doctrine against your receiued errors were accounted of the world so he tearmeth them whom he him selfe confesseth to haue bene the true Church for heretikes But you muste proue that their opinions are contrarie to the worde of God or else all your labour is in vayne Supra pag. 10. And for example more store the Reader may sée here in the third Chapter I will not dissemble saith he Aërius taught that prayer for the dead was vnprofitable as witnesseth both Epiphanius and Augustinus which they account for an error But neither of them both reproueth it by the Scripture Pur. 416. And the same againe in another place Nowe at the length commeth the author of this heresie by the testimonie of Epiphanius and Augustine But neither of them confuteth it by the Scriptures Pur. 426. And in an other place thus boldly For our parte it is sufficient that we knowe God in his holy word to be the first founder of our doctrine and therfore that they lye blasphemously which would make any heretike the author of it And therevpon he concludeth forsooth with great honestie saying Wherfore Ar. 44. if Aërius had not bene an Arrian this opinion could not haue made him an heretike Where to passe that blasphemie only this I say August ad quoduu in praef in epilogo that he séemeth not to know the purpose of S. Augustine in that booke De haeresibus ad quoduultdeum whiche he saith was likewise the purpose of Epiphanius not to coÌ„fute but only to report the heresies that had bene before his time and that not without great profite to the Reader Cum scire sufficiat c. because it is inough onely to know that the Catholike Churches iudgement is against these and that no man must receiue into his beliefe any one of these And agayne Multum adiuuat cor fidele c. It greatly helpeth the faithfull heart onely to know what must not be beleeued although he bee not able to confute it by disputing Loe then you faithfull heartes the case is so cleare Note â— seeke thâ— this conâ— of Fulkeâ— that the very aduersarie confesseth both that the same was the true Catholike Churche and also that it iudged Aerius to be an heretike helpe your selues therefore and make your profite of this confession assuring your selues vpon the Catholike Doctors lesson that séeing the Church was against Aerius the scripture could not be with him because one Spirit of truth speaketh both in the Church and in the Scripture As for Fulke and all that he here saith you sée it is no other then if Aerius Iouinianus or Vigilantius had said vnto you Aske my fellow whether I be a théefe Naught else it is that he there againe concludeth for those thrée heresiarkes saying Thus Ar 4â— you are not able to name any which preached any article of our doctrine but the same was consonant to the Scripture Of the same sort also in an other place Therefore M. Allen or Pur. 3â— S. Augustine rather if you will teach your Schollers to keepe vs at the baye as heretikes you must not teach them to bark and baule nothing but the Church the Church like tinkers curres O vvorâ— stimatioâ— he hath Church but you must instruct them to open cunningly out of the Scriptures how our doctrine is contrarie to the truth and yours agreeable to the same Againe like one that would appoint his enemie not to inuade him with a gunne because he knoweth not how to saue him selfe from the shotte of it but to take some other weapon that of his making in an other place he saith And especially in this controuersie Pur. 12 where either partie chargeth other with heresie howbeit I trow his partie chargeth not so S. Epiphanius S. Augustine though they so charge his Patriarke Aerius it had bene conuenient that the right definition or description of an heretike had bene first set downe that men might thereby haue learned who is iustly to be burdened with that crime For an heretike is he that in the Churche obstinately maintaineth an opinion that is contrarie to the doctrine of God conteined in the holy Scriptures which if any of vs can be proued to doe then let vs not be spared An herâ— a man in Church 〈◊〉 Fulk Fâ— a nobis 〈◊〉 Iohn Infra but condemned for Heretikes In déede if an Heretike be a man in the Churche you are cockesure and not only you and Aerius but Arrius Pelagius all other heretikes that euer were we rather with S. Augustine S. Epiphanius and such others in daunger To this place it belongeth that againe he sayeth Pur. 402. M. Allen giueth a speciall note that wee name not Iouinian or Vigilantius the playne auouchers of our opinions but rather labour to writh with plaine iniurie to the Author some sentence out of Augustine or Ambrose or some other that opened them selues to the world to beléeue the contrarie And thinketh we are ashamed of the other In deede if we depended vpon any mans authoritie or that any man or men were the Authors of our fayth wee should bee iniurious vnto them if we dyd not acknowledge our founders But seeing God him selfe is the Father of that doctrine which we haue receyued by his holy worde we are not ashamed of Vigilantius nor Berengarius when they agree therewith Onely the Canonicall Scriptures are the rule by which we iudge of all men and their writinges of all doctrine and the teachers thereof Pur. 409. Agayne And therefore it is but vayne bragging that you promyse to seeke out other Fathers of our perswasion then the Apostles of Christ by whose holy writinges we neuer refuse to be iudged For the Scripture is the onely high way to the truth with the guidance of Gods spirite And agayne You spend many wordes in vayne Pur. 412. to proâ—e that the first author of an opinion beyng found the opinion is found to be an heresie It shall bee graunted with all fauour but so that no man shall be counted the first author of an opinion that is able to proue his opinion out of the word of God And withall that whosoeuer is not able to proue by the word of God any opinion that he holdeth obstinately though he haue many authors before him yet he is neuerthelesse an Though iâ— be S. Augustine him selfe though he hold the foundation here cap. v. heretike And so much of their first authors founde out by vs as Aerius Iouinianus Vigilantius and such other old heresiarches condemned he confesseth by the true Church of Christ but contrarie he saith to the Scriptures of Christ Now on the other side being vrged by D. Allen to finde in like maner our first Authors or els it will follow the Apostles to be our authors Pur. 391. heare what he saieth therevnto Must we finde out the authors of your heresies nay iustifie them your selues by the word
blinde presumption to search the meaning of the Scriptures onely out of the Scriptures without the commentaries of the Doctors but not also I trow without the Commentaries of Caluine and such like companions thus he saith Pur. 407. And happy be those which not regarding the streames of waters that runne through the vaynes of earth but seeking to the onely fountayne of heauenly truth conteined in the holy Scriptures haue certaine comfort of saluation Pur. 285. And againe to the same purpose Surely as the Sunne is not obscured with the dust that a Cock casteth vp when he scrapeth on the dunghill The Doctors vvritings a dunghill no more is the Sonne of righteousnesse or the light of his holy worde darkened by all the myste of mens deuises which Allen or his complices can rayse out of the whole heape of superstition and error to deface the glory of his Church The worde of the Lord is a light vnto our steppes and therefore we will not walke in the darknes of mens traditions Our doctrine shall one day be tried before God and therefore we make no account how we be iudged by mans day 1. Cor. 4. So properly he vttereth his presumption in the words that the Apostle clene contrarie did speake in excéeding great feare It foloweth Your way is your owne way not the way of the Lord and because you take another way vnto saluation then the onely right waye Iesus Christ therfore by his owne sentence you are al theeues and murderers Hath any séene a man so drunken so blinded with pride Well then in the other place of searching the meaning out of the Scriptures them selues alone and neglecting the receaued Expositors what saieth he Whether the old Doctors be more like to vnderstand the Scriptures then the Protestāts Pur. 434. I haue answered before we will make no comparison with them Modestly spoken a man would thinke but what followeth Neither will we chalenge the likelihood to vs neither will we leaue it to them I mary hold your owne we pray you And why so For whether soeuer we doe we shall be neuer the more certaine of the trueth You say true for so much as concerneth your selues For in déede no certaintie of trueth but most certaine certaintie of error in your vnderstanding But in what so euer the Doctors doe agrée who so expoundeth the Scripture vnto that shall be euer most certaine of the truth which is ynough though not alwayes certaine of that same very places meaning as in the sixt Chapter I declared more at large Forth now a Gods name Supra cap. 6. par 2. But this will we set downe as a most certaine principle that no man can vnderstand the Scriptures but by the same Spirite by which they were written The meaning of some place one may attaine vnto which hath not that Spirit but to vnderstand them alwayes agréeably to the truth can not be without that same Spirit Forth againe What then shall we arrogate the Spirit as proper to vs and denye it to them God forbid They had their measure of Gods spirit and so haue we Hereof ariseth an obiection How then is the Spirit of God contrarie to it selfe because they and we agree not in all thinges He answereth God forbid Cyprian and Cornelius were both endued with Gods Spirit yet they agreed not both in one interpretation nor iudgement of the scripture Yea Syr Cyprian as he was of Cornelius his Spirit so was he likewise of Cornelius his iudgement implicitè as we tearme it though explicite he were of an other of an erronius iudgemēt and that according to his owne humane spirit and not according to Gods Spirit As at this day likewise and alwayes whensoeuer any Catholike man of ignoraunce erreth expressely yet notwithstanding in effect he is of the trueth with the other Catholikes which erre not because he quietly continueth in vnitie with them nor doth not obstinatly holde his owne error against them Now whether the case be so betwene the olde Doctors and you briefly and manifestly it is declared by this that neither you at this time will be refourmed by them nor they in their time would be refourmed by your forefathers Aerius Iouinianus and such like But now that you haue abrogated the vnderstanding of the Scriptures from Gods spirite both in the Doctors and in your selues say on and tell vs your aduise What then there remayneth but this seconde principle as certayne as the first That the Spirite of God hath a meaning in the Scriptures which is not to be sought out of the Scriptures in the opinions of deceiuable men but only in the Scriptures where is nothing but the spirite of truth No syr why suppose those men were the Apostles them selues or any other hauing the same spirite of trueth that the Apostles first had but of that ynough before foorth therefore Therefore that the spirite may declare his owne meaning Ar. 86. one place of Scripture must be expounded by an other for the hard places of Scripture must be opened by easie places all other ordinary meanes and helpes of wit learning knowledge of tongs diligence in hearing reading and praying are subordinate and seruing to this search and triall And is this way so sure and certayne I mary For who soeuer obserueth this search and triall most precisely shall come to the knowledge of the trueth most certaynly And may he not trust an other which hath so precisely obserued it as for example the Protestantes me thinkes as your selfe or M. Caluine c. but I crie you mercy you meant not them Well then may he not trust the olde Fathers therein A comfortable doctrine for the ignorant forsooth or did not they obserue it diligently No for who so euer is negligent in this search and tryall though he haue otherwise neuer so many and excellent graces and giftes may easily be deceiued yea you speake nowe a great worde euen when he thinketh he followeth the authoritie of the Scriptures Which search if the auncient Fathers had alwayes followed they should not so lightly haue passed ouer some thinges as to condemne the Protestantes in Aerius and Vigilantius c. and other thinges so slenderly haue mainteined as the doctrine of the Papistes Well then I sée all is in a mans owne diligence to trust no man nor men but to reade the Scriptures conferre the places and so gather the meaning by him selfe this is your most certen way I must therefore tell you a litle of our diligence therin that you may certifie vs whether it be ynough or no. and the rather because you exhort our master D. Allen and say to him Pur. 9. Trye the rule of the Protestantes and search the worde of God in the holy Scriptures and then vndoubtedly you shall finde the trueth and the Church also that is the pillar of trueth And againe Ar. 62. Who haue the trueth you must search in the
bene otherwise expounded then of their cause Pur. 176. Yea and more then that The worde of God doth neither expresly nor by any probable collection allow it but manifestly condemne it Pur. 185. Againe He could not with any semely colour establish purgatorie by the authoritie of the Scripture the onely testimonie of Gods word and will reueiled and confirmed by his holy Spirite The Machabées to be euen so confirmed as well as the other bookes he can neuer auoyde and in effect he graunteth as I shall note in the eleuenth Chapter amongst his contradictions Which is sufficient I trow to make at the least a séemely colour and a probable collection but in déede also a conclusion so necessary that he can neuer answere it but by shaking the authoritie of all the Canonicall Scriptures in derogating from their confirmation which yet him selfe doth attribute to the holy Spirite The fourth part What great promises he maketh to bring most euident Scripture against vs and also by Scripture to proue his sence of the Scripture Triumphing also before the victorie saying that we dare not be tried by Scripture but reiect the Scriptures Wherevpon a fourefold offer is made vnto him Now that we haue séene howe precise he is with vs to admit 1 no euidence that we alleage but Scripture onely both in all controuersies and also in the exposition of Scripture and againe 2 no Scripture which maketh so playnly with vs that he can not auoyde it but by denying it to be Canonical though he graūt it to haue the confirmation of the same true Church which moueth him as the holy Ghost to receiue the other Scriptures for Canonicall and againe 3 no Scripture that he confesseth to be Canonicall vnlesse it make so expresly so playnly so manifestly and so necessarily with vs that it can not by any suttletie be auoyded It were to be séene nowe on the other side what Scriptures he alleageth against vs whether he obserue him selfe the law that he so rigorously prescribeth to vs whether his Scriptures be so playne so manifest so euident that by no sutteltie they can be auoyded But that we shall sée in the next Chapter no nede of sutteltie I assure you to auoyde or delude them so friuolous are his allegations that with al facilitie and truth we shall answere them Here in the meane time in the ende of this Chapter I will onely lay forth his great promises aforehande and so come orderly to the matter And to omit if he should haue to do with all the old and newe heresies what manifest necessary confutations he would frame against them all and euery one out of the Scriptures alone hauing fréely afore them renounced al other probations according to his former sayings here that all truth and all articles of our beliefe are playnly taught in the Scripture and may be so proued by Scripture that there is nothing that we are bound to know nothing that we are bound to do but it is so set forth in the scriptures His great promises I will charge him no more but with his promise that he maketh of so confuting vs by playne Scriptures notwithstanding that all other euidences make for vs in such sort as he hath already confessed Thus he saith Pur. 187. And that which I haue to saye in confutation of your heresie shall be no worse then the very word of God it selfe which is better then the consent of all the world against it And againe Pur. 30. I am one of the least of Gods Ministers yet by his grace and authoritie of his holy word I shal be able to ouerthrow both this and all other Babilonicall bulwarks that are cast vp by Satan all his instruments for the defence of Popish heresie against the truth of God And neither the myst of mens inuētions which you cal the light of Apostolike tradition shall be able to darken the truth of the Gospell nor the errors of mortall men which you terme the force of Gods trueth shall beare downe the authoritie of Gods holy spirite Againe Pur. 12. We be able to shew manifest euidence that our aduersaries doctrine is cleane contrarie to the Scriptures of God Againe Ar. 3. We affirme that the Apostles taught none other faith in stead of true Christianitie but that which we hold as we are ready to proue by the word of God Againe I can proue by S. Paules writings Ar. 59. that in all articles of faith he taught the same which we beleeue And for triall of this because it would require a whole volume if I should proue euery perticular article wherein we dissent from you Papistes If you will name an article in the next Chapter your selfe shall name ynowe Yet if you will let it be this that Antichrist is not one certaine person and that the Churches fléeing into the wildernesse at his comming is to become inuisible to the world and that the beginning of that comming and fleing should be so soone after Christes passion the continuaunce so many ages the end so long before Christes second cōming wherein we agree not with S. Paule If I be not able to proue that we agree with him in the meaning thereof I will reuoke that article and agree with you therein Yea and also to proue his owne meaning and to disproue our meaning when we both alleage Scriptures he will séeke as he required of vs to nothing likewise but Scripture it selfe For the meaning of the worde he saith you should beleeue vs rather then the Papistes because our groundes and proues are better then theirs or els we require not to be beleeued better then they And there againe If you bring out a false sense we beleeue you not because we knowe it to be false and are able to proue by the word of God that it is contrarie to the meaning of the holy Ghost His triumphing in lying These are his worthie promises Of which he hath béen so liberall belike because he knewe that we dare not once appeare when Scriptures be alleaged by the Protestantes For such are his wordes Pur. 380. We can shewe no cause in the world you say why wee neede in any one point of controuersie depart from your Church Yet M. Allen this one cause shall serue for all because your Church is departed from the truth of Gods word and dare not abide the tryall thereof but will sitte like a proude dame in a Chaire Ar. 28. and controll the Scriptures Againe The Popish Church can by no reason chalenge Apostles Euangelistes and Prophets seeing she refuseth to be tried by their doctrine vttered in their writinges Againe The spouse of Christ heareth the voice of Christ Ar. 99.6 and is ruled thereby But the Romish Church will in no wise be ruled Onely by the voyce of Christ therefore she is not the Spouse of Christ Where by his foysting in of the worde Onely in the Minor
onely by Scriptures it would not follow thereof that no other argumentes are good ynough agaynst Iewes and Heretikes Now to the places alleaged in your other booke Other perswasion say you then suche as is grounded vpon the hearing of Gods worde Pur. 6. will neuer of Christians be counted for true beliefe so long as the tenth Chapter to the Romanes remayneth in the Canon of the Bible S. Paule there saith that hearing is presupposed to beléeuing and agayne to hearing is presupposed the worde of God But in what sorte the worde of God onely in writing doth he not there expresse that by the worde of God he meaneth preaching and preaching of suche as be Sent for that which he saith in one place Hearing is of Gods worde the same he saith afore How shall they heare without preachers 1. Thes 2. And what is more common in the New Testament then to call the preaching of Gods messengers the worde of God Euen as we to this day count it the worde of God which we heare of the Church of God either in her Councels or in her Doctors or any other way for so said God to them He that heareth you Luc. 10. heareth me And so S. Paul said to the Galathians If any man preach vnto you any other Gospell Gal. 1. then that which we haue preached vnto you and which you haue receiued holde him for accursed He speaketh of preaching and you alleage it as spoken of writing and of onely writing For thus you say to vs It vexeth you at the very harte Pur. 449.163 that we require the authoritie of the holy Scriptures to confirme your doctrine hauing a playne commaundement out of the word of God that if any man teache otherwise then the word of God alloweth he is to be accursed No syr it rather reioyceth vs at the heart to see that this very same texte which you Falsification by chaunging corrupte is so playne a warrant to our brethren the Romaines accursing your masters Luther and Caluine for preaching an other Gospell Act. 28. then that which S. Paule preached to the saide Romaines and which they receyued of him the Scripture also testifying in other places Mat. 28. Act. 20. Rom. 15. that S. Paule and the other Apostles taught the Romaines and other Churches all things but not likewise that he or they wrote all whiche they taught neither againe that in suche things as they wrote the Churches alwayes should be required to bring forth their writing not otherwise to be credited although they alleaged their preaching or tradition by worde of mouth Whereby you perceiue that your conclusion foloweth not though it were true that you bring out of another place saying All good workes are taught by the Scriptures Pur. 410. it is S Paules 2. Tim. 3. the holy Scriptures are hable to make the man of God perfect and prepared to all good workes Suppose this to be S. Paules saying will you conclude therof that Timothie himselfe commending any thing for a good worke and saying that he had it of S. Paules owne mouth where he had all things should not be credited but néedes he must proue the same by Scripture We say all good works were taught the Church by the Apostles speaking and that saying doth not take away the Apostles writing Euen so if all good workes were taught in the Apostles writing that taketh not away suche argumentes as are made vpon their speaking As agayne if a certayne article be confessed to be taught in S. Paules Epistles or also if all Articles for so your words pretende here in the last Chapter will it not suffice for all that to proue any article out of some other booke of Scripture What a fonde reasoning is this that because one euidence proueth all therfore I can not haue any other euidence but that onely And this I say supposing that S. Paule had said as you make him All good workes are taught by the Scriptures c. But nowe I say further that he doth not say so but being now at the point of martyrdome he exhorteth his Disciple not to faynt but to fulfill his office to the ende as he had done the office I say of an Euangelist or Preacher 2. Tim. 4. saying that although he should nowe be depriued of his master yet he had still the holy Scriptures with him which be profitable saith he to teaching of truth 2. Tim. 3. to disprouing of falshood to correcting of vices to instructing in righteousnes that the man of God that is the Euangelist be perfite that is to say furnished to euery good worke meaning thereby those foresaid workes of an Euangelist as he also there had said 1. Tim. 3. he that desireth a Bishops office desireth a good worke Now it is one thing the Scripture to be profitable to this and another thing to be able or sufficient vnto it Agayne it is one thing the Scripture to be profitable to euery parte of preaching and another thing the Scripture to teach expresly all good workes in euery particular as Oblations for the dead for of that you speake and so forth Pur. 434. Moreouer you alleage these two places Search the Scriptures and Trie the spirites and these you alleage for Only Scripture to be required both in all questions and also in exposition of Scripture declaring thereby that you eyther know not or care not what nor how you alleage For where our Sauiour saith to the Iewes Iohn 5. Search the Scriptures for they it are which beare witnesse of me in the very same place he saith also vnto them And Iohn did beare witnesse to the trueth And againe My workes VVho euer alleaged Scripture more blindly or Miracles do beare witnesse of me that my Father sent me and that a greater witnesse then Iohn And againe Also my Father who sent me he hath giuen witnesse of me Likewise vpon your other place Trie the Spirites you say And the Spirites are not tried but by the Scriptures So you say 1. Iohn 4. Ar. 4. but your text doth not so say yea the Apostle S. Iohn saith there straight after By this we know a spirite or Prophet or teacher of trueth and a spirite of error Looke in the text man sée what is that whereof he saith by this whether it be by Onely Scripture or by some thing els Briefly Beleeue not euery spirit saith he but trie the spirites whether they be of God for then you may be bolde to beléeue them By this is knowen a spirite of God first in one particular which I passe ouer then in generall after this maner You my children you Romanes and other Catholikes be of God We Apostles and other Catholike teachers be of God And therefore He that knoweth God heareth vs and he that is not of God doth not heare vs. By this we know a spirite of trueth and a spirite of error or a false Prophet
to wit by considering whether he agrée with them that are of God with them that receiued and kéepe the vnction or spirite of truth which was sent to the Church for euer with them that depart not after any Seducers but continue in that which they heard in the beginning as the Romanes do most manifestly no Antichrist nor Heretike being able to name the time the noueltie the Seducer that euer they went after so as Wittenberge Geneua England and all other that we charge with it haue done most notoriously This is the effect in generall of S. Iohns Epistles Agayne you alleage and say The word of the Lorde is a light vnto our steppes and a lanterne vnto our féete Pur. 285.364 Psal 118.18 Therfore we will not walke in the darknes of mens traditions Item The faithful testimonie of Gods word onely giueth true light vnto the eyes as the Prophet saith And by and by after you call it The onely authoritie of Gods word written But the Prophet neither hath the word onely neither saith that Gods word is not but in writing but rather most euidently by Gods worde there he meaneth the preaching of his Apostles Rom. 10. S. Paule also him selfe referring that verse of the same Psalme vnto them accordingly Into all the earth their sound is gone forth and their words to the ends of the world And so you may see the light of Gods word to be not only in writing but also in tradition by mouth Pur. 210. Last of all you alleage and say against Iudas Machabeus In the Law not so much as one pinne of the Tabernacle was omitted lest any thing might be left to the will of man to deuise in the worship of God Deut. 12. ver 8. 32. You shall not do saith the Lord what séemeth good in your owne eyes but that which I commaunde you that only shal you do without adding any thing to it or taking away any thing from it You are very dayntie of your quotations in maner none at all in your margin because you alleage so fewe places and commonly omitted in your texte also because you alleage your places without booke This is my coniecture let the Reader loke in the places as I doe quote them because for breuitie sake I omitte many thinges that were worth the noting Wel in this place Moises saith not That only which I do write but That only which I commaund you And so our Sauiour said long after to the Iewes accordingly Mat. 23. The Scribes and Pharises sit in Moises chaire and therefore whatsoeuer they commaund you obserue it and doe it As for the Pinnes of the Tabernacle they are so mentioned for other causes as you may sée in the Doctors Commentaries and not for the cause that you imagin that is to leaue nothing to any man afterwarde in the worship of God for how say you then by Dauid and Salamon who chaunged not only a pinne yea all the pinnes but also that whole Tabernacle building in stéed of it a Temple in Hierusalem and there ordeining musicall instrumentes and many other things for the worship of God that the law did not mention You alwayes erre because you do not distinguish betwene men that haue onely their owne humane spirite and men that haue the spirite of God as Moyses the Prophets the Apostles and the Catholike Church And so hauing answered al your places I would your Vnlearned Brother to know of it him that euery yere sendeth out the Newyeres giftes and what els I know not and to tell me now why I might not in my last Motiue call this your Castle of Onely Scripture Onely Scripture Your weake and false Castle Weake because you haue no defence at all for it neither of Srripture as I haue here declared neither of Doctor as in the nexte chapter I will declare False because not so much as one worde of Scripture from the beginning of Genesis to the ende of the Apocalipse maketh for you in any thing nor against vs in any thing as in this Chapter I doe ynough to persuade therein any reasonable man and therefore it is but a false sleight of you Heretikes and a mere deception of the simple when you be ouerthrowen by Apostolike traditions by auncient Fathers and so by many other our weapons in Christe as in the laste Chapter your selfe haue confessed to sette a bolde face vpon it and vaunte that yet for all that the Scriptures be plainelye for you and plainely against vs. In which boldnes your impudencie cryeth euen to heauen when you dare yet vaunt thereof so farre to saye that the Church of God is faine therefore to blaspheme the holye Scriptures seeing them to make so plainely for you When you here in the laste Chapter and your Masters and Scholefelowes commonly in their writinges feare not to open your mouthes thus against Gods holy Tabernacle in earth I that am nothing and in very deede nothing and lesse then nothing may not disdaine the like opening at me by the foresaide Vnlearned but contenting me with mine owne conscience and the conscience of God him selfe and his Angels and all his Seruauntes that knowe me by my person or by my writings beeing moste certaine how alwayes in heart and worde I haue honored the most holy Scriptures euen as gods owne liuely and infallible worde I submit my selfe with Dauid in an humble and contrite heart to all that Semei hath or shall vtter against me if peraduenture my Lorde God most mercifull will accept it to forgeuenes of my manifold and heynous sinnes desiring of him no other reuenge but the parties conuersion and reconciliation to him and his swéete spouse my lieue Mother the Catholike Church And so muche in this place to that man In which place you also Fellow Fulke Arg. ab authoritate negatiuè may be admonished to looke better to your Logicke concerning your argument ab authoritate negatiuè that you oppose it no more to our so many argumentes ab authoritate affirmatiuè I gaue you a litle before two causes thereof consider them well I pray you All knowledge that Christian men haue of heauenly things you say Pur. 449. to mainteine your argument is grounded vpon the authoritie of Gods word meaning the Scripture Therefore as it is no good Logicke to conclude negatiuely of one place or booke of Scripture This is not conteined in it therefore it is not true So of the whole doctrine of God wherein all trueth necessary to saluation is conteined the argument is most inuincible that concludeth negatiuely thus All true doctrine is taught in the Scripture Purgatory is not taught in the Scripture therefore Purgatory is no true doctrine Letting Purgatory alone till anone there are two faultes I say in this reasoning One because the Maior is false as to all your textes alleaged for it I haue answered The other because although the Maior were true yet can not the argument be
and you shall perceiue that it is but for lacke of the second which is Mitescere pietate to be meeke by pietie that you so presumptuously make obiections Pur. 386.208 calling them in your pryde vnauoidable resons against those bookes which by your own confession the whol true Church hath Canonized And what be these vnauoidable resons First because the author of the second booke commendeth one Razis for killing himselfe 2. Mac. 7. Au. 2. Gau. 23. ep 61 which is contrary to the worde of God S. Augustine answereth the Donatistes you at once saying Touching this his death the Scripture hath told it how it was done it hath not commended it as though it was to be done Secondly you say he abridgeth the fiue bookes of Iason But the Holy Ghost maketh no abridgementes of other mens writinges The booke of the Kinges in how many places it singnifieth that it abridgeth stories telling where they be written more at large in other bookes that were not Canonicall And is not S. Marke commonly called Breuiator the abridger of S. Mathew Also euery Sermon and letter in the Actes of the Apostles Aug. de cōsen Euang. li. 1. ca. 2.3 is it not an abridgement The Holy Ghost knoweth to poure againe through his new vessels both péeces of other mens writinges as you see Act 17. Tit. 1. and also bookes much more of Iason the Hebrew as also of Ethnike Poetes Thirdly He confesseth that he tooke this matter in hand that men might haue pleasure in it which could not away with the tedious long stories of Iason But the Spirit of God serueth not such vaine delight of men Is it vaine delight to desire profitable breuitie In your preface to the Reader you say I haue vsed great breuitie by a naturall inclination whereby I loue to be shorte in any thing that I write Do you compt your inclination a vaine inclination And who séeth not that in al the bookes of holy Scripture there is great obseruation of breuitie that amongst other causes also to auoide tediousnes Fourthly He sheweth what labour and sweat it was to him to make this abridgement ambitiously commendeth his trauill and sheweth the difference betwene a story at large an abridgemēt al which things sauour nothing of Gods Spirit And specially that in the end for al this you carp in the preface 2. Mac. 2. he cōfesseth his infirmitie desireth pardon if he haue spoken slenderly and barely Wherby he testifieth sufficiently that he was no scribe of the Holy Ghost That he ambitiously commendeth his trauell is but your blasphemie without any occasion geuen by him All the rest standeth wel ynough with the assistance of the Holy Ghost vnlesse you think that the scribes of the Holy Ghost may not speak of themselues as of men humano more or the they must alwayes be eloquent alwaies able to do al without swet without labour Doth not S. Paul asmuch cōfesse his like infirmitie whē he saith 2. Cor. 11. Etsi imperitus sermone though I be rude in speking Yea doth he not excuse his bouldnes for writing to the Romanes who were so full of all knowledge and saith that he did it not but onely to put them in remembrance of that which they knew well ynough before Rom 15. did he not also in that Epistle for his ease vse Tertius his hand Rom. 16. and the like commonly in writing all his other Epistles also as appeareth 2. Thes 3 That I speake nothing of his intollerable paines taken in Preachinge wherein also he was the instrument of the Holy Ghost and not onely in his Epistles These are forsooth your vnauoideable reasons Now to S. Hierome Hieromes testimonies Pu. 214. M. Allen aleageth the authoritie of Hieronym in prol Mach. But what he meaneth thereby or what place he noteth I know not quoth you Who wil beléeue that you are so dul In the vulgare Latin Bibles is a preface vpon the bookes of Machabées in it are these wordes The Bookes of Machabees although in the Canon of the Hebrewes they be not had yet of the Church they are noted among the Stories of the diuine Scriptures Those vsual Prefaces are taken commonly of S. Hierom somtime for word somtime for sense and so is this as will appeare by the two places that you bring out of him In his preface vpon the Booke of Kings you say he doth not onely omit it in rehersall of the Canonicall bookes but also accompteth it plainly among the Apocryphal He there reporteh how many letters are apud Hebraeos with the Hebrewes to wit two and twentie and that accordingly number for number primus apud eos liber the first booke with them is Genesis and so forth to two twentie So expressy he sheweth that he rekoneth the bookes there after the Hebrewes and therefore that he speaketh of their Canon when he saith afterward that all without these is to be put among the Apocryphall Therfore Sapientia which is commonly intituled Salomons and Iesus booke the sonne of Sirach and Iudith Tobias and Pastor for that booke also he mentioneth among the bookes of the old Testament of which onely and not of any of the new Testament he there speaketh non sunt in Canone are not in the Canon The first booke of the Machabes I found in Hebrew The second is a Greeke Now what maketh this for you or against vs doth any of vs affirme that these bookes were in the Hebrewes Canon Pur. 215. But you haue another place out of S. Hierome to proue that they were neither in the Churches Canon In his Preface vpon the booke of Prouerbes Therfore euen as the Church readeth in deede the bookes of Iudith Tobias and Machabees but yet receiueth thē not among the Canonicall Scriptures So also these two bookes Ecclesiasticus and Sapientia let her reade as she doth for the peoples edification but not to confirme the authoritie of the Churches doctrines to wit against the Iewes that is the answere because their Canon hath not these bookes in it But among the Churches people they were also then read publikly and solemly in their course as well as the other bookes of Scripture As S. Augustine also witnesseth of one of them by occasion saying August de Praed San. cap. 14. The booke of Sapientia hath bene thought worthy to be recited at the deske in the church of Christ tam longa annositate so long a rew of yeres and with worship belonging to a booke of diuine authoritie to be harkened vnto of all Christian men from Bishops euen to the lowest sort of laymen faithfull penitentes and Catechumenes This was that reading of it to the peoples edification And euen so S. Hierome expoundeth him selfe in his Preface vpon the booke of Iudith saying With the Hebrues the booke of Iudith is read among the Hagiographal not amōg the (a) Hieron prol galeato in li. Regum nyne Hagiographal
then they be the Churches nowe answering whatsoeuer obiections you haue brought against them Ar. 5. Againe you say As for the Popish Church she is so blind that she can not discerne betwene the Canonicall bookes of the Scriprere from the Apocryphall writings as appeareth by receiuing the bookes of the Machabees Ecclesiasticus c. to be of equall authoritie with the bookes of the Law Psalmes c. The Popish Church that Canonized those bookes was the Primitiue although ye call them Heretikes which did it as I haue shewed playnly Pur. 214. and by your owne confession cap. 9. pag. 165. and that you are fayne to saye that also the Primitiue Church therein did erre S. Augustine therefore as he saith to the Manichie denying the Actes of the Apostles Cui libro necesse est me credere si credo Euangelio quoniam vtramque Scripturam similiter mihi Catholica commendat authoritas I must needes beleue this booke if I beleue the Gospell because the Catholike authoritie commendeth vnto me both those Scriptures alike so he saith vnto you denying the Machabées Ecclesiasticus Iudith c. I must néedes beléeue them if I beléeue the Gospell because they also be in the Canon of the same Church as he telleth you playnly here cap. 9. pag. 165. And therefore they are but words when you said erewhile We allow and beleeue the Primitiue Churches testimonie of the word of God And againe Ar. 10.9 We haue most steadfast assurance of Gods Spirite for the authoritie of Gods booke with the testimonie of the true Church in all ages and so we know it to be true You beleue the Gospell for the Churches testimonie euen as much as the Manichies did because you reiect her authoritie Canon in other bookes as they did in the Actes And therefore againe you do but condemne your selfe when you say Ar. 4.5 The Church of Christ commended the bookes of holy Scriptures to be beleeued of all true Christians And againe The Church of Christ hath of the holy Ghost a iudgement to discerne the word of God of infallible veritie from the writing of men which might erre In so saying you both iustifie vs who as we confesse that Church so we beleue her Canon and condemne your selues who confesse it to be the true Church and yet deny her Canon yea and generally her authoritie here in the 34. Dem. holding stiffely that she may erre and did erre in many things and therfore making Only Scripture your ground for all things Wherin how contrarie you be to your selfe any man may sée and I must note it in the next Chapter In the meane time I note Cap. 11. cōtradict 33.34.35 Ar. 8. that you shew your selues not to be the Church that cōmaunded S. Augustine to beleue the Gospell in that you say fréely We do not chalenge credite to our selues in any poynt so presumptuously as the Papistes that men must beleue it because we affirme it but because we proue it to be true by the worde of God By what place of Scripture did either the Primitiue Catholike Church proue to S. Augustine or could you proue to the Manichée the Actes of the Apostles to be of Canonicall authoritie The true Church of all times is of like authoritie and therfore that which was not presumption then is not presumption now But what will not your terme of Only Scripture serue you vnto when by it you argue say Ar. 6. Our Congregation hath euer had both right and possession of the Scriptures as appeareth by this that our Church Congregation beleueth nothing but that she learneth in them And that be not a notable plea to proue a right and a possession yea and a continual possession I report me to your Lawyers What a forehead and face haue you to say A substantiall lye that your companie had euermore possession of the Bible Is it not euident that Luther and all that are come of him tooke their Bibles of the Papistes Leaue your impudent facing it is not your new vpstart Congregation it is our Catholike Romane Church which hath continually kept her possession of this Treasure which she receiued of the Apostles She it is that reiecteth no one booke therof she it is that with Gods spirite hath kept them from corruption of all Heretikes Ar. 5. If also the Arrians Donatists Nouatians Eutichians and other Heretiks receiued all the bookes of Scripture What doth that proue but only that those Heretiks should rather be the true church then you and that we might not vse against them this piece of our argument as we doe against you but this rather that they had those Scriptures of vs and caryed them out with them whē they went out from vs. So did also the Greeke Church Ar. 6. and other Esterne Churches of Asia and therefore If vnto this day they haue kept them neuer so safely they are not for all that the true Church Euery Article of D. Allens is not to proue absolutely that we be the church but some only that you be not the Church When our Church was oppugned by other enemies she knew what she had then also to do So she had hath her proper Motiues against the Iewes and therefore it is a wise Demaund of yours when you say Why are not the Iewes the Catholike Church which haue kept the old Testament in Hebrue more faithfully then euer the Papistes We doe not now encounter with the Iewes but presupposing the Religion and Church that Christ and his Apostles did institute to be true we geue plaine notes how a man may know that the Protestāts haue it not as because they deny some Canonical bookes of Scripture the Churches authoritie which is the foundation of the Canon And therefore that no wise man should be moued when he heareth them to claime it and that by pretēce of Scripture and false carde of Onely Scripture from vs who doe so faithfully beléeue and haue so vncorruptibly keapt all the bookes of the same As for the Iewes old Testament I towched your blindnes therein cap. 7. pag. 103. sufficiently and also your desperate impudencie pag. 103. in charginge the Church with reiecting of the Scriptures 37. Stoarehouse of all Trueth Motiue 29. As in our Church at this day a man may find all the holy bookes which the Church in old time layed vp in her Canon thereof so likewise all other Truthes I say in my next Demaunde which in any of her Councels or otherwise she ruled ouer canonized at any time against any Heresie of her rebells or against any error of her owne obedient children that the Protestantes all other Heretikes haue no truth among them but they had it of our Church which Church therefore I say is now and euer and she onely the Stoarehouse both of Canonicall Scripture Iren. cōtra Heraeses li. 3 ca. 4. and of all trueth beside And therefore againe
meant of the Apostles and their successors the ministers of the Church he teacheth them aboue al other men to looke diligently to their life conuersation for as they excell in place dignitie so the eyes of all men are set vpon them As a citie builded vpon an hill must needes be seene of all that come neare it so they beeing placed in so high an office and dignitie shall be noted and marked aboue all other men One part of the Church is alwayes visible to the eyes of all men and can not be hidden and yet the whole Church and so also that part is not alwayes visible but may be hidden and was hidden for a 1000. yeres So he saith 31 b Ar. 35. Pur. 458. The true Church decayed immediatly after the Apostles time And so the error of praying for the dead was continued frō a corrupt state of the Church of Christ vnto a plaine departing away into the Church of Antichrist Contra The Primitiue pure Church for the space of an hundreth yeares after Christ Againe Ar. 16. Pur. 458. An. 607. The Church fled into the wildernes there to remaine a long season where she hath not decayed but bene alwayes preserued vntill God should bring her againe to open light now in our dayes c Pur. 364. The true Church shall neuer decay but alway raigne with Christ The false Synagoge shall dayly more and more decay vntill it be vtterly destroyed with Antichrist the head therof If this be not contradiction it is much worse to wit that Luther and his Apostles haue giuen vs a visible Church which shall not decay Whereas Christ and his Apostles gaue vs a visible Church which did decay yea and plainly departe away into Apostasie 32 At euery word he calleth the Pope Antichrist and the head of the malignant Church Contra in some places he maketh two distincte heades and their distincte companies Ar. 16.95 As when Mahomet in the East and Antichrist the Pope in the west seduced the world then the Church fled into the wildernes Againe The Popish Church is not in euery parte of the world for Mahomets sect is in the greatest parte 33 That the true Church may erre and hath erred notwithstanding any priuilege it hath by Gods Spirite we hard him say cap. 3. Nowe to the contrarie Ar. 82.81.93.99.62.77.100.108.62 Neither hath the Spirite of God failed to leade her into all trueth Ar. 82.81.93.99.62.77.100.108.62 There be some prerogatiues of Gods Spirite that are necessarie for the saluation of Gods elect as the gift of vnderstanding the gift of faith c And these the Spouse of Christ hath neuer wanted Ar. 82.81.93.99.62.77.100.108.62 True Faith c. might be signes of the true Church The Spouse of Christ heareth the voice of Christ and is ruled thereby The Church of God is the piller stay of truth Ar. 82.81.93.99.62.77.100.108.62 so called because that wheresoeuer the Church is either visible or inuisible ther is the truth Ar. 82.81.93.99.62.77.100.108.62 S. Paul by this title doth admonish Pastors and preachers how great a burden and charge they susteine that the truth of the Gospell can not be cōtinued in the world but by their ministery in the Church of God which is the piller and stay of truth This their duety true preachers considering are diligent in their calling to preach the trueth Ar. 82.81.93.99.62.77.100.108.62 As our Church is the piller and stay of trueth so is she also the house of trueth which knoweth nothing but him that is the trueth it selfe Iesus Christ his most holy Scripture in which this trueth is signed and testified Ar. 82.81.93.99.62.77.100.108.62 We require you to beleeue the true Cathòlike Church onely and immediatly againe to the contrarie We require you not to beleue any one companie of men more then another 34 The error of Purgatorie and praying for the dead is continued from a corrupt state of the Church of Christ Pur. 458. vnto a playn departing away into the Church of Antichrist Contra The true and onely Church of God is so guyded by Gods spirite Ar. 88. and directed by his word that she can not induce any damnable error to continue No nor suffereth any man damnably abusing her religion without open reprehension and yet Purgatorie c. came in with silence 35 Ar. 5.4.9 The Church of Christ hath of the holy Ghost a iudgement to discerne true writings from counterfectes and the word of God of infallible veritie from the writing of men which might erre Ar. 5.4.9 She hath commended the bookes of holy Scripture to be beleeued of all true Christians Ar. 5.4.9 We persuade vs of the authoritie of Gods booke because we haue most stedfast assurance of Gods spirite for the authoritie of it with the testimonie of the true Church in all ages Contra Pur. 219. All other writings are in better case then the Scriptures are with you For other writings may be coūted the works of their authors without your censure the holy Scripture may not be counted the word of God except you liste so to allow it Other writings are of credite according to the authoritie of the writers The holy Scriptures with you haue not credite according to the authoritie of God the author of them but according to your determination Ar. 65. Ar. 82. 36 Those that by true Christians haue bene called and counted for Heretikes haue proued so in deede Contra This Demaund hath a false principle that the Church ought to be a Christian mans onely it is not in D. Allens principle staye in all troubles and tempestes Ar. 65. 37 And therefore the Papistes being called and counted Heretikes of true Christians that is of the Protestantes without doubt are Heretikes in deede Contra He is a foolish Sophister Ar. 66. that reasoneth from names to things as you do most vainely and childishly Ar. 86. Pur. 367. 38 There is neuer Heresie but there is as great doubt of the Church as of the matter in question Contra Augustines argument of the publike prayers of the Church tooke no holde of the Pelagians by force of trueth that is in it but by their owne confession and graunt of that prayer to be godly and them to be of the Church that so prayed But now the controuersie is not onely of the substance of doctrine but of the Church it selfe also The Donatistes chalenged the Church to them selues Ar. 60.61 39 But for the chiefe poyntes of Christian Religion and the foundation of our faith that is Real presence c. the most approued writers are vtterly agaynst you and therefore can not be of your Church Contra But the Lutheranes and Zuinglians as it pleaseth you to call them are of one true Church although they differ in one opinion concerning the Sacrament the one affirming a Real presence the other denying it Out
Scriptures and declare in their writinges that by them they are to be confuted for examples sake of a great number I will alleage a fewe and he alleageth Hilarius Basilius Magnus Chrysostome Augustine Leo the first Bishop of Rome and the whole Councell of Constantinople the sixt And so concludeth saying Thus I haue declared by ensample and authoritie of these fathers that the true Church of Christ hath conuicted all heretikes onely by the Scripture If onely by the scriptures See cap. 9. par 2. pag. Ar. 52. so much the better you doe like of her and that in this Chapter nothing misliketh me Now let vs see what he confesseth of the auncient Monkes also The Church of God saith he hath alwayes had Scholes or Vniuersities for the maintenance of godly learning for the first colledges of Monkes in solitarie places were nothing els but Colledges of studentes that were afterward as occasion serued taken to serue in the Church as appeareth by Chrisostom in his booke de Sacerdotio where he sheweth that Basilius who was a Monke with him was taken by violence and made a minister of the Church as he him selfe was afterward Also in the Bishops house was a Colledge of studentes and our histories testifie that at Bangor in Wales was a great vniuersitie of learned men Whether S. Chrysostome S. Basill and those other auncient Monkes both in our owne and also in other countreys were nothing else but studentes it is not the question of this place See cap. 10. dem 25. pag. but onely doe I note here that he confesseth them to haue bene of the Church of God Then as concerning the times first of persecution afterward of peace vnder the Emperours both heathen and Christian he vttereth his confession of the true Church in these wordes Our assemblies were kept in secret places Ar. 51.52 long time after Christes ascension in most Countries that were subiect to the Romane Empire and when Constantinus had geuen peace to the Church he builded Oratories and great Synagoges called Basilicas for our assemblies and Seruice Also necessarie furniture for the seruice of God was decreed to the Church by the Emperour Constantine and his Successors that were of our Church before the reuelation of Antichrist that is as before you heard his meaning before the time of Bonifacius the thirde Pur. 342. Likewise in an other place he confesseth both those Caues and Vaultes vnder the earth that the olde Christian Bishops were content to serue in before the time of Constantine and also those princely buildinges that by Constantine and other Christian Princes were first set vp for the publike exercise of Christian Religion To which times belongeth also that wherein he confesseth the conuersion of Nations by the true Church saying It did not onely require but also subdue all Nations to the obedience of the faith Ar. 97. so many as were euer subdued in the dayes of the first Christian Emperours and before Finally he confesseth the Emperours yet more expressely and more particularly saying Ar. 33. It is an easie matter to name you the Emperours and princes which both offered to the ministers of iustice in the right of our Church and also mainteined our faith and congregation by Ciuill lawes as Constantine the great Iouinianus Valentinianus Theodosius Archadius Honorius Marcianus Iustinianus Mauricius and diuers others And to signifie that he meaneth these Emperours to haue bene such as he would wish for he addeth of the latter Emperours and saith I passe ouer as to well knowen many of the Grecian Emperours Likewise I passe ouer Charles the great I will not rehearse those later Germane Princes that c. For although these and such like defended some part of the trueth which we holde against you yet least you should obiect it was but in one or two poyntes I passe them ouer with silence And so much for the true Church in the first 600. yeares ¶ The third Chapter That he confesseth the foresaid true Church to haue made so plainely with vs in very many of the controuersies of this time that he is faine to hold that the But not his Caluinicall Church true Church may erre and also hath erred AFter all this so smoothly by him confessed of the true Church and sometime also of the long continuing thereof in incorruption if any man maruell to heare nowe that yet withall he holdeth the same true Church at the same time to haue bene corrupted and to haue erred let him sée here in the eleuenth Chapter his manifolde manifest contradictions he will quickly leaue his marueiling the matter he shal perceiue is not so straunge in this man but very vsuall common to contrarie him selfe as it is also no rare thing in his master Caluine and the other heretical writers of our time But here in the meane while be it disagréeing or be it agréeing with that which he hath confessed already Infra ca. 11. cōtradict 4. I will in this present Chapter laye forth his words first generally that the true Church may erre and afterwarde of the particuler errors common to the true Church then and to our Church now The first part That the true Church may erre Ar. 86 Therefore that the true Church may erre thus he saith The true and onely Church of Christ can neuer be voyde of God his spirite and yet she may erre from the trueth and be deceiued in some things And a litle after Wherefore the whole Churche militant consisting of men which are all lyars may erre all together Ar. 88. Agayne The true and onely Church of God as it is declared before hath no such priuilege graunted but that she may be deceiued in some things And there beneath And if it may erre and be deceiued it selfe what man is he that neede to doubt whether it may induce any error among the people In so much that he is bolde to say in an other place Pur. 367 368. Of an hundred argumentes that S. Augustine vseth agaynst the Pelagians this insultation that their heresie was contrarie to the publike prayers of the Church was one of the feeblest which tooke no holde of the Pelagians by force of truth that is in it but by their confession and graunt In so much agayne that a few lines after he saith to D. Allen or rather to S. Augustine if it be truely scanned In deede they were but sory whelpes that could not say baffe to the bleating of such a calfe as you are Modestly which thinke that such a foolish cauill can cary credite with them that haue any cromme of brayne in their heades to wit The Church prayeth so therefore it is true Ar. 83.84 Moreouer in an other If you meane as it seemeth and as the rest of the Papistes doe interprete that Article I beleeue the Catholike Church that is I beleeue whatsoeuer the Church doth allow to be true I denie that it is
scient quia ego dilexi te and they shall knowe that I haue loued thee Which all if you also did knowe you would not say thus in one place to vs Euen in the Apostles time when the superstition of Angels beganne to be receiued there was one steppe of your way Pur. 287. which you holde euen to this day Colos 2. iiij Of abstinence from fleshmeat and from mariage Nowe to another error common to the Fathers and to vs Supra ca. 3. pa. 2. diui 2. You sayde in the same thirde Chapter and confessed that they counted Aerius an heretike for teaching against our prescript Fastingdayes and so Iouinianus likewyse for denying the merite of abstinence from fleshe and from mariage and for licensing therevpon Votaries and Priestes to marrie You on the other syde charged the Fathers and saide Pur. 419. that they tooke prescript tymes of Fasting and vnmeasurable so you terme it extolling of Sole life in the Cleargie frō the Manichees Tacianistes Montanistes But you bring no proofe thereof Ar. 45. Onely this you haue in another place Augustine by authoritie of Philaster chargeth the same Aerius with abstinence from fleshe If this bee an heresie then bee all Papistes heretikes which count abstinence from fleshe an holy fast Still you take Richard for Robert These thrée heresies condemned fleshe mariage as pertaining to the yll God and not to the good God according to the heresie of the Valentinians before them So writeth S. Augustine of the Tocianistes or Eucratites Nuptias damnant c. They condemne mariages August ad quoduult haer 25.40 53. and esteeme of them all a like as of fornications and other pollutions neither admitte they to their number any that vseth mariage be it man or be it womā Non vescuntur carnibus easque omnes abominantur They eate no flesh but count all flesh abominable He hath there of Apostolici or Apotactite likewise saying Eucratitis isti similes sunt c. These are like to the Eucratites They receiue not into their Societie them that vse mariage and haue proprietie Such as the Catholike Churche hath both Monkes and of the Cleargie very many Sed ideo isti haeretici sunt c. But therefore these are heretikes because separating them selues from the Churche they thinke that there is no hope for them which vse these thinges that they do not vse Nowe saieth he of the Aerians afterwarde Some saye that these doe not admitte into their Societie but onely such as conteyne them from mariage and haue renounced all proprietie being therein like to the Eucratites or Apotactites Yet from flesh meate Epiphanius saieth not that they absteine But Philaster layeth to them also this abstinence What abstinence and howe from fleshmeate but such as in those Eucratites he had saide afore Sure it is that this Aerius of his maister called Eustathius Gang. con Can. 1.19 Soc. li. 2. cap. 33. had this heresie to whom therfore Concilium Gangrense sayeth Anathema and to all that holde the like to witte that a Christian vsing mariage and eating fleshe in Regnum Dei introire non possit can not enter into the kingdome of God Et spem non habeat Nor hath ought to hope for Though withall he taught Ieiunia praescripta auersanda that the prescript fastes shoulde be detested Dominicisque diebus ieiunandum and to fast on Sondayes iiij Of Ceremonies and Liturgies Ar. 91. Next after this you charge the auncient Church with approuing Ceremonies that were as you thinke vnprofitable and hurtfull because S. Augustine complained them of presumptions and because many of them are nowe abrogated I might here and in many other places exclaime against you as you did often against D. Allen vpon light causes for not quoting your testimonies and that you haue not read them in the authors but taken them out of some blinde or wilfull collector But to spare words all that I can and let the things only to cry agaynst you Doth not S. Augustine in the very same Epistle and the very same Chapter whence your place is taken of certayne that were more earnest for their owne priuate obseruations Au. ep 119. ad Ianuar. cap. 19. then for Gods commaundements as that against dronkennesse say constantly Tamen Ecclesia dei quae sunt contra fidem vel bonam vitam non approbat Yet the Church of God approueth not any thing that is against the faith or against good life And there also playnly distinguished those presumptions from such things as are eyther conteyned in the authorities of holy Scriptures or found in the statutes of Bishops Councels or fortified by custome of the whole Church Saying also in the Epistle next afore to the same man Au. ep 118 ad Ianuar cap. 5. that if the whole Church vse any thing it is a poynt of most insolent madnes only to call in question whether that thing should be so vsed Neither if some such vsages be afterward abrogated doth it folow therof Pur. 265.393.400 Tertul. de Cor. mil. Hier. adue◠Lucif Act. 15. that therfore they were before vnprofitable or hurtfull or not of the Apostles tradition though Tertullian affirme it S. Hierome also euen in Tertullians words or els that the Church is blasphemous which abrogateth them as you conclude For there might be good cause both of that afore and of this after as you sée euen in that decrée of the Apostles which is recorded also in the Scripture Of not eating bloud nor fleshe that hath not the bloud let out of it Likewise in that custome of the Apostles and of the Churches of God 1. Cor. 11. for men publikely to praye and prophecie or preache bareheaded Which of Bishops in olde time and nowe also of Doctors yea in many countries of all preachers is not obserued What ordinarie authoritie the Church had in the Apostles time the same it hath still and also the same spirite to vnderstande what are the immutable grounds of Religion and what traditions howe and vpon what causes maye be chaunged Of euery particuler to giue a reason requireth a speciall worke by it selfe but generally the quicker witted maye consider that in a Nation when the fulnes thereof is baptized and the articles of faith throughly rooted there may iustly must néedefully be a great mutation in the Ceremonies specially of Baptismus adultorum and Missa Catechumanorum And so to plant the Euangelicall article of the Resurrection the Apostles vpon Sondayes and in Quinquagesima did forbid Solemne faste and Solemne genuflexions and the Church afterwarde muche more straictly what time the Manichées other heretikes put al their strength to plucke vp againe the Apostles plant But nowe all such heresies being by such diligence of the Church quite confounded and that marueilous article so fastned in all Christian hearts as it is wonderfull specially knowing what resistance and rebellion it hath suffred Now I say the Church might
wel be more remisse therin though yet she kepeth those Ceremonies still Aug. ep 86 Reade S. Augustine ad Casulanum of those matters where also besides this you shall finde also another generall reason according to the diuine wisdome of that most Ecclesiastical doctor to wit that it sufficeth if the Church haue vnitie of faith as it were intus in membris inwardly in her limmes and that she wel may withall haue diuersitie of obseruations as it were varietatem in veste varietie in her queenely garment according to the Psalme Psal 44. Which he speaketh for diuersitie of Ceremonies in sundry places at one time but it serueth for the like diuersitie in one place at sundry times as it is euident As for your boldnes with the Fathers for their Liturgies pronouncing that vndoubtedly they chaunged the auncient truth into their owne lately receiued errors Proc. apud Claud. de Sainctes praef in Liturg. or else why were they not content with the olde forme Proclus Bishop of Constantinople about a thousand yeres agoe answereth your Why telleth you that S. Basill and S. Chrysostome did no more but abridge the Liturgie of S. Iames the Apostle which thrée Liturgies the Councell in Trullo also doth acknowledge and that vpon iuste cause Can. 32. But that with errors they corrupted eyther it or any other forme which was vsed before them if any man be so farre gone so to thinke vpon your light worde for all the most renowmed credite of those Fathers let the studious of truth notwithstanding take the paynes to conferre those Liturgies and they shall easily be able of their owne inspection to controll you Supra pag. 21. as I also before in the third Chapter by playne demonstration disproued you for the same and namely in the very same article that forced you to this absurde and shameles shift v. Of Sacrifice and for the dead Now are we come to your next accusation of the auncient Church concerning Sacrifice concerning the dead The name of Sacrifice Pur. 419. which they coÌ„monly vsed for the celebration of the Lords supper they tooke vp of the Gentiles so you say but you proue it not You might as well say that they or the Apostles had it of the Gentiles to name that Sacrifice which Christ offered vpon the Crosse No syr they named it so because it was so and therfore Christ also said not This is I that was borne of the virgine though that were true but This is my body vpon the one Matt. 26. and This is my bloud vpon the other The Apostle also for the same cause saying of him that commeth therevnto vnworthily not that he is guyltie of Christ though that be true 1. Cor. 11. but that he is guyltie of his body and of his bloud because it is such a celebration of his death Wherevpon if you knew what is the sacrificing of a liue thing you should sée that how properly he was sacrificed on the Crosse in an open maner euen as properly he is sacrificed here in a mysticall maner The same Apostle therefore agayne saying that we haue an a Heb. 13. Altar to eate of which place your blindnesse b Pur. 45â— alleageth against this Sacrifice and also calling it c 1. Cor. 10 The table of our Lorde in that forme of speache as he calleth c 1. Cor. 10 The table of the diuels the sacrifice of the Gentiles and the Leuiticall sacrifices likewise the Leuiticall c 1. Cor. 10 Altar Yet you can not find d Pur. 200 289. one word nor one syllable in the Scripture of any Sacrifice instituted by Christ at his last Supper Whereof we shall say more Cap. 10. Dem. 24. Purgatorie But to go forwarde with you to your accusation first of Purgatorie and afterward of Purgatorie fire To proue that Purgatory came of the Philosophers as al most notable heresies did Pur. 416. Tertul. de anima cap 31.32 you alleage out of Tertullian De anima that all Philosophers which graunted the soules immortalitie assigned three places for the soules departed heauen hell and a third place of purifying This argument proueth as well that heauen and hell and the Immortalitie of the soule had their originall of the Philosophers Howbeit also to report the truth there is no word of any third place of purifying but onely that such Philosophers made two sortes of Receptacles to wit Supernas mansiones for Philosophers soules onely and Inferos for all other soules and that about the first they did varie for Plato placed it in aethere Aerius in aëre the Stoikes circa lunam This is all Againe you proue out of Irenéeus that Purgatorie came of Carpocrates the Heretike Iren. li. 1. cap. 24. because he inuented a kinde of Purgatorie and proued it out of that place of S. Mathew Thou shalt not come forth vntil thou hast payd the vttermost farthing Mat. 5. euen as the Papistes do By this argument againe you will winne much honestie Epiph. li. 1. To. 2. Haer. 27. Tertul. de anima c. 17 Ireneus and after him Epiphanius as also Tertullian in your owne booke De anima do write that the Carpocratians helde that a man must wallow in aâ—l the filthe of sinne that is in this world before he can come to life euerlasting and therefore if he haue missed any sinne his soule is reuersed into a body and so againe and againe vntill he haue fulfilled all And for this purpose Iesus they say vsed this Parable of agreeing with the aduersarie in the way Matt. 5. c. Corpus enim dicunt esse carcerem c. For that prison they say is the body and that which he saith Thou shalt not go out thence vntill thou hast payed the last farthing they interprete as if the soule should be turned ouer by certayne Angels from body to body semper quoadvsque in omni omnino operatione quae in mundo est fiat Continually euen vntill it haue bene in all and euery acte of this world vt nihil amplius relinquatur saith Epiphanius ad nefarium quicquam faciendum so that nothing remayne that is abhominable but it is fulfilled Purgatorie fire Pur. 419.418 You goe forward and say that they tooke Purgatorie fire of the Origenistes and the name of Purgatorie of certayne Mediators who about S. Augustines time would accorde Origens error with the erroneous practise of the church For it was Origen that brought in the fire also and that he would buylde as the Papists do See here ca. xij of Christes damnation temporall according to Caluine and as he had better reason then the Papistes haue out of the 1. Cor. 3. This you say but you proue it not Origens error was that hell fire is not an euerlasting fire but onely a temporall fire which should in time purge not onely them that had ended their liues in most horrible sinnes but also the diuels
it is a case that may trouble a mans conscience that would beleeue your Church and if he haue any wit restrayne him for euer coÌ„ming into your Church If you can not vntye this knot nor winde your selfe out of this maze c. So insoluble forsooth are your argumentes agaynst the Church of God iij. Touching the Constance Councell presumption But the thirde error I trow will sticke faster by vs because it is amongest those determinations of the Councell of Constance whiche were made agaynst the foresaide Heretikes which I haue confessed to be confirmed also by the Pope And this it is in Fulke his owne wordes Pur. 4. It is horrible presumption that any man or multitude of men should take vpon them authoritie to define agaynst the worde of God as the Councell of Constance which decreeth in playne wordes That notwithstanding Christ instituted the Sacrament to be receiued in both kindes and that the faythfull in the Primitiue Churche did so receiue it Manifest falsification yet the custome of the Church of Rome shall preuayle and whosoeuer saith contrarie is an heretike c. These he printeth in a distinct letter as the playne words of that Councell Con. CoÌ„st Sess 13. but the words truely reported are otherwise The Councell first telleth that certayne temerarious persons not onely do communicate the lay people in both kinds and after supper but also obstinately holde that they must be so communicated See Augu. ep 118. ca. 6 Then saith the Councell Hinc est c. Vpon this occasion this Councell doth declare determine and define that although Christ did institute after supper this venerable sacrament there is one piece And did minister it to his disciples vnder both formes of bread and wine there is the other piece yet this notwithstanding the authoritie of the sacred Canons also the laudable and approued custome of the Church hath obserued and doth obserue that this same sacrament must not be consecrated after supper nor receiued of the faithfull when they haue broken their fast c. there is agayne for the first piece And likewise that although this same sacrament were in the primitiue Church receiued of the faithfull vnder both formes yet for the auoyding of certaine dangers and scandles this custome was reasonably brought in that they which consecrate receiue it vnder both and the layetie onely vnder the forme of bread c. there is agayne for the second piece That which you report is one thing and this is an other thing For you also your selfe I thinke will not deny but that it is a good custome not to consecrate nor receiue it after supper although Christ did institute it after supper Neither do you therein graunt Christes institution to be agaynst that custome 1 No more doth the Councell graunt that practise of the primitiue Church to be against the custome of one forme For both are very reasonable and therefore both standing well together not onely at diuers times but also at one time in diuers places or of diuers persons 2 Muche lesse doth the Councell graunt as you make it to do that Christes institution was agaynst this custome of one forme 3 adding also such presumptuous words to say and yet the custome of the Church of Rome shall preuayle No such words are there reade the whole Chapter who will he shall finde to be spoken very reasonably very modestly and euery way as may beséeme a Councell iiij Touching certaine false interpretations of Scripture To the last error I referre certaine outcries that he maketh against our Church for the false interpretation of certaine scriptures But first let the Reader heare D. Allen out of his booke of Purgatory Marke well he saith and you shall perceiue Cap. 11. Pur. 14 that the Church of Christ hath euer giuen roome to the diuersitie of mens wittes the diuision of graces and sundry giftes in exposition of most places of the whole Testament with this prouiso alwaies that no man of singularitie should father any falsehood or vntruth vpon any text And to declare this doing of the Church he there alleageth that worthy Doctor of the Church S. Augustine Au. coâ— li. 12. câ— ad 32. Doc. Câ—sti li. 1.36 li cap. 27 who in two bookes writeth excellently and copiously to this purpose requiring principally that in euerye texte a man alwaies shoote at the sense of the writer Least by vse of missing the way he be brought to goe also the sideway or the contrarie way But although he misse that sense if he hit any other sense quae fidae rectae non refragatur that is not repugnaÌ„t to the right faith or quae aedificandae charitati sit vtilis that may serue well to the edifying of charitie towardes God and our neighbour that then nihil periculi est there is no daunger non perniciosè fallitur he is not harmefully deceiued nec omnio mentitur no nor is a lyar at all But rather the writer him self Et ipsam sententiam forsitan vidit peraduenture saw euen that sense also or at the least the Spirit of God which was in him foresaw that the same sense also would come in the Readers way Imò ut accurreret quia c. Yea and ordayned that it should come in his way for it also standeth on truth Now vpon this in his article of the Churches erring Ar. 86. he offereth the Protestants saith Let any man proue vnto me that the true and onely Church of God may falsely interpret any sentence of holy Scripture I recant Fulke herevnto saith This gentle offer must needes be taken I will proue vnto you that the Churche of Rome hath falsely interpreted diuers sentences of Scripture and therefore by that which she hath done it can not bee doubted but that she may doe it And for the first he there bringeth forth Pope Innocentius with S. Augustine and all the Westerne Churche at that time falsely interpreting this Scripture Supra ca. 6 pa. 2. Except ye eate the fleshe c. Wherevnto I haue already answered For the next he saieth Furthermore the second Councell of Nice howe many textes of Scripture doth it salsely interprete which it were to tedious to repeate yet for example sake I will rehearse some of them God made man to his owne image Gen. 1. therefore we must haue Images in the Church No man lighteth a candle and setteth it vnder a Bushel Mat. 5. therefore Images must be set vpon the Altars As we haue heard so we haue seene in the Citie of our God Psal 48. that is God must not be knowen by onely hearing of his word but also by sight of Images If these be not true interpretations I report me to you This is answered already by yâ— which hath bene said out of S. Augustine For to interpret any text for Ecclesiastical Images is to interpret it for the right faith not to interpret it falsely or to father any
But that is so manifest to be spoken of matters of externall comelines and not of doctrine of the Sacrament as Prayers and Sacrifices that no man which vnderstandeth what diatazesthai doth signifie can doubt or make any question of it Be it so as you say But what haue you forgotten the thing wherof you speake Is it not of that Solemne prayer for the dead in the celebration of the Sacrifice That prayer we say is diatazis one of S. Paules ordinations What vnproper speach is here specially S. Augustine saying agayne in another place Aug◠ver ◠Ser. 3 Hoc enim a patribus traditum vniuersa obseruat Ecclesia This being a tradition of the Fathers that is the Apostles the whole Church obserueth and therefore it is such a thing as nulla morum diuersitate variatur when they which are departed in the cōmunion or vnitie of the body and bloud of Christ be in their place mentioned at the same Sacrifice To pray for them and to mention that for them also it is offred Thus you haue a piece of the cause why the Scriptures conteined not the whole order of celebration of the Sacramēts to wit for breuities sake And what doth that or any other cause let other writers to make mention of such things when Aerius the heretike compelled them or any other iust occasion was ministred You imagine and that deceiueth you as though the Apostles purposed to put all in writing Which if they had neither so many of them That al is not vvritten nor one of them so often would haue mentioned one thing But as the purpose of the holy Ghost in the bookes of the Olde Testament was principally to foreshew manifoldly Christ and his Church so in the bookes of the New Testament as in the gospels Ioan. 19. Luk. 24. to shew Christ euen to Consummatum est and Impleri omnia quae scripta sunt de me And in the Actes of the Apostles to shew Christes Church according to the old predictions beginning amongst the Iewes and increasing to the Gentiles yea and remouing with S. Paule from Hierusalem the head of the Iewes worthily reprobated and setting in Rome the head of the Gentiles by mercy elected And all this but as it were the first birth of the Church for Consummatum est could not be tolde by way of a Storie before the ende of the world though foretold it is the whole course I say of the Church euen to the glorious consummation thereof in the Apocalipse The other Bookes were written specially agaynst the perfidious Iewes and other false Masters of that time As likewise in euery age afterward agaynst the seuerall heresies of eche age we haue the Ecclesiasticall I say not Canonicall writers and Councels And therfore vnlesse any thing belonging to ech time be omitted in the writings of ech time no maruaile at all for the omission of other things which there was then no suche occasion to expresse This I should haue reserued to an other place but that this insolent Poser might not abide any delay Pur. 264. Now then to go forward with him I know saith he the Papists will answer that Tradition is of as good credit as the Scripture 1. Thes 2. 2. Thes 2. 1. Cor. 11. and is the word of God vnwritten as well as the Scripture is the word of God written And good reason for the Scripture it selfe so teacheth vs. But why then saith he do they not obserue all things that Tertullian in the same place affirmeth to be Tradition This Why I haue answered in the sixt Chapter Supra ◠par 1. d◠Pur. 36 Moreouer he saith Their writings are to vs the onely true testimonie of their tradition So were they not to the Thessalonians For they had of S. Paule Traditiones per sermonē per epistolam Pur. 40 Traditions partly by word of mouth partly by writing Yea he saith further When the Apostolike writing can not be shewed it is but the poynt of an Heretike to boast of Apostolike tradition So he saith to D. Allen. But to the old Fathers I hope he will be somewhat better and content to take only his exception against them as where he saith Pur. 39. ◠If Tertullian had no ground of his saying when he affirmed that Oblations for the dead came from the Apostles what ground can Augustine haue which was 200. yeres further from the Apostles time then he Againe Pur. 39 Chrisostome can no more proue that Prayer for the dead came from the Apostles then Tertullian can proue that oblation for the dead came from them Againe But where he saith Pur. 30 304. It was decreed by the Apostles that in the celebration of the holy mysteries a remembrance should be made of them that are departed He must pardon vs of crediting because he can not shew it out of the Acts and writings of the Apostles We must not beleue Chrysostome without Scripture affirming that it was ordeined so by the Apostles Howbeit sometime he is bolder yet with the Fathers for auouching this Tradition He dare not call them heretikes for it but yet he dareth to charge them with doutfulnes contradiction about it For of Chrysostome he saith Pur. 39 Chryso◠Ep. ad ◠Hom. 3 Lo M. Allen your owne Doctor confesseth it is but small helpe that can be procured by praiers almes or remēbrance of thē at the celebration of the holy Mysteries You will say that soone after he saith The Apostles that instituted such memory knew that much cōmoditie came to the dead Then see how soone he forgetteth himself when he followeth not the rule of holy scripture And againe Ar. 39. Yet did not praying for the dead so preuayle in the Primitiue Church that they durst define what profite the soules receiued thereby for Chrysostome saith Let vs procure them some helpe small helpe truly but yet let vs helpe them Likewise Augustine Aug. ◠fes lib. cap. 13. where he prayeth for his father and mother declareth how vncertayne he was of the matter One while he feareth the daunger of euery soule that dyeth in Adam An other while he beleeueth that they neede not his prayer yet he desireth God to accept the same and moue other men to remember them in their prayers Thus it is necessarie that they wander which leane vnto mens traditions without the word of God And in the same place S. Augustine in his booke De cura pro mortuis agenda wearieth him selfe and in the end can define nothing in certayne how the Saintes in heauen should heare the prayers of men on earth Such doubtfulnes they fall into that leaue the worde of God leane to traditions Although he were willing to mainteine Inuocation of Saints Pur. 317. yet he hath nothing of certentie out of the worde of God eyther to perswade his owne conscience or to satisfie them that moued the doubtes vnto him For S. Augustine De
cura I haue answered in the third Chapter Supra pag. 12. In his Confessions he is not vncertayne of the matter as you pretend but of the persons néede and that but of his mothers néede not also of his fathers as you say because she was so perfit a woman Euen as our faith also of the matter is most certayne though of our particular friendes state after their departure we be vncertayne For concerning the liuing also Iob. 1. was Iob vncertayne of the profitablenes of Sacrifice because earely in the morning he vsed to offer for his children after they had bene feasting together Dicebat enim ne forte peccauerint filij mei For he said lest peraduenture my children haue sinned And touching S. Chrysostome whom you thinke so very a childe to forget him selfe so soone your selfe in déede a very childe for so thinking He there speaketh first of a) For such as die vnreconciled them Qui cum peccatis suis hinc abscedunt Which go hence with their sinnes and saith that they can not be holpen after their death Then he speaketh b) For Catholikes that be rich of them Who are departed in the faith but yet being rich they did not procure by their riches any comfort to their owne soules To these we that are their friends may with our riches prayers procure some helpe but litle in respect of that they might haue procured them selues So saith he He speaketh in such a comparison Neither is the Apostolike Memento within his comparison although it might haue bene well inough For although by it come much commoditie much vtilitie to the dead yet nothing so much when it is procured by their friends as when it is procured by them selues specially because a mans owne works are also meritorious of euerlasting rewarde so are not his friendes workes they are not meritorious vnto him at all no nor so satisfactorious of temporall paine as his owne nothing like iij. Against the Churches authoritie And so much of the Apostles and their Traditions Authoritie Dem. 34. Diuine seruice Dem. 22. Pur. 264. You shall now heare him make the same exception against the Churches Practise and Iudgement But admit saith he that the Church of God in Tertullians time vsed prayers and oblations for the dead Let vs consider vpon what ground they were vsed Tertullian himselfe shall say for me that the same custome with many other which he there rehearseth as comming from the Apostles hath no ground in the holy Scripture It is good to take that which is so frankely geuen and more is Tertullian to be commended that confesseth the ground of his error not to be taken out of the word of God then they that labour to wrest the Scriptures to finde that which Tertullian confesseth is not to be found in them You are hastie to take it but Tertullian doth not geue it as I haue plainely shewed you in the third Chapter Supra pa. 2 diui 3. Againe he excepteth against the Churches Practise in her Liturgie or Masse and saith We haue with more honestie refourmed our Liturgie according to the word of God then Gregorie Pur. 371. Basil Chrysostome or whosoeuer were authors of those Liturgies did leaue the auncient Liturgies that were vsed in the Church before their time and forge them new of their owne contrary to the word of God we neither refuse the Latine Church while it was pure nor receiue the East Church wherin it was corrupt But the Scripture is a rule vnto vs to iudge all Churches by And yet that we may not thinke him a coward he saith else where to D. Allen. But to follow you at the heeles as farre as you dare goe Pur. 349. I will agree with S. Augustines Rule quod legem credendi lex statuit supplicandi the order of the Churches prayer is euer a plaine prescription to all the faithfull what to beléeue so saieth S. Augustine and so doth D Allen alleage it but because Fulke could not make his florish with that end forward he turneth the staffe as though S. Augustine and D. Allen had said Falsification by changing that the law of beleeuing should make a law of praying And then he bestirreth him selfe like a man and addeth of his owne But faith if it be true hath no other ground but the word of God Therfore prayer if it proued of true faith hath no other Rule to frame it by but the worde of God And by and by after Which rule of onely Scripture if Augustine had diligently followed in examining the common error of his time Of prayer for the dead at that time he would not so * O videns blindly haue defended that which by holy Scripture he was not able to maintaine And no lesse bold he is with the Practise commended euen in the Canonicall Scripture it selfe Seeing this fact of Iudas Machabaeus Pur. 210. hath no commauÌ„dement in the Law it is so farre of that it is to be draweÌ„ into example that we may be bold to condemne it for sinne and disobedience Now concerning the iudgement of the Churche he excepteth against it likewise Ar. 86. saying As for doubtes that arise by difficultie of Scripture or contention of heresie they must be resolued and determyned onely by Scriptures For there is neuer aâ— cause heretikeâ— make dâ—â—bt of the Church this heretike vvill that no Christian leane vnto it heresie but there is as great doubt of the Churche as of the matter in question Onely the Scripture is the stay of a Christian mannes conscience As though that heresies neuer made doubt of the scriptures also eyther of all or of some péece namely your selues now of the Machabées And expressely against his owne Churche he maketh the same exception Ar. 58. saying And the Protestantes in Europe will also be ruled by their Superiors so farre as their Superiors are ruled by Gods word Againe Among the Protestantes to the Church of Saxonie humbly affected is the Churche of Denmarke to the Church of Heluetia the Church of Fraunce to the Church of England the Church of Scotland But so that none of these allow any consent or submission but to the truth which must be tried onely by Gods word With that but so you will consent I trow to Iackstrawe also and therefore it is a marueilous humble affection that your Churches haue one to an other Anno. 1. Elizab. Your owne Churche of England in generall Parliament was then much to blame to enact foure Rules for condemning of heresie First if it were against Canonicall Scripture SecoÌ„dly if it were against the first .4 Generall Councels or against any one of theÌ„ Thirdly if against any other general CouÌ„cel also but the with your acception to wit so far as the said Councell followed the line of Scripture and fourthly simpliciter whatsoeuer this high Court of Parliament shall adiudge to be heresie You notwithstanding haue written
as before And agayne Neither do we require you to beleeue any one companie of men Ar. 62. more then another but to beleeue the truth before falshood which you must search in the word of truth It was belike for this much other such Apocriphall stuffe that your booke was kept in so long and in the end also faine to come forth without priuiledge Yea he is so peremptorie in his exception Fuâ—e vvil not beleeue the Apostles nor the Angels vvithout Scripture the most absurdly he attributeth to the Apostles themselues without scripture no more then to Iackstraw and consequently with scripture as much to Iackstraw as to the Apostles For thus he saith speaking of D. Allen He speaketh it because he beleeueth it Pur. 24.4 2. Cor. 4. He would faine counterfeit his speach like the Apostle but the ground of his beliefe is not as the Apostles was the word of God but the practise of meÌ„ which though they were neuer so good yet they were suche as might deceiue and be deceiued Againe Pur. 449. Gal. 1. where he abuseth that which S. Paule speaketh to the Galathians of preaching their receiuing of it turneth it as spoken of onely Scripture It vexeth you at the very hart saith he that we require the authoritie of the holy Scriptures to confirme your doctrine hauing a plaine coÌ„maundement out of the word of God that if any man teache otherwise then the word of God alloweth he is to be accursed As though S. Paul there commaunded to accurse him self and al the Apostles the vniuersall Church of Christ if they confirmed not all their doctrine with expresse Scriptures in such maner as you here require No Syr nothing so Onely he accurseth them which should preach contrarie to that he had preached the Galathians had receiued which was as you see traditioÌ„ by mouth in which maner he taught them other Churches all Christian Religion therein as one principall point the Canon of the scriptures both old new if at the leastwise any Bookes of the newe as then were written which could not be many before the Epistle to the Galathians being as by conference of times it may well be proued the first of all S. Paules Epistles And so much of the Churches authoritie in her Iudgements and Practise namely of her diuine Seruice Whervnto I ioyne as the principalles in the authoritie first the Councells and secondly the Popes For to theÌ„ likewise he maketh his exceptioÌ„ Pur. 430. Councels Dem. 27. saying Wherfore if any CouÌ„cell decree according to the Scriptures as the CouÌ„cel of the Apostles did Act. 15. the CouÌ„cel of Nice with diuers other we receiue them with all humilitie as the oracles of God But if any Councell decree contrarie to the authoritie of the Scriptures as many did without all presumption or pride we may iustly reiect them Pur. 194. See Apostolike Dem. 28. Then of the other Yet is not all that Gregorie writ of equall authoritie with the word of God without authoritie whereof we beleeue not an Angel from heauen as I haue often shewed much lesse a Bishop of Rome And not onely against eche Pope seuerally but also against their whole line and entire Succession he excepteth in like maner saying Succession Dem. 43. Aâ— 28. Although we could rehearse in order as many Successions in our Church as the Papistes boast of in theirs yet were that nothing to proue it to be the Church of Christ which must be tried onely by the Scriptures And a little after We require at the Papistes handes that they shew them selues to hold the Church not by Succession of Bishops or rehearsing of their names but onely by the Scriptures For although wee did rehearse innumerable names of Bishops in orderly Succession on our side wee would not require men to beleeue vs but onely because wee proue the doctrine of our Churche by the authoritie of the Scriptures In déede we must acknowledge Fulke vvhat a frankeling that you deale very frankely with vs to renounce so fréely such a goodly euidence because you can not make so much as any shew thereof For otherwise when you haue any collour of any thing at all what mountybanke pedler is so facing so boasting so vaunting as you and your fellowes iiij Against the Fathers Fathers Dem. 26. Now after all this I will open his like excepting against the Fathers both in generall and also expressing diuerse of their names although it hath bene opened in part alreadie by other occasions And touching the first true it is that he often braggeth much of the Fathers which liued in the first a Ar. 39. Pu. 30.177 435.370.371 two hundred or b Pur. 186.247.304.331.357.364.382 one hundred yeares chalenging vs to proue our doctrine out of them and not out of the later Fathers after them euen with as much reason as he commonly chalengeth vs to proue all out of the scriptures vtterly without all ground but méere voluntarily * Fulkes tvvo Onelies the one as the other which ensample therefore is much to be noted But here notwithstanding I shall declare howe he excepteth smothly and simply against all the Fathers against all in general and expresly also saying were they neuer so auncient Wherin how well he agréeth with him selfe I deferre to the eleuenth Chapter And in effect he hath already so done in calling so often afore for Onely Scripture But yet to shew it more manifestly and as it were the very face it selfe thus he saith Pur. 205. Whatsoeuer he was or howe long soeuer it be since he wrote because it hath not authoritie in the word of God I weigh it as the wordes of a man whose credit in diuine matters is nothing without the word of God Againe Pur. 202. When all authoritie out of Gods word faileth you wherby you should proue that the soules departed receiue benefite by the merites of the liuing you flye to the authoritie of men But mans authoritie is to weake to carie away so weightie a matter Away with mens writings shew me but one Scripture to proue it Againe If for these and an hundred suche Pur. 22. you can shew no better warrant then the tearmes of your fathers the practise of your elders or the authoritie of mortall men the curse of God by Esay must nedes be turned ouer vnto you Againe Pur. 58. Your reasons either be manifest wrestings of the holy Scripture or else are buylded vpon the authoritie of mortall men Againe Pur. 386. We neede no shift M. Allen for the authoritie of the Doctors whom we neuer allow for Canonicall Scriptures and therefore we may boldly say Whatsoeuer we find in theÌ„ agreable to the Scriptures he meaneth expressed in the Scriptures we receiue it with their prayse and whatsoeuer is disagreable to the Scriptures we refuse with their leaue Againe Pur. 363. Now touching the credite and
worthinesse of these whom M. Allen so highly extolleth as I would not go about to diminish it if they were to be compared with vs so when they are As though vve opposed the doctors to the Apostles opposed against the manifest worde of God and the credite of the holy Apostles the ministers of the holy Ghost there is no cause that we shoulde be caried away with them That which he saith here as his Masters taught him of mortall men D. Allen knew aforehand and forewarned the Reader thereof where he said Melancton Pur. 384. as though he were no man that might erre himself saith the Doctors were men And againe to sée their absurditie in the same terme of mortall men Mortall men are compreheÌ„ded also the Apostles them selues and if they sometime séeme to separate them selues from it they meane then by the Apostles nothing but the Scriptures of the Apostles As Fulke in certaine places noted before and againe where he saith to D. Allen Ar. 59. You shal neuer bring vs to acknowledge that S. Paule is against vs in any article of our faith but we agree wholly with him Neuerthelesse I know what you meane and I will not be afrayde to vtter it For as much as immediatly after the Apostles time corruption entred into the Church you thinke that we dare not depend vpon any one mans iudgement and therein you are not deceiued for we must depend only vpon Gods word Euen so dealt the vnbeléeuers and the doubtfull and weake with the Apostles in their life time yea and with Christ him selfe and yet to winne such persons both the Apostles yea and Christ himself condescended to them accordingly If the Protestants would in like sort haue dealt with him them not to haue beléeued them in any thing without Scripture the faithfull I thinke for all that were not so straite laced but beléeued them vpon their own word not Christ onely but also his Apostles because of the spirite of truth that he sent to them and not to them onely but also to his Church after them for euer and therefore they will also no lesse at all times beléeue the said Church for the same spirite assuring them selues that the saide spirite agréeth still with him selfe whersoeuer and howsoeuer he speaketh be it in the Scriptures or be it in the Church and in the Church Primitiue or in the Church of later times and agayne in the Pastors of the Primitiue Church as the Apostles or in the Pastors of the Church afterwarde at any time in generall Councell or otherwise consenting together It is no maruayle after this generalitie to sée him now except against the Fathers in particular naming the times and the persons Ar. 60. as first the times where he saith The other writers of later yeres after Ireneus and Iustinus we are not afrayde to confesse that they haue some corruption wherby you may seeme to haue colour of defence for Inuocation of Saintes prayer for the dead Pur. â—87 and diuers Ceremonies And Although the custome of praying for the dead be an auncient error so that few of the later writers there are but they shew them selues to be infected therewith yet they had no ground out of the Scriptures to warrant their doing Pur. 262. Againe But of memories of the dead and prayers for the dead also we wil not striue but that they were vsed before the times of Cyprian Ambrose but without warrant of Gods word or authoritie of Scriptures but such as is pitifully wrested and drawen vnto them Againe Pur. 30. But it sufficeth you that your forefathers more then a thousand yeres ago called the place of sufferaÌ„ce Purgatory But I pray you what is it called in the Scripture either of the old Testament or the new Diuers errors be older then a 1000. yeres but age can neuer make falshood to be truth and therfore I weigh not your * It is pride to follovv the fathers and humilitie to coÌ„demn them proud brags worth a straw Againe And this was a great corruption of those ancient times that they did not alwayes weigh what was most agreable to the word of God but if the Gentiles or Heretikes had any thing Pur. 419. and the rest as aboue in the third Chapter And againe Supra pag. 9. Those of the auncient Fathers that agreed with you in any part of your assertion notwithstanding many excellent giftes that they had Pur. 436. dissented therein from manifest truth of the Scriptures And so by name likewise he saith of certayne as for example Damascene your doctor should first haue reproued that perswasion by Scripture Againe Pur. 412. Pur. 60. The supposall of S. Augustine is sette downe which because it is but the authoritie of a man it is not of sufficient weight to beare downe the testimonie of Gods word Againe Pur. 395. And euen the authoritie of Athanasius without the word of God is the authoritie of man We count not all his writings for Canonicall Scriptures but we iudge them by the Canonicall Scriptures And againe Pur. 255.256 Gregorie Nissene and Athanasius the Great There is no cause why we should beleue either of them both in an article of faith without the authoritie of the word of God The second part Beeing told that the question betwene vs is not as he maketh it of the Scriptures authoritie but of the meaning howe there likewise against all the Expositors he maketh the same exception of Only Scripture requiring also Scripture to be expounded by Scripture Now after all this froth of words let vs sée him come once to the poynt report him self the substance of our matter These be his owne words But the controuersie is not M. Allen fayth of the authoritie of the Scriptures in this matter Pur. 363 but of the true meaning of them which it is more like that they the Doctors being such men then we so farre inferior to them should know And what saith he therevnto I answere saith he and yet not one worde there to the question Else where he saith therevnto as I will report anone his words that also the meaning of the Scriptures must be searched out of the Scriptures onely Well syr but whencesoeuer and wheresoeuer it must be searched who is more like to finde it the Doctors or you and so neither that which you saye in other places answereth the question But in this place reade it who list your answere is quite cleane froÌ„ the questioÌ„ which was Whether be more like to know the true meaning of the Scriptures the Doctors or you And yet you pype vp the triumph there and say Thus haue these Heretikes no ground of their heresie but shift from the word of Scripture to Tradition from Tradition to the meaning of Scripture from the plaine meaning of Scripture to the opinions of men Yea and he counteth him selfe and his companies happie for such
worde of trueth desiring the spirite of trueth that you may vnderstande and beleeue the trueth and so without doubt you shall come to the knowledge of the trueth and of the Churche of God whiche is the pillar of truth So it is then good syr In this Seminarie of English diuines vnder the gouernement of D. Allen mainteined by his holines for the saluation of our countrey as he mainteineth the like for Germanie also for Bohemia and Students of Polonia The Popes Seminarie for England Suetia Slauonia Hungaria c. yea for the Gréekes likewise yea also for the Hebrues we haue such exercise in the scriptures that we reade ouer the old Testament in euery thrée yeres twelue times one of which times hath ioyned with it an examinatiō by conferēce from Chapter to Chapter and from verse to verse The new Testament we reade ouer in the same thrée yeres sixtéene times with a treble examinatiō of the same sort And not cōtent with those examinations we afterwards write moreouer in paper bookes lay together al the sentences that belong to the controuersies of this time euery one in his place And without all vanitie to speake one word of my selfe after many yeres studie afore after the maner of Englād as many of your owne side can beare me witnesse I haue since then folowed this foresaid trade nine yeres This is partly our diligence in the scriptures besides much other exercise both in the same and in all the studie of diuinitie What more diligence would you haue vs vse this is the principall and as you make it all in all All other helpes you counte but subordinate and seruing vnto this And yet in them also I dare saye if you knewe vs you woulde allowe vs for sufficient at the leaste You maye by the trace of God ere it be long haue some taste of vs therein when one of vs shall set forth a booke to shew to the world that the Hebrew and Gréeke textes in nothing make for you against vs and in very many things make for vs against you much more plainly then our vulgar Latine text Now then how much more certaine of the trueth be we then you also by your owne rule because your diligence herein is nothing comparable but specially because together with this rule we vse the expositiōs that you renounce of the auncient Fathers who for such conference of places and all other studie of the Scriptures were pearlesse ¶ The third part What he meaneth by his Onely Scripture and that thereby he excepteth also against Scripture it selfe Thus haue we heard this Protestant call for expresse Scripture in all things yea also in the expounding of Scripture Now that he séeme not too straight and rigorous in his exception he will tell vs what he meaneth therby as it were to geue vs more scope but in déed as we shall heare soone after to shut vs straighter vp and to except also against Scripture it selfe vnlesse it be so plaine and euident for vs that by no subteltie of theirs they may auoide it Concerning the former thus he saith When we require expresse Scripture for euery controuersie we doe not require that euery thing should be named in Scripture but necessarily concluded out of the true meaning of the Scriptures and purpose of the holy Ghost in them Then on the other side he almost repenteth himselfe againe for graunting so much and saieth And yet we may say Pur. 438. it is a great preiudice against your Purgatorie and prayer that it is not so much as once named in the Scriptures Againe If the holy Ghost had euer allowed Prayer for the deade he would once at the least haue vttered the same plainely in holy Canonicall Scriptures Pur. 452. Canonicall he saith to except against the very meaning of it also which he séeth in the bookes of the Machabées rather shall that Canonicall Scripture not be Canonicall for so plainely naming that which the eares of the Protestantes can not abide Well in the other Canonicall Scriptures the name is not and that is a great preiudice against vs. But he will be fauourable vnto vs a great preiudice shal not make him geue iudgement against vs if at least The thing it selfe be taught or can be proued by the Scriptures Yet againe he remembreth him selfe Pur. 452. that D. Allen hath alleaged many Scriptures for that thing and the old Fathers likewise before him and therefore to tye vs yet straighter with another exception he said here a little afore But we require that euery thing be necessarily concluded out of the true meaning of the Scriptures And againe he saith speaking of D. Allen See the confidence of the man he is sure Pur. 364. that if we were examined of our conscience what tryall of this doubt we would wish there is none we could name but his cause might well abide it Wherevnto he answereth saying Why M. Allen we haue testified of our conscience long agoe that the onely authoritie of Gods word written shall satisfie vs as well in this as in all other matters If you were able we should haue heard before this time some sentence of Scripture to maintaine prayer and sacrifice for the dead Why in the third Chapter here you confessed that you haue heard of him diuerse sentences and not of him alone Supra pag. 19. but also of the Fathers of the true Churche Yea but now saieth he I adde my exception and say therfore some sentence not standing vpon voluntarie collection but either in plaine wordes or necessarie conclusion For there is nothing that we are bound to know nothing that we are bound to doe but either in expresse wordes or in necessarie collection which is as good as expresse wordes it is set forth in the holy Scriptures Againe Pur. 452. All truth may be proued by Scripture either in plaine wordes or by necessarie conclusion which is all one And againe Pur. 189. There is * For example your ovvne heresie no heresie so absurd which Satā putteth into the head of wicked men but it may finde some sound of words in so many Bookes of the holy scriptures that by peruerse wittes may be wrested vnto it But the doctrine of Gods trueth and all articles of our beliefe are plainely taught in the Scripture either by manifest wordes or by necessary conclusion and argument which by no subtiltie of Satan or his instrumentes may be auoided or deluded And this is the difference betweene heresie and truth when they both appeale to the authoritie of Scripture Which difference as it may be found in al heresies so in none more notably then in this error of Purgatory Consider what texts of holy Scripture are alleaged * against it rather for it you shall see they can not bring one out of which any necessary argument may be framed to proue their cause or which hath not by learned interpretors of the olde time
we may note the cause that moueth him to say that our Churche refuseth the Scriptures as if he should say that we refuse faith because we refuse only faith or that any man refuseth his owne best euidence because he will not at the instance of his aduersarie renounce all his other euidences be they neuer so many neuer so good neuer so well tried and so much vsed by his auncetors also most agreable euery one of them to his foresaid best euidence Ar. 85. He saith moreouer She hath nothing lesse then the true sense of Gods word which submitteth the same to her owne iudgemēt Ar. 107. Againe The Popish Church so manifestly dissenteth from the word of truth that she dare not be iudged thereby but most blasphemously submitteth the same to her owne iudgement Againe In the Popish Church Gods word is made subiect to mens determinations and authorities And againe Pur. 219. By which it is manifest that you do reiect the whole authoritie of all the Canonicall Scriptures when you affirme that no booke of holy Scripture is Canonicall but so farre foorth as your Church will allowe it Moreouer when you will not admit any sense of the Scripture but such as your Church will allow Here are two other causes of the same againe As if he would say that the Apostles in their time or the Church then Note vvhiche is this Popishe Church submitted and made subiect the Scriptures to men most blasphemously and onely of their owne will 2. Pet. 3. because they tooke vpon them to iudge of the true sense and namely S. Peter for saying that the vnlearned him selfe being but a fisherman and the vnstable do misconster S. Paules Epistles sicut caeteras Scripturas as also the other Scriptures to their owne damnation And againe as though the same Apostles and the Church after them manifestly reiected the whole authoritie of all the Canonicall Scriptures Canonicall did al only of their owne will because they made a Canon or Canons as all the lawes of the Church are called Canons wherof the saide Scriptures were and are called Canonicall whervpon himselfe also counteth them as confirmed by the holy Ghost Well for these goodly causes he is bold to say that the Church of which Christ said generally If he will not heare the Church Mat. 18. count him for an heathen and a publican refuseth and reiecteth the Scriptures And againe to D. Allen Pur. 438. As for the euident word of God you shame not to boast of that to be your triall which you dare as well eate a fagot as abide the iudgement of it in any lawfull conference or disputation Your great belwethers and bishops declared before the whole world in the conferēce of Westminster what they durst abide when they came to handstrokes It is a gay matter for such a chattering Pye as you are to make a fond florish a farre off in words to please your patrons and exhibitioners it is an other thing to stand to the proofe in deede And againe to him Pur. 346. Where as you wish that Bedes historie were made familiar vnto all English men they were better to consider the word of God and the historie of the Actes of the Apostles Which if you durst abide the triall thereof you would exhort men to reade it at least wise that vnderstand Latin And if you were as zelous to set forth the glory of God as you are to mainteine your owne traditions one or other of you which haue so long found fault with our translations of the Scriptures would haue taken paynes to translate them truely your selues as well as to translate Bedes booke You say the disputation at Westminster Anno 1. Elizab. was before the whole world as one that care not what you say which you declare again in speaking of D. Allens exhibitioners and his pleasing of them a thing wherof you know nothing nor as I think no body els vnles some body may know that which is not He is rather him selfe the Exhibitioner of our whole countrey like an other Ioseph and might be yours also if you were happy How much more iustly then may we say that the Councell of Trent was holden before the whole world And what conference will you admitte for lawfull on our part when as you refused to come to that assembly at Trent béeing yet so earnestly so safely and so honorably inuited thither as the Safeconduites extant in the Actes of the Councell do witnesse together with the very experience also of those fewe petites of Germanie that came thither Or what conference shall on your parte be thought iniquous and vniust towardes vs when you shame not to extoll that mocke conference of Westminster A fourefolde offer Well because you chalenge vs to a disputation and are suffered to set it forth in print heare what I will say vnto you The Councell of Trent counted you their subiectes as muche as you counte vs the subiectes of Englande and the state there is of all Catholike Princes graunted to be farre preeminent Do you therefore procure vs a safeconduite from the Courte in suche fourme as the Councell gaue it to you and certayne of vs will in the name of God come in be the daunger to our liues otherwise neuer so great and for the glory of God in the victorie of his trueth we will ioyne with you in any conference that shall be prescribed according to the common lawes of a Conference Sée in my .xix. Demaunde which is of Kinges what I said to this effect before I knew of this your chalenge Sée likewise of the same in my first Demaund which is of olde Conference at Carthage betwixte the Catholikes and the Donatistes about the true Churche which the Scriptures commende vnto vs Whereof I shall haue occasion to say more in the tenth Chapter If to reiect this offer the Gouernours by your procurement or of their owne mindes will stand vpon their poyntes wheras we séeing the cause is Gods cause are content not to stand vpon our liues to saue your soules and to redéeme the vnmercifull vexation and intollerable persecution of our brethren ouer all that Realme whom your Bishops and other Commissioners do oppose with heauy yrons and bouchers axes sorer then you can oppose vs or the learned of them with Scriptures Do you syr at the least wise for your owne credits sake take your pen in hand and ioyne with me vpon that same Collatio Carthaginensis in such maner as I haue briefly required in my said first Demaund Or if you dare not do that neither for al your crakes thirdly I require you to send to vs some of your fellows or schollers such as will behaue them selues quietly and modestly other safeconduite they shall not néede as diuers of your side haue already at sundry times partely of their owne heades partely at their priuate friendes motion come hither and founde all safe
and sure for their persons and not one of them but he was thankes be to God throughly satisfied by our conference and namely by séeing and hearing our foresaid dayly reading and examination of the Scriptures Which béeing by D. Allen our President his order vsed amongst vs who can doubt but he exhorteth men to reade the Scriptures them specially that vnderstande Latin much more thē S. Bedes historie And namely the Acts of the Apostles what booke do I his scholler more often vse in my Motiues and Demaundes then that And touching a Catholike trāslation of the Scriptures you shew your selfe to know litle God wotteth what is D. Allens desire and minde therein But all men may assure them selues that any thing lacketh therevnto rather then good will and feruent zeale specially because we sée it translated already by Catholikes into al other languages almost and because we know sundry cōmodities that might ensue thereof namely because we lament to see so many soules to dye in the most holsome waters beeing turned into deadly bitternes by your Starre Absinthin Apoc. 8. your blindnes withall being suche that leauing both the authenticall Gréeke of the Septuaginta which the Apostles and Primitiue Church did vse and also the authenticall Latin which the Church hath vsed so many hundred yeres in some part euen from the beginning almost you haue serued our countrey with the olde Testament of the late obstinate Iewes vowelling diuiding and reading it being of it selfe but one verse in the whole Psalter and ech other particular booke onely consonantes and to be read according to the tradition of the faithfull which tradition we know by our authenticall translations and not of the incredulous and perfidious No no whensoeuer we should make if we were in case and place a Catholike translation and send the copies in they should be in no lesse daunger of your searchers and fyres then our other bookes haue bene and are euery day more and more but yet that daunger should not stay vs if nothing els did knowing that such a translation will confound you ten thousande times more then all the other bookes haue done Last of all if none of my former requestes can finde place with you at the least wise you shal haue here in the Chapter folowing an answere to all your Scriptures hither vnto alleaged in both your bookes to chaw vpon for a while And then tell your Reader when as you haue here renounced all other euidences so he shall sée that you are no lesse destitute of Scripture also tell him then I say blaming D. Allen Pur. 364. and saying And yet he wondreth that we are so blinde that we can not see the cleare light of truth And againe in the ende of your booke Pur. 458. In Gods name let the Readers way indifferently and as they see this poynt of the dead handled so let them iudge of the rest The trueth is vpholden by euident testimonie of Scripture the error by custome practise and iudgement of men The truth seeketh vnderstanding of the Scriptures of the spirite of God in the Scriptures error at the mouthes of mortall men Now thē to these euident Scriptures in the name of God and to your diuine vnderstanding of them ¶ The eyght Chapter To shew his vanitie in his foresaide rigorous exacting of playne Scripture and great promises to bring playne Scripture conferring place with place so euidently All the Scriptures that he alleageth are examined and answered AL the Scriptures that he alleageth against vs throughout his two bookes I do sort and distribute into foure partes The first concerning the question of onely Scripture the second concerning the question of the Church the third concerning the question of Purgatorie the fourth concerning al other questions that he mentioneth The first part Concerning the question of Onely Scripture And as touching the first In the last Chapter we saw how to make exception against all our other euidēces he euermore said that in all matters Onely euident Scripture must be brought and heard confessing those other euidences to be so euident for vs that they can not otherwise be auoyded Now then this béeing his onely refuge how many and how euident Scriptures hath he alleaged for it as you thinke Surely in all his first booke to D. Allens Articles they being altogether our foresaid Euidences he alleageth but one place onely and not many mo neither in his other booke of Purgatorie And what maner of place also thinke you that it is specially considering howe muche he craketh of it as where he saith Thus I haue declared Ar. 11.15 c. that the true Church of Christ hath conuicted all Heretikes onely by the Scripture Agayne it hath bene already proued sufficiently Ar. 16. that the true Catholike Church which is ledde only by the worde of God the onely weapon by which heresies are cut downe counting it to be sufficient for that purpose hath ouerthrowen heresies of all sortes And againe Doctrine is to be sought out and tried onely by the Scriptures Ar. 82. as we haue declared at large in the answere to the fourth Article first Demaunde And once againe Ar. 86. As for doubtes that arise by difficultie of Scripture or cōtention of heresie they must be resolued and determined as it is abundauntly declared before onely by the Scriptures With that place of Scripture he alleaged certayne Fathers as Hilarius Basilius Chrysostome Sainct Augustine Leo the first and the Councell of Constantinople the sixte To whom I must aunswere in the next Chapter Infra pag. But he graunteth pardie that the Fathers authoritie is no warrant to him so to crake as another where also expresly he saith Pur. 383. It is not for confirmation of the trueth that we alleadge the authoritie of the Doctors and olde Councels Then must all these crakes be onely in respect of the Scripture that you there alleaged Let vs therefore nowe heare that Scripture So did Paule ouercome the Iewes Act. 18. that is to say Ar. 11. only by the Scripture That he often disputed against the Iewes prouing Iesus to be Christ I there finde but that his argumentes were none but Scriptures I finde not But reade you Actes .13 and you shall finde that he vsed also other argumentes agaynst them to witte the testimonie of certayne men as of S. Iohn Baptist and of his owne Disciples that sawe him many dayes together after his resurrection qui vsque nunc sunt testes eius ad plebem Who to this day are witnesses for him to the people Reade likewise Act. 4. for the argument of Miracles specially where it is sayde Hominem quoque videntes stantem cum eis qui curatus fierat nihil poterant contradicere Seeing the man also standing with Peter and Iohn whom they had healed the Gouernours of the Iewes were quite put to silence And therefore also if S. Paule had in your place ouercome them
passing similitude betwene you them in the smoke in the horses in the whole Anatomie of the Locustes and aboue all in the like destroying and sacrilegious wast of Gods Churches and their sacred vessell and holy ornamentes which they shall make in all places as vnto you is permitted of God onely in some places The desolation The like is séene in the Desolation made by you to be made hereafter by Antichrist him selfe it is euen al one and the same but that he shall do vniuersally that which you may not doe but here there he in all the Churches of the world casting out the holy Sacrifice of the Masse with all diuine seruice therevnto belonging as you haue done in all the Churches of Englande and wheresoeuer els you are permitted to set Sedem Satanae your Satanicall seate As he also shall in place of the foresaid dayly Sacrifice bring in his Abomination Abhomination euen him selfe and his Image to be in all Churches adored aboue all Diuinitie O most abhominable desolation So haue you likewise not only made desolation of the Sacrifice but also in stead therof set vp euery where your abhomination of Luthers Caluines inuention the Images also of kings armes in the very place of the most swéete and most glorious Roode yea the Image of a vile Grashopper in a Church that is well knowen in the very place where afore did stande Gods Crucifixe I say not that this is the very selfe Abomination of Antichrist but I say and I say boldly that none other of the olde figures thereof was euer more liuely more nigh more like vnto it not the Idols or Statuees of Iupiter set vp in the Temple by Antiochus in the vmbraticall desolation of that time béeing the time of the Machabées nor the like of certaine Romane Emperours in the vmbratical desolation of their time nor any thing in the sundry vmbraticall desolations by diuerse heresies which S. Basil and other of the holy Fathers haue as it were Ieremies lamentation again pitifully recorded You haue I say in this your vmbraticall desolation pricked beyonde them al approching in the very kind of desolation so much nearer then any to the desolation of Antichrist as you do in time so ioyntly so identically that you haue represented vnto vs a plaine example how a thing it selfe may be a shadow or a figure of the same thing it selfe onely differing in some maner And therefore séeing it hath bene Prophecied that one certayne heresie and that towards the end should so farre pricke beyond all other heresies Apoc. 8. according also to the fourth Trumpet béeing compared with the third that it should be not onely an heresie but also a playne Apostasie whether the same be not this present heresie of yours let the world iudge I do not charge you as you do vs by bare wordes vayne crakes yea and falsifications of the text but I alleage playne Scriptures and I alleage them truly and I conferre diuers places together that one may expoūd another which you are wont to talke so much of but you in talke onely and we in déede Besides much more that I haue if I were the opponent here and not the answerer to proue your Apostasie and that in all the thrée species of Apostasie béeing these Apostasie from Religion Monasticall Apostasie from holy Orders Apostasie from our Christian faith Chalenging you otherwise to ioyne with me vpon my last Demaund in my booke of 51. Demaundes which concerneth your said Apostasie Therfore such being your Newinuented Gospell in this time of the fourth Trumpet no doubt they that embrace the same A Gospell paedagogue to Antichrist wil as readily embrace the next in the time of the fifth Trumpet and againe as readily much more readily embrace Antichrist him selfe in the time of the Churches sixth Trumpet Angelicall For whom and what will not they beléeue which without all proofe yea against so euident Scriptures onely vpon your bold and impudent asseuerations being men so impotent so vnlearned euen in the Scriptures also and so notorious and confessed wicked liuers haue beleued that Christes Vicar and therfore in effect that Christ himselfe is Antichrist that Christes Church the woman clothed with the sunne the new and glorious citie of Hierusalem cōming downe from heauen is the (a) Fulke Ar. 33.38.57.100.102.106 and Pur. 287.298.336.391.409.460 Synagogue of Antichrist the great whore and citie of Babylon No my masters no it wil neuer be Gods elect do to wel know the piller that alwais hath and still must hold them vp in truth euen agaynst the mightie seductions of Antichrist himself of his (b) Apo. 13.16 singular falseprophet and of his thrée lesser and all his other inferiour falseprophetes much more against you And therefore it is not your ignorant and absurd detorting deprauing as the (c) 2. Pet. 3. first of Christes Vicars did tearme it when he gaue vs warning of such felowes of the womans gorgeous garments nor of the seuen hills that can deceiue them no more then the false deprauing of the womans flight whereof I haue already spoken for they know to distinguish the Gorgeous garments vsed always in Gods diuine seruice which your king Abaddon maketh wast and hauocke of The gorgeous garments from the gorgeous prophane garmentes and infinite vayne pompe that the world of the wicked triumpheth in Infra ca. 10 Dema. 21. They know also by the commentarie which the Scripture it selfe maketh what are both the Seuen heades Apo. .17 or Seuen hilles and also the Tenne hornes to wit that they all be kings not the Catholike kings which haue and do so humbly adore our Sion and licke the very dust of her feete knowing that the nation kingdom which serueth not her shal surely perish Esay 49. and 60. but the kings that are with the world against the said Church and people of God So saith the Scripture The seuen heades and hilles The Seauen heades are seuen hilles vpon which the woman sitteth and they are seuen Kings And marke the diuision of them quinque ceciderunt Fiue of them are fallen Who therefore are all the persecuting kings in the time of the Olde Testament before the comming of Christ before the time when this was spoken Vnus est One presently is Who therfore is meant of the Romaine Emperours and al other kings persecuting with them Alius nondum venit c. The other is not yet come and when he commeth he must remayne not a long season as the fiue and as the one but a short season onely thrée yeres and a halfe Who euidently is Antichrist in proper person There haue you playnly the Seuen Now touching the other Tenne this saith the Scripture The ten hornes And the tenne hornes are tenne kings which like as hath bene said of Antichrist haue not yet taken kingdome but they shal take power as kings vna hora post
Bestiam euen within one houre after the Beast that is together with Antichrist The vvhore Babylon to serue him as his féede knightes And so you sée euidently by these Seuen hills thus expounded that the woman which sitteth vpon them is not so litle a one as you do make her but that she is Mundus impiorum the whole multitude of the wicked euen frō the first beginning of the world to the last end thereof euen al in effect that at the later day shal be drowned in hel either for being of her Apo. 14.15 16.17.18 2. Pet. 2. or conforming them selues vnto her which in the Apocalypse is most manifest as the world of the wicked it was which was in the time of Noe drowned in the vmbraticall deluge So that Rome with the Emperour of it while it was against the Church was a member yet but a member of that woman As England contrariwise which was before so long together a notable member of the woman clothed with the Sunne is now become a member most miserable of the contrarie woman and for rewarde of her mutation and Apostasie thus plagued of God that now she must heare the Scriptures so perniciously detorted in all pulpits at large and may not heare them truely sincerely healthfully reported so muche as in poore papers which if she might fréely and much more in pulpits downe downe god wot full soone would this lying and absurd new Gospell come as by this litle which hath bene here saide any man of reason will not denie And now to our third question which is of Purgatory The third part Concerning the question of Purgatory D. Allen in the end of his booke of Purgatory made two chapters of answere to their Scriptures yet saith Fulke at the first of the two This Chapter is but Pro forma tantum Pur. 437. To make a shew of a confutation where the tenth part of our arguments are not rehearsed notwithstanding there and other where vp and downe he said inough to answere all But I shal endeuour therefore to satisfie the man better in this behalfe collecting together not only the tenth part but euen al his scriptures not omitting as much as one by my will though such collecting and disposing of things so dispersed cost me in euery Chapter of this booke as much or more labour then to answere the same afterward Well syr then you reason against Purgatorie by authoritie of Scripture in part negatiuely in part affirmatiuely And your negatiue reasoning is sometimes of a piece onely sometimes of the whole Scripture Againe when it is out of a piece onely it is partly out of some one place partly out of some one booke j Ab authoritate Scripturae negatiuè First therfore whatsoeuer you say negatiuely out of a piece whether it be one place or one booke you haue your selfe answered it for me Pur. 449. whatsoeuer it be in these words It is no good Logike to conclude negatiuely of one place or booke of Scripture This is not conteined in it therefore it is not true These be your owne words euen also speaking there of this selfe same matter euen of Purgatory Neuerthelesse to deale more substantially I will not sticke to rehearse those places also and to answere them particulerly One of them is 1. Thes 4. vpon which in your negatiue diuinitie you demaund and say Pur. 236. How hapneth it that in so necessary a place S. Paule findeth no other comfort to moderate the mourning of the faithfull but only the quiet rest of thē that are asleepe in the Lord and the hope of their glorious resurrection Sruely if S. Paule had bene of Chrysostomes mind he would haue prescribed other maner of comfortes Against the Fathers also as Chrysostome doth to wit exhorting them to prayers and almes for their friendes departed rather then to mourne so immoderatly Séeing you so reason out of this place I pray you let me aske you Haue you whensoeuer in Sermon or otherwise you would moderate the mourning of the faithfull no other comfort but onely these two yea I say more If you haue no mo comforts in that case and if there be no moe then S. Paule there prescribeth surely there is but onely one to wit the hope of resurrection For although he name them that are asleepe in the Lorde yet of their quiet rest after that sléeping that is to say after their death he saith nothing it is but your owne addition Another place with your negatiue Logikes demaund is where hauing graunted Pur. 362. that Tertullian Cyprian Augustine Ieronym and many more are witnesse that the solemne prayer for the dead in celebration of the Sacrament is the tradition of the Apostles you pose the Papistes notwithstanding and aske Why then the same is not set foorth by Matthew Marke Luke or Paule where they set foorth the institution of the Sacrament Your wordes at large and my aunswere go afore in the laste Chapter pag. ◠sauing that piece of your wordes which conteineth your negatiue reason most clearely and most boldly saying But agaynst this faigned tradition S. Paule cryeth with open mouth 1. Corin. 11. That which I deliuered vnto you I receyued of the Lorde c. This is the onely true substance of the Sacrament and onely right order of ministration and onely right vse and proper end thereof So you make as though the Apostle there prescribeth the whole order of ministration in so muche that it onely and no other may be the right order thereof contrarie to that whiche followeth in the same place Infra ca. 11. contr 44. The rest I will set in order when I come You declare your great skill in the Scripture when here so farre you misse of the Apostles purpose which was onely agaynst vnworthy receauing The greatnesse of that sinne he sheweth because of the Reall presence of Christ yea and that in the same maner as he was in his death Looke better vpon the place and sée whether it be not as I saye or rather as S. Augustine sayth Au. ep 118. ad Ian. ca. 3 Inde enim Apostolus indignè dicit acceptum ab eis qui non discernebant a ceteris cibis veneratione singulariter debita quod satis toto ipso loco in Epistola ad Corinthios prima si diligenter attendatur apparet For that respect the Apostle also doth say that they receaue it vnworthily who doe not by due and singularlye due worshippe discerne it from the rest of meates as sufficiently appeareth through that same whole place in the firste Epistle to the Corinthians if it be diligently considered So then where the Apostle intended no more but to correct the sinne of vnworthye receyuing there to require of vs to shewe that he prescribeth it to be offered for the dead yea and the whole order of ministration haue not you forsooth great reason And euen as great you haue where you argue out of particular
places of the Old Law saying Pur. 455. What law was appoynted touching lamenting for the dead you may reade Leuit. 21. how the Priest was forbidden to lament for any but speciall persons Also Num. 19. Diuerse ordinances concerning the dead yet neuer any sacrifice or prayer for the dead With like reason you might conclude vpon the same places that the dead should not be buried because in these places no mention is made thereof and againe of sundrie other places Leuit. 15. where the people are bidde to keepe them selues warily from diuerse contaminations of them selues by towching certaine persons aliue that therefore in the same places they are forbidden to pray for the saide persons aliue and namely during the cause of such contamination as for a man or woman whose séede or flowers runneth You suppose ignorantly that in those places orders are giuen what shall be done for the dead but it is not so onely it is decréed that whosoeuer entreth the tabernacle or house of him that is there departed shal be contaminate or vncleane after the Mosaicall maner and that the high priest shall not enter to any such at all nor other priests but to certayne What maketh this agaynst doing ought for the soule of the dead in other places and specially in the holy place As when againe you say Pur. 456. When Nadab and Abihu were slayne their father and brethren were forbidden to mourne for them the people were permitted By all which it appeareth that no Sacrifice for the dead was offered As though holy Sacrificing were as vnfit for the Priest as prophane mourning And as though this speciall case were a generall rule whereas Leuit. 21. it is expresly said to the Priestes that they may be contaminated which with you is mourning vpon their brother notwithstanding that for the plague of their two brethren Nadab and Abihu they might not in some maner mourne From the particuler places of the Law I come now with you to the whole Law thus according to your good Logike you conclude negatiuely therevpon Pur. 455. All lawfull sacrifices were prescribed by the Law Sacrifice for the dead was not prescribed by the Law Therfore it was no lawfull Sacrifice A séely argument was made by Grindall which D. Allen there returneth vpon him and in this fourme here rehearsed you go about to better it The answere still is Infra ca. 12. num as it was before by returning it vpon your selfe All lawfull Sacrifices to wit these foure in generall Holocaustum pro peccato hostia oblatio as the Psalmist and the Apostle do gather the summe were prescribed by the Law Sacrifice for the dead is one of those foure to wit pro peccato for sinne Therfore Sacrifice for the dead was prescribed by the law To this you would make a reply and therefore you correct your Maior with an addition and say that not onely all lawfull Sacrifices were prescribed by the law but also with peculiar mentioning and playne rehearsing of all such persons for whom Sacrifice was to be offered both men women the princes and the priuate persons the priest and the whole congregation yea and speciall regard of the oblations of the poore as may be seene Leuit 4.5.12.15 But because all these persons are founde in the dead as well as in the liuing your addition reacheth yet farther saying And in the peculiar rehearsing of diuers kind of persons and the fourme of the Sacrifice named according to euery particular state it is so farre off that the dead shall be reckned that such things are enioyned euery of these particular persons to do as it is playne that none but the liuing could offer or haue Sacrifice offered for them And in confidence of this addition Iesu how you befoole D. Allen And yet it conteineth this grosse absurditie which you saw not that none could offer or haue Sacrifice offered for them but onely such as were both liuing and also present in the place yea also able to do by thē selues those things enioyned and moreouer that none might offer for their friendes or for any other but for them selues only And what place is then left for offering for their children for the sicke at home for their brethren in other countreys captiue or pilgrimes for the kings and cities of the world vncircumcised for diuers other sortes for which there was offering as partly in other places is expressed partly may easily be proued And therefore all this adoe concludeth nothing against Sacrifice for the dead although it coulde not be proued much lesse considering that it is in an other place so playnly expressed For the fact of Iudas Machabeus putteth all out of doubt say we though you say that he therein transgressed the law But your proofe thereof is yet to be made vnlesse this proue it that you say It is like that Iudas Machabeus Pur. 456. if he deuised not that Sacrifice of his owne head yet tooke by imitation of the Gentiles whose studies and practises the Author of that Storie confesseth were more frequented in those dayes among the Iewes then the preaching or keeping of the Law Why syr doth the Storie say that Iudas Macabeus was one of those gentilicall Iewes or that he ioyned with those Apostaticall priestes Yea doth it not plainely say that all his fighting was against the gentiles and against gentilizing and that he made his reformation by no Priestes but such as were Vnspotted in the law But of your ignorance in that Storie if no worse I must speake more in another place Infra ca. 12. Now to ende this part Let vs heare how you conclude of the whole Scripture Pur. 449. As it is no good Logike you say to conclude negatiuely of one place or booke of Scripture this is not conteined in it therefore it is not true as you haue hithervnto concluded So of the whole the argument is most inuincible that concludeth negatiuely thus All true doctrine is taught in the Scripture Purgatory is not taught in the Scripture therefore Purgatory is no true doctrine O inuincible argument The Maior is false and to all your textes for it I haue answered aboue Ca. isto p. 1 The Minor likewise is false for Purgatory is taught in the Machabees which is in the Canon of the true Church which you also confesse to be the true Church you knowe the (a) Infra pag. third Councell of Carthage and therefore it is Canonicall if any other Scripture be Canonicall It is taught likewise 1. Iohn 5. so playnely that you could not auoyde the place but by falling into this horrible absurditie That we may not pray for all men liuing as anone I shall report your wordes It is also taught specially agaynst you Syr Ioan. 11. for you say after your maner passing confidently Pur. 236. that Martha and Mary as the Scripture is manifest did not hope for any restitution of their brother Lazarus to his
Apoc. 3. And if you yet doubt by what they ouercome whether by the Lambes bloud alone or also by theyr owne patient confession or affliction vnto death it is written there agayne And they ouercame the diuell by the bloud of the Lambe and by their owne martirdome dia â—on logoâ—â—es martyriâ—s auâ—on and loued not their life euen vnto death Apoc. 12. And S. Paule accordingly calleth it 2. Cor. 4. the mortification of Iesus when the Apostles were mortified for Iesus and saith they carried the same about continually in their bodies that also the life of Iesus might be manifested in their selfe same bodies at the latter day which is the same thing that the Apocalipse calleth to appeare before the throne in white stoles Wherby you sée that as the bloud of Christ so by it martyrdome also worketh such glory For so it foloweth there again This our affliction although it is but short and light operatur worketh vs euerlasting weight of glory exceding measure aboue measure Because affliction here for Iesus doth so wash our stoles or bodies therefore it procureth that they shal be so glorious in the Resurrection this say these Scriptures And so much of the foundations and by occasion of them Now to Purgatorie it selfe and prayer for the dead Secondly directly of Purgatorie it selfe and praier for the dead whether all the elect goe straight to Heauen Afore Christes comming Limbus patrum Directly against Purgatory prayer for the dead you shoote diuers arrowes or rather cockshotles so deadly are the woundes that your shot doth make First you will proue by many and euident Scriptures that all the Elect do go yea and alwayes from the beginning of the world haue gone straight to heauen therefore neuer no Purgatory neuer no Limbus Patrum Whiche if you can do your skill in the Scripture no doubt farre passeth all the auncient Doctors were they neuer so wel studied therin For they all could not finde so muche as one text that all or any one also went to heauen before Christ yea and not many textes Vide Sander monar li. 7. pag. 518.520 Pur. 57. that any one after him also goeth thither before the generall Resurrection but rather very many textes that vntill the Church within these 300. yeres defined the contrarie made it very probable that none are there till then Well thus you begin That the Fathers of the Old law before Christ were not in hell it is to be proued with manifest argumentes and authorities out of holy Scriptures But first you thinke necessary to answere one text that stoode in your way saying Although they were not nor yet are in perfect blessednesse God prouiding a better thing for vs that they without vs should not be made perfect Heb. 11. By that they of the old Testament wer not made perfect or consummate without vs of the new Testament S. Paule there doth meane euidently that their Soules were not yet admitted into heauen As in that whole Epistle he sheweth that the Old Testament did consummate nothing but contrariwise Heb. 7. Heb. 10. Heb. 9. that it made continually euery yere a commemoration of their sinnes because they remayned still and were not perfectly remitted and therefore that Christe dyed In Redemptionem earum praeuaricationum quae erant sub priore Testamento To buye out the preuarications that were all that while that so at length the heires might attayne the euerlasting inheritance which was promised Heb. 9. Nondum enim propalatam esse Sanctorum viam adhuc priore tabernaculo habente statum For the way into Sancta or heauen was not yet opened vntill the high Priest Iesus entred first thereinto Heb. 10. qui initiauit nobis viam nouam It was he that beganne this newe waye vnto vs who nowe therefore haue fiduciam in introitu Sanctorum Confidence to enter in after him béeing our forerunner into the same Sancta And all this is spoken of our Soules As for our bodies neither yet is the way open vnlesse Sancta were open when onely the High priest entred into them This was the prouidence of God for vs that we should not thinke we come to late if the Fathers soules had beene admitted in before vs. Confer the end of your owne text with the beginning of it Heb. 11. vt non consummarentur and non acceperunt repromissionem Sée how plainly he expoundeth their not consummating to be their not attayning of the promise And what promise Heb. 9. Confer this other place vt repromissioneÌ„ accipiant aeternae haereditatis That the heires might attayne the promise of euerlasting inheritance I might at large declare the same by the whole course of Scripture as D. Allen saith very well but that I am not here to alleage Pur. 439. but only to answere Well then against these most manifest Scriptures let vs heare the manifest authorities of Scripture which you pretend Pur. 57.58 For you say Seeing they all beleeued in Christ they had euerlasting life and entred not into condemnation but passed from death to life Io. 5. To what life but the life or resurrection of their bodies for vntill the last day all the dead are in death but then some shall come forth into resurrection of life some others into resurrection of damnation but he that beleeueth in me hath that is most certainly shall then haue Iohn 11. life euerlasting and commeth not into damnation but passeth from death wherein he hath so long bene to life This is the playne text of that place As likewise in all the New Testament lightly euery where life after corporall death signifieth the resurrection of the bodies where the soules be in the meane time here is neuer a word no nor of the Saintes of the old Testament afore the institution of Baptisme wherevnto beliefe in him giueth now accesse Ioa. 1. and 3 that belieuing in him they may haue life Io. 20. But their state we must gather out of other places of holy Scripture And to what end againe you say was Christ called the Lamb that was slayne from the beginning of the world but that the benefite of his passion extendeth vnto the godly of all ages alike This is your expounding of Scripture by Scripture you are a true man of your word The place is Apo. 13. Whose names were not written in the booke of life of the Lambes that was slaine froÌ„ the beginning of the world CoÌ„ferring it with this place Apo. 17. Whose names were not written in the booke of life from the beginning of the world you perceiue the error of your coÌ„struction It is not said that the Lambe was slayne from the beginning of the world but that all the reprobate shall adore Antichrist when he commeth as the Gospell also saith Mat. 24. that the Elect also should be then deceiued if it were possible Neuerthelesse that the Lambe was slayne from the beginning of the world is true though not in your fond
wide way and the narrow way Mat. 7. If there be but two wayes in this life you say there are but two abiding places after this life In the wide way of breaking Gods commaundementes some go wider then some with infinite varietie yet al in the wide way and these after death go to damnation namely their soules and straight to damnation because they haue nothing to stay thē out of it so much as a minute of an houre In the narrow way of keping Gods cōmaundements some go narrower then some with infinite varietie likewise yet all in the narrow way and these after death go to life though not straight in body none of them neither in soule also many of them because they haue somewhat to stay them out of it for a time to wit temporall debt of veniall sinne also of mortal sinne forgiuen but the due penance not fully payed nor fully pardoned And so you sée that the two wayes of this life stande well ynough with Purgatorie Pur. 436.444 Againe you alleage that it is written of the Iudgement 2. Cor. 5. we shall all stand before the Iudgement seate of Christ to receiue ech of vs the own of his body according as he did either good or euill Not D. Allen but as he alleageth S. Augustine Aug. Ench. cap. 100. Dion Ec. Hier. ca. 7. as also S. Dionisius Areopagita answereth that the Churches praying for the dead is nothing repugnant herevnto because the dead in our Lord in his life deserued that these workes after his death might be profitable vnto him And to this answer you haue no reply to mainteine that Scripture against such prayer Onely you oppose a saying of S. Hierom very fondly as in the next chap. I wil shew Once againe you reason of the Iudgement If Purgatory be so necessary to satisfie Gods iustice by temporall paynes of sinners Pur. 85. according to the time c. and Purgatory shal cease at the day of Iudgement as you affirme out of Augustine how shall the same be satisfied in such as dye immediatly before the day of Iudgement so that they haue not had time inough ther to be sufficiently purged The like may be demaunded of all them which in a moment shal be changed from mortalitie to immortalitie at the very comming of Iesus Christ to Iudgement These questions M. Allen will trouble your head to answere and retayne your former principles Two doughtie questions Where did D. Allen set downe that principle that Purgatory is necessary to satisfie according to the time I finde where he saith Pur. 44. If any debt or recompence remayne to be discharged by the offender after his reconcilement it must needes rise by proportion weight continuance number and quantitie of the faultes cōmitted before Wherby it must of necessity be induced that bicause euery man can not haue time to repay all in his life that there is all or some parte answerable in the world to come Here we haue continuannce of the faultes and time of his life but time of Purgatory that you haue to tell vs where you had it The truth is that a shorte time in Purgatorie will so pay the sinner that it had bene better for him to spende much longer time in penance as in this life also a litle while in fire passeth I trow the payne of longer time in fasting c. Neither is it hard for god to punish one in the shortest time as gréeuously as an other in 1000. yeres Nor again repugnant to his mercy to remit suche punishment at the request of his glorious Saints which is S. Augustines answere to your obiection as he nowe doth to the like for the Churches prayers Aug. de Ci. li. 21. ca. 24.27 Lo what a hard thing it was to answere your Demaundes Whether Faith Hope and Gods Will may stande with Purgatory After these two assaylings of Purgatory by going straight to heauen and by the iudgement there remayneth your third last assault Pur. 421. wherein you say to vs We learne by Scripture that your doctrine is contrary to the faith and hope of Christians And how shew you that Pur. 382. If it be against the hope of Christians to mourne for the dead much more it is against the faith and hope of Christians to pray for them For by our prayer we suppose them to be in miserie whom the word of God doth testifie to be in happines to be at rest to be with Christ Io. 17. Apoc. 14. Neither those Scriptures nor any other by you alleaged as I haue shewed do testifie that all straight after death be so and therefore to suppose some of them to be in miserie and so to pray for them is not proued to be against the worde of God Neither to mourne for some yea and for all is saide to be against Hope I would haue you knowe that they shal rise againe saith the Apostle to the end that you mourne not for them 1. Thes 4. sicut et ceteri qui spem non habent in such sorte as others that haue not hope of their Resurrection So then there is one maner of mourning without hope and there is another maner of mourning with hope and such is our mourneing with prayer When Christ praied for his own Resurrection Psal 15. Act. 2. did that argue him to be voide of hope or rather to haue hope When also we all pray for the generall Resurrection Thy kingdome come and mourne and grone for the dilation do we against hope doe we not rather most manifestly declare oure hope thereby Moreouer you saye there To that which is required of the expresse worde of God forbidding prayers for the dead we answere that all places of the Scripture that forbid prayers without faith forbid prayers for the dead For faith is not euery mans vayne perswasion but an assurance out of the word of God Which because we can not haue in praying for the dead therefore we are forbidden to pray for them This argument supposeth Cap. eodē part 1. that the word of God is onely Scripture which you can not proue as in the one place here aboue I haue declared Againe it supposeth that prayer for the dead is not assured by Scripture which besides the most expresse place of the Machabées and diuers others now shall another euident place control euen the same place that you alleage against vs. Thus you say Pur. 281. We learne out of Gods word that whatsoeuer we do pray for according to Gods wil we shal obteine 1. Io. 5. Therefore this one Hatchet shall cut a sunder al Prayers for the dead are not according to the wil of God and therefore they are not heard at all I denie the Minor you haue not nor can not proue it Yea I say further It is agaynst that which the Apostle there both intēdeth and expresseth to wit that we should pray for our brethren after they be dead if
they ended not their life in sinne because that praying is according to Gods will For it foloweth there immediatly Who so knoweth his brother to sinne he vseth the present tense and not the preterfect tense to haue sinned because his intent is to exhort also the sinner to leaue by time a sinne not to death as one that liued in Schisme but yet was reconciled before he dyed let him after his death request of Christ and life shall be giuen vnto him to one I say sinning not vnto death Sinne there is vnto death I say not that any pray for that because it is not according to Christes will to pray for them that be in hell All iniquitie is sinne and therefore to be diligently auoyded and not so much as one moment to be incurred And there is sinne vnto death As if he would say if you auoyde not that no hope after your death your brethren can not helpe you by praying for you This is the playne and smooth sense of that whole place and so must néedes be because there is no man nor no sinne in this life but we may pray for him and it as neither the Nouatians as bad as they were did denie Onely the Protestantes denie it because they haue no other shift to auoyde this place And therby let any indifferent any Christian man iudge whether this be not a playne place for praying for the dead Fulkes wordes of sinnes in this life and men in this life not to be prayed for and that to be this sinne and sinner vnto death I shall recite in the twelfth Chapter amongst his grossest errors and absurdities Thus I haue answered thanks be to God al his Scriptures against Purgatory and all his arguments made out of the Authoritie thereof both negatiuely and affirmatiuely Cap. 7. part 4. Wherby appeareth to the full the vanitie of his bragges in the last Chapter against the church of God that he could would produce against the doctrine thereof such plaine testimonies of Scripture such Scripture also for the meaning of ech place as by no meanes might be auoyded Whereas amongst all his testimonies you sée there is not one but it hath bene cléerely answered As now in this fourth last part shall be answered likewise with the like helpe of god all other Scriptures that in these two most insolent Libelles in any place vp and downe he alleageth against any other point of the Churches doctrine The fourth part Concerning all other questions that he mentioneth And first to put all the same in some order for the more vtilitie of the Reader I conceaue all the differences that are betwéene vs and the Protestants in this diuision Some are about the witnesses of Gods word the principles of Diuinitie or groundes of all truth which by them is onely Scripture by vs not onely Scripture but also the Church and certain others whervpon we frame our Motiues to all men to beléeue vs not the Heretikes shewing them that such and such are the principles which they must beléeue and withall that the said principles euery one of them stand for vs and not for the Protestantes Some are about other particular or priuate controuersies Which may be reduced vnto these two heades Good-workes and the Sacramentes the doctrine of which both they corrupt with their new inueÌ„tion of Onely faith Only Scripture and Only Faith as they do the foresaid with their toye of Onely Scripture What Scripture he alleageth about the first sort I haue in the two first partes of this chapter reported them al answered theÌ„ sauing a very few which I reserue to the tenth chapter which shall be of euery Motiue or Demaund apart by it selfe There in these fiue Motiues of Churches Seruice Priesthood with Sacrifice Monkes and Pope I will answere his few Scriptures thervnto belonging Now then concerning the second sort and first Good-workes what he alleageth about them concerneth them partly in generall partly in speciall that is to say prayer fasting or almes About Good-works in generall Iustification Good works in generall it concerneth that he saith They do not iustifie wherevnto he alleageth two places one of S. Paule Pur. 450. the other of Esay We beleue saith he that a man is not iustified by workes but by faith onely Rom. 3. And yet we beleue that good workes are necessary to be in euery man that is iustified A faâ—sarie Iac. 5. The wordes of S. Iames be not as he saieth but expressely against him A man is iustified by workes and not by faith onely Where you sée also that it is in all one sense that works do iustifie and faith The words of S. Paule likewise be not as he saith but thus A man is iustified by faith without the workes of the law That is to say although he haue not euermore done the works which the law commaundeth to wit good works yea although he haue sometimes yea and alwayes done the cleane contrarie to wit all euill works yet let him come to the Catholike faith and he shall there finde a remedie for all and of a wicked and so wicked a man be made iuste all his sinnes and wickednes béeing remitted him This sayth S Paule and the same say we But after he is so iustified he must not do the like agayne he must then kéepe the commaundementes of the Law béeing now by Christ made a new man and able therevnto and by so doing he shall be more iustified as S. Iames saith Conferre these two places of S. Paules also The iustice that is of the Law qui fecerit homo the man that hath done it shall liue by it Rom. 10. ex Leuit. 18. Which is in effect that no man shall liue by it because no man hath done it but all men haue done against it all being borne in sinne therfore not by the works of iustice which we had done but according to his owne great mercy he saued vs by baptisme Tit. 3. Do you marke the tense He speaketh of works before faith where you should haue alleaged of works after faith And so withall is answered your other place Ar. 102. where you say that the Popish Church is not content to be clothed in the white shining silke which is the iustification of Saintes made white in the bloud of the Lambe but with the filthy ragges of mans righteousnes Esai 64. If God conuert your heart that you may returne to your mother the Catholike Churche you shall finde that she will make nothing of all the good workes which you do nowe in Heresie because it is but mans righteousnesse But the good workes whiche afterwarde in the Churche you shoulde haue of her husbande the Lambe where learned you to call them The filthy ragges of mans righteousnes Apoc. 19. He that doubteth whether those Iustifications of the faithfull in the Apocalipse be as I say iust workes the same Apostle if he will conferre places in
his first Epistle telleth him 1. Ioh. 3. O my children let no man deceiue you he that worketh iustice is iust Free-vvill You alleage also two places against Frée-will which againe concerneth Good works in generall Pur. 450. We beleeue that man after his fall hath not Free-will no not aptnes of will to thinke any thing that is good 2. Cor. 3. S. Paules words are these We are not sufficient of our selues to thinke any thing as of our selues but our sufficiencie is of God This doth not take away from vs naturall fréewill nor naturall aptnes of will as it doth not take away our selues from vs but onely it sheweth from whence we haue power to do as we do in matters of saluation to witte of Gods gift and not of our selues If your scholler should vpon iust cause commend him selfe for writing as S. Paule there cōmenmendeth him selfe for conuerting hartes to God and then to auoyde arrogancie should say that it is not of him selfe but of his Masters instruction that he can write so well the scholler for all this I trow had vnderstanding and aptnes to vnderstand For els howe could he haue bene taught to write You know the Scripture likeneth the holy Ghost to a teacher Ioan. 6. Heb. 10. Psa 118. and the grace of God to teaching and to teaching of our hartes or wills Your other place I finde Pur. 35. How shall Free-will be mainteined if Gods Spirite haue any place that distributeth to euery one according to the good pleasure of his owne will 1. Cor. 12. You do not denie but Man afore his fall had Fréewill and yet Gods spirite then also did distribute to euery one according to the good pleasure of his owne will And now likewise after the fall doth not S. Paule in the very same Chapter giue some place to mens willes in the giftes of Gods spirite saying to the Corinthians Couet after the better giftes but specially after charitie because that passeth all those giftes 1. Cor. 12.13 14. yea and faith and hope also therefore Sectamini Labour al that you can for Charitie mary couet also after those giftes to speake with tongues and to prophecie but of the two rather for to prophecie Againe He that speaketh with a tongue let him pray to interprete Sée how playnely he stirreth their mindes or willes to séeke for the giftes that God giueth to euery one according to his owne will This deceiueth you that you do not consider that God can worke his owne will vpon our willes and therefore you imagine that he is not omnipotent if we haue willes of our owne Yes syr be our willes neuer so vnwilling he can as you may sée by the conuersion of S. Paule turne them to his owne will and to the very bende of his owne will more or lesse euen as much as he wil. Howbeit I am not ignorant that S. Paule there treateth specially of the giftes called Gratiae gratis datae and not gratum facientes in the distribution whereof Gods will maye and did commonly worke without cooperation of mans will although mans will may in such also and did sometimes concurre as in them that prayed for the gifte to interprete tongues About Good-workes in speciall I come with you now to the species of Good-workes Prayer to Saintes and first to prayer And of prayer for the dead I haue already dispatched Then against prayer to Saintes what haue you Pur. 451. We call not vpon Saintes because we beleeue not in them for how should we call vpon them in whom we beleeue not Rom. 10. Againe Pur. 310. Touching Ambrose and some other also about his time their Inuocation of Saintes was not agreable to the doctrine of S. Paule who sheweth that we can inuocate none but him in whom we beleue which to al true Christians is God only And yet if you remember since the second Chapter S. Ambrose and his felowes of that time were true Christiās But I must kéepe that to your contradictions in the eleuenth Chapter Heb. 13. Eph. 6. And againe S. Paul him selfe was I trow agreable to his owne doctrine who yet so often inuocateth and calleth vpon the faithfull beséeching them to pray for him Well then to your obiection where is your scripture for you will not if you be a man of your worde runne to Doctors that we must beléeue in God onely and that we may not beléeue (a) Exo. 14. in Heb. 2. Par. 20. in Heb. Philem. in his Saintes also The Scripture in your own place and in sundry other places teacheth me to beléeue also (b) Iohn 14 Rom. 3. in Christ according to his humanitie and namely in his bloud Also the Créede of the first Nicene Councell teacheth me to beléeue (c) Ar. 83. Epi. in fine Aucorat In the one holy Catholike and Apostolike Church as you may sée also in the end of the New Testament set foorth by your owne master Hier contr Lucif Infra ca. 10 dem 34. Beza And S. Hierome saith that it was solenne the custome in Baptisme after confession of the Trinitie to aske Credis in Sanctam Ecclesiam Doest thou beleue in holy Church And immediatly he addeth In what Church beleeued the Arrian In the Arrians Church But they haue not the Church In our Church sed extra hanc baptizatus but beeing baptized out of her he could not beleeue in her that he knew not Euen as S. Paule saith of Christ in the place that you alleage How shall they beleue in him whom they haue not heard of His intent ther is that the Apostles preaching to the Gentiles is of God Whereby you perceiue that S. Hierome remembred the place well inough Briefly therefore we beléeue not in the Arrians Church nor in the Arrians Saintes nor in your Church nor in your Saintes but we beléeue in the Catholike Church and in her Saintes because it is God and Christ his Church God Christ his Saints And so we do not inuocate Arius nor Hus nor Luther nor Caluine nor any other falsenamed Saintes of Heretikes but after God we inuocate Christ the man our Lorde and his moste glorious mother our Lady and S. Peter S. Paule with the rest of the Catholike Saintes both beléeuing in God in Christ in his Saintes and also inuocating God and Christ and his Saintes not all alike but euery one in his degrée the degrée of the Saintes being so farre different from the degrée of God as it is incomparable You deceiued your selfe with this distinction Credo in deum Credo deo Credo deum I beleeue in God I beleue to God Aug. in Io. tr 29. Theoph. in Io. 12. I beleue God hauing heard that some Authors do in a certayne sense make it be God alone in whom we beléeue and not knowing that other authors also the Scriptures will in another sense haue vs to beléeue in such as be of God As of
For to trust in Gods giftes as in the Catholike faith and good workes that hée worketh in vs also to trust in his Sainctes to trust in these I say as they be his is to trust in him onely iij. About Purgatorie Touchinâ— Scripture expounded against it Pur. 380.383 Concerning the lâ—t of the thrée where D. Allen hauing alleaged for his part the consent of all auncient Doctors said boldly to his Reader Aske your new teachers whether they haue any expresse words in Scripture that denie prayers to be profitable for the dead or at least which is libertie enough expounded for that meaning by any one man of all the antiquitie Fulke answering therevnto saith As for a place so expounded by an auncient writer I will seeke no further then the place of Hieronym euen nowe alleaged out of your owne Canon lawe vppon 2. Cor. 5. referring the Reader to many other places alleaged in this aunswere as out of Cyprian Origen and others by whiche the intollerable lying and bragging and rayling of this miscreant shal be better confuted then by any contradiction of woordes So hotte hée taketh that which D. Allen with all mildnes and swéetenes speaketh for saluation of Soules to suche as maye for theyr simplicitie be soone deceaued by following other mens errors with whome the names of Doctors or the onelye bare bragge of Scriptures are as good as the alleagation of places And sée whether he did not worthily so say for I assure thée Reader Fulke taken in a vayne brag it is yet bare names of Doctors that this Answerer also saith out of Ciprian Origen others He caÌ„not shew that in his whole booke neither afore this place nor also after he alleaged any exposition of a text by Cyprian or Origen for that purpose no nor by any other at all as thou shalt here perceaue excepting onely S. Hierome And touching him also what a coosining is it of the Reader to pretend that Hierome expoundeth Scripture against prayer for the dead considering that you confesse your selfe that Hierome allowed prayer for the dead as in the third chapter I noted Cap. 3. pa. â— diui 1. As if you would beare the simple in hand that we also who now allow prayer for the dead do expound Scripture against prayer for the dead Is this to shew that the Doctors be of your side in déede or onely to abuse their bare names The place of S. Hierome is not vpon the 2. Cor. 5. but vpon Gal. 6. And in the Canon lawe if Gratians booke be Canon law you haue the meaning of it Verum hoc de impaenitentibus accipieÌ„dum est saith Gratian But this is to be vnderstood of the vnpenitent de mortuis damnatis of the dead that are damned saith the Summe ouer the head Neither do the wordes enforce ought els alleage you them neuer so often These they are Pur. 382.383.445 In this present worlde we knowe that one of vs may be helped of another either by prayers or by counselles but when we shall come before the iudgement seate of Christ neither Iob nor Daniell nor Noe can intreate for any man but euery man must beare his owne burden For any man you sée whose burden weigheth contrarie to all intreatie of others because he dyed impenitent But otherwise who so dyeth penitent deserueth thereby that the intreatie of others maye helpe him as you heard S. Augustine saye in the laste Chapter answering the texte 2. Corinth 5. Cap. 8. par 3. diui and so he beareth his owne burden and yet may be holpen by others For suche is the poise of his burden that it weigheth this way and not the other way In an other place D. Allen rehearseth foure textes that they alleage agaynst Purgatorie Pur. 436.437.438 Eccle. 11. Mat. 7. 2. Cor. 5. Apoc. 14. the aunsweres I haue put downe in the last Chapter and then saith I aske them sincerely and desire them to tel me faithfully what Doctor or wise learned man of the whole antiquitie euer expounded these textes or any one of them agaynst Purgatorie or practise for the dead Herevnto Fulke answereth Before the heresie of purgatorie was planted in the world how could the old Doctors interpret these places by name against that which they neuer heard named Cap. 3. pa. 2 diui 1. Infra ca. 11. contra 45. this poore shift he falleth vnto not considering that it is contrarie to his bragges here a litle before of Cyprian Origen and others nor remembring that in the third Chapter he confessed the old Doctors both heard allowed both the name the thing both of purgatory and prayer for the dead Yet haue they he saith so interpreted some of them that their interpretation can not stande with Purgatorie or prayer for the dead as I will shew in their particuler answers So he promiseth and yet wheras they are foure texts only at one of them be bringeth the Doctors interpretation and that also none but S. Hieromes whom also he confesseth as I haue said to allow prayer for the dead Let vs sée theÌ„ how you shew that his interpretation is against his owne beliefe And because you crake of the exposition of the Fathers you say to D. Allen Hieronym in his commentarie vpon this place Eccle. 11. expoundeth the north and the south not for the states of grace and wrath as diuers of the auncient Fathers do saith D. Allen but for the places of rewarde or punishment of them that dye Why what repugnance is betwéene those two expositions They agrée both so well that S. Hierome hath them both First the two states of them that dye Whersoeuer thou doest fall there shalt thou alwayes remayne Siue te rigidum c. Whether thy last time find thee rigorous and cruell to the poore or milde and mercifull Then the two places of payment The tree either did sinne before while it was standing and then it is put afterwardes in the North coste or if it did beare fruites worthy of the South it shall lye in the South coste And immediatly Neither is there any tree but it is either in the North or in the South Vnderstanding by the North any place of punishment not onely eternall but also temporall in so much that he there sheweth out of Esay that the North may bring to the South These are his two last expositions of that place his first is this Keepe the foresaid commaundementes For wheresoeuer thou preparest thee a place futuramque sedem and a seate for hereafter whether it be in the South or in the North there when thou art dead thou shalt continue This exposition with D. Allen I followed in the last chapter for it is nothing els to say but that no man after death can merite either to change altogether or so much as to better his state Touching Scriptures for Purgatorie and prayer for the dead And touching Scriptures expounded by the Doctors agaynst Purgatorie and prayer for
more playnely in the sixt Chapter But Fulke replieth to this and saith Wheras M. Allen alloweth all the interpretations that the Fathers haue made of the text 1. Cor. 3. by him alleaged as true so long as they affirmed no error he may by the same reason affirme that Contradictories are true As in that saying Mat. 5. of him that shall not come out vntill he haue payd the vttermost farthing some haue expounded that he shal be alwaies punished some that he shall not be alwaies punished How is it possible that both these interpretations can be true Mary thus it is true those He He are not one He but He that shal be alwaies punished is he that to the end of the way that is of this life agréeth not with his aduersarie whom he had deadly iniuried as saying vnto him Fatue and thereby incurring the gilt of Gehenna ignis which is the prison of the damned He that shall not be alwaies punished is he whose iniurie was but veniall Cap. 8. par 3. diui 2. as Racha And so both interpretations agrée wel not onely together but also with the text it selfe as likewise in the last chapter I declared And so much of the Doctors interpretations Now to the other kind of their Testimonies which he alleageth against vs about any of our Controuersies Secondly whether the Doctors geue any other kinde of testimonie against vs. j About the Bookes of Machabees And first although it be but a by matter whether the Machabees be Canonicall Scripture or no because the last thing that I intreated of was the Scriptures that be of purgatorie and the Protestantes denie the Machabées for this expresse saying 2. Mac. 12. It is an holy and healthfull meaning to pray for the dead that they may be released of their sinnes And touching this matter he alleageth no Doctor Pur. 214. but onely S. Hierome in two places The answere wherof D. Allen gaue before and that rightly and truly as we shall well perceaue if first we remember what he alleaged for the other part Fulke briefly both reporteth it also replieth vnto it in these wordes M. Allen pretendeth to proue the booke of Machabees Canonicall by authoritie of the Church See cap. 11. coâ—ad 35 when he can not by consent that it hath with the Scriptures of God As though all bookes are Canonicall Scripture which haue consent with the Scriptures The Machabées in déed haue so as also innumerable bookes of Catholike writers and Caluins Institutions too I trow But the Churches authoritie and not such Consent it is that proueth them Canonical The Churches authoritie for the Machabes And the Churches authoritie D. Allen bringeth out of the third Carthage Councell whiche Fulke in his answere saith was a Prouinciall Councell but he must remember that in the 4. Chapter to proue the whole true Church to erre he told vs that this Prouinciall Synode hath the authoritie of a Generall Councell because it was confirmed in the Sixt Generall Councell holden at Constantinople in Trullo And therfore he cannot auoid it but that the Machabées are Canonicall by authoritie of the whole true Church and therfore in déede also Canonicall if any Scripture at all and specially such as was euer by any doubted of be Canonicall whether the true Church may erre or no. And therfore againe he doth but labour in vaine to shew that the Carthage Councell did erre in that Canon because it nameth among the Canonicall Scriptures also fiue bookes of Salomon whereas the Church sayth Fulke as though he had not confessed this Councell to be the Church as much as any other alloweth but three namely the Prouerbes the Preacher and the Canticles Not knowing what S. Augustine that was one of that Councell as Fulke him selfe saith writeth as it were of purpose to geue vs the meaning of that Councell and of others likewise speaking where he also reconeth vp all the same Canonicall Scriptures as the Councell doeth Au. de doc christ lib. 2. cap. 8. And three bookes of Salomon sayth hée the Prouerbes the Canticles of Canticles and Ecclesiastes For those two bookes the one intituled Wisdome the other Ecclesiasticus de quadam similitudine Salomonis esse dicuntur for a certaine likenes are saide to be Salomons although in déede the be not his but Ecclesiasticus is Iesus Siraches and Sapientia is an incertaine authors Aug. Retr li. 2. ca. 4. as S. Augustine partely in the same place partly in his Retractations doth say Againe saith Fulke Pur. 215.457 Aug. con 2 Gaudentij Ep. li. 2. c. 23 for an other answere to the Carthage Councell in what sense they did call those bookes Canonicall appeareth by Augustine that was one of that Councell And this Scripture of the Machabees non habent Iudaei sicut c. The Iewes compt not as the Law and the Prophetes and the Psalmes What then Here you see saith Fulke that Augustine howsoeuer he alloweth those bookes yet he alloweth them not in ful authoritie with the law Prophets and Psalmes That which S. Augustine reporteth of the Iewes he ascribeth to S. Augustine him selfe Although also it follow in Augustine immediatly Sed recepta est ab Ecclesia But it is receiued of the Church not vnprofitably if it be soberly read and heard Which wordes also Fulke there alleageth with this note that S. Augustine alloweth not these bookes If Fulke be sober the Machabees are Gods vvord If he be not vvhose fault is that 2. Peter 2. without condition of sobrietie in the reader or hearer As though he allowed no booke of Scripture in ful authoritie because both he all other Catholikes with S. Péeter do require the same condition in the reader of the whole Scriptures that he wrest them not like a madde man to his owne damnation as all heretikes do and as the Donatistes did compting them selues Martyrs if they killed them selues and mainteining it with the example of Razias out of the Machabées to which S. Augustine there answereth He that would in déede know in what sense S. Augustine and his Councell call those bookes Canonicall let him consider that vnder one name of Canonicall they recken at once these with all the other Holy bookes of both Testaments Au. 2. doc christ 8. Totus Canon Scripturarum his libris continetur The whole Canon of the Scriptures is conteined in these bookes Fiue of Moises that is Conc. Cart. 3. Can. 47. Genesis c. sayth S. Augustine And the Councell in like maner Sunt autem canonicae Scripturae and the Canonical Scriptures are these Genesis c. Loe they call them all Canonicall in one and the same sense although S. Augustine there instructeth the student of diuinitie whilest all were not yet generally receaued of the whole Church to preferre some before others Fulkes obiections Read the chapter afore where S. Augustine requireth seauen conditions in the student of Scripture before he be perfect
the writinges of the Apostles haue taught vs according to the foresayd rules in so much that wee compt it not at all Catholike whatsoeuer shall appeare contrarie to the rules appointed You are a great reader of the Doctors I sée Whosoeuer made that Homilie he tooke those wordes out of that brief Instruction which in the first Tome of the Councels foloweth the Epistle of Pope Celestinus to the Bishops of Fraunce concerning the Semipelagians which Bishops I thinke to be the Authors of the same Instruction They take it and so they say out of the determinations of those Bishops of Rome in whose time Pelagius and Celestius beganne their Heresie that is P. Innocentius and P. Zozimus and out of certein Aphrican Councels approued by those Popes And after 8. or 9. such Canons or articles they make an end saying As for certaine more suttle points we are not bound to resolue vpon them We thinke all that sufficeth enough which the writinges of the See Apostolike haue taught vs according to the foresayde rules or Canons in no wise thinking it Catholike that shal appeare to be contrarie praefixis sententijs to the resolutions set here before Againe in Gen. Hom. 58. Thou seest into what great absurditie they fal qui diuinae Scripturae canonem sequi nolunt Which will not follow the Canon of Holy Scripture but permit all to their owne cogitations Hée answereth the Heretikes which said that our Lord tooke not true flesh Then saith Chrysostome he neither was crucified nor dyed nor was buried nor rose agayne Into such absurditie they fall because they will not followe the playne line of Scripture but their owne imaginations of putatiue flesh such as was in the Apparitions of the old Testament What is this for onely Scripture But if we be further vrged we will alleage that which he saith In Euang. Ioan. Hom. 58. He that vseth not the holy Scripture but climbeth another way id est non cōcessa via that is by a way not allowed is a Theefe O Christian spirite if you be vrged you will call S. Chrysostome a Theefe by his owne saying for vsing Tradition As though he vseth not Scripture which vseth Tradition or that Scripture doth not warrant Tradition as 2. The. 2. The thing which S. Chrysostome there speaketh of is this that Antichrist and those pseudochristes Iudas Galileus Theudas and such others also heretikes Schismatikes as Luther Caluine c. cannot shew any commission out of Scripture But Christ and his Apostles with the other Catholike Pastors that succede them come into their cure by good warrant of Scripture These therfore are true Pastors the other are théeues We may be as bould with Chrysostome as he sayd he would be with Paule himselfe in 2. ad Tim. Hom. 2. Plus aliquid dicam I will say somewhat more we must not be ruled by Paule himselfe if he speake any thing that is his owne and any thing that is humane but we must obey the Apostle when he carieth Christ speaking in him And when is that when he speaketh all only by Scripture Will you not obey him then when he sayth Ego enim accepi a domino For I receiued it of our Lordes mouth 1. Cor. 1◠Sée in what a proper sense you vse Chrysostoms words These are the foure places One other you haue elsewhere saying Chrysostome vpon Luke cap. 16. saith Ar. 12. Chrys cō 3. de Lazaro that ignorance of the Scriptures hath bred heresies and brought in corrupt life yea it hath turned all things vpsidedowne By which it appeareth by what means he would haue heresies kept away namely by knowledge of the Scriptures And who would not the same It is therfore our dayly studie and we sée our selues and shewe others thereby the abomination of your Heresies and how you would face them out with a carde of tenne But what maketh this for Onely Scripture to be of authoritie As S. Chrysostome so in like maner S. Leo is of your side you say against vs and against him selfe For where D. Allen alleaged this saying of his Pur. 387. Leo Ser. 2. de ieiunio Pentecost It is not to be doubted but whatsoeuer is in the Church by generall custome of deuotion kept and reteined it came out of the Apostles tradition and doctrine of the Holy Ghost You answere that the saying of Leo the great may be backed with the writing of Leo the great Epist 10. They fall into this folly which when they be hindred by some obscuritie to know the truth haue not recourse to the words of the Prophets nor to the writings of the Apostles nor to the authorities of the Gospell but to them selues In these wordes Leo as Great as you would haue him maketh the Scriptures and not Customes or Traditions the rule of trueth So you gather of those words as also in another place That the Church should ouerthrow heresies Ar. 14. by the word of God onely Leo the first Bishop of Rome in his Epist 10. ad Flauianum contra Eutichen playnely confesseth He doth not saye that all truthes are expressed in the Scriptures though that be whereof he there intreateth to witte the Incarnation of Christ Mary when a trueth is expressed in the Scriptures recourse muste be had to the Scriptures So he sayth but he sayth not to the Scriptures onely yea in the very same tenth Epistle he blameth Eutiches the Heretike much more for not hauing recourse neither so muche as to our common Creede whiche is not Scripture you wotte well but a Tradition Ar. 15. Of the same iudgement you say was not Leo onely but the whole Councell of Constantinople the sixt Actione 18. confessing that the Heretikes and Schismatikes growe so fast because they were not beaten downe by preaching of the Gospel and authoritie of the Scriptures I confesse the same howbeit the Councell doth not But what is that for Onely Scripture yea the place is playne for the other side I maruell you could not espie as much euen by the piece that you alleage althogh you saw not the whole circumstance Béeing truely translated this it is If al men had simply and without calliditie from the beginning receiued the Gospels preaching and bene content with the Apostles institutions the matters verily had bene well a fyne and neither the authors of the heresies nor the fautors of the Priests had bene put to the paines of conflictes Who would rest here as you do and not imagine somewhat to follow with a but necessary to be séene Sed quia Satanas c. But because the diuell not resting raiseth vp his squires therfore Christ also in time conuenient hath raised vp his warriers against them to wit the Generall Councels that to this time haue ben holden by the dilligence of the Emperours and the Popes being Sixe in number So expresly they auouch the authoritie of the Councels and you alleage them for Only Scripture wheras also in the words that
you alleage there is no mention at all of Scripture but onely of preaching and teaching Likewise S. Hillarius most expresly auoucheth euery where the authoritie of the Nicene Councell against the Arrians and yet you pretend that he would haue heresies against the Trinitie Ar. 11. Hilar. li. 4. de Trin. to be confuted not by mens iudgement but by Gods word You marke well what he doeth in that place How heresies must be confuted is not his purpose but to answere the Scriptures that the Heretikes abused and misconstrued which he there had recited at large therefore he saith Cessent propriae hominum opiniones neque se vltra diuinam constitutionem humana iudicia extendant Let mens proper opinions cease neither let the iudgementes or fancies of men stretche them selues beyonde Gods limite Therefore against these prophane and impious institutions or Catechismes of God let vs followe the selfe-same authorities of Gods sayinges which they alleage in their owne false sense restoring euery one of them to his true meaning Which there consequently he doth A goodly testimonie for your purpose The saying of S. Basill is in euery mans mouth Basi de spi Sanc. ca. 27 that the Doctrines preached in the Church we haue them partely by writing partely by the Apostles Tradition without writinge And if we go about to reiect suche vnwritten customes we shall vnawares condemne the Gospell also Imo ipsam fidei predicationem ad nudum nomen contrahemus yea wee shall bring the verye preaching of our faith to a bare name And you your selfe doe note it as a greate matter that by his confession here Pur. 380. the wordes of Inuocation when the Blessed Sacrament is shewed are not taughte by the Scripture no more then many other ceremonies that he rehearseth in the same place And yet must he also beare you witnesse against himselfe for Only Scripture Ar. 11. Basi de vera side in prooem Moraliū Well what saith he In his treatise of faith We know that we must now and alwayes auoyde euery worde and opinion that is differing from the doctrine of our Lord. I say the same But it is not all one to be differing from our Lords doctrine and not to be expressed in Scripture In so muche that he alloweth wel of those words in speaking of the Trinitie Quae apud Sanctos viros in vsu fuisse reperirentur Which had bene vsed of the holy fathers although they were not in Scripture Basi in Regulis breu Interrog 1. Two sayings more of his you alleage In his short definitions to the first interrogation Whether it be lawfull or profitable for a man to permit vnto him selfe to do or say any thing which he thinketh to be good without testimonie of the holy Scriptures He answereth For as much as our Sauiour Christ saith that the Holy ghost shall not speake of him selfe what madnes is it that any man should presume to beleue any thing without the authoritie of Gods word If you saw the place your malice passeth The words are these Quis esse tanta vesania c. Who can be so madde that he dare so much as to thinke any thing of himselfe And it followeth But because of those things and words that are in vse amongst vs some are playnly taught in the holy Scripture some are omitted Concerning them that are written they must precisely be so obserued and concerning them that are omitted we haue this rule To be subiect to other men for Gods commaundement renouncing quite our owne willes Which he saith because he writeth there to Monkes who vow obedience to their Superiours Basil Mor. Reg. 26. c. 1. Agayne In his Morals Dist 26. Euery word or deede must be confirmed by the testimonie of holy Scripture for the perswasion of good men and the confusion of wicked men He there admonisheth his Monkes béeing studentes of Diuinitie to be so perfect in the Scriptures that they may haue a text ready at euery néede so as Christ had to repel the diuels temptation Mat. 4. and Peter to answere the Iewes scoffe Act. 2. And we desire the same in so much as when you bid vs cast all away that is not written we haue this text ready where S. Paul biddeth vs the contrarie To hold the Traditions which we haue learned whether it be by his Scripture or by his word of mouth 2. Thes 2. Last of all we haue to sée what you alleage likewise out of S. Augustine for your onely Scripture Augustine For you play with his nose also as you haue done with his fellowes the foresaid Doctors confessing that he is for vnwritten Traditions and suche other authorities as we stand vpon and yet alleaging him for Onely Scripture Your confession I haue reported at large in the seuenth chapter as for example where you say Augustine blindly defendeth in his booke De cura pro mortuis agenda Pur. 349. and else where the cōmon error of his time of prayer for the dead which by holy Scripture he was not able to mainteine contrarie to his owne rule of only Scripture in beating downe the Schisme of the Donatistes and the heresie of the Pelagians Well then how do you shew out of Augustine against Augustine him selfe that this was his rule You make your shew in thrée partes Ar. 12. Pur. 383.405.368.451 First you quote onely without recitall of any words eleuen or twelue places out of him In which he preferreth the authoritie of the Canonicall Scripture before all writings of Catholike Doctors of Bishops of Councels before all customes and traditions So you gather of those places But that is not the question Which is to be preferred but this Whether nothing but Scripture be of authoritie And touching the preferment also recite the wordes when you will and it will appeare playnly that he neither preferreth the Scripture otherwise then we do Your second part is about this one question Ar. 12. Who haue the true Church Of whiche question you saye that S. Augustine would haue the Church fought only in the Scriptures Reade my first Demaund and you shall sée what S. Augustine would haue in that question and that I would haue the same to wit that you answere the Scriptures that he alleageth for his Church and for ours together and that you bring one text for the visible Churches perishing after a time or vanishing out of sight and one text that one Luther or one Caluine should after so many hundred yeres restore it againe This is the summe of al. In dede he is content in that question to set aside all other authorities so to draw the Donatists who drew backe al that they could standing vpon other things impertinent to try it by the Scriptures But that nothing els is good authoritie in that question that he neuer saith You allenge him De 〈◊〉 Ecclesia cap. 2. where he saith and the like cap. 3.5.6 The question betwene vs and
the Doâ—stes is Vbi sit ecclesia where the Church is whether with vs or with them What shall we do then shall we seeke her in verbis nostris in our owne wordes or in the wordes of her head our Lorde Iesus Christ I thinke we ought rather to seeke her in his wordes who is trueth and beste knoweth his owne body Where by our owne wordes you vnderstande all besides Onely Scripture But S. Augustine doth not so quicquid nobis inuicem obricimus verba nostra sunt Our wordes are whatsoeuer we obiect one to another of deliuering the diuine bookes in Dioclesians time of burning frankinsence to the Idols of persecuting As all your declayming also at this time against vs is for certayne crimes of certayne men We hauing the like yea and them more haynous and that more truely to charge you withall But these words S. Augustine will and we with him to be silent when the Church is sought and the words of Christ in the Scripture to sound Againe you alleage him Epist 48. ad Vincentium RogatistaÌ„ where he â—aith We are sure that no man could iustly separat him selfe as Luther did a communione omnium gentium from the communion of all nations because none of vs seeketh the Churche in his owne righteousnesse but in the holy Scriptures Wherevnto you adde your fiue â—gges saying So if the Papistes would not presume of their owne righteousnesse but seeke â—he Churche of Christe in the Scriptures they would not sepaâ—ate them selues from the communion of Christes Church now â—y Gods grace inlarged further then the Popish Church There 〈◊〉 no crooked gambrell bow that casteth so wide as you do the â—octors wordes these specially from their scope I maruell â—uche at you for it and muche more if you sawe the place By 〈◊〉 Communion of all Nations so often agaynst the Donaâ—es Saint Augustine meaneth the Societie of that visible â—urch which as it beganne visibly at Hierusalem so visibly grewe on afterwardes and groweth on to this day and to the worldes ende ouer all nations From whiche Societie or Companie Epist 48. fieri non potest it is impossible saith he that any can haue iuste cause to separate their companie Because the Donatistes saide that Cecilianus the Catholike Bishop of Carthage had yéelded in Dioclesians persecution and that all the other Catholikes by communicating with him after that whereas they should haue excommunicated him for euer were also defiled thereby and therefore that them selues who had not yéelded did well to separate them selues from the Catholikes as the iust from the vniust Therevpon Saint Augustine saith notably Iust separation impossible If any may haue a iust cause to separate their companie from the companie of all Nations and to call that Ecclesiam Christi the Church of Christ Vnde scitis How know you in all Christendome beeing so wide and side lest perhaps before you did separate your selues some did afore separate them selues for some iust cause in some so farre countreys that the bruite of their iustice is not come to you How can the Church béeing but one be in you rather then in them who before perhaps haue separated them selues Ita fit c. So it remayneth that seeing you know not this same you be vncertayne of your selues Which likewise must needes happen to all others who vse for their Societie the testimonie not of God but of them selues that is of their owne iustice And then a litle after Nos autem ideo certi sumus But we Catholikes are certayne that none can haue iustly separated himself from the companie of all Nations quia non quisque nostram in iustitia sua because any of vs doth not in his owne iustice but in the diuine Scriptures seeke for the Church Et vt promissa est reddi conspicit and seeth it to be represented euen as it was promised to wit from Hierusalem to Rome from the Iewes ouer all nations being mixt both of good and bad and the good not consenting no whit defiled by the companie of the bad And therefore whether any of our Popes any of our other Bishops any of our other fathers any of our Catholike brethren haue bene so yll as the Protestants make them or no sure we are that Luther possibly could not as neither euer any could or can iustly separate him selfe because by the holy most euident Scriptures that only is the true church which beginning at IerusaleÌ„ groweth ouer all Nations in which by the same Scriptures we sée that once the Romanes were and from which the said Romanes did neuer separate theÌ„ selues afterward and with which Romanes Luther first was and afterwardes did Separate himselfe from them and so therfore from the true Church And yet come you like a blinde beetle and say that the Papistes did Separate them selues from your Church bragging as blindely of your inlarging For once hauing made a separation it is no inlarging afterwardes that can winne you the true Church from them that had it afore Of whose largenes yet also aboue your largenes read my 9.31.32.33.47 Demaundes and ioyne with me if you list vpon them Your third parte out of Augustine is more generall to wit about all questions with any Heretikes whatsoeuer thereof you say Ar. 13. that he would haue heresies confuted only by Scriptures For writing against Maximinus the Arian li. 3. ca. 14. a place commonly and often cited he saith Sed nunc nec ego Nicenum c. Of which place your gathering is this If Augustine would not oppresse the Arians by the authoritie of the Nicene Councell which was the first and the best generall Councell that euer was but only by the Scriptures how much lesse would he charge them with other authorities that the Papistes alleage beside the authoritie of holy Scriptures It is for your owne vantage or els you would not so play the proctor for Heretikes S. Augustine would not oppresse the Arians nor would not charge them but onely with Scripture you say But doth he say that he might not for there is the question You know I doubt not how commonly he presseth the Donatistes with the authoritie of the sayd Nicen Councell Aug. con Ep. parm li. 2. ca. 8. De bap coÌ„ Don. l. 1. c. 7 graunting that in S. Cyprians time it was a doubtfull thing whether Heretikes can baptize But nullo iam quaestio est now it is out of all doubt because in that same Councell it had bene discussed considered ended and ratified And euen so in your owne place a litle before hauing proued inuincibly by the Scriptures that the Father the Sonne are vnius eiusdemue substaÌ„tiae of one and the same substance he sayth immediatly This is that Homousion which against the Arrian heretikes was in the Nicene Councell ratified of the Catholike fathers veritatis authoritate authoritatis veritate not onely by authoritie of truth as your selfe do graunt but also by truth of authoritie
hence there is now no place of penance no effect of satisfaction Here life is either lost or saued Here euerlasting saluation is procured by the worshipping of one God and by the fruitfulnes of faith This forsooth is that which can not stande with the Papists opinion of Purgatory By this forsooth appereth what Cyprians iudgement was of Purgatory and the effect of satisfaction after this life And againe because exhorting there Demetrianus him selfe Proconsul of Africa to repeÌ„tance which had bene so you say deceitfully Chaunging as though he now were conuerted for that you should haue said which presently was a wicked man and a persecutor of the Christians he saith to him Tu sub ipso licet exitu vitae temporalis occasu c. Do thou although it be but a litle before thy end and setting of this temporall life pray for thy sinnes to the God which is the one and true God Confessionem fidem agnitionis eius implores Do thou humbly call for confession and faith of acknowledging him he alludeth to the ceremonie quid petis Fidem Venia coÌ„fitenti datur credenti indulgentia salutaris de diuina pietate conceditur Pardon is giuen to him that confesseth and healthfull forgiuenes is graunted by Gods goodnes to him that beleeueth Et ad immortalitatem sub ipsa morte transitur and euen at the poynt of death is passage to immortalitie Because Christ doth quicken him that is mortall by the heauenly regeneration viuificat mortalem regeneratione coelesti This which is so expresly written of the Infidels in hell and of Baptisme to pretend it as you do to be written of the faithfull in Purgatory and of penance after Baptisme argueth playnly that either you sawe not the place in S. Cyprian or rather that séeing you would not sée Of the same sort it is that Pur. 82. Cyp. de Lapsis where S. Cyprian speaketh of Deniers of Christ in persecution which would not afterward come to the Priestes to confession and saith Euery one I beseeche you brethren confesse his sinne whilest yet he that sinned is in this world whilest his confession may be receiued whilest satisfaction and remission facta per Sacerdotes made by the authoritie of the Priestes is acceptable with our Lord you gather therevpon and say If men can not satisfie nor Priest remit but whilest men are in this life then farewell satisfaction for the dead and Purgatory As though we hold that they which will not submit them selues to the Priestes in this life may be holpen after their death Or that confession may be made by the dead and satisfaction enioyned them and that béeing done absolution giuen them by the Priestes Againe it is of the same sorte which you alleage out of S. Chrysostome where first you confesse that he holdeth expresly Pur. 2â—1 prayers to profite the dead and alleageth Scripture for it your words I recited in cap. 3. and that notwithstanding say afterward Otherwise when he iudged vprightly according to the Scripture his words sounde cleane contrarie to the opinion of Purgatory and works of other men to be meritorious for the dead as in the very next Homily being the 42. in 1. Cor. Quapropter oro c. What a worthy S. Chrysostome was euery kinde of way I néede not to saye I can admire him I am not able to commend him sufficiently But what a base opinion haue you of him as also of so many others his peares to think him so grosse Caluins intolerable light hath marred Fulkes eyes to speake cleane contrarie to him selfe and that vpon one Epistle yea in the very next Homily You do herein nothing els but iustifie my saying in the beginning of this chapter that you can not in déede shew the Doctors to be for you against vs but that in déede you coÌ„fesse them to be with vs against you and pretend onely that they be agaynst vs in so much as they be pretensiuely against them selues But why did you not aswell say that D. Allen him selfe is against vs in that in the seuenth chapter of his second booke he sheweth Pur. 271. That the benefite of prayer almes apperteineth not to such as dye in mortall sinne For what els doth S. Chrysostome say in that long allegation of yours but that no friend no iust shall helpe him that dyeth in mortal sinne either committing euill that he ought to refrayne or omitting good that he ought to atchieue beséeching them therefore to conuert and amend and to get agaynst they dye good words of their owne to trust in before that Iudge Pur. 112. Ambro. in Psal 40. Likewise of S. Ambrose you confessed cap. 3. pag. 16. Ambrose in deede alloweth prayer for the dead And yet because he saith Bene addidit in terra quia nisi hic mundatus fuerit ibi mundus esse non poterit The Prophet did well to adde on earth for if he be not clensed here he can not be clensed from his mortall sinnes But the true translation is he can not be cleane there neither from his veniall sinnes though from them he maye be clensed there as also from the temporall debte of his remitted mortall sinnes yet I saye by these words it is playne inough with you that Ambrose allowed no purging after this life One place more or two you alleage more out of the same Doctor Pur. 106. with this note therevpon Thus saith Ambrose playnely in this place whatsoeuer he speaketh allegorically of the Fyerie sworde in other places as in Psal 118. Ser. 20. and in Psal 65. by occasion of which two places you graunt not long after that the Old writers opinion was Pur. 132. that all men were they neuer so iust passed through that fire into Paradise and were purified thereby because they ascribed to Purgatory fire those two operations the one whereof S. Augustine we as I said erewhile do doubt of All this notwithstanding the same Ambrose you say vpon Rom. 5. ouerthroweth Purgatorie in that it followeth of his words there Pur. 105. that no man feeleth paine after this life but he that shal feele it eternally And surely to the same effect he speaketh in his booke De bono mortis you say onely because cap. 4. where he concludeth that death in euery respect is good yea although a man haue liued yll and shall after death abye for it for also in that case non mors malum sed vita Not his death but his life was euill among others this cause he rendreth quia deteriorem statum non efficit sed qualem in singulis inuenerit talem iudicio futoro reseruat because it maketh not the yll state worse but such state as it findeth in euery one suche it reserueth to the iudgement to come Now who saith that Purgatory after death altereth the state of the euill to worse yea or also that it promoteth the state of the good to better
vndique Ire li. 3. ca. 3 conseruata est ea quae est ab Apostolis traditio In which Church saith S. Irenée that is by repayring to it the faithfull that be all about haue alwayes preserued theÌ„ selues in the tradition that coÌ„meth from the Apostles And where you say for another instance Ar. 2.3 Pur. 337. It is manifest by al Histories that the Nations of the Alanes Gothes Vandales were first conuerted by the Arrians in so saying you declare that you neuer read the Ecclesiasticall Histories presuming notwithstanding to write against these Articles which are in maner nothing els but certayne obseruations therof Reade Socrates li. 2. ca. 32. and not onely li. 4. ca. 27. and Sozomenus li. 6. ca. 37. but specially Theodoret li. 4. ca. 32. who as a Catholike Bishop of purpose to take from the Arrians that vayne bragge of theirs sheweth that the Gothes were first Catholikes and not as you say first conuerted by the Arrians but onely by false informations and to much trusting of their Bishop Vlphilas béeing another Balaam ledde out of the way You talke also of the Nations that were coÌ„uerted by the Donatists Nouatians Pur. 337. But we shall know your Histories authors hereafter Againe you say And it is also manifest by Histories Ar. 3. that the Grecians whoÌ„ the Papists count no part of their church but Schismatikes conuerted the Moscouites first of all Did the Grecians conuert them since their Schisme O great Historian The truth is there was great emulation then in the Grecians against the Latins but not schisme nor heresie as yet nor long after and therefore of our Church they were then Howbeit it is not the true faith nor our religion as you say truely which the Moscouites haue but such as they them selues did list to receiue with many qualifications and modifications of their owne such was the fruite of the Grecians emulation and such is the necessitie that S. Peter cast the nette But if Histories fayle you yet one demonstration ex per se notis you haue to proue that not we but you conuerted all true Christian Nations Ar. 2. And what is that If the Papist can proue that we hold not the same faith and trueth vnto which the Apostles conuerted the Nations we refuse to be called the Church or Congregation of Christ The Papist proueth to omitte a 1000. others of his proufes that you be Heretikes and therefore hold not the same faith c. by the testimonie of that which your selfe confesse to be the true Church of Christ here cap. 2. and cap. 3. Againe We are members witnesse your Separation here Dem. 3. Ar. 2.3 of that Church which conuerted all Landes in the earth that are conuerted to the true Religion of Christ and we affirme that the Apostles taught none other faith in steed of true Christianitie but that which we hold as we are readie to proue by the word of God Witnesse here cap. 8. Where all your absurd Deprauations of Gods word are answered and not that onely but also shewed by the expresse word of God among other thinges that the Sacrament of Confirmation went euery whither together with the Apostles Gospell as the chiefest point of Christianitie Ar. 3. pag. 145. But no maruaile of your audacitie to say we are readie to proue it considering that you are bold to conclude of this saying thus I haue shewed that our church holding the true Doctrine of the Apostles is that which conuerted all Nations to true Religion Then belike all those Nations were and are of your Religion and you will be content to be tryed by them as by Afrike for example whose Religion we know by Tertullian S. Cyprian S. Optatus S. Augustine c. Or if you haue better Monumentes of any other Nations Religion name it and let vs try it betwene vs. But whosoeuer séeth here cap. 3. how you are faine to charge the true Church the Primatiue Church with erring may easily coniecture what you dare doe Motiue 17. 11. Britannie Well we be English men and therefore in a seuerall Demaund I name our Countrie England or Britannie vnto you Specially because the Prophetes as you know speake much of the conuersion of Ilands expresly and namely of such Ilands as were farthest of As also because there are extaÌ„t such monumeÌ„ts of our Ilands conuersion and religion in Tertullian Origen S. Hierome S. Chrysostome S. Gregory the Pope with many other like and specially in the History of our owne countreyman S Bede But here Fulke telleth such English men that list not to be deceiued Pur. 346. but to see into what faith all Nations were conuerted that were turned by the Apostles that they were better to consider the word of God the Historie of the Acts of the Apostles and biddeth vs of so many Nations there recorded to name one Pur. 166.332 vnto which Purgatory or praying and sacrificing for the dead was taught You are profoundly seene in the Scriptures I perceiue by this Why was the Actes of the Apostles written to shew into what faith all Nations were conuerted that were turned by the Apostles Nay is there so much as any mention of the twelue Apostles preaching to any nation of the Gentiles No syr that booke was written to shew onely the beginning of the Church according to the Prophets to wit at Hierusalem and among the Iewes and the taking of it froÌ„ them for their deserts and geuing of it to the Gentils euen froÌ„ Hierusalem the head of the Iewes to Rome the head of the Gentiles And there S. Luke endeth it not caring to tel so much as the fulfilling of that which our Lord had foretold Act. 27. to S. Paule in whose person this traÌ„slation was wrought and not in S. Peters nor any others of the Twelue for causes to long to be here rendred Caesari te oportet assistere Thou must stand before the Emperour Because his purpose was no more but to shew the new Hierusalem of the Christians and so to leaue them to it to know what are the particulars that the Apostles taught And so withall you haue one of those Nations named in the Actes and that no common one â—o wit the Romanes which receiued of the Apostles not only the Article that you require but also all the rest which at this time it hath neither you béeing able by Scripture or otherwise to proue the contrarie so muche as in any one and we prouing it both a particulars and in the totall summe partly by Scriptures partly by other vnauoydable demonstrations Well for all this trigiuersation by which you sée what you haue wonne you will yet be content to be tryed by our Britannie Ar. 49. For you confesse that the Church of the Brytans or Welchmen before Augustine came in to conuert the Englishmen Anno 597. continued in the faith of Christ euen from the Apostles time Pur. 332. so that
his doctrine But cleane contrarie we finde so playnly for the Pope and for euery poynt of his doctrine that you are faine to put the reuelation of Antichrist and the disparition of the Church here cap. 2. at the very time of our conuersion For which cause also you refuse as we saw before to be tryed by Bedes historie Pur. 333. telling our countreymen that they were better to consider the Acts of the Apostles and saying in another place that you waye not worth a slye that which D. Allen telleth out of Beda For who séeth not there our Religion most playnly and namely for (a) Beda hi. li. 1. ca. 24. Greg. li. 12. epist 15. the Popes authoritie and (b) Beda li. 1. ca. 25.27.29 Masse the very poynts that your Saxon Homilies do impugne But what saye we then to those godly monuments Who can not say and sée that if they were such as you make them they should not all this while be kept vnprinted neither should that which was printed so soone and so diligently haue bene called in againe for why either they conteine not suche matter as you report or they be but of some of these late Wiclesistes making such as by your owne saying are yet common to be seene Disproue my coniecture if it be wrong Ar. 34. and then you shall sée whether I can reply 10. 12. Myracles and Visions Unto these two Demaunds I couple two others of Myracles Motiue 5.6.7 and of Uisions noting that the very Scriptures do by them commend vnto vs Christ him selfe his Apostles with their successors the conuerters of all Nations and their doctrine and saying accordingly that the Miracles and visions of our Church are infinite Pur. 166.331.333 Greg. Dial. li. 4. ca. 24. Et Epist l. 7 ep 30. li. 9. ep 58. mora l. 27. c. 6. in Iob. 36. Damas ser de defūctis Beda hist li. 1. c. 31. l. 3. c. 13. li. 4. c. 21. li. 5. c. 13. alleaged also by the Doctors against the Iewes also Paynims to conuert them to Christ Wheras the Protestants haue not all this while bene able so much as to heale a lame horse though Luther and Caluine as we reade in their liues namely set out in French attempted wonders Now what saith Fulke to this The examples out of Gregorie Damascene Bede you may spare for your frendes there is none of vs that maketh great account of them Againe I force litle what Augustine our Apostle of whose Miracles and holines S. Gregorie also whose Monke he was doth testify as also of his learning Hebrew psalters written with his owne hand which you count a high poynt c. wrought to confirme his errors neither do I waye worth a flye that long tale you tell out of Beda of him that had his cheynes fallen of in Masse time that credulous and superstitious age had many such fayned Myracles Againe You leape but 600. yeres from Christ to Gregories Dialogues from which time I wil not deny but you may haue great store of such stuffe as you haue miracles now in Flaūders of the honest woman of the old Bayly in London Happy it were for you and you were so honest Neither when she was in Heresie was she vnhonest for ought that I haue hard and the Miracle euen as I tell it in my Motiues is most gloriously knowen at Bruxelles You should haue better played the Doctor of Diuinitie if you could haue informed the simple how to know fained Miracles from vnfained and why Miracles vnfained may not be after S. Gregories time aswell as before You will tell them as here cap. 2. that straight after his time was the Reuelation of Antichrist Pur. 336.338 and that these were and are his lying signes and wonders 2. Thes 2. such as errours had alwaies great plentie to establish them withall This is the very bones and marrow of your new Gospell and yet all worm-eaten and rotten For first what Scripture telleth you that after the Reuelation of Antichrist supposing it at that time whiche you wold haue there shal be none but fained Miracles Apoc. 11. telleth me the cleane contrary Secondly why cannot you for the defence of Christ his true Miracles against the Infidels discouer the fainednes of Antichrist his wonders whereas we discouer the lying of all fond Miracles which sundry errours though not in such great plentie haue pretended Thirdly what Scripture telleth you that the time of Antichrists reuelation was so long agoe It telleth me the cleane contrary as I haue most euidently declared cap. 8. pag. 125. Discouering therewithall your grosse falsation of the Scripture to racke it to your blasphemous purpose A wise Reuelation that was yet so many hundred yeres hidden and the partie reueled taken yet for Christ his owne Uicare Consider their absurdnesse No no syr you that be mysticall Antichristes may of fooles be mistaken and thought to be the Ministers of Christ Iesus but your Lord in proper person shall shew himselfe openly ynough and expressely against the onely Christ our Lord and Sauiour Iesus not so much as desiring to be thought of his side Fourthly what say you then at the least to our infinite Miracles afore S. Gregories time as those whiche S. Augustine De Ciuitate Dei li. 22. ca. 8. reherseth to the Paganes wrought by the Relikes of the first Martyr S. Steuen after many particulars euen six Resuscitations of the dead saying generally Si enim Miracula sanitatum vt alia taceam modò velim scribere quae per hunc Martyrem id est gloriosissimum Stephanum facta sunt in colonia Calamensi in Nostra plurimi conficiendi sunt libri For if I would write but the Myracles of healings to omitte the others which by this Martyr that is by the moste glorious S. Stephen haue bene wrought but in two Cities Calama and Hippo where his familiar friende Possidonius and him selfe were Bishoppes very many bookes were to be made What Scripture haue you agaynst these Myracles Either you must remoue the comming of Antichrist so muche higher which a litle thing would make you to do or els you must bring your blind followers some text that testifieth his lying Myracles to go also so long before his comming and the workers of them for him to be the very Martyrs and ministers and true Church of Christ him selfe For els how will you nowe defend that our Church hath no true Myracles Ar. 85. but the power of Antichrist in lying signes and wonders As for your censure of Myracles and Uisions that what soeuer is consonant to the word of God is to be receiued Pur. 163.333 that which is not agreable therewith is to be detested although an Angell from heauen were the bringer of it as though these were agaynst the trueth of God vttered in the holy Scriptures All this hangeth but vpon the twyned thréede of your owne poore worde though you say neuer
so much that it is briefly and playnely so set foorth in the worde of God as I haue shewed in the eyght chapter answering all the textes that you peruert for Onely Scripture namely that text of an Angel from heauen pag. 110. And the place also of Saint Augustine chapter 9. pag. 181. Pur. 333. In so much that where you say therevpon He will not allowe Myracles and Visions for sufficient proofes without the authoritie of the Scriptures you do shamefully abuse your Reader for he saith expresly that whatsoeuer such things are done in the Catholike Church as he there also mentioneth many generally and some particularly therefore they are to be allowed because they are done in the Catholike Church And you graunt that these of S. Augustines reporting were done in the Catholike Church Ergo by S. Augustine euen in that place you must allow them and so condemne your owne Religion Motiue 26. 13.15 Honour of Crosses and of Saintes 14.16 Vertue of Crosses and of Saintes 17. Exorcismes 18. Destroying of Idolatrie In the next fiue Demaundes I report certaine argumentes made of the old Doctors in their bookes against the Paynims to proue that Christ is God and not their Idolles by certaine pointes of our Religion as the Soueraigne Honor both of his Crosse and of his Saintes and the miraculouse power not onely of them two but also of his Church in her ordinarie exorcismes requiring the Protestantes to helpe here the Paynims if they be eyther able or not ashamed and also in the next Demaund bidding them open their eyes at length and beholde that our Religion hath bene and is the bane of Idolatrie yea and those very pointes of our Religion which their peruerse blindnes counteth and calleth Idolatry it selfe To all this Fulke had nothing but like a Cuckow You haue not saith he destroyed Idolatry Pur. 460. but set vp Idolatrie Not waying what I tell him according to the prophets that we haue so throughly conuerted al Nations from Idolatrie that we haue made them forget also the names of their Idolles Motiue 41. Article 10. 19 Kinges My 19. Demaund is of the Christian Emperours and Kinges of whose conuersion together the Scripture speaketh expresly and of the conuersion of Nations The chiefe of them Fulke nameth here cap. 2. and confesseth with vs and for vs that they were of the true Church in the first 600. yeares yea and chalengeth them to haue bene of his Religion no lesse then we doe But what proufes doth he bring thereof Not one Neither doth he answere so much as any one of our proufes no not that which D. Allen alleageth Pur. 429. how Constantinus honored the Sentence of the Priestes Councell at Nice tanquam a deo prolatam as pronounced of God Pur. 313. Ruff. li. 1. ca. 5. yea he is faine to confesse that in the burial of Constantinus him selfe the very first Christian Emperour Eus in vita Const li. 4 c. 58.59.60.66.71 there was prayer for his soule according to the errour of the time being the time of the first Nicen Counsell In Eusebius is much more Sacrifice also for his soule with the intercession of the Apostles in whose honor it was offered at their Relikes in their Temple Pur. 312. and all by the procurement of ConstaÌ„tinus him self Again That the Emperour Theodosius Iunior prayed for his fathers and mothers soules Arcadius and Eudoria But the storie saith not quoth he that he prayed to S. Chrysostome for them as M. Allen thinketh The storie is Theodorets and his words are these Hist Trip. li. 10. c. 26. ex Theo. l. 5. c. 35.36 Pur. 222.226 Amb. super obitum Theod. And he setting his face and eyes vpon the shrine of that holy man made supplications for his parentes and prayed him vt veniam illis tribueret that he would pardon them the iniuries which of ignorance they had done him in working his death Againe as touching Honorius of the west brother to the said Arcadius of the East wher S. Ambrose saith Eius principis Theodosij Senioris et proximè conclamauimus Obitum et nunc quadragesimum diem celebramus assistente sacris Altaribus Honorio Principe We finished of late vpon the seuenth day this Princes Obite Theodotius Senior their father and now we celebrate his fourtyth day our Prince Honorius standing by the sacred Altares To this Fulke had nothing but partly to reprehend the thing as superstitious both in the Bishop and in the Emperour partely to inueigh blindly against D. Allens translation For Ambrose speaketh not he saith of his fortyth dayes minde but of the solemnitie of his funerall kept 40. dayes togeather As though the fortyth day is not one of the fortie and yet also how playnly he expresseth the singulare solemnitie of the fortyth day as of the Obite before saying And now we celebrate his fortyth day whereas others vse to kepe the Thirde day and the Thirtith which was and is the vse of the Romane Church But the Church of Millaine kept the seuenth day and the fortyth Al this considered who seeth not that aswel the Catholike Emperours within the first 600. yeres be against him as the others of later tymes and therefore that it is but a cast of his facing deceiuing arte that he saith Ar. 33.51 Before the generall Defection and Reuelation of Antichrist it is an easye matter to name you the Emperours and Princes of our Church as Constantine the great See the impudent Heretike them vvhâ—m he condemned before Iouinianus Valentinianus Theodosius Arcadius Honorius Martianus Iustinianus Mauritius diuers other But when the Kings of the earth had coÌ„mitted fornicatioÌ„ with the great Whore of BabyloÌ„ as the holy ghost foresheweth Apo. 17. 18. it is no preiudice to our cause if we cannot shew any of them that haue maintained our Religion Your malicious and ignoraÌ„t setting of the Defection Antichrists reuealing at the yere 607 I haue coÌ„futed cap. 8. pag. 126. by the Scriptures most manifestly But that you poynt the same time for the Kinges of the earth to haue fornicated with her your ignorance and malice surmounteth it selfe as it is euideÌ„t by that which I say there pag. 126. that Babylon is this world froÌ„ the beginning to the ending thereof and called a Whore for that it hath such alluremeÌ„ts wherevpon the same S. Iohn exhorteth vs in his Epistle 1. Ioan 2. and saith Loue not the world nor the thinges that are in the world The world is transitorie and also the coÌ„cupiscence of it And therefore in his Apocalipse he maketh her to sit vpon all the earthly worldly Kinges that euer tooke or shall take her parte against Gods Church But your blindnes could finde no earthly Kinges in the world but within these last 900. yeares yea none to be the Kinges of the Earth but those that be the Kinges of the Church and their fornicatioÌ„ to consist In humbly
a sacrifice or no and how it is or is not we nede not stand here about it As also because he doth not say that no sacrifice ought to be offered to Martyrs as you pretend but he speaketh of external sacrifice the definition wherof you may conceiue by that litle which I said cap. 6. pag. 49. and of one certaine externall sacrifice We offer the sacrifice to the one God Aug. de ci li. 8. ca. 27. That prayer to Saintes is not a sacrifice to Saintes who is both the Martyrs God ours At which sacrifice they be named in their place and order In so much that by this one Sacrifice he answereth the Paganes touching certaine dishes of meate brought by some Chrystians to the Martyrs churches euen as I answere you touching prayer made to them Non autem ista esse c. But that these be not sacrifices to the Martyrs he knoweth that knoweth the One Sacrifice of the Christians which is there offered to God Those Christians do meane no more but to haue them there sanctified by the merites of the Martyrs in the name of the Lorde of the Martyrs Let the third example be of ceremonies generally suche as he confesseth here cap. 3. pag. 15. to haue bene in the primitiue church also And two obiections of his against them I haue answered cap. 6. pag. 45. But now he will reproue them out of Scripture also first by his vsual argumeÌ„t ab authoritate negatiue Ar. 19. Because they are destitute of God his word which only is able to giue theÌ„ strength and estimation And yet in other places cleane contrary not only Scripture but also example of the Primitiue church is sufficient for them as where he saith Ar. 21.42 If any thing be allowed without controuersie on both sides it did either procede from the Scripture of God or froÌ„ the Primitiue Church Ar. 48. Iust Apol. 2. or els it is a thing meerely indifferent And to this purpose he citeth Iustinus Martyr who declareth playnly he saith what order of seruice and ministration of Sacramentes our Church vsed before Papistrie preuayled As though the booke or books of seruice were no more then these few lines in Iustinus And yet also to sée the blindnesse of this maÌ„ so litle as he bringeth out of that Martyr yet is there plaine against his CommunioÌ„ booke Water mingled with wine But no one word against the Masse booke yea it is the very suÌ„me of the Masse vnlesse you be so foolish to thinke that the Bishops sermon the Receauing of all present the Carying of it to them that be absent and the Rich mens offering may not be omitted in any Masse nor for any cause Now let vs here against Ceremonies Ar. 19. your authorities of Scripture affirmatiuely We detest and abhorre all your beggarly Ceremonies which you count holy and solemne obseruations For we know that God is not to be worshipped with such thinges but that the true worshippers must worship him in spirite and veritie Ioa. 4. Then belike you detest all Ceremonies and all outward thinges those also of the Primitiue Church yea and of the Scripture it selfe which erewhile you allowed You saw this reply and therefore in another place you would moderate the matter saying The seruice of God hath small neede of furniture Ar. 51. in outward things For God beeing a spirite is not worshipped with outward Pompe but with spirituall and inward reuerence And as for other furniture that is necessarie was decreed to the Church by the Emperour Constantine and his Successors Notwithstanding the Church was in better case before such furniture was graunted then since Like one that will not hold his peace and yet cannot tell what to say If Gods being a spirite admitteth some outward furniture well ynough then haue you missensed that text The meaning is that outward thinges without the inward man please not God But for all that the inward man may vse outward gestures outward wordes and other outward thinges as Christ him selfe his Apostles and all the Church euer did For so to do is to adore God who is a spirit in spirit truth And touching the other text that you alleage not but allude vnto those weake beggerly elemeÌ„tes Gal. 4. are the Ceremonies of the old law specially after the death of Christ whom they shadowed and much more the Galathians being Gentiles to whom they neuer parteyned and you wrest it against the Ceremonies that are vsed in the administration of the gracious Sacramentes of Christ and that by the order of them that could say Visum est spiritui sancto nobis Act. 15. It hath seemed good to the holy Ghost and to vs. Like as agaynst the Lessons Responses Versicles and suche other distinctions or varieties in the Seruice you alleage Matth. 15. Ar. 20. In vayne do they worshippe me teaching for doctrine the preceptes of men Such is your ignorance in the Scripture by reason of your malice The preceptes of men are those which be of men and not of God as those traditions of the two late Elders Hilleb Sammai béeing partly friuolous as those vayne lotions partly also contrarie to Gods Commaundementes as that of Corban Tit. 1. wherevppon S. Paule biddeth Titus to be earnest wiâ—h the Cretensians that they listen not to Iudaicall fables mandatis hominum and to the preceptes of men that turne away from the trueth Wherevpon the inuentions also of Luther Caluine and all other Heretikes are the preceptes of men and their followers worship they knowe not what Ioan. 4. Pur. 21. and if they be also zelous it is without knowledge Rom. 10. But so are not likewise the preceptes of them to whom our Sauiour saide He that heareth you heareth me and he that despiseth you Luc. 10. despiseth me And therefore S. Paule commaunded them of Syria and Cilicia Act. 15.16 to keepe the preceptes of the Apostles and Priestes that were decréed in the Councell of Hierusalem S. Augustine likewise here cap. 6. pag. 45. embraceth the Ceremonies decréed in Councels of Bishoppes and muche more them that are vsed throughout the whole Churche And you falsifie the Councell of Laodicia when you saye It decreed Conc. Lao ca. 59. that nothing should be song or read in the Churche but the Canonicall bookes of holy Scripture No Syr that did rather your friende Paulus Samosatenus who reiected the Psalmes and Songs which to the honour of our Lorde Iesus Christ Eus li. 7. c. 24. decantari solent are wont to be song saith Eusebius tanquam recentiores as beeing but lately made and set out by men of late memorie Renewing the Heresie of Artemon agaynst the Godhead of Christe the whiche a certayne Catholike doth there confute long afore ex Hymnis a fidelibus fratribus antiquitus perscriptis concentu quodam Eus li. 5. c. 27. By the Hymnes made of olde in meeter by faythfull brethren He
occasion 24. Priesthood and Sacrifice Mot. 21.38 Article 13. Heb. 7. In the 24. Demaund being of the Priesthood and Sacrifice I touch your Apostasie at the very roote For S. Paule saith The Priesthood being translated from Aaron and them of his order to Melchisedec or Christ and them of his order it is necessary that translation of the Law also be made That your Heresie of Caluinisme is not a méere Heresie that is a corruptioÌ„ of Christianitie in one or two pointes but a mutation of the whole new Law almost of Christ it commeth of this I say that you haue made a mutation of the new Priesthood And that you haue chauÌ„ged the new Priesthood or Priesthood of the New Testament I shew because you haue chaunged our Catholike Priesthood For this Priesthood wherin we serue came to vs from no other but from Christ and his Apostles The Priesthood that they delyuered our forefathers and we haue to this day kept the same vnchaunged To be perspicuous I come to particulares First the very Apostolike names Episcopus and Presbyter Note that is Bishop and priest we neuer went about to change them you haue labored to change them into these Superintendent and Elder Wherevpon it followeth that you haue chaunged the Apostolike order as it followeth the Apostles to haue chaunged the Aaronicall order because they chauÌ„ged the former names Pontifex Sacerdos for which we haue no English I touched this here afore in the .6 Dem. pag. 231. and you haue no where answered it but I finde where you haue holpen it For wheras the Fathers keeping those new names Isa 66. s 21. yet according to the Prophesie of Esay vsed euermore also the former names considering that the newe order no lesse then the old is a true species of that genus SacerdotiuÌ„ wheras we accordingly do in translating put the English word Priest not only for Presbyter Pur. 283. but also for Sacerdos you sir translating a passage of S. Cyprians do put the Priestes twise where he putteth Sacerdotes but where he putteth Presbyterum you shun the word Priest which is the very same and put your newe inuented word an Elder Secondly you helpe another argument of ours where you say I would desire none other place in all the scripture Ar. 29. Pur. 297. to ouerthrow the Popish Hierarchie which is the gretest glory of their Church then this place of Paule Eph. 4. He speaketh of Apostles Euangelistes Prophetes Pastors Teachers But where are Popish Byshops Priestes Deacons Subdeacons Exorcistes Cantors or Lectors Acolytes Ostiares By this you declare that you haue chauÌ„ged the order Hierarchie or Priesthood of the Primitiue church wherein as it is infinitly Eus li. 6. ca. 34. witnessed you cannot denie but the same degrées were which here you call Popish And doth not S. Paule him selfe in other places make expresse mention of Bishops Priestes Deacons And so you might aswell by your wise reason out of Ephe. 4. ouerthrow S. Paules Hierarchies Who also in the names of Deacons 1. Tim. 3. includeth subdeacons and the other inferiors as in the name of Priestes Tit. 1. he includeth likewise Deacons themselues And the like is common in the auncient Fathers who yet because Deacons or Ministers is a distinct order Sup. p. 251. do like better to call all vnder Priestes by the name of Leuites Pur. 383. because that was the generall terme in the old Law of all the varieties of them that were not Sacerdotes to call all to-together Clerum the Cleargie or in Clericos or in Clericali ministerio constitutos â—yp ep 66 or ad ordinatione clericaleÌ„ promotos Al which termes S. CypriaÌ„ hath in one Epistle with the names of Episcopus and Presbyter Sacerdos coÌ„mon to them both And it is but your ignorance to thinke that S. Paule should haue named them Eph. 4. considering that he speaketh there onely of the ministerie of the word only of preachers vt iam non circumferamur c. that we be not now caried about with euery wind of doctrine whereas these other are belonging to the ministerie of the Altar Which are two distinct offices as you may sée Act. 13. where some preachers had not orders as yet 1. Tim. 5. where some good Priestes do not labour in the word and doctrine Thirdly the Apostles Bishops Priestes were made by other Bishops and Priestes as also with vs it continueth to this day But yours be onely of Lay mens making as of Kings and other Ciuill Magistrates I passe ouer the difference of liuing Single Marrying as a thing extrinsical touched before in the .21 Dem. Pag. 250. Fourthly your selues confesse our orders to be good ynough in that hauing béen ordered by vs you séeke not to be reordered as Cranmer Parker Grindall Sandes Horne c. whereas we as you knowe account your Orders for no orders Ar. 50.51 To this you say You are highly deceiued if you thinke we esteeme your offices of Bishops Priests Deacons any better then the state of Lay men For we receiue none of theÌ„ to minister in our church except they forsweare your religion so their admission is a newe calling to the ministerie How true it is that you receiue none otherwise I passe that ouer But sir A nevv vvay to giue Orders we also make your ministers to abiure yet after that they be but lay men still And I would ask you if two Catholikes abiure with you one a lay man the other a Priest are they both Priests ipso facto O your diuinitie O your scripture As for the Sacraments of Baptisme Matrimonie we doe not iterate them after you though we supply the Ceremonies because a Bishop or a Priest is not the necessarie sole minister of them as he is of the Sacramentes of orders of our Lordes Body Which is a sounder cause then yours of reteining the forme of woordes and for as much as the Sacramentes take not their effect of the minister but of God For herevppon you allowe you say our Baptisme If that be ynough what néedeth Abiuring Yea belyke with you it is the Sacrament of our Lordes Body if a lay man or wooman also reteyne the wordes for as much as the Sacraments take their effect of God What is this but to deny the Priesthood and so to runne hedlong to Apostasie As that also where to defend Pilkinton not to be a mocke Bishop Pur. 343.428 Ar. 72. you bring no more but his excellent learning and diligent preaching Inueying against our Catholike Bishops as vnlearned or vnpreaching and therefore no Bishops Whereas in déede we that knew both sydes by experience can truly testifie that in Catholike Countries where your Desolation could not yet remoue the Orders of seculare and religious Preachers ther is more preaching to say nothing of the stuffe in so many Churches for so many in one yeare
peace with Christian charitie And much more do Prouincial Councelles yeeld to the general sine vllis ambagibus without any more adoe and much more againe particulare Doctors And yet you with your swelling of sacrilegious pride with your stubbernes of arrogant Ventositie with your contentiousnes of peuish enuy will not yeeld neyther to Prouinciall nor to general Councel neyther after their confirmation and receauing so much more desperat then those Donatistes of whom he speaketh as they had one Doctor to wit S. Cyprian plainly of their opinion and you haue nere a one and yet will neither yéeld to all the Councels together but against them all come in with your ambages and aske But where is their Scripture as here cap. 7. pag. 89. thinking that you haue a witty deuise for this your tergiuersation when you say Pur. 430. The Councelles that are receiued are therefore receiued because they decreed truely and not the truth receiued because it was decreed in Councels Else why is the determination of the Nicene Councell which is but one beleeued against tenne Councels holden by the Arrianes but that the Nicene decreed according to the worde of God all the rest against it You might aswell say The Scriptures that are receiued are therefore receiued because they are written truely and not the truth receiued because it is written in the Scriptures Els why is the Gospel according to Mathew beléeued and not the Gospel according to the twelue but that the former is the word of God and the other is not But we say that the Scriptures being once receiued into the Canon and the Councels being once receiued by the Sée Apostolike what soeuer they say must be beléeued to be truth and that then none but Heretikes do make exceptions against them And that you therfore be an Heretike who not onely against all Councels so receiued for these 900. yeres but also against the very Nicene it selfe which you your selfe receiue do take your exception of Onely Scripture and that as it were by authoritie of S. Augustine cap. 9. pag. 179. and 173.180 Motiue 12. 28. See Apostolike Now for the Sée Apostolike it selfe which as it was the confirmer so was it both the gatherer with the Emperours helpe and also the President by the Patriarches and other Bishops and sometimes Priestes also béeing her Vicares of all approued Generall Councells what soeuer * Ar. 97. you or any other Heretike affirme to the contrarie without any testimonie I saye in my 28. Demaunde that none euer but Heretikes and Schismatikes did obstinately refuse eyther the fayth or the communion of that Sée Beholde two notable examples one vnder Pope Victor about the question of Easter the other vnder Pope Stephanus about the question of Heretikes Baptisme We shall catche this Ratte in them through his owne rumbling Victor anno 200. Ar. 27.36 Pur. 373. saith he was the first that went about to vsurpe authoritie ouer other Churches He passed the bondes of his authoritie in excommunicating of all the Churches of Asia Then manye Bishoppes withstoode him specially Ireneus of Lyons and Polycrates of Ephesus as a Eus li. 5. c. 23.24.25 witnesseth Eusebius But who sayth that he eyther vsurped authoritie or passed the bondes of his authoritie No doubte Polycrates and his fellowes of Asia would so haue sayd if they had béene of your opinion about the Bishop of Rome or if that Bishoppes authoritie ouer all had not béene in those Primitiue dayes a playne matter The Storie was thus The Churches of Asia minor had receyued of S. Iohn Euangelist to kéepe oure Lords Pasch or Easter day not alwayes vpon Sonday but with the Iewes vpon the 14. of the Moone In which custome the Bishops of Rome who had receiued of S. Peter and Paule the other maner did tolerate them so long as it tended to the honour of burying the Law and not to the necessitie of obseruing the Lawe But when they sawe that a b Niceph. li. 4. ca. 36. necessitie was put therein in so much that the other maner was condemned by the Iudaizing Heretike c Tertul. d◠Praes Eus li. 5. ca. 14 Blastus then loe they thought good to tolerate them no longer but S. Victor after that his b Niceph. li. 4. ca. 36. predecessours Pius Anicetus Eleutherius had sent out decrées against that maner and d Eus li. 5. ca. 22. all Bishops had ratified Decretum Ecclesiasticum the Ecclesiasticall Decree seing that they of Asia neither so obeied to walke vnto the truth of the Gospell vsing seueritie when it was high tyme commaunded them eyther to obey without any more adoe or to be depriued of the Churches communion Which censure of his did séeme to sharpe to S. Irenée and other Bishops of his owne obseruance As now also if he would excommunicate them which receaue not the Counsel of Trent it would séeme likewise to many who notwithstanding confesse that he hath authoritie ouer all But what was the end of the matter At length folowed the first Nicene Councel and confirmed the same that the Popes had commaunded in their Epistle to them of Alexandria writing this of the Asianes also You shall vnderstand Apud Theod. li. 1. ca. 9. that the controuersie of Easter is wisely pacified in so much that all our Bretheren that inhabite the East will now hereafter with one accord in keping the same followe the Romanes vs and all you So they promised the Councel And who so refused yet after that to do it were counted obstinate Heretikes Aug. Haer. 29. Soc. li. 6. ca. 10.20 Ar. 37. both in the Gréeke and Latine Church named testarescaidecaticai that is quartadecimane some such being yet in Asia in S. Chrysostomes tyme were by him as Bishop of Constantinople turned out of their Churches no lesse then the Nouatianes Lykewise saith Fulke towching the other case when Pope Stephanus threatned excōmunication to Helenus and Firmilianus and almost all the Churches of Asia because they thought that such as were baptized by Heretikes should be baptised againe Diony Al. ep ad Xystum Papā Succes Ste. apud Eus li. 7. ca. 2.3 4.5 he was misliked by Dionisius of Alexandria and diuers other godly Bishops Cyprian also reproueth him very sharpely for the same opinion accusing him of presumption and contumacie a Cypr. ep 74. Epist ad Pompeium And in his Epistle to b Cyp. epi. 71. Quintus he saith playnly that Peter him selfe was not so arrogant nor so presumptuous that he would say he held the Primacie and that other men should obey him as his inferiours You would make the Reader beléeue that he there saith Peter had not the Primacie wheras he saith expresly in the very same Periode Petrus quem primum Dominus elegit super quem edificauit Eccleam suam Peter whom our Lord chose the first and vpon whom he buylded his Church Neither he nor Dionysius nor Firmilianus denieth the Primacie
6. he was to blame As also to tell vs that the Creatures of God are Sanctified by the word of God and by prayer 1. Tim. 4. Specially to attribute so passing muche to the prayers of the holy Ghost that is to the prayers of the Church encouraging vs and saying Rom. 8. the Holy Ghost also doth helpe our weaknes praying for vs with groanes vnspeakable as he that knoweth the hartes of the Catholike Church can tell howsoeuer blinde Heretikes do thinke that God will do nothing by water for prayer Epip Haer. 19. Againe he sayeth Of the Ossenes who were another sect of the Iewes you tooke the great estimation of water salte oyle bread c. And vse to sweare by them as they did You do not charge vs I trow as teching this swering in cōmon talke without truth or without cause Nor you be not I trow an Anabaptist to condemne eyther all swearing or swearing by Creatures What besides these you should meane to charge vs withall I know not But I know what Epiphanius chargeth the Ossenes withall to wit for frequentinge othes as we do prayers and that for diuine honor of septem testes seuen witnesses prescribed vnto them by their master Elxai which were these Salt Water Earth Bread Heauen Ayer and Winde At another time these Heauen Water Spirits the holy Angels of prayer Oyle Salte and Earth but in no case fire Therefore if Catholikes be not plaine Ossens I report me to you The same Elxai prescribed a prayer saying in the booke of his fables Let no man seeke the interpretation but onely say these words in his prayer Abac anid moib nochile daasim ani daasim nochile moib anid abac selam Of him therfore we learned saith Fulke to cōmaund the people to pray in an vnknowen tongue Epiphanius sheweth that his prayer was nothing at all when it was interpreted Belike the Pater noster and Aue are such or els the Priuate prayers of the Corinthians in more strange tongues then the Latin is to the people of the Latin Church which yet S. Paule commendeth as I shewed in the 22. Dem. But he commeth also to our publike prayer and saieth Epip Haer. 34. The Marcosians when they baptized after their strange maner mentioned here cap. 6. pag. 50. vsed to speake certaine Hebrue wordes quae magis admirationi sint that the ignorant people might maruel the more at them as you do in Baptisme Ephata c. Mar. 7. Euen as truly as S. Marke in his Gréeke Gospell sayeth the same in the very same maner with the interpretation Ambro. de Sac. li. 1. c. 1. Apoc. 19. as we do in Baptisme and as in S. Ambrose time also we did to be forsooth maruelled at the more Epphatha quod est adaperire which is to say Be thou opened And as S. Iohn in his Greke Apocalypse so often vseth for maruell forsooth the Hebrue words Amen which in other Scriptures also yea and in your owne prayers is commonly vsed and Alleluia of which two S. Augustine saith that I may note somewhat here against your Seruice where you note nothing agaynst ours not onely that in the Latine translations of the Bible they be reteined Propter sanctiorem authoritatem for more holy authoritie Au. de doc Chri. li. 2. c. 11. inter Epist 174. although it was possible to interprete them but also that all Nations doe sing them in the Hebrewe worde quod nec Latino nec Barbaro licet in suam linguam transferre Not being lawfull neither for the Latine nor for the Barbarian to translate them into his owne language Of the Marcionistes you learned to giue women leaue to Baptise You doe therein your selues by order of your booke Epip Haer. 42. as muche as we doe Marcion is noted for confounding all order as consecrating the mysteries in presence of Catechumeni so likewise allowing women to Baptize solemnely as though they might haue that office as well as Priestes We say onely that for necessitie Christ alloweth any person to Baptize Ruff. hist li. 1. ca. 14. in so muche that the Primitiue Church also hath allowed the baptisme which a boye hath giuen to his playfellowes Which you woulde neuer carpe but that like a Pelagian Puritane here cap. 6. pag. 65. you denie the necessitie of Baptisme Aug. Haer. 88. Pelagia saying that children etiam si non baptizentur although they be not baptized may come to life euerlasting and to the kingdome of God Pu. 13.405 Ar. 44. So playnly you are proued to be Pelagians But yet we in our consciences forsooth must néedes be Pelagians for holding Free wil and merites of works as they did and not Predestination and grace as Augustine did How they did holde it eyther you knew not or it was not for your hipocrisie to report it Sure it is that a Hier. pro. con Pelag. Au. de fide con Mani ca. 9 10. Chry. hom 45. in Io. 6. Manichaeorum est liberum auserre arbitrium It is the Heresie of the Manichies to denie Free-will Sure it is againe that S. Augustine denying the Pelagians merites that is such as procéede of man him selfe and go before grace yet holdeth the Catholike merites that is such as procéede of grace b Aug. epi. 46. The Pelagian Heretikes do say quoth he the grace of God to be giuen according to our owne merites quod omnino falsissimum est Which is vtterly moste false not that there is no merite either good of the godly or euill of the vngodly but the grace of god doth conuert a man that of a wicked one he may be made a iust one and so may beginne to haue good merites which God shall crowne when the world shall be iudged This is the doctrine of the Catholikes and is most euident to be séene in the Councell of Trent Con. Trid. Ses 6. But you denying all good merits do like Hipocrites conceale from the people that distinction of merites before grace and merites after grace making as though all which hold merites so much as after grace be Pelagians But that we hold also merits before grace as they did you will proue by the distinction De cōgruo condigno For God is as much bound to congruity as to dignitie or worthines and as he can do nothing against worthines no more can he do any thing against congruitie which is a kind of equitie We also our selues do hold that a man of him selfe without Gods speciall helpe can not merite so much as de congruo the grace of God though we haue no resolute warrant to call the contrarie Pelagianisme or Heresie and that with better argumēts then this of yours or els we might hold our peace which you can not For you imagine that if God do not that which is congruous he doth against congruitie Not so good syr for it is congruous to his mercy to saue the simple that followe you only of
ignorance and otherwise do liue in good works especially his welbeloued seruantes also praying for them Yet to damne such also because they be out of the Church is congruous to his iustice Yea for God to saue al the world is cōdigne to the merites of Christ yet he damneth innumerable because that it is condigne to their owne merites Thus while you went about to stayne Gods Church in vaine it is fallen out only by the way that you your selues are Messalians for denying the grace of the Sacraments Pelagians for denying the necessitie of Baptisme and Manichees for denying Frée-will This is all that you haue gayned 39 In confessed Heretikes onely Motiue 46 When we make the Protestantes to confesse as in the last Demaund that the Primitiue Church noted certaine to be Heretikes for holding their doctrine they set themselues against the Primitiue Church also such is their obstinacie say that those persons were not Heretikes therein We therefore not leauing them so if it be possible any way to open their eyes or at lest the eyes of the poore deceiued people do shew them as in this next Demaund that the same persons were Heretiks in other poynts also so playnly that we make them to confesse that also And neither yet will their hard stonie hartes relent Ar. 44. If Aerius had not bene an Arrian saith Fulk his opinion against praying for the dead could not haue made him an heretike though both Epiphanius of the Gréeke Church and Augustinus of the Latin Church do so register him Then what do we more We aske them Pur. 421. Why God openeth these mysteries alwayes and onely to suche as you your selues saith D. Allen to them can not deny to be Heretikes and not to Athanasius Epiphanius Augustinus or some other blessed men of that time but contrariwise leaueth these his elect and doctors of his Church in ignorance yea and with pertinacie condemning those true mysteries for soule Heresies and hath no body in the meane time to be their reformers but such as are infamous and of no credite by reason of abominable confessed heresies And do they yet relent No I warrant you Such a yoke it is to be once wedded to heresie And yet they haue no answere herevnto that may satisfy any man of reason as now we shal sée For thus saith Fulke vnto it Pur. 409.422.424 Ar. 44. What if any Heretike hath affirmed some thing that is true Is trueth worse in an Heretikes mouth The diuels them selues confessed Christ As though it were agréed that it was trueth which those Heretikes affirmed as it was agréed that he was Christ whom those diuels confessed No syr that is the question But if the diuels had said one thing and the Apostles the contrarie which then were like to haue bene the trueth For so the Catholike Fathers saide with vs and the Arrians said with you which therefore is like to be the truth You say truth hath testimonie of Gods word and whether it be affirmed or denyed by the diuell it is all one Mary in déede he that would defende the diuell saying agaynst the Apostles affirming that he can bring Gods word must néedes haue audience though he put vs to our trumps So you defending Aerius the Arrian Heretike against the Catholike fathers bringing Scripture do trouble vs forsooth as the reader hath séene here in the 8. chapter where I haue answered al your Scriptures as all must nedes be answerable that is brought against truth and so they find which reade our writings But because that way to reade all is long we tel such as would not make so great a iorney that they may be sure without more trauell that not to be of God the reuealer of all trueth which Heretikes held against the Catholiks as also that which the diuels might hold against the Apostles And the more because we reade that Christ and his Apostles cōmaunded the diuell to silence Luc. 4. Act. 16. when also he confessed trueth for proceeding out of his lying mouth it might as Fulke saith wel the sooner be discredited Whereas in our case by the saying of the Protestantes he commaunded the diuell and his Heretikes to teach the trueth and the Fathers to silence or rather not to silence but suffering them to resiste the trueth all that they could Pu. 422.421 But he can aunswere one question with another Why was it first reueiled sayth he to the Arrians in Councell that the Article of Christes discent into hell was meete to be added to the Crede which was not reueiled to so many godly men as set forth the Symbole nor to the holy Nicene Councell Answere me if you can He speaketh so of this matter without any quoting of Author as if it were a thing notoriously knowen Belyke it is receiued among them who would put it out of the Crede againe as a principle of their Aristotle and I who reade not their bookes but with leaue and for necessitie am not so well acquainted in their mysteries Perhaps a friends ghesse of mine is true that they say so because they find it in some Arrian Crede that is recorded in the Ecclesiasticall Storie Theo. li. 2. cap. 21. For it is found in déede in Theodorete that the false Nicene Arrian Synode saide in their newe Crede Crucified dead and buried descended into hell whom hell it selfe did tremble at According to the ydle or rather hypocriticall diligence of Heretikes who vse in Credes or confessions of their false doctrines to infarse some nedeles truethes Whereas the Catholike Nicene Councell thought it ynough in their Crede to repeate and explicate onely those Articles of the Apostles common Crede of which Articles Heretiks had as then made question Is not this then a substantiall cause to say that it was firste reuealed to the Arrians to put it in the Créede whereas it was before in the Apostles Créede Though also if it were true that the Arrians did first put it into the Créede what is that to our case They had not the Catholikes in that against them yea it was a common Article of the Catholikes faith The Articles of the Arrian Aerius were not such As also the Article agaynst Rebaptization which Article some Heretikes perhaps helde right when S. Cyprian and some other Catholike Bishoppes were deceyued in it But yet the Pope with the rest of Christendome helde it as they had it of the Apostles What is this to your Articles which onely olde wicked Heretikes did holde we saye against all Catholikes They were fitte Articles for Heretikes at all times but neuer for Catholikes as at this time also for Anabaptistes Seruetians or Arrians Suenkfeldians Pur. 421. all the others that you count Heretikes as well as we doe sayth D. Allen because they are their inheritance as well as yours descending from your common father Luther But for that wound also you haue a plaister if not to heale it
is linked your place with enim Impossibile est enim for it is vnpossible c. And that which our Sauiour saith to the Pharisées Scribes Mat. 12. Mar. 3. of Sinne or blasphemie against the holy Ghost because they said Spiritum immundum habet He hath an vncleane spirit euen Belzabub the prince of the diuels to cast out diuels by doth he say it to driue them to desperation yea doth he not plainely speake it to moue them the more and to the greater repentance As your selfe also contrarie after your manner to your selfe Pur. 461. though in expresse wordes counting D. Allen and his fellowes such as Heb. 6. can not by you repent hauing sometime bene lightned As though D. Allen had euer bene a Protestant and tasted of the good gift of God doe yet exhort them truely to repent and to returne to the acknowledging of trueth once knoweÌ„ and professed and doe beseech God that so many among them as are curable may haue grace so to do So the whole circumstance sheweth that Christ there exhorteth them to most humble penance For neither doth he otherwise say that such sinne blasphemie shal not be remitted then he saith that all other sinne and blasphemie shall be remitted And yet I trow many a one yea aboue all number may be and is damned in hell for other sinne and blasphemie Euen so many a one yea and aboue all number may be and is forgiuen the sinne against the Holy Ghost Wherby it is euident that he doth no more in that place but report the ordinarie rules of Gods prouidence to wit To forgeue al other sinne ordinarily by giuing the partie grace to repent and not to forgeue ordinarily the sinne against the holy Ghost that is when one maliciously calleth the Miracles of Christ and of his Seruauntes the workes of the Deuill or the lying signes and wonders of Antichrist Which sinne your new Gospell hath made very common in these dayes But yet that no such also should dispaire one of these a Act. 23.26 Philip. 3. Pharisées he the very worst of theÌ„ all saith most comfortably b 1. Tim. 1. Act. 7.9 A sure saying and worthy of all embracing that Christ Iesus came into the worlde to saue sinnerss of whom I am the principall But to this end I had mercie that in me the principall who afore was a blasphemer and a persecuter and an oppresser in my c Vide Au. expo inch ad Rom. prope fineÌ„ blind incredulitie Christ Iesus might shew all clemencie for a samplar to all that should after beleue in him Nowe for that which you alleaged out of Samuel Ieremie and Ezechiel it is all spoken in one sense of temporall matters to wit of casting Saule from his kingdome and the Iewes into captiuitie in another sense of the Iewes generall reprobation in which they presently be since their crucifying of their Messias and ours But to pray for the saluation of Saul or the Iewes no man was forbidden no nor for their temporall felicitie to continue vntill it was quite past So did Samuell mourne for Saul euen to the moment that he was sent to annoint Dauid in his place So did Ieremie still continue praying for the Iewes as appeareth in the same Chapters Rom. 10. and as Saint Paule writeth of his owne doyng afterwardes when the time of their reprobation was nowe present Finally there is in Ezechiel a notable and a comfortable rule for the wicked also by name howe to take and vnderstande the comminations of God to wit not simply as you doe and absolutely Ezech. 33. Iere. 18. but with a condition If I say to the wicked Thou shalt die the death sée as it were absolutely but yet it followeth neuerthelesse and he repent him of his sinne and worke iudgement and iustice and make restitution of pledge and of robberie and generally walke in the commaundementes of lyfe nor doe any euill he shall liue the life and shall not die Another point is that straunge interpretation of the Article of our Creede Christ descended into Hell to redeeme vs out of Hell by suffering the wrath of God for our sinnes Hebr. 5. In that place is neuer a worde of that Article and much lesse of that interpretation neither that Christ suffred the wrath of God although that may be saide so as the Scriptures doe tearme payne or punishment by the name of wrath But then what other wrath did he suffer then that which is expressed plainely in the wordes afore passus crucifixus mortuus He suffered was crucifyed and dyed Belike you meane the padde that your Maister Caluine leaft in the strawe Pur. 451. Cal. Insti li. 2. ca. 16. sect 10. that all thys which I haue saide was nothing Nihil actum erat si Christus corporea tantum morte defunctus fuisset It had auayled nothing if Christ had dyed bodily death onely And so you will bring vs when you reply b Aug. ep 99. howe he dyed some death of Soule also eyther that which mortall Sinners doe dye here in sinning or that which they dye afterwardes in Hell when they be in damnation for their sinne You say Pur. 63. that Caluine affirmeth his descending into Hell to be vnderstoode of the wrath of God which he sustayned for our sinnes before his death at that time especially when he that was God complained that he was forsaken of God What other forsaking was that but that he did not deliuer him from the Crosse which was to forsake by the iudgement both of naturall desire and especially of his most wicked enemies who saide there in their diuelishe insultation Mat. 27. He trusted in God let him nowe deliuer him if he will haue him for he said That I am the Sonne of God Neyther was it a complaint as you say but a prayer as you myght haue séene euen Hebrues .5 if you had not béene blynd Who in the dayes of his fleshe with a myghtie crie and with teares offered vp prayers and supplications to hym that was able to saue him out of death and was heard for hys reuerence to wit beinâ— raysed by him agayne Whereby you sée that in déede he was not forsaken neyther corporally Where now is your Sâ—â—ipture or Caluins for any other but bodyly death of Châ—ist for any other wrath for any other forsaking Or what Châ—istian man did euer thinke that Christes bodily death alone was nothing yea or that it was not the full sufficient and abundant raunsome or redemption of the world All the world must go to schole againe to Caluin to learne that Christes soule besides his bodily death was in such horrible distresse of conscience in such meruellous anguish horror frayeur yea and damnation that his case was for the time despairing blaspheming excepted euen the selfe same that the case of the damned is for euer yea that he was in feare least he should haue bene
of his fellowe members here on earth And why is he not of charitie bound as well to pray for them And if he be why are not those members in heauen as well or haue not they also receiued of God some giftes If they haue why are not they of charitie bound as well or doth not the Scripture say plainly the Christes friendes in heauen do reioyce with his penitentes in earth How then coulde you pretend Luc. 15. as though the mutuall offices of loue whereby one member hath compassion with another can by no meanes touch the state of the dead Is not the state of the holy Angels now the state also of some that be dead Be not they also among Christes friendes in heauen So much you say touching the Communion of the Church militant here on earth For you haue another besides it which you call the communion of the whole body that you make to be the participation of life from Christ the head If that be all then is there no Communion For what communion were it betwéene the members of your naturall body if they did onely receiue life from your head and could not vse their said life to profit one another but liued euery one to himselfe alone How much better had you bene to follow D. Allens most proper and true discription of it then to vtter thus you know not what at the least if you could not correct him yet you could belye him as to say that he will haue other workes and wayes of saluation beside the bloud of Christ He saith that in this Communion all workes and all wayes of saluation are common to the whole body al grounded in the bloud of Christ But of any beside the bloud of Christ he saith not Yea it is clene contrarie to that which he saith ¶ The .13 Chapter or Conclusion That in his two writings against D. Allen there is yet stuffe ynough to make another Booke as bigge as this to the further discredite of his partie THus at the length with the helpe of God I am come to the end And yet the Reader must vnderstande that I finde in this man such store of this stuffe as would suffice to make another volume as big as this partly by enlarging these two last Chapters with many more of his like contradictions errors or ignorances for all the former Chapters be full freyted partly by making many new Chapters vpon new matters As one to shewe howe he behaueth himselfe in all places where he chargeth either the Catholikes doctrine or D. Allen himselfe with contradictions Another to lay together all his falsifications of the Scriptures Doctors and D. Allen by adding diminishing or chaunging their wordes Another of his most impudent facing lyes without any colour of truth Another of his detestable raylings not only at D. Allen but also at the old Doctors and at Rome and at the whole Churche which he can not auoide the Scriptures with his owne confession are so plaine for it but it is the true Church his owne Mother and Spouse of Christ Another of his ridiculous answeres to many of D. Allens Demaundes sometimes like him that answered a pokefull of plumes whē he was demaunded the way to London sometimes to answere the very same thing that is in question c. Moreouer diuers others chapters yet of Purgatorie about his answeres to D. Allens allegations to sée whether he haue so answered thē as I haue here answered al his allegations against it yea against any other Article of ours One of those Chapters might be to gather all the Scriptures alleaged by D. Allen the auncient Fathers before him and Fulkes answeres vnto them with my replies which are e dispersed in this booke like as in the 8. chapter I haue gathered al Fulkes scriptures answered thē Another of such bookes in antiquitie as he denyeth namely the workes of S. Dionysius Areopagita and the Constitutions of the Apostles by S. Clement because he could not otherwise auoide their plaine testimonies for prayer for the dead they also liuing euen in the Apostles time and familiarly with the Apostles Of which bookes notwithstanding there are such probations as can not possibly be answered Reade the Preface of Fr. Turrianus in his new edition of those Constitutions and the Preface of Mat. Galenus ad Areopagitica Cop. Dial. 2. ca. 5. as also the Preface and Scholies in the Gréeke edition by Morelius at Paris Anno. 1562. In another Chapter I might shew how vainely he laboureth to answer certaine testimonies of the other Doctors considering that he graunteth other testimonies of the very same Doctors them selues or of their seuerall times to be so euident for it that they can not be answered for which cause also he passeth by many of them with silence as that S. Augustine in one place prayed for his mothers soule and yet to stand with D. Allen about other places of his that they proue it not as though Doctors opinion and iudgement being confessed there néedeth any more to doe to be made about his sayings And yet it is nothing also which he answereth to those other places as I haue shewed in very many of them Another might be to lay together all D. Allens argumentes or reasons for it with my replies to Fulkes answeres such as I haue made in diuers places of this booke In another I could shewe that Fulke hath made no answere lightly to these Scriptures Doctors or reasons but D. Allen did foresée it afore hand warned the Reader of it and made so iust a replie vnto it as standeth still vpright euen after that Fulke hath done the worst he could Another might be to shew out of Iustinus Martyr Ireneus and Clement Alexandrinus in how many things they also make with vs most euidētly as in nothing against vs because he doth so oftē require vs to proue prayer for the dead by any of them as though he would yéeld to them although he will not to their fellowes wheras in déede he excepteth against them no lesse as I haue shewed then against the rest Another might be by occasion of his zeale for Caluine Luther and such other his Maisters and fellowes to shewe more copiously that they are worthily charged not onely with those shamefull opinions by D. Allen but also that they may be likewise charged with very many moe no lesse yea and much more shamefull then those These matters are such as being so handled would worke the further discredite of Fulke and of his side and yet being no more handled then alreadie doe leaue no blotte in our side no nor so much as in D. Allen particularly For which cause I minde not neither hereafter to prosecute them vnlesse I haue greater occasion geuen then yet I sée But presently I omitted them to auoide more prolixitie and specially because in this booke I tooke in hand to defend not D. Allen but the Church and therefore whatsoeuer
a fourefolde offer is made vnto him ¶ Chapter 8. To shew his vanitie in his forsaid rigorous exacting of playne Scriptures and great promises to bring playne Scripture conferring place with place so euidently All the Scriptures that he alleageth are examined and answered The first part Concerning the question of Onely Scripture The second part Concerning the question of the Church 1. Indefinitely Whether the whole Church may erre Whether she may be diuorced Whether she it is that should prepare the way to Antichrist Whether she be alwayes a base companie Whether it be alwayes inuisible yea or so much as then when Antichrist commeth 2. Namely of their Church and of ours Certaine places cōferred diligently together concerning the Defection and Antichrist The third part Concerning the question of Purgatorie 1. Ab authoritate Scripturae negatiuè that is by the Scriptures authoritie negatiuely 2. Ab authoritate Scripturae affirmitiuè First about certaine foundations of Purgatorie and prayer for the dead The distinction of veniall and mortall sinne Whether after sinne remitted paine may remaine Whether Purgatorie follow thereupon Whether in Christ the workes of one may helpe another His cōmon argument of the omnisufficiencie of Christs passiō It is omnisufficient ergo it worketh alwayes to the full It is omnisufficient ergo nothing worketh with it Secondly directly of Purgatorie it selfe prayer for the dead Whether all the elect goe straight to Heauen Afore Christes comming Or at the least since Christes comming Whether the Iudgement may stand with Purgatorie Whether faith hope and Gods will The fourth part Concerning all other questions that he mentioneth About Good workes 1. In generall Whether they do iustifie Whether we haue Freewill 2. In speciall Of prayer Prayer to Saintes Of Fasting About the Sacramentes 1. In generall Whether they be but two Whether they do confer grace 2. In speciall Baptisme the necessitie and effect of it Eucharist Real presence Transubstantiation Mariage of Votaries Of Bishops Priests and Deacons ¶ Chapter 9. To defend that the Doctors as they be confessed to be ours in very many pointes so they be ours in all pointes and the Protestantes in no point All the Doctors sayings that he alleageth are examined and answered The first part Of his Doctors generally 1. His chalenging wordes 2. A generall answer to his challenge declaring that we neede not to answer his Doctors particularly 3. I ioyne with him neuerthelesse particularly The second part Of his Doctors particularly First whether they expound any Scripture against vs. 1. About Antichrist and Babylon 2. About Onely faith 3. About Purgatorie Touching Scripture expounded against it Touching Scriptures for it Whether they say no Scripture to make for it Of certaine perticular textes Secondly whether they geue any other kinde of testimonie against vs. 1. About the Bookes of Machabees Whether somewhat also of other controuersed Scriptures specially 2. About Onely Scripture Where of S. Augustine threefoldly alleaged 3. About certaine Traditions 4. About the Mariage of Votaries 5. About the Real presence And Transubstantiation 6. About the Sacrament of penance Absolution Temporall debt remaining after Absolution Satisfaction Pardons 7. Of Purgatorie Of the Canonicall Memento of oblations and of Sacrifice for the dead practised by the Church Of particular Doctors VVhether S. Augustine doubted of Purgatorie Or denied it Other Doctors about praying for the dead Whether it be onely for Veniall sinnes 8. Of Limbus patrum ¶ Chapter 10. That notwithstanding al which he hath said against D. Allens Articles in his first booke beeing of that matter or also in his other of Purgatorie Euery one of my 51. Demaundes and therefore also euery one of my Motiues likewise euery one of those Articles stādeth in his force euery one I say and much more all of thē to make any man to be a Catholike and not a Protestant 1 Collatio Carthaginensis touching the Church of the Scriptures 2 Building of the Church amid persecution 3 Going out of the Church 4 Rising after the beginning of the Church 5 Cōtradicted of the Church 6 This name Catholikes 7 This name Heretikes 8 This name Protestantes 9 Cōuersion of heathē Natiōs 11 Our Britannie 10.12 Miracles Visions 13.15 Honor of Crosses and Saintes 14.16 Vertue of Crosses and Saintes 17 Exorcismes 18 Destroying of Idolatrie 19 Kings and Emperours 20 In all persecutions 21 Churches 22 Seruice 23 Apish imitation 24 Priesthood and Sacrifice 25 Monkes 26 Fathers 27 Councels 28 See Apostolike 29 Traditions 30 Their owne Doctors 31 Vniuersalitie 32 Antiquitie 33 Consent 34 Authoritie 35 Vnitie 36 Owners and kepers of the Scriptures 37 Stoare house of all truth 38 Old Heresies 39 In old Heretikes Onely 40 They neuer afore now 41 Studying al truth 42 Vnsent 43 Succession 44 Apostolike Church 45 Chaunging 46 Our Auncetors saued theirs damned 47 Communion of Saintes 48 By their fruites 49 All enimies 50 Sure to continue 51 Apostasie ¶ Chapter 11. What grosse contradictions Fulke is fayne to vtter against him selfe while he struggleth against Gods Church and the Doctrine thereof ¶ Chapter 12. A Nosegay of certayne strange flowers piked out of Fulke that they which delight in such a Gardiner may see his handyworke ¶ The .13 Chapter or Conclusion That in his two writings against D. Allen there is yet stuffe ynough to make another Booke as bigge as this to the further discredite of his partie
eam apud se initio sana doctrina sanguine Martyrum bene fundatam perpetua Episcoporum Successione conseruatam fuisse ne intercideret Commemorant quanti hanc Successionē fecerint Irenaeus Tertullianus Origenes Augustinus alij that is They in deede set foorth vnto vs their Churche very gloriously for they alleage that beeing in the beginning well founded amongest them with sounde doctrine and with the bloud of Martyres it was by the continuall Succession of Bishoppes preserued from decaying They report out of Irenaeus Tertullian Origene Augustine and others howe highly they esteemed this Succession And then he putteth herevnto his owne aunswere saying Cum extra controuersiam esset nihil a principio vsque ad illam aetatem mutatum fuisse in doctrina c. that is Considering that it was a playne case that from the beginning euen vntill that time nothing was chaunged in doctrine the holy Doctors tooke in argument that which was sufficient for the ouerthrowing of all newe errors to witte That they oppugned the doctrine which euen from the verye Apostles them selues had bene inuiolably and with one consent reteined This graunt both of the master and of his Scholar as more by a great deale then in this Chapter we néeded The true Churche not onely to haue continued so long it selfe but also to haue kepte inuiolably and generally with one accorde the true faith and true doctrine which of the Apostles thē selues she had receiued The like he confesseth of our owne Countrey also Ar. 49. where he saith The Church of the Brytaines before Augustine whom Saint Gregory sent from Rome to conuert the English in our said countrey of Britannie came in with Romish seruice had they not trow you Authentical Seruice which continued in the faith of Christ euen from the Apostles time To which confession let it be added out of S. Bedes Storie that the a Bed hist li. 2. ca. 4.2 li. 3. ca. 25. greatest point wherein the Christian Brytons and our Apostle S. Augustine differed was about the kéeping of Easter day and that also not so great as in olde time betwéene S. Victor of Rome and the Christians of Asia as this man ignorantly b Pur. 371. here ca. 10. pag. somwhere affirmeth that is to say not whether it should be alwayes kept with the Iewes vpon the verye day of the full Moone according to the heresie of the c Aug. heresi 29. Tessaresdecatite or Quartadecimani for that obseruation d Eus in vita Const li. 3. ca. 28. Britannie as the Emperour d Eus in vita Const li. 3. ca. 28. Constantinus witnesseth detested no lesse then other prouinces at the time of the Nicene Councell but onely vpon what e Beda supra sonday it should be kept So then this being their greatest difference and yet therein also the right obseruation being that which was brought from Rome as no man will denie you sée what graunt this man must make as to Britannie so likewise to Rome at that time to witte not onely the true Churche but withall the same faith which the Apostles taught though in this Chapter as I haue alreadie said we looke no more but for the true Church Which same true Church he graunteth againe many other wayes vnto the Romanes and their Bishops in that he geueth it to sundry notable personages and companies that were in vnitie and in one Church with the said Romaines as to the auncient Doctors and Councels to the Martyrs Monkes and other Christians not onely that frequented those Cryptes or holye vautes vnder the heathen and persecuting Emperours but also that gathered themselues afterward in those magnificall newe Temples vnder the Christian Catholike Emperours and finally to those Catholike Emperours themselues euen to Mauritius who liued with S. Gregory Ar. 60. Of the Doctors his confession is this The most approued writers Tertullian Cyprian Origen Epiphanius Hilarius Chrysostamus Ieronymus Ambrosius Augustinus c. were doubtles members of the true Church of Christ Againe Ar. 71. The Church of the Arians was not the Catholike Church but Athanasius and a a Such is his skill in the storie of that time few other that were banished and persecuted were the true Catholike Church Againe b Ar. 59. Iustinus Martyr and Irenaeus two of the most auncient authenticall writers that the Church next vnto the Apostles had And againe c Pur. 434. The old doctors had their measure of Gods spirit Cyprian and Cornelius were both endued with Gods spirit and both martyrs Againe Pur. 405. The Doctors of Gods Church Augustine Ambrose Chrysostome Basill c. Againe It is a good argument Ar. 27. that the Popish Church is not the Church of Christ because it was neuer hidden since it first sprang vp in so much that you can name all the notable persons in all ages in their gouernment and ministerie and especially the succession of d A proper distribution the Popes in all ages to be ours and yet the Apostles Doctors to be his Sapientes confitentur non abscondunt patres suos quoth Eliphaz against Iob. cap. xv Popes you can rehearse in order vpon your fingers But our Church which hath not had so many registers chroniclers and remembrancers hath perhaps fewer but yet honester men to name we can name Peter Paul c. Iustinus Irenaeus Cyprianus Athanasius Hilarius Ambrosius Augustinus Gyldas c Then as touching auncient Councels thus he saith f Ar. 97. The foure best generall councels were gathered by our Churche Againe g Pur. 430. Pur. 296. If any Councell decree according to the Scriptures as the Councell of the Apostles did Act. 15 and the Councell of Nice with diuers other we receaue them with all humilitie as the oracles of God To this place of Doctors and Councels pertaineth that also which he confesseth of the Church that resisted and ouercame the olde heresies as where D. Allen had said It is not you that shall outface Gods Church she hath by the spirit of God beaten downe your proudders the Arrians the Macedonians the Anabaptistes as the Donatistes c. and all your predecessors He answereth 297. You boast that your Church hath beaten downe our proudders the Arrians Macedonians Anabaptistes It was the Church of Christ that ouerthrewe those Heretikes And in an other place likewise Ar. 10. I demaund saith D. Allen what Church hath mightely gone through borne downe fully vanquished all heresies in times past aswell against the blessed Trinitie as other articles of our Religion I answere saith Fulke the true Catholike Church hath alwayes resisted all false opinions contrarie to the worde of God as her dutie was and fought against them with the sworde of the spirite which is the word of God and by the aide of God obtained the victory and triumphed ouer them So did the fathers of the primitiue Church from time to time confute heresies by the
a stone falling from an high although it be most properly said tendit in centrum terrae yet is it well said also tendit in superficiem terrae as in order to the center wherevpon in saying it tendeth to the superficies we do in déede say it tendeth to the center I know some Catholikes in answering to this obiection do say that the Apostle meaneth such inuocation as tendeth immediatly to the last end that is to god so do graunt accordingly that it is beleuing in God alone wherof he speaketh which is a sufficiēt answer to the obiection But I cōsidering that he speketh of Christ as mediator therfore as mā haue said what I think most agreable to the text As for your iangling there without allegations that if Saints be inuocated then God alone knoweth not the hearts of al men Pur. 451. and God only is not to be worshipped and serued and Christ is not our only Mediator and aduocate Where you say this to vs now whom you denie to be the true Church and to S. Ambrose with others of old whō you confesse to haue bene the true Church notwithstāding so you must say it likewise to S. Iohn for inuocating the holy Angels Apoc. 1. and to God himself for making an Angell to be worshipped Apo. 3. as more at large I told you in the 6. chapter to the Angell also that in his golden censer offereth our prayers making suche a perfume of them before God Supra pag. 42. by meanes of his incense mingled with them Apo. 8. To the 24. Seniors also which semblably haue phialas adoramentorum quae sunt orationes Sanctorū swéete odours that is to say our praiers in boules for the purpose singing accordingly praises to Christ in the person of all tribes tongues people nations Apoc. 5. Finally to all which in the holy Scripturs recommend others to God or desire to be recōmended of others If you wil not quarrel with these likewise you must let fall your suite against the former and confesse that it is nothing against one mediator to god thogh we are haue neuer so many mediators so that al make suite to God by him Nothing also against god alone to be worshipped so that we worship none but for him Nothing finally against God alone to know our hearts so that all others know them by him For otherwise your argumēt procedeth aswel against Chirst the man that neither he is to be worshipped 1. Tim. 2. nor knoweth the hartes of men For as he hath it by the gift of God so his Saintes likewise by gifte haue it in their degrée So much of praier now to fasting Fasting About which you haue again two textes Thus you say to D. Allen You are they that attend to spirites of error doctrines of diuels forbidding to marry Pur. 391.20 22. Ar. 20.93 and absteining or cōmanding to absteine frō meates which God hath created to be receiued with thanks giuing 1. Tim. 4. There is the brande marke of Romish religion that all the water in Tiberis nor in the Ocean sea shal not be able to wash out Well lustily crowed But soft a little you shall sée me straight draw inough and inough againe euen out of your owne puddle to wash al sufficiently In the third chapter I haue recorded your own words Supra pag. 10. how Aerius taught that Fasting-daies are not to be obserued And how Iouinian taught that fasting and abstinence from certayne meates profite litle or nothing at all Ar. 45.46 And that for this cause S. Epiphanius and S. Augustine counted Aerius for an Heretike as S. Augustine counteth Iouinian likewise for no better for that he said Au. Her 82 de Ec. dog ca. 68. Nec aliquid prodesse That fastes and abstinence from certaine meates do not profite any thing or as we haue in another place for that he did beléeue nil meriti accrescere That it is no increase of merite to them that for loue to chastise their bodies do absteine from wine or flesh Of that iudgment were these Fathers and yet they were if you remember your owne confession since the second Chapter of the true Church and in high fauour with God And therfore this is not such a marke in Romish religion but that it may be currant inough How much more considering that you confesse further Pur. 75. 1. Cor. 9. and say In deede S. Paule cōmaundeth and by his example commendeth christian chastisemēt of mens bodies by abstinence and fasting and that for daunger of eternall damnation Is not here then gret néed of all Tiberis yea and of all the Occean sea Well then whom what doth S. Paule meane there The Manichées the Tacianistes other such Heretikes of whō I noted more in the sixt Chapter which said that certayne meates were the creatures of the diuell Mark the words and conferre them together To absteine from the meates which God hath created And why is that an error and a doctrine of the diuels because euery creature of God is good and nothing is to be reiected And therfore S. Augustine answering the Manichées as I do now the Protestants noted in like maner vpon the very words Aug. cōtra Faust li. 30 ca. 6. that there is much difference betwene them that abstein from meates for a sacred signification as they in the old Testament or for chastising of the body as now the Catholikes and them that absteine from meates which God hath created dicendo quod eos deus non creauit saying that God did not create them Therefore the former is the doctrine of the Prophetes and of the Apostles the later of the lying diuels Your other text is for Iouinian agaynst the merite of fasting If Iouinian taught Ar. 46. that fasting abstinence from certayne meates and other bodily exercise of them selues profite litle his doctrine agreeth with S. Paule 1. Tim. 4. but if he taught as he is charged that such things profite nothing at all we agree not with him in that opinion You would fayne wipe your hands of Iouinians heresie but it will not be the brandmarke is imprinted to déepe it wil not out For his heresie was as you heard euen now that Fasting abstinence is not more meritorious then eating with thanks giuing So S. Augustine meaneth Merites when he chargeth him to haue taught Nec aliquid prodesse That they profite nothing as by another place I haue told you more playnly And as in the same place in the very next article of his heresy he chargeth him that Meritis adaequabat To the merites of chast and faythfull matrimonies he made equall and not more meritorious as the Catholikes did and do the virginitie of Nunnes and the continence of the mansexe in holy persons that choose the single life S. Paules wordes to Timothée are these Exercise thy selfe vnto Religion or godlines For bodily exercise is profitable
vnto litle but religion is profitable vnto all things hauing promise of this present life and of the life to come Now what Scripture conferre you to shew that by bodily exercise he meaneth fasting and abstinence from wine or flesh The thing is playne if we marke and conferre no more but the words of this place it selfe that bodily exercise is that which is done for the body to preserue it in health in this present life to the which most men yea priestes and bishops sometimes are too much giuen mispēding much time in walking riding hunting hawking and such like for the preseruation of their bodies and litle or no time at all in spirituall exercise that is to say for the preseruation and increase of their soules in godlines religion wheras the same notwithstanding is as we know by Gods promise in diuers places of holy Scripture profitable both to that litle which they séeke for by such bodily exercise that is to this present life in so muche that many holy Ermites Monks liuing continually in such exercise haue passed the age of a hundred yeres and also which is incōparable to the life to come And therefore S. Paule absteined and fasted him selfe to auoyde eternall damnation as your selfe confessed a litle afore Ne reprobus efficiar least I become a reprobate 1. Cor. 9. saith he and not onely that but also to get coronam incorruptam a crowne incorruptible And the place is much to be noted for conference with this place which we haue in hande because he there calleth it his running and fighting that he did so sharply vse his owne body saying that he did therein imitate the schollers of bodily exercise to wit the runners in gole and fighters at barriers who to make them selues more nimble actiue absteine from all things and yet no more but to winne a corruptible crowne being as litle a thing as that litle that he speketh of to Timothie or rather much lesse though of some estéemed much more such present glory I say compared with this present life and health thereof Thus you sée by conference most manifestly what is bodily exercise and that you cleane contrary not knowing white frō blacke take it for fasting abstinence for that exercise I say which the Apostle there opposeth to it and counteth spirituall or exercise vnto Godward Which spiritual exercise as S. Paule so his disciple also S. Timothie vsed in like champion maner Amongest other poyntes of it to kéepe him selfe chast he absteined wholly from wine drunk nothing but water though being maruelous weake of body Whervpon the Apostle like a tender father writeth vnto him 1. Tim. 5. Kepe thy selfe chast by other exercise but do not yet drinke water but vse a litle wine for thy stomake thy often sicknings Which place againe you depraue say that the Apostle writeth this vnto him assuring him that such bodily exercise profiteth but a litle Pur. 76. No syr I haue shewed you what the Apostle calleth bodily exercise and that he counteth this to be exercise vnto godlines and that it profiteth so much as importeth besides this life which is but litle the auoyding of damnation the winning of a crowne in heauen Howbeit for al that they which are weak of body must runne wrestle as they may Timothie must consider that he is excéeding féeble and therfore not alwayes to drinke water onely and yet withal that he is young and therfore not to be very bold of wine but vse a litle only The measure of al is as S. Paule hath taught vs 1. Cor. 9. to tame the pride of the body to subdue it to bring it vnder that it be not our maister that it be our seruaunt neither rebelling against our commaundement nor fainting in our necessary worke Which measure is set prescribed so as it might in generall by his Spirite and by his Spouse who prophecied of such prescript fasting like to the fastes prescribed by S. Iohn to his disciples Mat. 9. as also of the Pharisées and Filij sponsi the children of the Bridegrome do fast them howsoeuer the children of Aerius of Iouinianus do breake them contemne them blaspheme them So much of Good-works now to the Sacramentes About the Sacramentes in generall Of the Sacramentes in generall first you say Pur. 450. We beleue that there are but two Sacramentes of the New Testament Baptisme and the Lords Supper instituted by Christ 1. Cor. 10. You meane belike the beginning of that chapter wher it is said that the Israelites were in Moyses baptized in the Cloude and in the Sea and did eate and drinke of Manna of the Rocke Are those the sacraments of the new Testament instituted by Christ Again suppose they are what a reason is this In that place we reade of two Supra pag. ergo there are but two It is no good Logike you sayd your self in this chapter aboue to conclude negatiuely of one place of Scripture This is not conteined in it therefore it is not true For we reade as playnly yea more playnly of the other fiue sacramentes in other places as of Confirmation Ioa. 7. of Penance Io. 20. of Extreme vnction Iac. 5. of Orders Mat. 26. of Matrimony Mat. 19 and of most of them in many other places also That they be Sacraments I cōfesse we reade not there no more do we 1. Cor. 10. or any where els reade that the other two be Sacramentes but that we gather of that which we reade and as wel in the fiue as in the two This is inough yet for further satisfaction the studious may cōsider that S. Paule 1. Cor. 10. had iust cause to mention those two or three figures onely For his purpose there is 1. Cor. 9.10 to warne vs that it is not inough that we be entred within the barres but that we must afterward runne and fight coragiously to winne the prise Therfore he nameth these Mosaical mysteries that were figures of the Sacramentes which we began withall to witte Baptisme and the complement of Baptisme which is Confirmation the Eucharist which thrée were then commonly and yet be at once ministred adultis at their first entring into the Church as it is manifest in antiquitie Infra ca. .12 and may be gathered Heb. 6. Now then what reason is it to trie the number of the Sacramentes by that place as though because those be at the first entrance therefore there be no more in the whole course nor in the end nor to gouerne the knights nor to encrease them nor to saulue them Pur. 450. Moreouer you say of the Sacraments in generall We beleeue that they giue not grace ex opere operato of the work wrought but after the faith of the receiuer and according to the election of God 1 Cor. 10. Againe And how should the Sacrament giue grace of the worke wrought if faith were requisite in