth were taken from the Gentiles it appeareth by this that Tertullian counteth them of all one origen with the oblations pro natalitijs that is for the birth dayes which Beatus Rhenanus a Papist and a great antiquary doth confesse affirming that by the canons of the Nicene councell and other councels which he hath seene in libraries those oblations pro natalitijs with other superstitions that Tertullian fathereth vpon tradition of the Apostles were abrogated And the oblations them selues which were at burialls mariages birth dayes he affirmeth were mony that was offered in almes to the reliefe of the poore Origen to much a Philosopher was not content with Plato his purification but he must bring in Platoes fire also and that he would build as the papistes doe and as he had better reason then the Papistes haue out of the 1. Cor. 3. but because the Apostle sayd that euery mans worke should be tryed by fire he
fitly stande with the happy case of all those that dye in the fauour of God and assurance of their saluation though they abide sharpe but sweete paine of fatherly discipline for their better qualifying to the ioyes prepared for them and all other the elect So that nowe the mouing of these doubtes hath so litle aduantaged our aduersaries that it hath somewhat geuen occasion of further declaration of our matter then otherwise perchaunce we shoulde haue had 6 The last obiection that you list to trouble your head with all is that voyce which was heard from heauen Apoc. 14. of the blessed state of them that dye in the Lord in the meaning of which you wrest and wrigle like a snake that is smitten on the head but you can not auoyd the strife First you vnderstand it onely of Martyres that dye in the Lord and call Augustine to witnesse thereof As I will not deny but Martyrs are specially comforted by that voyce so I wil affirme that it is to the common comfort and rewarde of all the faythfull in Christ who as they liue in Christ so they dye in christ And witnesse hereof I will not take of flesh and blood but of the holy Ghost Rom 14. None of vs liueth vnto him selfe neither doth any dye vnto him selfe for whether we liue we liue vnto the Lorde and whether we dye we dye vnto the Lorde And the Apostle 1. Cor. 15. nameth the faithfull that are a sleepe in Christ and 1. Thes. 4. them that are deade in christ Wherefore in despite of the deuill and the Pope this blessing apperteyneth to all them that dye in the Lord Iesus Christ as true members of his body and not to them onely that shedde their bloud for christ True it is that all they that would liue godly in Christ Iesus suffer persecution but not all to the death else who are those innumerable Saincts that no man can number of all nations and tongues which S. Iohn sawe Apoc. 7. who are likewise in happy and blessed rest without all maner lacke or hurt hunger thirst or heate but when you are weary of that interpretation you wring out an other that they in purgatory also be happy because they be sure of saluation at last and the rest from labours is either the rest from sinne or else no more but ioy of conscience witnesse of this exposition is the canon of the Masse The witnesse the matter and he that vseth it are all of like credit But if I might pose your conscience M. Allen can you call that a happy rest which is ioyned with such torment misery as you beare men in hand is in purgatory Haue you forgotten that you sayd yere while of Tabitha and Lazarus that it was a benefite for them to be deliuered out of purgatory into this life and is it now a blessing to be dispatched out of this life into purgatory And as for that which you allege out of the canon of your masse declareth that your masse was patched togither of many peeces of diuers colours For you pray for the rest of them whome you confesse to be at rest in Christ you wish easement for them whom you affirme to sleepe in peace As though in Christ were not perfect rest as though in peace there were torment and this exposition you your selfe are weary of also and turne agayne to your former and then backe againe to the latter An vnconstaâ—t man is vncerteyne in all his wayes yet all were litle worth if this place helped not to proue purgatory also For the payne of purgatory is a sweete payne a happy rest a fatherly discipline And yet as Augustine sayth it is but for small faultes or as you say for great faultes that by penance are made small And is God such a mercifull father to punish small faultes so extremely in his children whom he pardoneth of all their great and heynous sinnes O blasphemous helhoundes An aunsvvere to their negatiue argument vvith the Conclusion of the booke CAP. XVII 1 BVt yet one common engine they haue as well for the impugnation of the trueth in this point as for the sore shaking of the weake walles of the simples faith allmost in all their fight that they kepe against the Catholikes VVhich though it be not stronge yet it is a marueillous fit reasoning for so fonde a faith For if thou caste an earnest eye vpon their whole doctrine thou shalt finde that it principally and in a maner wholy consistithe in taking awaye or wasting an other faith that it founde before so that the preachers thereof must euer be destroyers pluckers downe and rooters vp of the trueth grounded before VVill you see then what a Protestants faith and doctrine is deny onely and make a negation of some one article of our belefe and that is a forme of his faith which is lightely negatiue There is no free will there is no workes needefull to saluation there is no Church knowen there is no chiefe gouernour therof there be not seuen sacraments they doe not conferre gratiam geue grace Baptisme is not necessary to saluation Christ is not present on the aultar there is no sacrifice there is no priesthood there is no aultar there is no profit in prayers to sainctes or for the deade there is no purgatory Christ went not downe to hell there is no limbus finally if you liste goe forwarde in your negatiue faith there is no hell there is no heauen there is no god Doe you not see here a trimme faith and a substantiall looke in Caluins Institutions and you shall finde the whole frame of this wasting faith There is nothing in that blasphemous booke nor in their Apologies but a gathered bodie of this no faith For so it must needes be that teacheth no trueth but plucketh vp that trueth which before was planted Is it not a prety doctrine that Caluine makes of the sacraments when he telleth not the force of any of them all but onely standeth like a fearce monstruous swhine rooting vp our fathers faith therein CAP. XVII 1 IT vexeth you at the very hart that we require the authority of the holy Scriptures to confirme your doctrine hauing a playne commaundement out of the word of God that if any man teach otherwise then the word of God alloweth he is to be accursed And therfore you runne to a childish kinde of Sophistry to say that our argument is negatiue A perlous point that almost all the Papistes thinke them selues more then Chrisippus or Aristoteles when they tell vs that our argument is ab auctoritate negatiuè Alacke poore logicke All knowledge that christian men haue of heauenly thinges is grounded vpon the authority of Gods word therefore as it is no good logicke to conclude negatiuely of one place or booke of Scripture this is not conteined in it therefore it is not true so of the whole doctrine of God wherein all truth necessary to saluation is