Answer to John De Albines, Answer to discourse · Chapter 32
The XXXII. Chapter.
THere is a certaine miniſter of the Lutherans calledaWhat will not a paſsionate aduerſary ſay, to diſgrace them that he writes againſt? If like teſtimonies of men of your Religion, writing yet, in ſome points one againſt another, wil be admitted, it is an eaſy matter thus to diſcredit your whole faction. Heſhuſius, the which within theſe three yeares hath made a booke againſt Caluin, Peter Boquin, Theodore de Beza, & Gulielmus Elcimalcius: & he ſaieth amongſt other things, that Carolſtadius, Zuenfeldius, Caluin, & Beza doe ſhew well the vncertainty of their faith, by the diuerſities of opinions that there is amongſt thē, the which fault (ſaieth he) doeth proceede of this, that they hauehave forſaken the true ſence of the ſcripture, to follow the opinions of their owne heades.bAnd yet in truth lyeth therein himſelfe. And in that very booke the ſaied authour doeth giuegive the lie to Caluin, becauſe that in that hee wrote againſt the aboue named Weſtphal, hee ſaieth that Martin Luther and his adherents, did acknowledge him as their brother, the which thing he maintaines to be falſe.cGreater & more diſagreement… there are amōgſt you papiſts, and therefore theſe concluſions preſſe you rather then vsus. Thus ſeeing yee agree togither like dogs and cattes, & that all theſe ſects hauehave confirmed their falſe doctrine with the ſhedding of their owne bloud, it is beſt to conclude, as we hauehave ſaied before, that it is not the paine nor the tormēt that doeth make the righteous martyr, except we ſhould ſaie, that diuerſe contrary meſſengers are ſent from one maſter, the which is notoriouſly falſe, for that good king frō whom the trueth doeth come indeede, hath ſo good a memory, that he doeth neuer ſend contrary meſſengers, but rather his faithfull ſeruāts doe all with one voice, and one accord honour him, as the father of our ſauiour Ieſus Chriſt.
The XXXII. Chapter.
HEre againe (as in the former Chapter) you labour to diſcredit Caluin, Beza, and others onelyonly with the teſtimony of Heſhuſius an vtter enemy of theirs, about the quarrel of the cōtrouerſie of the Sacrament, whom heat of contention, and a deſire therefore to diſgrace his aduerſaries, rather then iuſt cauſe, led thus to write. For what reaſon had he there to ioyne Zuenfeldius with Caluin and Beza, with whom they helde no more communion and fellowſhippe, then hee himſelfe, and Corolſtadius, who was a doctour in Wittenberge in Luthers time, and an aſſociate to him in diſputatiō againſt Ecchius, he might with more reaſon hauehave ioyned with Luther himſelfe, and his partners, then with theſe. And howſoeuer the intemperate heate of contention emboldened Heſhuſius, to giuegive Caluin the lie, moſt certaine yet it is, that Melancthon a great frende of Luthers, whom Heſhuſius cannot deny was an adherent of Luther, accounted of Caluin, as of a good brother. For in an Epiſtle which he wrote to him, he calleth him Chariſsim…. fratrem, moſt deare brother (it is the 187. Epiſtle in the booke of Caluins Epiſtles.) And I am perſwaded, that what Caluin wrote, he was able to iuſtify in this behalfe, how rudely ſoeuer angry Heſhuſius gaue him the lie. This obiection of our diſagreement hath beene oft enough vrged and anſwered alreadie. It ſeemeth, that you hauehave great penurie of arguments againſt vsus, when this muſt come in thus often, eſpecially ſeeing (as I hauehave ſhewed) greater contentions hauehave beene amongſt your ſelues. In which caſes would you hauehave thought a mā ſhould hauehave dealt wel with you, if the bitter ſpeeches of the one ſide, had alwaies beene taken as ſufficient argumentes to diſgrace the other? Or would you hauehave liked, that thereupon a man ſhould inferre (as you doe) that you agreed no better, then dogges, and cattes? and that therefore you ſo differing amongſt your ſelues came not both from one maſter, God, who vſeth not to ſende contrary meſſengers: this had beene an harde concluſion againſt a number of you in the time of your ſchiſmes betwixt your Popes, and Antipopes; and in the times of the contentiōs of your Friers with your other Prelates, and alſo amongſt themſelues; whereof I hauehave put you in remembrance before, Chapter twenty eight. And yet if you will needes meate this meaſure vntounto vsus, vponupon occaſion of this one controuerſie about the maner of Chriſts reall preſence, you muſt bee contented, that vponupon moe and greater contentions, amongſt you, wee ſende you home as good meaſure againe. As for your concluſion, that it is not the paine, but the cauſe, that maketh a true martyr, wee graunted it you at the firſt: but where to make way, to bring it in here againe you inſinuate, not onelyonly that the Donatiſts, Adamites, Seruetus, and the Anabaptiſtes (of whom you hauehave ſpoken in your former Chapter) hauehave died to confirme their falſe Religion (which we graunt you) but that theſe alſo, that you ſpake of laſt, Lutherans and Zuenfeldians hauehave done ſo likewiſe; therein your fault is double. For firſt in ſo ſaying you tearme the Religion, for the which they whom you call Caluiniſts and Lutherans died, falſe, which you ſhall neuer be able to proue ſo to be: and ſecondly in ſo ſaying you would ſeeme, to make your Reader beleeue, that amongſt thoſe, whom you call Lutherans, ſome hauehave died euen for the confirmation of their ſingular opinion, wherein they differ from their brethren, whom you call Caluiniſts; and that ſo ſome hauehave died for the confirmation of Zuenfeldius vanities, which is more alſo, then you can proue, I am fully perſwaded.