Priest of his order and he who was his Confessour that he very often had asked of God that he would do no miracles by him And that was because he wold not haue the people think too well of him And in as much as mention is heere made of Caesar Baronius I vvill adde one thing more which the said l Lib. 1. An. 1550 Cardinall delivered vpon his othe concerning the same Philip his founder for the said Baronius was one of his company and society In the yeere 1550 now more then fiftie yeeres agone Philip who in the darke of the night vvhen all men are even buried in sleepe so that the lefte hande coulde not knovve vvhat the the right hande did did vse to visite needy persons vvent in the nighte time to cary breade to a poore gentle-man Heere by the Devils meanes vvhile hee sought to avoide a carte comming hastily vppon him hee fell into a verie deepe ditch but Gods helpe beeing at hande in his falling he vvas presently caught of an Angell by the heare of the heade miraculouslye and beeing nothing hurte hee vvas returned out safe by the Angell This did Baronius who vvas not there and coulde haue it but by the reporte of Nerius svveare absolutely to bee true vvhereby vvee may easilie gesse that the same Cardinall in his vvritinges maketh no greate conscience to saye thinges true or false vvhen hee maketh no bones to svveare matters so vnlikely Hee who list to see more of the venerable miracles in Popery let him reade Henrie Stephanus in his French m Cap 39 Apologie of Herodotus and there hee shall finde diverse particulars sette dovvne Are not our Country-men and Country-women blessed when after so long light of the Gospell they chuse to feede themselues fat with legions of such wonders and holde it a high part of their profession to beleeve such things as these are We reade of some whom God doth so giue over to the spirit of delusion that they doe n 2 Thes 〈◊〉 11. beleeuelyes 17 If any heere do aske mee howe came it ever about that such foolishe and ridiculous multitudes of miracles came to bee reported and inserted into their bookes I must first ascribe it to the permission of God who had fore-tolde that so it shoulde bee Secondlye to the pollicy of Sathan vvhose kingdome by this us by a speciall meanes was inlarged Thirdly to the cunning of the Cleargy in those daies vvho made themselues great by the keeping vp of such reportes concerning the sanctitie of any of their confederacy or of such whose reliques they pretended to haue and gained infinitely by the offeringes done in places of these wonders And fourthly to the credulity of the people who would beleeve any thing once set abroach by some suborned for the purpose or by idle companions Gulielmus Neubringensis was a writer very learned and iudicious for that time wherein hee lived And in his storie hee did more then once relate the abuse of that age for spreading abroade the fames of miracles o Neubringens l 3 7. Henry the eldest sonne of King Henry the second of England vvho was in his fathers life time crowned King but dyed before his father was every where by the people reported to have wrought great miracles after his death vvhereas in truth he was an vnadvised and rebellious younge Prince This shevveth hovve apte the people were to intertaine a conceite of any mans doing miracles yea so farre that if they might haue their willes they shoulde soone have beene shrined for Saints Aftervvard p Lib 4 9 there vvas a greate robber vvho beeing slaine it vvas given out of many olde vvomen that hee frequentlye did miracles as if hee had beene some holye person and this rumour grewe so stronge and was so generally spredde that the Bishop was enforced to come to Hampton there display the falshood of the whole narration so that then the superstition was ended Hee q Lib 5 19 mentioneth also a third matter of this kinde that a traiterous fellow of London called VVilliam with the longe bearde vvas also reputed a Saint and a maine doâ—… of of miracles Can vvee have any plainer certificate then this that by the superstition and credulousnesse of the vulgar sort many vvonders were saide to bee done vvhen in truth there vvas no such matter And if for their commodities sake any of the Cleargie would ioyne and giue countenance to the matter the party so grovvne to be a Saint and the fame of his vvonders shoulde never bee extinguished The reader may by these fewe take a tast of the rest of their Saintes and miracles for thousandes vvere done no othervvise then in this sorte and everie man had not the vvitte to see the fraude nor that couragâ—… to reporte it as Neubringensis had And vvhat levvdenesse may wee imagine vvas practised amonge simple people in those darke dayes of Popery vvhen in so glorious a sunne-shine of the Gospell any Seminarians shoulde dare in England to attempte such a practise as Father VVeston the lesuite and Declâ—…ration of Popish impostures practâ—…sed by Edm. no lesse then a vvhole douzen of Priestes conspiring vvith him did of late for some yeeres togither put themselues into They persvvaded some men and three maydens that they vvere possessed vvith the Devill and that they by their Priest-exorcizing faculties could fetch him in out vp and downe at their pleasure They had a holy chaire to set their abused Disciples in and a holy potion to administer to them both matters pretended to be formidable to the foule spirits but indeed trickes to cast their patients into straunge fits that so they might seeme as wel to themselues as others standing by to be possessed in most hideous manner And this was so artificially carried by the Iesuit and his fellowe Iuglers that diverse hundreds of vnstable and vnadvised people being cousened and cunny-catched by their impostures were contented to bee reconciled to the Church of Rome being wonne there vnto by their stupendious miracles A booke also or two was penned to be spread abroade beyond the seas of the admirable dominering of these Priests over the possessing spirits and of the wonders which they had done vppon them Notwithstanding now by the confessions of three of the females one man al which then were the pretended possessed persons of another theÌ„ a Priest a personal actour in this exploit all these five being sworne speaking vpon oth it is manifestly and vndoubtedly discovered to be most egregious insignious illustrious both varletry vilainy that among meÌ„ professing religion devotioÌ„ was ever heard A man may wel suppose that the casting out of Devils and doing of other wonders in India farre countries by the Iesuites and Priestes is a true honest holy matter when such vnspeakeable vndescribable hypocrites do dare before such multitudes of theselues conscious of their own fraud before such troupes of staÌ„ders by
Bohem ca. 35. He who first raised vp the opinions of the Hussites had them from Oxford carying thence into Bohemia Wiclefs bookes De Realibus Vniversalibus Cochleus who by his good will would bee taken for a vehement defender of Popery giveth yet a larger testimony For he saith n Histor. de Hussitis li. 1. that as a Bohemian brought first into Bohemia Wiclef booke De Realibus Vniversalibus so there was afterward one Pâ—ter Paine a scholer of Wiclefs who after the death of his Maister came also into Bohemia and brought with him Wiclefs bookes which were in quantitie as great at Saint Austens workes o Ibidem Many of these bookes did Hus afterward translate into their mother tongue In plaine tearmes after this the Authour delivereth it that p Lib. 2. the Hussites and Thaborites were branches of Wiclef And in the same booke Hus did commit spirituall fornication with many strangers with the Wiclefists the Dulcinists c. And in the next he avoucheth that q Lib. 3. Hus and Hierome tooke their heresies from Wiclef And once againe he tearmeth the Protestant Germanes r Lib. 6. new Wiclefists What an opinion of this man Iohn Hus had may be fully seene by that wish of his wherin hee praied s Lib. 2. that hee might there bee where the soule of Wiclef was Now what VViclef did teach may be easily gathered if by nothing else yet by the deadly hatred which the Romanists did cary toward him The s Session 8. Councell of Constance did define him to be an Heretike long after his death and commaunded that his bones should be taken vp and burnt Also t Cochl li. 1. Pope Iohn the 23. in a Generall Councel at Rome did before that time condemne him for an heretike which the Hussites did but laugh at But no man had a harder conceipt of him then Cochleus who sticketh not to affirme that u Lib. 2. he thinketh the torments of Wiclef are greater in hell then those of Iudas or Nero. If God Almighty had no better opinion of him the man were in an ill case But the best is this cholerike Criticke is not the Iudge of all the world He was angry beâ—â—ke in behalfe of Transubstantiation concerning which he citeth this Article of Wiclef There was never a greater heresie then that which putteth the Accident without a Subiect in the Eucharist But he might haue named more pointes wherein that holy man did differ from the Church of Rome The u Session 8. Councell of Constance picketh out fiue and forty Articles of his Positions which the learned Reader may finde there Yet doubtlesse many of them are fasly reported which is a matter common with enimies of the truth to perverâ—… and mis-construe that so they may more freely defame There was one x Respo ad â—…8 artic Wiclef In â—…ase rer ex petend 〈◊〉 Wideford who tooke on him to answere eighteene Articles said to be Wiclefs whence a maÌ„ may gather some of his doctrine But that al things there laid against him were not true may wel be obserued out of the same Answere declaring that he had many things coÌ„cerning Wiclef but only by y In fine Articul 10. fame report And z Virgil. Aeneid 4. that is not the most certaine Relater What positioÌ„s indeed he held may be seene in M r. Foxe reporting his life actions as also in the a Lib. 18. Catalogus Testium veritatis And those who be not learned may esteeme of them by the doctrine of Iohn Hus before rehearsed who by the testimony of the Papists themselues as I haue shewed maintained the opinions of Wiclef 25 Now that this worthy champioÌ„ preacher of the Gospell of Iesus Christ went not alone but had many English men and women who in his life time after his death beleeved as he beleeved professed as hee professed is in the next place to bee shewed Among the chiefe of his fautours were Iohn of Gaunt as b Apolog. Hieâ—…arch ca 1. Parsons the Iesuit confesseth and Lord Henry Percy the one of them Duke of Lancaster the other Marshall of Englande Master Foxe citeth out of a c Ex Regist G. Courtney Register of the Arch-bishoppe of Canterbury a Mandate mentioning that the Conclusions of Wiclef were preached in diverse and sundrie places of the Arch-bishoppes Province generally commonly and publikely The same also is manifested by a letter of that Arch-bishoppe to the Bishop of London and in a Monition directed to d Ad Cancellar Ox. Oxford where it is said that certaine Conclusions hereticall and erroneous were generallie commonly preached and published in diverse places of the Province of Canterbury There be extant also e Ad 〈◊〉 Cant. Cancel Oxon. letters of King Richarde the seconde directly signifying so much But there is nothing vvhich maye more amply testifie the spreading of his doctrine then an Acte of Parliamente in the beginning almost of that younge Kinges dayes vvhere it is related that there vvere f Anno 5. Rich 2. ca. 5 diverse preaching dayelie not onelye in Churches and Church-yardes but also in markets fâ—…res and other open places where a great congregation of people is â—…verse sermons containing Heresies and â—…etorious errours This putteth mee in minde of a written booke which once g In manu M r. Guâ—…el Wirley I sawe being a Chronicle compiled by a Monke of Leicester Abbay who writing of the time of the saide K. reporteth at large that the people in faires markets riding by the way almost every where would talke of the Scripture and reprove the customes of that time as also the Priests to the exceeding greate trouble and offence of the Clergy This they might the rather doe out of the word of God because the Scriptures were then translated into English as may bee seene by diverse copies vvritten and remayning to this day supposed to bee so turned by UUiclf And it is very probable that in Leicestershire there were many of those of vvhome the Monâ—…e Leicestrensis spake since at Luâ—…erworth a towne in thâ—…t Counâ—…e Iohn UUiclâ—…f vvas beneficed But the greatest parte of this learned mans abode was at the first in the Vniversitie of Oxford vvhere hee was both a Doctor and Reader of Divinity and therefore is to bee conceived to have many learned men partaking with him in his opinions h In fine R. Edward 3. Maister Foxe saith out of the Chronicle of Saint Albaneâ—… that hee had a benefice in Oxford of vvhich he was deprived by Simon 〈◊〉 Arch-bishop of Canterbury It may be this was nothing else but the Maister-ship or Chiefe Governours place in Baâ—…oll College vvhich I am perswaded that he had since there are yet two auncient writings in the Treasurie of that i In Archivis Colleg. Baâ—…ol College vvhich I have seene who vvere made in the name of Iohn Vviclif Maister of that house
the gilt as if they had never coÌ„mitted any such facts This confidence maketh the life of many of your false named Catholikes to be a coÌ„tagious sinke of execrable lewdenes no pen being able to paint out their filthines which as elswhere it may be exemplified so principally in Rome that singular cage of foule and vncleane birdes I was once in Oxford present with two prisoners coÌ„victed of a murther the one was named Parrhy a kinsman of the great traitour Doctour Parrhy the other was called Richardson When this Parrhy after many villanies in England and beyond the seas had finally as a robber murthered vpon the way a drover carying with him good store of mony it much grieved his fellow Richardson theÌ„ being in coÌ„pany that Parrhy had slaine the maÌ„ Richardsons coÌ„science as himselfe reported to me other could in no sorte be appeased about the fright remorse therof Parrhy bad him not dismay himselfe but prepare as soone as he could to fly after him into Ireland for thither indeede the principal murtherer was hastening and from thence they would to Rome where he had been with his vncle Doctor Parrhy before and knewe the fashions of the place there hee vndertooke to get a pardon of his Holinesse and all should be as wel as if it had never beene This Parrhy tould mee that he had beene a Page to a Cardinal in Rome an attendant on the Duke of Guize slaine by the commaundement of Henry the third of Fraunce and of garde to the Duke of Parma and therefore may bee well supposed to have knowne Popishe fashions And of certainty he lived aâ—… Romanist and so professed himselfe at the time of his execution I could adde more examples of this nature shevving that Papistes vvant no incouragementes to sinne 18 On the contrary part we simply and absolutely dehorte our people from all crimes laying the iudgments of God before such as transgresse in the same VVe lay vnto them the texte of the Apostle that the k Gal. 5 19 vvorkes of the fleshe are adulterie fornication vncleannesse vvantonnesse Idolatrie vvitchcraftâ—… hatred debate emulations vvrath contentions seditions heresies envy murthers drunkennesse gluttony and they who doe such thinges shall not inherite the kingdome of God And that l Hebr 13 4. Whoremongers and adulterers God will iudge That as m De ieiunio christi Cyprian telleth vs Fornicatours and adulterers haue thee Sathan for their suggestour they shall have thee for their tormentour revenging flames shall burne both thee and them Concerning gluttony wee put them in minde of Christs speech n Luc 21 Take heede vnto your selves least at any time your harte bee oppressed vvith surfetting and drunkennesse and cares of this life and that daye came on you vn-avvares And of that in Saint Paule o Rom 13 13 Let vs walke honestly as in the day not in gluttony and drunkennesse neither in chambering nor wantonnesse To which may bee ioyned that of S. Ambrose p De Noe Arca c 9. What is more vnseemely then evermore to bee attending to the belly which when it is filled is to be emptied when it is emptied is to be filled againe Touching ambitioÌ„ we stirre meÌ„ vp that they should imitate the modesty of q Iohan 1 20 Iohn the Baptist who tooke no honour to himselfe but resigned it al to his master Christ. And the humility of S. Paul who avouched of himselfe his felowes t r1 Thes 2 6 Neither sought we praise of meÌ„ neither of you nor of others But especially the meekenesse of Christ our blessed Lord who being vrged by his kinsmeÌ„ to shew some s Ioh 7 3 miraculous works so to make himselfe famous refused would not coÌ„desceÌ„d to their humourous motion And for the repressing of this sin we cite that of S. Bernard s De considerat ad Eugen lib. 3 1 O ambitioÌ„ the very crosse of those who be ambitious how doest thou torturing al please al Nothing doth vex more bitterly nothing doth disquiet more troublesomly yet amoÌ„g wretched meÌ„ there is nothing more ordinary theÌ„ the exercises therof Lastly for Covetousnes we say with Christ t Luc 12 〈◊〉 Take heede and beware of covetousnesse for though a man haue abundance yet his life standeth not in his riches And with Saint Paule u 1. Tim 6 10. The love of mony is the roote of all evill vvhich vvhile some lusted after they erred from the faithâ—… and perced themselves through with many sorrowes And wee thinke it not amisse to remember the covetous person of that in Saint Augustine u Aâ—…g in Psal. 123 Take with thee to hell that vvhich thou hast gotten VVhat vvilt thou does Thou hast gotten golde thou hast lost thy faith After a fevve daies thou departest out of this life The golde vvhich thou hast gotten vvith the losing of thy faith thou caâ—…st not take with thee Thy harte which is voide of faith goeth forth to paines which if it had bâ—…n full of faith should have gone out to a crowne These the like doctrines out of the holy Scriptures Fathers we do daily lay open to our hearers against these sins Our Sermons and bookes are full of them and on the other side we stirre them vp to chastity to sobriety to temperance to humility to bounty toward the poore and therefore your reporte in this behalfe is a matter verie ordinarie vvith you and yours but in the presence of God and men a most malicious slaunder 19 You haue bin bold with vs already making small spare and lesse conscience to laye vpon vs any vniust imputation and the fowler the more pleasing to you and nowe forward you goe in the same that is in your owne vaine We must needs contemne S. Basile S. Chrysostome S. Hierome and S. Augustine Howe farre are we from despising them the excellent lights of the Primitive Church the noble instruments of Gods glory in their time may be gathered from that which I have said before froÌ„ our reading and studying of them from the manifold printing revising of them by men of our side that in diverse places from our vsing of them in disputations our citing of them in the pulpit Neverthelesse it is not to be expected that your malice should ever saye well S. Basile wee reckon a famous Bishoppe of the East x Gregor Naz. orat 30 brought vp at Athens so coÌ„pleted with humane literature the equal love deere coÌ„panion of that Gregory Nazianzen who for his high mystical knowledge in Divinity was thought worthy to be called with an excellency Theologus whose worke touching the y Basil Hexâ—…meroÌ„ 6. daies of the creatioÌ„ seemed so admirable that S. Ambrose was coÌ„tented to imitate it yea almost to make himselfe onely a traÌ„slatour of it The golden streames of S. Chrysostomes eloquence wee hold wel neere incomparable his frequent similitudes