The Sacrament of the Lords Supper, Title page – Preface
A discourse or traictise of Petur Martyr Uermilla Florētine, the publyque reader of diuinitee in the Uniuersitee of Oxford wherin he openly declared his whole and determinate iudgemente concernynge the Sacrament of the Lordes supper in the sayde Uniuersitee.
The Right Honble Charles Viscount Bruce of Ampthill (Son and Heir Apparent of Thomas Earl of Ailesbury) and Baron Bruce of Whorleton 1712
¶ To the right honourable Sir Wylliam Parre knight, Lord Parre, Erle of Essex, Marquesse of Northampton, Lorde great Chamberlaine of Englande, and Knight of the moste noble ordre of ȳ … Garter, Nicolas Udall wisheth grace and peace in Christ, with helthe honour and longe prosperitee.
PErusyng of late righte honourable and my synguler good Lorde, a certayne discourse of the righte excellente Clerke Petur Martyr wryten in Latin concerning the Sacramente of the bodye and bloud of Christ, whiche is of the Gr…kes called Eucha…istia, because it pertayneth to the remembraunce of his moste tendre goodnesse in redemyng the worlde, and to rendreyng of perpetuall thankes vntounto hym therfore: I confesse I was with the sayde treatise woondrefully rauished. For first and formost wheras by reason of innumerable abuses, detestable erroures and foule abominacions through the crafty conueighaūce of the purpurate whore of Babylon by litel & litell conueyghed into the Churche, there is no poynet concerninge oure religion, so ferre entrieked or darkned as the mist…rie of this …acrament: this wryter throughe his singuler gifte of grace, his right profounde learnynge, and his highe iudgemente aswell in the scriptures, as also in the doctours, and in the generall councell wadeth so depein searchyng and boultyng out the trueth of this mat…er, that he maketh it so clere so plaine and so eu…dent to all mennes y…es whiche either can or wyl see that neither there can now be any ferther doubtyng of the veritee, and trueth of thys sacramente. What it is nor any more bee saied for the right institucion and ordre therof how it should be vsed. Wherfore me thought I could not better employ or bestow my trauaill then in translatynge this tractise into the Englyshe tounge, to thentente that so profytable a thinge might not bee hiddden from the people, which hauynge bothe an earnest zele to enbrace the trueth: and a readye wille to folowe the kynges maiestees moste godly procedynges, are muche hindred, and kept backe from their desire, partelye through ignoraunce because thei are not duely enstructed & taught th…rin, and partely through the malice of the moste peruerse Papistycall leaueners of Chystes doctryne whiche to mainteyne theyr owne luc…e and glorye, ceasse not as Antechrystes owne trustie knyghtes to weorke as muche as in theym lyeth, that the symple people maye styll continue in blyndenesse and errour. But all prayse, all thankes, all laude and glorye be vntounto oure moste louynge heauenly father and to hys onelye begotten sonne Iesus Chryste oure lord, with the holy ghoste proceding from theim both, who hauehave i… these oure dayes so opened the yies of the worlde, that not onelyonly the iugleyng sleyghtes of the Romysh Babylon be so throughly espyed that they can no longer deceiue: and hir moste cruell tyrannye so vanquyshed, that she maye nowe no longer reygne in Chrysten peoples consciences as she hath by goddes sufferaunce for oure synfulnesse many longe yeres dooen. Neither is it possible that the excedynge mercye and fauour of god towardes this royalme of Englande maie more euidently appere, then it is by these two tokens folowinge declared, the one that it hath pleased him by his moste puissaunt and mightefull arme to deliuer vsus oute of the bondage of this Romishe Egipte, ferre passinge the yoke & seruitude whyche the children of Isarel suffred vnderunder Pharao, and the other, that of his espiciall grace he hath vouchesalued to open the yies of oure hertes that we maye see the trueth, and to giuegive vntounto thys royalme the righte knowelege concernynge thys moste holy sacramente whiche the subtille and craftie illusyon of Sathan by the instrumente of the saide purpurate whoore of Babylon had made of a moste pure fountayne of water springinge vp into euerlastinge life, a foule stynking puddle of idolatrie and supersticyon to endelesse damnacyon: of a most precious and heauen iewel, a most vile and deyulyshe abominacyon: of a moste comfortable medycyne, a most deadly, & present poyson. Blissed therfore be the name of the lord our god for euer & euer, who of his infynite mercy & botomlesse goodnesse hath cast his most fauourable yie vpō this royalme of Englād, illumining the hertes of the same most gladly and cherefully to enbrace his ghospell, and giuing vsus to ou…e Kinge suche a Godlye Iosyas as in his tender yeares of childehoode neither forgeateth ne ceasseth with the moste feythfull aduise and trustie assistence of his moste noble & sapient Counsaylours to trauayle aswell that the woorde of God maye bee syncerely and purelye set foorthe and taughte vntounto all his moste derely beloued subiectes, as also that this sacramente of the Lordes body and bloude maye bee reduced to the right vse accordyng to the first institucion therof in the primatiue Churche. And forasmuch as the whole processe of this discourse is bothe consonaunt vntounto the worde of God that it cannot be doubted of, but that it is true, and also so iustely agreynge with the kinges Maiestees moste godly procedinges that the people maye by readyng or hearyng herof be throughly satisfied and perswaded vniuersally to enbrace and folow the other. I thinke it (as I hauehave said) a weorke right expedient and necessary to be hadde in the Englishe toungue aswell for the instruction of suche as can reade, as also for the helpe of some good persones & curates, whiche though they hauehave a good zele & forwardnes to set forth ye kīges maiesties most christian procedynges: yet for defaulte of sufficiente learnyng (the more is the pietee) are not of themselues hable neither throughly to enstructe their flocke of all the trueth, nor to satisfy the ignoraunt in suche doubtfull cases or questions, as maye haplye aryse aboute this matier, nor finally to stoppe the mouthes of sedicious Papistes, or of suche as are malicious and indurate enemies againste the pure doctrine of Christes ghospell. And althoughe in treactynge of suche hygh matiers it can not bee auoided but that by reason of some schoole termes or argumentes there must nedes bee many thynges, that maye seme to passe the capacitee and vnderstanding of the vnlettred sorte: yet is not suche a notable good weorke as this discourse of Petur Martyr or as his disputacions vponupon the same matier therfore to bee suppressed or kepte (as it wer) hidden vnderunder the bushel. For yf no booke should bee sette foorth but suche as eueryevery bodye yea euen of the vnlearned and grosse multitude mighte bee hable to vnderstande whan they heare it or reade it: than what should Chauncer, Goore, Lidgate and others doe abrode, whom some euen of the learned sorte doe in some places scarcely take? than were it vayne to set foorthe Chronicles or statutes in whiche is bothe a great noumbre of wordes, and also muche matier not easie to be perceyued of eueryevery body: than wer it laboure loste to sette foorthe in Englyshe bookes of seruice and homelies vntounto the grosse and rusticall multitude, whose capacite is not hable to conceiue that is in them conteined than wer it vayn to hauehave translated and sette foorth the bible in Englyshe to the vulgare people, and moste vain to reade it in the Churches, forasmuche as a greate noumbre of thynges whiche the symple ignoraunt people rede and heare thereout, are ferre aboue the …eache of theyr grosse vnderstandynge. But all suche good and godly bookes as wel of holy wryte as of other profane argumentes, are to this entente sette foorth and published, that euerye bodye maye be edifyed as ferre foorth as hys capacyte wyll serue. And lyke as wythout any reading or hearynge at all, they shoulde continue euermore blynde and ignoraunt: so by continuall readynge and hearing the vnlearned & simple maie take enstructiōs & from dai to day procede & growe in knowelage till at laste they shall by due vse and excercise, be hable to vnderstande as muche as shall bee necessarye or expediēt for thē. Now this boke I hauehave laboured to make as plain as I could do, & therfor in som places I hauehave either altered or leaft ye scoole termes whych otherwise would hauehave made the thing more derke, & brought it as nere I could to the familiar phrase of English speakyng, or els hauehave added suche circumstaunce of other woordes, as might declare it & make it plain. Wherfore thoughe for the cause abouesaide I maie seme in some places to hauehave somewhat swerued from the precise woordes of the latin booke: Yet I trust it shall to the fauourable and indifferent reader appere that I hauehave not any thynge degressed from the autours mynde. Now as we commonly see that men where thei thinke themselues endoubted or boundē, though thei can not fully requitte or deserue the manifold benefices that thei hauehave receiued yet (as the nature and duetie of thankfulnesse byndeth them) thei will not be negligent …o gratifye their beneficiall patrones or frē des with suche simple tokens of their good mindes as lyeth in their power, (as the fermer to present his landlorde with some porcion of the fruictes that god sendeth hym, and the poore widowe hir patrone with a dishe of apples cheries or suche lyke:) so can not I but thynke my selfe moste bounden wyth some of the simple fruictes of mi pore studies to presēt your lordship my singuler & espiciall good patrone, trustynge that forasmuche as there is as Cicero saieth a certaine kynde of lyberalitee euen in takyng, ye will wyth no lesse cherfulnesse accepte these my simple labours dedicated vntounto you, then ye hauehave been accustomed to geue the manifold benifites whiche I hauehave at your lordeshipes handes receiued. And thus I shall commende thesame my labours vntounto youre lordshippes patronage and proteccion and your selfe vntounto the lordes tuicion as sone as I shal hauehave aduertised you of the processe that Martir foloweth in this weorke, whiche is that firste he bryngeth in the schoole Doctoures and all that euer maie bee saied for transubstantiation as strongly as is possible to bee reasoned, and as muche as can bee alleged for it. Than bringeth he in the reasons suche as he thinketh good, both out of the fyrst Scriptures, and generall Counceile, and also oute of the Doctoures to confirme his owne opinion against transubstantiacion. Thirdely he confuteth and soilleth al the argumentes and reasons of the schoolemen and Popishe writers one by one, in ordre as thei were propouned and this doth he so clearkely, so profoundly, and so pitthilye, that no man can saie more Beseching therfore youre Lordeship yf any default or lacke bee, to impute it rather to myne insufficiencie in translatinge it, then to the authoure in wrytinge it, I will no longer with hold thesame frō the hearinge of Martyr himselfe speake, who shal more delighte and edifie you then my penne maye dooe.