The Confutation of the Abbot of Crosraguels Mass, Title page – To the reader 1
The Confutation of the Abbote of Crosraguels Masse, set furth by Maister ….
Math. 1….
All plantation that is not planted by my heauenly Father, shalbe rooted out: leaue them, for they be blinde guides to the blinde.
…, Lib. …. Epist. 2.
If in the Sacrifice … is Christe, onelyonly Christe is to be followed, then must we here and do that, that Christe did and commanded to be done, since he in his Euangell, sayeth, if ye do that I command you, now call I you not setuandes but freindes. And the Father out of the heauen testifieth, saying. This is … moste deare Sōne, in whom I am compleated, … Christe is to be herde, we oght not … him before vsus iudged to be done, but what … before all, Christe, first did for the consuetude of man must not be followed, but the truth of God.
Imprinted at Edinburgh by Rober… Lek…k, and are to be sauld his hous at the nether Bow.
Cum priuilegio 1563.
The Prenter to the Reader.
AS I hauehave at all tymes bene ready to employe and bestowe my laboures, to the auancement of the glorie of God, and vtili…ie of his Church, so the bruite rysing of this that I now present vntounto thee good Reader Confutation of the Abbote of Crosragnels Masse, I wes moste diligent, and trauelled moste earnestly with the Author of it, that it might come to light. Hard it wes vntounto me, amongest many others, to obteane it of him, a man shamefast of his owen nature, yet by the inopportune and continuall sure of the Church, & freindes being mollified and moued to yeald and remitte …omwhat of his will, in end oppenned vp his mynde, that he hath onelyonly written this by maner of declamatiō, and so hath vsed some Greik wordes, as expressing the mater moste liuely and sensiblie, which wordes I had no Carracters to expres: this moued me somwhat at the beginning, yet finding them few in nomber, and so seruing to the mater, as I could not well suffer them to be taken away, yea, and no impediment to the vnlearned, the sentence being moste plaine, I coulde not those the learned to be frauded of so great a help, and so vndertuke the mater. Wherein I hauehave vsed the help of a moste excellēt young mā, wel exercised in the tongue, yit the trauel being wearisome in the hait of his occupatiōs the ordour and reule by him laide, I wes driuen, and content to borrow the laboure of some Scollers, whome I iudged to be moste expect. Whom vntounto it muste be imputed, if ether fant shalbe in lacking of a letter, or otherwayes in accent, and others such accidents. This I speak no but to the praise of the great good wil of the children, wh… are ready and willing to gratifie the Church of God: b…t to …dicat the name of the Author from all calumnie … and wicked tougues. If I should hauehave su… help … Church, as I hauehave oftentymes implored, the shou… …ot the ingynes and labours of the learned in th… countrie be retarded by any such impediment, yea, and I will promes further, we should not be troubled to send here and there, abounding in all thinges necessarie within our selues. And so faire thou well in the Lorde Iesus. At our buith, the penult of Iuly. 1563.