Brief Discourse of the Troubles at Frankfort, Part 2
The anſwere and Iudgemente off that famous and excellent lerned man Maiſter Iohn Caluin the late Paſtor off Geneua / touchinge the Booke off Englande after that he had peruſed the ſame faithfully translated owte off Latten by maiſter Whittingham.
To the godly and lerned men Maiſter Iohn Knox / and Maiſter William Whittingham / his faithfull brethern at Frankford &c.
THis thinge trulie greuethe me very muche / and it is a great ſhame that contention ſhulde ariſe amonge brethern baniſhed and driuen owte of their countrie for one faithe / and for that cauſe whiche onelyonly ought to hauehave holden yow bounde together as it were withe an holy bande in this your diſperſion. For what might yow do better in this dolorous and miſerable plage / then (beinge pulled violently from your countrie) to procure your ſelues a church / whiche ſhulde receiue ād nouriſhe yow (beinge ioyned together in mindes and languadge) in her motherly lappe. But nowe for ſome men to ſtriue as touchinge the forme off praier and for Ceremonies as though ye were at reſte and proſperitie / and to ſuffer that to be an impedimente that ye cannot there ioyne in to one body off the churche (as I think) it is to muche owte off ſeaſon.
Yet notwithſtanding / I allowe their conſtancie whiche ſtriue for a iuſte cauſe beinge forced againſte their willes vntounto contention. I do worthely condemne frowardnes / whiche dothe hinder and ſtaie the holye carefullnes of reforminge the churche.
And as I behaue myſelff gentle and tractable in meane things (as externall ceremonies) So doo I not alwaies iudge it profitable / to geue place to their foliſhe ſtowtenes / whiche will forſake nothinge off their oulde wonted cuſtome. In the liturgie off Englande / I ſe that there were manye tollerable fooliſhe thinges / by theis wordes I meane / that there was not that puritie whiche was to be deſired.Many tollerable fooliſhe things in the book by Caluins iudgement. Theis vices / thoughe they coulde not at the firſte daie be amended / yet / ſeinge there was no manifeſte impetie / they were for a ſeaſon to be tollerated. Therfore / it was lawfull to begin off ſuche rudimentes or abſedaries / but ſo / that it behoued the lerned / graue / and godly miniſters off Chriſte to enterpriſe farther / and to ſetfoorthe ſome thinge more filed from ruſte / and purer. Yf godly Religion had floriſhed till this daie in Englande / there ought to hauehave bin a thinge better corrected and manie thinges cleane taken awaie Nowe / when theis principles be ouer throwne / a churche muſte be ſet vp in an other place / where ye maie freely make an order againe / whiche ſhall be apparent to be moſte commoditious to the vſe and edification off the churche. I cannot tell what they meane whiche ſo greatly delite in the leauinges off Popiſhe dregges. They louelove the thinges wherunto they are accuſtomed. Firſte off all / this is a thinge bothe triflinge and Childiſhe.The booke trifling and Childiſhe by Caluins iudgement. furthermore / this newe order farre differeth from a chaunge.
Therfore / as I woulde not hauehave yow feirſe ouer them whoſe infirmitie will not ſuffer to aſcend an higher ſteppe: ſo woulde I aduertiſe other / that they pleaſe not them ſelues to muche in their fooliſhnes. Alſo / that by their frowardnes / they doo not let the courſe off the holie buildinge. Laſte off all / leaſt that fooliſhe vaine glorie ſteale them awaie. For what cauſe hauehave they to contende / excepte it be for that they are aſhamed to geue place to better thīges. But I ſpeake in vaine to them whiche perchaunce eſteeme me not ſo well / as they will vouchſaffe to admitt the conſaile that commethe from ſuche an authour. If they feare the evell rumor in Englande / as though they had fallen from that Religion which was the cauſe off their baniſhment / they are farre deceiued for this true and ſincere Religion / will rather compell them that theire remaine / faithfully to conſider in to what deepe gulff they hauehave fallen For there downefall ſhall more greuouſly wounde them / when they perceyue your goinge forewarde beionde mid courſe / from the whiche they are turned.
Fare ye well dearely beloued brethern / and faithfull ſeruants off Chriſte. the Lorde defende and gouerne yow from Geneua this 20. off Ian. Anno. 1555. Your Iohn Caluin
WHen this letter of Caluins was redd to them of the congregation / it ſo wrought in the hartes off many / that they were not before ſo ſtowte to maintaine all the partes off the boke off England as afterward they were bent againſt it. But nowe to returne. Whiles theſe things were in doyinge / the congregation (as yow hauehave harde afore) coulde not agree vponupon anie certeine order / till after longe debatinge to and fro / it was concluded / that maiſter Knox / maiſter Whittingham / Maiſter Gilby / Maiſter Fox and Maiſter T. Cole ſhulde drawe forthe ſome order meete for their ſtate and time: whiche thinge was by them accompliſhed and offred to the congregation (beinge the ſame order off Geneua whiche is nowe in print) This order was verie well liked off many / but ſuche as were bent to the booke off Englande coulde not abide it / yea / cōtention grewe at lenght ſo hot / and the one partye which ſought ſinceritie / ſo ſore charged / with newfanglednes and ſingularitie and to be the ſtirrers of cōtention and vnquietnes / The humblenes of Gilby and his godly zeelethat Maiſter Gilby with a godly grieff (as well apeared) kneled downe before them and beſought them (withe teares) to reforme their iudgementes / ſolemelie proteſtinge / that (in this matter) they ſought not themſelues / but onelyonly the glorie off god / as he was verely perſwaded / wiſhinge farther that that hande whiche he then helde vp were ſtricken of if by that a godly peace and vnitie might enſue and followe. In thende an otherwaie was taken by the congregation / whiche was / that maiſter Knox and maiſter whittingham / Maiſter parry and Maiſter leauer ſhulde deuiſe ſome order yff it might be / to ende all ſtriff and contention.The modeſtie of Knox
Thies 4. aſſembled for that purpos. And firſt / Maiſter Knox ſpake to the reſte in this wiſe. For ſo muche / (ſaithe he) as I perceiue / that no ende of cōtention is to be hoped for / vnleſſe the one parte ſomethinge relent / this will I doo for my parte / that quietnes maie inſue. I will ſhewe my iudgement howe (as I think) it maie be beſte for the edification off this poore flocke / whiche if ye will not accepte / nor followe (after that I hauehave diſcharged my conſcience) I will ceaſe and cōmit the whole matter to be ordered by yow as yow will anſwere before Chriſt Ieſus at the laſte daie / and to this his congregation in this liffe / &c. Wherupon after ſome conference / an order was agreed vpō: ſome parte takē forthe of the Engliſhe booke and other things put to / as the ſtate of that churche required.
And this order by the conſent of the cōgregation ſhulde continewe to the laſte of Aprill folowing.This order was taken the 6. off Feb. yff anie contention ſhulde ariſe in the meane time / the matter then to be determined by theis S. notable lerned mē / to wete / Caluin / Muſculus Martyr / Bullinger / and Vyret. This agremente was put in wrytinge. To that all gaue their conſentes. This daie was ioyfull. Thanckes were geuē to God / brotherly reconciliation folowed / great familiaritie vſed / the former grudges ſeemed to be forgotten. Yea the holie communion was vppon this happie agremente / alſo miniſtred. And this frindſhipp continued till the 13.D. Cox with others come to Frankf. off March folowinge / at whiche tyme. D. Coxe and others with him came to Frankford owte off Englande / who began to break that order whiche was agreed vppon / firſte in anſweringe alowde after the miniſter / contrary to the churches determination / and beinge admoniſhed theroff / by the Seniors off the congregation / he / with the reſt that came withe him made anſwere / that they woulde do as they had donne in Englande / and that they would hauehave the face off an Engliſh churche. And the ſundaie folowinge / one off his company withowt the conſent and knowledg off the congregation gate vpp ſuddainly into the pulpit / redd the lettany / and D. Cox withe his companie anſwered alowde / wherby the determination off the churche was broken. The ſame ſundaie at after noone it came to maiſter Knox his turne to preache / who hauinge paſſed ſo farre in Gen. that he was come to Noah as he laie open in his tente / he ſpake theis wordes folowinge.
Theffecte of Knox ſermon.As diuers thinges (ſaithe he) ought to be kepte ſecret / euen ſo ſuche thinges as end to the diſhonor off God and diſquieting of his churche ought to be diſcloſed and openly reproued. And therupon he ſhewed / howe that after longe trouble and contention amonge them / a godly agremente was made / and howe that the ſame / that daie was vngodly broken / whiche thinge / became not (as he ſaied) the prowdeſt off them all to hauehave attēpted / alleadginge furthermore that like as by the worde off God we muſte / ſeeke oure warrant for the eſtabliſhing off religion / and withowt that to thruſte nothinge into anie Chriſtian congregation: ſo for as muche as in the Engliſhe booke were thinges bothe ſuperſtitious / vnpure / and vnperfect (which he offred to proue before all men) he would not conſent that off that churche it ſhulde be receiued / and that in caſe men woulde go abowte to burthen that free congregation therwith / ſo ofte as he ſhulde come in that place (the texte offringe occaſion) he woulde not faile to ſpeak againſte it.
He farther affirmed that amonge manye thinges whiche prouoked godds anger againſte Englāde / ſlacknes to reforme religion (when tyme and place was graunted) was one. And therfore it became them to be circūſpecte / howe they laid their foundation. And where ſome men aſhamed not to ſaie / that there was no let or ſtopp in Englande / but that Religion might be / and was already brought to perfection / he proued the contrary / by the wante off diſcipline. Alſo by the troubles which maiſter Hooper Suſtained / for the Rochet and ſuch like / in the booke commanded and allowed.
And for that one man was permitted to hauehave 3.4. or 5. benefices to the great ſlaunder off the goſpell and defraudinge off the flock off Chriſte off their liuely foode and ſuſtenaunce. Theſe were the chieff notes off his ſermon / whiche was ſo ſtomaked off ſome / eſpecially off ſuche as had many liuinges in Englande / that he was verye ſharplie charged / and reproued ſo ſoone as he came owte off the pulpit / for the ſame.
The tweſdaie folowinge / D. Cox ſharply rebuked him.was appointed to talke off thies thinges more at large. When all were aſſembled earneſte requeſte was made that D. Coxe with his companie might be admitted to hauehave voices in the congregation. Anſwere was made by others that the matter yet in controuerſie amonge them / ought firſte to be determined / Secōdly / that they ſhuld ſubſcribe to diſcipline as others had don before them / But that they refuſed, and at lenght ouer threw yt.and farther yt was greatly ſuſpected that they had byn (ſome off them) at maſſe in Englande / and others had ſubſcribed to wicked articles / as one off them ſhortly after euen in the pulpit ſorowfully confeſſed. For theis conſiderations and ſuche like / The congregation withſtoode the admiſſion off D. Coxe and his companie▪ Knox'at …aſte / began to make intretie that they might hauehave their …o…ces amonge the reſte / M. Iewell.to whoſe requeſte when certeine had yelded / they then became the greater parte and ſo were by them admitted as members off the churche. They thus admitted / by the moſte parte. D. Coxe foorthwith forbad Knox to meddle anye more in that congregation.
The nexte daie beinge wenſdaie / whittingham wente to Maiſter Iohn Glauburge (who was the chieff meane in obtaininge the churche) and brake the matter vntounto him / Knox putowt by thoſe which he brought in.declaringe / howe that certeine / nowe come owte off Englande had forbidden their miniſter apointed / to preache that daie / and intended to ſet vpp an other / whiche he dowted woulde not be well taken. And therfore / leaſte anie inconuen…ence ſhulde happe / he thought good to make him priuie therto. Wherupon the ſaied Magiſtrat ſent immediatlie and gaue cōmaundement that ther ſhulde be no ſermon that daie. Afterwarde he ſent for Valeran the frenche Miniſter / commaundinge him that 2. lerned men ſhulde be appointed off either parte / and that he and they ſhulde conſulte and agree vppon ſome good ordre / and to make report vntounto him accordingly. Then were apointed D. Cox and leuer off the one ſide and knox and wh…ttingham on the otherſide To decide the matter. Valeran was appointed to put downe in writinge what they ſhulde agree vponupon. But when in this conference / they came to the order off Mattins and that D. Coxe ſaide / Ego volo habere, there coulde be no agrement amonge them / and ſo brake off / wherupon the congregation drew vp a ſupplication in latten and preſented it to the ſaied maiſter Glauburge requeſtinge him to be a meane that the ſame might be conſidered off amonge the Senators. The Engliſhe wheroff was as folowethe.