Admonition to the Germans, Treatise
A faithfull aduertismēt of a certain true Pastor, to his deare countrymen the Germanes, Trāslated into Englyshe for a lyke aduertisement to the Englyshe nation.
MOst earnest supplication and intercession hath bene made to the high Potentates, both of the Spirituall and of the laye sort, that they woulde not bende them selues so earnestlye, against the true Religion and doctrine of Christ▪ but would shewe them selues more equal and moderate, & suffre the Gospel freely to be preached. And agayne that thei would not consent to bryng straunge princes into our coūtrey, to bear any Rule, or to hauehave any gouerment therin. The which thing, both I and many other godly heartes, hauehave most hartely praied, and sighed vntounto god for. But forasmuch as nether our most faithfull praiers vntounto God, neither yet the earnest intercession made vntounto them, could any thyng preuayle with them, it is easye inoughe to perceiue, what it betokeneth: nameli, euē …hys, that beyng peruerse, obstinate, blinded, & geuen ouer of God, as such as hauehave euer thirsted for innocēt blod, and bent them selues to maintain the blasphemyng of Gods name, and all abhominations, God thinketh them not worthy to be inspired, so much as with one good thoughte, or that they should geue eare to ani faithful aduertisement or profitable intercessiō. And it standeth with them, euen as it stode with ye Iewes in Ieremies time, whā as God sayd vntounto Ieremy these wordes, If Moses or Samuel should stād vp, and make intercession for this people, Yet hauehave I no hearte vntounto theim: dryue them from me, and let them depart. &c.Iere. vii▪ Thou shalt not praye for this people, nor bryng no maner of lamentation, nor supplication before me for theym, Neyther make anye intercession at al for them: For I wyll not heare the. Euen the like answer, may al those which hauehave made intercessiō, as is before sayd, vntounto the potentates and prayed vntounto God for them, think to hauehave made vntounto them. Forasmuch as God sheweth euidente & manifest tokens, yt he wyl not heare any mans praiers for them, but that he wyl suffre them, to go headlynges forwarde, and after the example of Pharao, to sinne agaynst the holy ghost, euen so lōg til there be no more hope of repē taunce, nor of ani amēdement in thē. For if ether praiers vntounto God for thē or els ani ernest intercession vntounto thē would any thynge hauehave holpen, they would neuer hauehave gone so far as they hauehave done. And therfore seing no praier vntounto God, nor yet any faithfull intercession vntounto them, will take place, let vsus no more pray for them, but suffre them (like blinde & obstinate Pharaos) to go forward with their practises, til at length the redde sea ouertake them, and make an ende of them. And as for the praiers,No good praier lost that hauehave ben made for them, although thei hauehave done thē no good, yet hauehave they not beene vnprofitable, vntounto those that hauehave made theim. For they cannot be vnprofitable, that is most certain. But as chris… saith, if the salutation and peace of the Apostles, can fynde no place in suche houses, as they are wished vntounto, than shal theyr peace retourne agayn vntounto them selues: Euen so shal it happē vntounto vsus. Seyng all our praiers that we hauehave made for them, hauehave done them no good: they shal returne agayn vntounto vsus, & thei for whom they wer made in the steade of praier, shal hauehave theyr fyl of curses, and in the stead of peace shal hauehave theyr fil of strife and debate, wherof God send them plenti▪ Amen. And forasmuch as thei are altogether bent to force, and will bryng all theyr procedings to passe perforce, as wel agaīst ye manifest truth of gods word, as agaynst the lauful and auncient priuileges of theyr natural countre, lyke vnnatural men, let no man fear them but be of good cōforte, and take good heartes, against such ragyng enemyes of God. For thei neuer prai nor cal vponupon God, nether can thei pray, bi reason of their euil consciences, and wiked proceadinges, presumynge & bea…yng them selues, bolde vponupon flesh, as though thei had no nede of God towardes theyr enterprises, Yea as though thei nede not, once to axe god, whether he be pleased with theyr deuyses or no. And therfore God muste nedes hauehave greate pleasure and delite in thē, & must nedes be highly pleased wyth such presumption, and cōtempt of his grace and goodnes, & he vseth to geue very great successe and victori, to such presumptuous bosters and braggers: And that shal be this, that thei al shall be destroied, and not one of them left a lyue. For this are we sure of, that theyr ragyng enterprises are not in theyr owne power to accomplish, but stand al in Gods hand. And thei shal not so easelye bring theyr purpose to passe. God wil be master, and beare ye stroke among theim, in spite of theyr beards (as he hath euer yet done) and that shal thei wel feele.
But let vsus vaynely imagine (as it were in a slombre) that there were no God to let them, but that theyr practises and proceadynges myght go forward euen bi force, as thei wold hauehave them. One of these two thynges are lyke to brede therof, either an vprour of certaine, or els a generall warre of the whole nacion against them, wher in a multitude both of theyr sorte and of ours also, mai fortune to com short home. For if they thinke in this case, that the Protestantes being diligently taught by our preachers the daunger of sedicion,Rebelliō & defence ar ii. things. for cōscience sake dare not styrre against thē in this case thei maye fortune to be deceiued: For the preachers hauehave done wel in so teachīg generally. But if our aduersaries wil admit one article of our doctrine, that maketh for theyr purpose, and refuse al the rest, peraduenture our men wil thinke also, that they may borow one poynt with them, seyng thei know, it is another thing to be a Rebel, than to be one of those, which stand in the defence of Goddes true religion, and of their natural countrey.
And if it so come to passe (as it is to be feared, that Gods wrathe is so kindled, that he wil punysh vsus wyth some notable scourge) let oure Potentates thanke the Papistes, and theyr own… Bishops, & Prelates, and those whose affections thei hauehave serued. Therfore they shal not say, these are the fruites of the gospel, or of the newe learning (as it pleaseth them to terme it) but they and al the world shal saye, these are the frutes of the stinkyng Papistry, and of the cankard Papists, and of theyr pestilent Prelates, and blin… Bishops, which to blemish the lyght of Gods word, and to stablysh theyr Antichristes kingdome, hauehave ben the workers and practisers of such procedinges, as al true and godlye hartes, that hauehave anye sparkle of vnderstanding do abhorre. They therfore shall be gilty before God, of al the bloudshed that shal brede therof, & not our doctrine. And I trust that God & our Lord Iesus Christ shal preserue & deliuer vsus, euen as he preserued and deliuered Loth in Sodōe. And if it happen any of vsus to dye among the multitude, we must thank our Lord god, and thynke, that we hauehave lyued long inough, and wel deserued otherwyse to dye. And yet shal we dye with better consciences, then they. For wher we hauehave wt the gospell taught peace & vnitie, they with theyr papistry hauehave bred such dissension and diuision, as those that are yet vnborne shal rewe, it they shoulde hauehave theyr purposes. And thys yet shall be a comfort vntounto vsus, that wher they and we shal go on pylgrimage together, we shal take our leaue honestly one of a nother, & depart a sonder, they with theyr lyes and bloud shedding to the pyt of hell and to the diuel (whom thei hauehave serued) and we to our Lord Iesus Christ whom we hauehave faithfullye serued, in professing & preaching his truth and peace. For this is easye to reken, that he that killeth me, or any of my companions in such an assembli, the same shall not muche spare the Papystes. Wherfore let vsus go together, they in al diuels names vntounto hel, and I with my brethren and felowes, in Gods name vntounto heauen. As for mine own person, I am wel assured, that no mā can hurt me, no more thā I desyre to hurt anye other. And they shall not worke so muche displeasure agaynst me one way, but I shall worke more against them another way. Thei shal not hauehave so hard heades in their naughty procedinges, but I shal hauehave as hard an head, in my lawful and godly enterprises, although not onli Emperour Charles but also the Turkish Emperour shuld take part with thē. They shall neuer feare me, nor make me to shrinke, but I wyl make them feare and shrinke. So farre hauehave they ouersene them selues already, that I and such thinges as I hauehave enterprised, and attempted, shal prosper, whā they with theyr procedinges shal decay, and be confounded. For my lyfe shal be theyr hang mā, and my death shal be theyr diuel. That and none other let them trust vntounto, for they shall be sure therof, for al theyr laughing & triumphing that thei make now.An euyl consciēce can not prai faithfully. And if the Papistes shuld begin any war, we should not nede greatlye to feare them, for they cānot procede in theyr enterprises in the name of God, nor can not with good consciences pray… vntounto God, for any successe. They can not pray frō theyr harts, so muche as thus: O God helpe vsus in our procedings. For theyr owne cōsciences do accuse thē selues, yt theyr procedinges are naught & vngodly. And for ye christen religion, yt hath bene preached by vsus, & set forth bi authoriti of our princes (which they now go about to suppresse) diuers of theyr own best Clerkes (as for the blinde asses, we do not regard) hauehave cōfessed & said, yt none of our doctrine is against any Article of the faith, nor against the scripture, but only against certen ordināces of their own church, & certē decres of ye pope. Therfor it is easi to perceiue, wt what cōscience they can attēpt any thing against our doctrine. And as for brynging Aliens into our naciō,Papistes do agaīst nature for their kingdōs sake. to hauehave ye gouernmēt among vsus, & to subuert ye aunciēt priuilegies of their own natural coūtrey, I dare say, theyr own cō sciēce telleth thē that it is against nature. Now if thei shuld begin ani battayl, it must nedes be for one of these two causes, whych being both yll in theyr own iudgement, how can they pray vntounto god, for any good successe? And therfore we may wel speake this benediction ouer theym: As ye seeke Gods honor, & as good as your quarel and procedings are: euen such successe & victory God send you, Amen. And agayne, God can stirre vp a Iudas Machabeus, to be the captain of his flock, which shal beate thē down, and teach thē to be authors of wars, whan they mai hauehave peace. And whā soeuer they shall lye in the fielde, for mainteining of these procedinges of theyrs. I and my brethren shal crye & cal vntounto God must earnestlye, wyth true and faithfull praier, that he wyll geue them a fearful, faint, cowardly & desparate hart, that here one, and ther one, thei may be pricked in their own cōsciences,The papistes procedings are both against god & theyr natural coū trey. that they shal be forced to say: Alas Alas, why am I here for the maintenaunce of an yl quarel, which is both against God, and his word, & also against our own countrey. And when they se a true faithful and natural hart, of Machabees host, cōming against thē, that they may take theyr feet, & rūne away frō him, as fast an chaffe flieth frō the winde. Thinke … not that God cā the same science stil that he speaketh of in a certain place, wher he saith: I wyl gyue the a faynt & a weake hart, that when thou shalt… go out to warre against thy enemies one way, thou shalt seke .vii. waies to rūne backe againe frō them, & the verye noyse of a leafe shall make thee afraid? Verely thus did he vntounto the obstinate hard harted Egipcians, in the red sea, which wer as stout and as secure as the autors of these procedings be (namely the papish bishops & Prelates, & theyr adherentes) and had as good a quarel also, as they hauehave any. And yet whan theyr hou… once came, that theyr own cōscience did pri… thē, they cried out & said: Alas, alas▪ let vsus run away, & geue ouer, our quarel is nought, god is against vsus. He yt knoeth not what it is to go to war wyth an yll conscience, let hym take part wyth the Papistes, whan they shall attempt any war, for the maintenāc… of the procedings aboue rehersed, & so shal he well learne what it is. And the prayer that I & al Christen & naturall harts with me, shal pray against thē, shal be no secret thing, but a common praier, nameli the .vii. Psalme of Dauid, which he praied whā he defended him selfe against Absolon, and at one slaughter (which was also the first) al Israel was beaten, & a thousand men slaine wt Absolon, of a veri smal armi. And yet Absolō & his army had ordinaūce, & puluer, and harnes inough.
Now if the matter shuld come to a battel, as it is veri like (which god ye… forfend, if it be his wil) I wil not that such as shuld stand in defense of gods true religion, & of theyr natural countrey, against the authors of the procedings aboue mēcioned,Resistyng of popery is no rebelliō, nor vnlaufull disobedyence. & against the murtherers, & bludthirsty Papistes, which hauehave ben ye chief workers of al these mischiefes, shuld be taken for rebels, nor I wyl not graunt, that such defēce of the cōmon sort, shulde be taken for an vnlauful disobedience, but rather for a necessari and a lauful act. And that can I proue by the Law, and the Lawyers cannot deny it. For in such case, whan such murtherers and bloudhoundes wil attempt and murther, for such vnlauful causes as these, without dout it can in no wyse be ryghtly named any vprour, for any mā to set and defend himself against thē. And every ryght Christian knoweth …el inoughe, what to do in such case, & how to yeld vntounto god, yt that is dew to God▪ And also to Cesar,Note this Mat. xxii. what is …ewe to Cesar: But not to yelde to tirannous bloudsuppers, that that is not due vntounto them. Wherfor to make the matter more plain, that the bloud suppers may not …ost nor bragge, as though they should warre against rebels, and so might pretende bothe before God & the worlde, that they had an honest and a lauful cause to warre▪ I wil teach and declare, that there is a great differēce betwene vnlawful vprours or rebellion, and necessarye defence for lawfull considerations. For in case thei should set, and defende thē selues, against the bloudsuppers, and practisers of such vnlauful procedīgs,Kepyng out or resistyng of the Spaniards is no rebellion. I woulde not that theyr conscience… shoulde be burthened, & pricked with the daunger and perel of vprour or rebellion, as thoughe theyr defence in such case, were sedicious or rebellious. For it wer a great preiudice, & to sore so to name them, in such case. Ther is a nother and a better name for them, which ye Lawyers know wel inough.
We must not suffre eueryevery thing to be called vprour and rebelliō, which ye bloudy bochers, Antichristes sworne champions, the practisers of all mischeife, do so falsely name. For that is one of theyr practises also,Note, note vnderunder the pretence and colour of vprour, and rebellion, to stoppe and to bind al mens mouthes and handes, that no man…e should reproue theyr doinges by spekyng, nor yet with theyr handes defend them selues against their wicked procedynges. And thei in the mea…e season, to hauehave both theyr mouthes & hands at libertie, to work almis…hief. And so to fear and trappe al other, vnderunder pretēce and colour of vprour and rebellion, and to comfort them selues, and pretend to the world, theyr procedinges to be lawful. But thei shal not so blear mens eyes. We shal so define and declare the matter, that that subtiltie shal not serue them. It is not alwaies vproure, nor rebellion,Marke wel. to do agaynst eueryevery lawe, for th… eueryevery transgression against any lawe shoulde be rebellion.What a rebel is. But that man maye be called a rebel, or a mayntainer of vprour which wil suffre no maiestrate to rule nor no law to take place, but wil ryse against the maiestrate, to depriue him to the intent to be ruler & Maiestrate himself, and to make what lawes him lusteth, as the head Capitain of the Anabaptistes did at Monster in Westphalia.To wythstande the b. of rome is no rebelion, but a keping of our othe & most boū den duty. Such one may wel be called a maītainer of vprour, and a rebel. For, Aliud est inuasor, aliud defensor. For a rebel and a defendor are two things. So that it can be no vprour nor rebellion, for a man to defend himself against the wiked practises, and vnlauful proceadyngs of bloudsuppers Papistes. But thei them selues, that wil begyn warres to maītain by force theyr wicked procedings against God and against their natural coūtrei, thei may well be called rebels and traytors to God and theyr countrei:The Papistes are traitours bothe to God, the Realme, & to nature. Yea ther are no greater traitors nor rebels thā the Papistes & the bloudthyrsty bishops and prelates and suche as take part wt them. For they lyke very abhominable murtherers and traytors, of very mischife and spite, do work both against God and also against nature. And that may easely be proued. For fyrst concerning the doctrine and religion which they would sub…t, they them selues know wel inough, that it is the very true religion of God. For at the great coūcel of the Empyre that was holden at Augspurge, Cardinal Nicolas,The Bishop of Augspurge. ye bishop of Augspurge, sayd: that he could wel be content that the same religion that was at Wittēberg, shold be receiued generally, sauying that he could not abyde that it should begyn and spring, in such a corner of no reputation, as Wittemberge is. How lyke ye this gere? Are not these Ioly wordes to come out of a byshops mouth?Campegius. And in like maner Cardinal Campegius, the Popes Legate, did cōfesse at the same councell, that he coulde consent that that religion should be suffered in Germany, but that it would be a great ensample for other nations to requyre the same also, and for yt cause it were in no wyse to be graūted. And a nother great bishop of theyrs sayde these wordes, cōcernyng theyr disputers & learned men:The Papists own confessiō ▪ Our learned men do defend vsus pretely, for they confesse them selues, that our fayth whiche we hauehave folowed these many yeres, hath no ground vponupon the scripture, but only vponupon the Decrees and determinations of the coūsels. Al this to be true diuers noble men, yt heard it, can testifie. And besydes, one Wynchestre a bishop in England,Wynche…ster a wethercocke & a Iacke of both sides. otherwyse a very obstinate peruers and crafty Papist, hath writtē a boke against ye supremacye of ye Pope, wherin also he writeth against pardōs and vowes, although he be a maintainer of the fylthy & abhominable single lyfe of priesses himselfe. And in certayn sermons that he hath made before the king of Englād hath inueighed against Monkes and Friers, and confessed also that ther ar diuers abuses in the Masse, worthi to be reformed.Read winchesters oracion of true obedience. And yet he himselfe is a great massemonger, and would fayne maītain asmuch of it as he could. And th… like hauehave other bishops of Englād also done, which are notwithstanding no enemies to ye pope. For althoughe they woulde hauehave him to be theyr supreme heade, yet hauehave thei proued in theyr boltes, that he cannot chalenge any supremacy, by the scriptures and worde of God. So that the verye papistes them selues knowe that our religion and doctrine is no false doctrin but grounded vponupon the scripturs and the word of God. And yet of very malice and spite, thei would condemne & rote out our religiō by very force and violence, contrary to al right & reasō. And wher it was requyred in the general Parliament or councel, that no …et should passe against our doctrin & religion, before it were heard in ope… disputacion, what the learned men of our syde could say, for the defence and maintenaunce therof: that coulde not nor myght not be graunted, that christes saiyng myght be verified, he that doth euil, hateth ye lighte,Poperye mai not abyde the light. Truth loueth the light. and refuseth the light, that his doyngs should not be reproued and disclosed. But he that doth the truth, cōmeth to ye light, that his works may be openly knowne because thei are done in God. Ther is neuer an Article of our doctrine & religion, but we are able & redye to proue it by the manifest worde of God. Thus muche concernyng our religion. And as concerning the other poynt yt they wold so fayn bring to passe, that straū gers and Alianes should hauehave the gouernement of our nation, if thei wold speak according to their owne hearts & consciences, I would desire none other iudges but euē thē selues. Wherfore it is they that are the authours of vprour, and verye traitours, rebelles, whych wyll attempte warres for the maintenaūce of their tiranny and wicked practises. And to shewe my selfe a true Pastor and prophet, and to bear a true hart vntounto my natiue countrey▪ I wyl giuegive my deare countrey mē a faifhful warning and instructiō how to behaue them selues,Do after this counsaile. that they rūne not into any peryl & daūger of soule, in obeing the procedings of the bloudy Papistes, against God and theyr natural coūtrey. The daunger wherof doutles is very great. And this wil I do, to the intent that no man hereafter may excuse him selfe and say: Non putassē, I wold neuer hauehave thought that the daunger had bene so greate. Now he that wyl folow my councel, let him take it, and he that wil not, let him leaue it, but no man shal say, but that he was warned.
And my true and faithful aduertisment is this, that if the Emperour or any other prince shoulde go about, to maintain the procedinges aboue specified by force of armes, and shoulde commaund al men to prepare thē selues, and to be in a redines to aid him▪ that ye my deare coūtrey men, do in no wise harken to any such cōmaundement, nor in any wyse obeye hym. For in such case no man ought to obei nether King nor Keiser, but shuld offend and disobey God, and should cast both his body and soule into perpetual peril and daunger, if he should obei. For the Emperour or ani other prince (what so euer he were) in so doing, shuld do manifestly against god,This is not mans aduise, but Gods cō mādemēt. and against all right. And that no mā should thinke, that this coūcel spryngeth of mine owne braine & fansye, I wil shew the such strong reasons and arguments, that thou shalt fele at thy fingers endes, that it is not onlye my councel, but Gods owne earnest and most straight cōmaundement, whose heauye displeasure al men oughte to feare and to tremble therat, as they must do at lenght.
The fyrst cause why no mā ought to obey Emperour nor kyng in such case (specially in the cause of religion) …s thys.The fyrste cause why no manne oughte to obeye to ye mayntenaunce of popery. Euerye particular man hath promised and vowed in his baptisme …euen as wel as the Kayser hym self) to kepe and maintaine the Gospell of Christ, & not to persecute it or to work any thyng ther against. Wherfore to the cōmaundement of the Emperour or of thy prynce (whatsoeuer he be) yu maist make this answer:Aunswer to the magistrate. Most noble Emperour or prince, if you did keepe your othe or vowe whiche you made in your Baptisme, you should be my most dere and liege Lord, and I wold obey you with al my hert▪ But if you wyl not kepe your promes and christian couenaunt made with Christ in your Baptisme, but persecute ye same obey who wyll, I will not blaspheme my Lord, nor be one of them that shal help to persecute his word, & so runne and cast my selfe headlonges into the pitt of hel with you, for your pleasure.
He that mainteyneth poperye, fyghteth against god & …l his creatures.This is the fyrst cause, which comprehēdeth in it many other great and weightie causes. For whosoeuer fighteth or draweth his sword against the Gospel: the same doth fighte & drawe his sword against God himself, against Iesus Christ, our onli sauior against the holy gost, against the precious bloude of Christ, agaynst his death, against Gods word, against al the Articles of the Christian fayth, against ye true ministraciō of al the Sacramēts against al the Doctrine and Religion which is geuē, confyrmed and approued through ye gospel. And to be short against al Angels and saintes, against heauen and earth, and against al creatures. For he yt striueth against God, must nedes also striue against all that belōgeth vntounto God or holdeth of him And against al these shal thy obediēce minister ayde and helpe, and so shalte thou begiltie before God of all these thinges befor rehearsed. And therfore what reward thou shalt hauehave therfore of God at length, thou mayest easely gather thi selfe. And this maketh also the matter ye more greuous, forasmuch as yu shalt do al these thynges wittingly, & against thyne own conciēce▪ And in this case thou shalte do worse, than al Turkes & Tartarians, Iewes and Panimes. For where thei doo obaye theyr heades in persecuting the Gospel, they do it of ignoraunce and know not what they do, so doest no… thou. Wherfore thou must needes be much worse, & suffer ten tymes more greuous damnation, them ani Turke or Paname.
Now although it be an heuy and a miserable thyng to consider that the matter is come to this poynt among Christen men, that they shoulde hauehave any nede of ani such aduertisment as this. And though thei thē selfes knew not, what a terrible & heuy thing it is to resist agaīst gods word: or to shew any obediēce or token of obediēce, in such things as are cōtrary, repugnāt & iniurious to the same (for it is a manifest token yt euen in Christēdom among Christiās, ther ar worser Turkes thā are either in Turky or in hel) Yet such as be true Christiās in dede (althoughe there be fewe of them) do know wel inough thē selues what to do in such case,The great Turk him selfe is not so mad as to rage & raue againste hys own Mahomet & Al…orā as our diuels ye Papists do agaīst ye gospel yt they were professed vntounto, in their baptisme: wherfor ye Turkes mai be angels in respecte of ye Papistes, & the papistes very Diuels in respecte of the turks. & hauehave no nede of any such admonicion as this: But the papistes, which bear the name & shine of Christiās (& yet are ten tymes worse than Turkes) must be admonished & warned. If it will do thē any good, it is wel, if not, yet shal they hauehave ye lesse to excuse them selues with, and must looke for the more greuous damnacion. Now to the second cause.
The second cause why men ought not to obey in such case, is this: Though our doctrine were not right (as it is most right and true) yet ought this to feare men frō shewing them selues obedient in such case, for as muche as by such obedience, they should make them selues giltye & partakers before God of all the abhomination that is al ready cōmitted, or shal hereafter be co…mitted in the whole Papistri. This cause cōprehendeth infinite abhomynacions, al wickednes, sin, & daūger ye a man in maner can reken. In sūma, in this cause is hel it selfe with all the sins that are therin, wherof thou shuldest make thy self partaker if yu shouldest obei ether Keiser or King in such case. And to the intent that yu mayest more plainly see what they be, I wyl here rehearse some of thē. For the papistes pretende suche an holinesse as though they were angels, & they wil… not heare of any of these abhominacions, & so they neuer repent for thē, nor neuer amend thē.The Papistes syt vp, but thei amēd not. Horedōe. First yu shalt make thi self partaker of al their filthi liuīg▪ yt they hauehave led, & yet leade. For they neuer purpose to amēd ani part therof. And al yt shouldest thou help to defend & maintain by thy obediēce. And by that meanes should light vponupon thi neck al the whordom & filthines, that is vsed in theyr Colleges & cathedrall churches.A sorte of holy gentlemen. And thy cōsciēce shuld hauehave thys to reioyce & to triumphe of, that thi obedience hath holpē to maintain the most abhominable whormōgers & villanes vpō earth, and to defend the most abhominable liuing that can be thought. Yea, and if the Emperour or any other prince should attempt any war for the matter, if thou shouldest take part with him, thou shuldest vē ter thy lyfe and bloud for such abhominable wretches. Oh thys were a goodly thing for thi conscience to triumphe of.Buggeri. Furthermore thou muste make thy selfe also partaker of the chastitie of the Pope, and of his Cardinals, which is a wonderful chastity aboue al other Ecclesiastical chastity, which they cal in the Italian tounge Puseronen, that is such chastitie as ye Sodomites and Gomorrhianes dyd vse. For so suffereth god his arch enemies the Pope & his Cardinals to be blinded aboue other, that thei can not be cōtent only to offend with woman kinde, but according to theyr well deserued reward, they defyle thē selues and theyr own bodies one wyth another most beastli, & ar so depely drowned in yt horrible vice, & so blynded in their hardened harts, yt they coūt that abhominacion for no synne at al, but make a iesting & a laughing matter of it, as though ther were no more peril nor danger therin, thā in a game at tables or cardes. Go thi wai now & defend & maintain wt thi obedience these beasts past al shame & repētāce, which make but a iest & a christmas game of such an horrible vice▪ And it is no lye that I wryte here in thys matter, for such as hauehave bene at Rome do know wel inough that more abhomination is there vsed than any man cā reherse or beleue. Whan the general counsell called consilium Lateranēse was holden at Rome, in the tyme of Leo the .x. among other decrees that were there concluded vponupon & determined to hauehave ben setfurth,Two decrees of ye pope. Marke them. The Spanyardes & papystes vse three smal sins, Simonia, Buggeria … nō crede re in Deū. The Cardinalles were stinted, but ye Pope myghte kepe sans …omber. this was one also which shuld hauehave bene setfurth as a decree of yt coūcel, yt men shuld beleue the soule of mā to be immortal. Wherby eueryevery man may iudge, that they made than at Rome but a very sporte and mocke of euerlastynge lyfe. For it is an euident testimony, that their commō belefe was there, that there was no euerlastyng life. And therfore they would teach them the contrary with a Bull, and decree of theyr councell. And yet besides that, ther was set another prety decree also in the same bull, whiche was this: That from thence furth the Cardinals should not kepe so manye male stewes as thei vsed to doe. But pope Leo commaunded that to be striken out, least al the world shoulde suspect (as they might wel do) and hauehave knowledge howe opēly and without al shame the Pope and his cardinals did maintain Sodom, euen at Rome. And ther is no Pope, cardinal, bishop doctor, preist, nor religious man, that …uer went about to punish or reforme this abhomination, but colour it, yea laugh & iest it out: and moreouer doo b…witch, prouoke and set on, kynges, and princes, to defend and mayntain them, to practise theyr fylthye and deuilish liuyng stil, freely without repē taūce or reformatiō. And to the maintenaunce of al this, shal thy obedience serue and helpe, and so shalt thou procure al these horrible sinnes vponupon thy necke, whosoeuer thou art that shalte obey ether Emperour, king or prince in these proceadinges, and be an occasion that the terrible vse of such, more than beastly vices, shal come into thy country, for the punishment whereof than, we must dayly loke and wayte, that the earth shal sinke vnderunder vsus, and swallowe vsus vp.The vertue of the spaniards Let them once bryng in ye pope agayn (as doutles the Spaneyardes wil labour to the vttermost to do) and thā shalt thou se how these horrible blasphemous vices shall raigne in thy natural countrei: And shal not then thy obedience be well spent▪ to helpe to bryng such geare into thy countrey▪ The wealth of the popyshe Churche rose bi lyeng and stealyng. Pardōs. Purgatory,And yet moreouer yu shalt… also make thy selfe partaker of al the thefte and robberye of the whole papacy. The infinit treasure which they hauehave falsely and deceiuably gotte… wt theyr pardons, is it not very abhominable theft and robbry throughout al christendom? That innumerable money that thei hauehave procured & gotten, through theyr stinkyng fained purgatory, is it not very theft & robbry thorowout the whole world? The infinit treasure yt they hauehave gotten wt Masses,Masses. mounthmyndes, trentals, & such other massmarchādyse, is it not abhominable theft and robbri throughout the whole worlde? The wonderful riches that they hauehave gotten with buls for whitemeate, with pilgrimages, Images, and an infinit swarme of such gear, is it not very abhominable theft & robbri throughout the whol world? How hauehave y• pope▪ cardinals, bishop… colleges▪ &c. come by their lādes, lordships and manors, that they are equal to the mightiest Emperours and princes? Is it not altogether vnmesurable abhominable theft and robbri?Papistes ar theues & robbers What are they nowe elce▪ than the greatest robbers and theues vponupon earth? And yet there is no repentaunce nor amēdment in them: No, ther is not so much good bloud in theyr bodies, as to doe but some part of theyr office, wherby they might seme to enioy suche reuenewes vnderunder some shine or pretēce of honesty. But thei do rather the cōtrary, and condemne, blaspheme and persecute the name, worde, and working of God. Now come thy way, such manifest theues and robbers shalte thou defend and maintain with thy obedience, that thei maye not onelyonly continew and go forward in theyr wickednes without repentaunce or reformacion, but also that they be strēgthened and encouraged to continew therein. Se now, what daūger thou shalt cast thy self into by such obediēce. For of al this robbry and theft shalte thou be giltie of, and a partaker before God, if thou doest obeye these proceadinges, whiche tende to the settyng vp and restoring again (as all men may e…selye perceiue) of the popes authoritie and iurisdictiō.To maintain poperye, is to be gilti of al innocēt blod shed And so besides al this also, thou shalte charge thy self with al the innocent bloud that the pope hath hetherto or shal hearafter shedde throughe his practises, and also with all the sorow & heauines▪ yt he hath wrought or shal hearafter worke in this nation to mayntain his kingdom. Howe many thousandes hauehave bene murthered by his tiranny, and are lyke hearafter to be murthered, if he may o…tain his vsurped iurisdiction, which doubtles the godles Spanieyardes, wil labour to restore out of hand? Alas how wil… thou be able to bear vponupon thi necke so muche innocent bloude (wherof thou shalt make thy selfe partaker by thi obedyence) seyng it is an intollerable thing, to be gyltie of one mans bloud I wil not here rehearse other abhominations of the papistes, what poyson, treason, malice and spite they vse and practise daily. I thyncke no tong vpō earth can rehearse al the abhominacions of the papistry, but by these pointes nowe rehearsed and by the dayly ensamples that thei practise, we maye easly gather the rest.The pope is Antichrist. And if it wer not that the Pope must nedes be the very Antichrist & his adherentes Antichristes impes, whiche in al thinges must euermore be contrarye to Christ, men might meruel and wondre howe thei could so continually vse so muche abhomination. But seyng it is so,The life, & doctrin of Christe & ye pope are contrari ye one to the other. & can no notherwyse be, it must nedes consequently folowe, that lyke as Christ did lead and teach a most pure, sincere excellent, chast, sobre, holy, and godly lyfe: Euen so contrary wise must this Antichrist the pope and his adherēts, leade, teach & maintain, a most shameful, blasphemous, filthi, curssed, beastli abhominable, hellish life: how could he else in al pointes declare himself to be the enemy of Christ and the verye ryght Antichrist? And yet al theyr abhominaciōs might the better be born if they did not so earnestli defend thē, & wold make al the world beleue (perforce) yt they did nothing but wel and right in al theyr doinges. And yet not withstanding al this, if al these abhominaciōs that I hauehave rehersed, were tolerable & to be wyncked at (as they in no wise be) yet to cōdemne ye pure and sincere doctrine & word of God, & to exalt & set thē selues aboue god (as they go about to do) no right Christē hart ought to suffer it, muche lesse to minister any maner of aid or assistāce by hys obediēce, or otherwise therunto. Yea, eueri true Christian ought rather to spend his bloud, life, goodes, & al together in the cōfession & defēce of the true honor & religion of God, thā for the keping of them, to indaunger both bodi & soule with eternal destruction, thorow folowing & obeing their doctrine: The infinite abhominaciōs & errours wherof (which they defend & maintaine as right, true and lauful, neuer intending to refourme or alter one iote thereof) I am not able to reherse▪ All the daunger whereof shalt thou procure vponupon thy necke (whoso euer thou art) that shalt obey or helpe to assist the procedynges of the Emperour, and such princes and bishops as are confederate with him, to maintaine and bring in the B. of Rome.
And to reherse some of their intolerable errours, how wilt thou (whosoeuer thou art) beare in thy conscience, the false & shameful deceite of the B. of Romes pardōs, wherwith so mani thousand soules hauehave bene so miserably seduced and deceiued, and shamefully begyled of theyr mony, & so lyke to be againe, if they may obtain theyr purpose? And although they them selues do knowe that it is nothyng but very knauerye that they hauehave wroughte wyth theyr pardons,Papistes past repē …taunce. yet shewe they no repentaunce nor token of reformacion therof. They hauehave taughte the people to put theyr trust and affiaunce in pardons, euen at ye veri hour of deathe, which is so hainous an terrible a thyng, that if they were otherwyse as innocent & holy, as S, Iohn ye Baptist, yet were thei most worthy to be damned in the veri pit of hel, for this one point onelyonly, and had wel deserued, that neither the earth shoulde bear them, nor the Sunne shine vponupon them: much lesse that any man should helpe to assist and strengthen them or venter his bloud for them.
For consider a litle, the wiked knauery and abhomination of theyr pardons.The vertu of ye popes pardons. Who so euer did put his whole trust and affians in theyr pardōs, and so died in the same hope and trust, the same did vtterly renoūce, forsake, and forget Christ, and could hauehave no hope nor trust at al in him. For whosoeuer setteth his truste in anye other thyng (whatsoeuer it be) sauing in Christ only, the same can hauehave no truste at al in Christ. Nowe do we and al mē know this, that the papistes (whō thou must helpe to strengthen by thy obediēce) hauehave taught most earnestly, that men should build theyr saluation vpō pardons, …l…e woulde not men hauehave estemed them so much, nor bought them so fast as thei dyd. And like very messengers of Sathan, yea, lyke very incarnat deuils, they made no word no… mentiō in the mean tyme▪ of any faith or hope in Christ. For he that knoweth, that his faith and hope of saluatiō ought to rest in Christe, the same cannot suffre nor abide, no faith nor hope to rest in any oher thīg besides christ. Now if thei were not more then mad, & vtterly robbed of theyr wittes, they would be ashamed, once to desire such shameles doings to be maintained or difended. But we may perceiue, that it is …o true that a certain bishop sayd vntounto master Philip. Melancthon at ye … holdē at Augspurg▪ whose wordes were these. Alas Master Philip,Popyshe Prests neuer good. what wold ye refourme in vsus pristes? for we were yet neuer good. As who should say, it wer an heard thing now to make theim good. And it was one of theyr owne pillers that spake these wordes, whiche had experience of th… rest by him selfe. Well to let pardons passe, and to come to purgatory,The pick… purse purgatory. that hath piked many a pursse, howe wylt thou (whatsoeuer thou art, that shalte obey or assist the Emperour and hys confederates, in these procedinges, yt are before mēcioned) be able to beare in thy cōscience, all the falsehead that they hauehave vsed wyth thys purgatory▪ wherof thou must be partaker? How traiterousli hauehave thei bleared & bewitched al the world, and brought al the world in maner into a foles paradise? And with such lies & theft, hauehave gottē al their goodes & possessiōs in maner. By the meanes wherof they hauehave vtterly excluded and banished the only true cōfort and trust in Christ, & hauehave taught the people in steade of Christ▪ to gape vponupon theyr owne woorkes, & to trust to be saued by the same. And who so euer so doth, ye same must needes exclude Christ; and vtterly forget him. And so if God had not wonderfully hetherto preserued his, all must… hauehave died in a false belefe, as ye Iewes and Turkes, & so hauehave perished in the pit of hel, thorow the default of suche teachers. Oh, what soule murtherers are they? No hart of mā shalbe able to cōprend (as long as the world endureth) what murther they hauehave cōmitted, against the soules of men wt their fained Purgatorye. Much lesse shall they be able to comprehend, what iniury and blasphemye they hauehave done therby, against the true faith & confydence that is dewe vntounto Christe. And yet ther is no repentaunce nor amendement in thē, but they rather labor & studi, how thei mai be defēded & mainteined, in these naughty procedinges.
And yet more, who so euer shall obey either Emperour, King or prince in this case, shall also make hym selfe gilty and partaker of al ye abhominacion & blasphemy,The vertue of the holi mas, cursed myght it be. that is conteined in the wicked & detestable Masse and of the infinite idolatry & blasphemi, that is therin cōmitted, against ye true vse of the holy sacrament of Christes body and bloud. As first of the fained sacrifice, pretēding to offer vp daily vntounto God, his own dere sōn, as though thei wer better & holier then the sonne of God. And so they are not contēt, ye holy sacrament to be an ordinaūce of God, which mē shuld receiue in faith, but they make a sacrifice & an oblaciō of it, wher with they wil reconsile thē selues and other vntounto God, and wyl make also a salue of it, for eueryevery sore. Yea, for eueryevery saint, ther is a peculiar Masse, & for eueryevery disease & aduēture what so euer it be, a peculiar Masse. in al their bokes & doctrine, a mā shall not finde one word of faith, but all is full of the Masse, the Masse, what a sacrifice, & what an holy thing yt masse is, wher as ther is no ceremoni, wher in faith is so much required and exercised, as in the true institucion & celebraciō of the Sacramēt, being rightli administred, forasmuch as Christ him selfe did institute it, for a remēbraunce & memorial of himselfe, that al men in the celebration therof, shuld preach of him, remēber him, and beleue in him. But in stede of that, they preach & set furth their oblacion & sacrifice, & their own inuencion, & most abhominably bye & sel therwyth. Here I ouerpasse the idolatry that is cōmitted at the eleuacion of their false Masse god,Stoupe a …ore. and in the adoration therof: O Lorde who is able to rehearse al the blasphemies that are cōmitted only in the Masse? If they had brought vp no nother errour nor abuse of the holy sacrament▪ but only to make a gaping and a gasyng stocke of it, as they vse to doo at theyr high feastful dayes, & speciallye vponupon their church holy daies, carieng it about in theyr processiōs, & making (as it wer) a Christmas game with it, only that the priestes (at such tymes) may fyl theyr bellies, & get monye of the simple people for their labor. This abuse & prophanacion of the Sacrament, were more thē horrible inough. But yet thys is nothing to this most greuous abuse, that they wil make of the cōmon Sacramēt,Greased and anoī ted. a priuate work & a peculiar oblacion, to be made onli of certein appointed parsons. This is such an high blasphemi, that it abhorreth me to remember it, yea, it might wel kyl a man to remēber it, if he did throughly wey and consider it.Theyr faces to the wall lyke an Horse in ye maū ger.
And yet this augmenteth the blasphemy somewhat the more also, that they conceale & kepe secret the words & faith of the sacrament, murmuring then secretly to them selues, contrary to the manyfest doctrine of Saynte Paule, sayng as oft as ye shal do this, ye shall preache and shewe fourthe (and not kepe close, and murmure secretli) the death of the Lord. S. Paule sayth: Ye shal preach & shew furth▪ &c. And thei do clean contrary. But the abuses of the papistry ar so many, that no toung can reproue or paint thē out sufficiētly.EueryEvery abhominacion is set foorth by one deuill at least, but ye mas was made and set forth by ye ful cōsent of all the hole chapter house of diuels. Other abhominatiōs hauehave eueryevery one a peculiar and a particuler deuyl workyng in them, but I take ye Masse to be a worke of al the deuyls in hel together, wherūto they al hauehave cast and layd al theyr heades, al theyr handes, all theyr diuises, yea all theyr knauery and wikednes together, and so finished this detestable abhominacion. And this mai appear by the false deceiuable spirites, whiche (vnderunder the colour of dead mēs soules) appear in diuers places, crieng for Soulmasses, wher as we neuer herd of any of thē, that euer cried or called for Christ, nor for any help of him, but al for masses. Which is a very strong profe and euident token, that the deuyl liueth in no one thyng so effectuously,The diuel lyueth in nothīg so effectousli as in the mas, and mas priestes. as he doth in the Masse & in the masse marchāts which through theyr abhominable filthy lyfe, couetousnes, blasphemies & other abhominations▪ do most shamfully maintaine and entertaine hym. And doubtles it is the highest and last uengeaunce and wrath of God vponupon earth, that shal appeare before the latter daye. For there can be no greater. These are ye vertues, which thou shalt helpe to maintaine, by thy obedience to theyr procedyngs. Nowe if any mā peraduenture bee offended with me, for vsyng so sharpe & taunting words agaynst them, I woulde desyre theim to take this for a sufficient answer vntounto thē:Thoughe they be knaues bi theyr order, yet they ar gē telmen bi their misorder and idlenes▪ That my sharpenes is nothing in respect of their wickednes and knauery. For what tauntyng is it to call the deuil a murtherer, a thefe, a betraier, a blasphemer, a lyar? It is euen as much to him, as if one did puff at him with the breath of his mouthe. And what are the maintainers of papistry other thā very incarnate diuils, which hauehave no sparkle of repentaunce in thē but hauehave …ate hardened hartes, …ent to defend & maintaine these abhominacions▪ which thei them selues know to be naught, & yet they would hauehave thine & mine obedience, to helpe to maintaine them▪ Let any mā taunt a cankard Papist neuer so much, it is euē as much vntounto him, as if a Goose did hisse at him▪ …or his obstinate peruersenes is growen so far, yt nothyng is able to cal him backe. The greatest taunt that thou canst taunt him with, is to cal him a Papist. For with that name, thou cōprehendest al together. As for al other tauntes besydes, they are no more, than if a man wold beate a Beare with a straw, or strike vponupon an hard stone wyth a Fether. And agayne, they them selues hauehave geuen the occasion inoughe, to taunt them sharply, if I could. For some of them hauehave said, that thei wold rather suffer them selues to be torne in peeces, thā they wold consent, that any part of ye Masse shuld be altered or abolyshed.Prestes were neuer good. And againe a nother of thē said: Priestes were neuer good▪ & that we shuld suffer thē vnreformed. And both these that thus said, wer byshops, & speciall pillers of theyrs. And as their cōnsciences and wordes are: euē such (doutles) are the consciences & words of the rest. Seyng therfore they beare wytnesses of them selues, that thei be such desperate wretches, & wil so continue, & wyl rather be torne, than cease from theyr blasphemies, I should do them great wrong, both before God, & the world, if I shuld name thē otherwise, than they name thē selues. Therfor if I shuld cal them most holy, most honorable,Yea, but they louelove & looke to be so mocked. reuerende or worshipful Fathers, no man shuld knowe whom I ment: Nor they thē selues shoulde not know, of whō I dyd speake, because they know no such names. Therfore my taunting is no tauntyng at all, no more thā whē I cal a Peare, a Peare, or an Apple, an Apple. And to make an ende of these horryble masse marter…,Honorīg of saintes how wil any mā be able to beare vponupon hys necke, the detestable idolatry, of honoring and worshippyng of saintes, not content to prayse God in them, but they make very Goddes of them. And the most noble virgin Mary, the mother of Christ, they set euen in Christes place, imagining Christ to be a seuere iudge, and makynge the siple & weake consciences beleue, Christ to be a tyraūt, so that thei hauehave vtterli pluckt al truste & affiaunce frō Christ. Can any man denye thys to be true? hauehave we not al proued & tried it to be true? And if any man would denye it, are not the bokes of the lowsi frier obseruants, & of the blacke Fryers also to be sene▪ which ar stuffed full of such Idolatry? As the bokes of our Ladies Psalters, of Stellaries, Rosaries, Coronaries; and such lyke deuilish trash. And here I wyl rehearse a storye, that happened at Augspurg, that al menne may se,Papists agree not in doctrine. vponupon what ground thei build their idolatri and supersticion. In the discourse of the Article of inuocation of saintes, …. Eckius alledged a text out of the xlviii. chapi. of Gen. Where the Lorde speakyng of Iacob, Ephraim and Manasses, saith thus: And my name shalbe inuocated ouer these children. And after many wordes of Master Philip Melancthō, master Iohn Brentius happened to say, that there was not one worde in al the scripture to be found, of the inuocation of saintes, Than stepte Cochleus furth (lyke a profoūd clarke) to helpe the matter and sayde▪ that there was nothyng in the olde testament, to proue the inuocation of saintes, because ther wer no saynctes in heauen, whan the olde testamēt was written: but thei wer al at that tyme in Limbo Patrum. With ye Iohānes Friderich Duke Elector of Sa…on, whiche hearde al theyr reasoning, sayde thus vntounto Eckius: There hath Cochleus answered your text, yt you aledged out of the olde testament so sure ar these noble doctors of their doctrin, and so wel do they agree tother, that one of them saith ther is no thing in the old testamēt to proue the inuocatiō of saintes wt. And a nother alegeth autoritie out of ye old testamēt to proue it: As though we knewe not, yt god wrought al the miracles, which wer done in the Old testament for Abrahās, Isaackes & Iacobs sake (as he him selfe, oft times doth testify) & not for any saintes sake in the new Testamēt. And from whence do they fetch theyr profes to proue theyr doctryne trow ye? out of noble authors I warrant you, euen out of olde barbrous Dōses. I red once in a boke of theirs, which was a boke of Moralizacions, how the Virgin Marye ought to be worshipped with offerings & gyftes. And why? Mary, for this cause: Ther was once a thefe which was one that robbed by the high way,A great miracle of our ladi of Cādelmas which neuer did good al his life long, sauyng that he hapned once by chaūce to come into a Churche vponupon Candlemas day▪ wher, seyng the people offeryng mony & candels vponupon the altare, he offered ther also as other dyd. After that the same thefe was taken for robbry, and hanged. Whan he was dead, the diuils wold hauehave had his soule to hel. But ther was a good angel, yt wythstode thē, saying vntounto the diuels, whi wold ye take this man awai, seing ye hauehave nothing to do wyth him, nor no power ouer him? The diuils made answer agayne and saide: He hath done much euyl and mischiefe, & neuer dyd good in al his life.Dyuels stād befor gods iudgemente seat amōg ye Angels, and thā ye i. Psalme is not tru neque pecatores in concilio in storum. Godyles soles hauehave handes. So thei went together before the iudgemēt seate of god, and ther the diuels accused the theefe, that he had neuer don any good. Thē the good angel brought forth ye crosse peny, together with the candle, which he had offered vponupon the altar. VponUpon ye the iugge gaue sentence, that the these should defend him selfe against the diuels. And ye angel gaue him this coū sel, that he should take the peny in the left hand, in the stede of a bu…le…, & the candle in the right hand, in the steade of a sword, & so to fight with the Dyuels, and to strike nothing but crosse s…okes at them. And so he did, and bi that meanes chased away the diuels. After that, the soule came to the body agayne, and was taken from the gallowes, and the man lyued afterward very honestly. Hec ille.
Who wold euer hauehave beleued, that they had had, such strong reasons to proue theyr doctrine with, if we had not theyr bokes for wytnesses? Yea, the Monkes, friers and priestes hauehave stuffed theyr bokes ful of such begerly fables, to blear and blind al christē dome with. And ther was neuer yet any Pope, Byshop, nor doctor that euer found faut with suche geare. But now that men preach Christ to be the only sauior of al mankinde, they rage and raue, as though thei wer besides them selues. Whan mē preached that A candle or a peney offered vntounto our Lady, was of such force that it coulde deliuer an vnrepentaunt wretche and murtherer, both Christ and fayth sett a part, and could chace awaye the deuyl: Whan mē thus preached (I say) Blasphemynge, and (as it were) treadynge vnderunder theyr feete the passion & merites of Christ, thā were al sermōs good and catholyke,Pestilent catholick. and than wer no heritickes in the world. &c. Dooth not this wel verifye the Bishops saiyng▪ That priestes were neuer yet good?
Wel let vsus yet rehearse somewhat more of their stuffe: How wil any mā be able to bear vponupon his conscience, y• intollerable violence and force, which thei hauehave wrought vntounto al the world, with theyr eare confession, wherwith thei hauehave brought infinit soules to desperation,Auricule… confessiō. and hauehave robbed and spoyled many sorowful heartes, of al christen comfort? For lyke very traytors, and abhominable wretches, they made no maner of menciō, nor spake neuer a word, of the true vertue and power of the keyes, nor of faith, but forced onelyonly vponupon tedious and intollerable torment of perticuler nombring & rehearsyng of sinnes, and of doīg iust pennance, and impossible satisfaction therfore. And vntounto such enumeration and satisfaction (as a worcke of theyr owne) thei ascribed the purchasing of Gods sauour, and of euerlasting saluation: so that Christ might go playe him, as one that had nothing to do wt that matter. And thus thei led & kepte men quite from Christ, & taught them to put theyr trust in theim selues, and in theyr owne and other mēs workes and desertes.
And in all theyr Doctrine, there is nott one Sillable, be it neuer so lytle, nor one tytle neuer so small, wherein Christ is not denied and blasphemed, and the true faith in him most shamefully s…ādered & assaulted, & the weake hartes & consciences of simple people forced to impossible thynges & to desperacion. AntichristAnd so, and no notherwyse, shuld the right Antichrist do, that according to his name, he might teache & liue manifestly inough, contrary to Christ, & to exalt him selfe aboue God and his word. Which thing we see to be more manifestly and apparantlye verifyed in the papacye, that is in the Popes gouernment, than anye man can comprehende. And yet ther is no repentance for al thys geare, but they rather defend and …intaine that cō fession of theyrs▪ … wold besydes, y• eueryevery simple subiect shulde (by hys obedience and ayde) be pertaker of the sorow, miserye, and desperacion, that the same confession brinketh wyth it.
And yet thys is not al, but who so euer thou beist, that shalt ayd or obey them in theyr procedinges, thou shalt make thy selfe partaker of ye greuous misery,The Popes curse▪ cursed be he, and all his couēt. and detestable abuse of theyr Curse and Excommunicaciō. Which abuse only (if ther were no more but that) hath worthely deserued, that all men should wysh the papacy to synk and to perish, much lesse to shew anye obediēce, or to minister ani aid, wherby it might be maintained. How hath the Pope ruffled (and plaied Rex Regum) with that thounderbolt of hys curse and excōmunication, agaynste Emperours, Kinges, and agaynst al the world? Yea against God himselfe and his holy word. For what so euer the dyuel had put in hys minde, that must go forward, and be accepted as right and lauful. What wars & effusion of bloud hath he caused therethorow in the world: Yea, who is able to rehearse al the abhomination, that it hath bredde? What so euer the Pope wold hauehave to be synne, or to be called syn, that must nedes so be. And what so euer pleased him to be named good & godly, that must nedes so be, so that he must be a most dredful Lord ouer the whole world, ouer bodye & soule, lands & goodes, ouer purgatory, ouer hel, ouer the diuell, ouer heauen, ouer angels, ouer God, & ouer altogether. Heauen was opē, or shut, to whō soeuer it pleased him: And so was hel like wise. Whō soeuer it had pleased him, shoulde hauehave kept or lost hys bodye▪ goodes, estimacion, landes, heritage▪ wife, childrē, house, mony and al such things. Yea, if this abuse of the keyes had not bene, what had the papacye bene? And al this hauehave thei done of very wilfulnes & force (against all ryght and reason) euen for very pompe, and for theyr bellies sake, misusing (most wretchedly) the holy name of god, for the maintenaunce therof. For vnderunder the name and pretense of God, hauehave they wrought al their detestable mischiefe and tirannye. For the whyche they neuer once minde to repent, but (like obstinate beastes) cōtinue styl in theyr wickednes, defending & mainteinyng it, what so euer any mā hath said or written neuer so truly there against. It were litle wonder, if heauen and earth shuld open or vtterly burst, for such abhominacion, or that God wold suffer such continual wretchednes, spite, & misbehauour any longer vnreuēged. I thinke that if the great Turke knew him selfe to be so wiked, & such a wretch, as the Papists know them selues to be desperate caitiues, he wold not be so obstinate, nor so desperately and spitefully defi god with his abhominaciō. And I think also yt the great Turke wold neuer say:The Pastes boast of theym selues. We Tukes wer neuer good: as ye papistes shame not to make theyr boast, sayīg: We Priestes were yet neuer good. But it is the veri diuel that possesseth them,The pope foloweth the diuel▪ who knoweth his works to be naught, & therefore defendeth thē the more ernestly. And so doth the Pope and hys adherentes. Were it not wel done nowe of thee (what soeuer thou beist, if thou hast any Christen bloud in thy hart) to helpe wyth thy obedyence, to aide or maintaine such arrant soule murtherers.
And what shal I say of their dānable, diuelish,Relickes. Pilgrimages. lieng & false Relikes and pilgrimages? Lord god what deuilish craft hauehave thei vsed therewith? Dead… bones & rottē ragges hauehave they made the people beleue, to be the bones and vestures of holy saintes. And wt suche deuylyshe subtiltie hauehave they seduced the sīple soules and perswaded theim …o run hether and thether to viset and to kisse theyr rotten relikes. And thys gere is maintained of ye pope, byshops priestes, monkes, & Friers, to be godly and holy, and al wyth craft to pike mens pursses, to robbe and spoyl thē of theyr monye and goodes, vnderunder a cloke of holines, to mayntayne theyr idle bellies theyr with. And it myghte the better hauehave bene borne, if thei had not ther with ledd the people vtterly from Christ, and taught them to putt and fyxe theyr trust, and to build their saluation in such works of theyr own inuencion. For there was none that euer sought any relike, or pilgrimage but that did put his trust and affians of saluation therin, contēnyng Christ and the true faith in him, as a thing of no importaūce. And this contempt & vtter renouncyng of Christe, …nd of the true faythe in hym, hauehave the Papistical byshops and priestes not only neuer spokē against, but also thei had a pleasure and delight therin, and procured pardon for such as did beleue in such beggery, and so pilled and polled al the worlde, to fede and pamper thē selues in idlenes.
Christ speaketh of an abhominatiō in the holy place, If the papaci be not such an abhomination, let eueryevery man iudge, that hath indifferent iudgemēt. Not only for vsyng of such abhominations as I hauehave rehearsed, but specially for mayntainyng of them and contineuing in them so desperately. For bi that meanes, thei do not only sinne in very dede against them selues, but also thei confyrme that sinne of theirs with vnrepentaunce, wherby it becō meth a sinne against the holye goost, which is the most highest & most greuous & heauy synne that can be.The sin of ye papistes and of the diuyll are lyke. For the deuyl himselfe can commyt no higher nor more greuous synne. Nowe se, these are the Ioly rutterkyns, that wil be lordes & controllers ouer gods word,… shamelesse Hipocrites. and which dare attēpt to moue vsus to recāt and reuoke our doctrine, and to reuerence and receiue all these abhominaciōs for the wordes & workes of God? and as for them selues, to remain vnreformed, what els? And in no wyse to admit any new alteracion, beware of that how so euer they do. They speake and prate muche of styrryng vp of sedicion and vprour,The papistes & non other ar ye styrrers vp of vprour & sedicion. The papistes ar the occasiō of all plages and of all misery in the world but if thys doing of theirs be not the next way to styrre vp sedicion & vpror I cānot tel what cā more stir vp sedicion & vpror. Yea, what can more prouoke ye pestilence, extreme dearth, the inuasiō of ye Turke, warres, murther, and al the plages and vengeaunce of God vponupon our neckes than these mis…heuous abhominacions that I hauehave reckened? I say and wil abide therby, that nothyng so much. Here must I leaue vnrehersed, for auoidyng of tediousnes, a nomber of abhominaciōs whych I hauehave not yet spoken of, as vowes to pilgrimages, brotherhods▪ byeng and selling of theyr woorkes▪ and of theyr cowles and such lyke.
Now to the thyrde and last cause▪ why no man ought to ayde or obeye Emperour, Kyng or Prince in thys case, which is this: If thou shuldest obey or aid the Emperour, thy King▪ thy Quene, Prince, or Magistrate in such case, forasmuch as they mind by such procedinges of theirs to stablish Antichristes kingdom, thou shalt not onlye (by thy obedience & aide) make thy selfe partaker of al these abhominacions before rehersed; but thy obedience & aide also, shal serue & help, to subuert and to roote out al the good▪ that hath bene done or wrought by ye gospel. For these archecaitiues ar not content to maintaine these abhominacions, but also they labour (all that they can) vtterly to abolysh & to roote out for euer al the goodnes, which the doctrine of the Gospell, or the Preachers & professors therof hauehave taught wrought, or brought to passe.
This cause cōprehēdeth much matter in it, & is a veri weighti cause. For the doctrine of the gospel which hath ben ernestly preached & taught bi vsus▪ hath wrought much good, thākes be vntounto God before.What good hath ben done by ye preachynge of the gospel For before the doctrine therof was preached & taughte by our brethren, no man knew what the gospel ment. No man knewe what Christ was. No man knewe what Baptisme or penaūce was. No man knew what fayth or good workes were. No man knew what a sacrament was. No man knew what flesh or spirit was. No mā knew, what the .X. commaundementes, what the Lordes prayer, or what the Crede ment. No man knew what praier was. No manne knew howe to bear the crosse, or howe to take afflicion, nor yet how to comfort himself in any aduersitie. No man knewe before what y• true office of a Maiestrat was Nor no man knewe, what the state of holy Matrimony was. No mā knew what was the office of parentes towardes theyr children, of Masters and mistresses towardes theyr seruaūtes▪ and maydes, nor yet of Children, seruauntes and maydes towardes theyr parentes, masters and dames. No mā knew before, what the deuyl or what the worlde was: What lyfe or death was. No mā knew rightlie, what was Synne, or what was Vertue, nor yet what forgeuenes of synnes was, no… wher to be sought▪ No mā knew what God was. No mā knew what it was to be a byshop, or what it was to be a pastor, and to hauehave charge of soul. No man knew also rightly, what ye church was, nor what authoritie it hadde. No nor no man knewe▪ what it was to be a christian. Shall I saye altogether in fewe wordes? No mā knew any thing at all, that eueryevery true Christian ought to hauehave known. For the pope and papistical asses, had blinded al the world and oppressed al men with ignoraūce. I may wel cal them asses▪ for they are very grosse and vnlearned asseheades in al matters of Christian religion, in …ede. For they knowe, or at the least thei wyl know nothyng elce, but that the saluation of Men and women dependeth, vponupon mōkes and fryers and such lyke, and vponupon their workes and merites, and not vponupon Christ at al. Wher as the doctrine which we hauehave …aught, hath brought to passe, that diuers men, wemen, and children (thankes be vntounto God) knowe the principles of Christian religion; and how al men ought to beleue, howe to praye, how to take the crosse, how to lyue, & how to die. The true vnderstāding of these & many other articles hath bene opened throughe the diligence of our preachers. The true vse also of the lordes table,Yea, but now farewel truth seing our pore preachers are chopped vp. and of the Font, wherin all people are consecrated vntounto God thorow Baptisme, hath by our preachers & teachers bene brought to light, so yt al men (thankes be to God) may se in theyr ordre the very ryght fourme of a Christian church. Al this shalte thou help, through thy obediēce, to subuert and to cōdemne, whosoeuer thou are, that shalt obey them in theyr proceadyngs. And furthermore also thy ayd and obedience shal serue, and helpe to burne and destroy the olde and newe Testament in our in other tounge, the holy Psalter and other bokes of godly praiers in our mother tounge, and al other good bookes and most godly and necessary workes▪ whiche our preachers & teachers hauehave written, as the papistes them selues cannot deni. And thy obedience shal also serue an… helpe to this, that no man from hence furth shal know the X. Commaundementes, the Articles of the Christian faith, The Lordes praier. (For so was it before the doctrine that we professe was preached.) And thy obed…ēce shal serue likewise, that no mā shal hereafter learn any good instructiōs of baptisme, of the Lords supper, of fayth, of the Gospel, of the true christian libertie, nor of anye other godly article.
Item, thy obedience shal serue and helpe, that no man maye put his trust and affiaunce rightly vpō Christ. And yet more than this, it shall also serue & helpe, that men shal put that trust and confidence that is due vntounto Christ only, in the works and merites of monkes, friers and priestes, and that they shal bye theyr merites and cowles at ye hour of their death. Thou shalt hel… ther with also, yt in the place of holye Matrimony. thy natiō shalbe filled wt the hordom and fornicatiō and other filthy and vnnatural sinnes of pristes and votaries. And yet further by helping with thy ayde and obedience, to maintain theyr abhominable marchā dise which they make with theyr idolatrous masse sacrifice, thou shalt make thy selfe partaker of al the couetousnes, robbry and theft, wherwith they hauehave gotten al theyr possessions. And what shal I say more? Thou shalt help therwith vtterly to subuerte Christes word and whole kingdome, and to restore, and maintain the deuyls kyngdome. For that thyng do the mischeuous captiues the Papistes, and the authors of these proceadings mind to do. Thei are Antichristes ministers, & therfore thei can mind nor do nothīg but that which is contrary to Christ, Specialli in the cheif article of our saluation, which is this, that our hearte, comfort, and affians of saluatiō shuld rest onelyonly vponupon Christ, and not in ani worckes of our owne, that is to saye, that we should beleue to be saued and to be deliuered from our sīnes, and to be made righteous only through true faith as it is written in the .…. to the … maines: with the heart do we beleue, vntounto righteousnes. This article I say wil they in no wyse suffre. And we cā in no wyse forbeare it. For take thys article away, and than take away the churche. For without this Article, no errour can be resisted. For asmuch as wtout this article, Christ wyll not, nor cannot be with vsus. For this is the article that must declare and open christ vntounto vsus. For this articles sake, hath ye worlde ofte bene plaged, through the sinne floud, through greate tempestes, thorow warres and diuers other kindes of plages. For this articles sake, was Abel murthered and many other martyres. And yet it remaineth & shal remayn, let the aduersaries do, & practise what thei wyl this Article shal remaine, whan they shall go to wrake & perishe in the pit of hel.
Now let al men wel consider wyth them selues, and loke wel about them selues, If theyr ayde & obedience shall helpe and serue to restore al the abhominations of the papistrye, they shall make them selues partakers of al th… bloud that hath bene shed thorow the papistes frō the death of Abel tyl this day, or that hereafter shal be shedd by theim. And moreouer, if theyr obedience and ayde shal serue to the roting out and subuersion of Christes Gospel and of his whole kingdom, and to the settyng vp and maintainyng of ye deuils kingdome, let them take hed… what wil be the ende therof at length▪ Note wel.and with what consciences they wyll stād before god at his iudgement seat
And besides al this to make an end whosoeuer shal ayde and obey theim, his ayde and obedience shall serue to bring in Aalianes, Thy obediēce shall work the shame. Are not ye Spaniardes worthy to be welcom?which shall ouerrunne his natural country, most shamefully defyle and abuse honest wyues, widdowes and virgyns euen before the faces of theyr husbandes, parentes and frindes. Thei shal also rob and spoyle men of theyr goodes, landes and heritage, and deuide and bestow them at theyr pleasure. No tong is able to rehearse the hundred part… of the miserye, that shall happen, if the papistes & the maiestrates that ar le… by thē may bring theyr proceadyngs to passe, both the nobilitie, ye yemanry and the whole cōminaltie shall be destroied for euer, theyr lawful heyres & posteritie disinherited, & Alianes shal possesse the lādes & inheritance of our auncetors. The auncient lawes of our nation shalbe subuerted, & new lawes established. All this and more than I can rehearse, shalt thou begiltie of, before God and the world, that al thi posteritie shal rew the day that ouer thei wer borne, whosoeuer thou art yt shalt obey or and the proceadings that are now attempted. Wel, let no man saye but that he had warnyng ynough, in no wyse to obey or to ayd, nether Kaiser nor King, Lady nor Lorde in suche case. If thei wil take and follow suche warning and admonicion it is good: If thei wil not, the more peril, danger & shame shalbe theirs. ☞Thus much hath my dutie to my natural coūtrey bounden me to write vntounto my deare contrey men, for a faithful admoniciō and counsel for theim, not to stirre o… to prouoke them to any vnlauful vprour or sedicion, but to instruct them, that thei ought in no wise to obey nor to ayde the sworne aduersaries of the sonne of God & of theyr natural coū trey (borne to worke mischief) in such proceadyngs, as they go aboute. And if they should be forced by violence, to the obediēce of such vnlawful things, that they may by al lawes defend thē selues agaynst such maiestrates, euen as against most violent tyrannes and bloudhoundes.
And nowe to you (ye papistes) for a cōclusion, If ye cā with truth reproue or deny any thyng that I hauehave writtē in this Admonicion, let me heare it, & I shall make further proufe thereof, if nede shall requyre. And let the people freely reade this my admonicion, and than let the blindest of theim be iudge betwene you and me. But if I hauehave herein written nothing but truth, thā forbyd all men to reade or to hauehave in in theyr handes this Admonishion, that al the world may knowe, that ye are the very same, of whō I hauehave spoken therein, and that ye are afrayde yt your workes shoulde come to lyghte. But if ye forbyd this, doubte ye not▪ but you shall hauehave another more earnest, wherein your detestable abhomination and your deuylish Practises, shalbe a lytle better discribed and painted.
Forbidde it yf ye wyll.