Selected quad for the lemma: religion_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
religion_n	christian_a	great_a	life_n	2,755	4	4.1264	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A56127	The antipathie of the English lordly prelacie, both to regall monarchy, and civill unity: or, An historicall collection of the severall execrable treasons, conspiracies, rebellions, seditions, state-schismes, contumacies, oppressions, & anti-monarchicall practices, of our English, Brittish, French, Scottish, & Irish lordly prelates, against our kings, kingdomes, laws, liberties; and of the severall warres, and civill dissentions occasioned by them in, or against our realm, in former and latter ages Together with the judgement of our owne ancient writers, & most judicious authors, touching the pretended divine jurisdiction, the calling, lordlinesse, temporalities, wealth, secular imployments, trayterous practises, unprofitablenesse, and mischievousnesse of lordly prelates, both to King, state, Church; with an answer to the chiefe objections made for the divinity, or continuance of their lordly function. The first part. By William Prynne, late (and now againe) an utter-barester of Lincolnes Inne.	Prynne, William, 1600-1669.	1641 (1641)	Wing P3891A; Wing P3891_vol1; Wing P4074_vol2_CANCELLED; ESTC R18576	670,992	826

King and he were reconciled he received him honourably Not long after King Iohn displeased with this Archbishop seised all his temporalties into his hands by Iames de Petorne Sheriffe of Yorkeshire who violently entred into his manners and wasted his goods This Archbishop hereupon excommunicates the Sheriffe and all authours and counsellers of this violence with candles lighted and Bels rung he likewise excommunicated all who had stirred up his brother Iohn to anger against him without his default he also excomunicated the Burgesses of Beverly and suspended the Towne it selfe from the celebration of Divine service and the sound of Bels for breaking his Parke and troubling and diminishing the goods which his Predecessor and he had for a time peaceably enjoyed King Iohn by the advice of his counsell restored him afterwards to his Bishopricke but gave him a day in Court to answer his contempt in not going beyond the Seas with him when summoned to doe it in not suffering the Kings Officers to leavy money of his plowlands as they did in all other parts of the Kingdome in beating the Sheriffe of Yorkes servants and in not paying him 3000. markes due to King Richard soone after the King comming to Beverly was neither received with pro●ession nor sound of Bels by reason of the Archbishops interdict whose servant Henry Chappell denied to let the King have any of the Archbishops wine for which affront the King commanded him and all the Archbishops servants to be imprisoned whereever they should be found whereupon the King comming to Yorke the Archbishop for a round summe of money through the Queenes mediation bought his peace of the King but yet instantly fell out with the Deane and Chapter about the election of a singing man the Archbishop made choyce of one the Deane and chapter of another as belonging to their election the like contention fell betweene them about the Archdeaconry of Cleveland the Archbishop elected Ralph Kyme the Deane and canons Hugh Murdac for Archdeacon against the Archbishops will and hinder the instalment of Ra●ph whereupon the Archbishop excommunicated Murdac And at the same time Honorius Archdeacon of Richmond complained against the Archbishop to the Pope for taking away the institutions to Churches and Synodals belonging to him the Pope hereupon writ divers letters in his favour Geoffry thus perplexed and in the Kings disfavour purchaseth his grace and a confirmation of the rights of his Bishopricke from the King for a thousand markes sterling to be payd within one yeere for payment whereof he pawned his Barony to the King After which he falling into the Kings displea●ure againe was forced to fly the Kingdome and died in exile as you may read before p. 186. St. Hugh the ninth Bishop of Lincolne Anno 1108. when King Richard the first by Hubert Archbishop of Canterbury his chiefe Justice required an ayd of 300. Knights to remaine with him in his service for one whole yeere or so much money as might serve to maintaine that number after the rate of three shillings a day English money for every Knight whereas all others were contented to be contributers herein onely this S. Hugh Bishop of Lincoln refused and spake sore against Hubert that moved the ma●ter wishing him to doe nothing whereof he might be ashamed Vnde pudor frontem signet mentemque reatus Torqueat aut famae titulos infamia laedat He was noted to be of a perfect life because Potestatis secularis in rebus Ecclesiae saevientis impetus adeò constanter elidere consuevit ut rerum corporis sui periculum contemnere vid●retur in quo adeò profecit quod jura revocavit amissa Ecclesiam suam à servitute gravissim● liberavit as Matthew Paris writes and because hee would not ●ticke to reprove men of their faults plainely and f●ankly not regarding the favour or dis-favour of any man in so much that he would not feare to pronounce them accursed which being the King Officers would take upon them the punishment of any person within Orders of the Church for hunting and killing the Kings game within his Parkes Forrests and Chases yea and that which is more he would deny payment of such Subsidies and taxes as he was assessed to pay to the uses of King Richard and King Iohn towards the maintenance of their warres and did oftentimes accu●e by Ecclesiasticall autho●ity such Sheriffes collectors and officers as did distreine upon his lands and goods to satisfie those Kings of their demands alledging openly that he would not pay any money towards the maintenance of warres with one ch●istian Prince upon private displeasure and grudge made against another Prince of the same religion This was his reason And when he came before the King to answer to his disobedience shewed herein he would so handle the matter partly with gentle admo●nishments partly with sharpe reproofes and sometimes mixing merry and pleasant speech among his serious arguments that oftentimes he would so qualifie the Kings mind that being diverted from anger he could not but laugh and smile at the Bishops pleasant talke and merry conceits This manner he used not onely with King Iohn alone but with King Henry the second and Richard the first in whose time he governed the See of Lincolne And for these vertues principally was he canonized for a Romane Saint by Pope Honorius the third Peter Suter and Ribadeneira in his life record that this Bishop had many contests with King Richard the first that he resisted the King to his face when he demanded ayde and subsidies of his Subjects so that by his meanes onely and another Bishops who joyned with him the King could obtaine nothing at all whereupon in great rage and fury he banished both the Bishops and confiscated all their goods the other Bishops goods were seised who thereupon afterward submitted and craved pardon of the King but the Kings Offi●ers proceeding against S. Hugh he presently excommunicated them so as none of them for feare of this thunderbolt of his durst touch one thred of his garment our Lord having horribly punished divers whom he had excommunicated some of them being never seene nor heard of afterwards One thing this Hugh did which is memorable going to visit the religious houses within his Diocesse he came to Godstow a house of Nunnes neere Oxford seeing a hearse in the middle of the Quire covered with silke and tapers burning round about it he demanded who was buried there and being informed that it was faire Rosamonds Tomb concubine to King Henry the second who at her intreaty had done much for that house and in regard of those favours was afforded that honour he commanded her body to be digged up immediately and buried in the Churchyard least Christian religion should wax vile saying it was a place a great deale too good for an harlot it should be an example to other women to terrifie them from such a wicked and filthy kinde of life

justified the complaint true taxing also the unlimited liberty of dispersing and divulging these Popish and seditious Pamplets both in Pauls Church-yard and the Universities instancing in one then lately set forth and published namely Speculum Tragicum which both his Majesty and the Lord Henry Howard Earle of North-Hampton termed a dangerous booke both for matter and intention Yea Lewis Hughes an ancient Minister writes thus of this Arch-Prelate In the later end of Queene Elizabeths raigne when shee began to be sickly and not like to live long D. Bancroft then Bishop of London knowing that King Iames was to succeed her and fearing that his Majestie would reforme things amisse in the worship and service of God and in the government of the Church did license a booke written by a Jesuite that hee kept in his house wherein was written That it was in the Popes power as a gift appropriate to Saint Peters Chaire to depose the Kings of England and to give authority to the people to elect and set up another Fifteene hundred of those bookes were printed and dispersed and being questioned for it his answer was that hee did set the Jesuites to write one against another that hee might out of their writings picke matter against them It was thought by many hee had no good meaning in licensing and suffering so many dangerous Bookes to be dispersed So hee Which sufficiently discovers this Arch-Prelates traiterly heart to his Soveraigne his affection to the Popes supremacy and disaffection to our Religion he being a great Persecutor and Silencer of hundreds of our most conscionable preaching Ministers and if I may credit other mens reports his life was ill and his death fearfull George Abbot his successor in this See though a man of a better temper and worthy praise for his frequent preaching was yet taxed by some for being over-stately to his fellow brethren and for his overmuch delight in shooting at deere which he exercised so long till at last by the unhappy glance of his arrow hee kild his keeper instead of the Bucke hee let loose at He incurred his Majesties displeasure so farre by whose means I know nor unlesse by his successors that hee was debarred acc●sse to the Kings Court yea suspended from his o●fice of Arch-Bishop for a season which was executed in the interim by Commissioners He was a means of some good mens troubles in the High Commission where he caused M. Huntly a Kentish Minister to be most unjustly fined and imprisoned for denying to preach a Visitation Sermon when hee was sicke and unable to doe it and therefore sent the Arch-deacon 20s s to procure another which was refused and which is ●arre more inju●ious when this poore Minister after many motions was released by the Judges of the Kings Bench by an Habeas Corpus ●rom his unjust imprisonment hee and the other Prelates caused him for this very Act of seeking his just relief in a legall way to be apprehended by their pursevant immediately after the Judges had bayled him even in the face of the Court and for this very cause deprived and degraded him in the High Commission and committed him a fresh and gave his living to his Chaplaine to the great affron● of justice for which act he might have smar●ed in a high degree had hee beene but questioned I should now descend to the present Archbishop William Laud the last of this See but that I must first ascend to Au●tin the first Archbishop of Canterbury whom I have purposely reserved to this place the better to parallell them together The Archbishopricke of Canterbury had its originall creation from Pope Gregory the first a very traytor to his Soveraigne Mauritius and flatterer of the usurper Phocas about the yeare of our Lord. 600. This its unhappy derivation from ●uch a trecherous and rebellious parentage hath tainted the whole line of our Canterburian Arch-Prelates and infused such an occult pernicious quality into this See as hath made it a very chaire of Pestilence which hath infected all or most of those who have sate therein and made them as great Traytors and rebels to their Soveraignes of England as their Holy Fathers of Rome have proved to their liege Lord● the Roman Emperours and to plague our ●and with civill dissentions warres and bloodshed almost as much as the Popes have molested Italy and Germany in this kind Augustine the first Arch-Bishop of Canterbury sent from Rome by Gregory the first rather to pervert that convert our Nation to the Christian faith about 600. yeares after Christ was consecrated Bishop of the English Nation for no lesse Diocesse or title would content him by Etherius Archbishop of Arelat electing Canterbury for his Archiepiscopall See After which by the assistance of King Ethelbert in the yeare 602. hee caused the Brittish Bishops and learned men to meete together in a Synode at a place called Augustines Ok● to dispute with them concerning the observation of Easter day and the Ceremonies of Baptisme wherein they differed from the Church of Rome to whom hee would have them conforme not onely in doctrine but even in rites and ceremonies using both perswasions prayers and threatnings to bring them under his yoke and discipline But the Britains refusing to conform to his demands at this Synode Augustine not long after caused another Synode to be sommoned Whereunto 7. British Bishops and a great number of Monkes especially of the famous Monastery of Bangor repaired who inquired of an holy Anchorite living among them whether they should submit to Austins preaching and ceremonies or no who answered If hee be a man of God then obey him They replying How shall wee know him to be such a one hee subjoyned If hee be meeke and humble it is credible that he beares the yoke of Christ and will offer it to you to beare but if he bee haughty and proud hee is not of God and therefore not to be lis●ned to by you But how said ●hey shall wee know this Observe quoth hee how he carrieth himselfe when hee first enters into the Synode and if hee shall rise up to y●u know that hee is Christs servant and obey him in all things bnt if hee shall do contrary and whereas you are many shall proudly despise you do ye neglect and contemne him againe Augustine en●ers first into the Synode with pride and pompe with the banner of his Apostleship a silver Crosse a Letany Procession Pageants painted Images Reliques Anthems and such like rituall trifles The British Bishops approaching neare him sitting ambitiously in his chaire he did not onely not rise up to salute them but also no● so much as daigne to shew them any signe of love or benevolence with his countenance or gesture The Britons observing this arrogancy of the man contradicted what ever he propounded to them and whereas hee commanded them to observe the manners and customes of the Church of Rome in all things they not

THE ANTIPATHIE OF THE ENGLISH LORDLY PRELACIE BOTH TO REGALL MONARCHY AND CIVILL UNITY OR An Historicall collection of the severall execrable Treasons Conspiracies Rebellions Seditions State-schismes Contumacies oppressions Anti-monarchicall practices of our English Brittish French Scottish Irish Lordly Prelates against our Kings Kingdomes Laws Liberties and of the severall Warres and Civill Dissentions occasioned by them in or against our Realm in former and latter ages Together with the Judgement of our owne ancient Writers most judicious Authors touching the pretended Divine Jurisdiction the Calling Lordlinesse Temporalties Wealth Secular imployments Trayterous practises unprofitablenesse and mischievousnesse of Lordly Prelates both to King State Church with an Answer to the chiefe Objections made for the Divinity or continuance of their Lordly Function The first Part. By WILLIAM PRYNNE late and now againe an Utter-Barester of Lincolnes Inne Beware of false Prophets which come unto you in sheepes cloathing but inwardly they are ravening wolves you shall know them by their fruits Mat. 7.15 16 LONDON Printed by Authority for Michael Sparke senior An. 1641. TO THE RIGHT HONORABLE THE HIGH COVRT OF PARLIAMENT NOW Through Gods sweete Providence MOST HAPPILY ASSEMBLED Right Honourable Senators IT is a received principle in Law that there are no Accessories in Treason whence to conceale a Notorious Traytor is really to be one The consideration of the Capitalnesse of such a Concealement in these proditorious times and the discharge of my bounden Duty to my Soveraigne Lord the King this Church and Kingdome of which I am a true though unworthy member and to this Honourable Court to whose impartiall Iustice next under God I owe the fruition of my present Liberty my Native Soyle and Quondam Profession of the Law hath induced me by way of Gratitude to present your Honours with this large Discovery not of one or two but of an whole Tribe and succession of nota●le Arch-Traytors Rebels Conspirators and des●erate Enemies to our Kings Kingdomes Lawes Liberties to say nothing of our Church and Religion masked under the innocent disguise of an Episcopall whi●e Rotchet and the specious much abused Title of The Church which our Prelates have monopolized to themselves the better to palliate their mischievous designes and boulster out their vil●anies when as if we beleeve either our learned Martyr Master William Tyndall or Bishop Bilson himselfe The Church is ne●e● taken in the new nor old Testament for the Bishops or Priests alone but generally for the whole Congregation of the faithfull and oft times for the people alone without the Priest or Minister which is worthy your observation and will utterly subvert one principall Pillar of our Prelates suppo●t I could not but conjecture that this Antipathy would be very distastfull to our Lordly Prelates the Malefactors whose long-concealed Treasons Conspiracies seditious practises it lays open to your publick view and justice so that I can expect nothing but such extreame Malignity opposition and Calumnies from them and their confederates as might in some sort have deterred me from divulging it Yet whē I considered that the detectiō of grosse Traytors Conspirators hath bin ever reputed not only an inoffensive but acceptable and meritorious service both to Kings and States in al other persons and that I have no cause to doubt but that it will receive the selfe-same benigne interpretation in me especially from your Honours by some of whose earn●st desires and ●peciall approbations I committed these Historicall Colections to the Presse I could not but with all alacrity proceede on in this service for the Common good to the which I have beene the more incouraged by a Divine Providence For being a Prisoner in the Tower of London stript of my Profession and all other imployments by some Prelates undemerited malice considering with my selfe how I might there passe my solitary houres in the usefullest manner for the publicke benefit of this Church and Kingdome it pleased God among other subjects to pitch my thoughts upon a Collection of the severall Treasons Rebellions Warres Seditions and Anti-monarchicall Practises of Lordly Prelats of all Countries and ages especially of our owne English Bishops which I found scattered in Histories wherupon taking my hint from the Title of a now-non-extant Booke written by one Thomas Gybson a Physitian in King Edward the 6. his dayes stiled Proditiones Praelatorum a Conquestu seene by our laborious Iohn Bale and mentioned in his Centuries which booke it seemes the Prelates since suppressed I gathered with no facil labour the most of those Materials I here present unto your Honours and Marshalled them into distinct files with an intention to make them publick so soone as a seasonable opportunity should present it selfe But the Arch Prelate of Canterbury not long after persecuting me afresh in the Starcham●er without any just occasion procured me there not onely to bee most inhumanely censured but likewise to be sent thence close prisoner first to Carnarvan then to Mount-Orguile Castle in the Isle of Iersie and there cloystred up so narrowly that I could neither have the use of pen inke paper writings nor Bookes to benefit my selfe or others and withall searching both my Chamber and friends houses sundry times by his Pursevants seized on all my bookes and Papers he could meete with But these Collections escaping his clutches fell into the hands of another persecuted Gentleman who without my privity carried them beyond the Seas where they were preserved till after my late returne from Exile by the justice of this Honourable House and not many moneths since when I gave them over as lost were unexpectedly returned to my hands in safety whiles the businesse of Episcopacy was in agitation before your Eminencies which speciall Providence put me in minde of that speech of Morde●ay to Ester Who knoweth whether thou art come to the Kingdome for such a time as this and made me strongly apprehend that God had restored me to Liberty and these Collections to my hands for such a time as this which blessed be our good God we now live to see wherein our domineering Prelates lewde practises and Conspiracies against our Religion Lawes Liberties Lives Soules and Estates are not onely detected but questioned and some of the Potentest and pestilentest of them charged with no lesse than High Treason and other most grosse Misdemeanors in and by your Honorable Assembly which have rendred them so generally detestable to the whole Kingdome that divers Petitions have beene presented to your Honours both by Ministers and People out of many entire Countries for their utter extirpation which long efflagitated difficult worke which your Honours have now set upon I conceive the publishing of this Antipathy will much facilitate and advance being thus specially preserved and reserved by Gods Providence for such a time as this The principall motives which originally induced me to undertake this worke were the very same which have now perswaded me to

rotten Corps of learned Martin Bucer Paulus Fagius Peter Martyrs wise to be digged out of their graves and burnt to ashes for Heretiques yea the common talke was that he purposed to have taken up King Henry the 8. his body at Windsor and to have burnt it yea and King Edward the 6. his Corps too as many thought I cannot here omit what his immediate suc●essor Matthew Parker records of him that this Cardinall being out of hope to get the Crowne of England to himselfe to which he aspired endeavoured to transferre all his right therein to King Philip le●t Queene Mary dying without issue Queene Elizabeth who differed from him and the Papists in matters of Religion whose life he and they had layd in waite for keeping her in long and strict imprisonment should of right injoy it to which purpose they very secretly entred into most wicked consultations concerning this matter to this effect that Mary not onely by the Common Law should be proclaimed Queene but likewise a conquerour of the Kingdome by right of warre so as by this pretext shee might change all publike and private rights and interests and give the Kingdome to whom soever she pleased But this coun●ell though liked of at first yet because it was doubtfull and dangerous was not long approved of Wherefore rejecting it they thought it best and most expedient for the establishment of the Popes affaires that the Lady Elizabeth should be either dispatched out of the way or married to some Noble Spaniard But God providing for her and our safety dissipated all these wicked consultations and brought them to nothing And Cardinall Poole perswading Queene Mary to joyne with King Philip her husband in a warre against the French King with whom Pope Paul the fourth had confederated against the Emperour seeking to betray the Kingdome o● Naples to him the Pope was ●arre exasperated hereby against the Cardinall that he revoked his power Legatine imprisoned Cardinall Moron Protector of the English at Rome and Pooles speciall friend cited Poole to appeare at Rome as suspected of Heresie and created William Peter a Franciscan to be his Legate in his place The Queene hereupon intercedes for the Cardinall who having intelligence of this matter refused to have his silver Crosse the badge of his authority carried be●ore him till by the intercession o● Ormanet the Popes D●tary here in England and the Queenes mediation he was at last restored to his Office In 〈◊〉 the flames of persecution consumed 5. Bishops 2● Divines 8. Gentlemen 84. Artificers 100. Husbandmen Servants and Labourers 26. Wives 20. Widowes 9. Virgins a● Boyes and 2. Infants To close up all concerning him in Holmsheds words A Trayter he lived and a Traytor he dyed the same day on which Queene Mary expired the Tydings of whose depar●ure strucke him quite dead being sicke before of a quartane Feaver Illud autem saith his Successour ad aternam ●mmanitatis Pontificiae memoriam infamiamque contra Polum valebit quod eo Legato ac accelerante integerrimus Doctissimusque Archiepiscopus Cra●nerus igne crematus est quod Archiepiscopo praeterea quod legimus accidit nemini sew or none of them having zeale enough to make them Martyrs pluresque in ill● sue legationis triennio ferro sta●maque crudeliter macta●● sun● qu●m in ●uiusquam regis eorum qui post Lucium huic insulae imperabant longissimo regno Ita Cranmerum Martyren● Polum tyram●um ●antuaria celebrat hic plumbo depressus ille cineribus atque flamma ad coelos elatus est Matthew Parker his immediate successor though a man of better temper a learned Antiquary a frequent Preacher of Gods Word not onely in his Cathedrall at Canterbury but in sundry Parish Churches was yet over-Pontificall and Princely in his buildings feasts houshold-stuffe and apparell if not an over●stiffe maintainer of his Jurisdiction and Ecclesiasticall Courts which grew so odious among the people that they offered violence to the Ministers and Promoters of those Courts Anno. 1566. ●eating and vexing them with clamors and out-cryes as they went along the streetes which insolency the Queene by her opportun● severity repressed Two yeares af●er Anno● 1568. C●lem●n Burton Hallingham Benson and others making profession of the purer Religion more zealously than was knowne before would allow of nothing but what was taken out of the Scriptnres and out of a desire of reformation not onely openly questioned but condemned the received Discipline of the Church of England with the Church Liturgie and the very calling o● Bishop as favouring too much of the Popish Religion protesting in the Pulpits that it was an impious thing to hold any thing Common with the Church of Rome using all diligence to have the Church of England reformed in every point according to the Rule of the Church of Geneva These the Queene by this Arch-Bishops instigation commanded to be layd by the heeles yet it is almost incredible how upon a sudden their followers increased every where knowne by the envious name of Puritanes through a kinde of obstinate perversenesse of their owne stopping their eares against all advise so Martyn though I think rather out of solide judgement and the inconveniences they saw and found in the Lordly Prelacie in thos● best times which ●saith hee might seeme to be helped forward also by the sloathfull connivency of the Bishops some of whom then misliked their owne calling and government and could have beene content with its dissolution and change to a better and the secret favour of some Noble men at Court whom Martyn slaunders to have gaped after the goods of the Church when as they rather did it out of the mischiefes and dislike of the Prelaticall government In his time the Earles of Northumberland and Westmerland the Lord Dacres and others● Anno 1569. being pressed forward by one Nicholas Martin a Romish Priest sen● from the Bishop of Rome to pronounce Queene Elizabeth an Hereticke and therefore to have lost all Dominion and Soveraignty raised a Rebellion in the North to set up Popery and restore the Romish Religion the 5. wounds of Christ being painted in their Banners Murrey then Regent of Scotland informed the Queene that the Bishop of Rosse then in England was the Author of that Rebellion● whereupon he was committed to the Bishop of London and remained his prisoner And the same yeare Pope Pius the fifth by his Bull excommunicated and deprived Queene Elizabeth from her Crowne and absolved all her Nobles Subjects and people of the Realme from their Oath of allegiance or any other duty to her which Bull Iohn Felton setting up at the Bishop of Londons Palace gate was executed for his paines yet I read of no re●utation of it made by this Archprelate Edmund Grindall next enjoying this See a grave and pious man and a fugitive in Queene Maries raigne stood highly in Queene Elizabeths●avour ●avour for a long time till by

two severall Councels and thereupon thrust him from his Bishopricke which Theodore divided into foure Diocesses After ten yeares exile Egfrid dying Alfrid his Successour restored VVilfrid but five yeares after this King likwise fell out with him and forced him to Rome where though the Pope restored him yet the King would never admit him to his See during his life What the true cause of these displeasures was the Historians of those times who favoured VVilfrid are sparing to relate belike it was some notorious offences against these Kings else they would not be so unjust as without cause to keepe him from his Bishopricke and to imprison him in chaines as one of them did Some record that it was because hee favoured and aided the Rebellious Danes which is most probable Malmesbury and others out of him say it was onely the malice of Queene Ermenburga who envied him for that hee had many Abbots and Abbies under him was served with Gold and Silver plate had a great traine of followers and was very gorgeous in his Pontificall Robes and because hee would never yeeld to have his Diocesse divided into three mote Bishopricks though it were sufficient to maintaine foure Bishops beside himselfe of which there was need And some impute it to the envie and malice of Theodore Arch-Bishop of Canterbury The first of these could not be the sole cause for that ended upon VVilfrids exile and the Kings death The second is as unlikely since VVilf●id himselfe with all the Bishops of that time and the Councell of Hertford Can. 9. Anno 677. decreed that the number of ●eleevers increasing more Bishops and Bishoprickes should bee made and erected Whereupon Acca and Bo●win were made Bishops instead of Bosa and his Bishopricke divided into foure parts to which partition VVilf●id had good reason to consent it being the Kings expresse pleasure and the Councels decree to which himselfe subscribed The envie of Theodore was in likelihood a partiall but not principall cause of his first Troubles onely Hee was therefore in all likelihood an aider and assister of the Rebellious Danes and a great opposite and Rebell against these two Kings yea and against Edulfus their successour who all three successively refused to restore him notwithstanding the Popes Letters and Command which then it seemes were of little force Many Councels were assembled about this VVilfrid and the whole Church and Kingdome much disquietted and vexed with the many Schismes and contentions concerning him too tedious to relate Anno 872. Vlferus Arch-Bishop of Yorke was by his Diocesans driven out of the Countrey for what cause is not expressed and therefore likely for some notorious offence because the Monkes conceale it out of favour to him Anno 952. VVolstan Arch-Bishop of Yorke was convict of an hainous crime who forgetting that dutifull affection hee ought to beare unto Edred his King if for no other cause yet for Athelstane his Brothers sake who preferred him forgetting his Oath and Allegeance unto the same King being his naturall Prince yea forgetting that hee was either an English man or a Christian was not ashamed to revolt from King Edred and cleave to the Danes and favour them an Heathen people and such as sought not onely to destroy his Countrey but also to root out Christian Religion For which Treason and for setting up E●ric●us King in Edreds stead though hee deserved a thousand deaths he was onely deprived committed to Prison and one yeare after enlarged again because he was a Bishop whereas for this cause as his Treason was the more hainous and execrable so h●s punishment should have beene the greater But hee being released upon his repentance grew so angry with himselfe that hee was thus pardoned against right and justice● that v●t●m e●ve●tigio exuit hee presently made away himselfe being his owne executioner Some say that hee was thus imprisoned for killing divers Citizens of Thetford in revenge of the death of one Anselme an Abbot whom they had slaine without cause belike hee was guiltie of both those crimes and punished for both in this mild manner after divers complaints Anno 975. Oswald Arch-Bishop of Yorke assisted Dunstan of Canterb●ry and the other Bishops to put Egelred the right Heire from the Crowne and to set up Edward an Usurper whom they crowned as more fit for their behoofe and ends Elfricke Arch-Bishop of Yorke surnamed Puttoc was reputed detestable for two barbarous Acts He caused Harde●nute the King● to command the dead body of his Brother King Harold to be digged up out of his Grave after that to be beheaded and cast into the Thames as an infamous example to men And not content with this crueltie towards the dead he perswaded the same King by way of revenge on VVorcester men because they would not suffer him to hold that See in commendam with Yorke as three of his predecessours had done before him to fire that goodly Citie and seize on all the Citizens goods pretending that they had stubbornely resisted those who collected the Kings tributes And as if this were not sufficient revenge to kill all the men and waste the whole Countrey which was most● cruelly executed● hee likewise caused this King to thrust the living Bishop of VVorceter out of his See and to bestow it on himselfe and incensed this King so farre against Earle Godwin that hee was enforced to buy his peace of the King with the gift of the richest and costliest Shippe that wee reade of in that Age. Aldredus his Successour who gat that See by Symonie and held VVorcester in commendam with it and was one of the first who distinguished the Clergie from the Laitie in their externall habits crowned Harold invading the Dignitie Royall no way due unto him After which though hee purposed ●o Crowne Edgar the right Heire King to whom he and the Nobilitie had first adhered yet like a wily Bishop siding with the strongest he altered his purpose and crowned VVilliam the Conquerour King requiring first an Oath of him to d●fend the Church to minister justice and te vse Englishmen as favourable as Normans This Oath it seemed to Aldred that the King had broken by laying heavie taxes on the people of which he admonished the King who was very angry at it He therefore like a couragious Prelate but like a disloyall Subject thundered out an Excommunication against him saying● That now worthily he had cursed whom once unworthily hee had blessed This bold pranke being reported to the King incensed him very much at first but thinking better of it hee determined to give him good words a while and so sent some to intreat for his absolution The Messengers came too late for the Bishop being troubled much in mind after the performance of that Action and either amazed with feare of what might happen after it or overcome with griefe and repentance for what he had done never could be

Dei sunt decent Episcopum exequatur sed vices suas indignis et remissis executoribus committat ut terreno vel foro vel palatio totus serviat nam nec terreni Principis ratiocinia quisquam dimidius sufficienter administrat Quamobrem memoratus Pontifex cum jam esset grandaevus officio seculari suscepto in Australibus Angliae partibus ad publica totus negot●a recidebat mundo non crucifixus sed infixus writes Nubrigensis of him Roger Archbishop of Yorke deceasing A. 1181. delivered great summes of money to certaine Bishops to be distributed among poore people King Henry the second after his death called for the mony and seised it to his use alleadging a sentence given by the same Archbishop in his li●etime that no Ecclesiasticall person might give any thing by will except hee devised the the same whilst hee was in perfect health Yet this Bishop of Durham would not depart with 400 Markes which hee had received to distribute among the poore alleaging that hee dealt the same away before the Archbishops death and therefore hee that would have it againe must goe gather it up of them to whom hee had distributed it which himselfe would in no wise doe But the King tooke no small displeasure with this indiscreet answer in so much that hee seised the Castle of Durham into his hands and sought meanes to disquiet the said Bishop by divers manner of wayes King Richard going into the holy Land made this Bishop chiefe Justice from Trent Northwards and the Bishop of Ely Lord Chancellor and chiefe Justice of England betweene whom strife and discord immediately ar●se which of them should be the greater for that which pleased the one displeased the other for all power is impatient of a consort The Bishop of Ely soone after imprisoned him till hee had surrendred Winsor Castle and others to him and put in pledges to be faithfull to the King and Kingdome of which more in Ely At the returne of King Richard from Ierusalem hee found him not so favourable as hee expected and thinking that he grudged him his Earledome resigned the same into his hands For the redemption of which he afterward offered the King great summes of money whereupon the King knowing how to use him in his kind writ letters to him full of reverend and gracious speeches wishing him to bring up his money to London and there to receive the Government of the whole Realme which hee would commit to him and the Archbishop of Canterbury Being very joyfull of this ●avour he comes about Shrovetide towards London and surfeiting of flesh by the way died This Prelate who much troubled and oppressed the Commons and whole Realme had no lesse than three bastard sonnes whom hee endeavoured to advance but they all dyed before him Hee was oft in armes in the field and besieged the Castle of Thifehill belonging to Earle Iohn he tooke up the Crossado and went beyond Sea with King Richard the first to the warres in the holy Land but considering the danger got a dispensation and returned speeding better than Baldwin Archbishop of Canterbury and ten Archbishops and Bishops more who di●d at the siege before Acon and like warlike Prelates stirred up King Richard with sundry other Christian Princes to that bloody chargeable and un●ortunate warre wherein many thousands of Christians spent both their lives and estates and whereby Christians lost the verity of Christian Religion and Christ himselfe in a great measure whiles thus they warre to secure the place of his sepulcher which proved a sepulcher both to their bodies and soules * William K. of Scotland comming to visit King Richard the first afte● his release this Prelate and Hubert Archbishop of Canterbury went to Brackley where the Bishop had an Inne The King of Scots servants comming thither would have taken up the Bishops Inne for their King but the Bishops servants withstood them whereupon they bought provision for the King and dressed it in another house in that same Court When the Bishop came thither and his servants had informed him what had passed he would not retire but went on boldly unto his Inne and commanded his meat to be set on the table whiles he was at dinner the Archbishop of Canterbury comes to him and offers him his lodging and counsels him to remove and leave the Inne The King of Scots comming late from hunting when hee was told what had happened tooke it very grievously and would not goe thither but commanded all his provision to be given to the poore and goes forthwith to the King to Selnestone complains to him of the injury the Bishop of Durham had offered to him for which the King sharpely rebuked him Richard de Marisco Lord Chancellor of England and Archdeacon of Notthumberland an old Courtier was thrust into this See by Gualo the Popes Legate and consecrated by the Archbishop of Yorke in the yeare 1217. during the time of the vacancy This Richard was a very prodigall man and spent so liberally the goods of his Church as the Monkes doubting hee would undoe them and himselfe also went about by course of Law to stay him and force him to a moderation of expence But it fell out quite contrary to their expectation for hee being wilfully set continued Law with them appealing to Rome c. and continued his old course even untill his death The yeare 1226. in the beginning of Easter terme hee rid up to London with a troope of Lawyers attend●ng on him At Peterborough he was entertained in the Ab●ey very ●ono●rably and going to bed there in very good health was found in the morning by his Chamberlaine starke dead Hee deceased May the first leaving his Church 40000. markes indeb●ed though his contention and pr●digall factious humour Anthony Beake the 41. Bishop of this See a very wealthy man contented not himselfe with ordinary Titles Therefore he procured the Pope to make him Patriarc● of ●erusalem obtained of the King the Principality of ●he Isle of Man during his life Anno 1294. being Ambassador to the Emperor Iohn Ro●an the Archbishop of Yorke excommunicated him which cost him ●000 Markes fine to the King and his life to boote hee dying for griefe There was grea● stirre betweene him and the Prior and Covent of Durham Hee informed the Pope that the Prior was a very simple and insufficient man to rule that house and thereupon procured the government thereof both spirituall and temporall to be committed to him The Monkes appealed both the Pope and King who required the hearing of these controversies betweene the Prior and Bishop This notwithstanding the Bishops officers made no more adoe but excommunicated the Prior Monkes and all for not obeying their authority immediately Herewith ●he King greatly offended caused those Officers to be fined and summoned the Bishop himselfe to appeare before him at a day appointed before which day hee got to Rome never acquainting

the King of France and after slew Thomas Becket and last of all thou forsakest the Protection of Christs Faith The King was mooved with these word● and sayd unto the Patriarch Though all the men of the Land were one body and spake with one mouth they durst not speake ●o me such words No wonder said the Patriarch for they love thine and not thee That is to meane they love thy goods temporall and feare the losse of promotion but they love not thy soule And when he had so said he offered his head to the King saying Doe by me right as thou didst by Thomas Becket for I had rather be slaine of thee then of the Sarasens for thou art worse then any Sarasen and they follow a prey and not a man But the King kept his patience and said I may not wend out of my Land for my owne Sonnes will arise against me when I am absent No wonder said the Patriarch for of the devill they came and to the devill they shall and so departed from the King in great ire So rudely have Prelates dealt with the greatest Princes as thus both in words and deeds to revile and contemne them as if they were their slaves to be at their command though with the hazard of their lives Crownes and Kingdomes upon every humour I now passe on to the Scottish Prelates The Bishops of Scotlands acts in this kinde TO passe from Normandy to Scotland before I enter into a Relation of any of the Scotish Prelates actions I shall inform you what Holinshed writes of King Davids erection of Bishoprickes in Scotland and his endowing of them with large temporall possessions This Church in the originall plantation of the Gospell having beene governed onely by Presbyters and wanting Bishops for some hundred of yeares following herein the custome of the Primitive Church as Iohn Fordon Iohn Major Bishop Vsher and Spelman testifie David King of Scots erected foure Bishoprickes within this Realme Rosse Brochin Dunkeld and Dublaine indowing them with rich Rents faire Lands and sundry right commodious possessions Moreover he translated the Bishops See of Murthlake unto Aberden for sundry advised considerations augmenting it with certaine revenues as he thought expedient He was admonished as the report goeth in his sleepe that he should build an Abbey for a religious Order to live in together Whereupon he sent for workemen into France and Flanders and set them in hand to build this Abbey of Canons regular as he was admonished dedicating it in the honour of a Crosse whereunto he bare speciall devotion for that very strangely it slipped into his hands on a time as he was pursuing and following of a Hart in the Chase But enough of these Monkish devises Many prudent men blame greatly the unmeasurable liberality of King David which he used towards the Church in diminishing so hugely the revenues of the Crowne being the cause that many Noble Princes his Successors have come to their finall ends for that they have beene constrained through want of treasure to maintaine their royall estates to procure the fall of sundry great Houses to possesse their Lands and livings also to raise payments and exactions of the Common people to the utter impoverishment of the Realme And sometime they have beene constrained to invade England by warres as desperate men not caring what came of their lives Other whiles they have beene enforced to stampe naughty money to the great prejudice of the Common wealth All which mischiefes have followed since the time that the Church hath beene thus enriched and the Crowne impoverished Therefore King Iames the first when he came to King Davids Sepulcher at Dunfirmling he said that he was a sore Saint for the Crowne Meaning that he left the Church over-rich and the Crowne too poore For he tooke from the Crowne as Iohn Major writeth in his Chronicles 60000. pound Scotish of yearely revenues Wherewith he endowed those Abbyes But if King David had considered how to nourish true Religion he had neither endowed Churches with such riches nor built them with such royalty for the superfluous possessions of the Church as they are now used are not onely occasion to evill Prelates to live in most insolent pompe and corrupt life but an assured Net to draw gold and silver out of Realmes Thus Holinshed of the Bishops and Bishoprickes of Scotland in generall In a Convocation at Fairefax under King Gregory Anno 875. It was decreed by the Bishops of Scotland that Ordinaries and Bishops should have authority to order all men both publike and private yea Kings themselves as well for the keeping of Faith given as to constraine them to confirme the same and to punish such as should be found in the contrary This was a high straine of insolency and treachery against the Prerogative of the King and Nobles priviledges whom these Prelates endeavoured to enthrall to their Lordly pleasures and perchance it was in affront of King Davids Law who ordained Anno 860. but 15. yeares before that Priests should attend their Cures and not intermeddle with secular businesses or keepe Horses Haukes or Hounds A very good Law had it beene as well executed Anno 1294. the Scots conspiring together against their Soveraigne Lord and King Iohn Bailiol rose up in armes against him and inclosing him in a Castle they elected to themselves twelve Peeres after the manner of France whereof the foure first were Bishops by whose will and direction all the affaires of the Kingdome should be managed And this was done in despite to disgrace the King of England who set the said Iohn over them against their wils Whereupon the King of England brought an Army towards Scotland in Lent following to represse the rash arrogancy and presumption of the Scots● against their owne Father and King and miserably wasted the Country over-running it quite and making both them and their King whom he tooke Prisoner to doe homage and sweare feal●y and give pledges to him as Walsingham reci●es more at large Among these Bishops it seemes that the Bishop of ●lascow was one of the chiefe opposites against the King of Scotland and England for Anno 1298. I finde this Bishop one of the chiefe Captaines of the Rebellious Scots and leading an Army in the field which being disbanded for feare of the English forces upon promise of pardon this Bishop Ne proditionis notam incurreret lest he should incurre the brand of treason rendred himselfe to Earle Warren sent into Scotland with an Army who committed him prisoner to the Castle of Rok●burrow for a Rebell where he was detained William of Neubery records Tha● David King of Scots was divinely chastised by one Wimundus an English man of obscure parents made Bishop of the Scottish Islands who waxing proud of his Bishopricke began to attempt great matters Not content with the dignity of his Episcopall Office he did now in

Apostles and Disciples to doe the semblance whatsoever Priest or Bishop will arrogate or presume upon him any such authority and will pretend the authority of the Gospel for his defen●e therein he doth nothing else but as in a manner as you would say crowne Christ againe with a crowne of thornes and traduceth and bringeth him forth againe with his Mantle of Purple upon his back to be mocked and scorned of the World as the Jewes did to their owne damnation c. The truth is that God constituted and ordained the authority of Christian Kings and Princes to be the most high and supreame above all other powers a●d Officers in this World in the regiment and government of their people c. But specially and principally to defend the faith of Christ and his Religion to conserve and maintaine the true Doctrine of Christ and all such as be true Preachers and setters forth thereof and to abolish abuses heresies and Idolatries and to punish with corporall payne● such as of malice be the occasion of the fame And finally to over-see and cause that the said Bishops and Priests doe execut● their Pastorall office truly and faithfully and specially in those points which by Christ and his Apostles was given and committed unto them and in case they shall be negligent in any part thereof or would not diligently execute the same or cause them to redouble and supply their lacke and if they obstinately withstand their Princes kind motion and will not amend their faults then and in such case to put others in their roomes and places And God hath also commanded the said Bishops and Priests to obey with all humblenesse and reverence both Kings and Princes and Governours and all their Lawes not b●ing contrary to the Lawes of God whatsoever they be and that not onely Propter iram but also Propter conscientiam that is to say not onely for feare of punishment but also for discharge of conscience Whereby it appeareth well that this pretended Monarchy of the Bishop of Rome is not founded upon the Gospell but it is repugnant thereto And therefore it appertaineth to Christian Kings and Princes for the discharge of their office and duty toward God to endeavour themselves to reforme and reduce the same againe unto the old limits and pristine estate of that power which was given to them by Christ and used in the Primitive Church For it is out of doubt that Christs faith was then most firme and pure and the Scriptures were then best understood and vertue did then most abound and excell and thererefore it must needs follow that the customes and ordinances then used and made be more conforme and agreeable ●nto the true doctrine of Christ and more conducing unto the edifying and benefit of the Church of Christ than any custome or lawes used and made by the Bishop of Rome or any other addic●ed to that See and usurped power sith that time Thus all the Prelates Clergie King and Parliament in king Henry the eighth his dayes Cuthbert Tonstall Bishop of Duresme and Iohn Stokerley Bishop of London in a certaine letter sent unto Reginald Poole Cardinall then being at Rome concer●ing the superiority of Bishops over other Min●sters resolve thus Saint Cyprian saith undoubtedly all the rest of the Apostles were the same that Peter was indued with like equality of of honour and power And Saint Ierome saith thus All the Apostles received the keyes o● the kingdome of Heaven and upon them as indifferently and equally is the strength of the Church grounded and established Which Saint Ierome also as well in his Comentaries upon the Epistle unto Titus as in his Epistle to Evagrius sheweth that these primacies long a●ter Christs assention were made by the device of men where before by the common agreement of the Clergie every one of the Churches were governed yea the Patriarchall Churches The words of Saint Ierome be these Let the Bishops understand that they be greater than other Priests rather of custome than by the vertue and verity of the Lords Ordinances And in his Epistle to Evagrius hee hath like sentence and addeth thereunto Whereso●ver a Bishop either at Rome or at Eugubinis or at Constantinople c. Hee is of all one worthinesse and o● all one Priesthood And that one was elected which should be pr●ferred before other it was devised to the redresse of Schismes left any one challenging too much to themselves should rent the Church of Christ. These words onely of Saint Ierome be sufficient to prove that Christ by none of these three Texts which be all that you and other doe alleage for your opinion the three texts are these Thou art Peter and upon this Rocke I will build my Church Peter I have prayed for thee that ●hy faith should not faile And thou being once converted confirme thy brothers feed my Sheepe Gave not to Peter any such superiority as the bishop of Rome by them usurpeth and that Peter nor no other of ths chiefe Apostles did vind●cate or challenge such primacy or superiority but utterly refused it So these two popish Prelates Why then shoulld our Bishops challenge any such primary or superiority over their fellow Ministers There is a notable Dialogue intituled A disputation betweene a Clerke and a Knight or a Souldier concerning the power committed to the Prela●es of the Church and to the Princes of the Earth Written by our famous Schooleman Wil●i●m Ocham about the yeare of our Lord 1330. as Iohn Bale records printed at London in Latin by Thomas B●rthlet Cum Privileg●o in King Henry the eight h●s raigne Wherein the Clerk complaining that the Church which in his age was had in great honour with Kings Princes and all Nobles was now on the contrary made a prey to them a●l many things being exacted f●om them many things given by them and that if they gave not their goods by way of subsidie or supply to the●r Princes they were violently t●ken from them that the●r Lawes were trampled und●r feet their Liberties infringed c. The Knight proves first that Clergy men can make no Lawes nor Canons touching temporall things but Princes onely because they have no Dominion of temporall things and that the Pope is chiefe Vicar not to those things which Christ now doth in glory but to imitate those things which Christ did in his state of humility here on earth because those things are necessary to us That he committed to his Vicar that power which he exercised on Earth as a mortall man not that hee received being glorified● For Christ said to Pilate that his K●ngdome was not of th●s World and that he came not to be ministred to but to minister This testimony is so manifest that it may confound the man who resisteth it and make the stiffest ●ecke to submit And when one of the multitude spake thus to Christ Master command my brother to divide the inheritance with me he

the cause that they do not execute this their office Other beca●se they cannot or because they have so much worldly businesse that they will not apply ●hemselves to performe both Or else they be afraid to spe●ke the truth lest they should displease men whom Paul reproveth saying If I should please men I should not be the servant of Christ. Also the Prophet saith God breaketh the bones of them which study to please men● they be confounded because the Lord 〈◊〉 th●m Our Bishops love so well their great dominions● whereby they maintaine their Lordly honour th●t they will ●ot disple●se men with pre●ching the ●ruth lest they should ●h●n loose their great po●●essions and consequently their Lordly glory But surely as long as they possesse their great Dominions so long they will continue and maintaine their pride And so long as they continue in pride so long they shall not receive the holy Ghost which shall reach them to speake the truth For upon whom shall my spirit rest saith the Prophet Esay but upon the m●●ke and lowly and upon him which feareth my sayings Also the Prophet saith God res●steth the proud and unto the m●●ke and lowly h●e giv●th ●is grace Wherefore so long as the Bishops conti●●e in this worldly wealth and honour so long will they 〈◊〉 their du●y and office but ra●her pers●cute the word of Go● which declareth and sheweth what is their office ●nd their duty And so long as they do not e●ercise their off●●e ●nd voc●●ion but ●o pe●secu●e ●he Word and such as sinc●●ely p●each the same so long shall sinne incr●ase For if the eye be wicked all the body shall be ●ull of darknesse For even as at such time when the Bishop of Rome was first endowed with great possessions a voice was heard saying Now venome and poyson is cast and shed forth into the Church of God In like wise no doubt most godly Governour semblable voyce and saying may be verified in and upon all the Church of England sith your Bishops were endowed with so great possessions and Lordly Dominions No doubt gracious Lord so long as great Lordly Dominions worldly honours and wealth be annexed and knit to the vocation and offices of Bishops and other pastours these mischiefes and inconveniences shall ever ensue and follow First the most proud and ambitious the most covetous and wicked which other by mony friendships or flattery can obtaine the benefice will labour with all studie and policie to get the benefice onely for the worldly honour and not for the zeale and love which he should have to instruct and teach the people committed to his cure and charge And for the Profit which belongeth and appertaineth to the same benefice they will dissemble humility and despection of all worldly profits and pleasures so colourably and subtilly that it shall be very hard for your Majesty or any other having authority to give benefices to perceive them And when they have obtained the benefice then every Christian man shall well perceive that he hath not entred in by the doore that is for the zeale and love to do and execute the office but hath climed up and ascended by another way that is for the lucre and honour annexed to the office And then certainly whosoever ascendeth and entereth in by another way cannot be but a theefe by day and by night whose study and labour must be to steale kill and destroy as Christ whose words must ever be true saith The theefe commeth not but to steale to kill and to destroy So that so long as so much worldly profit and honour belongeth to the benefice so long will hee that for want and lacke of learning cannot doe the office and also the most covetous and proud will labour to have th●●●fice whereby the people committed to his cure shall not on●● be untaught and not learned in Gods Word but also all they which can preach and teach Gods Word and love the same by such a worldly wolfe shall be extremely persecnted and tormented For hee cannot but steale kill and destroy and utterly abhorre and hate the godly as Christ saith If you were of the world the world would love his owne But because you be not of the world but I have chosen you from the world therefore the world doth hate you No doubt a man shall much rather upon thornes gather grapes and upon brambles and bryers gather figges than of such greedy theeves to have any Christian religion either set forth preached or stablished Wherefore most redoubted Prince seeing that their great possessions riches wordly offices cures and businesse be the impediment and let that they do not execute their vocation and office which is so godly profitable necessary for this your Commonwealth You being our Soveraigne Lord and King whom God hath called to governe this your Realme and to redresse the enormities and abuses of the same by all justice and equity are bounden to take away from Bishops and other spirituall shepheards such superfluity of possessions and riches and other secular cures businesse and worldly offices which be the cause of much sinne in them and no lesse occasion whereby they be letted to execute their office to the great losse and hindrance of much faith vertue and goodnesse which might be administred to your subjects through the true preaching of Gods Word And that done then circumspectly to take heed that none be admitted to be Pastours but such as can preach and have preached sincerely Gods Word And all such as will not to remove them from their cures This godly order observed in the election of spirituall Pastours the pestilent poyson removed and taken away from their vocation faith shall increase and sinne shall decrease true obedience shall be observed with all humility to your Majesty and to the higher powers by your grace appointed in office civill quietnesse rest and peace shall be established God shall be feared honoured and loved which is the effect of all Christian living O Lord save our most Soveraigne Lord King Henry the eight and grant that hee may once throughly feele and perceive what miserable calamity sorrow and wretchednesse we suffer now in these dayes abroad in the Country by these unlearned Popish and most cruell tyrants even the very enemies of Christs Crosse whose paine shall be without end when wee shall live in joy for ever Grant yet once againe I say good Lord and most mercifull Father through thy Sonne Jesus Christ that when his Grace shall know and perceive by thy gift and goodnesse their most detestable wayes in misusing thy heritage that hee will earnestly go about to see a redresse among them and to the penitent and contrite in heart to shew his accustomed goodnesse and to the other his justice according to Saint Pauls Doctrine and his Graces Lawes And most dread Soveraigne with all humility and humblenesse of heart I beseech your grace according to your accustomed goodnesse

prescribing all Bishops when they ordaine Ministers Archbishops or Bishops to use this exhortation to them Have alwayes printed in your remembrance how great a treasure is committed to your charge for they be the sheepe of Christ which hee bought with his death and for whom he shed his blood● the Church and Congregation whom you must serve is his spouse and body And if it shall chance the same Church or any member thereof to take any hurt or hinderance by reason of your negligence yee know the greatnesse of the fault and also of the horrible punishment which will ensue Where●ore consider with your selves the end of your Ministry towards the children of God towards the spouse and body of Christ and see that you never cease your labour your care and diligence untill you have done all that lyeth in you according to your bounden duty to bring all such as are or shall be committed to your charge unto ●hat ripenesse or perfectnesse of age in Christ that there be no place left among them either for errour in religion or for vitiousnesse of life And what Prelate or Minister hath done this And for this selfe same cause yee see how yee ought to forsake and se● aside as much as you may all worldly cares and studies Wee have good hope that you have well weighed and pondered these things with your selves long before this time and that you have cleerly determined by Gods grace to give your selves wholly to this vocation whereunto it hath pleased God to call you see ●hat as much as lyeth in you you apply your selves who●ly to this one thing and draw all your care and study this way to this end And that you will continually pray for the heavenly assistance of the Holy Ghost that by daily reading and weighing of the Scriptures you may so waxe riper and stronger in your Ministry And ●hat this your promise shall more move you to doe your d●ties yee shall answer plainly to these things which we in the name of the Congregation shall demand of you touching the same Will you give your faithfull diligence alwayes to ●inister the Doctrine and Sacraments and the Discipline of Christ as the Lord hath commanded and as this Realme hath received the same according to the Commandements of God so that yo● may teach the people committed to your cure and charge with all diligence to keepe and observe the same I will so doe by the helpe of God Will you be diligent in Prayers and in reading of the holy Scriptures and in such studies as helpe to the knowledge of the same laying aside the study of the World and the Flesh I will endeavour my selfe so to doe the Lord being my helper And at the consecration of every Archbishop and Bishop this charge by the direction of the said booke is given to him Bee thou to thy flocke a sheepheard not a wolfe feed them but devoure them not And it is worthy observation that the same Chapters and Epistles are read at the ordination of Ministers and consecration of Bishops which proves their office and function both one and the same by divine institution The third part of the Homily of the perill of Idolatry ratified by the 35. Article of our Church subscribed unto by all our Prelates and Ministers published in King Edward●he ●he 6. his dayes and reprinted by King Iames his speciall command determines thus against the Courtship and secular imployment of Prelates That Bishops in the Primitive Church did most diligently and sincerely teach and preach for they were then preaching Bishops and more often seene in Pulpits than in Princes Palaces more often occupied in his Legacie who said Goe yee unto the whole world and preach the Gospell unto all men than in Ambassages and affaires of Princes of this world And in the 5. and 6. part of the Homily against wilfull rebellion and the second part of the Homily for Whitsunday notably paints forth at large the treasons conspiracies practises aud rebellions of Popes and our Prelates against the Emperours and our Kings in former ages which hee that will may there read at his leasure being too common and large to recite M. Hugh Latimer who gave over his Bishopricke out of conscience in K. Hen●y the 8. his raigne and never resumed it againe skipping for joy h●e was rid of that heavie burthen In his Sermon of the Plough preached thus God saith by the Prophet Ieremy Maledictus qui facit opus Dei fraudulenter guilefully and deceitfully some bookes have negligenter negligently or slackly How many such Prelates how many such Bishops Lord for thy mercy are there now in England And what shall wee in this case do shall wee company with them O Lord for thy mercy shall we not company with them O Lord whither shall wee flee from them But cursed be hee that doth the worke of the Lord negligently or guilefully A sore word for them that are negligent in discharging their office ill Yee that be Prelates looke well to your office for right Prelating is busie labouring and not Lording therefore preach and teach and let your plough be doing Ye Lords I say that live like loyterers looke well to your office the Plough is your office and charge if yee live idle and loyter you doe not your duty c. They have to say for themselves long customes ceremonies and authority placing in Parliament many things more And I fear mee this Land is not ripe to be ploughed for as the saying is it lacketh withering This Land lacketh withering at least it is not for mee to plough For what shall I looke for among thornes but pricking and scratching What among stones but stumbling what I had almost said among Scorpions but stinging But thus much I dare say that since Lording and loytering hath come up preaching hath gone downe contrary to the Apostles times for they preached and Lorded not and now they Lord and preach not for they that bee Lords will ill goe to the Plough it is no meete o●fice to them it is not seeming for their estate Thus came up Lording loyterers thus crept up unpreaching P●elates for how many unlearned Prelates have wee now at this day And no marvell for if the ploughmen that now be were made Lords they would cleane give over ploughing they would leave their labour and fall to Lording outright and let the plough stand then both ploughs not walking nothing should be in the Common-wealth but hunger For ever since the Prelates were made Lords and Nobles their plough standeth there is no worke done the people starve they hawke they hunt they card they dice they pastime in their Prelacies with gallant Gentlemen with their dauncing Minions and with their fresh companions so that ploughing is set aside and by their Lording and loytering preaching and ploughing is cleane gone And thus if the ploughmen in the Country were as negligent

as the Bishops be now who have all this living neithe● had Peter nor Paul any such revenue Baker Let us dispatch him he will mar all Collins If every man had a hundred pounds as he saith it would make more learned men Baker But our Bishops would be angry if that they knew it Allin It were for a Commonwealth to have such Bishoprickes divided for the further increase of learning Infinite are the declamations and complaints of our godly Martyrs in Queene Maries and King Henry●he ●he 8. his raigne against the Prelates● which because they are ordinary and every man may reade them in Master F●x his Acts and Monuments I shall therefore passe them by in silence and proce●de to some other Authorities Our learned Io●n Bale determins thus of our Lordly Bishops The Bishops compasse every where about with tyranny and malice possible the holds the dwelling houses and places of resort pe●taining to the ●aith●ull brethren they vexe their bodies on every side with rebukes sco●nes blasphemies lyes scourgings imprisonments open shames of the world and all manner of kindes of death seldome escape any from the terrible hands of the Prelates and Priests that sincerely ●avour the truth every where have they their spies their Judasses their false accusers their Sommoners their Bayliffes and their pick-thankes with o●her Officers to bring th●m in In all places are they diligently watched fiercely examined when they are taken and cruelly enforced to accuse so many as they know of that beleefe Every where have they spirituall prisons and Bishops Dungeons with plenty of ropes stockes and irons and as little charity else as the Devill hath in hell This hath beene their order from the time of Satans Liberty and this have they taken for an high point of Christian Religion For this is the houre that Christ prophecied of wherein men should thinke to doe God great service when they put one of his unto death None other caused Herod and Pilate to put Christ to death but Ann●s Caiaphas None other moved Felix the President of Iury to imprison Paul but the puffed up Prelate Ananias Trajanus the Emperour would never so extreamely have persecuted the Christian Church nor yet o●her cruell tyrants ever since had they not beene propped forward by such pampred Palfryes of the Devill the beastly Bishops Whose calling and trayterly Practises he much declaimes against both there and in his Centuries to which I shall referre you Matthew ●ar●er Archbishop of Canterbury in the life of Hubert his predecessor writes thus of Bishops intermedling with secular offices and affaires that about the yeare of our Lord ●197 there was nothing ●ound and sincere in the Christian republike that the whole Clergie under a feigned and counterfeit shew of Religion did wallow without punishment in wickednesse in bribes in honours and rapinesse neglecting utterly the preaching of Gods Word The Originall saith he of this evill sprung from this that the Clergie did too much intermeddle with worldly affaires contrary to the Decrees of the Orthodox Fathers For at that time the Deane of Pauls was made Lord Treasurer who carrying that Office quickly hourded up a great treasure at last falling into a deadly disease past recovery he was exhorted by the Bishops and great men to receive the Sacrament of Christs body and blood which he trembling at refused to doe whereupon the King admonished and commanded him to doe it he promised him thereupon to doe it the next day being admonished to make his Will he commanded all to voyd the roome but one Scribe Who beginning to write his Will in the accustomed forme In the Name of the Father of the Sonne c. The Deane perceiving it commanded him in a rage to blot it out and these words onely to be written I bequeath all my goods to my Lord the King my body to the grave and my soule to the Devill which being uttered he gave up the Ghost The king hereupon commanded his carcasse to be carried in a cart and drowned in the River This kinde of examples writes he are therefore to be produced that Clergie men may be de●erred from being Lord Treasurers Collectors of the kings customes and from civill and publicke imployments In Huberts time all secular offices almost were in Clergie mens hands for some of them were Chauncellours some Justices some Treasurers of the kingdome others had other O●fices in all the kings Courts and Pluralities of many great livings besides which wealth honours offices and dignities as it made them like to kings in State and magnificence so it puffed them up with such pride and arrogance that in the 36. yeare of king Henry the third they were removed from all Civill Offices and honours at the instant request and desire of the greatest Noblemen to whom the same Offices were committed Hence some of all orders in our present times have most sharpely reprehended the Clergie for this very thing that being advanced to the degree of Divinity than which nothing in humane life ought to be deemed more holy they should bee hindred there-from with secular businesses as with servile workes and being with●drawne from divine things should give themselves to pecuniary and Exchequer affaires which are most estranged from the dignity of their life by which some as appeares by the example of that Deane of Pauls have made shipwracke both of Conscience and soule to Willielmus Nubrigensis speaking of Hugh Bishop of Duresine for intermedling with the procuration of temporall affaires hath these words That Office to wit of Lord Chauncellor or chiefe Justice was committed by the King to the Bishop of Duresine who did not so much as refuse but cheerefully imbrace it who verily contenting himselfe with his proper office had much more decently beene a minister of Gods Law than of mans since no man can serve both as hee ought And that saying of our Lord to the Apostles Ye cannot serve God and Mammon did principally respect the Apostles Successors For if a Bishop that he may please both the heavenly and earthly king at once wil devide himself to both Offices Verily the heavenly King who wils that men should serve him with all the heart with all the soule and with all the strength doth neither approve nor love nor accept his divine ministry What then will he doe if a Bishop doth not give peradventure not so much as halfe of himselfe to execute the things which are of God and become a Bishop but commits his cures to unworthy and remisse Executioners that he may wholly serve an earthly Court or Palace For no halfe man can sufficiently administer the Offices of an earthly Prince By which sentences and examples we verily are admonished that assiduous care and study of Clergie men in worldly and Civill affaires which makes them prove slow and unfit to divine things is by all meanes to be reproved and that the complaint of those is very unjust who

Faith Theo. But Laymen may choose what faith they will professe and Princes may dispose of their Kingdomes though Priests and Bishops would say nay Phi. Religion they may not dispose without a Councell Theo. Not if God command Phi. How shall they know what God commandeth unlesse they have a Councell Theo. This is childish wrangling I aske if God command whether the Prince shall refuse to obey till the Clergy confirme the same Phi. You may be sure a wise and sober Clergy will not dissent from Gods precepts Theo. What they will doe is out of our matter But in case they doe to which shall the Prince hearken to God or those that beare themselves for Priests Phi. In case they doe so you need not doubt but God must be regarded and not men Theo. And hath the Prince sufficient authority to put that in ●re which God commandeth though the Priests continue their wilfulnes Phi. There is no Councell nor consent of men good against God Theo. Hold you there Then when Ch●istian Princes are instructed and resolved by learned and faithfull teachers what God requireth at their hands what need they care for the backward disposition of such false Prophets as are turned from the truth and preach lyes Phi. In England when her Majesty came to the Crowne it was not so The Bishops that dissented were grave vertuous and honourable Pastors standing in defence of the Catholicke and ancient Faith of their Fathers Theo. You say so wee say no. Phi. Those be but words Theo. You say very right and therefore the more to blame you that in both your bookes doe play on that string with your Rhetoricall and Thrasonicall fluence and never enter any point or proofe that my profi● your Reader you presume your selves to have such apparent right and rule over the Faith over the Church over Christian Princes and Realmes that without your consent they shall neither conclude nor consult what religion they will professe Their acts shall be disorders their Lawes injuries their correction tyranny if you mislike them This dominion and jurisdiction over all Kingdomes and Countries if your holy Father and you may have for the speaking you were not wise if you would not claime it but before we beleeve you you must bring some better ground of your Title then such magnificall and majesticall florishes The Prince and the parliament you say had no power to determine or deliberate of those matters● And why so you to wit Bishops did dissent May not the Prince command for truth within her Realme except your consents be first required and had May not her Highnesse serve Christ in making Lawes for Christ without your liking Claime you that interest and prerogative that without you nothing shall be done in matters of Religion by the Lawes of God or by the liberties of this Realme By the Lawes of the Land you have no such priviledge Parliaments have beene kept by the King and his Barons the Clergy wholly excluded yet their Acts and Statutes good And when the Bishops were present their voyces from the Conquest to this day were never negative By Gods Law you have nothing to do with making Lawes for Kingdomes and common●wealths you may teach you may not command Perswasion is your part compulsion is the Princes If Princes imbrace the truth you must obey them If they pursue truth you must abide them By what authority then claime you this Dominion over Princes that their Lawes for Religion shall be void unlesse you consent Phi. They be no Judges of faith Theo. No more are you It is lawfull for any Christian to reject your doctrine if he perceive it to be false though you teach it in your Churches pronounce it in your Councels to be never so true Phi. That proveth not every private mans opinion to be true Theo. Not yet to be false the greater number is not ever a sure warrant for truth And Judges of faith though Princes be not yet are they maintainers establishers and upholders of faith with publike power and positive Lawes which is the point you now withstand Phil. That they may do when a Councell is precedent to guide them Theo. What Councell● had Asa the King of Judah when he commanded his peopl● to do according to the Law and the Commandment and made a cov●nant that whosoever would not seeke the Lord God of Israel should be slaine Phi. He had Azariah the prophet Theo. One man is no Councell and he did but encourage and commend the King and that long after hee had established Religion in his Realme What councell had Ezechiah to lead him when he restored the true worship of God throughout his land and was faine to send for the Priests and Levites and to put them in mind of their duties What Councell had Iosiah when ten yeares after his comming to the Crowne he was forced to send for direction to Huldath the Prophetesse not finding a man in Iudah that did or could undertake the charge Phi. These were Kings of the Old Testament and they had the Law of God to guide them Theo. Then since Christian Princes have the same Scriptures which they had and also the Gospell of Christ and Apostolike writings to guide them which they had not why should they not in their Kingdomes retaine the same power which you see the Kings of Judah had and used to their immor●all praise and joy Phi. The Christian Emperours ever called Councells before they would attempt any thing in Ecclesiasticall matters Theo. What Councell had Constantine when with his Princely power he publikely received and settled Christian religion throughout the World twenty yeares before the Fathers met at Nice What councels had Iustinian for all those Ecclesiasticall constitutions and orders which hee decreed● and I have often repeated What Councels had Charles for the Church Lawes and Chapters which he proposed and enjoyned as well to the Pastors as to the people of his Empire Phi. They had instruction by some godly Bishops that were about them Theo. Conference with some Bishops such as they liked they might have but councells for these causes they had none In 480. years after Christian Religion was established by Christian Laws I mean from Constantine the first to Constantine the seventh there were very neere forty Christian Emperours whose Lawes and Acts for Ecclesiasticall affaires were infinite and yet in all that time they never called but sixe generall Councels and those for the Godhead of the Sonne and the Holy Ghost and for the two distinct natures and wills in Christ. All other points of Christian Doctrine and Discipline they received established and maintained without ●ecumenicall Councels upon the private instruction of such Bishops and clerkes as they favored or trusted Theodosius as I shewed before made his owne choyce what faith he would follow had no man nor meanes to direct him unto truth but

his owne prayers unto God and private reading of those sundry confessions that were offered him c. Pag. 543. he thus proceeds Had you beene in the Primitive Church of Christ you would have gallantly disdained these other examples of Christian Kings and Countries converted and instructed by Merchants somtimes by women most times by the single perswasion of one man without all legall meanes or judiciall proceeding● the poore soules of very zeale imbracing the Word of life when it was first offered them and neglecting your number of voyces consent of Priest● and competent Courts as frivilous exc●ptions against God and dangerous lets to their Salvation● Frumentius a Christian Child taken prisoner in India the farther and brought at length by Gods good Providence to beare some sway in the Realme in the non-age of the King carefully sought for such as were Christians among the Roman Merchants and gave them most free power to have assemblies in every place yeelding them whatsoever was requisite and exhorting them in sundry places to use the Christian prayers And within short time he built a Church and brought it to passe that some of the Indians were instructed in the faith and joyned with them The King of Iberia neere Pontus when he saw his wi●e restored to health by the prayers of a Christian Captive and himselfe delivered out of the suddaine danger that he was in onely by thinking and calling on Christ whom the Captive woman named so often to his wife sent for the woman and desired to learne the manner of her Religion and promised after that never to worship any other God but Christ The Captive woman taught him as much as a woman might and admonished him to build a Church and described the forme how it must be done whereupon the King calling the people of the whole Nation together told what had befallen the Queene and him and taught them the faith and became as it were the Apostle of this Nation though he were not yet baptized The examples of England France and other Countries are innumerable where Kings and Common wealths at the preaching of one man have submitted themselves to the faith of Christ without Councels or any Synodall or judiciall proceedings And therefore each Prince and people without these meanes have lawfull power to serve God and Christ his Sonne notwithstanding twenty Bishops as in our case or if you will twenty thousand Bishops should take exceptions to the Gospell of truth which is nothing else but to waxe mad against God by pretence of humane reason and order By all which it is evident that Parliaments may not onely be held and determine Secular matters but likewise Ecclesiasticall and Religious without the presence of Bishops which is no wayes necessary if expedient Touching the parity of Bishops Presbyters by Divine institution their difference only by custom he determins thus The title and authorithy of Arch-Bishops and Patriarkes was not ordained by the Commandment of Christ or his Apostles but the Bishops long after when the Church began to be troubled with dissentions were content to lincke themselves together and in every Province to suffer one whom they preferred for the worthines of his City and called their Metropolitane that is Bishop of the chiefe or mother City to have this prerogative in all doubts of Doctrine and Discipline to assemble the rest of his brethren or consult them absent by Letters and see that observed which the most part of them determined Before there began Schismes in Religion the Churches saith S. Hierome were governed by the Common Councill of the Seniors And therefore let the Bishops understand that they be greater than Ministers or Elders rather by custome than by any truth of the Lords appointment and that they ought to governe the Church in Common and in his Epistle to Evagrius having fully proved by the Scriptures that the Apostles called themselves but Presbyters Elders or Seniors he addeth That after their times one was chosen in every Church and preferred before the rest to have the dignity of a Bishop this was provided for a remedie against Schismes lest every man drawing some unto him should rent the Church of Christ in peeces For what doth a Bishop except ordering of others which an Elder may not doe And lest you should thinke he speaketh not as well of the chiefe as of the meaner Bishops he compareth three of the greatest Patriarkes with three of the poorest Bishops he could name A Bishop of what place soever he be either of Rome or of Eugubium or of Constantinople or of Rhegium or of Alexandria or of Tajus hath the same merit and the same function or Priesthood abundance of riches or basenesse of po●erty doth not make a Bishop higher or lower for they all be successours to the Apostles So that the Bishop of Rome by Commission from Christ and succession from the Apostles is no higher than the meanest Bishop in world The Superiority which he and others had as Metropolitanes in their owne Provinces came by custome as the great Councell of Nice witnesseth not by Christs institution Let the old use continue in Egypt Lybia and Pentapolis that the Bishop of Alexandria be chiefe over all those places for so much as the Bishop of Rome hath the like custome Likewise at Antioch and in other Provinces let the Churches keepe theer Prerogatives The generall Councell of Ephesus confesseth the same It seemeth good to this sacred and Oecumenicall Synod to conserve to every Province their right priviledges whole and untouched which they have had of old according to the custome that now long hath prevailed Next their authority was subject not onely to the discretion and moderation of their brethren assembled in Councell but also to the Lawes and Edicts of Christian Princes to be granted extended limited and ordered as they say cause For example the first Councell of Constantinople advanced the Bishop of that City to be the next Patriarch to the Bishop of Rome which before he was not And the Councell of Chalcedon made him equall in Ecclesiasticall honours with the Bishop of Rome and assigned him a larger Province than before he had So Iustinian gave to the City in Africa that he called after his owne name the See of an Archbishop Touching Bishops secular Jurisdiction imprisonment and temporall affaires he writes thus Bishops be no governours of Countries Princes be that is Bishops beare not the sword to reward and revenge Princes doe Bishops have no power to command and punish Princes have This appeareth by the Words of our Saviour expressely forbidding his Apostles to be Rulers of Nations and leaving it to Princes The Kings of Nations rule over their people and they that be great ones exercise authority with you it shall not be so that is you shall neither beare rule nor exercise authority over

follow his Edition as Master Calvin and some few others doe in their Commentaries whereas both he and they are professed Enemies to Episcopacy and disclaime those Postscripts as false and spurious Fi●thly Master Beza and the ●et●ers forth of the Greeke Bible Printed by the Heires of Andrew Francofurti 1597. passe this sentence upon these Postscripts and this clause Ordained the first Bishops of Ephesus or of the Church of the Ephesians Non exta● in quibusdam vetustis Codi●ibus sane supposttum fuisse pu●o And Guilielmus Estius a famous Roman Doctor in his Commentary on 2 Tim. 1.4 writes thus of the Postscript to it Grae●a subscriptio post finem Epistolae sic habet Scriptae Roma ad Timotheum secunda cum Paulus iterum sisteretur Caesari Neroni where he omits this addition Ephesiorum Ecclesiae primus Episcopus and then passeth this verdict upon it Sed hujusmodi Graecae subscriptiones ut incerti sunt authoris ITA NON Magnae authoritatis And Thom●s de vio Cajetanus Andreas Hyperius Estius with others de●● the subscription to Titus That this Epistle was written from Nicopolis of Macedonia and the Century writers with others that the Second to Timothy was written from Rome a● Pauls second appearing before Nero a meere falshood and mistake All which considered I wonder our great learned Prelates B●shop Downeham Bishop White and Bishop Hall and especially our great Antiquary Bishop Vsher should so much insist upon these spurious false postscripts and draw a maine Argument from to prove their Episcopacy of Divine Institution when Bellarmine and those Papists who write most eagerly for the Prelates Hierarchy are ashamed to produce such a false and impotent proofe for their groundlesse Episcopall jurisdiction If these Answers satisfy not this Objection from these Postscripts you may receive more full satisfaction and further Answers to it in my Vnbishoping of Timothy and Titus p. 52. to 58. To which I shall remit the Reader From these two Arguments for the pretended Divine right of Episcopacy I shall next proceed to answer the most considerable reasons produced for the continuing of Lordly Prelates in our Church The first for order and moment is the Antiquity of Lordly Bishops in our Church who if we credit Bishop Hall and others are not onely of Divine institution but their Episcopall Government hath continued in this our Island ever since the first plantation of the Gospell without contradiction Therefore it will be neither decent nor expedient but dangerous and inconvenient to remove them now To this I answer first that though Bishops have been very ancient in our Church yet how ancient and what kinde of Bishops these were will be the question Metraphrastes writes that Saint Peter continued long in Britaine constituted Churches and ordained Bishops Presbyters and Deacons and then returned to Rome the 12 yeare of Nero Caesar. But as this Authour is very fabulous in other things so without doubt he is false and singular i● this as I could easily manifest did not Bishop Vshers siquidem Symeoni Metaphrastae credimus and Baronius his sicut in aliis multis ibi a se positis errare Metaphrastum certum est ita in his hallucinatum esse constat Iohn Speed his For a dreame we leave it c. and Francis Godwin Bishop of Landaffe in his Discourse of the first conversion of this Island of Britaine unto Christian Religion p. 3 4 5 6. where he largely and professedly proves against this Impostor That Peter was never in Britaine ease me of this Labour and sufficiently refute the vaine confidence of those who have lately produced this branded Authority to derive the Antiquity of our Lordly Prelates from the Apostles themselves as if they had first planted them in our Church That which is likewise alledged out of the Greeke Martyrologe and Dorotheus his Synopsis That Aristobulus was ordained Bishop of the Britaine 's by Paul and by him sent Bishop into England seemes to be of the same stampe with the former in Bishop Godwins judgement who rejects it as fabulous because none of our owne Authors or Histories so much as once mention his so memorable labour and martyrdome among us But grant it true ye● since the word Bishop is here used onely for an ordinary Minister or Preacher of the Gospell and Aristobulus sent onely to convert our Nation being Pagans had no Bishopricke or Diocesse here nor any Inferiour Presbyters under him for ought appeares over whom to play the Lord as our Lordly Prelates have this Authority will stand those in small steed who with more confidence then judgement have objected it in defence of our Lordly Bishops which by the common consent of all our Writers began not till King Lucius his raigne about the yeare of Christ 179. So that from the Preaching of the Gospell in our Island by Iacobus Zebedeus Anno Christi 41. of Simon Zelotes Anno 47. of Ioseph of Ara●at●aea Anno 48. of Saint Paul Anno 60. of Philip the Apostle and his twelve associates Anno 63. till Lucius erected Bishops and Bishoprickes to wit for the space of about one hundred and forty yeares after the first Preaching of the Gospell here our Church of Britaine had no Bishops at all to governe it but onely Presbyters for ought app●ares by any credible Authour the Christian faith all this while continuing un-extinguished among us at Glastenbury and in some other places as our Antiquaries manifest If then that rule of Tertullian be infallible That is best and truest which is first and that of Hierome most certaine That the Church of God immediately after the Apostles times before the erection of Lord Bishops was governed by a common Councell of Presbyters not by Bishops and our Church as is probable and the Church of Scotland as some Authors write for certaine was governed in this manner by Presbyters for above an hundred yeares together it will rather follow that our Lord Bishops should now be totally suppressed and a Presbyteriall government re-erected in our Church because it is ancienter than that of Bishops and planted among us by the Apostles when our Island first received the Gospell then that the government of our Lordly Prelates should be perpetua●ed among us because ancient onely yet not so old as that of Presbyters by above one hundred yeares Touching the first erection of Arch-bishops Bishops and Bishoprickes among us there is great variance obscurity and incertaine●y in Writers yet this is the generall verdict both of our owne and forraigne Authours That in King Lucius his time before the conversion of our Island to Christianity there were in it 28 Flamines and three Arch Flamines to whom the other Iudges of manners and Priests were subject that upon the conversion of King Lucius and his people to the Christian Faith by Fagan and De●wan they by command from Pope Eleutherius with the Kings

This Prelate dying when he was brought to Lincolne to be interred Iohn King of England and William King of Scots were met there with an infinite company of Nobility of both Realmes The two Kings for the great reverence they bare to his holinesse who yet gave no ●everence at all to Kings as you have formerly heard would needs set their shoulders to the beare and helped to carry his course from the gates of the City untill it came to the Church doore where the Prelates themselves received and carried it into the Quire and bu●yed him in the body of the East end of the Church ABOVE THE HIGH ALTAR which therefore stood not close to the East wall in those times but some good distance from it neere the Altar of Saint Iohn Hugh Walis or de Wils his next successour in this See but one Anno 1209. notwithstanding King Iohn refused to receive Stephen Langhton that arch-traytor for Archbishop of Canterbury and commanded this Bishop to repaire to the Archbishop of Rhoan for consecration from him and not to receive it from Langhton in contempt of this his Soveraignes command got him to Langhton and received consecration from him whereupon the King seised on all his temporalties and kept him fasting from them foure yeeres and then restored them After this he joyned both with the Barons and Lewis the French King who came to conquer the Realme against his naturall Soveraigne For which treasons he was onely excommunicated by the Pope and not absolved till he had paid the Pope one thousand marks and a hundred markes to his Legate Divers other of our Prelates were fined for the same cause and that so deepely as they were compelled to sell all they had to purchase the Kings favour Anno Dom. 1252. King Henry the third in a Parliament held at London getting a grant from the Pope of the tenths due to the Church to be received of him for three yeeres towards the charges of his journey into the holy Land to rescue it from the Saracens demanded these tenths of the spiritualtie But the Bishops and especially Robert Gros●head Bishop of Lin●olne utterly refused to be contributary to this grant They alledged sundry reasons for their excuse as the poverty of the English Church being already made bare with continuall exactions and oppressions but chiefly they excused themselves by the absence of the Archbishops of Canterbury and Yorke of whom the one was beyond the Sea and the other at home in the North parts All the other Bishops were there except Here●ord and Chester who was sicke and therefore without the consent of those that were absent and namely their Primate of Canterbury they could not conclude any generall poynt touching the Kings demand And although the King fretted and stormed against them yet could he not bring them to his purpose so as the Parliament was for that time dissolved Yet before their departure from London the King communed with them apart to see if he could get some money towards his charges but they had tuned their strings all after one not● discording all from his Tenor so that not a penny could be got of them wherefore he tooke high displeasure against them reviling them in most reproachfull manne● and amongst other he reviled his halfe brother the elect of Winchester taxing him of great unthankfulnesse who also among the residue stood against him Anno 1257. they denyed the King a Subsidie againe there being saith Holinshed a great untoward disposition in the Subjects of that time for the helping of their King with a necessary ayd of money towards such great charges as he had bin by divers wayes occasioned to be at Befo●e this Anno 1250. this Bishop excommunicated a Priest for incontinency who continuing for some daies without seeking to be reconciled the Bishop sent to the Sheriffe of Rutland within whose Bayliwicke the Priest dwelt to apprehend him as a disodient and rebellious person who not executing the Bishops commandement the Bishop thereupon excommunicates the Sheriffe whereof the King being informed tooke displeasure and sending to the Pope procured an inhibition that no Archbishop or Bishop should compell any Officer of the King to follow any suit before them for those things that appertaine to the Kings jurisdiction or give sentence against them for the same This Grosthead Bishop of Lincolne Anno 1246. upon the suggestion of the Friers Predicants and Minorites raged more then was meet or expedient against those of his D●ocesse making strict inquisition in his Bishopricke by his Archdeacons and Deanes concerning the chastity and manners as well of Noble as ignoble upon oath to the enormious hurt and scandall of the reputations of many Which had never beene accustomed to be done before The King hearing the grievous complaints of his people against these Innovations did thereupon by the advice of his Counsell and Courts of Justice send a Writ to the Sheriffe of Hertford in these words Henry by the grace of God King of England c. We command thee that as thou lovest thy selfe and all things that are thine that thou from henceforth suffer not any Laymen of ●hy Baylywicke to assemble together in any place at the will of the Bishop of Lincolne or of his Archdeacons Officials or rurall Deanes to make any acknowledgments or attestations upon their oath unlesse in cases of Matrimony and testament And the very next yeere following in pursurance thereof the King by Parliament enacted and commanded these things ensuing to be inviolably observed That if any Lay men were convented before an Ecclesiasticall Iudge for breach of faith and perjury that they shou●d be prohibited by the King And that the Ecclesiasticall Iudge should be prohibited to hold plea of all causes against Laymen unlesse they were of Matrimony and Testament All which Matthew Paris precisely relates Which prohibition and statute nullified the constitution of O●ho and hindered this Bishops innovation whereupon that insolent traytorly Martiall Archbishop of Canterbury Boniface better skilled in affaires of a Campe then of the Church Anno 1256. but nine yeeres after this prohibition and forenamed statute published this peremptory audacious constitution in affront of them both Statuimus quod Laici ubi de subditorum pec●●tis excessibus corrigendis per Praelatos Ecclesiasticos judices inquiritur ad praestandum de veritate dicenda juramentum per excommunicationis sententias si opus fu●rit compellantur impedientes verò ne hujusmodi juramentum praestetur for the Judges with many othe●s then generally oppugned and hindred the ushering in of this Innovation per interdicti excommunicationis sententiam arceant●● To evacuate which exorbitant illegall constitution meant onely of witnesses not of Churchwardens Sidemen or Stangers oathes as the Glosse of Lindwood who records it resolves in expresse termes trenching both upon the peoples liberties and the Courts of Justice too the Judges frequently granted out sundry