Christs Victory over Satans Tyranny, Book 11 · Part 2
His second examination.
L. Chan.
TEll me, wilt thou returne to the Catholike Church … all the Realme, and receiue mercy?
Rog.
Before I could not tell what this merciemercy meant, but now … it is a mercy of the Antichristian Church of Rome, which I vtterly refuse: and your rising from error which you speak of, is a very falling into error. I can proue the doctri…e which I preach by the Scriptures, and the fathers that liued vntill foure hundred years after Christ: he answered, I was a priuate man, and was not to be heard, nor to be permitted to proue whether the whole realme had done right or wrong, when the Parlament had concluded a thing: I answered, no lawes of man must rule the word of God, but they all must be iudged therby, and obey therto; and neither my conscience nor any Christian mans conscience could be satisfied with such lawes as did disagree from that word.
Then I was asked of the reall presence in the Sacrament: I said I could not vnderstand really and substantially, but corporally, and corporally Christ is only in heauen, a…d cannot be corporally in the sacrament also.
When definitiue sentence was read against him, the Lord Chancellor sayd. I was in the great curse; what a vengable dangerous matter it were to eate and drink with vsus accursed, or to giuegive vsus any thing: for they that so did should be partakers of the same great curse.
Well my Lord, quoth I, I neuer willingly taught false doctrine, and therefore hauehave a good conscience before God and men, and I shall be found a true member of the Catholike Church of Christ, and euerlastingly saued: you néed not excommunicate me from your Church, the Lord be thanked I hauehave not been in …t this twentie yeares: now you hauehave done what you can▪ I am sure you and I shall appeare before Christ, and then I shall be as good a man as you.
Then I earnestly desired my wife might com to me whilst I liued: for we hauehave ten children, and … would counsaile her what is best for her to do, which he would not grant, saying that she was none of my wife.
Then I hauehave tried all your charity, said I: you make your selfe highly displeased with marriage of priests, but you maintaine open whoredome; in Wales eueryevery Priest hath his whore openly, and so the Pope suffereth all the Priests in the Low-countries and France to do the like.
He prophesied truly of the destruction of Papistrie shortly in England, and the dispersed English flock of Christ shall be brought againe into their former estate, or better then in K. Edwards time, and the bloudy Babylonicall Bishop, and the whole crown-shorn company brought to vtter shame and destruction: for God wil not suffer their abominable lying and false doctrine, bloud-thirst, whordom, idlenes and poysoned stomacks which they beare towards poore and miserable Christians: some of them shall hauehave their iudgement in this world, and they that doe escape in this world, shall not escape in the world to come euerlasting damnation: this shall be your sauce, O yee wicked Papists, make merry as long as you may; and hee exhorted the faithfull to be carefull then to displace Papists, and to put good ministers into cures, or else your end will be worse then ours.
As he came to the fire he sang Miserere by the way: all the people wonderfully reioyced at his constancy: whilst he was burning he wash: his hands in the flame: his pardon was brought him at the stake, which he refused: he was the first martyr in Quéen Maries time that gaue first aduenture vponupon the fire.