The Relics of Rome, Part 18
Certaine godly Ciuile lawes agaynste the hauing of Images in Churches, with the aduise, consent, and iudgemēt of diuerse godly learned men.
Leo the EmperourLEo the third, Emperoure of Grece assembled together at Bizance three hundred & thirtie godly learned Bishoppes, whiche with one consent agreable to the worde of God,Images taken oute of Churches, and burn…e openly. decreed with the assent of the Emperour and of the nobilitie, that al Images should be takē out of churches, and burnt openly. Moreouer the Emperoure himselfe at Constantinople threw out of the temples all the Images of Aungels,☞ Martyrs, virgins, saints, yea, and of Christ, and burnt, them in the opē market & made a law, that, whosoeuer resisted his procedinges in this behalfe, he should suffer death. In the yeare of our Lord. 784 Blondus. Eutropius. Platin. Matth. Palme…us. &c.
Constātine the Emperoure.Constantine the Emperour kept a coū cell at Constantinople, in the which were present a greate number of godly Bishops, and other learned men: where it was lykewyse decreed, that Images should be cast out of Churches, and by no meanes be suffred in such places, as christen men resorte vntounto for to praye vntounto their Lorde God. In the yere, &c. 739, Sigesb. P. Aemilus. Pantal.
The noble and Godly Emperours Valens and Theodosius made a law,Ualens & Theodosius Emperours. that no man shoulde make or cause to bee made any Image of oure Sauioure Christ, neyther by paynting, nor by grauyng, nor yet by any other waye, but that wheresoeuer any such Image shoulde bee found, it shoulde vtterlye bee taken awaye and destroyed. And whosoeuer woulde attempte to doe contrarye to thys theyr acte, they appoynted certayne greuous punyshementes to be executed vponupon the transgressoures and breakers thereof, as a lawe grounded both vponupon the worde of God, and vppon the decrees and constitutions of the most worthy aunciente Emperours and reuerende byshops. Petrus Crinitus. Lib. 9. de honestae disciplina.
Sabanus King of ye Bulgarians made also the lyke lawe in hys Realme for ye abolyshmente of Images oute of the Churches.King Sabanus. In the yeare of our Lorde. 765. Sabell, Mass. Pantal.
Philip ye Emperour likewise made aPhilip the Emperour straight lawe for the abolishyng of Images. In the yeare of our Lorde. 730. Sabel. Paulus Diaconus.
Adrian the EmperourThe noble Emperoure Adrian commaunded, yt there shuld be no Images set vp in temples or Churches. Ioan. Laziardus.
King Calcobertus.Calcobertus King of England destroyed in hys Realme when he receaued the faith of Christ, all the Idolls, poppettes, Maumettes and Images that he founde or coulde come by. In the yeare of oure Lord. 640. Ioan. Laziard▪ Vincentius.
Pope Gregory the fyrst after that he was appoynted Byshop of Rome,P. Gregory the first. cō maunded, that all the Idolles and Images of the Heathen should vtterlye be defaced, theyr heades cutte of, and theyr other members in all poyntes mangled and disgraced, and so in fine destroyed, that no occasion of Idolatry mighte afterwarde be geuen. In the yeare of our Lorde. 590. Ioan. Laziard. Chronica.
Pope Constantine the seconde.Pope Constantine the second, whom the seditious, tirannicall and superstitious papistes did afterward violently depose, cruelly thrust into a monastery as into a vyle and stincking prison, and most vnmercifully put oute hys eyes, commaunded that no Christian shuld worship any Image eyther of God or of any Saint,Ioan iiii, or inuocate or call vponupon the Uirgine Marye, or any other saint in heauen with their prayers, but worship God in spirite and truth, and call vpō his glorious name thorow Iesus Christ our alone Mediatour, Aduocate and Intercessoure. In the yere, &c. 769. Ioan. Laziard.
The Councel Agathense made a decree, that there shoulde be no pictures in Churches,Certayne godly councels condē ning the hauing of …images in churches. and that no thyng should be painted on the walles of Churches, that is honoured and worshipped. In the yeare of oure Lorde. 440. Libro. Concil. Durand.
The Councell Toletane the twelfth holden in Spayne, made constitutions both agaynst Images and agaynst the worshippers of images. In the yere, &c. 712. Chron. Concil.
The Councell Elibertine likewise holden in Spayne decreed, that all pictures should be had out of churches, and that nothyng that is honoured or worshipped shoulde be paynted on the church walles. In the yeare, &c. 345. Isidorus. Tom. 1. Concil.
Epiphaniꝰ.The holy Byshop Epiphanius commyng into a churche to praye, sawe a vayle there hāging, wherin was paynted ye image of Christ, or of some saint. So sone as he saw it, he cutte ye Image away, and sayd, that it is contrarye to the authoritye of the holy scriptures, to hauehave the Image of any man in the Churche of Christ. In the yere of oure Lord. 565. S. Hieronymus. Chron.
Thys Epystle, which the aforesaid holy and godly learned Byshop Epiphanius wrote of thys matter vntounto Iohn Byshop of Ierusalem in the Greke toung, and Sainte Hierome translated into Latyn, and the words are these in Englishe
WHen we went forth together vntounto the holye place, whiche is called Bethel, yt we shuld make there a collectiō (for the poore) accordyng to the custome of Christs Church, & came vntounto a village, which is called Anablatha, and as I passed by sawe there a candle burning: I demaunded what place it was.☜ And when I had learned, that it was a Churche, I entred into it for to praye, where I found a vayle hanging on the dore of the same church, dyed & paynted, and hauing an Image as it were of Christ, or of some saint. For I do not well remember whose Image it was. Therefore when I sawe thys in the church of Christ, contrary to the authority of the scriptures, that the Image of a man did hang there, I cutte it away, and gaue rather coūcell to the kepers of ye same place, that thei shuld lappe and burye some poore dead man in it. But they murmured at the matter and said: If he wuld cutte it, it wer conuenient, that he shoulde geue an other vayle in the steade of the other. Which thing whē I heard, I promised yt I would geue thē one, & send it vntounto them out of hand. But while I sought to send a good vaile for ye other, I hauehave made some delay in the matter, For I thought I shuld hauehave had one sent vntounto me frō Cyprus. But now hauehave I sent such as I could gette: and I pray thee, yt thou wilt commaunde the priests of the same place, to receaue the vayle of the bringer, yt we hauehave sente, & to geue commaundement, yt frō henceforth no such vayles be hanged vp in ye church of Christ, as be contrary to our religion.
Here thys most Godly byshop with manyfest, playne, and euident wordes pronounceth and declareth,It is agaynst the worde of God to hauehave Ima…ges i… Churches. that it is agaynst the holy scripture & our religiō, that the Image of Christ shuld be had in the temples of the Christians, so far is it of, that the Images of any saints ought to be placed in thē, Hereof maye we easely gather, that S Hierome also and all the other godly Byshoppes, whiche were both before and in hys tyme dyd agree in thys poynte with Epiphanius that the Images of Christe and of the Saintes are by no meanes to bee suffered in the Churches of the Christians. For in the tyme of Saint Hierome, and certayn yeres after him, we do not reade that any Byshop beeing of a sounde and perfect iudgement coulde euer abyde, that images should be placed in the temples of such as professe Christ.
The Godlye learned Byshop S. Athanasius proueth euidentlye agaynste all Imagemongers,Athanasius that men maye learne to knowe God better by liuyng creatures, whether they be reasonable or vnreasonable, than by deade carued stockes and stones. Athanasius, aduersus gentes.
The great & auncient clarke Lactantius sayth,Lactantius. yt God can not be truly worshipped in that place, wherin an image is▪ Lib, de orig. Erroris. 2. Cap. 19.
Agayne he sayeth: If your Saintes, if the holy Mother of Christ be in heauen, whye do ye not lyft vp your eyes vntounto heauen, &c. Why doe ye rather loke vntounto walles and vntounto stockes, thā vntounto that place, where ye beleue that thei are? What meane the temples the tabernacles, yea and to be short, what meane those Images? Lib. 2. Cap. 2. de orig▪ erroris.
Austen.Saint Austen sayth, that it is abhomination and playne sacrilege, if any man set in the Churche an Image of God the father sittyng on hys seate. Lib. De fide et symbalo.
The Image of God the father in the temples of the Papistes moste blasphemous.Hereof doth it followe, that the papists are abhominable and commit sacrilege. For so doe they setforth the Image of God the father most blasphemously in all their popyshe Churches, paynting hym with an olde wythered face, wrinckled forehead, hollowe eyes, leane chekes, sharp nose, hāging down lippes, enbowed chinne, white bearde, &c, and for very faynt feblenesse sitting in hys chayre, lyke a symple, selye, syngle soule, contrarye to the nature of God and the truth of hys holy worde which sayeth by the Psalmographe:Psal. 102. Malach. 1. A man shall waxe olde lyke a garmente, but thou art alwaies one, & thy yeares fayle not. God himself saith by the prophet: I am ye Lord, and am not chaunged. Agayne the prophet Esay sayeth: To what thing wil ye make God like?Esay. 40. Or what Image will ye set vp vntounto him? Shall the Karuer make a karued Image? And shal the Goldsmith couer him with Golde, or cast him into a fornace of siluer plates. &c.
Eusebius writeth,Eusebius. yt the vse of Images came from the Heathen vntounto vsus.Images came from the Heathē Eccle. Hist. Lib. 7. Cap. 14. And not without a cause. For although in the olde Testament there were many holy Patriarches, Iudges, Kynges, Priestes, Prophetes,No Images were made of gods saints in the olde Testament Martyrs, Matrones, Wydowes and Uirgines, whiche were noble and worthy myrroures of vertue & Godlynesse, most worthy to be had in remembraunce: yet rede we not, that there were any Images made of them, or set in places, where the people of God came together for to praye. And ye Iewes at that tyme were the peculiar people of God. They remembred the manifolde commaundementes of God concerning the not making & not worshipping of Images, & therfore coulde they not abide Images neither priuatly nor publiquely. Agayne in the Primatiue Churche, no Images were suffered in Christen mens Temples and Oratories, as we may see by the historye of Epiphanius, whiche did not onelyonly cutte the Image that hanged in the Church on peces,☞ but he also affirmed, that it is contrary to the Christen religion to hauehave the Image of any man in the Churche of Christ.
Erasmus Roterodamus.Erasmus Roterodamus a most diligent searcher of antiquities, writeth, that vntounto the time of Saint Hierome there were men of an approued and sounde Religion, whiche coulde not abyde any Images, in the Churches, neither painted nor grauen, nor yet wouen, no not somuche as the Image of Christe. Eras. in catechesi. Saint Hierome liued. In the yeare of our Lorde. 387.
Cornelius Agrippa.Cornelius Agrippa writte of Images on this maner. The vngodlinesse and foolishenesse of the Egyptians concernynge Images was wonderfull. And from them came the lyke fondenesse vntounto all nations, whiche corrupte vsage of Religion of the Heathen,The beginning of our Images. when they began to be conuerted vntounto the fayth of Christe, infected oure Religion also, and brought in our Churche Idolles and Mahomettes, with many pompouse barren Ceremonies of …he whiche those auncient and true Christians knewe nothynge at all. Hereof came it to passe, that we brought into our temples the dumme Images of oure Saintes and set them on Godes altares with greate solemnitie, honour and worship.O abhomination. And where we thynke it an vnsemely thynge for man, whiche is a true Image of God, to come vp, euen there place we dead Idolles, and to them we make curtesye, to them we gyue kysses, to them we offer, to them we gyue gyftes, vppō them we hange precious iewelles, to them wee applye miracles, wee bye par…ons, to them we go on pylgrimage, to them we make vowes, to them we gyue worshippe, and doe all the honoure that can be deuised.Images cause of Idolatrye. And yet can it not be expressed, into howe greate superstition, I wyll not saye Idolatrye, the rude and vnlearned people doe fall thorough Images, the Priestes winkyng at the matter, forasmuche as here of they hauehave no small lucre and aduauntage.
And here they defend thēselues with the wordes of Gregory, The Fāsy of Gregory concerning Images.whiche sayth, that images are the bookes of the rascal and common people, for such to remembre thinges by, and to reade in, as hauehave no learnyng, that when they see them, they may be allured to remember and consider God.
Gods commaūdemēt forbiddeth Images.But these be fonde fantasies of Gregory going about to excuse the matter, although in deede that holye man alloweth ymages and not the worshypping of thē.☞ But the commaundement of God, which plainly forbiddeth images, is farre otherwise. For it becommeth vsus not to learne of the forbidden booke of Images, but of the booke of God, whiche is the boke of the Scriptures. He therfore that desyreth to knowe God, let him not seeke it of the Images of Painters and Keruers,Iohn v. but as Iohn saith, let him searche the Scriptures, whiche beare witnesse of him.Rom. x. And they that can not reade, let them heare the worde of the Scripture.Iohn. x. For Faith,Iohn vi. as Saint Paule saith, commeth by hearyng. And Christ saith in Iohn: My Sheepe heare my voyce. Agayne, if no man (as Christ sayth) can come to him excepte the Father draweth him,Iohn. 14. and no man can come to the Father, but by Christe alone: why take we awaye the glory from God, and geue it to Pictures & Images, as though they were able to bringe vsus vntounto the ryght knowledge of God, &c.