Answer to John De Albines, Answer to discourse · Chapter 2
The II. Chapter.
SAintaThus you are falne from prouing that you are come to your places by the ordinary calling of ſuch as hauehave ri htly ſucceeded one another both in perſon, office & trueth of doctrine, which is the thing you ſhould hauehave proued, to ſhew that there hath alway bene and muſt be a ſucceſſiō of Paſtours to continue & ſettle mē in the truth, which is another point. For though this were graūted you, yet you hauehave not therby wun the other. Paul followeth this diſcourſe in the fourth Chapter vntounto the Epheſiās, where as he doeth declare vntounto vsus, the fruit that doeth proceed of this ſucceſſiō of Paſtours, and of the perſeuerāce of the reaſonable ſheepe in one kinde of ſpirituall doctrine, called the vnity of faith. For he ſayeth, that God eſtabliſhed this order to that ende, that wee ſhould not bee like light children,aThe more is your ſinne, that hauehave ſuffered yourſelues to be caried away frō the truth, by the enticements of Antichriſt. caried away with eueryevery blaſt of falſe doctrine, through the ſubtilitie of men, & their crafty words, full of deceit. In theſe wordes you doe ſee, how the Apoſtle doeth declare vntounto vsus the counſaile & the intentiō of the holy Ghoſt:bIf you had beene conſtant in this faith, wee and you had beene all of one minde, and vnles we can …uſtifie our faith to bee euen ſo grounded as you ſay, we will forſake it, and ioine with you, but if we cā, then you are to forſake yours & to ioine with vsus, if you will anſwere the intention of the holie Ghoſt. I meane, that we ſhould be conſtāt in our faith, the which is groūded vpō the word of God, & interpreted & declared vntounto vsus by the Doctours & Paſtors, that ſucceſſiuely hauehave continued in one kinde of faith & Catholick religion, frō the firſt time that it was preached, with out turning with euerie winde, but rather that we ought to ſtand firme & ſtable. Here is to be noted, that whē the Apoſtle doeth tel, how he hath left vsus paſtors & doctors, to warne vsus of the ſubtletie of falſe teachers, he doth vſe a certaine greeke word very apt for this purpoſe, the which hath in Engliſh the ſignification, of thecI would not you had forgot this note, for it doeth liuely paint out your doctours, which by this their skil in cogging and coſening, doe make the ſcriptures to hauehave a flexible ſence alwaies ſutable to the practiſe of your Romiſh Church. how variable ſo euer that be. playing or cogging at diſe. And euen as he that hath no great ſkill, if he plaie with ſuch a one, he wil ſoone loſe his money, becauſe the other cā caſt what he will: Euē ſo, if a ſimple mā, being vnlearned, doe chāce to talke with ſuch a one as cā cog, or (to ſpeake plainelie) falſly interprete the Scriptures, he may ſoone be deceaued: as we ſee it daily happē to many, that play away & put in hazard the reſt of al their ſpiritual inheritāce, I meane, the faith, which hath bene left to thē by their fathers, frō age to age, ſince Chriſts time. Thus hauehave the Arrians, the Neſtorians, & diuers other heretikes deceiued manie a man, as I will ſhewe more at large hereafter.
The II. Chapter.
IN this ſecond chapter, you obſerue further out of the 4 to ye Ephe. before alleadged, that God eſtabliſhed a miniſtery in his Church, that we ſhould not be like childrē caried away with eueryevery blaſt of vain doctrine, thorow ye ſubtlety of mē, & their crafty words full of deceit: whereupō you inferre, that thereby God hath taught vsus, to be conſtāt in our faith, groūded vpō ye word of God, interpreted & declared vntounto vsus by ye doctors & paſtors, that ſucceſſiuely hauehave cōtinued frō the beginning in ye ſame. Who of vsus euer either wrote, ſpoke, or thought otherwiſe? But herein is your ſubtlety, that you take this ſtil for graūted, which indeed is the maine queſtion betwixt vsus, and for determinatiō wherof on your ſide, you hauehave as yet ſaied nothing, that the faith and religion, which your Synagogue is in poſſeſſiō of is that faith, which you ſpeake of, which we conſtantly deny, affirming ye faith & religion, which we profeſſe, to be that indeede, wherein the Apoſtle would hauehave vsus conſtant and ſetled, and which hath alwaies cōtinued in ye Church, and hath bene taught and iuſtified out of the word writen, by the true paſtors thereof in one place or other, frō time to time. And therfore herein you hauehave ſaied nothing, but ye (we vnderſtanding it of our faith and religion) maketh as much for vsus, as for you. We graūt you alſo, that falſe teachers, and wrong interpreters of the Scriptures, worthily there, may hauehave their ſubtlety expreſſed by a word importing cogging or coſening, but then ſtill we adde, that your teachers a long time hauehave bene the mē, that hauehave vſed, and yet doe vſe that cogging tricke. Which (if it would pleaſe you once by the ſoūd rules of interpreting the ſcriptures, to let your interpretations and ours be examined) we doubt not, but to make moſt manifeſt vntounto all men quickly.