A Reply to an Answer Made by Doctor Whitgift, Reply · Part 10
To the. 36. 37. 38. page.
IT maketh for the purpoſe whiche is alleaged out of the firſt of the actes / to proue / that there ought to be tryall of thoſe which are choſen to the miniſterie: for when S. Peter ſayth / that ſuche a one muſt be choſen as hathe bene contynually conuerſant with our ſauioure Chriſt / and from the beginning of his preaching vntill the day wherein he aſcended into heauen / he ment nothing els / but that ſuch a one ſhould be choſen which was ſufficiently inſtructed and had bene contynually a ſcholer of our ſauioure Chriſte / and therefore fitte to teache and to witnes that / which they had ſeene / and whoſe godly conuerſation was notoriouſly knowne.
Beſides that / albeit thoſe two Mathyas and Barſabas were therefore ſet vp in the myddeſt / that the church in the prayer that was made for their election / myghte / by ſeeing them / pray the earneſtlyer for them: yet it was alſo as much to ſay / that if any could obiect any thing agaynſt them / that he ſhould preferre hys obiection.
And whether they were examined or no / the matter is not great / neyther when it is ſayde that a tryall ſhould be had / it is ment / that when the parties are famouſly knowne to thoſe whych hauehave the right of trying / as / that there ſhoulde be alwayes neceſſaryly an appoſing and examyning / ſo that the ſufficiencie of doctryne and holyneſſe of lyfe (for the whych cauſe the tryall and examynation is commaunded) be knowne and agreed vponupon by them / that chooſe / it is enough.
And ſo theſe two being notoriouſly knowne and conſented of by the churche to bee fitte men / myght happely not be examyned / but yet the wordes of S. Peter declare playnly / that in the choyſe of them / there was regarde had to both / their abilitie to teach / and honeſty of conuerſation.
And although there be certayne thinges extraordinary in this election / as / that ſuch a one muſt be choſen which hadde bene conuerſant with our fauioure Chriſt / and that there were two put vp for one place / and that it was permitted to lottes / to caſt the Apoſtleſhip vponupon one of them two / as if the Lord ſhould by the lottes from heauen / tell / who ſhould hauehave it: yet it followeth not to ſay / that the reſt of the things that are there vſed / ſhould not be practiſed in ordinary callinges / for as much as they will well agree with them.
And M. Caluin in the place you alledge / ſayth / that the ordinary callinges ſomwhat differ from the calling of the Apoſtles / and after ſheweth wherein: that is / in that they were appoynted immediatly of God / and by his mouthe: whereby it appeareth / that for the reſidue of thoſe thyngs whych are there mentioned / he holdeth that they may well ſtande wyth the ordinarye elections.
And where you ſaye that the ſixt of the Actes / becauſe it ſpeaketh of Deacons / is nothyng to the matter / me thynke you ſhoulde hauehave eaſely vnderſtanded that if a triall be neceſſary in Deacons (whych is an vnderunder office in the church / and hath regard but to one parte of the church / whych is the pore / and is occupied in the diſtribution of money) much more it ought to be in an office of greater charge / which hath / reſpect to the whole church / and is occupyed in the diſpenſing of the holy word of God.
But in the ende you agree that they / ſhoulde be tryed / ſo that nowe the quection ſtandeth only / howe and by what meanes: wherein you for your part ſaye / that the booke of ordering myniſters / is a ſuffycient and good rule. I hauehave red it / and yet I can not commende it greatly. But you will ſay / not wyth iudgement or indifferencie. I will promiſe you with this indifferencie / that I wyſhed / that all that is there / were good and conuenyent / and ſuch as I myght ſay vntounto / ſo be it. Wyth what iudgement I doe diſalow it / I leaue it to all men to eſteeme vponupon theſe reaſons.
Firſt / that the examynation of hys doctryne / wholely / and partly of hys life / is permitted to one man. For conſydering of the one parte the greatneſſe of the charge that is committed vntounto the myniſters / and the horrible pearill that commeth vntounto the church by the want of thoſe thinges that are required in them and of the other parte wrighing the weakeneſſe of the nature of man / which althoughe he ſeeth many thinges yet hee is blynde alſo in many / and that euen in thoſe thinges which he ſeeth / he ſuffereth hym ſelfe to be caryed away by his affection of louelove or of enuie. &c. I ſay / conſidering theſe thinges it is very daungerous / to commit that to the view and ſearche of one man / which may wyth loſſe danger and more ſafetie be referred vntounto dyuers. For herein the prouerbe is true / plus vident oculi quam oculus.Many eyes ſee more / then one.
And almoſt there is no office of charge in thys realme which lyeth in election / committed ſo ſleightly to any / as that vponupon one mans reporte of hys habilitie / all the reſt which hauehave intereſt in the election / will geue their voyces / ſo that if we were deſtitute of authoritie of the ſcripture / the very lyght of reaſon would ſhew vsus a more ſafe and weryer way.
But there is greater authoritie / for S. Luke in the firſt of the Acces / ſheweth that S. Peter would not take vponupon him / to preſent two as ſitte for the place which was voyde / but ſayth / they dyd preſent or ſette vp: whereby appeareth / that the examynation of their habilitie was committed to manye. The ſame appeareth alſo in the ſixte of the Actes / when as the Apoſtles wil the church wherin there were ſo excellent perſonages / to looke out ſeuen full of the holy ghoſt and wiſdome. &c. they doe not there permit the dyſcerning of their wiſdome and other giftes to one / but to many.
Secondarely / I cannot commend it / for that / that one man is the Archdeacon / which muſt examyne the paſtors / and iudge of their ſufficiencie. For what is the Archdeacon? is he not a Deacon? for he being the cheefe Deacon / muſt needes be alſo a Deacon hym ſelfe. And therfore although the cheefe deacon / yet inferioure to any of the paſtoures: and the * giftes which are required in hym / inferioure 1. Tim. 3.to thoſe which are required in the paſtoure. And to make him iudge of the aptneſſe & ableneſſe of the paſtoure / is to make the inferioure in giftes / iudge of the ſuperioure: he that hath by hys calling leſſe giftes / iudge of his which hath by his calling greater giftes / which is nothing elſe / then to appoynt him that hath but one eye / to ouerſee hys ſight / that hath two.
Thirdly / I miſtyke the booke / becauſe it permitteth that the Biſhop may admit the miniſter / vponupon the credite and report of the Archdeacon / & vponupon his examination / if there be no oppoſitiō of the people: which appeareth by theſe words in the booke / whereas to the Archdeacon ſaying thus. Reuerend father in God. I preſent vntounto you theſe perſons to be made prieſtes. &c. The Byſhop anſwereth. ¶ Take heede that the perſons whome you preſent vntounto vsus / be apt and meete for their godly conuerſacion / to exerciſe their miniſterie duely / to the honour of God and edifying of his church. And thereupon I thinke it commeth / that the Archdeacon is called the eye of the Byſhop. But why doth not he himſelfe take heede vntounto it? with what conſcience can he admit a Miniſter / of whoſe fitneſſe he knoweth not / but vponupon the credit of an other / although he were otherwiſe very fitte? where can he hauehave that full perſwaſion that he doth well / vponupon the report of others / when the report of his life / and learning / is made but of one. And therefore * S. Paul ordayned / that the ſame ſhould be the ordeyners and the examyners / 1. Tim. 3.and not to hang vponupon the fayth or report of an other man / in thinges that are ſo waightie / and whereof he may him ſelfe take notice.
Fourthly / for that albeit the church is demaunded whether it hauehave any thing to obiect / yet that church whereof he is to be paſtor / & which it ſkilleth eſpecially that he be fitte / is not demaunded / and which would (becauſe it ſtandeth them vponupon) inquire dyligently of hym.
Agayne / they are demaunded / which can obiect nothing of his inſufficiencie / when for the moſt part they neuer ſee nor heard of before / as one that came of one day vntounto the towne / and goeth away the next.
Further / they hauehave no reaſonable ſpace geuen them / wherein they may inquire or hearken out of hys honeſt conuerſation: and hauehave ſome experyence of hys ſoundneſſe in teaching and diſcretion and iudgement to rule hys flocke. But if as ſone as euer it be ſayde / to thoſe that are ſtraungers that they ſhould obiect agaynſt them / no mā ſtand forth to obiect any thing / forthwith he is made a myniſter. And theſe are thoſe things wherein I thinke the booke of ordering Myniſters faultie / touching the tryall and examynation of the myniſters / whiche ſelfe ſame thinges are lykewyſe of the tryall of the Deacon. And ſo you ſee / that beſydes the faultes of thoſe that execute the lawe / that there bee faultes in the lawes themſelues / and therefore the cauſe is truely aſſygned / althoughe you ſee it not.
And what meane you / ſtill to vſe thys fyghting wyth your owne ſhadow? for where are the wordes / or what be they that condemne all the Miniſters / for ſome? that ſay all the Miniſters are vnlawfully admitted / for ſome? or that there is none good / becauſe ſome are badde? If there be no ſuch wordes / as cary with them any ſuche ſenſe / then you do wrong to your brethren. If there be wordes that declare the cleane contrary / then all men ſee what you be / which althoughe you often faulte in / yet I am lothe ſo often to name and charge you wyth it. When it is ſayd / that learned and vnlearned are receyued / it is euydent that they condemne not all.
The Lord bleſſe and encreaſe an hundreth folde the godly / wiſe / learned / graue miniſters of thys churche. And becauſe theſe wordes ſeeme to rocke vsus a ſleepe / and to bring vsus into forgetfulneſſe of the great ruines & deſolations of the Churche / I muſte tell you that two thouſande able and ſuffycient myniſters / which preache and feede dyligently / and carefully the flocke of Chriſt / were hard to be founde in thys Churche / which hauehave bene notwithſtanding founde in the Church of Fraunce / by the eſtimation of thoſe which know the eſtate / euen vnderunder the tyme of the croſſe / where there were no ſuch helpes of Magiſtrates / and appoynted ſtypendes / as God be prayſed we hauehave.
And agayne / you are to be put in mynde / that a great number of thoſe were bredde in king Edwardes dayes / ſo that I feare me a man neede no great Arithmatike to counte the numbers of ſuch able miniſters / as the late yeares hauehave brought forth. And yet I am well aſſured / that if the miniſterie were reformed / and worthy men were ſought for / there are great nombers of zelous and learned men / that would lay their handes to ſerue thys kynde of building by the miniſterie. For beſydes numbers that the Vniuerſities would yelde / which ſigh for the repayring of the decayes of the church / to helpe forwarde ſo great a worke / the Innes of Courte / and other the gentrie of the realme / Galene / and Iuſtinian / would bryng theyr tenthes / and (as it were) pay their ſhot in this reckening. It is not denied / but the teſtimonie that a noble man which profeſſeth the truth doth geue / ought to be weighed accordyng to hys degree & place which he hath in the common wealth / but where you thinke / that the teſtimonie of one wiſe man / learned / and godly / is ſufficient warrant to proceede to an election of a Miniſter / you conſidered not well the circumſpection which S. Paul vſed / who when he admytted Tymothe into hys company / to be a companyon in hys iourney / to cutte of all occaſion of euill ſpeche / receyued hym not * but vponupon commendation of the brethren / both in Lyſtra and I conyum. You know they ment by the baſeſt of 16. Act. 2. 3.the people / ſuch as gaue but one leape out of the ſhoppe into the Church / as ſodenly are chaunged out of a ſeruing mans coate / into a myniſters cloke / making for the moſt part / the miniſterie their laſt refuge. &c. And ſeeing that beſydes / the words be playne / ye dayly experience teacheth it / you neede not make it ſo ſtrange / as though you knew not what they meant.