THe reasons bi whiche many do persuade them selues / and o­thers also / that yt ys lawfull / Reasons prouing that it is lavvfull. for the faythfull to haue famy­lier conuersation / and to dwell together withe the vnfaythfull, are theise.

• 1 Christe Iesus dyd go vnto the feastes and dy­ners of publicans and synners / and was there ac companyed and famyliarlie conuersaunte with them. In lyke maner beinge bydden of the phari­seis to dyners / he went.

• 2 Also S. Paule dothe byd / that the faythful whi 1. Cor. 7. [...]he is ioyned in mariage withe the vnbeleuer shol [...]e not be separated / yf the vnbeleuer will dwell wi [...]he the faythfull.

• 3 Againe he teacheth / if any of them whiche bele­ [...]e 1: Cor. 10. not byd you to a feaste / and if ye will go / what [...]oeuer ys sett before you / that eate / rc. In an other [...]lace he likwise sayethe: I wrote vnto you in an epi 1. Cor. 5. [...]le / that ye sholde not cōpanie withe fornicatours. And I meant not at all of the fornicatours of this [Page] worlde / or of the couetous / or of extorsioners / or of the Idolatrors / for then muste ye neades haue go­ne owt of the worlde. But nowe I haue written unto you / that ye companye not together. If any that is called a brother / be a fornicatour / or coue­tous / or a worshipper of Images / or a rayler / or a drunkard / or an extorsioner / with him that ys su­che / see that ye eate not.

• 4 Abraham beinge called to go owt of Chaldee / Genes. 12. ys commaunded to trauayle in those countries / in whiche the people were altogither vngodlye and wicked Idolatrours / that ys / in the lande of Canaan / and in Egypte.

• 5 Lot refused to continewe in the housholde / and Genes. 13. familiar companie of Abraham / and did chose to dwell amonge the Sodomytes.

• 6 Naaman the Sirian 4. Reg. 5. / after that he was healed of his leprosie / dyd returne to his Idolatrous na­tion.

• 7 Christ our Sauior dyd not reteyne with him all Marc. 5. those whom he dyd heale / but commaunded some of thē to returne vnto their own famyliars / coun­trymē / and kinsfolkes (which yet were wicked / and infidels) among whom they sholde publishe and declare / what the lorde hade done for them.

• 8 The Iues both by the ciuile ād canon lawes ar not only permitted to lyue among the christians / but also to haue their synagoges: and tribute is ta­ken of them.

• 9 Some heretiques haue libertie giuen them by [Page 3] ciuile lawes / to dwell amonge the faithfull: for the lawes do not apoynte them all to be punished by deathe. We reade that the Nouatians hade their Churches and congregations / permitted in Con­stātinople / in the tyme of Cōstantine the greate / ād Theodosius / whiche were moste godlie Empe­rours.

These are the reasons by whiche many do per­suade them selues and others / thatyt ys lawfull for the godlie and faythful / to dwell together and to haue familiar conuersation withe the wicked and vnfaythfull /

To proue that their persuasions are false and The dis­position of the Tretise. vntrulie gathered of thes places / I muste propo­unde certayn diuisions: whiche beinge done / I shall put forthe certayne propositions or sentences In the prouinge of which to be true / ye shall playn lye perceyue howe these places alledged / are abu­sed of them to maynteyne their falfe opinion.

Firste / I muste deuide betwene the estates and The furst Diui [...]ion sortes ofmen: Some sortes ofmen / are Magistra tes and rulers: some other be subiectes and of the comen sorte of people. The secōd Diuision

The second diuision shalbe of cohabitation or dwelling together / of which one kinde ys free / that ys / where men be not compelled to cōmunica te withe wicked superstitions / vngodly rites and Idolatries.

An other kinde of cohabitation / or dwellinge to­gether there is which ys not free / and that ys whe [Page] remen are compelled to communicate withe wi­cked supersticions / to be presente at Idolatries / and so to defyle them selues.

The thirde diuisiō shalbe of the godlie and faith The thred diuision. full men them selues / whiche are thus familiarlie conuersaunte withe the vnbeleuers. Either they are learned stronge and able to confesse the doctri­ne of truithe in religion / and to reproue and cōum­ce the false: orels they ar vnlearned / weake / and v­nable to stande in the confession of the truithe / and reprouinge of vntruthe.

These three diuisions shall suffice. Nowe will I put forthe certeyne sentencis and propositions. The firste sentence and proposition / shalbe of those which in estate and condicyon are priuate mē and subiectes: Of that cohabitatiō and dwellinge whi che ys free. And of those men which are learned ād stronge: of all wich I make this proposition.

Priuate men and subiectes / which ar learned and stronge / dwellinge in that place where they be The fvrst proposi­tion. free and not compelled to communicate withe wic ked supersticions / they maye be famyliarlie conuer saunte / dwell ād liue together with the vnbeleuers This maye they do / but yet vnder certeyn cōditiōs / and obseruinge certeyn rules.

Of which the firste ys this / that they do teache thos vnbeleuers with whom they do liue and are 1 Rules to bekept. familiarlie conuersaunte / and do instructe them in the truithe / trulye teachinge them and earnestlie callinge them / vnto the knowledge of the truithe / [Page 4] and faythe in Christe. And this they muste not lea­ue of to do so longe as they be dwellinge and fami liar with them. To the end also that they maye do this the better / yt ys not vnlawfull / but moste con­uenient for them to shewe them selues frendlie / gē till / and louinge unto the vnbeleauers withe whō they are familiarlie conuersaunte / and dwellinge / So that theise maye perceyue that the faythfull do loue thē: els ys yt to be feared that they shall do no good withe them. for that doctrine ys moste redy­lie receyued of the hearer / which cōmeth from him / of whom the hearer ys persuaded / that he ys hys frende / and that he louithe hym indeede.

The second thinge that the faythfull must take heede of / ād Rule which they must obserue ys this: 2 That they do lyue an holy lyfe / and that amonge the vnbeleauers their conuersacion be so godly / graue / comely / and agreing with their profession / that in no wise they do gyue any offence through the wickednes of their lyfel: for yf by their lyfe the vnfaythfull shuld be offendid / then shuld their my nistery be vnprofitable to the vnbeleuers / for that by their euell doings they shuld ouerthrowe what soeuer they labored to builde vpp in wordes.

The thred thinge that theise men must take hee­de 3 of / and Rule which they must obserue is. That they do not communicate / with the vnfaythfull in their supersticiōs ād jdolatries / nor iet do so mutch as outwardly to seame to allowe them. Thys ys not to be doone in ony wise / no not in hope therby [Page] to wynne the vnbeleauer from hys supersticion / and Idolatrie: For this Rule of the holy ghoste Ro. 3 doth euer remain certain / Euell things ar not to be doone / that goode maye comme therof. This vn­chaungeable rule must not be broken.

The fourth and last thing that theise men must 4 take heede of / and Rule which they must obserūe is this. That they haue not ther familiar conuersaciō with the vnbeleuers for their own cause / as for their pleasure and recreacion / or for their gayn and profite / but only in respect of wynnynge them to the gospell of christe. Neither ys this conuersacion and companie / contynually to be hadd and kept with the vngodly and vnbeleuers / but so long as ther is goode hoope of wynninge / and conuerting thē to thē gospell of christe. For yf the vnbeleauers shall shew themselues so obstinate in their euell / that they gyue iuste cause to despaire of ther amen dement / then ar they vtterly to be forsaken / and no conuersacion or cōpanie is to be hadd with them / farther thē the necessitie of lyfe enforcith either par tie. As yff the vnbeleauers shuld be in such extre­me necessitie / that they could not be releaued but at the hand of the faythfull: or yf theise shuld be in that necessitie / that they could not otherwise ob­tain thinges necessarie but of the vnfaithfull. Al­so in byinge and selling thinges necessarie for the lyfe / as garmentes / victuals / and such like: Agayn in such thinges as cyuile estates / and condicions do require / as of princes and Rulars to demaunde [Page 5] lawfull defence / and to obey them in thinges law­full: to fathers / maried folke / masters / ād such lyke / to do thos duties which ar appointed in godds worde. In theise thinges to vse the vnbeleauers / or to minister vnto them / ys not vnlawfull.

Thus and in thys manier / yt ys lawfull for a pri uate mā / which is lerned / ād constāt in godds trui the / being in that place wher no man ys compelled to be partaker of wicked supersticions / to dwell to­gether / and vse familiar conuersacion with the vn beleuers and vnfaythfull / as theise named Rules and condicions / do appoint and suffer. And so haue ye this proposiciō declared and opened / The same ys cōfirmed / by the example of Christ our Sa uiour. He dyd resorte to the dyners / and feastes / where scribes and pharisees / publicanes and syn­ners were / to thys ende onlie / euen to teache them and to winne them vnto the Gospell. So saieth hierom. The lorde dyd go vnto the feastes of syn­ners Hiero in Matt. cap. 9. that he mighte haue occasion to teache them and that he mighte gyue spirituall meates to them which dyd bydde hym: and after speaking how christe went ofte to feastes / Theare ys (saithe he) no other thinge reported / but what he dyd / and what he taughte there. That bothe the humblenes of the [...]orde in goinge to synners / and the power of hys doctrine in conuertinge the penitents / mighte be declared.

After the same maner / the prophetes in the olde [...]yme were conuersaunte with the Idolatrous peo [Page] ple. So were the Apostles famyliarlie conuersaun te with the vnbeleuinge Iues / and went also emō gest other vnbeleuing nations and men. S. Pau­le Act. 17. when he came to Athens / dyd not thinke skorne so famyliarlie to behaue him selfe that he went in to the temples of their Idolls / and verye curiou­slie searched the corners of the same / he dyd viewe their altars / the titles and inscriptions of ther al­tars / so that he founde owte that title / Ignoto Deo which was an altar dedicated vnto the vnknowen God / wherof he dyd take occacion to make that sa­me hys sermon in which he preached Christe vnto them euen as yt were owt of their own bokes.

And thus / I thinke / that this our proposition / (which of yt owne selfe ys plaine and euident ynou ghe) ys sufficientlie proued. Namelie thys / that a priuate man / learned / and constaunte in the trui­the / beinge in that place where no man ys compel led to communicate with wicked supersticions / maye be familiarlie conuersante with the vnbele­uers / so longe as in hys conuersation he doth ob­serue and kepe / the conditions before mencioned. Cōuersa­tion vuith men excō ­municate. Here I thinke good to adde / as yt were by the waye of admonicion / that kepinge these rules and conditions / yt ys lawfull for the godlie to be con­uersaunte with them which be excommunicate / euen to call them in to the waye of godlynes / and not to communicate with them in any euill or syn­ne. The secūd proposi­tion. Nowe will I put forthe an other proposition or sentence / whiche shalbe of those persons whych [Page 6] be of a priuate estate and are subiectes / of that co­habitacion which ys fre wher no man ys compel­led to communicate with wicked supersticions / ād of suche men as be vnlearned in the knowledge of gods truithe / weake in faythe / and therfor vn­able to make a christian confession of truithe. Thys collection agreeth with that which I gathered be­fore / of which I made my former proposition / sa­uinge that wheras there / with the priuate estate and free dwellinge / I coupled men that were lear Ignoraūce in men is intollera­ble. ned and stronge to confesse the truithe / heare I do adde in the place of them / men vnlearned / vnable / and to weake to confesse the truithe. But herin thin cke not that I do alowe suche ignoraunce and una blenes in men. Suche ignoraunce in men is shar­ply to be reproued / for ther is none so ueri an idio­te / so simple and vnlearned amonge Christianes / but he ys bounde in conscience to be able to rendre an accompte of hys faythe / ād also to be somwhat able to teache and instructe others / yea and to saye somwhat for the truthe / in all the principall poyn­tes of the christian faythe / which he maye do yf he be but meanlie instructed in the Catechisme. But bicause / partlie throughe the peruersnes of the mi­nisters which do not their office to instructe men / partlie throughe the negligence of men which do not their dutie in seekinge to be instructed / suche ig noraunce there is / I admytt therfore into this my collection those ignoraunte / vnable / and weake men. And so I make this proposition. Those men [Page] which are of a priuate estate and condition / dwel­linge or beinge in a place where they be not com­pelled to communicate with wicked supersticions. And are themselues vnlearned and vnable to con fesse ād defende the truithe / maye not vse famyliar conuersation with the vnbeleuers.

These men ar not in that condition that the lear ned be / of whom I dyd speake before / for they can­not teache the vnbeleuers / yea they be not able to defende the gospell of christe from the blasphemie of the vnbeleuers / neither can they deliuer them sel ues frō suche false snares as the vnbeleauers shall laye for thē: Wherfor they must not haue familiar conuersaciō with them / through which they shall thus throwe themselues into perill / and ieoperdie: Except that they can assure themselues of such strēghth / that they shall not yealde vnto the wicke­dnes of the vnbeleuers. Otherwise / if they shall happen to dwell togither in one place with the vn faithfull: Lett thē take goode heede that they do ly ue an holy lyfe amonge thē: And for the rest / let thē so far as the necessitie of lyfe / and ciuile businesses and affaires shall suffer them / vtterly abstayn frō the companie of the vnbeleauers.

But heere risith a question: Whether that such a A ques [...] ­tion. weake and vnlearned man / maye learn ony of the liberall artes / or philosophie / of such a master as is an vnbeleauer.

Vnto which I answer: that forbicause to lern such artes of an vnfaithfull master is not of such [Page 7] necessitie as can not be auoided / therfor the man that ys weake in faithe must not lern them of hym. Yt is a very daungerus thinge / to vse them which ar vnbeleauers as Masters and teachers: for often tymes in the myndes of the hearers ther arisith a gret admiracion and estimaciō of the teacher / and it maye easilye com to pas at the lēghthe / that they shall thincke and Iudge that theise teachers ar not deceyued in Religion / bicause they be of an exacte and perfect knowledge in these liberall sciences / ād philosophie. This (I saye) may happē of it that men ar wont to attribute mutch vnto their tea­chers. Yea that it may be so / I will proue by the cō trarie. Origen by teaching the Mathematicalls / and such sciences / did bring many mē to the know ledge of christe. For furst he dyd begyn to reade a­mong them such sciences with which they wer de lighted / In which he being expert / dyd shew vnto his hearers suche connynge / that he dyd forthe­with gett amonge them great estimacion / and so the more easili drawe them vnto the doctrine of christe. Augustine likewise cam to Millaine / to heere Ambrose / bicause he was counted an ex cellent Rhetorician. And so whilst he desiru sly herd hym / at the lenghth by hearinge he was tour­ned form the sect of the Manichees / vnto the true catholiques. As therfor by lerning of these sciēces of godly teachers / the vnbeleauers haue beene con uerted vnto the faithe of christe / euen so / yea mutch more easilie it maye cōme to pas / that they which [Page] ar wea [...]e and vnlearned / may vnder vnbeleauinge masters / be drawn from christe to vngodlynes. Wherfor seing that this can not be doone without great perill and daunger / that such a weakling shuld vse an vnfaithfull Master / I thincke that he shuld abstayn alltogether from suche.

Sum do heere obiect and saye / that S. Paul to the Corinthians doth appoint no such Rule condi cion nor exception / as I haue spoken of / vnto the weake and vnlearned: but he playnly saith. If ony of them which beleaue not / do bidd you to a feaste / [...] Cor. 10. and yf ye will go / whatsoeuer ys sett before you that eate / [...]c. In which wordes he teachith / that it is lefte vnto our own will as a fre thinge to go / or not to go. I answer / that'ye must marcke well thos wordes of Paule / (and yf ye will go.) He doth not Hovv thei se vvor­des, and if ye vvill go, ar to be vnder­stonded. grant vnto euery mans will thys libertie / and fre­dom / but vnto a goode and a right will he gyuith libertie to go. For yf a man wold go thether to drin cke droncken / glotonusly to fill the belly / or to gyue the tongue to filthie and vncomly talke / without doubt that man shuld syn / euen for the wickednes of hys will / and for hys corrupt entent▪ and purpo­se. Euen so / yf a man dowbted hys own strenghth / and dyd certaynly perceyue that he could not profi te them that shuld be there / and yet wold go the­ther / vndowbtedly with a safe cōscience and with a goode will he could not take that thing in hāde / for he can not direct hys doing to the glorie of godd / as he ys cōmaunded to do. Wherfor though [Page 8] [...]aul expressely doth not adde that rule / yt folo­with not therfor / that yt is not to be added: yea that [...]t ys to be added I will proue by other places of the scripture. And to thend that we do not herin de [...]art from Paul / the same thing / and doctrine of will / he teachith in the. 7. chapter of the same epi­stle: wher he entreating of gyuyng or not gyuing [...] 1. Cor. 7. [...] virgine to mariage saithe / That he doth well which [...]eapith his virgin / ād that purposith it sure [...]y in his harte / (addinge this condiciō) hauing no [...]eade / but hathe poure ouer his own will: For if he [...]huld do it otherwise then his daughter either wol [...]e / or then her necessitie required / then shuld he nei [...]her will / nor do well. Thus to do a goode worcke / [...]r to make an acte prefect / yt sufficithe not to take [...]eede that it be not euell of nature / or repugnant [...]nto gods worde / but vnto this ys also required / [...]hat we do go about the same with an vpright and [...]erfect mynde and will. S. Paul / therfor / doth not [...]mply permitt this going / but with certayn cir­cumstances. Which ar / to go with a goode will to [...]nstruct the vnfaythfull: Agayn to go with an as­sured purpose / not to be, ād taste of such strēghthe / that he shall not be ouerthrown. And thus this proposicion remaynith true / that the man whiche [...]s weake ād vnlearned / must separate himsel [...] frō the company and famyliar conuersacion of the vn­beleauers / so mutch as cyuile and naturall busi­nesses and affaires will suffer / and as the necessi­ [...]e of lyfe shall require (as I saide before). Lykewise [Page] all houshold duties and offices appointed in gods worde must be obserued / els shall he offend / for as Paule saithe: He that prouidith not for hys / and 1. Timo. 5. especially for them of hys own how shold / the same hath denied the faithe / and ys wors then an Infi­dell. And to proue farther / that this vnlearned and weake man must abstayn from the familiar companie of the vnbeleauers / yea thoughe they be most deere vnto hym / that Rule doth serue / which Matt. 5. 18. Christe our Sauiour gyuithe sayinge. If thy hāde or fote offend the / and hinder the / cut yt of / and cast yt from the / [...]c. If thyn eye offend the / plucke yt out / and caste yt from the. We ar not commaun­ded in this place / to cut of the outward membres of our bodie / as Origen (yf it be true that sum do re port of hyme) dyd vntruly thincke / but as the sownd interpretours do write / thos frends and thinges / which ar most nighe and deere vnto vs / Theise ar they which must be cut of plucked out / and cast awaye from our familiaritie and compa­nie / when they do plucke / ād separate vs / from the true waye of saluacion / or be such a hinderaunce vnto vs as puttinge impedimentes and lettes in our waye / do hynder vs from walking in gods lawe. Chrisostom entreating this matier / writithe. If the membre which ys misioined vnto the bodie In Ioan. hom. 15. must be cut of / ar not then euell frends mutch mo­re to be cut of▪ And agayn / he saith / If we do cut of that membre which ys rotten / and incurable from the bodie / for feare les yt shuld corrupt the [Page 9] other partes therof / (which we do not bicause we do neglect it / for who yet did euer hate his own fleshe, but to saue the rest) how mutch more is this to be done to them which ar euell ioyned vnto us▪ Which yet we must not do as thoughe we did despise thē / but to prouide that our helthe and sal­uaciō be not brought in daūger by thē ▪ after that we do see that we can not profite them at all. To this also belōgith the lawe which christe did giue: Matth. 1 [...]. That he which will not heere the brethern admo­nishing him / And doth contemne the voice of the churche when it reprouith / and correctith hym: he is then to be estemed and taken as an ethnicke / and a publicane. Which thing Paule puttith in practi­se when he biddith / that the Corinthians shuld ex communicat the fornicator / les that a litill leauē 1. Cor. 5. shuld soure the whole lumpe of dowe. To the same purpose he usith the vearse of the poete Menan­der. Euell wordes do corrupt goode maniers. Ther 1. Cor. 15. Paul teachith / that the true doctrine of the Resur­rection was greatly hindered amonge the [...]orin­thians / which wer but newly turned vnto christe / bicause they dyd to lightly gyue eare to the vngod ly argumentes and reasons of philosophers / or ra ther of heretiques / which did contend and stryue a­gaynst that doctrine. No man can sufficiently consider / how the bewitching of wicked tales / and [...]alkes / do shake and hurt the tender conscience ād weake faithe / of the foeble ād weake brother. Wher [...]or it is most necessari and profitable to admonis he [Page] them which ar weake / that they do abstayn / and withdrawe them selues / from the felowshipp and familiar companye / of the vnbeleauers. The phi sicions / do cowncell [...] when a contagius disea­se hath enfected any nigh place / that thei which as yet ar sownd and not enfected / shuld not cōme vn­to them that be enfected alreadye and sicke / bicause that in the bodies of men / and the temperatures / and disposicions of the same / ther is such a commō passion and suffering / that the infection doth easi­ly go from thē that be infected / vnto the other. And though they which do not take heede and keape thē selues from that infection / do not presently feale the poyson and force therof / yeat inasmutch as by lytill and litill the infection / and poyson receyued doth growe / n [...]t long after they ar sure to feale the force and strenghthe of it. Seing this is so / and cich man maye worthily and godly take heede to a­uoide the diseases of the bodie / mutch more diligēt heede is to be taken of all men / that they do not frō ony man or place gett vnto themselues infecting vices of the minde. Our Nature / and disposiciō through our naturall and birthe syn is now so cor rupt / (as both the holy scripture doth warn vs / ād infinite examples of dayly experiēce do teache vs) that we neade not to dowt at all / but that we shall easily receyue the poison / and infectiō of other mēs synnes / if we do not fle farr from them: And as with no great labour they will cleaue vnto vs / so after they be ons crept and roted into vs / thē hard [Page 10] ly and not without great payn ād labor / will they be thrust out agayn. Wherfor Chrisostom in the a­fore in Ioēm. hom. [...]6. named place semith to say well. If (saithe he speaking of the vnbeleauers and wicked) we coul­de make them better / and not hurt our selues / all thinges wer to be doone: But whē we can not pro fite them / bicause they be incurable / and such as will not be amended / and yet we hurt our selues / they ar vtterly to be cutt of. And to the end that he might the more strongly confirme his saying / he alledgith that sayinge of Paul: Put awaye the e­uell 1. Cor. 5. from among yowe. Which wordes of Paule ar not to be vnderstonded of the synne / for the gre­ke word is in the masculyne gendre / [...] / and therfor he meanith by it / the wicked man. The same wordes I will now sumwhat bend / vse / and turn / vnto the profite of you that be weake / and thus saye vnto yowe. Put awaye your own selues from the euell men that ar emongst you: for seing ye ar but priuate men / and vnlearned / and therfor can not put awaye the euell from among you / yet your selues ye may ridd / and conuey awaye from being emongst the wicked / and the euell men.

Morouer it happeneth that whilest the weake and vnlearned do thus familiarly accompanie the vnbealeuers / They cā not chose but they must he­are many subtill reasons and see many other thin­ges which do mutch make against the true religiō [...]hat they do profes: Which thinges when they se [...]nd be not able to disproue and confute / They do it [Page] not: And so they rōne into two mischeifs. The furst is / That they ar as it wer witnesses of the bla­sphemie / and of the reproche that the vnbeleauers do to the truithe: The secōde / that they maie happ to haue summe stinge left sticking in their concien­ce / with which they shalbe longer / more greuusly and daungerusly tormented / thē either they thinc­ke of or do feare. Let us heere therfor the wise mā which doth saye. Who so touchithe pitche shalbe fy Eccles. 13. led ther with all / and he that is familiar with the proude / shall become lyke vnto hym: Take not a burthē vppon the / aboue thy poure / neither ioyne thow thi felf to hym that is more honorable / and ritche then thiself. These words of the wiseman / do for two causes belong to our purpos. Furst / bicau­se that they do teache / that other mens synnes ar lyke vnto pitche / which doth stycke vnto the fin­gars and garments of them that do touche it. A­gayn / that eich man shuld well trie and consider his own poure and strenghth. Vppō which cown­cell / I do gather two thinges. Furst / that the infir­me and weake must not ioyn themselues in familia ritie with the wicked / for wickednes will then clea ue vnto them: Secondly that eich man must so well consider / and iustly trie his own poure and strenghth / that he doth not ouermatch himself.

The churche of godd in all ages hath felt by expe rience that mutch euell hathe happened through this familiar companie / and felowshipp keapt be­twene the weake in faithe and knowledge / and the [Page 11] vnbeleauers. In the Primitiue churche forthwith after christes ascension / bicause the Iues which wer conuerted vnto christe did lyue a great while with thos gentils which hadd receyued the go­spell / ther begon a very Iuishnes. For the Iues did enforce the ceremonies of Moses lawe / myng ling thē with the doctryne of the gospell / through which they did infect many congregacions of the christiās so sore / that scarsely and hardely at lēghth could that euell be roted out: Yea that euell hath so preuailed / that euen vntill our tymes / in Spayn namely / and in sum other places also / ther be ma­ny which do not only holde still the ceremonies of Moses lawe with the professiō of christe / but they do thincke them to be necessarie vnto Saluacion. They emongst the Spaniards which be of this mynde / ar called Marrani. And vnto this daye the churche of India is enfected with the same vice. But let the examples of the holy scripture / I praye you / teache vs euen the same. The Israelites which wer captyues in Babilon / by the space of 70. yea­res / when they hadd libertie gyuen them furst of Cyrus / then of Darius / thos two most noble Kin­ges to return / they did not all forthewith return / but a great nūber of thē / such namely as wer wea­ker in the lorde thē other / being delighted with the commodities ād pleasures of their houses / feildes / and traffique of merchandize / did abide still amon ge the chaldees: [...]ich men how sharpely they wer reproued of Esdras / Nehemias / Zacharias / and [Page] other prophetes / it dothe playnly appeare in the scripture to them that liste to seake and knowe it. How the Israelites wer infected throughe that conuersacion which they hadd with the Egiptiās / it appearith playnly by this / that whilest they wer in the desert / when as yet the wonderfull benefites of godd wer euen before ther eyes / they did fall frō the lord their dilyuerer vnto Idolatrie / and vnto that kinde of Idolatrie / which they wer acquayn­ted with all in Egipte. Ther they hadd seene howe the Egiptians worshipped an Oxe / they therfor violently trauailed with Aarō when Moses was Exod. 23. absent / that he shuld make thē a calf to worshipp: which when he hadd doone / thē began they ioyou­sly to crye: Theise ar thi godds / O. Israell / which brought the out of the lande of Egypt. Agayn / when by the desert wild and barren places / they wer comme to the coastes of the Moabites / and be Numer. 15. gan to waxe more familiar with them then beca­me the poeple of godd / through that familiaritie they wer brought to this / that not only they did cō mitt most vile whordom with thos beastly womē / but also that they sacrificed vnto their most shame­full Idoll / Baal peor / and suffred themselues to be coupled vnto his sacrifices. for which they suffred many miseries and calamities. Peter likewise / Math. 26. when he cāme into that wicked court of the cheif prest and was ther conuersant emongst thos dam sels and vngodly seruantes / most miserablie did he denie ād forsweare his master christe our Saui­our: [Page 12] which his fault / after he departed frō thence / he did bewaile with abundaunce of teares. By the se histories ye may playnly see / what happenith vn to the weake through that familiar conuersacion which they haue with the vnfaithful. Esaye the pro Esaiae 6. phet / when he did se the lorde sitting vppon his sea te of glorie / with his Angels about hym most pure ly publishing his prayse / though he semith not to thincke hymself greatlye gyltie of ony notable cry­me or fault / yet cryeth he out / O wo is me / [...]. I dwell amonge a poeple that hath vncleane lyp­pes. This man of godd truly did thincke / that he hadd gotton no small corruption and infection / bi cause he hadd lyued long with an vncleane poe­ple.

The histories of the heathen do teache vs the sa­me thinge. Alexander that gret and mightie kinge of Macedonia / who by the force of armes / and most notable victories / hadd subdued the greatest parte of the whole worlde / Euen he hymself was ouercomme with the maniers of the Persians. And vppon whom of right / as vppon a conquered poeple / he shuld haue laied lawes / to haue brought them to that seuere kinde of lyfe which the Macedo nians vsed / euen he as a mā cōquerred ād ouercō ­me of ther maniers / suffered hymself to be so shame fully misused / that he did take vnto hym their kinde of araye / their lewse delicacie / their pompe and pri de / and set [...]furthe hymself to be worshipped of thē as godd. And so being corrupted he did altogether [Page] fall from the maniers of the grecians / through which he did sustayn great reproche amonge the wise / and mutche hatred amonge his souldiours / ād that not vnworthilie. Besids this / we must kno we / that if these men do without ony Rule or god­ly end keape such companye / and be familiarly con uersant with the vnbeleauers / except that in theise the fruite of their conuercion do quickly appeare / and of the other also it be by all meanes ernestly sought / both in the reprouing of their vnbeleif / ād in alluring them to the truithe / It doth happen that ther conuercion is hindred by such compa­nie and familiaritie. For whilest the vnbeleuers do se that the faithfull do lyue so frendly / and familiar ly with them / they do iudge forthewith that their supersticion / and vnbeleif / is not so wicked a thin­ge / nor yet a thinge so to be abhorred ād condēned / as it is reported / yea thus maye they be brought to imagin / that they maye be saued though they do perseuere / and contynue in their vnbeleif. For if it wer otherwise (shall they thincke) theise goode and godly men / wold not be thus familiar and frendly with vs.

I do omitt to speake of this / that many other of the brethern ther ar / which by the example of this conuersacion / do persuade themselues that they maye do euen the self same thinge / and so do beare with the wicked / and do wincke at their euell / bi­cause that they haue seene other men do so before them And thus it commith to pas / that by the ex­ample [Page 15] of sum men / this euell spreadith itself abroa de so that in the end / our faith and Religion / is euē layed forth for the wicked and vngodly / to mocke / and contempn.

Often tymes also that thing happenith / which we reade to haue happened in Pauls tyme / amon ge the Corinthians / that the brethern by this con­uersaciō / ar brought to be partakers of the wicked­nesses / 1. Cor. 10. vile custumes / and Idolatries of the vn­faithfull: Which familiar conuersacion / dothe not only couple them with the vnfaithfull / but it is a meane to make them Idolatrours: for th auoi­ding of which / Paule cryeth out in the same place: fle Idolatrie. I do likewise passeouer with silence / 1. Cor. 10. that wher our weake and vnlearned brethern / do thus ioyne themselues in familiar conuersacion with the vnfaithfull / it can not be but betwene them and the vnfaithfull / sumtyme ther will hap­pen communicacion of Religion: And thē though it happ so that through want of learninge / our weaklinges do not slyppe and foile them selues / Yeat bicause they can not dissolue / and answer vn­to the arguments / and subtile reasons of the ad­uersaries aptly / ther arisith then contentius stry­fes betwen them / and not only this / but euel spea­kinges / reproches / and hatreds / which thinges ar so farr from edifying / that they do altogether hyn­der and lett it: furthermor in these conflictes it hap penith / that our weaklinges at lenghth ar putt to silence / so that they neither speake to confes th­truithe / [Page] nor to reproue that whiche is fals: Now consider heere what a libertie these men do lose: which christian libertie is in free boldenes in spea­kinge / to reproue that which is fals / and to confes godd / and his truithe. This libertie of free spea­king and confessing / no christen man ought so to gyue ouer / but that he in all his talke shuld and might use it.

But in this cōpanie of vnbeleauers / these wea­klinges do not / yea darre not vse it / les they in ther sayinges / shuld be snatched vpp / ād put to shame. Yet truly no men / nor ony companye of men shuld cause a christian to caste awaye this fredom and li­bertie.

For our purpose also makith that sayinge of [...] Cor. 6. S. Paul. Set your selues at large / for what felow shipp hath righteousnes with vnrighteousnes? Or what companie hathe light with darcknes? Or what concorde hath christe withe Beliall? Either what parte hath he that beleauith / with an Infi­dell? Or how agreith the tēple of godd / with Ima ges? These wordes ar so playn that they neede not to be expownded: In which / this conuersacion of which we now do entreate / is most simplye / and playnly forbidden. The figures and ceremonies of Moses lawe ar taken awaye / but yet the thinge figured / which is as I might saye / the strenghth / the pythe / and foundacion of them / doth remayn. Which thinge being true / I maye thē as [...]e this qu [...] [...]er. 15. stion. The lorde commaunded that the Iues shuld [Page 14] make gardes in the quartiers of their garmēts / ād to put vppon the garde / a ribande of yelow silcke / [...]c. My question now is. Whithe lorde did comma unde / that the Iues shuld differ from the gentils / not in circūcision only / but euen in their garmēts also? Euen for this cause verily / that they shuld be taught euen by their gardes also / that they wer gods peculiar people / and that they shulde separa­te themselues from the gentils / that they shuld not be conuersaunt with them / neither shuld they ioyne themselues in familiaritie withe them / far­ther then the necessitie of either of their lyues did re quire. The Iuishe gardes we do reiect / but this which is ment by the gardes we both do and must retayne. In many places the lorde commaunded the Iues also that they shuld not return into Egy­pte / and that they shuld not aske healpe of the Egi ptians / nor of the Assirians: Which he did partly to this end / that through such familiaritie as then must haue beene betwene theim and their heal­pers / the Israelites shuld not be infected withe their uices. The booke of the Iudges / doth playn­ly inough teache vs this will ād pleasure of godd. For the Israelites did synne greunsly in this / that Iudic. 1. they did put to tribute thos Idolatrus nacions / ouer whom the lorde hadd gyuen theun uictorie / and did couenant with thē / that they shuld dwell amonge theim in peace / which thinge godd hadd diuers tymes expressly forbidden theim to do / commaunding that they shuld vtterly destroye [Page] the inhabitātes of that lande: This he did partli bi cause / that through this they shuld not be brought by the Cananites / into the daūger of Idolatrie. Now the cause being such with theise weake / and vnlearned men / of whom I now do speake / they must likewise take goode heade to obserue that ru­le / which the lorde appointed vnto the Israelites. It appearith playnly / that this commādement of god was kept longe tyme amonge the Iues: For they did not vse ony familiaritie / nor keape compa­nie withe the Samaritans which did not truly worshipe the lyuynge godd / no not in christes ty­me / as it appearith by the talke that he hadd with Ioan. 4. the woman at the well. Morouer as the goode fa­thers in olde tyme / did esteme it as their singular ioye / when they might be familiarly conuersant with the godly / so how mutch they sorowed Whē they could not be so conuersaunt with the people of godd / and in godds house / Dauid is witnes: Who when he fledd from the face of Saul his per­sequtour / did mourn / and in the psalmes with most heauie complaintes / doth lamēt / that he was compelled to be conuersant amonge straungers / such as did not knowe the lyuyng godd / and to be as it wer an exile from godd / and his people. So shuld the companie hadd with the vnfaithfull / be heauy and bitter to the faithfull.

Daniell and his thre felows / might haue lyued / Daniel 1. vppon the Kinges table / and haue eaten most fyne and delicate meates / but they did rather chose to ly [Page 15] ue together with potage / and water / and vtterly to forsake thos pleasures / and delicacies / then they wold defile them selues with the meates of the vn­beleauers. Moses also / as it is writon in the epi­stle to the hebrues / might if he wold haue beene ta Hebr. [...]. ken for the Sonne of Pharaos daughter / and so to haue beene in greate hoope of obtaynynge the kingdome of Egipte: but all this sett a parte / he did chose rather / forsaking all theise thinges / to go vnto his brethern / which wer in miserable bon­dage / seruinge and laboring in claye / and bricke: Which thing to do / as it was a greate triall of his faithe / so the doinge of it doth commend / and sett furth his faithe / and shew what loue he hadd to be conuersant with the poeple of godd. They which do not folowe these examples / do shew how litell they do regarde the glorie of godd / and the commu niō and felowship of sayntes / which they will not gayne nor redeame with losse / no thoughe it be of neuer so litill: And in this preferring of their own gayne welthe and commoditie / aboue the glorie of godd / and the felowlie communion of the godlye / they do most wickedly. Do we (saithe Paule to 1. Cor. 1 [...]. the corinthians) prouoke the lorde? Ar we strōger then he? Theise weake brethern / which do not trie their own strenghth to fele their weaknes so / that they might seeke the encreace of strenghth in them selues / but being weake indeede / both dare and do thus desperatlie committ themselues vnto this fa­miliar conuersacion with the vnfaithfull / they do [Page] tempt godd / and do after a sort prouoke hym / as thoughe they wolde becōme stronger then he. Many more reasons might I bringe to proue this proposicion true. That a priuate man / being in a place wher he is not compelled to communicate with the supersticiōs of the vnfaithfull / and is vn­learned vnable / and to weake to confesse the trui­the / must not ioyne in familiaritie / nor be familiar­ly dwelling and conuersant together with the vn­faithfull. But bicause I do suppose that it is suffi­ciently proued by the reasons which I haue alled­ged / I will now prepare myself to an other pro­posicion.

The thred proposicion shalbe / of Priuate men and subiectes / which ar lerned and stronge / and of them also which ar weake and vnlearned / of that dwelling which is not fre / wher as men ar compel led by lawes / and Tyrannye to communicate and to be partakers with the wicked in their supersti­cions and Idolatries: And of theise I make this proposicion / and sentence. Priuate men and sub The thred proposi­tion. iectes be they learned or vnlearned / stronge or wea ke / which ar dwelling and abyding in that place wher men ar compelled to communicate / and be partakers withe Idolatrors / and to be present at vnlawfull supersticions and Idolatries / defiling thēselues with vncleane Religiō / maye not dwell together nor be familiarly conuersaunt / they may not ioyne in societie with suche Idolatrors: I saye / that this cohabitacion / and familiar dwelling to­gether [Page 16] is vnlawfull / vngodlye / and not to be kept in ony wise: But in this case a faithfull man must either flye / or dye for the truithe / that he be not com pelled to defile hymself with Idolatrie. Ther is tru ly but one truithe / and that same must be holden with a pure cōscience / neither must it be forsakē for the pleasure of ony man. S. Paul saith to the Corin thians: flye ye Idolatrie. Then do men flye Idola­trie 1. Cor. 10. when either they do depart frō the place wher Idolatrie is cōmitted / or when abiding still in the same place / they do gyue their lyues and suffer dea the bicause they will not cōmitt Idolatrie nor allo­we it with ther presence. Paul therfor teachith by this sayinge / that in no wise the faithfull shuld co­me at the Idolatries of the vnfaithfull / but flye frō them: which sentence is so playn to the vnderston­dinge of the most symple / that it neadith no exposi­cion at all. The lawe and the prophetes / the olde Te stament and the newe / ar full of such sentences / ād cōmaundementes / which do forbidd straūge wor­shippinge of godd and Idolatrie. Call to your myn de the historie of the Machabees / which I do not 2. Mach. 7. [...]ecite as thoughe I wold gyue to that booke ony [...]yke autoritie with the Canonicall scriptures, but bi cause the historie is rehersed not only ther / but also [...]n Iosephus / and the examples of them ar profita­ [...]le for vs / therfor I do alledge them. That godly Mother hadd rather haue the whole fruite of her [...]odie to be miserablie destroyed / thē ons to taste of [...]wynes fleshe.

[Page] Swynes fleshe / and Adams apple / of their ve­ry Gen. 2. nature ar not so to be abhorred / for eiche of them is a goode creature of godd. But forsomutche as vnto them godd hathe ioyned his worde to forbid the tasting of them / therfor euen as Adam could not eate the forbidden apple / so could not they ea­te swynes fleashe without committing of greate synne: which rather then they wolde do / the poore babes offer themselues to the deathe / and the god­ly mother doth most stronglye therto encorage thē and most constauntly abide the same herself.

In the church of christe ther haue beene innume rable martirs / as Eusebius / and others do write / which haue most constantly abidden deathe / bicau se they wold not depart from the Religion of chri­ste / nor file thēselues with Idolatrie: They wold not put one grayne of franckinsence vppon the al­tars of the Idols / nor throwe one floure / nor ons bowe the knee before them / but suffered rather dea the. They hadd this alwais before ther eyes: Feare Matth. 10. Luc. 12. not hym that killithe the bodie / &c. And that he spea kith of killing the bodie / is likewise to be vnderston ded of taking awaye of goodes ād ritches: But he is to be feared / which after that he hath taken a­waye bothe lyfe and goodes / can throwe the soule into euerlastinge fire / feare hym.

S. Paule to persuade the Corinthians that they shuld abstayn from meates offered vnto Idols / v­sith theise reasons: Bicause they wer the Temple of 7. Cor. 8. godd. They wer the membres of christe / and ther­for [Page 17] they might not become the mēbres of an Idoll. Bicause they wer partakers of the lords table of which they could not be partakers and of the table of Deuels also. And the same thing that Paule said vnto the Corinthians / do I also saye vnto these our brethern of whom I do entreate.

Daniel his thre felows did gyue themselues / to Daniel. 3. be thrown in to the burnynge fornace / rather then they wold worshipp the kinges golden Image. But theise thinges must now be applied vnto thei se our most vnhappie Daies / in whiche / wher po­perie rulith / the godly which do dwel togither with the vngodlie / the professours of christes go­spell / I meane / With the papistes / ar compelled to be at ther Masses / and most vile and filthie Ido­latries It is not lauufull to be present at the po­py she Mas se and su­perstitions and supersticions: vnto them doth this pro posicion reatche / and of them therfor I do playnly affirme / and saye this / That it is not lawfull for thē to be present at the popishe Masses / at popis­he superstitions and idolatries. It is to well kno­wne / that many fondlye do flatter / and indeede de ceyue them selues / imagining that it is lawfull for them to be present at this popish pelf. Againste whom with all ther clokes I vse this sayinge of Paule / flye ye Idolatrie. But here they resiste and saye / that this sayinge and suche other as before I haue alledged / are to be vnderstanded of the sa­cryfices done vnto Idoles / and false goddes / and not of such supersticions as are nowe growen and vsed in papistrie / As of masses / and such like / for in [Page] the sacrifices of the gentils what so euer is done / yt is done vnto Idolles / But here in the masse that whiche ys done is done as a worshippe vnto god / for the name of godd is caled on: It hathe the begy nynge of Christes ordinaunce and institution, although that some nowghtie men abuse it: wher­fore / seinge theis do thus differ from the other / [...] can not by these sentences / and like reason be forbiddē to them / as Idolatrie was to the Corin­thiās: This they saye. But theis mē shuld considre and wel vnderstande / that theris no owtwarde worcke wiche is to be estemed as a worshippe and seruice of godd / but onlye that which is apoynted and ordeyned by godds worde so to be / which ordi naunce in the worde if it wante / it is vtterlie no­thinge ells but mans inuention what so euer it be: for worshippings of god and goddes seruice are they not / but only when they haue godds worde to beare and warraunte them. God can not be tru­ly worshipped with out faithe, for if faithe, be not in the worshippe that is done vnto god / that wor­shippe the lorde dothe abhorre / as the Prophet E­saie dothe witnes. Incēse is an abhominable thin ge vnto me / I maye not awaie with your newe moones. rc. I hate your holie dayes / rc. Thus do­the god reiect the seruice apointed in his worde / be cause it was done without faithe. If the seruice ād worshippe of God taughte in his worde maie be done with out faithe / and therfore displease god / mutch moore these worshippinges which haue not their ordinaūce in godds worde ar done withe out [Page 18] faithe / and therfor do displease godd: for faithe hathe no place at all where goddes worde is not: now these inuentions of men be they ne­uer so glorious to the eye / they be not ordeyned in godds worde / they can not therfor be doone in fay the / they can not please god / yea god dothe abhor [...] uuhat soe­uer i [...] not of [...]aith [...] synne [...]o. 14. them / and accompte them as an abhomination / [...]e cause they be not so done / in faithe Imeane In fai­the they be not done / because they are not tough [...] in godds worde / for where ther is no worde of god there is no faithe / and where no faithe is / there is no worshippe of godd / but a filthie hypocriste / and stinking abhomination. Nowe let the papistes she­we that ther masse is a worshippe of god / taughte in his worde / which we saie plainlie that they can not do / let them do it therfore if they can / and when they haue done yt / then will we saye with thē: But vntill they haue done it / their masse shall remaine a filthie and stinkinge abhomination before the lorde / and suche a thinge as the lorde dothe deteste and abhorre. If so be that we will do honour and worshippe vnto men / we are accustomed princi­pallie to obserue with what thing they are moste delighted / which thinge after that we haue per­ [...]eiued / we do it / and then do we thinke to haue be­ [...]towed our labour wel when we haue done it: God is delighted onlie with that seruice which he [...]athe set forthe in his worde / wherfore he that will [...]o godd acceptable seruice / muste do that which is worde teachethe / and in suche wi [...]e as it te­chethe / [Page] els as the lorde by the Prophet Esaie say­eth / he dothe detest and abhorre their sacrifices. And to proue that the masse with all suche popishe Isay. 1. baggadge is verye Idolatrie / I neade not to bring mani reasons / for this one thing dothe easelie teache it. There is no true god that wilbe wor­shipped with this popishe seruice: for the true liuin ge god hathe in his worde plainlie apointed the ma ner howe he wilbe worshipped / in wich word this masse / and their popishe pelfis not taughte / but they ar cleane contrarie and repugnaunte vnto it: wherfore whē the wicked papistes do their popish seruice vnto a god (they saye) it is plaine that they do not worshippe that true lyuinge godd / whō the holy scripture teachith us to knowe and worship / but sum such other godd as they haue fayned in their fantesie to be their god / such a one as is deligh ted with these their seruices: But seinge that in ve­rye dede there is no suche true god at all / as they do Imagine / the god then who m they serue is but a newe god / fantasied and invented in their owne myndes: wherfore by righte their god maye and must be called / an horribe Idoll / their masse li­kewise with all popishe seruice done vnto him / abho minable Idolatrie / And they which do such popi / she seruice vile Idolatrors. But wher as they saye that those thinges wich be done and spoken in the masse hadde their begynnynge of the ordinaun ce of Christe, and that by the wikednes of men they are corrupted: This sainge helpethe not at all / for [Page 19] in these thinges / it is not the begyn̄ynge that is to be consydered only / or that can make them good onlie / seinge they are swarued from the truithe / but nowe their nature / and vse is to be tried / whe­ther they do agree with the verie worde of god or no. what thinge hade a more pure begynynge numer. 21. euen by goddes commaundement, then the bra­sen serpent? It was erected god both willinge and commādinge it. It was sett forthe with miracles / for whosoeuer dyd beholde it he was deliuered from the bytinge of deathlie serpentes / But this not withstondinge when mē dyd worshippe the same serpent and offered incēse vnto it / the godlie 4 Reg. 18. dyd so abhorre it / that Ezechias that moste holy kyn ge not regardinge at all the begynnynge of yt / dyd breake it in peces / and vtterlie destroyed the wor­shippinge of yt / Therfore it is not sufficiēt to cōsider the begynnynge of a thinge / but howe the ordre and vse of yt doth agree wyth the firste institu­tion and ordinaunce. This acte of Ezechias is praised in the scripture. And wolde to god that we [...]ade now an Ezechias wich wold so handle the masse. ffurthermoore our men wolde haue this thinge to be consydered in them / that thoughe they go to the masse / yet they haue no mynde to decline [...]d departe frome god / but that they worshipp hym [...]her: vnto this I answer / that the Israelites when they dyd compell Aaron to make them a cal­ [...]e to worshippe / they hade not indede that mynde [...]hat they wolde fall frō the true lyuynge god / so [Page] that they wolde no more confesse that he deliuered them out of Egypte / but this only was their myn­de they wolde not reteyne that worship of the in­uisible god which was deliuered them in worde / but they wolde worshippe the true God vnder some signe / and visible forme and shape / whiche sholde represent vnto them the liuinge God their deliuerer: And that shape or forme they moste de­syred to haue / wich they hade seene the Egyptians vse to represente vnto them their god: They vsed the forme or shape of an oxe / the very same forme wolde the Israelytes nowe haue: And as the very heathen men mighte haue sayde that they worshipped the one only true liuinge god the Au­thor and maker of all thinges / whose maiestie was shewed / figured / and set forthe vnto them by those diuers signes / and formes / which they dyd worshippe: As that the signe of Minerua dyd set forthe his wisdom: the signe of Mars his migh­te and power: the signe of Iupiter his Iustice and goodnes: So wolde the Israelites haue their god and deliuerer set forthe vnto them in the shape of a Calfe / not that they mynded to turne awaye from him / or to denye him (as they thoughte) but becau­se they wolde worshippe him as it pleased their fantesie. But we muste not apoynte the manier and ordre of godds seruice after our mynde and iudgment / or as they cōmonlye saye / after the goo­de intent of men: for this doinge in the Israelites god did not like / but for yt he punyshed them gre­vouslye: [Page 20] Nether dyd Moses alowe it / for he knewe that god wolde not so be worshipped. This cloke therfore must haue no place in this matier. but we muste see whether god will haue suche worshipe and seruice / whether goddes worde tea­chethe yt / whether it be clothed with the worde of truithe / which if it haue not / then dost thou not worship the true god with that worshippe which pleasethe him. Ieroboā thought mutch after this sorte / for his mynde was not to drawe the people awaye from the worshippe of the god Iehouah 3. Reg. 12. but he feared les if they sholde customablie go to the temple at Hierusalem / the people wolde fall from his kingdom and ioyne themselues agayne to the house ād stocke of Dauid: wherfore he se [...]in­ge his owne profite / sayde / that it was not nedefull that they sholde go up vnto the temple / and to the Arke of the couenaunte when they wolde worship the true god: for the same god which was repre­sented vnto thē by the Arke of wodde ād the tēple / mighte euen aswell be represented vnto them by these newe signes and golden calues: There is no chaunge but evē of the forme and owtwarde sha­pe: for as at Hierusalem by the Arke / so here by the calues the liuinge god sholde be represented: And what make the yt matter what the signe be / so the worshippe be all oone: Therfore the same wor­shipp that ells they sholde do at Hierusalem / they mighte more commodiusli do yt in bethel / and dan. So that he dothe nothynge ells / but esta­blishe [Page] this owtwarde worke / in wich he wolde ha­ue thē worship the true god: but he hade no war­raunte in godds worde for it / and that beinge ab sent / ther is nothinge in his acte remayninge but mans worcke / supersticion / and Idolatrie: so is it iudged. And therfor none of his subiectes shuld haue herckned to hym. So now / when Tira­unts / Kinges / Queenes / Bisshopps / and such other as ar the soudiours of Antichriste / the Pope I meane / do compel and constrayn men vnto such vile and vngodly supersticions as the popishe bro od haue and do sett upp, althoughe they do pre­tend a goode well willing mynde vnto their poep­le and countrith (as thei saye) and that all shal­be for their wealthe: And thoughe they do also saye / that theise thinges ar of an auncient begyn̄yn ge and cōtynuaunce: Yet indeede they ar but po­pishe Idolatrours / and to Idolatrie do they trayn men. Therfor their subiectes must not herken vn­to them neither obey them herin / But do rather as S. Paule teachith. Haue no felowshipp with the­ir vnfruitfull works / but rather reproue thē. He cal Ephes. 5. lith theim their worckes, for gods worckes they cā not be called / bicause they do differ / ād swarue frō his worde: with thē (saithe he) haue no felowshipp What then is to be doon in that case? We must (Paule saith) reproue theim. And that so ost as ne­ede shall require / to reproue theim with greate libertie and boldenes: So farr must we be from dissemblinge with them / that we must (he saithe) [Page] reproue them. If thou be a preacher / preache aga­inst them: If thow be noone / yet speake against them / reproue them / and condemn them. But our men do saye / That it wer very perillus to do thus: for then (saye they) shall we be burned / or hanged / we shall loose our goodes / londes / and promo­cions / I heare you well. And do yowe on the other part consider this as well / that ther is not one of us all which hath receiued christendome vnder such a conuenaunt and condicion / that with it he shuld haue and holde in safetie his lyfe / his rit­ches / and dignities without perseqution: But ra­ther it is saide vnto us / and in this case as a lawe layed vppon us all / that Except we do renownce Math. 16. and vtterly forsake all our thinges and take upp our crosses and folow christe / we can not be his di sciples / and except we do lose our lyues we shall not saue them.

This verily / this must we determyn with our sel­ues / this must we appoint our selues vnto / to do and abide this must we caste our acompt / To this euery christian must be so readie and bent / that he shuld not doubt / no not deliberate or take aduise of this matier.

That example of Cyprian is to be sett before our eyes: When he was brought vnto the place wher Ciprian. he shuld suffer deathe / The magistrate being very desirus indede to deliuer hym from deathe / sayde vnto hym. Now I do gyue the space to deliberate and aduise thi self well / whether thow wilt thus [Page] Wrechedly dye / or obey / and be let go free. To whō this godly mā answered. In so holy a thinge / ther is no deliberacion or aduise to be taken. This readi­nes must euery christian haue in this case to beare the crosse ād to followe Christe as Christes dis [...]iple. Trulye they whiche be not this wise mynded / but to saue their lyues and goodes do defile them sel­ues with masses / and wicked supersticions / arr greuouslye punished for it euen present lie: firste their owne conscience dothe miserably torment thē. Secondlie the light of goddes truithe which a greuus punishe­ment. was opened vnto their mynde is by lytell and ly­tell put owt. Then the loue of the truithe and the hate of falshode waxeth colde in them▪ fourthly their mynde becommith nomore displeased or vn­quieted for the euill that they do / but they begynne to please them selues in this their euill and dissem­blinge / yea ād do go aboute to persuade others ūto the same. Laste of all they begyn to hate thē which do not harcken to their aduise and counsell / which is to do as they do / yea and they stirre vp againste thē sharpe persequtiō / for so moche as in thē lyethe. This hathe bene the moste vnhappie ende of many. But this is not the end of all their miserie / as ye may well perceyue / if ye do consider what is appo­inted to be their perpetuall porcion / which shalbe payed them full truly in the laste daye. Let them therfore beware of this bottomles pytt which fea­re to breake their neckes. But some there are which in this their dissemblinge are wonte to defende [Page 23] thē selues after this sorte: we do not theis thinges (saye they) with our hartes / we do only thusbeha­ue our selues in bodie / and in outward behauiour. To whom I do answer: god he is the lorde of har­te and bodie / as he requireth the worshippe of the harte / euen as iustlie and seuerlie dothe he com­maunde the owtwarde worshippe of the bodye: for these owtwarde doinges are a kinde of confes­sion / and therfore as men owght to be sounde and vprighte in the beleif of harte / so owght they to be in owtwarde cōfessinge and expressinge of their go dlynes and religiō. The doinges of men be as it we re a tongue: The tongue dothe confes the thinge that lyeth in the harte by wordes: so doinges do gi­ue a confession therof indede: As he therfore which denyethe with tongue is a denyer of Christe / so he thatin owtwarde worckes and doinges de­nyeth Christ / is iustlie called a deniar. Of whom Christe doth saye. he that denyeth me before men / mat. 10. him will I denye before my father which is in hea­uē: wherfore as the tōgue owghte not in the confes­sion of godlines and religion to differ from the mynde / so muste not the owtwarde doinges of the body disagree from the same. And vnto these men this also I saye / with paule / that the belefe of the harte doth iustifie / but the mouthe and owtwarde Rom. 1 [...]. doinges do make the confession vnto saluation / And therfore Christe dothe saie / he that is asha­med mar. 8. of me before men / of him will I also be asha­med before my father which is in heauen. Moro­uer [Page] I wold it wer well knowen vnto these men / that it is no true faythe which doth not breake for­the in workinge that worke which dothe agree with faithe. As it writen of Christe / who verylie soughte the glorye of his father / The zeale of thy house hathe eatē me / This zeale dyd not lye in Chri stes brest only / but it brake forthe into wordes / as it apeareth by his sermons / and into deedes also / as yt apeareth ther / wher he withe a whippe dyd dryue the byars and sellers owt of the temple: This is a zeale / which only deseruyth the name of a christian zeale. And euen the same I saye of fay­the. What zeale thē / what faithe / what studie or ca re for faithe is it / that these men do bragge of / that they haue shutt up so close in their brestes that it breaketh not forthe into wordes and dedes? As This true christian zeale / and their dissemblinge can not be together in oone man / euen so true and lyuely faith can not lurcke in such a dissemblinge breste. Furthermore / there are two kindes of worshippe due unto god / an inwarde / and an owtwarde worshippe / The inwarde worshippe is of the mynde / that is when we beleue god­des truithe / and do thinke of god true and wor thye thinges / The owtwarde worshippe is of the bodye / which is declared by those owtwar­de signes that do belonge to the true worshippe of god / In lyke maner there are two kindes of Ido­latries / one is inwarde / which is the Idolatrie of the mynde / that is when a man dothe not thinke [Page 24] well / nor beleue trulye [...]nthe true lyuing godd / but dothe fayne vnto him selfe throughe false doctrine / either a straūge god in his owne mynde / or straūge worshippinge of god: An other is outwarde wich is Idolatrie of the bodie / and that is whē we do be stowe the worshippe wich is only due vnto god vp pon creatures / And whē we do owtwardlye wor­shippe god other wise then he wilbe worshipped. Truly Theise dissemblers do not giue to god this worshipp of mynde and bodie which is due vn­to him / but the Idolatrie of mynd and bodie they do commytt / bothe because they owtwardlie do ioyne with papistes in their Idolatrie / and because in their mynde they do persuade them selues that it is lawfull for them so to do. We thinke / (saye they) as you thinke / and in our hartes we do retey­ne the truithe / and so our mynde is pure. But your bodyes ye do giue ouer to the deuill and to Idolls. Thy bodye / sayeth Paule / is a membre of Christe / why doest thow make yt the membre of an harlot? 1. Cor. 6. here they will saye againste me / that Paule spake this of whordome / I graunte that: But the pro­phettes do teache vs that the moste vile and horri ble whordome is Idolatrie. Hieremie / Ezechiel / ād the other prophettes do speake so against the I­ues and their Churche / that they name it to be euen like an harlot which hathe opened her legges vn [...] everye tree that hade any bowghes to Idolls and vngodlye Idolatries. Wherfore if thow maye not make thy bodye the membre of an harlot, thow mu [Page] ste not make yt the membre of an Idoll. This colla­tion betuene whordome and Idolatrie is playne and true / taughte by the prophettes and Paule. Morouer howe vayne this ther excuse is / that say­inge dothe sufficyentlie declare / in which the lorde pronounceth. I haue lefte me seuen thowsand in Israell / of which neuer man bowed his knees vn­to 3. Reg. 19. baal / nor kissed hym with his mouthe. He say­eth not / which thinke well in their mynde / which do beleue well / but he sheweth the signe of owt­warde worshippinge / that is to bowe the knee / and kisse. which doth teache that ther is required vnto the true worshipp of godd / not a pure mynde only / but the owtwarde sygne / tokē / and doinge of wor­shippe / and seruice. The lorde our god is not cōtent with halfes / he will not part stakes with the dyuel. All knees (saith the lorde) shall bowe vnto me. God will not parte so / that he shall haue the mynde / and Esay. 45. the dyuell the bodye. All is myne / saythe the lorde / and I will haue all or none / I will haue bothe the obedience of the harte and the bowinge of the knee: Which worship by these thy dissemblinges thou takest from god / and so thou dost robbe him of his honor / and bestowe it vpon Idolles / euen po pishe masses. But thou saiste / I despise the Mas­se / and all Idolatrous poperie in my harte: why then doest thou prostitute thy body vnto yt? My mynde ys pure thou saiest: yee / but god will haue mynde and bodye pure. If this thy reason and ex­cuse were of any force / then mighte the Corinthiās [Page] haue sayde to Paule / why doest thou so reproue vs? we also by the grace of god do knowe that there is no Idoll. A true opinion we kepe in our mynde of godd his truithe / let god be cōtent with that / and in the meane tyme our bodies shall serue for our cōmo dyties. But paule telleth them plainlye that they do 1. Cor. 10. communicate with devills. The meates offered to Idolls of their owne nature were pure / yet when the corinthians do eate them with the Idolatrors in ther Idolatrie / then they become (saith paule) partakers of the table of deuilles: when ye then be present at a Masse / which is an Impure thinge / and do ther as the papistes do / mutch more iustly is it sayed of you / that then ye ar partakers of thos deulishe dragges which ar in the Masse. Again our men do obiecte and saye: It is not we that haue corrupted theis thinges / we wolde be glad­de to haue them pure and incorrupte: ther impuri­tie must not be adscribed vnto us. I answer: An other mans synne shall not indeede be imputed vn­to the / for eche man shall beare his owne synne: but yet this thinge I do reproue in the / that thou dost communicate with wickednes: This is thy synne / here thou art defyled. and for this shalt thou be iud­ged. Paule sayde vnto the corinthians: Ar not they 1. Cor. 1 [...]. which do eate of the sacrifice / partakers of the temple? what saye I then? that the Image is any thinge? or that it which is offered to Images is any thinge? [...]aie. but this I saie / that the thinges which the gentills do offer / they offer to deuels [Page] and not to god. I wolde not that ye sholde haue fel­lowshippe with the devills: ye can not drincke of the cuppe of the lorde / and of the cuppe of Deuels / ye can not be partakers of the table of the lorde and of the table of deuels. Thoughe corrupcion of meates offred vnto Idols is not to be imputed to all them that be partakres of them / (which wer not indeede corrupt of thē selues (as I saide) but when they wer offered vnto Idols that made them corrupte) yeat the veraye communicating and ea­ting of them with Idolatrors is a fault iustly la­yed to their charge / from which they shuld haue ke­apte themselues aswell for the honor that they do owe vnto godd / as for the conscience which they ought to haue to edyfie other men. If it wer not so / whi did paule thus rebuke the Corinthians? Yea whi wolde not our holy martirs of the primitiue churche communicat and be partakers in the Sacri fices of the heathē? The martirs might haue saide / we knowe [...]hat an Idoll is nothing / and to offer vp sence to them is but an owtward thing / we do it but in bodie / our spret and harte is pure / and tha [...] we do / against our will we do it &c. They veryly did know no suche excuse / but they cōsidered that godd required this / that they shuld outwardly confes hym / and reproue / and fle from Idolatrie: And therfor aswell for their duties sake towarde godd / as bicause they wold not offend the brethern by their example / they did gyue their lyfe in the quarel [...] without making ony such blinde excuses.

[Page 26] These men do saye further that the Masse is not to be lickened iustly vnto the Idolatrie of the hea­then / for that was directly forbidden of godd / so is not the Masse / saye they: for thoughe it hathe sumwhat swarued aside / yeat is it the Instituciō of christe. But to the contrarie I do saye / that the Masse is so farr swarued from the ordinaunce of christe / that it hathe nothing agreing withe chri­stis Institucion / yea and that it is most directly re­pugnāt ūto it / A very Idoll / wherin massemūgers do committe very vile Idolatrie. And this will I proue by diuers reasons. ffurst of all. The Sup­per of the Lorde / as it was delyuered of christe shold be a publique and a common worcke and a­ction: for Christe our Sauiour made it with his A­postles. But nowe in the Masse / ther commi­the forthe one sacrificing preste / disguised with straunge araye / and he doth all thinges alone / the rest stonde still loking / heeringe / and holding their peace. If paule did worthely and Iustly saye / when the Corinthians did not tarie and loke one for an other / that they did not then eate the Lor­des supper / then ther is not the Lordes supper eaten / wher one tarieth not for an other so that they maye eate all together: And how shall we then saye / that the Masse is the Lordes supper / wher one only sacryficing prest doth eate and drincke vpp all alone? surly it can not be so cal­led: for to be, and not to be the Lords supper / ar [Page] contrarie / Paule saith / it is not the Lords supper / wherfor call your Masse by what name ye will / the Lords supper it is not / for paule is to be beleaued be fore all massinge marchauntes.

They saye morouer that in their Masse / they do of­fer vpp the sonne of godd vnto the eternall father for the synnes of the quicke and the deade: And this they do call the principall point of their masse. But in the Laste Supper of the Lorde that Sacrifice and oblaciō was not made / but vppō the crosse / as the scripture witnessith. And as for this their offer [...] ge / ffurst / paul doth denie it in most playn words in the epistle to the hebrues / wher he sayeth that all Heb. 9. 10. oblacions for synne wer consummate and finished / and all thinges made perfect by that one only ob­lacion / which christe Iesus our Sauiour in his own parson made of hymself vppon the crosse. The worde of godd teachithe / that christe was but ons only to be sacrificed and offered / And that Sa­crifice no more to be made: for if it wer often to be made / then the furst was not perfect / But the furst was perfect / Therfor ther must be no repea­ting of it. The papistes do saye / that they dayly offer christe for to take awaye synne / and that this Sacrifice must be dayly repeted of them /

The scripture denieth this playnly: And thus ye do se that heere is a playne contradiction.

Again The supper of the Lorde was not insti­tuted [Page 27] to the end that such a sacrifice for synne (as they fayne) shuld be made of it / but that in the vse of it the communicantes shuld be put in myn­de / and made partakers of that only propiciato­rie sacrifice which christe offered ons only for all euer vppon the crosse. And therfor ther Masse / in which they wold worcke such marueyles / and the Lordes supper ar vtterly vnlyke. But here they will reply and saye.

The fathers do speake thus of this Sacrifice / We graunte indeede / that the fathers do often tymes speake so as thoughe that the lorde wer of­fered in this administracion of the Sacrament / or sacrificed: But they vsed this worde / Sacrifi­ce, improperly / for by that kinde of speaking they did vnderstonde / the offringes of praise / and sa­crifices of thanckes made and gyuen for christes sacrifice done vppon the crosse / This they called to sacrifice. Our sacrificing prests ar not con­tent with this / for they will haue their own wor­cke to be an vnwonted worcke / belonging to them alone / which neither the scriptures / nor the fathers do teache: ffor to offer this Sacri­fice of which the fathers do speake / partayneth not to the preist alone / but to the whole poeple that stōdith by / and doth cōmunicate / And so it is a [Page] common oblacion and sacrifice of all / not of the preiste more then of the poeple / but this only that the preist both in wordes and action / doth go be fore thepoeple.

Augustine doth saye / that the churche is offered in that offeringe which it doth offer. ffor all which do de Ciuita­te dei. lib. 10. cap. 6. communicate / they do offer them selues vnto godd / and do testifie that their will is / to abide in christe.

The papistes do holde also that the breade is tur­ned into the substaunce of christes bodie / and that ther remaynith nothing but the qualitie and accidē ce of breade as whitenes / rc. for the substaūce / saye they / is christes bodie. But the scripture saith that christe in his laste supper did gyue breade vnto his disciples / and paule callith it breade also / yeat in the Masse the papistes saye that it is otherwise. 1. Cor. 11.

The vse of the breade and wyne by christis instituciō is only / that the congregacion shuld eate and drin cke therof in the remembrance of christe / But the pa pistes in their Masse do most shamefully abuse them both. ffor wheare as the worde of godd saythe: Thow shalt worshipp the Lorde thy godd Deutron 6 math. 4. and hym only shalt thow serue / They in ther masse do lyfte upp the breade and wyne / and euen in the rowme of godd they sett them furthe to be adored and worshipped of the poeple: now how farr this differrith from the vse of christes supper eich man may se. Yea what can be more vile and filthie Idola trie / then to adore and worshipp a peace of brede ād cupp of wyne / as godd? Be not offended that I do [Page 82] vse theise bare names. I do confes / that whosoeuer acording to the Lordes Instituciō doth cōmunica te with the cōgregaciō and dothe eate the breade ād drinke of the cupp of the Lorde / beholding the deathe of christe with Lyuely faithe / the same man is in spre te ād after his manier / made partaker of the body ād bludd of the lorde. Contrari wise if thow do not vse the breade and wyne acordinge to the ordinaunce of christe / but gase vppon them / then ar they nothin ge els to the / but breade ād wyne: But if in a popishe Masse / or in the popishe hāging / heauing / carying / or handelinge of them / thow do worshipp them / thē ar they vnto the a false Idoll / ād thow indeede a filthie Idolatror. If therfor thow wilt be partaker of the body and bludd of christe in the holy supper / then eate the breade and drincke the cupp as the lor­de hathe instituted. Godd wold haue the poeple in the vse of the holy Supper to ascend vppwarde into heauen in mynde and affectiō / that they might ther cleaue fast vnto christe. And therfor the true ministers of the churche do labour to [...]he vttermost of their poure / thus to lifte vpp the poeples mynde into heauen / that they shuld not seeke christe in the worlde / [...]at they shuld not thinck ony fleshly or ear thely thinge of hym: Theise men clean contrarie in the order of their Sacrament and Masse do misera­bly detayn the poeple in the earthe / bynding and hol ding them to the visible signes.

The apostle commaundith that thinges shuld not 1. Cor. 14 not be doone in the congregacion in a straunge ton­gue / [Page] except ther wer an Interpretour / that the thing being vnderstonded of all / the hearers might saye / Amen / and that the edifyinge of them shuld be sought. Now theise men in their masse do all in the Laten tongue / which is to the common poe­ple vnknown / and they do defend this theyr doing euen against the worde of godd. But it is most cer­tayn that christe our sauiour in his admini­stration / and after him all his apostles and disci­ples which wer hebrues / vsed theyr vulgare he­brue tongue / the Grecians also their greke tonge. And euen vnto this daye the Sclauonians in their churches vse their vulgare and commen speache.

Those wordes of our greate and singuler con­solation / in wich the partakinge of Christes bodye and bloude is promised / the papistes in their Masse speake secretlie / they whisper them so that euen they which knowe the Latine tonge cā neither heare thē nor vnderstande them. And so do they rumble them vp to their owne selues as thoughe the people were vnworthie to heare thē: But christ in his super spa­ke thē openlie. And so the greke churche ād the Chur che of India / do yet speake thē with ā audible voice And the aunciēt manier was / as Ambrose and Au­gustie amōg other of the fathers do testifie that the people dyd answer vnto those words. Amē. But as I suppose the papistes do thus murmure ād spea­ke these words in secrete / bicause they wolde not ha ue their Lies knowen / for they do saye / Take ye and [Page 29] eate / and this so oftē as ye do / do yt in the remēbraū ce of me. But who taketh / or to whō do they giue? The wordes be spokē to the people: And yet they thē selues do eate and drinke vp all alone / and do di­stribute vnto no mā ells. Is not this to make a lie? To lie alwaies is takē to be an euill thīge / but befo­re god to lie / is a moste shamles and wiked thinge: who dothe eate (o ye lyyng papistes) or who doth drinke wyth you? If ye do distribute at any tyme to ony other ye do yt not when ye your selues receyue / but ye chose for them an other time / yea and ano­ther kinde also / for to thē ye do minister but the bre­ade onlye. Thus ye se that all theise thinges which these massers do in their masse / ar contrarye to the institution of Christe. Ther masse then and Christes supper ar not lyke

The papistes saye that by their Action (I meane ther handeling of ther breade and wyne) they do ap plie vnto others the profitt of Christs bloudie sacri­fice and passiō. Of a Sacramēt they saye that they make sacrifices to profit the quicke and the Deade, and this do they ī ther masse: But the scripture tea­cheth / that there is but one only propiciatorie sacri­fice / able and auaylable to take awaie synnes / whi­che Christe Iesus offered in his owne fleshe vpon the Crosse. And that euerie man muste applie vnto him selfe by liuelie faythe the benefite of that same sacrifice of christe / as the scripture teacheth likewi­se / that eche man is iustified by his owne faithe, and [Page] that eche man in his owne righteousnes or vnrigh teousnes / doth liue / or die. It teachithe also that christe did institute the sacrament only to this end that the congregacion shuld eate and drincke it in the remēberaunce of that same his Sacrifice. And that eicheone in the drincking therof shuld apply vn to himself by faithe / the fruite of that Sacrifice. Now compare the doctrine of the scriptures and of the papistes in this pointe together / and thou shalt se that their Masse is contrarie to christes In stitucion. But as they haue / so still will they saye:

That aswell the liuing as the deade be helped by this their acte applied at their pleasure. If they wolde saie that thei profyt others by praier / that were tollerable. But they go further and saie / that ther verye massinge worcke it selfe / hathe so moche vertue / power ād strenghthe in it / that it shall profit not only all kyndes of mē / but all such creatures ād beastes for whom they do say ther masse / bicause in it they do applye the benefite of christes passion: but ye must vnderstōd whē they be payed for ther labor. This is an horrible error in no wise to be suffered / for as I sayed / ther is but one only sacrifice propicia torie to take awaye synne / which one sacrifice eiche one of us must applie vnto our selues by liuelie fay­the / And this applyinge faithe is the only gifte of god: But on this grounde buylde they their pur­gatorie and mutch other such pélf / by which they do pyckemens purses. They saye ther Masses also [Page] in the honor of this / or of that saincte. And of what saintes? suche verylie whose histories are not certa­ynlie knowen / and are of none authoritie / yea many of thē are no better then poetes fables / of whō not vnworthelie we doubte whether they be sainctes or no: But be it that they were true sainctes / yet this their doinge is moste cōtrarie to christes ordinance / for Christe did institute his supper to this ende that it sholde be used in the remembrance of his deathe and not of other mens / weare they neuer so ho­lye.

In their masse they haue also diuers and sun­drie rytes ād customs / clothes / signes / gestures / tor nes / remouinges / ād blissinges / of and with the bre ade ād wine / but christe vsed none of all theis in his supper: And what they do meane by these thinges the poeple doth not knowe / neither can the priestes them selues for the most part tell what is ment by them: for if ye aske the meaninge of them / either cā they saye nothinge at all / or if they do saie owghte / they do not saye all one thinge / but thinges that be moste cōtrarie / wherby a mā maie iudge that there is no truithe at all in their wordes. But here they do saie. Thinkest thou that the foolishe vnlearned peo ple in the olde Lawe dyd vnderstand all the le­gall ceremonies? no it was not requisite / nomore is yt nowe: To this I answer / Althoughe that all the poeple dyd not knowe what was mente by them in the olde lawe / It sufficed yet that they hade the wor de of god for them / Nowe do yee shewe vnto vs the [Page] worde of god for theise your signes and it shall suf­fice vs.

Agayne the godly and lerned preistes could shew what was ment by the rites and ceremonies o [...] the lawe / and that by the word of godd: but y [...] can do neyther of theis: for ye haue enuented theis toyes in your own braynes: signes ye do call them but ye do not know what thinges they do signi­fie. And therfor as in rites your Masse doth differ from christes supper / so whē ye saye your pleasure o [...] your rites / ye ar not to be beleaued: for faith hath no place where goddes worde doth not shew it self Isaide that massemungers in their masse do com­mitt Idolatrie. Their bready god hanged vp i [...] a pix / and their Images / vnto which they turn [...] them selues and do make their moste vncleane ser­uice and sacrifice do proue this true: Neither do they accompte it sufficient to behold theis their Idole when they saye their Masses / but also they do of­fer vnto them / they cense them / they bowe the kne [...] vnto them: let them nowe denye whilest they will that they do not worship the breade / nor the Ima­ges / yet this worship they do them / This kinde o [...] worship (Isaye) which is giuen customabilie vnt [...] god alone / as the lawe of god teacheth. But seing [...] they giue this vnto these Idols / are they not. Ido [...] latrors? yes truly. And howe thē dare ony christia [...] be present there / to vncouer the heade to bowe th [...] kne to offer and do such like thinges with them?

[Page 31] They saye that ther Masse is christes Institu­tion / And our men (of whom I now haue spo­ken) do saye that the Masse hath sum affinitie with christes institucion of the holy supper.

But I saye that the olde heathens myghte wyth more coloure of truithe / excuse and defende their sacrifices by that maner / then these men maye do their masse. For verylye the sacrifices of the hea­then have lesse departed from the maner which the fathers vsed in sacrificinge before the lawe giuē / which also the lorde approued in the lawe / thē these massers do frome the supper which Christe / and the Apostle paule hathe prescribed. In bo­the their sacrifices was the inuocation of god / a Temple / an Aultar / slayne sacrifices / sacrificin­ge priestes / sleynge of beastes / sheddinge of blou­de / salte / wine / oyle / mele / an holy feaste / holy garmentes / washinge / censinge / fyer / singin­ge / prophecies / and suche other thinges / all which to repeate it were to longe: let our Massers (if they can) shewe so many thinges in their masse agreinge with the thinges which Christe did in the holye supper: Which thinge if they can not do / then let them cease to boaste that their Masse is the institution of Christ and the Apo stles / from which it differethe so farre that if the Apostles and fathers of the primatyue churche were nowe here to beholde this [Page] masse / they sholde not knowe it to be the lords sup­per / but wolde surlie marueyle at suche a monstruo us mahometrie.

Iomytte also that in and with their Masse they ha ue many Anniuersaries yearemyndes / diriges done for the deade: But The Lord did not institute ony of them. If they saye that Cyprian and others of the fathers do speake of suche Annyuersaries: I answer that those of which the fathers do make mencyon / were nothinge els but thāckfull remēbraūces of the Martirs departed / in which they did gyue thancks to godd for thē. They also in their Masses do call vp pon the saintes and holy men departed / which is a thing most contrarie to true godlynes / and vtterly vnknown and vnpractised in the administracion of the Lordes supper.

And to be shorte all their thinges which they do in their Masses / they do choppe and chaūge / they bye and sell and sett them furthe to most vile and filthie gayne. Wherfor / my most Louing Brethern take ye diligent heede / les whilest ye pretend to worshipp godd in your going to Masses / and to entreate hym to be mercifull vnto yow / yedo not most migh tyly kindle his wrathe against you by hearinge of theise Masses: which as ye playnly do se / ar no­thing els but a shamfull deuise sett upp to deface the deathe of christe / a pestilent practise fownde out to ouerthrowe the true vse of the Lordes supper / and an Idolatrie invented to infect the poeple and to make them Idolatrors. [Page 32] whearby eich man may easily indge / how great a synne it is / to be partaker of a Masse.

But notwithstondinge all this which is spo­ken / yeat theise men whiche thincke that they maye dissemble at the Masse / cease not to saye / That thou­ghe the Masse be not the Lords supper / but an Ido latrie / yet is not the presēce at it so earnestly to befor bidden / seing that such thinges haue beene gran̄ted vnto the Infirmities of mē: If a man do aske them wheare: They do bringe forth the Example of Naa­man Naman. the Syrian / and by it they will neades haue it made Lawfull vnto them to communicate with wi cked supersticiōs. for he prayed [...]eliseus / saye they / 4. Reg. 5. that he might be suffred to kneele in the temple of Rymmon that Idoll / whē the kinge did worshipp / and leane vppon his arme. whom the prophet an­swered / goo in peace. And that / saye they / which was permitted vnto Naaman / whi do ye forbyd vnto us? Furst theise men shuld weye with them selues / whether that we only haue redde this Example of Naaman / or not. [...]o we thincke that the holy Apostles and Martirs of the olde churche which wer occupied nighte and daye in the holy scriptures / did not consider this acte and Exam­ple? Truly they wer not ignorant of the histo­rie / yet did they neuer knowe this vnderstandin­ge of it: for if they did / whi then wolde they not fo­low this example / especially when they might therby haue saued their lyues?

But these holy and godly learned men did see [Page] that thinge in this historie / which our men do not consider / namely this / that Naamā now newly cō ­uerted to the faithe was a smoking flaxe which was not to be putt out / a weake and shaken reade which was not to be brosed in peices / and that as yet he was very weake / for he was not yet prepared and readye to denye and forsake hymself and all that was his for goddes sake. He thought that it might cōme to pas that he shuld together with the know­ledge of the Lyuing godd / easili holde and keape still his old place / office / and dignitie / if he coulde hap­pen to haue that / which he desired of the prophet: And when he did well perceyue that this was his infirmitie and synne / it trobled himso that therfor he desired the prayers and helpe of Heliseus: he desi­red hym / that if he shuld happen to fall into this e­uill / yeat that he might be fauored / that he mighte finde mercie / ād that Heliseus wold praye that the Lorde wolde forgyue hym. Who doth at ony tyme aske forgyuenes for that which he accōptithe Law­full? forgyuenes is asked for synnes only / Naaman therfor acknowledged this his acte to be a synnes And if I so fall (quod he) then praye the Lorde to forgyue me. This place therfor doth make most a­gainst our men / and euen the same wayes which they go about to excuse their facte / by the same it is most playnly proued to be synne. Let them aknow­ledge therfor in their doīge that thinge / which Na­aman the Sirian did. And let them begg the mer­cie of godd / and the prayers of godly men / that the [Page 33] same thing which they haue euell doone / and do / maye be pardoned them. Neither did Eliseus / as our men do thincke / graunte Naaman licence or li­bertie to do so as he hadd sayde / but only he saide vnto hym / goo in peace: which manier of speaking was a kind of takinge leaue vsed in that age. And as for ony other thinge ther can none be gathered out of thos wordes / onles it be this that he promi­sed to do that which Naaman required: goo thy wa yes (saithe he) I will do as thow desirest / I shall praye for the. The prophet doth not reiect hym / if he shuld fall into this euell. As we do not vtterly reiect nor shutt theise mē frō grace which thus do fall: Ye­ [...]t must we sharply reproue their doinges that they may acknowledge their fault and synne / and vnfay [...]edly lament and repēt the same. And we ought al­so hartily to praye that they may be raysed vpp aga­yn. They do obiect also certayn wordes out of the E­pistle of Ieremie / which is ētitled Baruch. The wor des ar theise. Now shall ye see in Babilon godds of Bar. 6. golde / of syluer / of wodde / and of stone / borne vppō mens shulders to caste out a fearefulnes before the heathē / But loke that ye do not as the other: be not afrayed let not the feare of thē ouercome yowe. Ther for when ye do [...]ee the multitude of poeple worship­ping them behinde and before / saye yee in your har­ [...]es / O Lord / it is thow that oughtest only to be worshipped / Of theise wordes our men do ga­ther / that it is sufficient for them when they ar present at Idolatries / [Page] Masses / and popishe supersticions / to saye in ther harte / O Lord it is thow that oughtest only to be worshipped. In answer to these men: furst I saye / that this booke entitled Baruch is none of the Canonicall scriptures: And therfor no man is bownd to the doctrine of it. But admitt the booke wer of sufficient auctoritie / Then theise men must vnderstonde / that the prophet doth not gyue the Iues leaue to comme vnto the temples of Idols / that ther they might be present at vngodly Idola­trie / bowe ther knee / and so make vpp the matier / with sayinge in their hart to the true and lyuyng godd / O Lord / it is thow that oughtest only to be worshipped. But he gyuith the Iues instruction against Images which wer caried about / ād Ido latries which wer vsed in those places wher they were exiles: ffor the Maneir of the Babilonians was / not only to haue Images in ther tēples / but also to haue them sett abroode and caried openly vppon mens shulders. As it is not vnlike that the Image of Nabugodonosor, which beinge dedica­ted in the feilde of dura, was caried aboute the who le Regiō with Musicall Instrumētes ād sōges / at the sownde of which whersoeuer the Image was seene / commaundemēt was gyuē vnto all mē that they shuld worshipp it: which Daniels felows wol de not do. Of theise thinges I saye / that epistle en­treatithe / playnlye to warne the godly / that they shuld not adore / nor worshipp thos Idols thoug­he that the heathenishe poeple did so bothe before [Page 33] them / and behind them / but when they did see this Idolatrie / detesting it / they shuld then saye / O lord / it is thou to whome worshipp doth only belōge: he saied not / bowe the knee with thē / and saye in your hartes / o lord / it is thou rc. but when ye do see these Idols and Idolatrye / say so. These seyngs and sud­dayn meetings in the cytie streetes ād fieldes / could not be auoyded / and therfor the godly were to be en­structed and admonished / how they shuld behaue them selues in that case.

But our men / as they are veraye bolde to abuse the scripture for their purpose / go on further and as­ke / how it happened that Daniel was not throwen into the fierie fornace with his felowes? seing lyke Daniel. 3. punishement was appointed vnto all men which did not worshippe. They will of necessitie haue it graunted them therfor / that Daniel did dissemble / (as they now do) and that therfor nothing was do­ne vnto hym: And that thinge which Daniel dyd / they thincke that they maye do. I aunswer our men thus / that they do not reason well to saye / He was not punished / therfor he was ther and worshipped / they do put more in the consequēt / then is in the an­tecedēt / and so to reason is to make a subtill cauilla­cion / taking that to be a cause which is no cause. For there might be many other causes / wherfor Daniel was not likewise punished: happilie the Image ād he did not meete together: or yf he did meete it / men did not mark what he did: or els though men marc­ [...]ed that he did not worshipp / yet he was not accu­sed: [Page] or yf he were accused / yet through the singula [...] fauour which the King did beare vnto him he was delyuered from punishmēt. It must not then forthe with folowe / that Daniel for feare of death did pre­sent himself before that Idoll / and did dissemble his Religion / doing there as other Idolatrors did: this we must not iudge of Daniel / seing in the lyfe qua­rell / he was not afrayed to be thrown vnto the lyōs. Daniel. 6. Now seing there may be many other causes why he was not caste into the fire with his felowes / why do these men chose vnto them selues this one cause? and that such a one / as is sclaūderous vnto that ho ly man / of which in the holy scriptures / there is not so much as a suspicion contayned. Yet they do thin­ke that they do not vnaptly saye for themselues / and defend their cause / when they do alledge that out of the Actes of the Apostles: where mencion is made Actor. 21. howe that Paule / throughe the councell of the El­ders of the churche of Hierusalem / did take on hym a vowe with other foure men / and did purifye hym self after the maner and custumme of the Iues. Yf (saye they) suche an Apostle dyd take thys lybertye to vse in Iurie the ceremonies which were now ab­rogated / euē we also maye vse / and comme vnto the rites / and ceremonies now vsed in our countrithe. For the better vnderstōding of this matter we must first well consider what the somme of Paules prea­chinge was: We do suppose (faith he) that a man is Rom. 3. iustified by faith / without the workes of the Lawe. And as many as are vnder the deedes of the Lawe Gal. 3. [Page 34] are subiect to the curs. Agayne the Iuste man shall Abac. 2. Rom. 1. lyue by his faithe. This is the somme of Paules do­ctrine / wherby it doth appeare / that Paule did not vtterly condēne the obseruing of the ceremonies of the Law / but only whē it was done with this min­de / as thoughe that Iustification did cōme therby. And the same his meaning he vtterith most playn­ly to the Galathians / where he saithe. As many of Gal. 5. ye as are circumcised / ye are fallen from the grace of Christe: for Christe shall not profite you at all: ye are gone quite frō Christe / as many as are Iustified by the Lawe / As yf he wold saye / These thinges of theyr owne nature do not alienate and separate vs from Christe / but only when they be done with this mynde and purpose / to be Iustified by them: Take awaye this opinion / and this euell hurtefull pur­pose being remoued / then Paule cōmendeth these worckes / and all other ciuyle ordinaunces cōmaun­ded / and appoynted to that Nacion: he condēneth them not / but so farre as they wer iustly and not su­persticiously vsed / he did leaue thē in theyr place / ād did not hinder the obseruacion of them. As he dyd Gal. 3. [...]lso write / that in the Lord / there was neither Iue [...]or gentill / neyther bonde nor fre. And that in Chri­ [...]e Gal. 6. Iesus / neyther circumcision auaileth any thing [...]t all / nor vncircumcision / but the obseruing of the [...]ommaūdementes of God / or a new creature. And 1. Cor. 7. [...]gaine yf any be called being circūcised / let him not [...]dde vncircūcision. If anye be called vncircūcised / [...]et hym not be circūcised. Let euery mā abyde in the [Page] same estate / in which he is called. All these indiffe­rēt thinges / might somtyme be well obserued / som­tyme be as well left vndone / as most serued for edi­fying in godd. Of which vse and obseruacion of thē Paule doth speake / when of him self he saieth: I am 1. Cor. 9. made all vnto all mē / that I might wynne manye: Vnto the Iues / I am made as a Iue / to thē which are without the lawe / as though I were without a lawe. This sentence he hath also confirmed by exam ples: For when he was required to circūcise Timo­thie Actor. 16. because that the custumme which was yet in force might be kept / he did it: But when they wolde enforce him to the ouerthrowig of the christiā liber­tie / that he shulde likewise circumcise Titus / In no Gal. 2. wyse wolde he gyue place vnto them / no not for the space of one houre / and that because (saith he) false brethren came in / to espie out / or to betray our liber­tie. S. Paule did obserue these thinges then / when it might be done without an euell mynd / when no hurte shuld ensue of it: The cause ād end why Pau­le did it / was to auoide the offendinge of the belea­uing Iues / les yf he did it not / they shuld therby be alienated and turned awaye from Christes gospell / which they had newly receyued. But we must not compare these ceremonies of the old lawe with the Inuencions of men / they can not be iustly compa­red with Massing: They were plainly taught in Goddes worde / but these masses and popishe Ido­latries are thrust vnto vs by the subtiltie of the de­uell / and craftye deceyuing of mē. They were thin­indifferēt / [Page 35] and as such thinges might be well vsed. But these are thinges vtterly euell and can not be well vsed. They after Christes ascenscion into heauē wer not forbidden / and therfor might be obserued / so long as the Temple and common welth of Israel did cōtinue and the citie was vndestroyed / and vn­till the full reuelinge and preachinge of the gospell was had / vntill by it the churche of Christe / which was to be gathered of the Iues and gentils / were well / and fully vnited and knitt together. Neyther wer those ceremonies / as Augustine faith / sudden­ly Aug. Epi­stol. 19. ad Hieron. and without honor to be buried and throwen a­waye. But these masses / and such popish superstici­ons / which are farsed full with Idolatrie / alwayes haue beene / are / and shalbe forbiddē. Those thinges might therfor be feapt and obserued for a tyme / so that men did not vse them with that mynde (as I sayed) to be iustified by them. Wherfor yf thow wilt consider the matier it self / that is / the nature of the acte / Paule can neither be therin reprehended / nor yet can these dissemblinge Massehaunters vse his well doinge as a defence for their euell doinge: but much les can this be done / yf thou wilt searche out the mynde / councell / and entent of Paules doinge. Bothe these thinges these mayntayners of masse­haunting do want. For furst they are occupied in a [...]hing which is contrary / and repugnant to Godds worde / as it is already declared. Secondly / in thys [...]heir dissimulacion they do only seke themselues / for [...]o thend that they maye retayne their riches / digni­tie / [Page] and estimacion by falling to poperye they offend the weake and drawe them by their example from Christe to Antichrist / wheras Paule did herin obser ue thinges commaunded in Goddes worde / and thē to this ende only / les the beleauing Iues shuld fall backe frō Christ / and that he might the more ea­sily drawe others / which yet beleaued not / to the go­spell of Christe. Furthermore these men do saye / that they by their dissimulacion will auoide offence. For (saye they) yf we shuld so vtterly forsake the Masse as ye wolde haue vs / we shulde be taken as wicked mē ād euell doers / ād so shall we geue great offence in our countrithes. I graūte that these men do seke to auoyd offence / but what offence? euē the offēce of the world. They will not offend / but whom? Tyraū ­tes / ād such as ar the very limmes of antichrist. And why? les they shuld procure against thēselues theyr wrath / poure / and tyrānie. But this is that offence / which Christe sayeth shuld not be auoided: Let them alone (saith he of the Phariseis) They are blinde ād Mat. 15. the leaders of the blinde. Heere we must consider which be euell offences / and such as are to be auoy­ded indeed. Euē those I say / which are an Impedi­ment to the setting forth of the gospell / which do of­fend and hinder mē / be they simple / or wicked / that they do not embrace pure doctryne / and turne vnto Christe. Now beholde / I pray the / by cōming to the Masse / what offence thou doest gyue? The Idola­trous ād supersticious people / ar they not offended by this thy doing? Yeas verely. For when they do se [Page 36] the haūte their masses / they say / these gospellers do cōme to our masses / which they wold not do yf our masses wer so euell as thei call thē: wherfor we may perseuere ād cōtinue in our old purpose. And on the other parte / the weaker brethrē / which are but new­ly turned / ād not farr entered into the knowledge of Christ / whē they do se these better lerned professors / enseyng bearers / and chief men in the scole of Christ comme to the masse / they are taught to do the lyke: and wher before they wer perswaded not to comme at masses / now they thincke that they were then de­ceyued / and that it is but a fonde precise scrupulosi­tie so to abstayn from masses: and it cometh to pas / that where they shuld go forwarde in the waye of truth / now they do go backe. Thus both the wicked and the godly / are offended by thy example: It is playne therfor that vnder the cloked colour of auoy­ding of offence / these men do fall into the very of­fēce gyuing. They say morouer: It is nedefull to cō ­discende vnto the weake: for there are many which are not persuaded that the masse is naught / and therfor are neyther ready to forsake their countrie / nor to dye in the quarell / whiche men yf they shulde perceyue that we did not come to masse / they wold not gyue then any ear or credite vnto vs in the other matiers and chief pointes of religion: wherfore we must gyue and yealde somwhat vnto their infirmi­tie / as Paule doth teache the Romayns. This they saye. But what will Paule / I praye you / that we Rom. 14. shuld yealde to the weake? This verily / fyrst that we [Page] shuld not please our selues: Agayne / that we shuld not so lyue after our own mynde / that we shulde cō ­temne their saluacion. We do graunte therfor that som thinge is to be gyuen vnto the infirmitie of the weake brother / but euen with Paule / we will not suffer that to be done / but in thinges indifferēt. But those thinges which of them selues ar euell and for­bidden of Godd / must not be done in respect of any man. For that same Rule doth stonde certayn which Rom. 3. gyueth leaue to no mā to do euell that goode maye comme theron. To abstayn / or not to abstayn from meates / was then a thing indifferēt. In such thin­ges they which be stronger must beare with the In­firmitie of the weaker: but meate eating ād Masse­hauntinge are not lyke / for this is no thing indiffe­rēt / but manifestly euell / as it is sufficiently proued / and therfor it is not to be done in respect of bearing with any man that is weake. But are the weake al­wayes to be borne with all in thinges indifferent? no truly / we must not alwayes yealde to the weake but only whylest they be taughte: And when they do vnderstonde the thing that is taught them / and yet do wauer and doubt of a wilfull scrupulositie / their infirmitie is no longer to be norished nor born with all: For we must not so beare with them / that our libertie shal be in subiectiō to their frowardnes / nor that therby we do hurte others by our example.

Agayn they obiect and saye: Yf we shuld do as ye wold haue vs to do / then must we eyther flye out of our coūtrithe / or els forthwith shall we suffer death [Page 37] and so the congregatiōs shalbe left vtterly desolate / ther shall be none lefte to teache and norishe those af flicted mēbres which shall remayne in our churche: Better it is / that by our bearing and dissemblinge / ther do remayne yet sum leight / then that by doing as ye wold haue vs all together shuld be putt out. If sū do remayne ther / it wil brust forthe at lēgthe / 1. Cor. [...]5. ād a litill leauē will soure the whole lūpe of dowe [...]c Truly for all this goodly clooke / it is easily percey­ued that through this dissēbling the edifying of the churche is hindered and not furthered. These men pretēde with Athlas to beare vp heauē withe their shulders / but they do ouerthrow altogether: Godd doth se more thē we / in the thinges which shall hap pen to the churche: We must obeye hym in seruyng hym ād his churche with the cōfessiō of truthe. The issue / and succes / let vs cōmitt vnto hym to whom the churche doth belonge: And let vs do that wher­unto we ar called. The churche shall be destroyed thē / thow sayest: Let God care for that / he will well prouide for that / let vs not doubt. Wel maye theise mē be answered / as the lorde answered Peter / whē he called hym / sayinge: folowe me: Peter made a staye at it and asked hym what Iohn shuld do. If Ioan. 21. I will (saith Christ) haue hym to tarye / what is that to the? do thow folowe me. So if thow aske in this case / what shall then be done with the churche? I aunswer / what is that to the? Do thow the thinge wher vnto thow art called. Besids this oftē tymes the doctrine of the gospell is more sett furth / and [Page] better receyued / when it is mayntayned by deathe / and fleinge / then when by words only it is pro­pownded and taught: for then men are taught by deedes / as before they wer by wordes: Haste thow confessed the gospell in wordes? This then remay­neth for the to do: die / or flye for the gospell so shalt thou cōfesse the same indede. And Let vs not feare the desolatiō of the churche / for wher one of our bre­thern dyeth / or flyeth fo: the doctrine / in his rowm shall rise vp a great sorte. But if we stād and conti­nue in dissemblinge / thē is the lighte of the truithe put owt / nether is there any cōfession made indede.

They bringe in also the examples of Zacharie / Iohn the Baptist / the virgin Marie / and Ioseph / which in the corupted and infected tymes whē they lyued dyd cōme vnto the seruice of God in the Tē ­ple of the Iues / The samething maye be permitted to thē (they thincke) and that yt is as lawfull for thē to partake ād vse the ceremonies in the popish chur­che be they neuer so corrupt. True it is that ther we­re many wicked doctrines and euill opiniōs at that tyme emōgest the scribes and pharisees. But yet the estate of thē was far otherwise / thē it is in our tyme: They hade corrupted the docrrine of the law and of iustificatiō. They were couetous / That thing which they dyd / Was done with out fayth / and therfor ab­hominable before God / yet the rite and maner of sa­crificing apointed by Goddes lawe was not chaū ­ged / for the same beastes were offered which the lawe dyd cōmaūde / the same daies were obserued / and ceremonies / and therfore it was lawfull to vse thē inasmoche as they hade the worde of Godd for [Page 38] thē. And eiche mā that so vsed thē receyued accordīg to the measure of his faithe. For the corrupte doctri­nes / sentēces and manieres of the priestes / Bishop­pes and scribes / dyd not hurte at all the prophettes and godlie men which wer thē selues cleare frō thē / of a contrarie mynde to thē / in all thinges thinking accordinge to Godds worde / yea dyd also reproue and sharplie rebuke those thinges: which thing Au­gustine dothe witnesse as he is allegded. 23. q. 4. ca. Recedite. and in many other places there. Let our sa crificinge priestes do the same vnto vs at this daie. Let thē celebrate the lordes supper and vse other ce­remonies / so as by Godds worde they be apointed / thē we will not draw backe at all / but vse thē / thou­ghe they thē selues thincke corruptlie / and liue more wickedlie / we shall bewaile / we shall admonishe / we shall reproue / we shall accuse thē / and they shall beare their owne synne. Their synne shall not hurte vs / nether will we absteyne frome the sacramentes for their nowghtines / but vse thē. In which doīge we shall not cōmunicate with their wickednes / for we shall vse the rite and ceremonie as the lord [...]e cō ­maūded / and instituted. And this thing mēt Christ whē he saide. The scribes ād pharisees do syt in Mo ses chaire / what they byd yow do / that do / but as Matth. 23. they do / see that ye do not. So Christe commaunded the leper whom he hade clēsed to go vnto the priest. The blessed virgin likwise she might well after the Luc. 2. birthe of our sauiour Christ offer the payre of Turt­les or too yonge pigeons / because it was so com­maunded in the lawe. By this example our men can not heare masse / because it is a thinge contrary [Page] to godds worde: But let these papists giue vnto vs the sacramentes / as Christe dyd institute them / and we shall vse thē / and yet neuerthelesse reproue their wickednes. Nowe our men beinge thus at all poin­tes answered / and ouercommed / do flye to this at­lenghth. Thoughe saye they it be a synne to go to Masse and such popishe pelfe yet it is but a light synne / and not so seuerely to be reproued. What (say they) we do many thinges which we shuld not do. but God forgyuithe thē. 2c. To the last I aunswer: The goodnes of Godd which doth forgyue synnes vnto them that be truly penitēt / doth not diminishe at all the gretnes of the synne. Wherfor I will aun­swer only / to that they saye / that it is but a light syn­ne. Which thinge whilest they do saye / they do not thincke this with themselues / that all synnes haue their proper weight and burthen. For doinges and the nature of thinges done ar not to be considered simplie of themselues, but they ar to be weyed by godds worde and lawe / by which they arforbiddē: By it / wicked actes and the do [...]inge of them ar to be iudged: And seing that the poure of the lawe and worde of God is all one in all cōmaundemen­tes / by it / the weighte / burthē and greatnes of syn­ne cōmitted / is to be weyed considered and iudged. S. Iames therfor in this cause doth saye. He that Iacob. 2. hathe obserued the whole lawe / and dothe offend in one / is made giltye of all. Which sayinge truly is harde and sharpe / but most true / and teachith all mē that they shuld not extenuate synne. But this place [Page 39] of Iames / is not so to be vnderstōded / as thoughe August. Epist. 29. ad Hiero. that all synnes wer equall and like. That doth Au­gustine truly and playnly denye: He saith that the Stoickes do go about to proue it / when they saye / that all vertues are cōioyned and knitt together / so that he which hathe one of theim hath all / and he that wātith one wātith all. For wisdome (saye they) is not fearefull / nott intemperate / not vniuste / ther­for it hath ioyned with it the vertues which be con­trarie vnto these vices: And likewise iustice / strēgh­the / tēperaunce and other vertues are not vnwise / but are ioyned with wisdome / wheruppon they do conclude / that all vertues are conioyned and knitt together. Theise thinges / saith Augustine / do not Iaco. 3. 1. Ioan. 1. agre with the holy scriptures / which do witnes. That in many thinges we do all offend / and If we saye that we haue no synne / we do deceyue our sel­ues and ther is no truithe in vs. Wherfor seing that we synne in many thinges / and in synnynge we cā not haue that vertue which is cōtrarie to that synne which we do committ / and yet it maye be that he which fallith in one synne / may be cōstaunt in other vertues / the opinion of theis philosophers is fals. As for example: Be it / that one be of an hastye na­ture / or do exceade measure in eatinge / and yet he gyuith euery man his own / and will gyue his life in Godds cause: thoughe this man be fearce / and intemperate / yet is he called a iust mā / and a stron­ge man. S. Augustine doth also putt awaye the si­militude of the stoicks / whiche is. That the man [Page] doth die in the waters / if they be but half a handfull ouer / his heade / aswell as he ouer whos heade they are / ten / or twentie cubites. This is no apte simili­tude / saith he / therfor let vs take an other more fitte for our purpose / of light namely and darcknes. Cer­taynly when one is in darcknes / the more he dothe departe and go out of it and drawith nighe vnto light / he begynnith the better to see sumwhat / and so though that yet he be compassed with darcknes / yet is he sumwhat partaker of the lighte. But he that wyll knowe more of this matier / let hym reade that Epistle of Augustyne: Wher he prouith playn­ly / that all synnes ar not like / as the Stoicks did thincke: Now to return to our place / which we did rehearce. Be that offendith in one / is giltie of all. Ther is no obseruacion of Godds Lawe to be rece­ued with an exception / as thoughe we might chose one parte of it to obserue / and separate or sett asyde the other parte at our will and pleasure to neglecte it. The commaundemētes of the lawe ar conioyned of the lorde and knitt together / and so gyuen vnto vs: We must not now disseuer / and separate thē as we lust / but without exception we must obserue the whole lawe. We must consider and loke vppon the Auctoritie of the lawe gyuer / which is Godd / It is of force aswel in one cōmaundement / as in the rest. This doth Iames seame to meane / when he saith: Iacob. 2. He that hath sayde / Thow shalt not committ adul­terie / the same hath sayde / Thow shalt not kill. As if he shuld saye / he is no les contraried in any one [Page 40] of theise commaundemētes / then in an other. And therfor (to adde this by the waye) let them wel con­sider what they do which do profes to receyue the gospell / and yet they do refuse ecclesiasticall disci­plyne: Wheras the lorde / which hath reuealede and opened the gospell vnto vs by Christe / doth ap­point discipline to be a parte therof. Theise men do synne against the whole lawe. The papistes do also synne herin / which do preache their parted righte­ousnes / as meritorius of congruitie. But to retur­ne / this is also manifest / that he that synnith in o­ne / is therfore giltie in all / for that as now by lust and tentacion he is caried into sum one transgres­sion / and so dothe synne / euen in like manier shuld he offend in an other euill / if he wer assaulted in the same sorte / and whith that same violence of tenta­cion. And Augustine in the place before alledged. doth saye. That therfore he is made giltie of all / bi­cause he synneth against charitie / vppon which the obseruacion of the whole lawe is grownded. To be short therfor / when we do thus fall into synne / we must not ligtly tryfle it of and excuse it / sayinge that it is but light / and small: for synne is not to be consi­dered of the matier / and manier of the action only / but of the force poure / and dignitie of Godds wor­de which doth forbidd it. And yet les I shuld seeme to be to rigorus and strayte in this matier of mas­sehauntinge / let ther be hadd a consideracion / or difference of the matier / and doinge. [Page] And truly I can not see / how this finde of synne and doinge cā be iudged to be light / or small / seing that it is a transgressiō committed against the furst table of the lawe / in which the worship due vntto Godd is cōmaūded which worshipp being sownde and safe in a mā other vices and synnes ar the more easily corrected: And agayn this being corrupted / all other actes are most vnacceptable vnto Godd. Whordō by Godds lawe is to be punyshed by dea­the / yet is it a synne but against the. ij. table. And what shal we thincke then of spirituall whordome? how seuerely doth Godd iudge it? how sharply ought it to be punished? If therfor thow dost con­sider the commandement which thou breakest / it is of God: If the matier / it is aganist the furst table and therfore thys synne is the more heynus and weightie. Besids this / our men do counte this Masse hauntinge a fault to be either contemned / or not so depely to be considered in theim bicause they do not synne with mynde will and affection / but as it wer compelled and of necessite. But I aske them / what manier a violence and compulsion this is throughe which that necessite commithe of which they make their excuse? Truly they can not saye that it is ony other / then bicause they wolde not ronne into the daunger of the losse of their Goodes / their estimacion and lyfe. This is then no absolute neces­site Aristote. Ethi. lib. 3. but such a one as risith of ther own corrupt affe­ction and will, wich prouith that their action is vo­lūtarie. As Aristotle in his Ethicks doth saye of the [Page 41] losse which shippmen do suffer in a tempest / which do cast out of their ship al their Goodes whē they be in daunger of shipp wracke: They seame truly to be compelled to do it / and yet willingly they do it / and therfor they are sayed. To do. bicause that withe de­liberacion and aduise / they do determin / both with iudgemēt and will / rather to abide the losse of their goodes / thē of their lyfe. Which thinge as the mari­ners do wisely determyne / so our men do folishly / which for the loue that they beare to their lyfe / bodie ād goodes do not chose to abide the losse of thē all / in refusing to come to these detestable masses / to gayn therby lyfe / and saluacion euer lastinge. And so do they cōmitt doble synne. Furst they synne willingly. Thē they do prefer earthly thinges before heauēly / outward thinges before inward / the bodie before the soule / their Goodes before God: Which is not done but of such / as ar the very [...]ldrē of the world. Of affectiō verily / though they do saye nay / they do that which they do / but of that inordinate affection which they do beare to their riches. Wherfor this is no iust excuse which they make. For as well might the Corinthians / euen by the very same reason / haue sayde to Paule. If we do comme vnto these feastes wher the meates offered vnto Idols are eaten / we do it not with that mynde as thoughe we allowed such sacrifices / but we ar compelled therunto / for if we shuld auoide theise solemne feastes / we shuld be taken as sedicius men / euell citizens / vncourteous / we shuld loose our frends / ād most profitable healp [Page] and defence / Yea and paraduēture our goodes and countrith, Paule hearith noone of all these thinges / but doth sharply reproue thē / as in the furst epistle which he wrote vnto thē it doth appeare. Aarō also by the same reason might haue excused the making of the goldē calf / ād sayed / I did it not with my myn Exod. 32. de / I was cōpelled / and if I hadd not folowed the mynde of the poeple / they wold haue stoned me. rc. But Moses / who did well perceyue that this was not of an absolute necessite / but did rise of such a cor­rupt grownd and matier as neither righteousnes doth suffer to be receyued / neither Godd doth ad­mitt / he cōdemnith the act / ād doth sharply reproue Aaron for it. These men ought also to thincke this: That the masse is as it wer the signe ād sure marke / the pleadg / ād seale / by which the papists do knowe who be theirs / frō others. For whether a mā gyuith almos / whether he prayeth / whether he lyueth a cha ste lyfe / and so forth / they passe not at all: This only they do regarde / whether he hearith Masses: which thīg if they perceyue that he doth / for the whith they thīke that mā to be ther own / ād on the other parte / to abhorr the Masse and not to heare it / is euen the begynninge of fallinge from ther kyngdō / and from Antichriste. Wherfor we may call Masse hearinge / The publique profession of poperie / the badge of the most vile and filthie Idolatrie which is vsed in our age. In this therfor / ī which papistes put so mutch confidence / that they make therof the very marcke wherby the godly are known from their men / no [Page 42] Christian must dissemble. For if he do / then doth he publiquely professe hymself to be a papist / which is euen to denie Christes gospell: And this to do / is so greate a synne / as no mā cā extenuate by ony blind cloke or reason. But thow wilt saye: Ther be greate daungers / of which I am in present ieoperdie / and I shall also sett mi self forthe to other most heauy dan̄giers / except I be partaker and do cōmunicate with papists in the Masse / and such popishe Ido­latrie. I grant that ther are daungers / such is theyr Tyrannie. But remember thou / That Godd hath forseene all theise daungers before / and also hath shewed that they shuld comme / of which though he wer not ignorante / yet did not his wisdō chaun­ge his lawe to haue them auoyded: He commaun­ded / and doth / that Idolatrie shall not be cōmitted but that mē shuld flye from it / which commaunde­ment he wyll haue kept what so euer perill dothe cō ­me theron. Wherfor let vs cast our care vppon hym which hath gyuen vs this commaundemēt / for he which doth know righte well / that theise euels are ioyned with the obseruinge of his commaunde­mentes / he will care for them which for rightuisnes shalbe persequuted. Truly the violence / and na­ture of persequution and daungiers is not such / that it can chaunge Godds lawe: neither that he will haue his lawes chaunged for them. Let perse­quutions be howsoeuer they be / yet Godds lawe remaynith vnmoueable. Let vs not seeke then to deuide and part ourselues / and our seruice / betwen [Page] Godd ād the deuell / as thoughe we wold gyue our mynde ād affectiō vnto Godd: ād in poperie and su­persticious Idolatries to gyue our bodyes doīges / and outward actiōs vnto the deuell. Our mynde is Godds seate / our bodie is his Tēple. Gyue therfore to Godd / that which belongith vnto hym. Thincke 1. Cor. 6. Mat. 22. what thow lust of doing and dissemblinge for thy commoditie: Yeat this Rule / and certayn Canon of the holy ghost must now either rule the / or herafter in Godds iudgement cōfownde the. Euell thinges Roma. 3. are not to be done that Goode shuld come theron.

Now seing that we haue sufficiētly spoken of pri­uate men and subiectes / in and through all the par­tes and membres of our distinctions and diuisiōs / it remaynithe that we shuld entreate of Princes: for so at the begynning we ordered our diuision.

Of Rulers and princes / I make this diuisiō / So­me there are which be chiefe princes / suche as do not Of Rulers and Prin­ces. depēd and hange on other / of whō the Ciuilians do saie / that they haue a mere Rule. Other are vnder Rulars and such as be of lesse authoritie then they / which do depende and hāge on the higher princes / either by the right (as they saie) of fee / or ells because they are their officers / and mynisters / that is to saye (as they be commonlye termed) their deputies / lieu­tenan̄tes and executours of their office. I will firste speake of the higher / absolute / ād mere Rulers: And of them I will both aske and answere this questiō: A questiō Whether it be lawfull for thē to suffer and permite in their dominiōs the free and familiar conuersatiō [Page 43] and dwellinge togither of the vnfaithfull with the The an­svver. faith full? I thinke that it is lawfull / but yet so that they muste take hede of certeyn thinges / and obser­ue and kepe certeyn Rules and conditions.

The firste is / that they do not enforce nor compell their faithfull subiectes to ioyne with the vnbelea­uers in their assēbles / nor in such vnholy kyndes of worshipp of Godd as are cōtrary to Godds worde: for then shold they not be Godds ministers / as they are taughte to be in the epistle to the Romains / but Rom. 13. rather the ministers of the deuill / of Antichriste / and of their furie. Then sholde they be a feare vnto them that do well / and not to them that do euill / neither sholde they promote the worke of God / but the ty­ranye of Antichriste.

The secōde is / they muste not graunte nor suffer / the vnfaithfull to vse their supersticions and wicked Idolatries which are cōtrarie vnto Godds worde. For it is not sufficient / that they do not compell the godly to wicked supersticiō and Idolatrie / but also they muste forbidde the same to the wicked Idola­trours: For not doinge of this Salomō is greatlie accused: Indeede he did not compelle the Iues to 3. Reg. 1 [...]. worshipp Idolles / but yet dyd he permit and suffer his wyues and concubines, wich were straungiers, to haue their Chapells amonge the Iues / in which they worshipped Astaroth / Chamos ād such idolls / for which cause the lorde was so angrie wyth him / that as he suffered his true worshippe to be parted ād diuided / as he suffered seruice to be done partlie [Page] to God ād partlie to Idolles. Euē so was his king­do [...]diuided / parte of it came vnto his sōne / ād parte to Ieroboā the sōne of Nabat. And agayn for doing of this / Achaz / ād other wicked kīges wer reproued of the prophetes. Magistrates are apoīted to be the defēders / ād executours of the first table of the lawe aswell as of the secōde: with what obseruatiō thē of iustice cā a magistrate graūte or suffer Idolatrie to be vsed? It is writō that he hathe the sworde to pu­nishe euill thīges ād vices. If it be his part to punis he theues / ād not to permitt them / the same must he do to Idolatrours. Or ells we must saie that Idola­trie is no such synne ād vice as theft is / or that with other vices it is not to be punished. And that theis prīces maye do this the better / they muste thē selues take hede that they be cleare frō these Idolatries ād supersticiōs. Augustine writīg againste the dona­tistes dothe ī manye places notablie intreate ād hā ­dle Psal. 1. this sentēce of the psalme. And nowe ye kīges be wise be warned ye that iudge the earthe. Serue the lorde wyth feare. rc. It is reasō ād semyng saithe he that kinges sholde serue the lorde / neither is it spokē of kinges in respecte that they are mē / for so are they boūde to obserue cōmen lawes euē as other mē are / but as kīges they be admonished to vse their power giuē thē of God / ād their sword to defēde the catho­like truithe / and to represse the wicked which do op­pugne the church ād truithe of Christ: wherfore it is not lawfull for prīces to graūt vnto the wicked and vnbeleuers their euill and vngodlie Godds seruice and Idolatries / but they muste maynteyn to their power / those holy rites ād ordinaūces of godds ser­uice [Page 44] which do agree with the worde of God / ād for­bid those which are cōtrarie to yt. I do not saie that they must be to curius in ceremonies / as many are / which wolde that ī any wise all rites ād ceremonies sholde he throughli ād in all places of oone sorte / ād manier: But this theis princes shold prouide / that the ceremonies vsed in ther churches sholde not be contrarie to godds worde / yea and that they sholde most neerely agre therwith / ād shuld make for godly edyfyinge and decēt and comelye ordre in the chur­che: But of their liknes / ād that ī all places the rites / ād ceremonies shold be of one forme / I do not thin­ke it a thing worthie the labor. For what matter ma­keth it if some men do receyue the sacramēt stōding / other sittinge / other kneling. And if in some places whilest the bretherē do cōmunicat / a place of the scri pture be redd / or some psalmes be sōg of the people / or other songes of thankes geuing. Nether is it any great matter / when a corps is caried to the buriall / whether that mē do followe the hearce holdīg their peace / or singing of psalmes / or suche other thinges as maye edifie them that do stāde by. These thinges are to be lefte so free that in the churches suche maie be vsed / as shall seme most meete for the edy fyinge of the people. Yea I suppose that this varietye and chaunge in rytes / and ceremonies / dothe not a lytell profyte ād helpe to bring in a true opiniō of ceremo­nies / and to haue it kepte also: that is / that mē shuld beleue that all those ceremonies which the holie scri pure doth not apoint / are not necessarie vnto salua­ciō / but maye be chaūged accordinge to the estate of tyme / ād as shall serue for edifyīg / as they shall thīk [Page] Godd which haue in their hand the orderinge the churche. That moste worthie commen wealthe of the venetians / which haue vnder ther dominions / many Cities and places in Grece / they do in eche of them permitt and suffer the rytes / and ceremonies / Bothe of the Greke churche / and of the Latin chur­che / for rhose wise men do thincke / that the dyuersy­tie in outward ceremonies which are not taught in Godds worde is not hurtefull. I do not alledg this to allowe all such ceremonies as they do permitt in thos places / but only to shew that they thincke it not a matier of necessite to haue all one forme of ce­remonies: The verie same thinge before thē did Au­gustine iudge as in his epistles to Ianuarius / and Cassulanus it dothe apeare.

The thirde thinge is / that the princes and rulers which do suffer these vnfaithfull mē to dwell ī their dominions sholde prouide that they mighte be taughte the truithe: and in this behalfe they muste not neglect them: for as the princes do declare their gētilnes in suffering thē to dwell in their dominiōs so this their pacience muste be directed to the glorie of God: And howe can that be soughte in theis vnbeleauers / if they be suffered to abyde in their noughtie opinion without teachinge? Surely by this meanes in processe of tyme they be made no whit the better / but a greate deale worse then they were before.

The fourth is / that these princes take Godd hede / that by this dwellinge and cōuersation which they [Page 45] do graunte vnto the vnfaithfull / they do not infecte the poeple cōmitted to their cure and chardge with their sc [...]bbe of vnbelefe ād errour. Charytie is to be shewed vntostraungiers indede / but yet not so that they muste hurte the poeple amōg whom they lyue. And this shal the princes remedie very wel / if that they do not alwais beare with the corrupt blindnes of the vnbela^euers / but after sufficient teachinge do compell them to embrace true religion. I say that when they haue prouided that these vnfaithfull ha­ue bene taughte a good whyle and truly instructed / they must then enforce and compell them vnto tho­se holye and pure rytes and worshippinges of Godd which are commaunded in the scriptures: for princes and rulers must not alwayes / nor yet to longe suffer theyr cytyzens and subiectes / to lyue without exercise of godlynes and vertue. The ende of politicall gouernemente is / that the subiecte both shold lyue in felycytie / ād also in the practyse of god­lynes / because that godlines and the true worshipp of God is the chefest of all vertues.

But some man will obiecte against me / and say / yf so be that the vnfaithfull be not yet persuaded / they shall then embrace truthe against theyr consci­ence / which thinge yf the prince compell them to do / then he compelleth them to synne. Here must we make a difference betwene the thinge that of it selfe is synne / and that which is so by chaunce / by some fortune / or some other thinge that happeneth / per accidens, as the Logicians do saye: for whē the Ma [Page] gistrate / in the matter which now we haue in hād / dothe propounde vnto these his subiectes / the thing that is right / goode / iuste / and cōmaunded of God / prouidinge to haue them taughte therin / and they will not be taughte / yf then he enforceth them owt­wardlye to vse none other order in religion then is commaunded of Godd / and to forsake, all other / he doth that which is iuste and appertayninge to his office. But that synne is entermingled in this mat­ter / truly it is not throughe the faulte of the prince / but it is of the vnbeleif of these men / of whiche the prince can not be iustly accused / when he hath dili­gētly done his part / that they shold be well instruc­ted. Morouer let them which do obiecte this consi­der / that by the same reason that they accuse these princes we may accuse God: for he doth propounde his lawe / which is moste perfyte to be obserued of all men. Shuld men saye? we are weake / our nature is corrupte and infected / neither can we do these thin­ges as thou dost commaunde them / And why dost thou then enforce this lawe vpon vs? If we do cō ­tarie to that which thou doest commaunde / verely we synne / and yf we go not about to do it we synne / we shall synne also yf we go aboute to do that which thou commaundest / for we want of perfection / ney­ther do we obey as we sholde do: wherfore do what we will / we shall not auoyde synne: vnto this the Lorde wolde aunswer. The thinges that I do pro­pounde to be obserued of you are iuste and perfect / no man can accuse them of wickednes / But in that [Page 46] ye are weake and do fall / and faile in fulfilling of my lawe / the faulte muste not be layed vnto me / for it is of your own malice and corruptiō / and not through my faulte / for the which I maye not withdrawe my holy commaūdements / Yet thus I haue prouided helpe for you / Beleue in mi only dearly beloued son­ne / and loke what so euer ye wante / wherin soeuer ye do fayle / and do not fulfyll my commaundemen­tes / it shall not be imputed / nor laid to your chardge vnto euerlastinge deathe: yea your endeuoyrs and your doinges / although they be not fully perfect ād absolute / yet will I accepte thē well / they shall plea­se me / and I will allowe thē. Euen so shall the good prince and Magistrate saye: The thinges which are conteyned in Goddes worde / suche thinges as are comlye and do edifie / do I require of you / yf your mynde and conscience do go agaynst them / ye can not impute it vnto me / I haue laboured and done my parte that ye sholde not be ignoraunt / and mise­rablie perish in ignoraūce. I haue caused you to be sufficiently instructed / and nowe will I procede ex­horting / admonishinge / and demaundinge of you obedience in these thinges: do you reade the holye scriptures / heare the teachers and pastours / ād pray the Lorde to open the eyes of your harte and mynde. Thus in aunswering to this obiectiō I shew what a goode prince in this case may and must do. That thinge also is not to be passed ouer of which Augu­styne maketh mencion / that he hymselfe was som­tyme of this opinion / that nothing sholde be violēt­lye [Page] done agaynst heretiques / but that they shold on­ly be taughte / But his mynde altered after that he was admonished by some wyse Bishoppes / howe certeyn cities / which somtyme were altogether cor­rupted with the errour of the Donatistes / were cō ­pelled by the violence of the lawes of good Empe­rours to receyue the catholike faith / ād these at lēgth were so syncerelie tourned vnto the truthe / that they dyd gyue to God moste hartye thāckes for that vio­lent enforcement / sayinge that nowe thoughe they might safelye / yet by no meanes wolde they retorne any more to suche pernicious and hurtfull opiniōs. The prince therfore / after that he hath gyuen them sufficient instruction / yf he shall enforce these men vnto the embracing of such rites and ceremonies as are good and godlye indede / he shall do no hurte at all / but muche good. I do meane that this sholde be practysed only vpon suche as be cityzens / and natu­rall borne subiectes / or suche as beinge straungers borne / do as denizens dwell in theyr dominiōs / ād so by priuiledge haue the benefite of theyr coūtrithe: Otherwyse yf they be but straūgiers which do passe thorough their countrithe / or such as do come either to bye or to sell marchaundize / there is no suche vio­lēce to be shewed towardes thē. And yet this thing they must take heade of euen in thē / that they do not seduce their people ād subiectes which are of a good iudgement / that they do not infect them with vice and errour. The Israelites / as I thincke / ar in this pointe to be folowed. They did admitt no straunger [Page 47] to be as a Iue / or proselyte / neyther did they gyue vnto any the libertie of their countrith / except he did fyrst circūcise himself / admitt Moses lawe / did cō ­municate / and became partaker with them in theyr Sacrifices / submitting himself to their discipline: Which thinge / seing it was well and diligently ob­serued of them / why shuld not our princes do euen the same? That they shuld suffer no Citezen / nor sub­iect / eyther naturall / or straūger born / but that they shuld compell and enforce hym / to receyue such reli­gion / and obserue such rites and ceremonies / agre­ing with Godds worde / as they by common auto­ritie haue establyshed. Now will I speake of those princes and Rulers / which ar vnder these chief Ru­lers. Whome I do deuide into two sortes. Eyther they are such as haue Iurisdiction / poure / and auc­toritie / which commeth to them by discent frō theyr Auncetours / or els committed vnto them of Empe­rours / Kinges / and common welthes: Eyther els they haue no Iurisdiction nor Rule ouer others / neyther by discent from theyr auncetours / nor by commission from other higher princes / but only are taken and estemed as men of worshipp / for the aun­cientnes of theyr house and blud / or for their riches. This laste sorte do not differ at all in a maner from priuate men / of whome I haue spoken before / for these are mere subiectes as they are. Therfor (I do suppose) that the former Rules / appointed vnto pri­uate men and subiectes are to be committed vnto thē / to be obserued of thē / in such maner as I haue [Page] before declared. But of this other sorte of Princes and Rulers / of which some by right of inherita [...]ce / some by vertue of office committed vnto them / are Rulars and gouernours of countrithes / cities and places. Of these I do saye and pronoūce this / That in matters which do belong to Godd and true Re­ligion / they ought to do no other things / but those / which I haue already shewed that they muste do / which are meere / absolute / and the hygher princes and Rulars. For it is not lawfull for them / no not at the commaundement of theyr hygher Princes and Lordes / to compell those subiectes ouer whom they haue rule / to receyue wicked Religion and su­persticion / neyther to permitt the vnfaithfull in the places where they do beare Rule / to haue theyr vn­godly Idolatries and supersticions. This must thei not do / no thoughe they were (I saye) therunto cō ­maunded by theyr hygher princes and Lordes / of whom / and vnder whome / they haue theyr auctori­tie. But yf thou wilt saye / that they must obey theyr hygher poures / I will graunt that / but (as the say­inge is) vs (que) ad Aras, that is vntill they do come to matters of Religion / and vntill they do commaun­de in Religion thinges contrarie to Goddes worde and truthe. For when they shall commaunde that which is against Godd / and is hurtefull to the con­science of mā / these magistrates must not obey thē. For these vnder Rulars are called into a parte of the cure and charge of the goode gouernemente of the countrie / by the force of theyr dignitie and office: [Page 48] They must not therfor putt those thinges in execu­tion / whiche are agaynst Godd / and are hurtefull to theyr countrye: Yea they ought both to persuade by reason / and to defende by poure the contrary. The Lacedemonians / when they whiche hadd ouercomme them / did demaunde of them such thin­ges as were against the ciuile lawes and libertie of their citie / They answered / If ye do commaunde vs to do thinges which ar more weightie and greuous then death / we wyll rather dye then do them: Thus ought these vnder Rulars answer theyr higher Lor­des / when they do commaunde them to do thinges which are to the defacing of Godds glorie ād truth / and to the wounding and vnquieting of the consci­ences of their subiectes / whiche thinges are more weyghtie and greuous then death indeede. In Cy­uile thinges they may gyue place to the vniust com­maundementes and decrees of theyr hygher Lor­des / but that ought they not to do in the cause of Godd / and pure Religion. The Machabees at such tyme as the Iues were vnder the Rule of the Ma­cedonians (Antiochus / Demetrius / and Alexāder / I meane) which princes did leade the people awaye from the true worship of God / and from the seruice taught in hys worde / wolde not obeye them. But that house and tribe of the prestes' called Asmonei, whiche in dignitie were nexte vnto the house and stocke of the Kinges / and bare the chief Rule nexte vnto it / les that the true worshippe of Godd com­maunded and taught in the lawe / and which hadd bene retayned a [...]d vsed in theyr countrye / shul [...] [Page] be thus leafte and forsaken / they did Rebell against thos kinges as the historie doth witnes. But if this historie for the insufficiencie of the auctoritie of the bocke (which yet is a [...]rue historie / as Iosephus also doth witnes) will not suffice to proue this matier: Then let vs consider what Ioiada the bishopp did in the dayes of Athalia: She hadd by violence ob­tayned the kingdomme / ād so was she the supreame 4. Reg. 11. ordinarie poure: But yet he sturred vpp a commoti­on agaynst her / And he brought the Sonne of Asa / Kinge Ioas / I meane (who was saued by hym frō her bluddy sworde) into the kingdome: For he knew that by Goddes worde the kingdome was gyuen to the house of Iuda / He perceyued also that she went about to haue all good Religiō / and true god­lynes / vtterly ouerthrowen. Therfor as she had vn­iustly shedd innocēt bludd / euē so he most iustlye cō ­maunded that she shuld be slayne. Kinge Ezechias also / was in subiection to the King of the Assyriās / 4. Reg. 18. for Achaz his father hadd submitted hym selfe vnto hym / and did not only paye hym tribute / but also for his plea [...]ure did chaunge Godds Religion: for whē he wente to Damasco to meete this Kinge / he com­maunded that an altar shuld be made at Hierusalē / after the patrone and fashion of that which he hadd seene at Damasco. This Kinge Achaz his sonne / godly Ezechias / perceyuinge that these thinges whiche his father hadd done / were repugnant and contrarye vnto Godds worde / hurtefull also to the consciences of his subiects / he (I say) did fall away [Page 49] frō the Kinge of the Assyrians / which yet was now his superior and hygher poure. Indeede he soughte fyrst to pacifie hym with gyftes / which thing when he coulde not do / then to the vttermost of hys poure he dyd defende hym self / and his people agaynst hym. Neuertheles in this matter sedicion muste be auoyded so much as may be / and these princes must not vnder the colour and cloke of Religion / seeke theyr own gayne and honor: but here only let thē re­siste / that nothing be done contrary to Godds wor­de / and not for those thinges which are done to hin­der theyr ambicion. Of this corrupt affection yf thei be cleare / and onlye for Religions sake do resiste the wicked proceadinges of theyr hygher princes and Lordes / let them not thincke that they do herin anye vnrighteousnes at all. But yf one will obiecte and saye: Thys maye not be / for all men are commaūded to obeye the hygher poures. I aunswer / It is true Rom. 13. indeede that the holy scriptures do commaūde / that euerye soule shulde obeye the hygher poures / but so farr as by Godds word it is lawfull to obey / and no further. For the holy scriptures do likewyse say / that the Rular is not any feare to them that doth good / but to them that do euell. Wherfor seyng these prin­ces / in this case by theyr endeuoir and laboure / do promote that which is goode / they do well and not euell: and so ought they for this doinge to be with­out fear of the hygher poure / because that herin they do not resiste agaynst them / with that Resistaunce which is forbidden. Wilt thou (saith he) be without [Page] feare of the poure? do well then / and so shalt thou be praysed of the same: If these princes and rulars do defende godlynes and religion / they do good / then by the iudgement of Goddes worde they are with­out feare of the poure / and do deserue prayse of theyr hygher poures ād lords. But yf thou do euell (saith Paule) then feare the poure / for he beareth not the sworde for nought / but is the minister of Godd to take vengeaūce on them which do euell. Thus doth this place arme the myndes and cōsciences of these inferior princes of whom I speake / that they shulde not feare theyr hygher poures / when for the defence of Goddes religion / they do resiste and not obeye theyr wicked commaundementes. Yf any will now thus saye agaynst me. He that hath the kinglye and supreame auctoritie / vnto whom by othe I do owe obedience / commaundeth these thinges / and ther­fore I must obey. I answer that thou arte not boūd herin to keape any such othe or promis. For when he commaundeth those thinges whiche are agaynste God / he doth not the office of Goddes minister / to him thē therin thou dost owe neyther faith nor obe­dience. Agayne yf thou wilt aske / By what righte may these vnder rulars and inferiour magistrates / thus sett them selues agaynst the hygher princes / which haue the verye supreame right and poure to defende pure and godlye Religion / and the true faithe. I aunswere. That the electours of the Em­pire / and the Princes of Germanie / and the fre city­es / do it by the Imperiall poure and righte / whiche [Page 50] is committed vnto them: And that the Magistra­tes and Rulars whiche are in kingdoms / they do and darre do it / by the Kinglye poure and right ly­kewyse committed vnto them. For Emperours and Kinges / and such hygher poures / haue therfor cho­sen and taken these vnder Rulars and officers / as it were into a parte of theyr Rule / to be theyr helpers / in administringe and ordering theyr businesses and charge / to the ende that Iustice might florishe so muche the more. And euen so from the begynninge poure and Rule was gyuen vnto these / that they shulde rule the common wealthe / for that part ther­of / whiche was committed vnto them / iustlye / vp­rightlye / and godlye. Whereof the Emprour in the Code doth saye / that yf he shulde commaunde anye thinge agaynste righte / he wolde not that any suche decree of his shulde auayle in iudgementes. The very same thinge is to be sayde / where a kinge or suche which do retayne the supreame auctoritie / do commaunde or determyne anye thinge againste right. Not vnworthily is Traianus the Emperour therfore commended / who when he delyuered the sworde to a Rular in his Empire / sayde: If I do cō ­maunde Iuste thinges / vse this for me / but yf I do require vniust things / vse it against me. But on the contrary part / Gregorie the great / Byshopp of Ro­me / can not in this behalfe be praysed / but dispray­sed / and accused: Who seinge that the lawe whiche Mauritius the Emperour had made was vniuste / which was / That no man entangled with the mat­ters [Page] of the common wealth / or which was appoin­ted to the warrs / might be made a priest or a mōck / he wrote to the Emperour / That after that he hadd seene hys lawe / he was wonderfullye afrayed and astonied / And therfor he desireth hym to diminishe somwhat of the rigour of the lawe / or els to chaūge it altogether: But yet he added / That as touchinge hymself / after that he hath now done his office in admonishing hym / now for the obedience which he doth owe vnto him / he wolde publishe his lawe / as he hadd commaunded. Thys acte surely can not, but be reproued in this Busshopp. Agayn here thou wilt happily saye. What yf the hygher Prince will not allowe me to do myne office / or doth reuokethis parte of myne office? Truly no man cā take that frō thyne office / which God hath cōmaunded the to do in it. No mā can discharge the of that dutye / where­with God chargeth the in thyne office / wherfore so longe as thou bearest thyne office / do thou the du­tye that longeth to it. Many there are which do thincke / that when this dealinge and doinge of the inferior magistrate agaynste the hygher Rulars is thus straitly required / That Godds Religiō is not to be promoted after this manier by thē / but rather / that they do sufficientlye the thinge which belōgeth vnto them / yf they do forsake theyr office / and gyue ouer their Rule and auctoritie. So do not I thinc­ke / Thy dignitie and office is not so lightly to be gy­uen ouer. Thou dost gyue ouer thyne office / because thou w [...]t not strayne thy self therin to promote the [Page 51] glorie of Godd: And this is to depart and fall from thy vocacion: which thou oughtest not to do / especi­ally whē thou dost playnly see / that thy roume and place / shalbe bestowed vpon those / which ar wicked and both do / ād will oppresse the kingdom of God. These men must abyde therfor in theyr offices / so lōg as they be not putt out of them by the higher pou­res / and strōgly must they defend the glorie of God in them.

Now when I on this maner do entreate of these thinges / I do not make or shewe an easye waye to sturre vpp sedicions. But this onlye I do seke / and care for / That those thinges which do belonge vnto Matt. 22. Godd / shuld be gyuen vnto Godd: and those thin­ges which are belonging vnto Cesar / shulde be gy­uen vnto Cesar. If the wordly substaūce and ritches of men were required and asked by the hygher pou­res / I wold councell to gyue thē. But in those thin­ges which do belonge vnto the worshipp of Godd / I say / that thei must not yealde to the wicked reque­stes of theyr hygher Rulars and lordes: here is no place to be gyuen to thē / but in our owne ciuile mat­ters we must yealde / yf to yealde in them be not a­gaynst Goddes lawe. In which case Naboth is to 3. Reg. 21. be excused / which wolde not graunte hys vy [...]eyard to the Kinge: He dyd it not of couetousnes / or of to great a desyre which he dyd beare to the thinges of the world / but because he dyd knowe that in gyuing awaye of his vineyarde so / Goddes lawe shulde be broken / by which he hadd appointed / that the feel­des [Page] and possessions amonge the people of Israell / shuld remayn in theyr tribes and kindreds / as they Num. 33. were iustly distributed at the beginning. This lawe of God wolde Kinge Achab haue broken / and ther­to required he the cōsent of Naboth / which he with a good and a safe conscience could not do / and ther­for wold not. But halas / sorow it is to behold / how that there are many Dukes / Earles / and such prin­ces / from whome yf an Emperour or a Kinge wold take their dominions / landes / lordshipps and inhe­ritaunce / they wold leaue nothing vndone / yea they wold do all that they could do / to defend their own / and to resiste their vnrighteous doinge: But when the kingdom of God is assaulted by tyrauntes, and the gospell and bequest of the bludd of Christe taken violently and wretchedly away from them / and frō the children of Godd which are committed to theyr tuition and defence / they will do nothing at all. Yea when they are required of theyr hygher poures / as ministers of theyr furie / to destroye and ouerthrow the gospell / then they neyther sturre nor speake anye thing at all / but do as they are biddē. In theyr own cause they can fight / and rebell / but in Goddes cau­se / they are as it were no princes nor Rulers. Wher­by we can not thincke any other thing of them / then this / That they do not at the hart esteme the gospell of Christe.

Nowe this is remayning / that I sholde answer A confuta [...]ion of the [...]laces al­ledged. vnto those reasons which were put forthe at the be­gynning to proue that the dwelling together of the [Page 52] faithfull with the vnfaithfull is lawfull / and con­fute them. Firste / the example of Christ is set against vs / which dyd eate and drinke familiarlye with scri­bes / pharisees / publicanes / and synners. We muste remembre that Christe was not onlye stronge / but the chiefe heade of all them which be stronge. He coulde so profyte them which were euell / that theyr euill shuld not hurte him / and therfore might vse fa­miliaritie with the wicked. Euen so there is no cau­se to the contrarie / but that they whiche be learned and constante in the truthe / suche as can prof [...]t the vnfaithfull by their cōuersation and familiar being with them / and not be hurt by it them selues (as we haue admonished before) may be conuersaunt with the vnbeleauers and wicked.

The seconde place is / Paule wolde not that the faithfull maried vnto an vnbeleuer sholde departe / 1. Cor. 7. yf the vnbeleuer will dwell together with the other. This I do also acknowledge / as befor I haue said: for vnto thē / al necessary businesses / especially those which are ordeyned of God / are to be done. And yet in that place which is here alledged / Paule is not so to be vnderstanded without exception / as these mē do iudge: for yf the vnbeleuig maried parson / shold cōtinually moue the faithfull to Idolatrie / or sholde not cease to blaspheme Christ / and prouoke the other to cōmit like blasphemie / so lōg as thei did liue toge ther / this ioynt life in mariadge were not to be cōti­nued: for this were not to dwell together / but to cō ­spire together against Christ: Paule therfor speaketh [Page] of suche cohabitacion as is laufull without suche soliciting or mouinge to euell and blasphemye.

An other sentence of Paule is broughte which he writeth to the Corinthians / where he teacheth that 2. Cor. 5. all couetous parsons / euill speakers / dronckardes / whoremūgars / and such lyke / are not to be auoided / for then sholde they haue gone out of the worlde. But he wold / that we sholde kepe our selues frō thē / which being called brethren / are infected with these vices. As concerninge this place / we must consi­der the mynde and purpose of Paule. Firste he dyd perceyue that for the necessitie of lyfe it coulde not be that the faithfull shulde auoyde the companie of all which at that tyme were vnbeleuers / for the greater part of men at that ceason was without Christ / and they beinge auoided of our men / coulde not therby haue bene made the better / But into thē which be­fore were bretheren / bothe sorowe and shame was dryuen / when they dyd see that they wer now shon­ned of the godlye / to whome as they were before righte deare / so with them they were familiar. And by this meanes the church was not euill repor­ted / neither for clokinge of euill among themselues / nor for to seuere separatinge themselues from them which were not yet conuerted: seing that they lyued with the vnbeleuers / partly for the necessitie of lyfe / partlye to turne them to the gospell of Christ: wher­fore this sentence doth make nothing at all agaynst those thinges which we haue alreadye spoken.

Moche lesse maketh that for them which they do [Page] bringe in / that Abraham did becomme a straungier amōg the heathē and Idolatrours: first that which Gene. 12. Abraham dyd / euen by the callinge and commaun­demente of God he dyd it. Againe he was of suche knowledge and constācie in the truithe that he coul de be conuersaūte whith the vnbeleauers with out hurtinge of him selfe / and wyth moche profyting of thē. For he caryed aboute with him the name of god ād his holy ād true worship / whither so euer he wēt. And the very same thing / maie we answer of Lot.

For if Lot went to Sodome / with a Good myn­de Gene. 13. to teache thē true faithe and godlie life / he owght not to be accused therfore / for it was well done / yea it was the prouidence of God towards the Sodo­myts / that they mighte be better taughte / and er­nestly called vnto repētance. So dothe God admo­nishe before he destroieth. So Abraham was sent amonge the Cananites. On this sorte to go amōge the wicked / and vnbeleuers is lawfull and lauda­ble. But if Lot went to Sodō only because the plea­saunte commodytie of the place pleased him / he dyd not wel. Neither indede dyd his going thither hap­pen luckelie / for he was led awaye captiue / so that he was in nede to be rescued again by Abraham. Gene. 14. And likewise when God burned the Cytie / he was compelled euen against his will to forsake it.

Of Naaman I shall not nede to speake nowe / for 6 of him I haue spokē inough before. I suppose lyke­wise 7 that the ca [...]se is opē and plaine inoughe / wher fore manye of them which were healed of Christe [Page] were sent frō him to their own coūtrie / and kindred / to publishe and declare amōge thē / what hade hap­pened vnto thē. This nowe remayneth / that I shol­de peculiarlie speake of the Iues / and heretikes. For these too kindes of mē do in all places this daye liue amonge / and do dwell togither wyth the Christiās.

As concerninge the Iues / there be certayn rea­sons Of the Iues why they are to be borne withall and suffered. Of which Augustine / amonge others / doth make mencion in many places. Firste / they aboue all other sortes and nations of men hadde the promise made vnto them. Neither are they all yet vtterly to be des­payred of / for the roote remaynethe into the which they maye be ingrafted agayne / and nowe and thē some of them / thoughe not many in Nombre / do come vnto Christe. Paule saithe to the Romains / that partly blindnes is happened in Israel / as if he Rom. 11. wolde saie / not vpon all / nor for euer. And after­warde he saieth / when the fulnes of the gentyles ys comme / thē all Israell shalbe saued: vnto that ende therfore the lorde saueth / and preseruith them vnto this daye. And that thou sholdest not thincke that this place is to be vnderstanded allegorically of the spirituall Israel / Paule teacheth it as a mysterie / ād dothe recite the prophecie of Esaie / in which it is Esa. 59. sayd: That then all the iniquite of Iacob shal be taken awaie. Besids this they are called ennemies / Quest. E­uāg. lib. 2. quest. 33. Luc. 15. but yet beloued for the fathers. And Augustine ex­poūdinge the historie of the prodigall sonne / saieth / that he dothe represent the gentiles / for as he went [Page 54] into a farre countrie / so the gentyles dyd departe so farre frome God / that they worshipped Idolls as by a publike order and custome cōmenlye receyued: But the elder sonne / by whō the people of the Iues is signified / went not farre awaie / but was in the felde / not in his fathers house verylie / which is the church / but in the fielde / for the Iues are occupied / and cōuersaunte aboute the letter of the scriptures / they vnderstāde them whith an earthly and fleshly mynde. And therfore it is sayde / that he was in the felde: At the begynning he wēte not into the house / but at the last he shall entre / and be called also: And alwaies Augustine bringith this sentence to per­suade Lib. de fi­de rerū in­uisib. cap. 6 Psal. [...]59 men to suffer the Iues / which is writē in the 58. psal. as he nōbred the Psalmes. [...]ley them not / lest my poeple do forget / but scater thē abroade. &c. The sonne of God praieth the father / that the Iues mighte not be vtterlie slayne and destroyed but scatered abroad throughe the worlde. Other coun­tries and nacyōs / being subdued of the Romaynes receyued their lawes and rytes / and so became Ro­mains / but the Iues although that they also were ouercomme of the Romaines / yet were they neuer made Romaīs / neither ī ordinaūces / lawes / nor re­ligiō. They do kepe their own lawe (so farre as they cā) euē vnto this daye: They wander aboute disper­sed and scattered abrode / neither do they forget the lawe of Godd / they haue it / not to obserue it indee­de / but only they do reade yt / ād they do also reteyne certeyn signes / as Circūcisiō and other ordinaūces / [Page] by which they are knowē from others. But they of­fer no sacrifices / for to sacrifice was lawfull only at Hierusalē. And thus it semeth that the lorde hathe sett vppon them a signe / as he dyd vppon Cain / which slewe his brother Abell.

Neither is this their dispersion amonge all the na­cions of the worlde vnprofitable for vs. They are braunches brokē of / and we are grafted in their pla­ce / which thinge whilest we do beholde / we must acknowledg the iustice of God towards them / and his grace towards vs: And we muste take hede / that we be notlykwise cutt of through vnbelefe / for the which they were broken awaie. Ther is another cōmoditie besydes this that commith of this their dispersiō which is / that they do kepe our bokes / the holy byble I do meane. These they do carye aboute with them / they reade them / and thoughe they bele­ue not / because they are blinded / yet do they cōfesse that these wrytinges are true. And so though they be our enemies in their mynde / yet the bokes which they haue and do reuerēce / are our witnesses. wher­fore I cā not maruayle ynoughe at those mē which do persequute and hate the tonge of the Hebrewes / and the Hebrewe bibels / and do burne them / whē as Augustine in his boke / De doctrina Christiana, dothe bidde / that we sholde go to the truithe of the lib. 2. ca. 11. Hebrue tonge / if we do doubte in any place of our translations. The selfe same thinge dothe Hierome teache in manye places. But they saie that these bo­kes are corrupted of the Iues. Heare I thinke good [Page 55] to answer with Hierome. Either saithe he they dyd this before the comminge of Christe / and the prea­chinge of the Apostles / or after: if before / it is mar­uell that when Christ / the Apostles / and Paule / dyd reproue moste shāfull faultes in the Iues / that they wolde haue kepte in silence so greate and haynous a sacriledge as this: surelie if it hade bene so / they wolde haue reproued yt. But if it was done after Christes ascēsiō / they wolde thē chieflie haue corrup ted those places which do make mēciō of Christ / and those which Christe / and his Apostles did alledge. But those remayne safe and vncorrupte / the same sense and meaninge of thē is in their bible in which they were recyted of Christe / and his Apostles (for aboute the wordes they were not so curious) wher­fore it is not lyke / that they haue corrupted any other places at all in the holy bokes of the scripture. Yea if a mā dothe iustly beholde thē / he shall see that they haue many moo testimonies and sentences for vs / more plaine / I saye / then our cōmen translatiō ha­the / as in the. 2. Psal. kisse the sonne / where ours ha­the / laie holde of knowledg. In like maner the who­le. 53. of Esaie / which dothe moste plainlie prophecie of Christ / remaynith vncorrupt. The bokes therfore are not corrupted. Yea they coulde not haue corrup­ted those bokes thoughe they wolde / but it shuld be easyly espied: for ther be of them manye moste awn cient in wryten hande / which haue bene kepte moste diligentlie of Christians. But let vs retourne to the profyt that Augustine speaketh of. Many might [...]e [Page] thinke / that those thinges which are spokē of the ol­de people were vayne and fayned / and likwise those thinges which we do tell owte of the prophettes / excepte they dyd see the Iues thēselues yet liuinge / and remayninge / with their bokes / which do beare witnesse to the thinges that we do speake: wherfore though the Iues be blinded in mynde / and in harte are our enemyes / yet euen them and their bokes we haue moste plaine witnesses of our faithe. Aske thē of the prophettes whom Christ dothe alledge / they graunte theym to be true. Aske them of the vnder­standinge of thē / in yt they are ignoraunte / because they are blinded. And amonge all other witnessin­ges / that witnesse which is gyuen of a mās enemie is of greatest weight / and makith most for him: Of suche witnesses truly the lorde hathe prouided good stoore for his churche. For we haue not only the bo­kes of the Hebrues to make for vs / but also the ver­ses or rydles of the Sibylles / which were of an hea­thē poeple. It is not to be thought / that our elders fayned thos verses: for Sibylles bokes were euen commune / in all mens hands / in the tyme of Euse­bius the bishoppe of Cesarea / of Lactantius / and of Augustine. All which do vse / and alledg them. But if they hade alledged false and counterfett verses / the heathen mē which then excelled in knowledge / and were very many also in numbre / they wolde ha ue reproued theym as vayn men and lyars. If then men wyll gyue this vnto the verses of the Sibylles that they be vncorrupte / moche more is it to be gi­uen [Page 56] to the bokes of the Hebrues. Thus hath it plea­sed the lorde to defende and arme his churche / yea euē with the testimonies of his aduersaires. Wher­for let the Iues be suffred amonge the Christians / both for the promis which they haue of the saluaciō to comme to their stocke / and also for the commo­dities which they do carie with them / such as I ha­ue rehearsed. And for this cause / they be not only by lawes suffered / but also they haue their Synago­ges graunted vnto them: As in the Nouellis Con­stitutionibus of Iustinian / and in the Decrees / it doth appere: But this is permitted vnder such con­dicion that they shuld not haue moo Synagoges then they hadd before / nor greater: Yet maye they repaire them that fall into decaye: This was graū ­ted to them / bicause that in their cōgregacions / ther is no impiete / nor wickednes committed: They do but reade only the bookes of the holy scripture / and do publiquely praye. In which thinge yet the Ma­gistrates and Bushopps / do euell / which do not di­ligētly serche / take heede / and prouide / that they do nothinge els in their congregations indeede / then that I haue spoken of: for they shuld by al meanes take heede / that in their publique and cōmon pray­ers / exhortations and readinges they do not speake euell of Christe our lorde and Godd. Which thynge seing they do not / both the Magistrates and the Bushopps are in greate fault. Vnto Turcks this ought not to be graunted / that they shuld gather them selues together in congregations to do their [Page] Godd seruice / bicause that in the same they reade neither the old Testament / nor the newe / but only their own blasphemus and filthie Alcorane. Mo­rouer the Iues shuld be forbidden the practise of their exchaūges / and their vsuries. For not without mutch dishonesti and shame / do they afflicte many poore Christians therwith. But Christian Princes and Rulars do take tributes / and gret taxes for the­se gaynes of vsurie and shamefull couetusnes of the Iues / so farr ar they from forbidding them these wicked practises. Agayne Christian princes do not prouide to haue the Iues which do dwell vnder their dominions taught in Goddes truithe: which indeede is an euill negligēce in them: for truly they ought to compell the Iues to comme vnto the god­ly sermons of the Christians / and that often tymes. Els if they be left in this point neglected / they do wa [...]e dayly wors and wors / and lytill yea no hope at all is ther to be hadd of their conuercion. Theise princes are likewise bownd to take heade that the Iues do not corrupt the Christiās / which ar vnder their Rule / that they do not seduce them and bringe them into Iuishnes. Neither shuld the weaker sort of Christians haue ony familiaritie with them / but only such Christians as be learned / and constant in the truithe. And that for such causes / as I haue al­ledged before. Last of all it is meete and conueniēt / that they shuld be known from the Christians by their araye / or som suche outwarde signe / les ony man at vnwares shuld be conuersaunt with them / [Page 57] as though they wer Christians. And thus mutch of the Iues shall suffice. Now will I entreate of He­retikes.

This worde Haeresis, is deriued of the Greke wor­de / [...], which signifieth to chose / to pick / or to cull out. For heretikes do chose out / vnto thēselues sum doctrine which is contrarye to the holy scriptures / and do obstinatly defend the same. Vnto this euell they are brought / either bicause they do not know the holy scriptures / either bicause that though they do knowe them yet they do contemne and despise them either els bicause they do applye thēselues to get sum honor or riches by this meane. Wherfor Augustine saith. He is an heretike which either en­uentith / Lib. de v­tilit. credē. or folowith fals and new opinions for ony worldly commoditie / and cheifly to gett himself glorie ād autorite. But of Heresie I will make this definicion. Heresie / is a choise and obstinate defen­ce / Vvhat he resie is. of certeyn doctrynes which are contrary vntto Godds worde / springinge / either of the ignoraun­ce / or of the contempt of the holy scriptures / to gett therby aduaūtag / or honors. Ther are foure kyndes of causes in this definicion. The formall cause is / chosinge and defending of picked doctrynes. The materiall parte or cause is picked doctryns contrary to Godds worde. For he that beleauith no doctryne at all / is godles / and not an Heretike. The cause ef­ficient by which they are moued to Heresie is / igno­raunce and contempt of the holy scripture / and lust or couetus desire. The end whi men fall to Heresie [Page] is / to obtayne honors / ād riches: For they do abhor­re the Crosse which folowith the preachinge of the gospell / ād as Paule saith / Theyr belly / is their god. Phil. 3. Quest. in Matth. quest. 11. Augustine hath also this diuisiō. Euell catholiques are they / which do lyue otherwise thē they saie that they do beleaue. Schismatiques are they / which for diuersitie in opiniō do diuide ād separat the church / for [...], is to deuide. Heretikes are they / which per­seuere / and cōtinue in that schisme. But in an other Lib. 2. con­tra Cresco. cap. 7. place he saith. That Heresie / doth differ frō schisme. For a Schisme / is a stryfe which risith vppon diuer­sitie of sentēces. Neither can a dyuiding or a schisme be / onles they which do make it do thinke and holde cōtrarie thinges. But Heresie is / an inueterat schis­me. Saint Paule obseruith no such diuersitie / for he vsith theise too wordes for one thinge. Nowe that 1. Cor. 11. ye se what Heresie is / consider well wether that the papistes be heretikes / or no? They themselues do stoutly saye that they be none. Yea ād sum other ther are / which dare affirme / that the papistes do differ from vs only in certayn abuses of ceremonies / and not in the doctrine of faithe. But how farr theise mē do err from the truithe / it shall forthwithe appeare. For I will playnly proue / that the papists are Here­tikes / and do mayntayne Heresie againste certayn principall doctrines of our faithe.

Furst in the Article of Iustification / the papistes do picke out vnto themselues this doctrine: That a 1 The Pa­pistes are heretiques man is not iustified by faithe only / but by goode [Page 58] worcks also. Which doctrine is contrary to the holy scriptures. Paule teachith thus. We holde that a mā is Iustified by faithe / without the deedes of the Rom. 3. Gal. 2. Lawe. Agayn he saith. We do knowe that a man is not Iustified by the deedes of the lawe / but by the faithe of Iesu Christe. And Peter / whom Paule did thē withstōd / did not speake agaynst this doctrine. Of the Iues / also he writith thus. For being igno­rant Rom. 10. of Gods righteousnes / and goinge about to establishe their own righteousnes / they were not obediēt to the righteousnes of God. In which pla­ce he settith theise two righteousnesses / the one / against the other / the righteousnes of faith / against the righteousnes of worckes / so that the one exclu­dith the other. The same thinge he doth where spea­king Rom. 11. of Iustificatiō he saith. If it be of grace / thē is it not of worcks / if it be of worcks / thē is it no more Phil. 3. grace. To the Philippians he playnly saith / that the worcks which are wrought before Regeneracion / can not iustifie / for he doth counte them to be but losse and dunge / which truly he wold not haue do­ne / if they hadd such poure and vertue / that they could iustifie. This is most playne / that men before regeneraciō are euell / and then must this sentēce of Christes stōde true. An euell tree cā not bringe forth goode fruite. For how can it be / that they wich are Mat. 7. deade as cōcerning righteousnes / can of thē selues go ony thinge forward vnto their new birthe: And we all wer such / euē deade throughe synne / and the [Page] children of wrathe. The Epistle writon to the He­brues Ephes. 2. doth witnes / That without faith it is impos­sible to please God: And to the Romayns Paule Hebre. 11. saith. That what soeuer is not of faithe is Synne. This is the doctrine of the scripture cōcerning this Rom. 14. matier. The papistes (as I sayde) do teache cleane contrarie doctrine / ānd do obstinatly defēd it / not­withstōding that they be admonished of their error by the holy scriptures / by the aunciente fathers / as Hierom / Augustin / and others / by the godly Coū ­cels / as Africanum / Mileuitanum / Arausicanum / And now also being admonished therof by vs / yet will they not leaue their errour: Wherfor by the for­mer definitiō of Heresie / they are proued heretikes.

An other doctryne also they do hold which is this. That the worcks which men do after regeneracion / are meritorius of their own worthines vnto euerla­sting lyfe / And that they do fulfill the lawe of God. Yea they be not content to saye this only / but they adde. That men can do more goode worcks thē the lawe of Godd requirith. For (saye they) to lyue a syn­gle lyfe / to preache the gospell frely / mē are not com­maunded by ony expres cōmaundement of Godd. This they do teache / and obstinatly defend. But we do lern out of the holy scriptures / that The afflic­tiōs of this lyfe / are not worthie of the glorie / which Rom. 8. shalbe shewed vppon vs. He speakith heare of the best kind of worcks / euen of sufferinge martyrdom. Besides this eiche man dothe fele him selfe bounde betwene / and giltie of the breaking of theis two co­maundementes. [Page 59] Thou shalt loue the lorde thy God whith all thy harte / with all thy soule / and with all Deut. 5. thy mighte: lykewise of that same other commaun­demente. Thou shalte not luste / Theris none amōg Exod. 20. mortall mē / that dyd euer fulfill those commaunde­mentes. For the prophet saythe: that our rightuous­nesses / are as the clothe stayned withe the floures of Esa. 64. a woman. And Christe wolde haue vs all / yea euen the blessed virgin / and the Apostles themselues to praye / forgyue vs our trespasses. Iames addeth / in many thinges we all do synne. Iohn saythe. And if Mat. 6. Iacob. 3. 1. Ioan. [...]. we saie we haue no synne / we do deceyue our sel­ues. This do we learne in the holie scripture / of our continuall synnynge: they teache not then that we can do any thing more then we sholde. But here the papistes do seke startinge hooles / and saie that they which liue a sole life / they which do preach the gos­pell frelie / do more thē the lawe cōmaundeth / as I sayde-But this is not true / for they which haue the powre to liue a sole and chaste lyfe / ād do know that in this kinde of lyfe they shall more paynfully and profitably labor in the preachinge of the gospell of Christe thē otherwise. They are bownde to take it on thē ād to lyue in it. For if they do yt not / it is certeyne that they loue not God with all their harte / by cause they sholde then leaue vndone somewhat that they mighte do / to [...] the glorie of his name / and wolde not. Like is to be saide of thē / which mighte preache the gospell frelye / and do se that it shalbe for the in­crease of the kingdō of Godd / and do it not. Wher­fore [Page] seinge the papistes do bothe thincke and teache otherwise in this matier then the holie scripture do­the teache / and do defend their errour with an obsti­nate mynde they are heretikes.

They do chose vnto them selues also an other do­ctrine / which is / that they which be regenerat / mu­ste [...] alwaies doubte of their saluatiō. But Christ / the Apostles / and the whole scripture / do teache cleane contrarie / he that beleuithe in me (saith Christe) ha­the euerlasting life. If he hath it / howe cā he doub­te Ioan. 6. of yt then? And it is writen in the Actes. To him giue all the Prophetes witnesse / that all they which Act. 10. beleue throughe his name / shall receyue remissiō of synnes. And to the Romains / whō he hath called / Rom. 8. them also he iustified / whom he iustified / thē he also glorified: But here the papistes haue this shifte / A mā muste not doubte of Gods promises (they saye) but he muste doubte of the infirmitie of his fleshe / that he can not do those thinges which are to be do­ne / to obtayne the promises of Godd. Butt we be admonished by Abrahās example / that we sholde Rom. 4. not in beholding of our imbecyllitie / fainte in faith / nor fall from beleauinge certainly the truithe of the promises: he considered not the barren wombe of Sara / nor his own old and effoebled bodie / he stac­kered not at the promise of God through vnbelefe / but became strōge in faithe / and dyd giue glory vn­to God / knowinge that he was sufficientlie able to performe those thīges which he promised. 2c. Ther­for by faithe is the enheritaunce gyuē that it might [Page 60] come of grace / that the promise mighte be certaine Rom. 4. and sure: for if the certayntie of our saluaciō did hā ­ge on our merytes ād worthines of our worckes / it sholde alwaies stumble / and be in daūgier of ouer­throwe. Thus the papistes do spoile men of health­full hope / ād make mē doubt / if not despaire / which is not to be done: For that nature of hope maie not be inuerted which Paule teacheth to be suche / that it dothe not make a man ashamed: if then we do cer­taynlye Rom. 5. hope and loke for life euerlastinge / we shall not be deceyued: and seīg it is the holye ghoste that bearithe witnes vnto our spret / that we are the chil­dren Rom. 8. of Godd / surly his witnes we may not reiect / without cōmitting gret offence. I am sayth Godd / The lorde thy Godd / this will he haue them that be Exod. 20. his to beleaue: And who soeuer beleauith this / hath the quiet peace of a iustified consciēce / and knowith Roma. 5. hymself to be in safetie / for Godd is his iustifier / ād who shall condēne hym / whom Godd doth iustifie. Against al theise manifest testimonies of the holy Roma. 8. scriptures / theise men do teache their contrary doc­trine / and do obstinatly defend it / wherfor they are heretiques.

Moreouer they do teache that euery mā must sa­tisfice for hys synnes in this lyfe / which if he do not / then must he go to purgatorie: And that by the poure of the Keyes committed vnto them / they can turn the euerlastinge punishment in to a temporall. If therfor satisfaction be not made whilest a man is in this lyfe / he shall do it / when he is goone out [Page] this lyfe. But against this / the holy scriptures do Psal. 32. Rom. 4. teache. Blessed are they whose vnrighteousnesses are forgyuen / and whos synnes are couered. What blessednes / I praye you shuld this be / if they which be reconciled vnto Godd / shuld be bownde to sustayne such paynes and punishmentes. When a Synner doth repent (saith Godd by the Prophet) The synnes that he hath done / shall not be thought vppon. But Godd will thincke vppon them / if it be Ezech. 18. true that either a man must satisfice / or go to purga­torie / if Godd wil so sharply punishe them by such paynes as they saye are in purgatorie. It is writon in the reuelacion. Blessed are the deade which do Apoc. 14. dye in the lorde / euē so saieth the spret / that they rest from their labours. They which do dye in the lorde / that is the beleauers / how do they rest frō their la­bours / if it be so that they must yeat be vexed in pur­gatorie? Christe our Sauiour when he did forgyue synnes sayed. Thy faithe hath made the safe: go thy Luc: 7. Ioan. s. Lnc. 23. Phil. 1. wayes / synne no more. To the theif he saied. This daye thow shalt be with me in paradise. Paule desi­red to be loosed / and to be with Christ. How chaun­cith it that here is no mencion made of purgatorie▪ In the old lawe / ther wer sacrifices ordeigned / for princes / prests / for the Nazarites / for the lepars / for gelousie / for the synne of ignoraūce / and many such lyke. How happeneth it that ther was no sacrifice appoīted for the dead? The church truly (as we also do graunte) hath keyes cōmitted vnto it. And thei­se are / the preachinge of the gospell / that is the for­gyuenes [Page 61] of synnes to thē which do beleaue in Chri­ste Mar. 16. and the threateninge of condemnaciō / through which heauen is shutt againste the vnbeleauers. One key is the promis / an other key is faith / by thei­se two keyes heauē is opened to the penitēt. Theise keyes Christ did delyure whē he sayed: goo in to the whol world / ād preach the gospell to euery creature / he that beleaueth ād is baptised / shalbe saued. Tho­se ministers do occupie these keyes which do preach the gospell. But here is no menciō made of altering of Goddes iudgements / nor of turninge of punish­mentes. Christe our sauiour / by that one sacrifice of his bodye / ones offered for all euer / did worcke per­fect saluaciō / and made a perfect and consummate ende of sacrificing for synne: where then is their en­uented satisfactiō for synne? Yea who doth not see / that this theyr doctryne doth withdrawe frō Christ / the fulnes of that his satisfactiō with which he sa­tisficed for vs? when they do saye that it is not suffi­cient / except we do adde ours also. And this theyr wicked errour they go about to colour / because the olde fathers vsed oftē times this worde / satisfacti­on. But they will not see / that the fathers mēt ther­by / to satisfice the churche / when they were receyued publiquely to repentaunce / and not to satisfice to Godd. Except thow wilt saye that to satisfice is no­thing els / but when one doth make himself appro­ued vnto an other man. For euen so are we saide to satisfice to Godd / when as after our cōuercion and turning to his grace / we do lyue godly for his plea­sure / [Page] to aproue our selues vnto hym / as his childrē. Thus satisfactions / are signes of the forgyuenes of synnes and of true repētaūce. But (as I sayde) thei­se mē do both thincke / and teache otherwyse / and do defēde obstinatly theyr error / they will not be satisfi­ced by the word of God / wherfor they are heretikes.

They do teache furthermore / that it is lawfull in the congregacion to do the holy seruice / in a tongue that is not vnderstōded. And this they do indeede / and defende theyr misdoinge / neither being admo­nished will they amende it. Paule doth forbidde the [...] Cor. [...]4. christians the vse of those tongues in the congrega­cions / which euen by miracle were bestowed vpon them / except they did interpretate and expoūde that which they shuld speake in them. And all Paules re­asons are grounded vpon the edifying of the cōgre­gacion / whiche aboue all thinges we ought to seeke in the holy meetinges and cōgregacions. But there shalbe no edificacion at all / when that thing which is spoken / is not vnderstonded of the people. Paule saith. My brethren yf I do come vnto you speaking with tongues / what shall I profite you / excepte I speake to you / eyther by reuelaciō / or by knowledge / or by prophecying / or by doctryne. But these sacrifi­cers / lyke men that can do mutch more then Paule / they do come with a straunge tong / which the con­gregacion vnderstondeth not / and yet neuertheles they bragge that they do muche profite the congre­gaciō. Paule will rather speake fyue wordes / to the enformacion of others / then ten thousand wordes [Page 62] with tongues: Our sacrificers cleane contrary / will rather speake a thousand / yea an infinite number of wordes in a straūge tongue / then a very feawe / the meaning of which maye be vnderstonded. Paule proueth his sentence and minde / euen by thinges that haue no lyfe / as by a trompe / and harp / and les we shulde be one to an other as barbarus / and ali­auntes / but this is of no force / nor auctoritie with the papistes. For our purpose we haue the example of Godd himself / which dyd speake vnto the Iuishe people in their naturall tongue. The greke churche did receyue the doctryne of the gospell of the Apost­les (whiche were Hebrues) in their naturall greke tongue. And as from the beginninge the Hebrues in theyr congregacions haue vsed their naturall He brue tongue / so haue the Grecians their greke ton­gue / and so at the begynning the latin churche vsed their naturall latine tongue also: Only these hereti­ques (the papistes I meane) are delighted with a In nouell. Constitu. straūge tongue. Iustiniane the Emprour determi­neth / that all thinges shulde be spoken openlye and plainlye in the Temples / that they mighte bothe be hearde and vnderstonded / But this the papistes re­garde not. Wherfor seing they cā not / nor will not / be moued from this their opinion / whiche is so ab­surde and repugnant to the holye scriptures / to the order of the catholique churche / to the lawes of the Emproure / without all doubt they are heretiques.

They do teache that the sacrament of the Lordes body and bludd / shuld be ministred in one kinde on­ly [Page] / when it is gyuen to the people. It is most mani­fest and playne / that Christe our Sauiour did other­wyse institute it / euen to be mynistred in bothe kin­des to all communicauntes. These sacrificers ther­fore in taking awaye of the cupp frō the people they do committ most shamefull sacriledge. We bring in agaynst them the Institucion of Christe: But that can they not abyde to heare of. Yeat les they shulde seame to saye nothing / They saye / That the Lord did delyuer it in bothe kindes vnto prestes onlye / that is to his Apostles. And yet when they themselues do mynister it vnto prestes whiche do not saye Masse / they do gyue but the one kinde only. But they haue nothinge to aunswer vnto Paule (who writinge to the hole churche of the Corinthians / which were not [...]. Cor. 11. prestes only (as the papistes call them) but a cōgre­gacion bothe of men and women) dothe delyuer the holy supper vnto them in bothe kindes / as he recey­ued it of the Lorde / heere haue they nothing to saye. And vnto this madnes some of these massers do co­me at lenghth / That they saye that the holy commu­nion is not to be called the Lordes supper / for wher is it (saye they) called the supper of the Lorde? For­sothe Dotor Vveston. Paule / the scoler of the holy ghost / calleth it so. 1. Cor. 11. Yea they aske farther / where the scripture teacheth / that this holy sacrament shulde be gyuen vnto women / as thoughe they wolde be counted of fauour and of their liberalitie / to gyue a communiō Lyberall [...] Vvomē vnto women / and not because Godd in his worde hath appointed the sacramēt of hys bodye and blud 1. Cor. 11. [Page 63] to be delyuered vnto women as well as to men. In the holy scripture it is writen / Let a man proue hym selfe. In this worde man is man and woman comprehended. No saith a Doctor the greke worde is / [...] which signifieth the mankinde only: Thys Maister Latymers ansvver therfor is true. 1. Cor. 10. Doctor lyeth lowdly / for the greke worde / in that place is / [...] which signifieth bothe man and woman. The scriptures also do teache / that the holy communion doth partayne vnto all them / which ar one breade / and one cupp: wherfor except they wyll exclude women out of the bodye of Christ / and shew that they be not of the churche of Christe / how shall / or can this papist / depryue them of the holy commu nion? Especially seinge it is playnly taught / that in Christe there is neyther man / nor woman / neyther bonde / nor fre / but all are one in Christe. But to re­turne Gal. 3. to their sacriledge / in which thei do take away one parte of the sacrament. Of this thefte the insti­tution of the Lorde / the Epistle of Paule / the custo­me ād manier of the primatiue churche / which was to mynister this holy supper in both kindes / dothe accuse them / which dyd continue euen vntill the ty­me of Thomas Aquinas / and vnto this daye it con­tinueth in all the Easte church / wherfore seing that in this thinge also they are so obstinate / they can be none otherwyse estemed but as heretykes.

They haue also another most pernicious and hur­tefull doctryne / of the calling vpon the deade sainc­tes / and worshippe / and adoration / to be gyuen to theyr Images. The holy scripture sayth / Thou shalt Deut. 6. [Page] worshipp the Lorde thy God / and hym onlye shalte thou serue. But they denye that they do worshippe the Images: They maye denye it in wordes / but in theyr dedes they do testifie cleane contrarye. They fall downe before them / they praye to them / thei crie and call on them / they cense them / they light vp cā ­dels before them / what do they more to God hym selfe? They leaue no peculiar thinge vnto Christe / to aske of him / which they do not aske of some saincte / They do gyue titles / and names vnto the sainctes / especiallie to the blessed virgin Marie / which do be­longe vnto Christe alone. Thou quene (saye they) of mercie / our aduocate / our lyfe / our sweetnes / ād our hope. Certaynlie these thinges do belonge to Christe onlye / vnto him therfore alone shoulde thei leaue these thinges vntouched / and withowt diminutiō. I speake not this / as though I dyd not thinke / that the moste holie virgin were worthy of singuler prai­ses / but euen she her selfe will not be made equall with Christe. They do furthermore crie owt of all corners at all their altars vnto their sainctes / as thoughe they were present euerie where. But this presence belongithe to god onlie / neither is it com­municated to any creature. Again it is writē in the Acto. 4. holye scripture: That ther is none other name vnder heauen / but the name of Christe onlye / wherin we 1. Ioan. 2. muste be saued. And Iohn doth saie: If we synne / we haue an aduocate wyth the father / Iesus Chri­ste the rightuous / and he is the propiciation for our synnes. But theis heretikes make many aduocates. [Page 64] Esaie confessith and saieth. Abraham hathe not Esa. 63. knowen vs / And Israel hathe forgotten vs. And therfore (saith he) these are not to be called vpon / we must not truste in them / but in God onlye / and that vnto him wee muste flye. We are commaūded also in moste plain wordes / that what so euer we aske / we sholde aske it in the name of Iesus Christe / and Ioan. 16. not in the name of other sainctes / as theise men do. But contrary to this true doctryne they do stifflie maynteyne their wicked error / therfor are they very­lye heretikes. Here I do let passe their masse / in whi [...] they make their mishapen Godd of breade / throughe their art of transubstantiation. They sett vpp their sacrifice for the quicke and deade / the ve­rie abhomination and God Maozim: which thin­ges they do defēde wyth moste peruerse obstinacie. But howe contrarie they are to the worde of Godd is not nowe again to be repeted / seinge that a lytell before / in this matter I haue sayde sufficiētlie. But if I wolde spēde more tyme here / I mighte reherce many other doctrines of the papistes in which they do shāfully swarue frō the truithe of Godds worde. And of their errours they will not chaūg any thing at all which prouith them to be obstinate heretikes. But this that I haue writō is inough / and inough againe to proue that thei are heritikes. Now let thē saie that we dissent but in ceremonies. But I saie that we dissēt in doctrines. Let the papistes saie that we shold not haue departed frō thē / but I saie / they shoulde not then haue departed frō the truithe. Au­gustine [Page] wolde not graūte vnto Cresconius / that the Aduersus Crescon. lib. 2. controuersie betwene the Catholikes and the dona­tistes / was a lighte and small contention / and schis­me: But he saieth that they defended an heresie / and that moste horrible / euen this that they did rebapti­ze. And yet baptisme reiterated dothe nomore differ from the worde of God / then these errours of the pa pistes / which I haue repeted.

Wherfore Christian princes / whilest they do suf­fer them in their dominions / they owghte no other­wise to suffer them / then vpon suche condicyons as are aboue rehersed. That is / that they do compell no man to partake their wicked Idolatries. That they do not permitt them to haue their rites and super­sticious ceremonies. That they take hede / that they do not corrupte others which do beleaue truly / and be of good iudgemēte. And last of al / after that they haue bene cōpetentlie taughte / to enforce them out­wardly to embrace sownde / and holye rites / and ce­remonies agreinge with Godds worde. Thou wil­te saie happelie / if it shoulde be so / their condition sholde be more miserable then the condicion of the Iewes / and Turckes / whom we do not compell to receyue our Religiō. I graunte / but yet this sholde be iustlie done. And that for theis causes. Firste by­cause the Iewes are not Citizens in our common welthes / but receyued vnder this condicion / that it is lawfull for them to vse their owne lawes / so lōge as they will: wherfore if they do not behaue thēsel­ues well / or they do not please vs / they be turned [Page 65] awaie and caste owte / as oftē tymes they haue bee­ne handeled. And not without iuste cause / when their conuersation hathe beene hurtfull. But these papistes are our citizēs / therfore they must be other­wise handeled / and seinge they do confesse Christe / they are to be enforced to his pure and true religiō. Again the Iues can not do so moche hurte as these Iebuzites maie / for all men / for themoste parte / do shonne and deteste the Iue / but these are subtile sor­cerers / which vnder the cloke of the name of Christ / and ciuile familiaritie / maye deceyue many: further­more there is a promise of the saluatiō of the Iues / to be shewed ī the latter age / The lyke peculiar pro­mise of papistes ther is not. And yet I do not spea­ke this / as though I dyd condemne the counsell of many good prīces / which haue caste the Iues owt of their countrye / for good iuste and laufull causes. Their acte I do allowe. But to returne vnto theise heretiques the papistes / we are bounde to praie for them / and seinge they do dwell amonge vs / we mu ste obserue the aforenamed rules / In vsinge or not vsinge familiaritie / and beinge conuersaunte with thē / which I dyd giue / of being conuersaunt with the vnfaithfull and wicked / in which sorte I do pla­ce them. And if any of them do returne to the truith / and will embrace the true Religion of Christ / they are not to rebaptized. For though a Christian ought not to demaunde baptisme in the popishe churche / yet the baptisme which they haue hetherto vsed we acknowledge it to be such that it is not to be reite­rated [Page] of them whō they do baptise. Augustine wri­tinge Cōtra do­nat. lib. 5. cap. 23. of baptisme / againste the donatistes / sayeth that when they retorne / the hādes only are to be lay­de on them: and that les it sholde apeare / that they were before without fault. Also that the holye ghost maye by praier be begged to cōme vpō them / whose singular gifte the vnitie of the true churche is. This ceremonie trulye is laudable / but yet seinge it is not appointed to this purpose in the holye scripture / it maie be omitted: because we do se that the cheifest vse of it (as the apostles vsed it) was in the institu­tion of the ministers of the churche. Suche of them as haue bene by shopps / and elders / maie be recey­ued / into their degrees / and offices / if they do retur ne vnto the truithe: but this must be done / so as shall seme moste profitable to the flocke / and chur­che of the lorde. If they haue suche giftes as maie serue for the edyfying of the churche / And if by their ministerie / the truithe of the gospell and the salua­tion of the people which was committed vnto them maye be promoted more then by the ministerie of other / and aptelie / and as profitabli, They maie be restored to their place / ād degree. The order of which matter is lefte vnto the iudgement of the churche of God. But if they remayne obstinate in their euill / and do continue peruerters of the godlye doinges of the magistrates / and pestilent corruptors of the people: Then the magistrates maie / and owghte to vse the sworde againste thē: for hebearith the swor­de to take vengeaunce on them that do euill / and therto is he the minister of God.