Brotherly Persuasion to Unity and Uniformity, Tract · Chapter 10
CHAP. 10. Touching the reading of the Apocrypha.
NOw the next is touching the bookes appointing the Apocrypha to be read as it doth, wherein many faults are found alſo, as that they are appointed publikely to be read at all, that they are appointed to be read as Chapters of the holy Scripture of the olde Teſtament, and as more edifying then the Canonicall omitted to giuegive roome for thē, and that often there is a ſpeciall choyſe of them, for certaine ſolemne feaſt daies or holy daies. All which obiections (as I ſayd before) the Deane thē of Cheſter, now L. Biſhop of Rocheſter, (no man then or there finding any fault with that his anſwer, in the conference before his Maieſtie) ſhewed was needleſſe, becauſe by the preface ſet before the ſecond volume of homilies (which is by order of our Church allowed & authorized aſwell as the booke, and indeed publiſhed ſince the bookes firſt authoriſing in the yeare 1563. and therefore euen by that circumſtance more likely and fit to ſerue in this point to explane the meaning of the booke,) the miniſter is exhorted to wey and to read his Chapters priuatly before he come to read them publickly, and thereupon, if in his diſcretion he thinke it fitter and more to edification, to read a chapter of the new for any that is appointed of the old, then ſo to do. And indeed this being euen ſo (as any man may ſee it is in that place) in that thereby he is ſo left to his diſcretion to change any chapter appointed to be read of the old, and therefore thereby ſome times may ſo do with a canonicall chapter, what reaſon hath any man to thinke, but that hee may ſo do alſo with the Apocrypha? or who can truly ſay that euer yet any miniſter was troubled for his quietly and peaceably taking and vſing his liberty herein? you heard alſo before, what the ſame reuerend man truly reported to hauehave been ſaid by his Maieſtie in the foreſaide conference, touching the omitting the reading of any apocrypha chapter, that iuſtly might be charged with any fault, croſſing the canonicall, Page. 63. of his report thereof, ſince in print. Further, certaine it is that Doctor Abbots Deane of Ʋ Ʋinchester, one called alſo to the foreſaid conference and then vice chauncellor of Oxenford, in his anſwere of late publiſhed againſt Doctor Hill. Page. 317: vrgeth againe the direction of the ſaid preface, to the ſecond booke of Homilies, publiſhed by authoritie 1563, whereas the booke was authoriſed ſome foure yeares before, to proue that the miniſter by warrant from thence, may lawfully in ſtead of any of the Apocryphall Chapters appointed to be read on ſundaies and holy dayes, and therefore much more as hee ſaith vponupon the working dayes, as he in his wiſedome and iudgmēt, ſhall think fit, vſing prudence and diſcretion in that behalfe, read other canonicall leſſons, and ſo likewiſe others in print, hauehave anſwered this obiection ſince (as it ſhould ſeeme with the good liking and allowance of them that be in authority, which being ſo all the branches of this obiection, are euen thereby quite cut of, as alſo all the hard conſequents & imputations by reaſon therof impoſed vponupon the booke, or the order thereof, ſo farr as conformity is vſe and practiſe therunto reach, are vtterly remoued, eſpecially ſeeing alſo in the preface of the booke, it is ſaid that nothing is therby appointed to bee read, out eyther the pure word of god, or that which is euidētly groū ded thereupon, and the late Archbiſhop, as plainly refuſes to defend any thing allowed thereby, to be read, not grounded vponupon the word of God: Page. 720. of his foreſaid booke. But ſuppoſe the worſt, namly that it be not, or were not ſo, or if it had beene ſo, that now yet by better view of the Callender, for the order in this reſpect in Auguſt, and by the canons, it were taken away, as ſome alleadge (though looking thereinto, and as ſeriouſly conſidering therof as I can, I find nothing to lead any man iuſtly to think, that in that regard the caſe is any thing altered, or otherwiſe then it was before) yet though by the booke we be tyed neuer ſo ſtrictly to read them, yet we are not therby bound to iuſtifie them to be faultleſſe, neither do we, for likewiſe by the ſaid booke, by a certaine rubrick in the treatiſe of the communion, wee allow ſermons to be made, and if we read not a homily, wee ſhould preach, & yet we therby do not iuſtifie all ſermons made according to that order, alwaies to bee without all faults, but ſurely moſt, if not all the ſuppoſed faults againſt them, that by the book are appointed to be read, by fauourable conſtruction, would bee much leſſened, if not quite remoued. And in that by the very expreſſe order of our booke, wee are both before, & after we read them, to note out of what booke eueryevery chapter thereby appointed to be read, is taken, and in the ſixt article of the booke of articles publiſhed firſt & concluded on, in conuocation. 1562, which was three yeares after the booke was firſt authoriſed, all the Apocrypha bookes are apparently ſeuered from the canonicall, & there further it is ſaid, that as Hierom faith, the Church doth read them for example, of life & inſtruction of manners, yet it doth not apply them to eſtabliſh therby any doctrine, it is moſt euident, howſoeuer they are appointed to be read and ſome canonicall omitted, and on ſome ſolemne feaſt daies, and holy daies, and as chapters of the holy ſcriptures, or of the old Teſtament, that yet by none of theſe, or all theſe together may wee, or can wee gather, without doing the Church of England manifeſt wrong, that euer it was or is her meaning to equall them, much leſſe to make them in dignity or in edifiing ſuperiour to any of the canonicall, but rather indeed all theſe notwithſtanding, her meaning and deſire is, that euerie one ſhould know that they are but Apocrypha chapters, and therefore farre inferiour to any of the caconicall, eſpecially wee hauing acquainted our people as we ſhould which bee canonicall bookes, and which bee apocrypha, teaching them euen by their names to know and diſcerne them. In common charity therefore wee are bound whenſoeuer either in the booke or in the Homilies, they are ſaid either to be Chapters of the old Teſtament or holy Scripture, to conceiue (whereas holy ſcriptures, or old Teſtament, are taken either according to the vulgar and common ſpeech, for all that commonly is wont to bee bound togither in Bibles with the holy ſcriptures of the old teſtament, or more properly and ſtrictly, for thoſe onelyonly bookes therof, that we are ſure were written by ſuch direction of the holy ſpirit, that preſerued the writers thereof, from all erring therein, which therefore onelyonly wee count and call canonicall) in ſo ſpeaking of them, that the ſaid books ſpeake, and therefore are to be vnderſtood ſo to do, onelyonly in the former ſenſe. And when therein there is compariſon made betwixt chapters of the old teſtament of leſſe, and more edifying, we can not, for the foreſaid manifeſt difference acknowledged to be by our Church betwixt all the canonicall bookes of the old Teſtament, and all the Apocrypha euen in that reſpect, vnderſtand it to be betwixt any canonicall appointed to be read or not read, and the Apocrypha ſet down to be read, but only betwixt the canonicall appointed thereby to be read, and thoſe that are not. And looking into the Kallender for proper leſſons for ſundaies and holy daies, in that therby I find none but canonicall appointed for the ſundaies, and Apocrypha often for Saints daies, I alwaies hauehave taken it, that euen thereby our churches meaning was, plainly to giuegive vsus all to vnderſtand, that as ſhee in her regard and eſtimation preferres the Lords daie, before all other holy daies, ſo ſhe would hauehave vsus euen by this order to ſee, that ſo ſhe preferred the canonicall, before the Apocrypha, in worth, credit and dignity: but ſuppoſe the compariſon ſhold by the booke be meant of certaine chapters of the Apocrypha; it is ſo, for that the ſame are wholy conſonant with the canonicall, and are more now to our edification, then the canonicall, either for their hardneſſe, or for that now they doe not ſo much concerne vsus. theſe things therefore wayed indifferently, and with mindes rather ſeeking to be ſatiſfied, where iuſtly they may, then needleſly ſtill to keepe ſtones, and blocks in their way to ſtumble at, I truſt the force of this obiection is ſo remoued alſo, that henceforth it will ſtay none that duly conſidereth hereof, from peacably yeelding, this notwithſtanding, to conforme themſelues to the vſe and practiſe of the booke.