A Mystery of Iniquity Disclosed and Confuted, Part 25
A mysterye.
1 VvhichWhich sayd full ranke. That Christ and God. Toke not manhode.
2 Of Marye the virgine. VvhichWhich vvas vvithout synne
3 Verbum caro factum est. Ioan. 1.
¶The openinge.
ZElouse wolde this Poete fayne be seane in his holye mothers quarell by y• vyllenouse contempt of other. But marke the ende of it. Whyls he rankelye accuseth other menne of heresyes / he playeth the ranke heretyque his selfe. He deuydeth me here Christ and God by intermingling a coniuncciō copulatiue / as though they were .ii. and not one. Though Athanastus made a difference of the godhede from the mā hede / yet knyt he them togither in Christ. But this rāke heretique Papist disseuereth Christ from the godhede / so makinge owr ladye the mother of .ii. chyldren. He willeth also by this proposicion / that Christ beinge manne a fore / shuld take his manhode with God ageyne in Marye. Thus concludeth he .iii. abhominable heresies in one. In this had he nede to go to scole ageyne with his great diuine / & sumwhat better to be taught to declyne this matter. Ranker heresyes thā these / were neuer taught of Marcion / Manes / Arrius / nor Eutices / the greatrest heretyques of all. Therfor Pantolabꝰ maye wele stande in the fore warde of heretyques / & be first here of his owne Genealogye. But he is sure to hauehave no harme of the Bysshoppes / for their smellinge serueth thē not that waye. But se how true the promises of the lorde are. He that layeth a snare shall fall into it. Who stryketh with the swerde / shall peryshe with the same. And he that iudgeth his poore brother / condempneth himselfe. Well / blessed / be the name of that lorde.
2 The doctrine of these papystes hauehave a great shyne of godlynesse / yet is it but fylthye hypocresye. The blessed virgine Marye which was the elect mother of Christ / detesteth soche fryuolouse and blasphemouse bablinges as they geue vntounto her. As that she was without sinne in her concepcion / with soche other folysh fantasyes. Was not her father a synner? was not her mother an offender? Was she not brought forth in Adam? Declined not she with all other? Had she no nede of Christes sufferinges with other? Though the papistes supersticiouslye denye all this / yet doth she swete virgine afferme it. My sowle (saith she) magnifyeth y• lorde / and my spretereioyseth in God my sauer. What neded he to hauehave bene her sauer / yf nothinge had bene in the waye to condēpnacion ageinst her? Oh / blasphemouse here tyques and excertable papystes / which thus denye her the benefight of owr redempcion. Christ came to saue synners onlye / and not the arrogaunt rightouse / which had no nede of hi. Lyke as ye are false iusti…iaryes / so do ye bestowe your stodyes. She neuer couered as yow do with the proude Pharise / not to be as other menne are. But she was wele contented to be of the common sort / to be exalted vp from mekenesse. And as touchinge Peter Franke that he shuld denye Christ to take manhode of her / ye lye falselye of him. He dyed in no soche wycked opinion as manye hauehave crediblye reported. But sumthynge ye must nedes laye for your selues / whan ye hauehave done soche murther and mischefe.
3 Full lyke a wyse clarke brynge ye forth that text: Verbum caro factum est / the worde became fleshe / and lyke a fleshlye gentylmanne. I maruele where this clause was afore / that ye ioyned not God with Christe therwith / but made them two by the vertue of youre coniunccion copulatyue. ye do manye madde miracles / whan ye come to youre owne wyttes without the scripturs. In ipso vita erat / sayth the Gospell afore. In that worde was the lyfe and the lyght of menne. But of that worde will you fatche no lyght / nor yet suffre other menne to fatche lyght there / so farre as ye maye withstande yt. They must fatche lyght at you / & yet ye are those folyshe virgynes that Christ speaketh of / whose lampes are oute / for ye are chast geldynges all. ye are that folyshe fygge tree which hath nothynge els but leaues. Whan ye are in youre most pryde / ye shall wyther awaye lyke a thynge of nought. It is not this text that confuteth the vngodlye opinion of the Anabaptistes. For all they beleue that he became fleshe. But to proue that he toke that fleshe of the virgyne / we must go vntounto the stronge promyses of God made vntounto the Serpent / to Abraham / and to Dauid. That Sede of the woman (sayth the Lorde) shall treade the on the head. In thy Sede (sayth he to Abraham) shall all the kyndredes of y• earthe be blessed. Blessed is the frute of thy wombe / sayth the holye ghost in Elizabeth to Marie: and so forth. That illius and that Tui in the textes must be groundelye remembred / & than shall they not be able ones to hysse at it.