Against a Rank Papist — John Bale

Against a Rank Papist · John Bale

Censura.

☞ A vowe in the olde lawe, is not a profession of any rashe brayne, as al monA vowe. ky…h vowes were, but it is an earnest pro mise to fulfyll that whych God hath ordayned and commaūded. For why, Dauid sayth: I hauehave loued thy commaūdementes aboue golde and preciouse stone. I obserue thy preceptes, & al false wayes I abhorre. Also in an other place. Blessid are they whyche walke in Gods wayes, and do no wyckednesse. Psalm. cxviii.

Obiectio.

¶ I hauehave at my laysur, perused & diligently consydered youre wrytynge, concernynge theUowes. matter of vowes, & the declaracion of the. xxx. chaptre of Numeri. Wherin your opinion, beinge but one mā, without farther reasons and proues added to the same, can not as yet fully deduce me to beliue the contrary of that which I hauehave conceyued by the cōmunicacion of lear ned men in tymes past, and also by other bokesIohā Eckius and authorytees, as it hath bene my chaunce to hauehave redde, concernyng that matter. Wherfore I hauehave added to eueryevery parcel of your wryting, suche doubtes as I thought my selfe not fully resolued in, desyrynge therby your further declaration of the matter, wyth the openyng and dyssoluynge of the same doubtes.

Responsio.

Ryght worshypfull sir, I hauehave receyued your gentyll answere to my simple and vndigested wrytinge, but not without the croked cauyllacions and vnseasonable obiec…ions of some chaplayne of yours, wheruponBablings. I perceyue, that if I folowe your desyre in resoluing the doubtes therin moued, I must be enforced to answere to. ii. spretes. Firste vntounto yours, which (as apereth) is full of lenyte and gentylnesse, corresponding to your name and offyce. And than to your sayd Falshede.chaplaynes, whom I fynde foystered wyth the popes old deggres and leuen of hypocrisy. I desyre you therfore to perpēde, y^t thoughe Socrates be a frynd, and Plato a frind, yet is the veryte to be preferred in fryndeshyp to them both. The truthe of it is, that a question was axed me, whether the. xxx. chapt. of Numeri, made any thynge for the vowe of lyfe syngle, or forswearyng of marryage,Celibatus in monkes and in priestes, or nape? Chastite I can not call it, for the greate godfathers thereof calleth it, Celibatus clericorum. Wherupon I made the sayd wryting, as a lyghte aunswere to so tryfeling a question, thinking it at that tyme sufficient for a matter of so smal value, as I do yet, to this hour, And to fortify the same, I adde thys moche more therunto.

The fyue bokes of Moyses, tended allMoyses. to one ende, concerning the religion, the polytyque gouernaunce, and the oeconimicall ordre of the Iewes. The foren nacions of y^t Gentyles, were not burdened at any tyme by Gods commaundement therwyth. The boke of Numeri, according to the tytle therof, nōbreth out the people of Israel, in their tribes and famelies, so dystributinge vntounto them the lande of promission. The obseruacionsThe Iewes. and sacrifices contayned in the same, only respecteth that people, comprehended in certen nombre and place appoynted to y^• seyd trybes and famelyes. Uowes in the xxx. chaptre of Numeri, perteineth nothing to the prestes whyche receyued the offerynges, but altogether and alone to the com men people which broughte the offerynges to them. The chaptre it selfe is playne, toMathe it. hym that wyll not be blynde of a stubburne wylfulnes. What ingins nowe wyll youre chaplayne brynge, to make that chaptre to serue your turne concerning prests vowes? Your whol disputaciō is here ouerthrown, the place beinge so preposterously alleged, for a presthode so preposterouse. Trulye allSophistry the vnfounde sowderynges of Alyngtons sophistry, wyll not be found able workināly to clowte vp thys foule brokē hole. The best wer to recōpence it, w^t an honest recātacion.

Besydes all thys, I wondre of what beleue your sayd chaplaine is, y^t he cōsydereth not nowe, these darke figures & shadowes, all fulfylled and fynyshed in Christ, but wil make of them a newe vncommaunded religyon. I wolde wyshe that he put asyde theAll done vayle from Moyses face, for a more ryghte vnderstandyng of the scryptures, or els that he remoued from his popish harte, whyche hath wretchedly blynded both hym and his fellowes, that malyce that he in his Romish masters quarell, beareth agaynste hys bretherne, for attendynge to the onlye voyce ofUowes. their true shepeheard. Uowes in y^•. xxx. cha. of Numeri (as I sayd afore) perteyneth to y^• only multytude of the Iewes, as wele married as vnmarried, and nothyng at all to the prestes. I wōdre therfore what wyld worm in the ydell heade of your Chaplayne, hath now restrayned the largenesse of that place, from the commen people (to whome it was only due) to the popes sinered presthod, willynge therby to make it also Iewysh. In allNon at all Chriestes doctryne is no soch kinde of vowinges, as your chaplayn here maynteyneth, neyther yet in the whole processes and actes of hys Apostles. No, in all the. iiii. wrytten Gospels is not this wurde vouere, or votū, ones reheersed or spokē of, to help your chaplayne in this guat strayninge to swallowe in a camell.

Arlotus and other most diligēt searchers, whych fyrst collected the great concordauncesUouere. of the whole Byble, were neuer yet able to stretche vouere nor votum, further than for the olde testamēt. Conradus Pellicanus wronge votum one ynche further by vehement strayning, addynge therunto the vow of Paule in Cenchrea, Actor. xviii. and an other tyme at Hierusalem, Acto. xxi. concernyng hys head sherynge, whyche wyll not serue your purpose, makyng only for a gentyll bearynge wyth the weake Iewysh bretherne,Paulus. to wynne them to a better fayth. If ye take for ground of your matter, the cruel vowe of those wycked Iewes, which swore before the hygh prest, that they wolde neyther eate nor drink tyl they had stain Paule, Acto. xxiii. Lete it be youre owne stuffe hardely. The descrybers of y^e primatiue church Egesippus & Eusebius, maketh no maner of mencion of that prestysh vowe of yours. The name thereof was moche more in vseThe name amonge the pagane poetes and sophisters, than among the Christen doctours, a greate whyle after Christes ascension, so famouse was it among Christians in that age. Whā monkery was ones spronge vp, by the ydelnes of them that fled from the persecuciōs, than grewe it into a name and vse amonge that sort (as amonge the sectes of our tyme the ite racyon of baptysme) but yet not into a dampnable bondage.

For Paulus y^e first heremite, Antonius, Hilarion, Macharius, Pambo, Pachoimus, and a great sorte more whyche were theHeremites first founders amonge christianes of y^e lyfe solitary, were neuer acquaynted wyth this kynde of vowyng. Frely ded their disciples inhabite the wyldernesse. Frelye lyued they after the rules of the Gospell, marryed or vnmarried, as apereth by Spiridion, Policrates, and other marryed bishoppes, in the Ecclesiasticall storye of Eusebius. What though their supersticiouse posteryte, the fo lysh world to delude, brought that fre estate of lyuinge into a necessite and bondage ofBondage. vowes, yet wolde they for their tymes, attempt nothynge that had not the scriptures authorite to beare it. The papacy ones confirmed for money, by the trapterouse murtherer Phocas, vowes were thoughte apte instrumentes to worke many myracles by, in the vprearynge & further mayntenaunce of that myghtye monarchy of Antichriste,Papacye. as it was in dede by the practyse of hypocrytyshe monkes. For all thys tyme the prestes hadde their wyues, and the monkes were at their lyberte, to goo or to come, excepte it were a certen of them whyche vponupon their owne brayne, wholly addycted themselues to that rule, wythoute eyther counsell or commaundemente of God, to makeMoukes. Sathan apere the Aungell of lyghte to the excecated worlde, as the sequele here declareth.

I reade in the chronicle of Cyrillus the Greke heremyte, De processu sui ordinis ad abbatem Ioachim, that Aymericus aAymericus. frenche man, beynge the popes legate and patriarke of Antioche, gathered togither by vertu of his commission, a certen nombre of dyspersed heremytes in the mounte of Carmelus. To whome he buylded a monastery there, in the year of our Lorde a. m. c. &. xxi. compellynge them to obedience vndre one superior called Bertoldus, beinge his nyghCyrillus. kynsman. Neuer afore (sayth Cyrillus) ded the obseruers of thys religion, bynde themselues by any vowe, tyll this patriarke first of all enforced them to it. Nunquam (sayth the texte) ad obediendum alicui, se voto prius obligauerāt, donec patriarcha Aymericus, eos ad hoc primū astrinxit, & ce. Aboute. lxxviii. yeares after, folowed AlbertusAlbertus. the patriarke of Hierusalem, which in the yeare of oure Lorde a. m. c. xcix. gaue them a rule of supererrogacion, or wurkes more than neded, to confyrme them in the same. All thys tyme, and more than eyghte and fourthy yeares after, were they bounde to none other vowe, but to the onelye vowe of obedience to their pryor. Breuely is thys whole story towched, of Polydorus …ergilius, lib. vii. de rerum inuentoribus. But when these were ones entered into the prouyncesEuropa. of Europe, and compelled to seke the Romysh popes confirmacion, by two Englysh frires called Reginaldus and Petrus, they could not be thereunto admitted, tyll they in the year of our Lord A. M. CC. xlviii. had added thys clause to their vowe of obediēce. Cum castitate & abdicatione proprietatis.

And whan that was adioyned therunto, by the strayght commaundemente of pope Innocent the. iiii. Hugh the prest CardinallAn ordre. of S. Sabyne, and Willyam byshop of Antirade, beynge hys commissioners, than were they allowed for a spyrytuall religion in that Sodomiticall churche of Autichrist, and myghte both preache and heare confessions, for mayntenaūce of the same, as testifyeth Sybertus de Beca in tractatu de con syderatis super regula. But marke whatFrutes. frutes folowed immediatly after, of thys newly professed vow of their chastite. These religiouse bretherne frequented the houses of relygiouse systers, conuertyng their chast profession into most detestable whoredome. Wherupō Nicolaus Gallus their maistre generall, and the seuenth in nombre, a man of rare conuersacion, detested that kinde of religion, and wrote agaynste them a verye sharp treatise, called Ignea sagitta, a fyeryNicolaus Gallus. darte in the year of our Lord. a. m. cc. lxx. And in the. v. chaptre this sentence he hath amonge many other. Per plateas ciuitatum de mane vsque ad vesperam bini et bini discurrentes, vagis gre…sibus circuitis, ipsum haben…es pe…agogum, qui rugiendo circuit qu…rens quem deuoret. Et sic in vobis prophecia, In circuitu im pii ambulant, ad vestre confusion…s cumulū ver aciter est impleta. Est enim cauCausa. sa discutsuum huiusmodi principalis ac precipua, vt visi…e…is, non pupillos sed puellas, non viduas in tribulatione existentes sed fatuas iuuēculas, beghinas, moniales, ac dominas. Ubi, alter in alterius iactantes lumina vultus. &c.

From morowe tyll nyghte (sayth he) by couples ye course y^• stretes of cyties in ydelnesse, hauyng him to gyde whyche gredylySathan. seketh whom he may deuoure. So that this propheticall sayinge, The wycked strayeth abroade, is not only veryfyed, but also fulfylled in you. The chiefe cause of your discourses, is not to vysite the fatherlesse children, but dyssolute damsels, not wydowes in their trouble, but wanton wēches, beghi nes, nunnes, and vowesses, or ladyes of the mantell & the rynge, corruptinge their ydell lyues by many vncomely wayes. Thomas Cartipratensis in hys second boke, de bono vniuersali, cap. lvi. saythe. That aboute the same tyme, Nunnes were so vexed wyth cer ten nyght spretes, called Incubi, whan they were in bedde and the candell out, that neyther crossynge of their foreheades, nor holye water, nor yet Gods bodye in the boxe, coulde defende them from beynge wyth chyld. For thus lyeth it in the text. Incubi …emones, it a religiosas virgines opprimeban…,Incubi. vt nulla cis valeret crucis signatio, nec aqua benedicta, nec ipsū Chri sti corporis sacramentū. Syster Christine for example, refused on a tyme, to be among her other systers howseled, bycause a sprete of that kynde had occupyed wyth her the nyght afore.

Neuer had the sothsayers of Egypte, nor Pharaoes calcars, more subtile pointes…owers. of conueyaunce, wyth all their incantaciōs and nec romancies, thā had these relygiouse vowers and ydell braggers of chastite, for that necessary occupyinge. And moch helpe obtayned they to practise in that arte, by the fyne wurkes of pope Syluester the second, pope Hyldebrande, fryre Albert, frire Bakō of Oxford, frire Perscrutator of York, frire Bongay, frire Some, frire Lynne, frire Riplay,Conclusio and a great sort more. All this bring I in afore my answere, to declare vntounto you the begynnyng & successiō of the vowe of single lyuynge or forswearinge of marriage, in the Romish presthod & popysh relygyous, least we shuld take darknes sor lyght and Belial for Christe, or that ydolatrouse presthode & Popyshe.religyon for a presthode and religion of the scripture. Now wyll I shewe hystorycallye the forme and fashyon of that popysh vowinge, that it may be knowne dyuerse frō y^• ce remonial vowes in y^e scriptures, & not to seme worthy to hauehave defence of y^• same, but ra ther by them to receyue due condēpnacyon.

None ende of dyffiniciōs hath thys kind of vowing among the scholastical maisters,Diffynycions. & yet not one of them to the purpose. Sūme sayth, that a vow is an holy promise to god. An other sort calleth it a desyre, of God requested. Sūme affirmeth it to be a wyl, mouinge reason to promyse. Sūme calleth it a conceyuing of a better purpose, made sure by a delyberaciō. Sūme nameth it a seruice, making religiouse mē more accepted to god thā y^• layte. Sūme calleth it an acte to Gods hygh honour, a cōmunicacion wyth God, aOf vows seconde baptisme, & a receyuinge of holy orders. Summe nameth it a good wurke of sit pererrogacion, an office of special dedicaciō to God, a profession of a rule relygiouse, & an acte to Christes pleasure. Sūme sayth, it is a testificacion of a fxe promyse whyche is due to God, a promyse annexed to the rule of a monke, a spyrituall publyque welth, an offerynge to God of the whole tree wythDiffinicious. his frute, and the marye of the Gospell. Summe reporteth it to be a lawe correspondynge to the commaundements of God, an ac…e hauynge an opinion of helth and ryghteousnes, a bond… indispensable by autorite of the churche, and a dyrepcion or sackynge of matrimony. Summe sayth, it is a profession makyng a full christen man, a religion equall wyth the Gospell, baptysme, faythe,Of vows and the wurde of God, an acte requyringe the remission of synne, iustificacion and the lyfe euerlastynge, and soche a worshypp to God as deserueth heauen.

Summe affyrmeth it to be a satisfaccion for synne, a perfeccion Euangelical, an obseruacion of Gods preceptes and counsels,Doctors. and the highar part of Gods true worshippinge. Summe calleth it a couenaunte to be obserued in pylgrymage, offeryng, prayer, and fastinge in payne of dampnacion, a discharge from wyfe and children, father and mother, maistre and maistres, frynde, neybour, acquayntaunce and all, though it be to their great hinderaunce, a renouncynge of father and mother, wyfe, chyld, and maistre in the obedience of religion, & a great foule rable besydes. Yea, Thomas Aquinas dyffynethThomas. it thus. A nowe (sayth he) is a certain testymonye of a fre promyse, whyche God oughte to hauehave, in thynges pertayninge to hym. Ricardus de Media villa sayth, that it is a promyse of a supererrogantinge purpose, made fyrst to God for a good ende, & brought into full strength by a delyberaciō. Thus hauehave I geuen you here the laboures of a meany of Nērothes builders in the lettyngeBuilders. vp of this their great castel of confusyon. Iacke dawe that threwe from hym al his fedders, was neuer more galauntly gar nyshed wyth the fedders of euerye fowle, than thys byrde of vnclennesse is decked wyth dyffynycions.

Nowe wyll I cause that ydolouse stynkyngeA monstre monstre, whom youre chaplayne so myghtely defendeth here, for a religion indyspensable, to shewe hym selfe abroade, in hys owne proper persoue. It is the profession of a monke, or obligacion from God to the deuyll, in the blasphemouse kyngdom of Antichrist. Lete youre chaplayne auayle hys bonet, & receyue hym wyth reuerence, for here nowe he commeth. Ego frater. N. facio professionem meam, et promitto obedientiā Deo, bea…o Francisco vel Dominico, et tibi frat…i. N. de. N. Priori eiusProfessio. ordinis generali, ac eius successoribus, viuere siue proprio et in castitate secundum regulam predicti ordinis vsque ad mortem. I frire. N. make my profession, and promyse obedience to God, to S. Fran ces or Dominike, & to the frire Nicolas of Naples, priour generall of the seyd ordre, & to thy successours, to lyue wythout propre and in chastite, accordynge to the rule of the seyd ordre, vntounto my lyues ende. Thys hathIn rule. Bartholomeus Pisanus in cōformitatibus Francisci, Antoninus of Florence, Par. iii. Tit. xxiiii. cap. xiiii. and Ioannes Maria de Nouolaria in suo Mari magno. Marke the good stuffe therein contayned.

In thys holye profession, is Frances, a mā dead more than thre hondred years ago, coupled wyth God in obedience, so is brother.Generall. N. of. N. the maistre general of y^• same order, dwellynge alwayes at Rome, and ga pinge for the death of som Cardinall, to obtayne hys dignite for money, except it be for the tyme of hys vysitacion, or of gatheryng vppe hys ydell rentes in all the christen proynces. And lyke as it was in thys ordre to Frances, so was it in other orders to Basyle, Benedicte, Bernarde, Augustine, Marye,Fathers. and Dominycke, and to their generall monsters (maisters I shulde hauehave sayd) as they came by course. The obediēce of Fran ces was to pope Innocent the thyrde and to his successours canonicallye admitted bysshoppes of Rome, as is wrytten in regula Minorum, which is not the Gospell of IesusDregges. Christ, as the seyd rule affyrmeth, but a cōtrariouse doctryne of Antichrist his great enemy. It foloweth consequently, that these relygiouse vowers, must lyue without their own and in chastite accordyng to the rule of y^• seyd ordre (not of Christes Gospel for that hath no vowes) vntounto their lyues ende.

And if youre chaplayne wyll yet farder contende for their vowes in holye orders of subdeacon, deacō, and presthode. I saye thisOrders. vntounto hym, and can proue it by a thousande wytuesses, yf nede be, that the Monckes or relygiouse votaryes, commynge to these whorish or ydolatrouse orders of Antichrist, toke neuer those vowes of the byshoppes suffcaganes, as the popes massemōgers ded whome they than called the secular prestes. For the suffraganes wer not their ordynary prelates, neyther had they power to extorte anye newe profession of them. But in dedeFre passage. they suffered them alwayes wythout vowe to passe, knowing & consydering y^t they had vowed afore in their monastycal professiōs, votū publicū & solēne, which was vntounto thē a secōd baptisme, Thomas of Aquine sayth. O knauery vnspeakable. The prests vow estemed of a moch lowar kind, is called votū tacitum ac priuatum, hauyng thys bawdy clause therunto adioyned, Si non caste ta… Si non caste.mē caute, wherby they might occupy other mennes wyues and daughters, for not hauynge wyues of their owne: for what els caused the one sorte to be called regular o… religiouse, & the other secular or prophane, but onelyonly the dyfference of their profession… and vowinges?

Yet to speake it trulye, I coulde neuer throughly knowe, what a prestes profession was in those dayes, by al that euer I redde. Sauynge ones (I remembre) as I was … Prestes.Maldon in Essexe, about. xx. yeares ago, I found an olde bishoppes ordynary, or bok… of their exorcismes, for church halowinges, belle blessinges, and oyled orders geuynge. Wherin I behelde thys only clause, for the oblygacyon or charge of their chastite, Accipe iugum domini. Take the yoke of theAunswer. lorde. But I founde therin no answere appoynted, to be made of them whyche receyued that ordre, neyther by affyrmacion no… yet negacion. And therfore the bonde shuld seme to stande voyde, vnlesse thys borowed clause of the lawe do helpe it. Qui tacet cō sentire videtur, he which holdeth his peace semeth to cōsent or agre to it, But than that same videtur, may in some case discharge if agayne. Iugum domini, is no such he any burthen, as is so commenly eased by whoredom and sodometrye. For the Lordes yoke doth case & not burthen, all thē y^t are loaden. Math. xi. My yoke (sayth Christe) is easy, & my burthen is lyghte. Thys yoke is a gentyll sufferaunce of harte, or an humble endeuer to do the wyll of God. And is not onlyOrders. for prestes at their orders takynge, whyche of all men regardeth it least, But commen it is for all kyndes of people, men and womē, marryed or vnmarryed, mayde, wydowe, husbande, wyfe, and all.

Except your chaplayne can make, these afore rehearced professions good by y^e scriptures, which (I knowe) he shall neuer be ableWeake. to do, Lete him not contende wyth those men for their vows in thys age, whych hath in the obedience of Gods holy wurd & their kynges commaundement, re…ounced those wycked kyndes of relygions and presthode, and by vertu of that worde now taken them wyues in marryage. For trulye, and as the Lord lyueth, of these most detestable kindes only, were al the vowes whych they professed.Ages. I speake not here of the ages from. vii. to. xiiii. whych was the yeare of profession, & from. xiiii. to. xxi. whych was the year of takynge their orders. Whych their dyuynyte maisters alloweth, hauyng in their vnsauery commentaryes, thys vnsauery sentence of their own dottyng brayne. Quanto a castioribusBoyes. animis proficiscūtur vota, tāto ma gis Deo placent. Quare adolescentū vota, preualēt votis seniorū. The more chast those hartes be (say they) from whens the vowes come, the more acceptable are those vowes to God. Wherfor the vowes of yong boyes are better in value, than y^• vowes of their eldars. Is not here (thinke you) a lōpe of fyne dyuynyte? yes, and it wer to serue in the deuyls blacke parlour.

The fyckle promyse of a wāton boye, notDoctryne grounded in Gods knowledge, is here preferred to all other kindes of vowyng. Here is no bad doctryne, if it be wele cōsydered & wayed. Saynt Paule admitting wydowes to be foūd at y^e charges of the congregaciō, allowed thē not to vowe the sole lyfe (if ye wil ther hauehave it a vow) afore y^e age of. lx. yeares. i. Tim. v. Of what strēgth than wil they make the vow of inconstan̄t laddes? I omitt the mysteries & frutes of this texte, least y^e reMisteries hearsall of them, shuld be an infeccion to other, in hearyng so fylthie exāples. Upon al these matters afore rehearced, I thus cōclude, that these vncōmaunded vowes are such ydele, mockynge & blasphemonse promyses, as of necessite ought to be brokē. And I hauehave I sidorus to holde with me therin. In malis promissis (inquit) res…inde fidem, in turpi vo to muta decretū. Quod incante vouisti, neDo it not. facias. Impia est promissio, que scelere adim pletur. In promises y^t be euyl, discharge thy couenaūt. In a filthy vow chāge thy former decre. Fulfyll not that thou hast vowed vnbewares, for that promyse is wycked, whiche is not accōplished without naughtynes

Whan the kyngs grace of England by y^e A discharge.autoryte of Gods wurd, discharged y^e monkish sectes of his realme, frō their vowed obedience to the byshop of Rome, ded he not also discharge thē in cōscience of y^t vowe of Sodometry, whyche altogether made them Antichrists creaturs? If he dyd not so minde it, why altered he their relygions? why toke he from them their disgysed garmētes? why plucked he downe their monasteryes? yea, why put he thē so at lyberte, and sent them fourth abroade? These thinges ought not toA broade. hauehave bene, yf that kinde of chastite had bene indispensable. For the vowes made in those relygyōs, perteyned only to the same. Whā those religiōs wer ones bānyshed y^e realme, was it not necessary that those vowes shuld be also bannyshed wyth them, whych made them relygions? Wolde ye hauehave men in one poynte to be the kynges true subiectes, and in an other the Romyshe popes sworne creatures? The holye Ghoste in the scriptures,Papistes. callethe thys kynde of doynge, a tyranny of Sodome, & an obstinate rebellion against God. From thys generacion are we called by a voyce from heauen, whiche thus sayth vntounto vsus, Apoca. xviii. Come away from her (my people) least ye be partakers of her sinnes, and so receyue of her plages.

I herein dyscommende not the honourable state of virgynyte, neyther yet of faythfull wydowed, whom I know to hauehave their worthie prayses of the scriptures, but thysPraysed. hellyshe lake & synke of sylthynesse vnspeakable. All thys hauehave I wrytten afore, leaste we shulde take euyll for good, and couple sower wyth swete, making of thē a mingle mangle for pigges of the popes old puddel. From hens fourth wyll I aunswer to your chaplaynes frowarde obieccions. Though The reported in youre wrytynge to be butOpinion. one man, yet shall it apere y^t my oppnion cō cernyng vows, is not mine own priuate opi niō alone, but y^e opynyō also of al thē which ar ruled by y^e sacred scriptures. I am fullye persuaded in conscience, y^t those most wholsom pastures of the holy Ghost are plenteouse and fait ynough for anye christen mannys feadynge, and are able alone to sustayn vsus wythoute all other prouysions, into the lyfe euerlastynge. Al other reasons, proues, declaracyons, opynions, communycaciōs,Reasons. autorytees, writings, doctryns, or doubtes, what so euer they be, not groūded vponupon thē, are nothynge worth at all, be they neuer so delycately prepared. For wythout the verite, they mynistre nothyng to man, but iyes, corrupcion, & poyson. Nowe foloweth here the processe of your wrytynge.

Obiectio.

☞ First ye begyn with the dyffinicion of a vowe, what it is in y^e old law. Wher in ye tell firste, what it is not, and so …eclare, that it is not a profession of anye rashe brayne. And therein I agree wyth you. For in eueryevery vow, as I thynk, the… must be a delyberacyon and a sure purpose.…otaries. So y^t mad men, …are braynes, chyldren, fooles, and suche lyke, can make no vowe wherunto they ought to be bounden. Ye saye, it is an earnest promyse, to fulfyll that whyche God hath ordayned and commaūded. Wherin ye seme to say true, but not all the truth, to make a perfyght dyffynycion. For y^e name of a vow extendeth to manye moo thynges, than your dyffynycyon doth.

Responsio.

It is at hys pleasure, that your chaplaine here wyth mocke and all, reporteth me to dyffyne a vowe. For I mente nothyng lesse at that tyme, than to dy…fyne it after Aristot…les Toppkes, as he requyre th it. I hauehave lefte hym good store of suche dyffynicionsDyffyne. here afore, taken out of a great rable of hys dottynge doctours or sophisticall sentency… ners, & yet not one of them to anye purpose concernynge the scripture. I neuer yet iudged of the holy scriptures, as Aristotle dedAristotle …nes iudge of dysfynycyons, whyche in the xii. boke of hys Metaphisickes, sayth that, De diffinitionibus potest esse scientia. A scyence may be of dyffynicions. For of the scripturs can we make neither art nor sciēce nomore than we cā make an arte or sciēce of Gods eternall wysedome. And though it were thus Englished, that knowledge may come by dyffynycyons, yet holdeth not the comparison, for Gods wayes are not al one with mannys inuencyōs. Esa. lv. If I hauehaveA vowe. sayd, in descrybyng a vowe, concerning dyuerse places of the olde testament, that it is not a profession of anye rashe brayne, as all monkysh vowes wer, I thynke I hauehave said the truthe, yea, and suche a truthe as youre chaplaine is not able to w^tstande by any iustA promise grounde to the contrary. If I hauehave also vttered, that it is there an earneste promyse of fulfilling that whyche God hath ordayned and commaunded, neyther hauehave I taughte an olde wyues fable, for the scriptures standeth strongely on my syde.

As Iacob in y^t way goyng towardes L… Iacob.ban hys vncle, vowed a vowe, that if God preserued & prospered hym in that iourney, he wolde acknowledge hym to be his Lord God, by y^e tythe offerynges of that he shuld sende hym, Gene. xxviii. was that vowe any other than a faythfull promyse to God? grounded vponupon commaundemente afore to Abraham, to be taken for hys God. Genes. xvii. Nō other opiniō had Dauid of vows,Dauid. than this whan he sayd. Psalm. lxv. Introibo in domū tuā in holoca…stis, reddam tibi vota que distinxerunt labia mea, et locutum est os meum in tribulatione. I wyll enter into thy howse wyth brent offerynges, to perfourme the vowes whych I promysed with my lyppes, and vttered wyth my mouthe, whan I was in trouble. As frankely disposed as your chaplayn was, to tryfle & to toy with my dyffynycion, as he scornefully calleth it, with it is and it is not, yet is he in the ende compelled to agre wyth me therin, & to confirme it wyth a reason of hys owne. But because I fynde hys reason barren,A reason braynlesse, and wythoute anye grounde, excepte it be of the sophisters dyffynycyons, I reiecte it vtterlye, and wyll confirme the ordre there of by a sentence of hym, whose wurdes were neuer yet out of ordre.

Nō facietis singuli, quod sibi rectum videtur. Sed quod precipio tibi, hoc tantū facito domino, nec addas quicquā, nec minuas, Deute. xii. Ye shall not do (saytheAs are vowes. God) that semeth good to me…nis pryuate iudgementes. But do onlye that whyche I commaunde you, & se that ye adde nothinge therunto, neyther yet dyminysh from it. Lo sir, here is both, ye shall and ye shal not, and all about one commaūdement, and your voluntarye vowes dyspatched clerelye, come they wyth delyberacion or wythout delyberacyon, wyth sure purpose or wythoute sure purpose, because they hauehave non allowaunceDelybera …yon. of Gods wurde, but a manifeste condempnacion. An other lyke sentence. Non recedat volumen legis huius ab ore tuo, sed meditaberis in eo diebus ac noctibus, vt custodias et facias omnia quecū que sunt in eo. Non declines ab ea ad dexteram nec ad sinistram. Iosue. i. Lete not the …oke of thys lawe (sayth the Lorde) be out of thy mouthe, but study therin daye and nyghte, to accomplishe and do what so euer I hauehave commaunded the. Se thou declineThe lawe from that lawe neyther the one waye nor the other. Non vltra vocaberis Iacob, sed Israel erit nomen tuum. Gene. xxxv. Thu shalt be nomore called Iacob, but Israell shall be thy name.

Not only by bread lyueth man, but by eueryevery wurde whyche commeth from Gods mouthe. Math. iiii. Not for our ryghteouse workes, but of hys owne mere mercye hathMercy. he saued vsus, Tit. iii. Neither in mānys wyl, nor yet in hys runnynge, is the attaynement of saluacion, but in Gods mercy aloue, Ro. ix. Thus hauehave I proued by the scryptures, that a truth maye be set forewarde by, it is & it is not, ye shall and ye shall not. And all the commaundementes of God, are geuen after y^e same ordre. As thus: Thu shalt hauehave non other Goddes in my syghte. Thu shaltCommaū demētes. hallowe the sabboth daye. Thu shalt make the no grauen ymage. Thu shalt honour father and mother. Thu shalt not kylle. Thu shalt not stele, and so fourth. Here is a great matter than, that youre chaplaine dwelleth vponupon, but that of nature he must playe the mocker, to maynteyne a mocke againste all godlynesse, if it wolde be taken at hys hande, as it wyll not. But of one thynge INegacion do not a lyttle maruele, that in my dyscrypcion of a vowe, a poore aduerbe of negaciō shulde so muche offende hym, and the vsurped lord shyppes wyth all out ragiouse pride in the clergy, offendeth hym nothynge at al, by this erneste warninge of Christe, Uos autem non sic.

A playne token is it, that he playeth the part of Iack Nitigo, as y^e saying is, he seith,Se not, but he wyll not se, or els that he seyth a smal moate, and leteth the great beame passe by, as ded the hypocrytes, Math. vii. He hath a strayght eye to vowes, but their stinkinge frutes in all execrable occupying of y^• flesh, he respecteth not. The delyberaciō and sure purpose, whyche he bryageth me in here, to seclude from his popysh vowers the rashenesse of brayn, are neither borowed of ChristMydyltō. nor of Paule, But of Rycharde Mydylton a gray frire, otherwyse called, de media villa, or of some of hys disciples in the scol… doctryne of braulers, as thoughe a monkish profession were lawful and good preuented by a delyberacion. Here is proper stuffe to vpholde these wares of fylthynesse, to Antichristes behoue. He neyther wayeth thys monkyshe profession here, nor yet dyscretely examineth it, whether it be by the scriptures lawefull or vnlawfull. But rashely he iudgethRashely the rashe vowes therof both good and sufficiēt vniuersally (for he saith here in eueryevery vowe) hauyng a delyberacion and a sure purpose. But what is the delyberacion ye speake of? What is the sure purpose ye requyre? wherwyth are they seasoned? wyth the obedience of Gods wurd, or wyth hope of belly ease? This is not here declared, No, nor Gods wurde ones called to counsell. A thefe waytyng hys praye, taketh a deliberacion. An aduouterer hath a sure purpose of that he sekyth.

Thys rashe kynde of vowyng, so rashelyMad men described, he may wele bequethe to his mad men, hys harebraynes, hys chyldren, & hys fooles, as he hath put them here by order, for fytt they are not for men of wisdom and godlynesse. A sober delyberacion myghte here hauehave done hym good seruyce in a farre better purpose than thys is. Where as I call a vowe, an earnest promyse to do those thynges whyche God hath ordayned and commaunded, I dyffyne not the generallAuthor. name of a vowe, as he capcyously layeth it to me. I only shew my mynde, what I think a vowe to be concernyng a great nombre of places in the olde testament, that they might the rather apere vnmete to allowe y^e popes sodometry in that contrary kynd of vowes. And therefore I graunte, that the name extendeth farther than my former dyffini…ion, and so is it lyke to do styll, for oughte that I wyll do more therin. Agareues, Turkes,Turkes. Iewes, Idolaters, Papystes, and the Deuyll, maketh vowes in their sortes, whiche I intende not to couple in one dyffinicion, wyth the vowes of the sacred scryptures. No, that marriage were not lawfull. And of thys hauehave I wrytten ynough afore.

Obiectio.

¶ Anna i. Regū. i. ded vowe to God y^• …rute of her wombe. whiche God shuld geue her, and yet she was not commaunded of God so to do.Anna. But it was in her power to hauehave fulfilled that which God had ordayned and commaunded, & also to hauehave done other wyse. Nazarei, which ded vow & dedicate themselues to God, as it is expressyd, Num. vi. ded not vowe that thynge whiche was commaunded by God. For than eueryevery man shuld hauehave had synned that had not bene Nezareus, because they fulfilled not gods commaundement. Ther for your diffynicionNazarei, semyth vnperfyght. For a vowe although it be sumtymes in those thynges that be commaunded and requyred of all men, as the vowe whiche is made in baptisme, yet proprely, me think, it is in those thynges whyche be lawefull, and in our power, and wherunto we wer not boun den before, And so by oure vowe, do restraynePropely our lyberty.

Responsio.

Hys examples here concerninge Helcanaes wyfe. i. Reg. i. and the Nazarees, Nu.Exāples. vi. confirmeth my dyffinicion, and confoundeth his whol matter. For wher as he saith, that Anna grounded her vowe vpō no commaundement or ordynaunce of God (as do monkes and prestes) he falsely reporteth it, to mayntayne a moste deuylyshe purpose in hypocrisy. For it is written. Ero. xiii. Sanctifica mihi omne primogenitum, quod aperit omnem vuluam in filiis Israel. Sanctyfye vntounto me all the first borne, that openeth all matryces amonge the children of Israell. And y^e same is cōfirmed in Christ, Lu. ii. Omne masculinū adaperiēs vuluā, sanctum Domino vocabitur. EueryEvery man childe that first openeth the wombe, shall beScriptures. called holy, or dedicated to the Lorde. Amā childe was it that she desyered of the Lord, and suche a one as shuld be the first frute of her wōbe. And lyke as that was vniuersally Gods, both by ordynaunce and commaundement, so was the fulfyllyng and grounde of her vow. Mea enim sunt omnia primo genita filiorum Israel, tam ex hominibusFirst frut. quam ex iumentis. Ex die quo percussi omne primogenitū in terra Aegypti, sanctifica…t eos michi. Numeri. viii. All the first borne amonge the chyldren of Israell (sayth God) are myne both man & beaste. Because the same time that I smote the first borne in the lande of Egypte, I sanctyfyed them for my selfe.

If this be restrayned of this aduersary, to the only lawe of purificacyon, yet shall itCleringe styll mayntayne my purpose, that Gods ordynaunce was the ground of her vow. For she sought therby to be pourged of the contumelyouse reproche and maledycciō of the lawe. Moreouer she founde the lyke of all y^t she wēt about here, in the barren mother of Samson, Iud. iii. as a matter to ground vponupon, besydes Gods wurkynge in her spretes perturbacion. The ordinaunce of God ther, is thys, myngled w^t commaundement. S…erilisPrecept. es & absque liberis, sed cōcipies & paries filiū. Laue ergo ne bibas vinū acsicerā, nec immundū quicquā comedas, quia cōcipies et paries filium, cuius non tāget caput nouacula. Erit enim Nazareus Dei ab infantia sua, et ex matris vtero. Beholde thou art barren, & bearest not. But thu shalt conceiue & beare a sonne. And now be ware thu drynke no wyne nor lycour y^t is strong. For lo, thu shalt cōcey…e & beare a son▪ And ther maye no raser or sheres come on his heade. For y^e child shalbe a Nazare vntounto God, euē A Nazarefrom the tyme of his byrthe. This wyse prelate your chaplaine, wolde (as apereth) by his fonde argumentes, hauehave it only a wurk of nature & of mānys arte, to obtaine godly chyldren, & not the gyfte of God, speciallye whan they were appoynted to the ceremoniall obsequyes in the howse of God, Num. viii. O beastly nody wythoute brayne.

If all thys wyll not sattle his wyld wytlesse head, to geue ouer to Gods ordynaūce, y^t he hath al this tyme geuē to mānys fyckle inuencion, Than lete him marke the praperIdle head that the sayde Anna made, & he shall se sumwhat more. Exultauit cormeum in domino, et exaltatum est cornu meū in Deo meo, &c. i. Reg. ii. Myne hart (sayth she) reioyseth in the Lorde, & my horne is aduaunced in my God. Let at a sum in salutari t…o. Non est san ctus, vt est dominus. Deus scientiarum dominus est, et ipsi preparantur cogitationes. Dominus mortificat et viuificat. Dominus pauperē facit et ditat. Suscitat de puluere egenum, etc. I reioyce in his preparedAnna▪ helthe. Non is so holy as the Lord. The lord is a God of knowledge, & he setteth fourth y^t wurkes (marke it sir Iohan) for what is it, that is good, which is not at Gods pleasur? The lorde kylleth and rayseth. The lord ma keth poore and enrycheth agayn. He rayseth vp the poore frō the dust, and lyfteth vp the begger from the donge hyl. Pedes sanctorū Impii▪seruabit, et impii in tenebris cōticescent, &c. He wyl fashyō the steppes of his holy ones, But the wycked shal kepe sylence in darkenes, &c. as a great nombre of blasphemouse papystes doth now adayes, by y^e same hand of God. If all this be not ynough, I knowe not what wyll satissye a wycked foole.

And where as youre sayde chaplayne sayth, that it was in her power to hauehave done otherwyse than to hauehave fulfylled Gods ordynaunce therein, it is but an homelye handelyngeHomelye▪ of the story, and nothynge perteynynge to the purpose. For it lyeth not onelyonly in the texte, fac quod bonum …ibi videtur, et ma…e donec ablactes eum. Do what thou thynkeste beste, and tarrye tyll thu haste wened hym. But also it foloweth ther, Precorque vt imple at dominus verbumDerbum suum. i. Reg. i. I desyre God to perfourme hys worde. The worde of God is neuer contrarye to it selfe, neyther had shee at that time digested it after so fyckle a sort. They whych are wyth God, & gather with him, Lu. xi. as this good woman ded in this acte, goeth not prākyng afore God, but mekelye cometh after, els were they scatterers from hym. We whyche are the labourers, husbandrye and buyldinge of God, oughte non otherwyse to wurke than hys word appoynteth. i. Cor. iii. I wondre that he couldeFolishly brynge in this example, beyng so farre from the purpose of his matter. For Annaes vow was no profession of sole lyfe, but an onlye promyse of offering vp her chylde to God, for seruyce in the temple.

In hys reason concernyng the Nazarees or absteyners, he taketh the man for hys obseruacion, as the absteiner for his abstinēce, and so calleth him a thyng not ordayned nor commaunded of God, whych is no wurkemanly cōuepaunce. But thys wyl I say vntountoAbsteiner hym, that a lawe concernynge the Nazarees, is largely set out in the. vi. chaptre of Numeri (whyche chaptre he hath also alleged) yea, for an earnest ordinaūce and commaundemēt of God, to abstayne frō wyne. There is not muche other matter in all theBlynde. whole chaptre, than for them. I wondre ther fore, he perceyued it not, in searchynge oute the place. But peraduenture he ded it, perfunctorie, carptim, or cursim, in maner as y^e olde wryters do report the dogges to drynk in Egypte, rennynge wyth all spedye haste possible, or without aduysement whether ye wyll. Hys conclusyon is as moche oute of square, as are hys premysses. If the NazareesNazarei. obserued the vowes by commaundement (sayth he) or prescripte ordre of God, than eueryevery man shulde hauehave sinned that had not bene a Nazare. No ser, not so. God com maunded certen specyaltees to Abraham, Isaac, and Iacob, with dyuerse other of the fathers, that he appointed not all men to do. Neither was Iacob bounde to do in effecte, that was precyselye cōmaunded to Isaac. Christe badde not all men preache, whan heSpecialtees. sayd to hys Apostles, Go fourth & preache, And therfore youre conclusyon is nothynge worthe.

Now in the ende what make these examples of Anna and the Nazarees to any purpose, concernynge the vowe of monkes and of prests, to lyue syngle wythout marriage?Not lyke. Anna had an husbande. Her desyre was that she myght not dye barren, but to hauehave a mā chyld. And her vowe was to offer that child of her owne bodye vntounto God for terme of lyfe. And her vowe lasted no lōgar, than tyll her chylde was wened. Her sonne was holy Samuell, whych though he were consecrated to God, hadde both wyfe and chyldren, i. Regū. viii. The Nazarees had wyues, as apereth by Samson & Samuel. They drankMarryed no wyne, they ate no grapes, they had no vineger to sawce so longe as their vowes lasted, as monkes and prestes hauehave in their daily masses and feastinges. No rasure nor sheeres myghte come vponupon their heades, as doth vpō the heades of monkes and prestes. Neyther might they be seane at burials of y^e dead, as are commenly prestes and monkes for money. And their vowes lasted no longar, than for the tyme of their abstinence.Lastednot For afterwardes (the text sayth) the abstayner myghte drynke wyne. Thus doeth hys owne alleged stories not helpe, but clerelye confounde hys clouted vp matter for monkes chastite.

To couple Baptisme with the vowes of the olde lawe in one dyffynicion of vowes, he doth vnaduysedly & without all syncere iudgemēt. For they only cōprehende gyftes and offerynges, with external rytes and ceremonies,Folyshely where as in baptysme the professyon is onelye faythe, called of the Apostle Prima fides. i. Timoth. v. For whan Christ sayth, Marci. xvi. Predicate Euangelium omni creature, Go preache the Gospell to all creatures, It foloweth not there, Qui votum emiserit, he that hath made a vowe shall be saued, But Qui crediderit & cet▪ he that byleueth and is baptised, shal be saued.No vowe. By thys barbarouse and straunge coupling together of baptysme and vowes of the old lawe in one dyffynycion, he putteth no difference betwyxte the maistre and the seruaūt, the free and the bounde, the lyghte and hys shaddowe, the veryte and hys fygure, the church and the synagoge, Christ and Moyses, but thrusteth them in together, makyng of them an hoche poche, all contrarye to the wholesome doctryne of Saynt Paule. Galat.An yl coke iiii. Also on the othersyde, me thynketh he doth baptysme great wrong, to ioyne him w^t a monkysh vowe in the same dyffynycyō, for in so doynge he coupleth ryghteousnesse with vuryghteousnesse, and the importable yoke of straungers with the gentyll yoke of Christe. ii. Corinth. vi.

Hys aduerbe proprely, borowed of Porphiryes princyples, is not able to make thatFōde gere enterpryse good. He maye for his pleasure, take thys kynd of learnyng out of Thomas of Aquyne, for he in dede calleth monkerye the second baptysme, I can not se that he cā fynde it anye where els. A doctryne thys maye be for turmoylynge Thomistes, but howe it myghte auayle any wele aduysed or sober christians, I can not perceyue. By ver tu of thys sophystycall aduerbe, proprely, heConueyaunce. restrayneth the pryuate vowes of monkes and of prestes from the generalte whych he fyndeth in baptysme, and all in the same dyffynycyon. A very clearkely cōueyaunce. But where as he thynketh it, to be in those thynges whyche be lawfull and in mannys power to be perfourmed, meanyng the chastyte of the seyd monkes and priestes, wherunto they were not bounde afore, Hys thinkynge shall stande voyde, tyll he brynge fourth iuste proues by the scryptures of theNeuer. newe testament, and that wyll be (I thinke) ad calēdas Grecas. Of thys am I sure, that both hypocrytycall monkery and massynge presthode, are suche plantacions as our heauenly father neuer yet planted, Mathe. xv. but the vngracyouse father of Rome, the pa triarke of all myschefe.

If he had sayd, that to vowe or to promise, lyeth in mannys power, I had graunted it. For S. Paule sayth, Roma. vii. Uelle adest mihi, To wyl, is present with me. But wher as he sayth, that the thynges promysed, doTo wyll lye in our power, that I vtterly deny… hym. For it foloweth in the texte, At vt fa…iam bo num, non reperio, But to perfourme that whyche is good, I fynde not. As chastite is a gyfte of God, so is it neyther folowed nor yet perfourmed of vsus wythout hys gyfte. For the perfourmaunce thereof is not the vowers, but hys whych hath geuē the gyft. Noui enim (sayth S. Paule) quod non habitetNot ours. in me, hoc est in carne mea, bonum. I knowe that in me, that is to saye, in my flesh dwelleth no good thynge. The wyse man sayth also, Sapiē. viii. Scio quoniam aliter non possum esse continens, nisi Deus det, et hoc ipsum erat summa sapientia, scire cuius esset hoc donum. I perceyue, that I can not kepe my selfe chast, except God geue it me. And a great point of wysdome is it also,Sapiens to knowe whose gyfte that is, or frō whence it cometh. Than is it presumptuouslye here spoken, that it shulde be in our power.

Whan Christes dyscyples vponupon certen occasiōs, iudged it not good to marry, Mat. xix. Christe made thē this answere. Non oēs capaces sunt dicti huius, sed his quibus datum est. No man (sayth he) can awaye with that sayenge, saue they to whom it is geuen.Christus And as touchynge them whyche chastened themselues for the only kyngedome of heauen, whych is neyther in monkery nor massynge, he concluded after thys sorte. Qui po test capere, capiat. He that hath power to set hande vponupon it, lete hym apprehende it in Gods name. Here is no man commaunded,No precept. neyther yet counselled, to make thereof by vowe, a perpetuall bande. For so myghte it be turned from a vertuouse fredome into an horryble temptacion and snare of the deuyl, as that vowe hath bene to innumerable both men & women. In the circunstaunces of thys longe dy…fynycyon, hauehave I smelled out this chaplayne of yours, the compylat of this matter, by these fyne rhetoryckes of monkery. Our vowe, our lyberte, our chastyte,Foūd out in our power,, we may, we wer boūd, with such other lyke, so that he can not hyde hymselfe. But wher as he sayth, he was not bounde to be chaste, afore he ded vowe it, he must proue himselfe a lyar.

For thys God commaunded Moyses to speake to the vniuersal multitude of Israel,Uniuersally. Leuit. xix, & xx. Sanctificamini, et estote san cti, quia ego sanctus sum. Be holy, for I the lorde your God, am holy. Christ sayth also, Luce. xii. Sint lumbi vestri precincti. Lete youre loynes be gyrt aboute. And S. Paule i. Timo. v. Temetipsum purum serua. Kepe thy selfe pure. Sara the wyfe of Abraham, was chaste. So was Sara the doughter of Raguel, Anna the wyfe of Helcana, and Su sanna the wyfe of Ioachim, yet they neuerPaphnutius. vowed chastyte. Paphnutius a mā of God, sayd openly in the generall counsell of Nicea, that Castitas was cō …ubitus cum propria coniuge, A companyenge of men with their owne wyues, in the acte of generaciō, and no man there withstode him. Lib. ii. histo. tripartite, cap. xiiii. A false and an hypocrytes opynyon is it, that chastite can not dwell in man, vnlesse it be vowed. Zacharias the preste and Helizabeth hys wyfe, were both chast, the Gospell sayeth, if chastyteChastyte be a perfectyon, and a walkynge in the lawes and ordynaunces of God wythout reproue. For why, Erant ambo iusti coram Deo (the texte sayth) vitam agentes iuxta omnia precepta ac iura Domini, irreprehensi. Luce. i. Both wer ryghteouse afore God, and so fashyoned their lyues after his lawes and preceptes, that no man coulde fynde faulte with them.

Notwithstandynge Epiphanius affyrmeth in libro de heresibus, that in the greate college of Hierusalem were serten Leuites,Leuytes whyche for their vowes sake wolde touche no woman in marriage, but amonge them selues they wroughte sylthynesse vnspeakable. And those (sayth he) wer the chefe in opy nyon amonge the people, and moste commended of holynesse. And for reprehendyng those vi…es in thē, was good zacharias slain.zacharias. Philypp Melanchton folowynge the seyd Epiphanius, confirmeeh the same story, in his commentary vponupon Daniel, ca. xi. Saint Paule confesseth holynesse and honour inS. Paule. marriage, and accordyng to them requyreth it to be vsed. i. Thess. iiii. Sciat (inquit) vnusquisque vestrum, vas suum possidere in sanctificatione et honore, &c. Learne eueryevery one of yow, to vse hys vessel in holynesse and ho nour. And what more can be loked for of all your vowes? Naye, I woulde they broughtHolynesse not with them the contrarye, as fylthynesse and dyshonour.

Then maketh he a conclusion of his matter, declarynge the nature of hys dyffyned vowe. And so by our vowe (sayth he) we doA beast. restrayn our lyberte. The chyldrē are we of fredom and not of bōdage, and our mother a fre woman by the death of Christ, Galat. iiii. The lawe of our profession, is also a law of lyberte, Iaco. i. And where as the sprete of the Lorde is, there is perfyght lyberte, S. Paule saith, ii. Cor. iii. In the name of God, what lyberte wyll thys man restrayne by hys vowe? If hys vowe restrayne these, hisRestrayne vowe is a thynge moste wycked. What lyberte wyl it than restrayne? Lyberte to mar ry. Than is hys vowynge a doctryne of deuyls, for their doctryne only, in all the scriptures, is reported to forbydde marryage, i. Timoth. iiii. Saynt Paule the elect vessell of God, sayth. Si se nō cōtinent, nubāt, MeliusBetter. est enim nubere quam vri. i. Cor. vii. If they can not abstaine, thā let thē marry. For it is better to marry than to burne. And this is there spoken wythout restraynt or excepcion of vowes.

Obiectio.

☞ And than we vowe chastite, whan we maye lawfully go to marriage, as S. August. sayth, de bono viduitatis, cap. xvi. Quando liciteA foule lye. rei licentiam tibi, amor melioris boni aufert. Donauit enim ne liberet nubere cum liceret, vt iam non liceret, etiam si liberet. Et ca. xi. Bonum continentie vidualis luculentius de…et, cum pro illo vouendo et profitēdo, possunt femine quod et libet et licet. S…d post vot… professionem perseueranter frenandum et vincend… est quod libet, quia iā non licet. Et psal. lxxv.Augustin. Non sitis pigri ad vouendum. Non enim viribus vestris implebitis. Deficietis side vobis presumitis. Si autem de illo cui vouetis, vouete, securi redditi…. Uouete et reddite domino Deo nostro omnes cōmuniter Quid debemus vouere? Credere in ilium, sperare ab illo vitam eternam, bene viuere secundum communem mo dum. Est enim quidam modus communis omnibus,Cōmunis furtum non facere, non castimoniali pre cipitur, et nupte non precipitur, Adulterium nō facere omnibus precipitur. Non amare vinolentiam, qua ingurgitatur anima, et cortumpitur in se templum Dei, omnibus equaliter precipitur.

Non superbire, omnibus equaliter precipitur. Non hominem occidisse, non odisse fratrē,In communi. non aduersus aliquem tenere perniciem, omnibus in communi precipitur. Hoc totum omnes vouere debemus. Sunt etiam vota singulorū. Alius vouet Deo castitatem coniugalē, vt preter vxorē suā nō nouerit aliā. Sic et femina pre ter virum suum non nouerit alium. A… etiam vouent, etsi experti tale coniugium, vltra nihil tale pati, nihil tale concupiscere, aut sustinere. Et ipsi vouerunt aliquid maius quam illi.Maius A… virginitatē ipsam ab ineunte etate vouēt, vt nihil tale experiātur, quale ill… experti sunt, et reliquerunt. Et isti vouerūt plurimum, Alii vouent domum suam esse hospitalem omnidu… sanctis aduenientibus. Magnum votum vouent. Alius vouet relinquere omn…a sua, distribuendo pauperibus, et ire in communem vitā, in societatem sanctorum, magnum vou…t votum.Magnum Uouete et reddite Domino Deo vestre, et cet. Quisque quod vouere voluerit, voueat, illudque attendat, vt quod vouerit reddat, Unusquisque Deo quod vouet, si respi…it retrorsum, malum est, etc.

Responsio.

I supposed afore that this pretēsed vowe here, had bene a professyon of chastite, whiche is also due to marryage. But nowe I perceyue, it is an only renouncynge and vtterSodoma. bannyshynge of marryage. For it folow eth in hys wrytyng. Then vowe we chastyte (sayeth he) wh…n we maye lawfullye go to marryage. It is true that ye do so. But what godlynesse fynde ye in so doynge, or what wynne ye in the ende, as ye seale vppe your hande for terme of lyfe? Surelye, for youre rewarde ye wynne the sore plage, belonging to suche vngodly presumpcyon, that is, to be geuen ouer of God, vntounto lustes vnlawfull, Romano. i. as experyence hath declaredA plage. in an hundred thousande buggerers. The frute manyfesteth what the tree is, the examples of lyfe, what the vowe is, dyssemble yow the matter neuerso longe. It is not all for naught, that Saynt Iohan was commaūded not to measure the quere, or approue it by Gods wurde, neyther yet to allowe the ordre therof for a state of rygh teousnesse, Apocalip. xi. Neyther yet is theThequere greate spyrytuall cytie, whyche is the blasphemouse churche of Romyshe vowers, without cause called, Sodoma and Aegyptus, in the selfe same chaptre.

And whan he perceyueth, that scryptures wyll not ayde hym in approuynge of hys bablynges, he heapeth me in, an whole halfe leafe at a dashe, oute of Saynt Augustyne, De bono viduitatis, if it be hys, & inA doubte Psalm. lxxv. As though hys authoryte auayled, where scryptures are not to be had, and as though the veryte myghte be choked with a multitude of wurdes. But to opē and declare thys papystes conueyaunce, I wyll first of all Englysh here these saynges of S. Augustyne, if they be hys.

☞ Saynt Augustine Englyshed.

Saynt Augustine sayth in the. xvi. chap. of hys boke concernyng honest wydowhed. Whan the desire of a better purpose (a tayleA tayle. wythout an heade) taketh awaye from the, the lyberte of that thynge whych is lawful. For it is Gods gyfte, that thu lykest not in marrye whan thu myghtest wele do it, that frō hensfourth it shulde not be lefull for the, though it lyked the. And in the. xi. chaptre. The estate of wydu al clennesse is than most fytt, whan for the vowe and profession ther of, women maye put aparte that is both lykynge and lefull. But as the vowe is onesMaye. professed, constantly is that to be restrayned and vanquyshed, that lyketh, for no longar is it lefull. And vponupon the. lxxv. Psal. Be not slowe to vowe, yet of your owne strengthes ye shall not perfourme it. If ye presume of your selues, ye shall fayle. But yf ye be bold of him, to whome ye hauehave promysed, voweBolde hardely, for assuredly shall ye perfourme it. Uowe, and yelde it vntounto our Lorde God, al yow vniuersally. But what must we vowe? To beleue in hym, to hope of hym the lyfe euerlastynge, and to lyue christenly among our neyghbours. For an ordre is prescribed to all men, in no wyse to steale. Not to the professed nonne, nor yet to the married woman, was it commaunded, but all folke are charged to committ non aduoutrye. Not toTo all mē folow dronkenes, wherby the soule is ouercharged, and the temple of God defyled, is equally commaunded to all men.

Not to wexe hygh mynded, is commaun ded to all men a lyke. Not to kyll a man, not to hate their brother, and not to seke an vndoynge to any man, is vniuersally commaū Uniuersally.ded to all men. Al this ought we al to vowe. These are also vowes to euerye man particulare. One voweth to god, chastite in wed locke, as that he wyll knowe none other thā his owne wife, and in lyke case the woman, to knowe none other but her owne husband. An other sorte promyseth, that though they hauehave proued the acte of marriage, yet wyll they no more do the lyke, neyther yet affect it nor fauour it, and these hath vowed sumwhat more than they. An other sort vowethUotaries vyrgynyte from their youthe, that they wyl neuer assaye that other hath assaied and left, and these in lyke maner hath vowed muche. An other sorte promyseth their howse to be herbourouse to the howsehold of fayth, and a great vowe do they make. An other man voweth to leaue all his goodes, and to associate hymselfe wyth men that are godly, he hath vowed a great vowe also. Uowe therfore,To learne and rendre it to your Lorde God. Lete anye man vowe that is wyllynge to vowe, takynge alwayes hede that he perfourme what he voweth. Ill is it for any mā to loke backwarde, that hath vowed, &c.

☞ S. Augustyne declared.

Firste it is to be marked, to whome, o… at whose instaunce, thys boke was made, who was the authour, and what is the argumente,The boke. or grounde thereof. The boke was writtē to one Iuliana, a professed wydowe. The tytle and argument, are corresponding to the same, for they declare the honest state of wydowhede. But the great learned man Frasmus, vtterlye denyeth the wurke to be Saynt Augustynes, and proueth it by many stronge reasons. Consydre first of all, that they are brought to a narrowe shyft, that seketh to be holpen by womens matters.Wydows What hath wydowed to doo with presthode, more than womanhede with massing? Are the offyces of prestes and women bycomen nowe all one, and were wont to be so dyuerse. Then lete prestes become women also. Is not here (thynke yow) a wyttie fatche of thys papyste, to proue his matter by? Hys firste proposycyon was (and therupon is all thys contencyon) that prestes muste be Celibes, that is to saye, men wythoute women.Celibes. And nowe that matter can not be proued withoute womens helpe. I hauehave nowe my coniecture. For I thoughte alwayes, though they had reiected women, yet wolde they seke them oute agayne for some naughtye purpose. They fare lyke monkes and frires, whyche neuer coulde agre, but whan some myschefe was in bruynge, agaynste the glory of God.

And in dede the prophete Daniel confesseth, that the hartes of that generacyon, are gredely set vponupon women, Dani. xi. but that…echerouse. is all out of marriage. But I feare me, their labour here, tendeth to thys ende, to fynde oute amonge themselues by vertu of their orders, that prodygyouse kynde of occupyenge without women, whych Saynt Paule appoynteth them as a plage of their errour to dampnacyon, Roman. i. They are aboute no small myracles, whan they hauehave suche compassynges, ye maye be sure. O execrable generacyon of Antichriste. Now to theDeuyls. contentes and argumente of thys alleged boke. The wurke is deuyded into two partes, the one conteynynge doctryne, and the other fatherly counsell, for the honeste state of wydowhede. The doctryne whyche is the strongar parte, endeth with the fyftene chaptre, and thys croked cloyner, cloughteth me in a patche of the lattre parte,Conueyaunce. whyche is the weaker. But marke hys conueyaunce (I beseche yow) and ye shall see in hym, the cursed nature of a wycked papyste. He bryngeth me in here, the lattre end of a sentence in the. xvi. chaptre, leauing out all these wurdes. Qua in re, prius illud moneo, vt quantamcunque tibi inesse sentisLefte oute pie continentie dilectionem, beneficio Dei tribuas, eique gratias agas, qui de spiritu suo tibi tautum largitus est, vt eius in corde tuo charitate diffusa (nowe cometh in hys patche) licite rei licentiam, tibi amor melioris boni auferret.

But in place of all thys, he hath trumped me in a Quando, to helpe his conueyaunce, and changed the tyme in Aufert. A false harlotFalse dice (they saye) wyll neuer betrue. And thus is the sentence to be englyshed. By the waye of exhortacion or counsell (sayth the author) I admonishe the, that what louelove so euer thu fyndest in the towardes godly clennesse, im pute it to God as hys benefyghte, and geue thankes to hym, whyche oute of hys owne sprete hath geuen the so moch, that hys charyte beynge spred abroade in thy harte (his Quando is oute here) the louelove of a betterQuando thynge myght take away the lyberte of that was lawful. And what is all thys to the pur pose, to proue the folyshe vowes of monkes and of massemongers indispensable? Truly nomore thā is, Stās puer ad mensam, made by Robert Grosted of Lyncolne. The mind of the wryter was, that charite procedynge of fayth and not of vowynge (for here is no vowe spoken of) shulde be iudged to be the gyft of God, & that no boast shulde be madeNo vow therof, as of that thinge whyche were in our power. For it foloweth. Multi quippe habent magna Dei dona, et nesciendo a quo habeant, impia vanitate iactantur. Manye there be (sayth he) whyche hath worthie gyftes of God, but for lacke of knowledge of him that is the gyuer, they wickedly & vainly glory in thēselues. Thys spake he againstBoastyng suche iustycyaryes (as are oure braggynge papystes) whych boasted that of their owne fre wil, without the grace of God, they wer able to lyue wele.

Hys authoryte out of the. xi. chaptre and part concernynge the doctryne, is the conclusyon of an argument, the premysses lefteConueyaunce. clerelye out. But to make it not so to apere, seruynge hys turne, he hath craftelye conueyed awaye thys wurde Ergo. Marke the good wurkemanshypp of thys Babylonish builder. The authour in that chaptre disputeth against them, whyche iudged the marryages of professed systers or nunnes to be aduoutryes and no marryages, and concludethMarryages, that suche marryages oughte not so to be iudged neyther yet dyssolued, though, as in hys opynyon, the vowe breakynge he not allowable. In y^• chaptre afore he begynneth w^t this reasō. Qui dicūt taliū nupitas nō esse nuptias sed potius adulteria, nō mihi videntur satis acute ac diligēter cōsiderare quid di cāt. They y^t report y^e marryages of vowers,Unlearned. to be no marryages but aduoutryes, seme not to be learnedly wyse in their so saynges. And if they ground (sayth he) vponupon Christes spousage, and that he is not yet dead but alyue, & cōclude it aduoutry that way. Thus I aunswere thē. That in there generacyon, wherein Christe is, beyng nowe rysen from the dead, ther is no such kynd of marryage.

For if they myght make that reason good, than myghte they also proue Christe an aduouterer,Christe. by receyuynge vponupon her fayth, an other mannys wyfe. And thys I adde to it. That an horryble synne they myght also im pute to Christ, as to hauehave marryed hys own mother, whan she bycame her spouse, with other lyke fantasyes nothynge to the purpose. Neyther maye Christe (sayth he) be taken for the second husband, as in that kynde of marryage, hys promyse beynge prima fides. Thys is no conuenyent rule therfore,No waye. of puttynge the man from the wyfe, but rather a way to make them aduouterers. And after thys sorte he contynueth, tyll he come to the seyd conclusyon, Bonum ergo continentie vidualis, &c. whych all I cut of here, for tyme losynge. The commodyte therfore (sayth he) or professyon of vydual clennesse, is than moste fytt, whan for the vowe and promyse therof, women may put apart, that is both lykynge and lefull. If this chaplayn had mynded the preferremente of a veryte, as he ded the bolsterynge oute of a falshede,A foxe. he had there more aduysedlye marked thys wurde possunt, whyche carryeth all the wayght of the whole matter. That professiō is fytt for them, whan they maye, that is to saye, whan they are able to leaue that is lykynge and lefull.

And that caused Saynt Paule, not afore lx. yeares of age to admytt anye wydowesWydows to lyue at the charges of the congregacyon withoute husbandes. i. Timoth. v. Make priestes at that age, and ye maye chaunce to hauehave them chast, but I dare not promyse yow afore, I hauehave knowne so many to slyde. Lo ser, how saye ye now, hauehave ye not sponne here a fayre threde wyth your. ii. allegacions of thys doctour, to proue, that than ye vowe chastite whan ye may lawfully go to marryage? yes that ye hauehave, & it were wylle Somer the kynges foole. I tolde yow afore,Somer as I tell ye now agayne, that all thys was but womēs ware, whych hauehave many tymes lyghte heades, & therefor (I praye yow) reserue it to their vse, and seke out some better stayes, for the sole lyuyng or wyuelesse state of your presthod, for these are far to weake. And as touchynge the wryter, whom e y… call S. Augustine, vndre whose authoryte ye seke to confirme a falshede, it is yet in questyonA doubte whether that boke where hys or no. Marke in the same. xvi. chaptre, a lytle after your first allegacyon, Sursum corda, with dignum et iustum est, and S. Gregory whyche folowed. cc. yeares after, wyll rather apere the authour therof, than S. Augustyne.

Now are we come to the thirde allegacion of thys chaplayne, Non sitis pigri ad vo uendum &c. which is S. Augustynes in dede vponupon the. lxxv. Psalme. But marke hys cruell theft here (I beseche yow) that ye be notAugustin. an other tyme deceyued by the lyke. Thus begynneth S. Augustyne vponupon thys texte of Dauid, vouete et reddite, promise & do it, or vowe & perfourme it. Quisquis quod potest (inquit) voueat et reddat. Ne voueatis & nō reddatis, sed quisque quod potest voue at & reddat. Lete eueryevery man vowe (sayth he) y^t heAble. is able to to performe, & lete him perfourme it in dede. Do neuer promise, vnles ye mynd to pay. But lete yche mā promyse, y^t lyeth in his power, & so fulfyl that he hath promised. Than foloweth the texte, that he seketh to wurke his false feate with, Non sitis pigri ad vouendum. Be not slowe to vowe, and so fourth. O blessyd Augustyne, thy doctrin is godlye and pure in thys matter, and notGodly. mixed with the leauen of hypocrites. As thu puttest it fourth hece, it is seasonable & good and may wholsomly feade the flocke of Iesus Christ. But as thys cruell enemye ded handle it afore, it was more lyke to hauehave poy sened than nouryshed. Full falselye art thu alleged here of thys mocker and peruerter of all godlynesse.

Thy teachynge is, that no man shulde take vponupon hym to vowe that thynge, whych he is not able to perfourme, accordynge toOf power the nature and true meanynge of the texte in that Psalme. And bycause S. Augustyne wolde hauehave thys poynt taken for the seasonynge salte or grounde of all that shulde folowe concernynge that matter, he reherseth it here twyse. But why left yow thys out, ye most spyghtfull aduersary to all veryte and truthe? why lete ye it passe by? yea, why toke ye it not with yow? Bycause ye would play the dissembler, lyar, mocker, poisener, thefe, and sowle murtherer, euer lyke your selfe, avi. partes. full exercysed craftesman in that occupyeng of mischefe. But tel me maistre person, who hath taught yow to playe so wycked partes as these are. Euen the Deuyl your captain, whych seketh not els but to deuoure in darkenesse, yow helping him forward as moch as ye maye. For what purpose or to what ende, do ye wurke these false feates. Euen to make of the howsholde seruauntes of God, the citizēs of Sodome and Gomor. O deuyllCytezens. incarnate, O moste vengeable Sathan. But nowe that I hauehave thryse taken yow in thys kynde of robery, I wyll so holde ye by the nose, both in thys & in that whych shal fo low (be yesure of it) y^t al they which shal loke vpō yow & your wurk, shal take ye for nō other than a naughty thefe & a pycke purse.

And as touchynge S. Augustyne, he vtterly refuseth, so to be takē or alleged of any man, that hys authoryte shulde mayntayneDoctryne a doctryne besydes y^• scriptur. For he sayth, in prologo textii libri de trinitate. Noli meis literis quasi canonicis scriptis inseruire, &c. Geue in no case, so moche credyte to my wrytynges, as to the canonycall scryptures of the Byble. Thys sentence hath he also in his seconde boke, ad Uincenti…. Ideo nāque retractationum librum feci, vt discant lectores,Recantaci ons. neque mea per omnia mihi placere. For that only cause made I a boke of retractacions, that my readers mighte wele knowe, that myne owne wrytynges ded not in all poyntes please me. Moreouer he wryteth thus in hys wurke, de natura et gratia, c…. lxi. Solis canonicis scripturis sine vlla recusatione consensum debeo. Suche a pryuylege belongeth to the scryptures of the Byble, that to them we muste alwayes assente without refusall. …o, these are ynough to clere hym in that matter. And to confirme that he hath sayd afore concerninge vowes, I remembre he hath in diuerse places of his learned wrytinges, quod vota stulta nō prosintAugusty. sed obsint, imo quod extra scripturā dā nanda sint. That folyshe vowes profyteth not but moche hyndereth, and also that they are dampnable whan they hauehave no ground of the scriptures. Whyche for tedyousnesse in searchynge the great heape of his wuckes to lytle profyght, I now passe ouer.

In y^e end also wyl I say, y^t they are yl frindes to S. Augustyne, whych to establysh soAuthoryte wycked a purpose, vsurpe his authoryte on this wyse. For though his time wer sūwhat corrupted w^t superstycyōs, yet he neuer toke vowes as they hauehave bene prodigiously takē of hypocrytes in our age. That is to say, for a worshipp of God, for a meryte of ryghteousnesse, and for a singular perfeccyon. And though he had so done, yet is not thys couse quence therby founde true. Uowes were in vse in S. Augustynes daies, Ergo y^e sodomy tycall professyons of cloysterers and masmongers,Argument are a lawfull seruyce of God. No more than this argument is good. In S. Au gustynes time some thought ther was a pur gatorye, Ergo we ought to hauehave masses, the popes indulgences, and chauntery foundacyous for the dead. In bryngyng in that lōg processe of Saynt Augustyne vponupon the. lxxv Psalme, thys charmynge chaplayne toke moche more peyne than he neded. For it is nothyng to the purpose to defende monkyshMonkery vowes, but that he semeth glad, to hauehave sum what in aperaunce, though it be moste theuishly borowed. The vowes that he treateth of, are no forswearynges of marryage (as are the prestes vowes) for than he shuld by hys doctryne forbyd all men to marry, whiche were moste deuelyshe. For thus he concludeth, Omnes communiter, vnyuersally all men.

But to put all out of questyon, thys godly man dyffyneth, what kynde of vowynge he meaneth. Quid de bemus vouere? inquit.Credere Credere in illum, sperare ab illo vitam eternam, et bene viuere secundum communem modū. What ought we to vowe? sayth he, or what promise is requyred of vsus by Gods lawe? To beleue in hym, to hope by hym to obtayne the lyfe euerlastynge, and to lyue godly, non otherwyse than after the commē maner of christianyte, requyred of all men geuerally. Al the vowes that ther foloweth, be they propre or commen, are gouerned by these christen rules. Thus is thys aduersaryDowes. discharged. iii. wayes, for takynge here any holde for his sodometrouse vowes, by quod potest, whych he hath theuyshly left out, by omnes communiter, and by credere in illū, whiche both he brought with hym with out vnderstandynge. Therefor thys deceytfullPapyste papyste maye now go, as the cōmen saynge is, and shake the dogge haye. For nothynge in all thys longe processe of S. Augustyne, wyll serue hym to hys mynde.

Obiectio.

By thys authoryte of S. August. we learne, that there be. …i. kyndes of vowes. One commē to all men. whyche differeth nothyng from the offyce and dewtie of a christen man, wherunto eueryevery man is bounde more by Gods law than by hys owne promyse. An other syngular, after eueryevery mannys owne deuocyon, in such thingesii. Uowes as he maye lawefully forbeare, and yet by hys vowe doth bynde hymself to the perfourmaūce of them. The bonde, whereof standeth in the promise of the man, not in no former commaun dement of God. Thys kynde of vowe, is clean left out in your dyffynycyon, whyche maketh it vnperfyght in my mynde.

Responsio.

Here hath thys chaplayn ouershote his wittes, by callyng these thre seueral allegaciōs, but one authorite of S. Augustyne. But per aduenture he wold hauehave them here taken in substaunce, for. iii. persones and one God,Subtyle for aboughte soche mysteryes hys popyshe generaciō is verye busy and cōnynge. I am wele contented that he and hys hath learned in thys lattre allegacyon, whych is S. Augustynes in dede, that ther are vowes of. ii. dyuerse kyndes, one commen an other propre, or one double and an other syngle, for the other. ii. hauehave no soche dyuysyon of vowes. But I wold he & they had learned this of S. Augustyne wythall, that those vowesPossyble. must be of thyngs whych are in our power, concernyng fayth, the cōmen christianyte, & a way to the lyfe euerlastynge, for he mente non other. To lyue without wyues by your owne appoyntement, & your other lyke voluntary wurkes, are as agreable to these, as mennys wayes are to Gods wayes, & light to darkenesse. A man myght here dryue yow & yours to a narrowe shyft, that wolde requyre of yow to proue S. Augustynes dyuisyon vpō this wurde votū, by Christes doctryne.A shyfte. Well, I lete yow alone cōcernyng y^t matter for this time, & go foreward with the members of your dyuysyon, whom ye hauehave dyffyned full lyke your selfe.

One commen (ye say) to all men, whiche dyffereth nothing &c. I wold wysh y^t ye had left out some of those bablynges, & y^t ye had gyuē to this one of yours, his own ryght naPrima fides. me, calling him prima fides as S. Paul doth & not votū. For votū is but a borowed bastard name, w^tout the scriptures of Christes new testamēt. But such are y^• buildinges of these wicked iusticiaries, to vphold in hypo crysie their volūtary wurkes. An other singular (ye say) after eueryevery mānys own deuocyō, in such thinges as he may lawfully forbeat &c. Mercyfull God, what cōfuse matter & vnfrutefull baggage is this? Placed is it not in y^e scriptures, vnlesse it be in y^e smokeSmoke. rysing vp frō the bottōlesse pytt, Apocal. ix. or els in the golden cuppe of y^• rose coloured whore, & thā is it part of y^e abhominacyon & fylthynesse of her whoredom, Apo. xvii. Is the promyse of cōingall chastyte or faythful clennesse in marryage, as the man to knowe non other womā than hys owne wyfe, & the womā nō other man than her own husband (whych S. Augustyne here nōbreth amongeLyberte. syngular vowes) after euerye mānys deuocyon, y^t he may leaue it of if he lysteth & become an aduouterer? Is it also in such thynges as he may lawfully forbear? Then hath God spoken it all in vayne, that in such case man shulde leaue father & mother and only cleaue to hys wyfe, and they twayne therby to be one. Gene. ii. & Math. xix.

How can ye say, that the bonde is the mā nys in y^• state, whan y^t mā hath no power of his owne body, but y^• wyfe? i. Cor. vii. StandethThe bōde. the bonde of thys vowe in the promyse of mā, & in no former cōmaundemēt of god? & so leaueth him at lyberte, whether he wyll be an whoremaistre or no? What maner of doctryne call ye thys? I am not yll apayed,Fynely. that thys kynde of dyffynyng is out my diffynicion (as ye call it) neyther do I recken it the more vnperfyght for the want therof. I wold men ded marke this workemanshypp here, and ded se how fynely falshede as in a nette, conuayeth hymselfe. Come out ye deuyll, I wyll yet dyscouer yow further, for all your crafty lurkinge, and clerely dispatche ye of your holde. Uowes are here deupded into vowes commen, and vowes syngular. Thys diuision is altogether nought, as yow hauehave here dyffyned the mēbres therof,Agre. though ye father it vponupon S. Augustyue. For memb…a diuisa in genere non conueniūt, as it is requyred they shulde do. If it be answered y^t they agre, in genere vocabuli. I muste say agayne, that our dyfputacyou is not super vocabulis, vponupon wurdes and names of thynges, but vponupon the very thynges sygnyfyed by them. I wyll proue by their groundes, that they agre not in vno genere.

The ground of vowes cōmen, are Gods holy cōmaundemētes, the groūd of vowes syngular, as yow hauehave descrybed them, are mennys ydell deuocyons, otherwyse calledDeuociōs wyll wurkes, or wurkes of supererrogaciō, that is to saye, more than nede. Howe farre these. ii. are from agrement in vuo genere, y^• voice of Godsowne mouth by the prophete hath declared, Esa. lv. Non enim cogitationesThoughtes. mee sunt cogitationes vestre, necvie vestre, vie mee. Sed quemadmodum celi, terra sublimiores sunt, ita excedūt vie mee vias vestras, et cogitationes mee cogitationes vestras. My thoughtes (sayth the lord) are not your thoughtes, nor youre wayes my wayes. But so farre as the heauens are hygher than the earth, so farre do my wayes excede your wayes, & my thoughtes your thoughtes. Se now howe these deuyded members agre. Who euer thus coupled hymself with God, but Antichrist the sonne of perdicion?Lucyfer whych exalteth hymselfe aboue all that belongeth to God, ii, Thes. ii. But come down thu deuyl, that thus settyst thy chayre in heauen, and wyll be checke mate with the hyghest, …sa. xiiii. full vumete are thy dongysh and fylthie tradicions, to be coupled with his lawes immaculate. The daies wylones come, that thu shalte be broughte downe to the depeth of h…lle.

The bonde of thys vowe (sayth thys tha playne) standeth in the promyse of the man, and not in the former commaundemente of God. Wherunto I say, yet ones again, thatShame y^t more is his shame to couple it, yea, rather to make it equal w^t Gods cōmaundemētes. But that the myscheuouse nature of that hypocrytyshe generacyon is, as Christe hath declared, Mathe. xv. to make Gods commaundementes of none effecte, for their owne be astlye tradycyons. If the bonde be of man, howe lyttle strengthe is it of? Is aManne. synne full man of suche omnypotency, that hys vnaduysed decre must perpetually stād, leadynge to so wycked an ende? Isidorus sayth. Si quis preuentus fuerit, vt diffiniat agere aliquid eorum que non placent Deo, penitentiam agat. It quod contra mandatum Domini statutum est, in irritum reuocetur. If anye man be so preuented, that he bynde hymselfe to do auye of those thyngesA vowe. whyche are not pleasynge to God, lete hym repente hym of that prompse. And lete that whyche was determyned wythoute Gods commaundemente, be called backe agayne and made of none effecte. Sayncte Bedas also confyrmeth the same in Romelia. xlv.

Si aliquid forte nos incautius iurare contigerit, quod obseruatum in peiorem vergat exitum, Libere illud salubriori consilio mutandum nouerimus, ac magis instante nenessitateChange. peierandum nobis, quam pro vitando periurio in aliud grauius esse diuertendum. Denique iurauit Dauid per Deū, occidere Nabal virum stultum & impium, atque omnia que ad eum pertinebant demoliri: Sed ad primam intercessionem Abigail femine prudentis, mox remisit minas, reuocauit ensem in vaginam, neque aliquid culpe se pro tali periurio contraxisse doluit. If it hath chaunced vsus (sayeth S. Bede) to beBedas. sworne to any suche thynges, as the fulfyllynge therof, myght brynge vsus to a greatter euyll, Beynge instructed by more wholsom counsell, we may wele breake that othe, and rather for the tyme of nede forsweare the thynge, than for doubte of periury to runne into a greatter inconuenyente. For Dauid swore by hys Lorde God to slee Nabal, a folyshe and wycked man, and to destroye all that was hys. Yet at the firste instaunce of the sobre wyse woman Abigail, he withdreweAbigail hys anger, putte vp hys swearde, and neuer thoughte anye synne in that periury or breakyuge of hys vowe. The chaplayne sayeth, that thys kynde of vowes, is cleane lefte oute in my dyffynycyou. As I sayde afore, I am wele contented it is so. Saynte Paule sayeth. i. Lorinth. vi. Ryghteousnesse canne hauehave no felyshyppe wyth vnryghteousnesse. Lyghte agreeth not withChriste. darkenesse, neyther hath Christe anye concorde with Belial. And thys (he sayth) maheth my dyffinicion vnperfyght, As though monkyshe vowes, myghte adde perfeccyon to vowes of the olde lawe, confyrmed by y^• scriptures. Who coulde euer hauehave paynted hym out more lyuely for Antichristes man, than he paynteth out hym selfe?

Obiectio.

Than ye go about to proue it by the sayngesDauid of Dauid, whyche saynges declare the good af fectyon of the iust man, to the keping of Gods commaundementes, and seme to pertayne nothynge to declare what is a vowe. And therfor in my mynde, your dyffynycyon is nothyng fur thered by these authoritees. The iust mā sayth, I hauehave loued thy commaundementes aboue golde and precyouse stone. Thys proueth not that a vowe is onlye a promyse to kepe Gods commaundementes. For it speaketh not of a vowe, but declareth hys affeccyon and obedienceA vowe. to God, So I take it, except yow se further in it, and can otherwyse declare it.

Responsio.

I go not about to approue thys descryp cyon of a vowe, after the ordre of Aristotles logyckes and Porphiries pryncyples, as I tolde yow afore. For so myght I do as your false generacyon doth, prepare a deceytfull bayte to circumuent the symple whych hath no foresyght, and to trappe them in a snareFalse. to the deuyll youre maisters behoue. Thys kynde of clowtynge ye shall kepe to youre selfe, as an arte fytt for your occupyenge, to wrynge by couples into one diffinicion of a vowe, truth & hypocrysy, veryte and falsehede, God and the deuill, agre yf they may. For otherwyse (ye saye) it can not be madeDyffynycyon nor come to y^• shappe of a persyght diffynycyon. In allegynge Dauid, I approue a doc tryne and no dyffynycyon, the grounde of a vow after the sacred scriptures, and not the name of it, as it hath bene hurly burlyed in Antichristes kyngdom. Though the alleged textes here, maketh mencyon of no vowes, yet include they that, wherupō vowes must be groūded, yf they be of value, as are gods appoynted wayes and commaundementes, They also seclude y^• ought not to be vowed, that is to saye, false wayes and wyckednesses.Hypocrysyes. And thys agreeth wele with that which is vttered in the former descrypcyon, to declare & shewe a playne contrariete betwyne the sober vowes of the scripture & the frantyck rash vowes of our clergy, least men vn bewares shulde iudge them all one, and so be parelously deceyued.

And no man can denye it, but Dauid the authour of those .ii. sentences, was a vower, for he vowed a vowe to the God of Iacob, Psalm. cxxxi. He confesseth in hys Psalmes that he was a contynuall and dayly vower.A vower In me sunt Deus, votatua, que reddā, laudationes tibi, Psalm. lv. I hauehave within me, O God (sayth he) thy vowes, whych I wyl paye the, and they are thy prayses. Reddam vota meade die in diem, Psalm. lx. I wyll perfourme my vowes from daye to daye, Reddā tibi vota, que distinxerunt labia mea. Psalm. lxv. I shall rendre the vowes, whyche my lyppes hath with deliberacyon promysed.Prayses Uota mea Domino reddam in conspectu timentium eum. Psalm. xxi. et. cxv, I wyll perfourme my …wes to the Lorde, in the syght of them that feare hym: Wyth a greate nombre of testymonyes more, who is than more fytt to be called to witnesse in suche a matter, than he whyche hath sought it and proued it? Or who knoweth it better than he that hath had it in so muche vse? and commaundeth men so earnestlye to vowe? by these wurdes, Uouete et reddite, & cet.Be godly. Uowe & perfourme your vowes. Psa. lxxv. These are to be loued as Gods prescripte wayes, and obserued as hys commaundementes, the other are vtterly to be abhorred, as the wayes of falshede and wyckednesse. Thus perteine they sumwhat (as yow tearme y^• matter) to declar what is a vow, & ther for they hauehave wele furthered my diffinicion.

These saynges of Dauid (ye say) declare the good affeccyon of the iust man, to the ke pynge of Gods commaundementes. Here is so wayghtye a sentence, as myghte weleWytte hauehave commen from them whych were wōte to synge that Psalme at their popish houres without deuocyō, it cometh fourth so freshly and with suche a courage of slouthe. But it is good portasse doctryne. As ye louelove the scriptures, so hādle ye thē, yrkesōly, fayntly, vnsauerly, & barrēly. But as feble & as cold as ye iudge them, yet are they so full of lyfe and strengthe of Gods sprete, that all theLyuely powers of helle are not able to preuayle agaynst thē. And they wyl serue the scripture vowes at nede, thoughe they serue not your popysh vowes. They declare in Dauid besydes your feble affeccyon, a faythe incomparable, and an whole geuynge vp of hym selfe to God from all worldly cares. A doctryne from aboue, a demonstracyon of the ryghteouse, a prophecye full of pythe, a puryte of Gods wurde, a consolacyō in Godlynesse,Sentēces. an hate of superstycyon, a ryghte handelyng of y^e scriptures, a ful obseruaciō of Gods commaundementes, an obedyence to Gods byddynges a symplycite of sowle, a mekenesse of sprete, a conscyence wythout cancre, a strong louelove towardes vertu, a study for ryghteousnesse, a despre of knowlege heauenly, a feruent zele in the truth, an alacryteDeclared of sprete, an inwarde peace, a ioye in the holy Ghost, a dylygence effectuall, a cō stauncy in perfyghtnesse, a mygthy perseueraūce, a gyft of Gods sprete, a syncere relygyō, a detestaciō of ydolatry, gods true wor shypp, a worke whych most hyghly pleaseth God and dyspleaseth the Deuyll, and an whole summe of Christianite.

Against a Rank Papist, Part 1 · Opinion 1

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