The Bee Hive of the Romish Church, Part 2 · Preface · Chapter 17 – Chapter 18
The xvii Chapter. VVhichWhich treateth of the forbidding of Priestes to marrie, and howe wom…n ought to be common, by speciall commaundement of the church of Rome, which is diligentlie by them obserued.
A forbidding of matrimonie for Priestes.NOwe as touching the forbidding of Priestes, Monkes, Friers, and all other Spirituall persons, to marrie, that matter we can not defende by the olde Testament, seeing that in the old Testament all Priestes were married. Therefore, in this matter we will hauehave nothing to doe with the olde Testament, because it doeth make against vsus: but wee say, that it is chaunged by the newe, as heretofore wee hauehave proued by speciall textes, as to write, where it is written: None of those that liue after the fleshe, Rom. 8.8.can please God. Againe:Leuit. 10.18.11.25. Be you holie, like as I am holie, & more such like, which hertofore we hauehave alledged, and by the booke of decrees established for euer. Yea, and it was specially prophesied by Paule,1. Tim. 4.3. That in the latter dayes there shoulde come such as should forbid marriage, and the eating of meates, which God hath created and ordeined to bee eaten with thankesgiuing. So that it is no maruell, that it was not forbidden in the olde Testament, nor yet in the beginning of the new testament: for these last dayes, whereof Paule speaketh, were not yet come: and as a good wise Doctour, & holie Priest of Groining saide: The Pope did not then gouerne. But nowe that those last dayes are past, and the Pope hath taken the whole regiment of the Church into his handes, the Church hath now declared, openly set forth, and established without retractation, That no man being married can bee holie, nor please God, for that is plaine vncleanenesse and fleshly defiling,Here aboue in the 1. & 2. lease. as we hauehave heretofore declared by plaine and special texts of the decrees.
And therefore hath our deare mother the holie Church of Rome concluded and set forth, That it is much better, and lesse offence, for a Priest to vse another mans wife, than to marrie one of his owne, after that he hath once accepted and married our deare mother the holy Church for his wife during his life: as Phigius, Eckius, Ioachimus Perionius, and other like pillars of the holy church of Rome, hauehave verie finelie set out in their writing.
Yea, we do finde by daily experience, that the holie Catholike church of Rome will a great deale rather suffer, that these holie sheete Nonnes of Cloisters, and such like should (being with child) destroy it in their bodies with drinkes and other medicines,Nonnes murther their owne children. yea or kil it after it is borne, than that they should (according to the counsell of Saint Paule) marrie a husband.
This visitation and that which was founde there is written by Iohn Ball an English writer in the argument of his booke of the life and conuersation of Popes. Iohn Pontan in his booke de immanitat…. Cap. 6.Which thing was apparant at the visitation of the Cloisters in England, which King Henrie .8. caused to be done throughout all England, where manie priuies in Cloisters were found full of the bones of yong children, with manie other abhominable matters, which are not meete to bee rehearsed.
And Iouianus Pontanus, a good Catholike, and a well learned man, doth likewise witnesse, that it is a common practise of these holie Religious women, to doe such thinges.
It is likewise found in ancient credible histories,This is writtē by Huldrick bishop of Augsbridg in a letter which he sent vntounto Pope Nicholas 1. about the yeere 265. treating of this matter. That Saint Gregorie Bishop of Rome, after he had first set foorth a verie straite commaundement against the marriage of Priestes, did afterwarde repeale and call backe againe the same verie earnestlie, lamenting and repenting verie sore his former doing: because, that sending vponupon a time to his pondes to hauehave some fishe taken, there was drawen out of the same with the nettes, and brought to him, aboue sixe thousande heades of yong children, which he straight wayes did with sighes and lamentations acknowledge to hauehave bene so murthered, by reason of his said commaundement.
But our deare mother the holie Church, who hath not lightly anie respect to such small matters, as that, although she heares of inough such: yea, and doth daily see them before her eies, and is often times put in remembrance of them: yet shee had much rather ouersee and suffer such thinges to bee done, then to consent that those holie Nonnes, which hauehave professed chastitie, should marrie. I doe not speake of it, that shee will rather looke thorowe the fingers,Peruse the 11. chap. of the second part. or winke at the abominable & filthie Sodomitrie of Monkes and Friers, than she will reuoke and call backe againe her holy commaundement for chastitie: notwithstanding that Pope Pius the seconde himselfe, hath oftentimes acknowledged, that although the forbidding of Priests to marrie, was done vponupon great consideration: yet it must now vponupon other consideration of greater importance, be set at libertie againe. But this is their first rule, and ABC, that they learne as soone as euer they are admitted Priestes, or professed Monkes or Friers, and that they continually harpe vponupon this string, Si non castè, tamen cautè: which is thus ment, That if they cannot liue chastly, yet they shall vse it so secretly, as that it be not much talked of, nor knowne.
And now after this, to prouide so for the matter, that these holie Fathers should not go to grossely to worke, therefore hath our deare mother the holie Church, laid an ordinance before her spouses, the Priests and Spiritualtie, that they might freely vse other mens wiues, & that all women ought to be common for them. Whereby men may well consider, that she is none of these gealous wiues, which cannot be content, that their husbandes shoulde once make a good countenance to another woman: for she is well contented that her sweete husbandes, to witte, Priestes and Monkes, shoulde vse all women at their pleasure. Yea moreouer, she will mainteine, that it ought to be so: and so goeth about to establishe it, with plaine textes of the holie Scripture, besides the worthie witnesse which shee doth borrow out of the heathen Philosophers. For consider, these bee the proper wordes of the holy father Pope Clement, whom the Church doth esteeme to hauehave bene a successour of Peter: and therefore hath she caused these his wordes (which are worthie of perpetual memorie, to be written vponupon the doores of all Cloysters, and Spirituall houses) to bee set in her booke of decrees, as a woodden diamond might be set in a laten ring, where he saith:
Deare brethren, to liue in common is verie necessarie for all men, This is euen thus set downe word for worde in the decrees Cap. D…lectissimi… Causa 12. quae. 1 and in the 4. letter of Clemēt in the 1 part of the Councels.but most specially for those which will stoutely, and warily fight vnderunder Gods banner, and counterfeit or follow the example of the Apostles & their disciples. For the same by nature ought so to bee, and all things in the world ought to bee common: but the wickednesse of man hath bene the occasion, that the one hath begonne to say: This is mine, the other said, And this belongeth to me: And by that meanes, dealing or participating of all things crept in. To bee briefe, a verie wise man amongst the Grekes hath spoken maruellous well, Pythagoras whō Plato did imitate in the goue…nement of his citie.saying: All things are common amongst good friendes. Nowe it is then without doubt, that vnderunder the name of all things, the wiues are likewise conteined: For like as the light and the shining of the Sunne can not be separated nor parted, Married women common.euen so there cannot likewise anie separation or dealing be made of that which is to bee vsed in common: but it ought to be generallie at the commaūdement of euerie one of the companie. And for that cause it is, that God saith (gentle Reader note wel here speciall textes of the Scriptvre) by his Prophet,Psal. 133.1. saying: O what a goodlie and pleasant a thing it is, for brethren to dwell together. And this custome being obserued by the Apostles, so must they hauehave all together liued with one an other in cōmon: Act. 4.32.like as it is written: The multitude of the beleeuing was one heart, and one soule, &c.
Note here the determination & conclusion of our deare mother the holy church worde by word. whereby shee doeth absolutelie conclude out of the holie Scriptures, that these Heretikes, which are alway in hand with the scriptures, hauehave now no more cause to complaine, though the Priests & Friers will sometime (euen for louelove) borrow some of their wiues, for the mainteining & knitting together of this holy Clements commontie. And although the glosse thervpon say, That this hauing of women in cōmon is not to be vnderstood, after the vse of the flesh, but simplie for the good willingnesse & charitable louelove towards the congregation: yet notwithstanding, the text is plain inough, which saieth, That men must be conuersant with them, as the light is with the sunne shine, which do continually enioy one another. And the same is established, by the doctrine of Plato and Pythagoras, who speciallie were of opinion, that all women should bee common. And that is apparant inough, by the daylie exercise thereof: for you see that the Priestes may hauehave no wiues of their owne, but doe vse all women in generall, when, or wheresoeuer they can get them. But yet they wil not looke so narrowlie to hauehave things common as touching their goods, because euerie one of them will looke to enioy his own goodes, but not his owne wife: so that it is rather done for the wiues, than for anie thing else.
And this may likewise verie well bee the occasion, wherefore the Romishe Church (which in deede can be but one particular Church, because that Rome is but one particular towne) is yet called The Catholike church, For what cause the Church of Rome is called Catholike.that is, The common & generall Church ouer all, which specially proceedeth by reason of that goodly common sort of women, and boyes, which she mainteines, and doeth increase and multiplie her generation ouer all the world: yea, and filles the whole face of the earth with her young Priests and Monkes, whereof shee hath made such a number, as there are flies in the Summer: in so much that shee may iustly bee called Ecclesia oeccomenica: that is to say, The Church that doeth flowe ouer the whole earth, like a spring tide.
The xviii. Chapter. VVherein the seuen orders of Priesthoode are set foorth as well by Scriptures, as by the examples of Christ.
SEeing that we are nowe in hande with the holinesse of Priests,Seeke for this in the .2. chap. of the second parte. wee will proceede directlie to the establishing of all the seuen orders of Priesthoode by the Scripture. And first you shall vnderstande, that our deare mother the holie Church doeth teach verie plainlie, That our Lord Iesus Christ him selfe was forced to passe thorough all those seuen orders, before hee could be admitted to bee a Masseprieste. Marke nowe what a matter must this be,All these goodly exposi…ions are written by the reuerend Bishop Durand. in his booke called Rationale diuinorum officiorum in the .1. booke Rub. de ministerio & ordine Ecclesiae. And in the .4 booke of Sentences. Psal. 24.7.9. and yet for all this, these Heretikes make no accompt of the blessed Masse, whereas Christ had inough to do, for to come to the vse of it.
For first, he must exercise the office of a Porter, like as hee did, when he droue the changers of monie, and the sellers and bu… ers out of the Temple, and snake out of the mouth of Dauid: You Princes lift vp your gates, and be you lift vp you euerlasting doores. Item, when hee said, I am the doore of the sheepfolde.Iohn. 10. In the .4. booke of Sentences the .3. chap.
After that, he was Reader, when he did reade the Prophet Esaias in the Temple.
In the 4. booke of Sentences the 4. chap.Then after he became an exorcist or Coniurer, when he droue seuen diuels out of Marie Magdalene: & when he did rub the mouth & eares of the dumbe and deafe man wt clay and spitle, saying, Epphatah, Be open.
Acoluthus in Greeke is with vsus as much as Page, or one which followeth vsus. Iohn 8. ca. and is repeated in the 4. booke of Senten. cha. 5.4. D…st. cap. 6.4. Dist. cap. 7.And after that he came to be Acoluthus, that is, a Page, and Ceroferarius, that is, a Candlebearer: when he said, I am the light of the world: hee that followeth me, shall not walke in darknesse.
And then was he a Subdeacon, when he did washe his disciples feete.
After that a Deacon, when hee did minister the Sacrament of his body to his Apostles, and (being in the mount Oliuet) willed & persuaded them to watch and pray.
4. Dist. cap. 8. and peruse the same allegatiō by Durand.And lastlie, he became a Priest, when he did consecrate the bread and the wine, and so said Masse at the table.
This done, straightway he became a Bishop, when hee laid his handes vppon his disciples heads, saying, Go abroade and preache the ghospell in all places.
All this you may see set out at large in the foresaid booke of Durandus, In the 23. and 77. Dist.and in the booke of Sentences, & in the fourth councels of Tolledo and Carthago, & likewise in the Decrees. So that it is apparant, that all these holie orders are fished out of the bottome and ground of the scriptures, and are founded vppon the examples of Christ: notwithstanding nowe, that the Priestes hauehave somewhat the more prerogatiue then Christ had, so that they can pushe through all these seuen orders at one time, or else skippe ouer foure or fiue of thē at once. For they that can once get the shauen crowne on their heades, (which is the character, marke, & token of the worthie order of Priesthoode) may not then onelie proceede to be Priestes, but also to be Bishops and Cardinals, and to gette sackes full of benefices: for our most holie father the Pope may freelie dispence with all such matters, as it pleaseth him. But that carieth his authoritie in the Popes foundation, which wee hauehave here before set forth and declared to be so strong, as the diuels of hell are not able to withstand it.Peruse the 11. chap. of the 2. part. For this time wee doe onelie teache, that when soeuer it shall please the holy church to vse the seuen orders orderlie, shee is able to establish the whole heape of them trimlie and finelie out of the scripture.