foorth as the terrible face of Gorgon what is it els I pray you but a bare visar for if it be vnderstande of the doctrine seyng we haue the woorde writen what néede we any thing vnwriten for surely this vnwriten is more vncertaine thē that writen and no man maye séeke a proofe at the vncertaintie of that whiche is certaine How be it here I doo sée that many thinges maye be obiected against vs. For first of all they will say that they vnderstande by the name of Traditiō An obiection not that whiche was not writen by no man at all and onely deliuered from hande to hande but that which though it be not comprehended in those holy bookes which men call Canonicall yet may be proued by some other woorthie wryters so that though at the firste it was vnwriten yet may nowe woorthely be called writen and suche they call the Traditions of the Apostles Moreouer they will also alledge that they vnderstand by this name Traditions certaine plaine and manifest explicatiōs of the Christian Faith which were receiued in the olde Churche as of Christe how he is of the same Substance with the Father and of the vnitinge of these two natures and such like for these men vse to choose foorth such thinges as are certaine and moste plansible Now though I suppose that I haue sufficiently answeared vnto these thinges heretofore when I did speake of the Councels and of the writings of the Fathers yet haue I more The ansvveare to answeare For first of al they them selues will graunt that all suche Traditions are not to be receiued without exceptiō What rule then shal we kéepe herein Againe if we depende of mens writinges and authoritie when the Mens vvritinges can not be iudges question peraduenture is of the rites and ordinaunces howe many thinges shal we finde not onely diuerse one frō another but cleane contrarie when that controuersie of kéepinge the feast of Pasche or Easter was in the Church of most ancient time whiche proued tried most manifestly the vayne ianglyng the ambition the ignorance and the frowardnes of the moste parte of the Bishoppes of the whole worlde so that the whole worlde was shaken together none otherwise then if the cōtrouersie had bene of the whole Substance of our faithe and bothe parties doo alleadge the Traditiōs of the Apostles what came to passe at the length but that both parties hauyng on their side as thei said the Apostles the strife was more styrred Let the Epistle of Irenaeus be red not to one coūted a Pope By the Epistle of Irenaeus vve may see the libertie in Traditions the Vniuersall Bishop of the whole worlde but to the most foolish ambitious B. of Rome therby it may easily be knowen what libertie hath bene in al Churches hertofore in these rites ceremonies vntill by the tiranny of some the Churches were oppressed Neither meane I here to recōpte vp euery thinge for we had néede of a whole booke so to doo What then shall we folow here That say they which shal be foūde euery where to be receyued of al men as the oyle creame as they call it the signe of the Crosse and such like Thē let vs cōclude this one point that the particular Traditions beyng shut out and secluded onely the Catholike and Vniuersall maye be receaued and of these we shall speake afterwarde Let vs come to the Traditions of Tvvo good kindes of Traditions doctrine They are such that either to resist the Heretikes doo make playne certayne thynges taught in the holy Scriptures whiche the Heretikes doo vse to darkē as thei doo the most cleare matters or els they doo set foorth suche thinges as may be gathered by the cōparinge of the places together though they be no where writen in the selfe Euell Traditions same woordes Either are they such as doo either adde or diminishe or alter and change either openly or priuely any thinge in the Propheticall and Apostolicall writinges Both those first kinde of Traditions suche as are the expositions or confessions of the faithe of the foure Councels we are so farce from refusinge of them that contrary wise with open armes as they say and most willinge mindes we doo embrace all suche But for the thirde kinde of Traditions how can we iudge that to be admitted The Traditiōs that adde to the vvorde for if any thinge ought to be added to the woorde of God written it foloweth that all thinges necessarie to our Saluation are not writen in the Lawe and the Gospell But of the law this neither may nor ought to be spokē for then God might séeme vniuste forbiddyng by plaine woordes any thinge to be added thereunto Neither doo I here care for the Cabalistes Talmudistes and all that kinde of shamelesse men For what can be spokē more plainely by the Lorde And howe seuerely God hath aduenged this rashnes when any thing was added not onely in doctrine but also in rites ceremonies so many proclamatiōs of the Prophetes the interpretours of the lawes criyng out against them and all the Historie of the Bible finally Christe him selfe is a sufficiēt witnesse And shall we thinke that God hath cared lesse for his Church or prouided worse for it when he sent Christe and his Apostels sufficient teachers ▪ his sonne downe into the Earth or cā we suppose that the Apostles were lesse diligent in this pointe then the Prophetes Paule dothe protest vnto the Ephesians that he had holden nothinge backe but had declared all the counfasle of God vnto them so farre foorth at the least as appertained vnto their eternall Saluation Lette them shewe then what Paule hath taught that he hath not writen or els let them confesse the full doctrine of the Gospell which he calleth the power of God to saluation to be comprehended in his writinges But what néede so many woordes when we come to the pointe what can they bringe foorth that is omitted in matters of faith by the Apostles and the Euangelistes Peraduēture that the blessed virgin Mary was Obiectiōs for Traditions not conceiued in Originall sinne that she continued all hir life longe a virgine that children muste be Baptised that Baptisme is not to be reiterated that men muste fast in Lente the holy oyle and chreme the Holy water that Altars muste be hallowed the Crosse must be woorshipped and what ye wil. For they confesse that none of those thinges are founde in the holy Scriptures As for Transubstantiation auricular confession praying vnto Sainctes purgatorie fire they haue nowe a good while sought thē in Scriptures but all in vaine But concernynge the maner of conception of the virgine Marie not onely the holy Scriptures doo not teache it but neither any of the auncient writers doo make mention of it And although I doo willingly and reuerently beleue her perpetuall Virginitie vnto death yet as I once answeared Ansvveare to an
Apocrypha Apocrypha of other Ecclesiasticall bicause they woulde haue them Read in the Churche but yet not to be alleaged as sufficient authoritie to confirme our faith as Augustine in his booke Deciuitate Dei 18. ca. 38. declareth that in the bookes of Kinges mention is made of names and bookes of certaine Prophetes but he addeth that thei are not recited in the Canon and that those bookes which we haue are sufficient to instruct vs in all poinctes of godlines ¶ Of expoundinge the holy Scriptures of the Doctors Councels and Traditions Cap. 2 THe Apostle Peter saide that the 2. Pet. 1. The true interpretation of the Scripture holy Scriptures are not of any priuate interpretation Wherefore we doo not allow al kinde of interpretations neither doo we acknowledge that sence of that Romaine Church as thei cal it which simply God wote the defendors of the Churche of Rome would compell euery man to receaue but we accept that interpretation onely as true whiche is gathered out of the Scriptures themselues that is of the proprietie of that tounge in the whiche they were writen and examined according to the circumstance and so expounded as they may agrée with many other like and vnlike places not swaruinge from the rule of Faith and charitie but may moste auaunce Gods glorie and mans saluacion Therfore we dispise not the holy Fathers expositiōs Greke or Latine neither doo we The holy fathers expositions reiect their disputations or treatises of holy thinges as longe as they agree with the Scriptures Howbeit we disalow after a modest sorte their iudgementes when they are espied to write thinges not agreyng or cōtrary to the Scriptures Neither thinke we that we doo them any iniurie in so doynge seinge they all with one consent are of this minde that they woulde not haue their writinges to be of equall authoritie with the Canonicall Scriptures but wille vs so farfoorth to allowe thē as they consente with the Scriptures biddinge vs to receaue those thinges which agrée with Gods woorde leaue that whiche swarueth from the same In like maner ought we to esteme the decrées or Canōs of Councels Wherfore Councels we iudge it of small force in controuersies of Religion or matters of faithe to be vrged with the bare sentēces of the Fathers or with Decrées of Councels much lesse with receaued customes or with cōtinuance of time For we admitte none other iudge in VVho is our Iudge in matters of Faith matters of faithe then God himselfe pronouncinge in his holy Scripture what is true what false what to be folowed what to be auoided So that we are satisfied with the iudgements onely of spirituall men whiche iudgemēts are taken out of the woorde of God Ieremie and other Prophetes did vtterly condemne the Councels of the Priestes holden againste the lawe of God earnestly admonishing vs not to heare those Fathers who walking in their owne inuentions haue gone astray from the path of Gods lawe We refuse also Mennes Traditiōs Mennes Traditiōs which notwithstandinge their glorious titles as though thei came of God his Apostels deliuered to the Church by expresse woorde of mouth and as it were by the handes of Apostolike men geuen to Bishoppes their successours yet being conferred with the Scripture doth dissent from them which argueth that they were neuer made by the Apostles scolers For as the Apostles taught not cōtrarie doctrine one to the other so their scolers published not repugnant doctrine to the Apostles nay it were rather impious to affirme that the Apostles in their life time by woorde of mouthe did appoint thinges contrary to their owne writinges Paule plainely affirmeth that he taught one kinde of doctrine in all Churches And 1. Cor. 4. againe he saieth We write none other thinges vnto you then that you reade 2. Cor. 1. or know In an other place he witnesseth that he and his Disciples that is 2. Cor. 12. to witte they that folowe his Apostolike steps doo walke all in one waye and doo all thinges together with one spirite The Iewes had in time paste traditiōs of the Elders but they were confuted by Christe sayinge that the Mat. 15. Marc. 7. kepinge of them was an hinderance to Gods lawe and that God was woorshipped in vaine by them ¶ Of God of his Vnitie and of the Trinitie Cap. 3. WE beleue and teach that there There is but one God is one God in essence or nature subsistinge by himselfe sufficient in all pointes of himselfe inuisible without a body infinite eternall maker of all thinges both visible vnuisible the soueraigne good euer liuinge geuinge life and preseruinge all thinges omnipotente of perfecte wisedome gentle mercifull iuste and true but we detest their Heresies that would haue more Gods then one For it is plainely written the Lorde thy God is one I am the Lorde thy God thou shalte haue none other Gods before Deut. 6. Exod. 20. me I am the Lorde and there is none other ther is no God besides me Am not I the Lord and there is none Esay 45. other but I alone a iuste and sauinge God there is none but I I am Iehouath Iehouah a merciful and gracious Exod. 34. God of longe sufferinge aboundinge in goodnes and truthe We beleue notwithstandinge and teache that the same God of infinite The Trinitie power beynge one God indiuisible is distinguished inseparably and vnconfusely into the Father the sonne and the holy Ghost so that the father begat the sonne from the beginnyng the sonne was begotten by vnspeakeable generation the holy Ghost procedeth from them both and that from the beginning and is to be adored with them bothe so that they be not thrée Gods but thrée persons consubstantiall co-eternall and coequall distincte touching their Substance the one goinge before the other in order but yet without any maner of inequalitie for by nature or essence thei be so vnited that they be one God and haue one diuine essence common to the Father the Sonne and the holy Ghost For the Scriptures hath taught vs a manifest distinction of persons by the woordes whiche emonge all other thinges the Angel spake to the blessed Virgin The holy Ghost shal come vppon thée the Luc. 1. power of the most high shall ouer shadow thée that holy thinge whiche shal be borne of thée shal be called the Sonne of God In the baptisme also of Christ a voice was heard frō heauē speakinge of him This is my beloued Sonne Mat. ◠The holy Ghoste appéered in the likenesse Ioh. 1. of a Dooue when the Lord himself bidde his Disciples Baptise he cōmaunded them to Baptise in the name of the Father the Sonne and the holy Mat. 28. Ghost Also in another place of the Gospell he saide My father shal sende you Ioh. 14. the holy Ghost in my name Againe he affirmeth the same sayinge When the comforter shall
Purgatory then arise the whiche yet was not generally receyued in the Church as the writings of Augustine doo manifestly declare Wherefore to returns to the matter whom of so great a multitude shall we especially choose for iudges if we will heare that Apostata of whome I haue spoken we muste chouse them that liued about the time of Theodosias the great And surely I graunt that there was at that time very learned Bishoppes but yet dare I affirme this thinge the whiche I doo protest that I doo not speake for the reproche of any that scarcely any of them cā be named which doth not bothe dissent from him The Doctors dissēt one from another selfe from others in many thinges and those of no small importance And if peraduenture that Apostata that I did speake of shall denie it then let me be counted a lier onles I doo plainely proue it But here I knowe what exception he will make at the leaste by these wryters saith he it shal appeare what was the forme outwarde face of the Catholike Churche As though VVhat neede vve seeke for formalitie this were the chiefe pointe of our controuersie not rather of the doctrine it selfe or as though at all times al rites Ceremonies are to be receiued without exception whiche the Apostolike Church it selfe hath vsed either as profitable or necessarie for their times and as though they were not playne Buylde thy house before thou paynte it fooles which when the foundations of the houses were al fallē downe would be so carefull for building vp the roofe And what néede many woordes I suppose that many of you most excellent noble Lordes haue in your remembrance how when we did treate of this matter at Poissy where we had rather a triflynge skirmishe alteration then a serious and earnest disputation we did thus cōclude in fewe woordes that the waie and meane to finish the troubles and controuersies whiche some froward Newtrals and halfefaced mē Agree of the doctrine then talke of the comely Ceremonies to name them no worse doo so importunately craue was first of al that we should dispute and agrée by the woorde of God of the doctrine it selfe and of Faith the whiche beyng once established then should we agrée much more easely about the Ceremonial matters of the whiche we would reiect some as vaine and foolishe some as superstitious either by them selues or by circūstances some as altogether wicked and some finally we would willingly admit whiche coulde be proued either profitable or necessarie What then doo these men require any more assuredly most noble Prince they séeke this one thinge that they may bringe into hatred Many that seeme qualifiers of these controuersies seeke to spoyle the flocke still vvithout checke the faithfull Ministers of God as men seditious ambitious and louers of changes suche as woulde haue all thinges new that they thēselues may still spoyle and destroy the poore flocke of Christe without controlment For they are like those without doubte of whome the Lorde speaketh that they neither will enter into the Kingdome of Heauen thē selues nor suffer others to enter in Thei are the most perilous men vndoubtedly that are suffered VVho are the moste perilous enemies to liue this day vnder the Sūne more daungerous by muche then the open enemies of the Gospell and therefore ought you principally that are the patrones and defenders of the Churches of God by the most Christian Kinges decrée to auoyde such men and beware of them who partely for their bellies sake partly for lucre partly for enuie and malice partely for fauour of them whom they flatter lie in waite to trap you But I sée that I haue bene somwhat longe in confutinge this opiniō therefore I doo returne to the matter For what shall we say or doo to those which imagine that the publike errour Publike errour cā not be the rule of Religiō muste be folowed for the rule of Religion whiche set the bare names of fathers and custome against all reasons and proufes whiche finally doo sticke onely to that one Churche whiche no The Papists calling one church Vniuersall ioygne together cōtraries lesse foolishly then falsely they call the Catholike Romish Churche that is to say an Vniuersall particular Church surely I doo thinke that we muste let them alone least we shoulde séeme to labour to cure madnesse with reason But now if none of these that we haue God is the Iudge spoken of may sitte as Iudges in this cause but rather muste be iudged of others in what courte then shall this great controuersie be pleaded Verely before the iudgemēt seate of God onely Then will they say let him be called VVhere shall vvee finde him downe from his Heauenly palace Nay why doo they not draw him foorth of these their Chancels and holy corners forsooth because we stande in no néede of a dumbe God that can doo nothinge but kéepe silence suche one as their crusted God is in the wafer cake but of that good God that speaketh clearely and plainely vnto vs. And I praye you where shall we finde him no Not in the Boxe But in the Scriptures where doubtles saue in the writinges of those mē of God who as Peter witnesseth haue bene stirred vp by the holy Ghost to speake vnto vs of those I saye vpon whose doctrine as vpon the foundation the Apostle crieth that the Churche is builded euen vppon the bookes of the Apostles the Prophetes whiche are conteined vnder the name of the Olde and new Testament But say they the doubt standeth of the interpretation Obiection of this woorde whiche we say must be sought at the Church But first of all we must agrée whiche is the Ansvveare Churche for the Synagoge of Satan also doth abuse that fayre and beutiful name of the Churche And howe canst thou iudge this same thinge but by the kinde of the doctrine And how canst The worde is iudge of the Church thou put a difference betwixt the true doctrine and the false but by the holy Scriptures As for that succession wherein some sette all their succour it hath ceased lōge ago to haue any force or valure seyng this is most certaine that the most ignorant and wicked mē haue bene the successours for many yeares vnto the good and learned Bishops Successiō of doctrine not of persons requisite and that there doth appeare no steppe or token of any lawfull vocatiō in the Churches now for a longe ceason Furthermore we doo require a succession of doctrine not of the persons euen of the Propheticall and Apostolicall doctrine so that of necessitie we must runne againe to the bookes of the Prophetes the Apostles for the proofe of the true succession As for the name of Traditions the The bare visar of Traditions serueth not whiche some also that feare nothinge more then the triall of the Scripture doo holde
impudēt Munke in thy presence most noble Prince this thing perteineth nothinge to the mysterie of our Saluation For it is sufficient for vs to beleue that whiche is done in déede declared by the Euangelistes that Christe our Sauiour was conceiued by the holy Ghost and borne of the virgine Mary And that the infantes ought to be Baptised that Baptisme may not be reiterate we doo not gether of any bare Tradition without the woorde of God As for those other thinges howe can the holy Scriptures expresse them the which coulde not be established in the Church but that the authoritie of the woorde of God muste firste be ouerthrowen as maye be proued with moste euident reasons But this muche at this present for we doo not vndertake nowe to declare euery particular matter Wherefore I come to that kinde of Traditions whereby Traditions that diminishe somethinge is taken from the doctrine of the woorde of God written as when the one parte of the Supper of the Lorde is taken awaye from the Laye men and when vnto the woordes of Paule that calleth the forbiddynge of mariage and the lawe of forbiddinge of meates the doctrine of Diuels there is added the exception of an aduised vowe and an other generall exceptiō whiche many will haue to be auaileable in all pointes Except it please our Lorde the Pope othervvaies But who Blasphemy I praye you that tendereth the glory of God as he ought to doo can suffer suche cursed sacriledge for assuredly if it be lawfull to take away any thing from that doctrine written then is it necessary that like as these men haue compted the doctrine taught by the holie Ghost a littell before to be haltyng and vnperfecte and to wante somewhat so nowe in other thinges they may say that it is redoundant superfluous neither of the which two things any good mans eares can heare without great offence But yet they saye that no man can denie but that the ceremonies of the lawe are altogether already taken away Howbeit we doo not treate nowe of the rites and ceremonies but of the very substāce of the woorship of God whereof though we doo iudge that Ceremonies of old to haue bene a portiō yet serueth this nothing to defende their bolde sacrilege For what meruell is it though the lawe whiche was made to shadowe those things whiche were hoped for to come at the time apointed did vade and vanish away at the light and sight of the same but if these men bringe against vs that the loue feastes called Agape that Apostolicall decrée of things offered to idols the strangeled was takē away by commen consent the anointinge Apostolical which we haue now abolished I doo answere againe that these are externall thinges of which we shal dispute afterwarde But this we conclude for certaine that the doctrine of Saluatiō conteyned in Gods woorde must be mainteyned safe sounde not onely in the whole substance but in euery the least and smalest parte therof without addition or diminution Now why should we once name or VVicked Traditiōs make mention of that thirde kinde of Traditions which doo either shake the fundations of the Saluatiō by Christ eyther ouerthrowe the thynges that are builte vpon that foundation Such as are the Supremacie of the Bishop of Rome the praying to sainctes prayer for the dead the makyng and the woorshippyng of Idols the Magistrall and Doctorall determinations as thei call them of frée wil of merite of pardons and of such other filthinesse the which thinges séeinge they coulde neuer be established so longe as the authoritie of the Heauenly doctrine stoode vnshaken in his full force so are they ouer impudent whiche doo thinke that these thinges maye be established eyther by the false forged title of the Church or by the prescription length of time Goe to then lette vs conclude this All Catholike Traditions are not alvvaies to be allovved place that they are farre deceyued which thinke that the Catholike rites are of necessitie to be receyued for there be also some Catholike errours whiche haue crepte into the Churche partely by the ignoraunce of many of the Bishops partly by their negligēce partly by their blinde zeale and apishe imitation of others and also by theyr ambition couetousnes but chiefly by the moste gréedy desire of honour which was in the Romish Bishoppes Furthermore wheras in the appointing of Externall rites and ceremonies whiche are perticular may be alvvaies chaūged and muste be abolished vvhen they become superstitious or Idolatrous rites orders wise men alwaies haue had regard to the time place and persons who dothe not sée that they are moste foolishe who in these kinde of thinges when the circumstances are changed will not onely haue nothyng chaunged but also such thinges as are for iuste causes abolished either by the continuāce of time or other waies yet because they are aūcient thei wil haue them to be againe reuoked but what shall we saye of those thinges that are degenerate into the most manifest madnesse of Idolatrie the whiche in that most cursed time whē God was angry with our sinnes did preuaile though a fewe in the beginninge but in vaine did resiste the whiche thinges finally though they were not at this present vtterly polluted yet are they such as can scarsely no not all be kepte pure any longe space But here cometh to my minde the Politike Gentlemē voice of these mē that thinke thēselues most witty of all others which thinke that the Churche ought to be reformed but not transformed And they call the reformation a restorynge agayne of those rites whiche were in vse in the florishyng time of the Church as they terme it takinge awaye some thinges which by the wickednes of times haue bene abused the whiche except we doo receyue they crie that the Churche is transformed and depriued vtterly of hir beautie and comelinesse Surely their woordes haue a greate shewe and a beautifull but it procedeth from the spirite of Satan whiche then bewrayeth it selfe when we come to the matter for thē there is nothyng so shamefull that they dare not couer vnder the colour of antiquitie and obtrude it vnto vs for comely and beautifull Those Rapsodies moste vayne and foolishe written of these matters by G. Cassander that bablynge Apostata with whose name I woulde not defile these papers doo declare these matters How be it I folowynge the example of Kinge Ezekiah so greatly commended had much rather to imitate such which doo Iudge that the offence and daūger that lieth in the high way ought to be abolished and taken away though at sometimes there hath bene or maye be some vse therof rather then to appoint monitores to stande by which may admonish the passengers lest they at vnwares doo fall into suche perilles For what if they that are admonished doo not obey or the Monitors doo not their office Moreouer besides that in many of
their suppositiōs I doo not onely dissent from them but I doo vtterly abhorre them so in their proposition I cā not agrée vnto them For if we séeke The chiefe patterne of the Church is in Christe and his Apostles the most beautifull face of the Church most perfect patterne I suppose that is it which was not onely begonne as these men imagine or shadowed out with the firste pouncinge or paintinge draughtes by the Apostles thēselues which were the chiefe workemaisters the euer the Church hath had or shall haue hereafter but portered foorth moste beautifully most diligētly with most liuely colours from the which the farther that thou strayest so farre wide wanderest thou more more from the rule of thy worke And after what sort that forme was why I should thinke that we ought to séeke it no where els saue onely in the writings of the Apostles the Apostolical Historie writen by Luke whome I doo graunt to haue The cōtrarietie and lies of Antichristes Churche painted this foorth most excellētly not onely the contrarietie emonges themselues doth cōpel me vnto it but also to speake plainly the fonde vanitie of thē which haue either perticularly recited or wholly collected the Apostolical Traditions as they terme them suche as those foolishe most false descriptiōs of them attributed vnto Clement those that thei call the Canons of the Apostles whiche haue bene a greate while ago counted emonge the bookes the are to be reiected But if some will obiect that al thinges are not written by the Apostles and by Luke I praye you why doo they thinke so because there be but fewe Christ contented him selfe vvith fevv ceremonies and so did his Apostles thinges conteined in their writinges Nay would to God that they which boste thēselues to be the successors of the Apostles could haue contented thēselues with this smal nūber For God would neuer haue had the rites ceremonies of Moises abolished to the intēt that others shuld be put in their places if it were not lawful to imitate the Iewes Ievves nor Idolaters may neither be folovved much more vnlawful is it to folow the Gentiles the which thing if the Anciēt Bishops had remēbred Christian Religiō had neither swarued so soone nor so shamefully first into vaine ceremonies triflinge Liturgies after the into manifest superstition last of all euen degenerate into an Atheisme For Paule woorthely doth call thē Atheists Godlesse whiche doo not woorship the onely true God as he ought to be woorshipped But shal we say that the Apostles did not properly treate of this argument matter Nay certainely it were a certaine kinde of impietie to thinke that the holy Ghost had not so great regard of the Church as was cōueniēt and this dare I affirme that he which readeth diligētly the History of Luke and the Epistles of the Apostles shall therby very wel learne not only the chiefe pointes of the Ecclesiasticall Folowe the Scriptures and thou shalte not neede vnvvrittē traditions order but also almost euery part therof so that no place néede to be lefte at all to those vnwritten Traditions Notwithstādyng how so euer this be seinge we stāde néede of a most perfect distinction to discerne the diuersitie of those infinite Traditiōs by what rule By vvhat rule shall vve trie the diuersitie of Traditions and Ceremonies I praye you shall we trie them for we haue declared that there cā be no sufficient argument concluded neither by the Antiquitie nor Authoritie of the writers neither by the multitude of thē by whome thei haue bene allowed Therfore stāde we néede of the woorde of God onely euen of that woorde of God I say whiche is published by the Prophetes and the Apostles and as it were sette foorth in publike Tables wherby we may disseuer the holy from the vnholy the profitable from the vnprofitable and hurtfull the necessarie from the superfluous and to establishe those Traditions by good reason that are thus disseuered Now then if it be necessary the the light of Gods woorde Gods vvoorde is the touche stone of doctrine writen must be our guide to iudge the rites Ceremonies howe muche more necessarie is it vnto the knowledge of the doctrine it selfe that the same light muste be our guide in the whiche doctrine men are much more blinded and doo erre with farre more daunger For if nothing as we haue declared heretofore may be folowed of vs in doctrine but that either is expressed by playne woordes in the Scriptures of God or els is gathered necessarily by the conferringe together of places howe can I beware of the false Prophetes onles I doo compare the doctrine pronounced by thē with the woorde of God it selfe But thou wilt saye what if he brynge foorth the woorde of God also for so did An Obiection Arrius vrging this texte My father is greater then I and so was the disputation with Macedonius of the persone of the holy Ghost with Nestorius and Eutiches of the vnion of the two natures and with Pelagius of Grace and Nature So is the controuersie at this daye of the sacramentall Phrases and maners of speach whiles that one sort of the same woordes and those moste fewe in number that is to say this is my Bodie this is my Bloud doo finde out Transubstantiation others Consubstantiation others onely a Sacramentall Coniunction Finally saye these mediatours these halters in Religion that would séeme to appease the controuersies when the controuersie falleth not of the woorde but of the sence whether shall we runne rather then to the Churche to the writinges of the Catholike fathers that were of sounde iudgement finally to the true and lawfull Councels To the whiche I doo aunsweare as before that I doo The Ansvveare not thinke that the testimonies of the Church nor of the Fathers nor of the Councels are to be reiected but I suppose that in them men muste vse great warynesse First of all if any thinge be affirmed Bare names of mē vvith out Gods vvoorde cā not staye our faith without the woorde of God the bare names of the Churche of the Fathers of the Coūcels are pretēded in vaine seyng that in this pointe the very Angels are not to be harde For that sayinge of Paule stādeth still in force that if any Angel frō heauen should preach an other Gospell let him be accursed Neither is it the duetie of the Churche to speake in this but to here her husbande what he speaketh And the Godly learned Fathers would haue their writings none other waies to be redde neither with any other condition but that they should be examined by the rule of the woorde writen Finally this is not the office of the Councels to make any newe doctrine but to confirme by Gods woorde that which is already made and ordeined by him those Synodes that haue done otherwaies are the chaires of the wicked and the