Confutation of the Popes Bull, Part 22
¶That Kynges and Magistrates ought to compell their subiectes vntounto goodnesse, and not suffer eueryevery man to make his own choyse in folowing what seemeth best to him selfe.
THis also séemeth very vnreasonable to the Romish sort, and peraduēture vntounto others also that hauehave a mislikyng of this case, that the Quéene hath laid penalties and punishmentes vponupon such as disobey, and hath executed the same vppon those that hauehave continued in obedience to the sea of Rome. For some are of opinion that no man ought to be cō pelled to do good, or vntounto true Religion, or vntounto fayth: but eueryevery man ought to be left at his owne libertie, to folow what soeuer séemeth best to himselfe & his owne conscience: that is to say, that no man should be called to account, of what Religiō he is, nor examined at all, no though he were a Papist, but be let alone with his owne conscience: And therfore that no man ought to be punished for breakyng the Religiō of the Gospell, or for neglectyng good lawes, which he himselfe estéemeth not to be good. Truly, as concernyng compulsion to well doyng, or to faith and Religion, the Donatistes heretikes taught in old tyme lyke as these afore mentioned and as the Anabaptistes do at this day, that no mā ought to be compelled to faith or to goodnesse, but eueryevery man to be left to his owne conscience. Agaynst those Donatistes S. Austen hath disputed aboundantly, yea and that by the Scriptures and by euident reasons agréeing with the Scriptures. In which respect I thinke his Record is to be beleued, & therfore I will now alledge certeine thinges out of him, that make peculiarly for the present case.
Heretikes sayd that no man is to be compelled vntounto fayth.In his 83. chapter of his second booke agaynst Petilian, the same Petilian beyng a Donatist, had sayd far from our thought be it that we should compell any man to our fayth. Austen aunsweryng him, sayth: And shall we then procede to talke as heretikes do? or shall we say that the Lord God planteth hipocrisie in his Scriptures when he driueth men to goodnesse by threatnynges and chastisementes?Psal. 119. Dauid sayth, Lord it is good for me that thou hast brought me low. And Ieremy sayth,Iere. 31. Lord thou hast chastised me, and I am chastised as a wild bullocke. But if no mā ought to be compelled vntounto good, why I pray you doth Salomon (the wysest man that euer was,) will men so often to chastise their children? He that spareth the rod hateth the child, sayth he. Thou truly strikest hym, but by the rod thou sauest hys soule from death. Dayly experience, & the nature of thinges proueth, that affections are ouer vehement in men, and if they be not remedyed and bridled, euē they that might hauehave bene saued easly and by some light chastisement, cast away themselues and others to. When mē be out of their wittes, they mislike compulsion and chastisement. But when they come to themselues againe, and sée playnly from how great mischieues they are deliuered by those that compelled thē: they be glad that they were chastised to their weale, and prayse the rigor which they misliked afore. And therefore there are among the latter writers which beyng of S. Austens opinion, hauehave written thus: who douteth that the rightuousnesse which is compelled till it become willyng, is more acceptable to God, then vncompelled vnrightuousenesse which waxeth dayly worse and worse, till at length it grow past recouerie▪ Also the Magistrate bridleth and restreineth heretickes, least they might procede to cast away themselues and others to. And truly this is both good of itselfe and also the Magistrates dutie so to do. Now if they do the thyng by compulsion which they do, and seduce no man any more: it is a good déede. But if they perseuer in their stubbornesse and wilfull offendyng: truly the Magistrate hath not offended at all, neither is the sinne of these men layd to his charge. But we will returne to the recordes of S. Austen.
The same Austen in his 48. Epistle to Vincent, Augustine him selfe also was sometyme of opinion that no man was to be compelled.against the Donatistes, concernyng the restreinyng of heretikes by force, sayth: I hauehave bene of opinion heretofore that no man is to be compelled to the vnitie of Christ: but that we must deale with them by the word, fight with them by disputation, and ouercome them by reason, least we might make them feyned Catholikes, whom we knew to be open heretikes. But this opinion of mine was vanquished, not by the wordes that were spoken agaynst it, but by the examples that were shewed agaynst it. For first there was alledged against me, myne owne Citie [Hippone] which beyng erst whole vponupon Donates side, was turned to the Catholik vnitie by feare of the Emperours lawes, and now we sée it so detesteth the poyson of this your stoutnesse, as a mā would thinke it had neuer bene in it. And so were many mo, which were rehearsed to me by name, that I might perceiue by the matters themselues, how that euen in this case also might well be vnderstode that which is written,Prouerb. 9. GiueGive a wiseman an occasion and he wilbe the wiser. And again, Not eueryevery one that spareth is a frend, nor eueryevery one that beateth,Prouerb. 27. an enemy. Better are the woundes of a frend, then the frendly kisses of an enemy. It is better to louelove with sharpnesse, then to deceiue with gentlenesse. He that tyeth vp a mad man, and he that waketh a sluggard, is trouble some to them both, and yet he loueth them both. Who can louelove vsus more then God doth? and yet he ceaseth not as well to fray vsus healthfully, as also to teach vsus pleasātly. Thinke you that no man ought to be compelled to rightuousnesse, when you read that the householder sayd to his seruauntes, whomsoeuer ye finde, make them to come in? or when you read that he which was first Saule and afterward Paule, was with great violence and compulsion enforced by Christ to know the truth, and to hold it whether he would or no?
The same Austen agayne in his v. Epistle to Earle Boniface, sayth: where is the fréedome of beleuyng or not beleuyng, which these men are wont to blase abroad,The Lord him selfe compelled men to the faith saying, whom hath Christ enforced? whom hath Christ compelled? Behold, they hauehave the Apostle Paule: in him they may sée Christ first compelling and afterward teachyng: first beating, and afterward comforting. And it is a wonder to sée how he that came in vntounto the Gospell by compulsion of bodily punishment, hath labored more in the Gospell then all they did that were called in by the onelyonly word: and that his perfect charitie hath driuen feare out of doores, whom greatest feare compelled to charitie. Why then should not the Church compel the vnthriftie children to returne, if the vnthriftie children hauehave compelled others to perish?
Why the Apostles called not for the Magistrates helpe for the stablishyng of Religiō.Agayne in the same Epistle, the same Austen sayth: whereas they that would not hauehave any iust lawes ordeined agaynst their wicked heresies, auouch that the Apostles demaunded no such thinges of the kinges of the earth: they consider not that the state of that tyme was other then it is now, and that all thynges are to be done in their times. For what Emperour beleued in Christ at those dayes, that he might hauehave done him seruice by making lawes in defence of godlinesse agaynst vngodlinesse, when as yet this prophesie was in fulfilling,Psal. …. why did the Gentyles rage, and why did the people imagine vayne thinges? The kinges of the earth stode vp, and the princes assembled together, against the Lord & against his Christ. For as yet the world was not come to that point which is spokē of anone after in the same Psalme:How kynges serue God in feare. And now ye kinges bethinke your selues, be learned ye that iudge the earth: do seruice vntounto him in feare, and reioyse with trembling. How then do kynges serue God in feare, but by godly seueritie of prohibiting & punishing the thinges that are done agaynst the cōmaundementes of the Lord? for he serueth in one sort as he is a mā, & in another sort also as he is a king. In that he is a mā, he serueth him by liuing faithfully: & in that he is also a king, hée serueth by stablishing with conuenient rigour, such lawes as commaund rightfull thinges and forbid the contrarie. So serued Ezechias by beating downe the groues and temples of the Idols, and the high places that had bene builded agaynst Gods commaundement. So serued Iosias by doing the like thinges. So serued the king of Niniuie, by compelling the whole Citie to pacifie Gods displeasure. So serued Darius by breaking the Idoll, and giuing it into the power of Daniell, and by casting his enemies in to the Lyons. So serued Nabuchodonosor by making a terrible law to all that were vnderunder his dominion from blaspheming God, by a terrible law. Kinges therfore in asmuch as they are kinges, do then serue God, when they do that thing to serue God withall, which they could not do if they were not kinges. Considering then that kinges serued not the Lord in the time of the Apostles, but as yet imagined vaine thinges against God and against his annointed, that the sayinges of the Prophetes might be fulfilled: truly vngodlinesse could not thē be prohibited, but rather it was executed, by lawes. For the state of those tymes was so far out of order, that euen ye Iewes slew them that preached Christ, thinking themselues to do God high seruice, (according as Christ had prophesied afore,) & the Genttles raged against the Christians, and yet the strength of Martyrs ouercome them all. But after the thing began to be fulfilled which is written. All the kinges of the earth shall worship him, All natiōs shall serue him: what is he that is in his right wits, that will say vntounto kinges, Take you no care in your kyngdome, who defēdeth or assaulteth the Church of your Lord: it makes no matter to you who be chast & who be vnchast in your Realme.How & in what sence Austē giueth a man free choyse or will, read in hys booke of chastisemēt & grace, chap. 1. In hys boke of ye spirit & the letter to Marcellus, chap. 30. in hys booke of Merites & remissiō of sinnes. Lib. 2 cap 8. & against the second Epistle of Pelagius. Lib. 4. Cap. 6. For seing that God hath giuen vntounto mā frée choise: why should aduoutrie be punished by lawes, & apostasie be let slip? Is it a lighter matter for ye soule to breake her faith plighted vntounto God, thē for a womā to breake her troth plighted vntounto mā? Or if the thinges that be cōmitted through ignoraūce & not through contēpt of religiō, be to be punished more gently: are they therfore to be neglected? In déede it is better (& who doutes?) that mē should be brought by gentlenesse to serue God, then to be compelled to it by feare of punishment and smart. But bycause they that be gētly allured be the better, it foloweth not that those which are otherwise should be neglected. For it hath done many men good, (which thing is euident by experience) to be first compelled by feare or smart, that they might afterward be taught, or accomplish the thing in worke which they had learned already by word. Thus much hauehave I hetherto rehearsed out of the bookes of Austen, which I suppose do satisfie such as are not giuen to contention, in this case.
EueryEvery man must not be suffered to folow what seemeth best to hymself in Religion.Furthermore, that eueryevery man should not hauehave leaue to chuse at his own pleasure and to folow what likes him best in the case of faith and Religion: it is forbidden long ago in Gods law, accordyng as is read to this effect: ye shall not do eueryevery one of you what seemeth right in his owne eyes. Marke and heare all that I cōmaund thée, that thou mayest fare well and the children after thée, when thou doest the thing that is good and acceptable in the sight of thy God. Therfore looke what I commaund thée, that onelyonly do thou vntounto the Lord, & neither put thou any thing to it nor take thou any thing away. Nay truly, it is the welspring and originall of all mischief, errour, heresie, schisme, dissention, and troubles, if it were frée for eueryevery man to folow the fancies of his owne head and the imaginations and deuises of his owne hart. Which thing is proued by the stories of all ages, and by the experience of our time also. And ye shall read often in the Prophetes, depart ye or turne ye from your owne wayes: and, you hauehave chosen in your wayes, the thinges that displease me. Also, walke ye in my wayes and it shall be for your weale. And what els is the Popish Religiō, but a way deuised & set vp by the will and pleasure of man, cōtrarie to the rule of Gods word? From the which God willeth the Magistrate to turne away his seruaunts, and to bring them backe agayne into the way of the Lord. Dauid the king and Prophet pleased the high God singularly in this respect, (though in many things he defiled him selfe shamefully) that he neither presented the good intent of his hart or the likinges of his owne will for seruices vntounto God, nor stifly vrged them vponupon other men to be kept: but persisted simply and vncorruptly in the way of the Lord, according as he himselfe sheweth in the 119. Psalme. But king Saul put him selfe quite out of Gods fauour,1. Samuel. 15. bycause he ouerslipped the commaundement of God, and folowed the thing which the good intent of his owne hart counselled him vntounto. For he had reserued for sacrifice, the thyng which God had commaunded him, not to reserue for sacrifice, but vtterly to destroy and put away. Wherupon the Prophet Samuell sayd vntounto Saul: Doth the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifice, so much as in obeying his voyce? Behold, to obey is better then to do sacrifice, and to hearken is better then the fat of Rammes. For disobedience is as the sinne of Soothsaying or witchcraft, and stubbornesse is as the wickednesse of Idolatrie. And for asmuch as thou hast despised or reiected the word of the Lord, he hath reiected thée also that thou shalt not be kyng. They that be wise hauehave in these short wordes what to thinke of the thynges that mē chuse to folow at their owne pleasure in cases of religion: namely that they be neuer a whit better then very witchcraft and Idolatry, which of all wickednesses are most heynous afore God. And I pray you to what purpose is the obedience inioyned vsus which we owe, not to the Pope and to Popery: but to God and the magistrate & to their lawes, to be short wherfore are we commaunded to eschew Idolatrie and all straūge Religions, if eueryevery one of vsus may chuse and do what we list? But these thinges are now more apparant, thē that they néede to be set out with any mo wordes.