The Reckoning and Declaration of Faith and Belief, Title page – Translator to the reader
¶ The rekenynge and declaracion of the fayth and belefe of Huldrike zwyngly / byshoppe of ziiryk the chefe town of Heluetia / sent to Charles .v. that nowe is Emproure of Rome: Holdynge a parlement or Counsayll at Ausbrough with the chefe Lordes and lerned men of Germanye, The yere of our Lorde M.D.xxx. In the monethmonth of Iuly.
¶Come ye to me all that labour / and are laden: and I shall refreshe you.
Mathe. xi.
¶The veryte wyll hauehave the victory: Presse ye it downe neuer so strongly.
¶Translated and Imprynted at ziiryk in Marche. Anno Do. M.D.XLVIII.
¶The Preface of the translatour, vntounto the reader.
WHen I had chaūced vponupon this Rekening of the fayth of this so excelently lerned & godly flok feder, euē the good heerdman / that set his lyfe for his shepe, and had seen it not yet vntounto this daye to be confuted nor dampned of any christen l…rned man, but as it was then openly exhybited vntounto the Emprours Maieste, and to his noble lerned counsell, so stondeth it styll yet vntowched with any iuste contradiccion of holye scriptures: I coulde not but thynke this his fayth to be christen & catholyk, word thy for the glory of god & profyt of his churche to be translated into many tongues, that many mought read it with frute. Vvherfore s…th… England (as they say) be many hyghly lerned Byshopes and lawers in the speculatiue, but fewe in pract…k diuinite sharpe in naturall, but dull in spiritual iugement: me thoughte it conuenient, the boke to be translated into theyr mother tongue, that yet at the least the lerned in christ myght iuge therof and saye theyr myndes. And for because therbe many laye men of better iugement & knowlege then the speculatyue priestes and prelats for all theyr latine and greke to, therfore, here haste thou it (Oh laye reader) whiche only knowest but the Englisshe tongue, that euē thy selfe myghtest also with thy Englysshe Byble frelye trye and iuge it, as the apostle byddeth the proue all thynges, & holde yt at good is.i. The… sala. …. And Ihon̄ bydddeth the proue the spirit… whether they be of god. But se …hat the scriptures be euer thy towche stone and (as Ag…sten teacheth) fayth and louelove to trye all mēnes wrytinges. And beware thou beeste none of th…m vntounto whom (a… is sayde Psalm lxxii…) all thynges stynke, but onlye those which theyr selues thorowe malyce and arrogancie speake or wryte, yea and that so prow…lye: Many there are also amonge this saye sorte whiche be yet w…ake ignorant, and in doubte what they shall beleue: & in ye more doubte, for that they heare suche deuers…e of preching one agaynst another, such cōtr…iccion amōge them that shuld be lerned & wise. They se also daylye newe articles of theyr fayth, made of newe bysshops in theyr newe bokes of newe institucions: they se them confyrmed with non autorite of the olde fayth & olde Scriptures, but violētly thrust in with autorite of newe actes & swerde, as thoughe hitherto the church of england had from the begynnynge erred in the fayth, destituted so longe and many yeres these newe articles & latelyer founde fayth, whiche new inconstancye and inconstant nouite / nowe makynge to morowe marryng, this yere enactyng the next vnactynge, this daye to be kept worke daye, the next yere the same to be kept holy and ydle, and such lyke of rokes, hares & pertriche. The symple people (I say) s…yng this incōstācy, no merueyle though they can not tell whom nor what they maye beleue Not longe a go it was heresye and treason to, the scriptures to be had in Englysshe, and nowe (god be thanked) the hole Byble is prynted oft & turned & redde of many lay men, yea & that with priuilege. And yet they which made the testamēt in Englysshe once treason & heresy, and for hauyng and readyng it they brent and prysoned many a godly innocent soule, nowe alowynge the …ame with penne, hande, and mouth for godly and profytable to christes Churche, neuer vntounto this day hauehave they founde the tyme to repent them opē ly of theyr open abhomynable blody murther nor yet in open pulpettes to recante theyr owne false doctryn & open iniqu…te. But the Lorde …e to it, & be theyr iudge requiring this tyranny at theyr hādes.i Parai. xxiiii. Amen. To stablishe therfore (good christen reader) thy faith, and to setle it in peace (all wauerīg set a ꝑte) thou haste here the rekeninge of this godly lerned Byshopes fayth confermed with the moste meghtye olde and ferme testimonies not of mennes actes and counsels / but of the euerlastyng holy scriptures / that where as hitherto for the diuersite of mennes opinions and sondry prechyng and teching without gods worde / many hauehave ben in doubte and ygnoraūce: now yf thou diligently readest this lytle boke / thou shalte be certifyed and taughte playnly and truly the fayth in one God and iii. persons in trinite. And howe the seconde person consisteth of god and man. Thou shalt se his godly and infallible prouidence? the fall and restoryng of man / in which the mercy and iustice of god is declared. Thou shalt clerely vnderstande the incarnacion of Christ the sone of god / theffect and frut therof vntounto thyne vnspekeable conforte: the iustificacion onelyonly by fayth into christ: goddes eleccion / orygynall synne / what it is: & how by christ onelyonly it is done away. Vvhat is to be thought of infantes dying before they be baptized. Here thou hast it clerly what is the church, how many sacraments there be, with theffect and ryght vse of them / of the supper of the Lorde / what Ceremonies may stonde and whiche ought to be abolyshed. Of Images, of the offyce of preachynge & mynisters of the worde: of the offyces of Kynges and rulers, of purgatory, of the frutes of the gospell preached, of the frute of mānes doctrine. The good pastours excuse, his desyre & godlye exortacion to the Emprour & to all princes, which god engraue into theyr hartes Amen. But when the Pope had seen this godly Bisshoppes fayth & religion so to prospere and preuaile, and his euangelyke doctrine so wyde to spreade, that neither his furious drō ken champion Eccius, nor yet his fleckisshe slowe beaste Cocleus durste not once more penne agaynst the maiestie of zwynglie his moste eloquent Heroicall style, rare erudiciō, and moste excellent diuyn… lernyng, then he hyered certayne Lantsknyghtes to kyll hym. which smyten thorow with a morispyke said. My bodye hauehave ye slayne, but my soule sley ye can not. Then his body quartered & brent on the morowe his harte was founde vnperisshed in the asshes, of the whiche many a learned man is rysen, in whose bokes, sermones and sessons zwyngly yet lyueth here in a blessed memoriall, and his soule lyueth in heauē in the glorious fruicion of the blessed Trinite / to whō be honour & praise for euer Amen.