Answer unto a Crafy and Sophistical Cavillation, Debate · Confutation of book 2 · Section 15
Caunterbury.
CIprians wordes tend not onelyonly to shew, that wine is the creature appoynted to the celebration of the mistery, but that it is also there present, and dronken in the mistery. For these be his wordes: It cannot be thought, that Christes bloud is in the cup, when wine is not in the cup, wherby the bloud of Christ is shewed. And agayne he sayth: It was wine that Christ called his bloud, and that it is cleare, that Christes bloud is not offered, if there be no wine in the chalice. And further he sayth: How shall we drincke with Christ new wine of the creature of the vine, if in the sacrifice of God the father and of Christ, we do not offer wine? In these wordes Ciprian sayth not, that Christ is the wine which we drincke, but that with Christ we drincke wine, that commeth of the vine tree, and yt Christes bloud is not there, whē wine is not there. And where is now your Transubstantiation, that taketh away the wine? For take away the wine, and take away by Ciprians mind, the blood of Christ also.
But least any man should stomble at Ciprians wordes, where he seemeth to say that the bloud of Christ should be really in the cup, he sayth nor meaneth no such thing, but that it is there sacramentally or figuratiuely. And his meaning needeth none other gathering, but of his owne wordes, that follow next after in the same sentence, that by the wine the bloud of Christ is shewed. And shortly after he sayth, that the cup which the Lord offered, was wine, and that it was wine that Christ called his bloud. Now come we to Emissen, your principall stay in whome is your chiefe glory. Of him thus I write.
Eusebius Emissenus,Eusebus Emissenus. a man of singuler fame in learning, about CCC. yeares after Christes ascention, did in few wordes set out this matter so playnly, (both how the bread and wine be conuerted into the body and bloud of Christ, and yet remayne still in the nature: and also how besides the outward receauing of bread and wine, Christ is inwardly by fayth receaued in our heartes) all this (I say) he doth so playnly set out, that more playnnesse can not be reasonably desired in this matter. For he sayth, that the conuersion of the visible creatures of bread and wine into the body and bloud of Christ, is like vntounto our conuersion in baptisme, where outwardly nothing is chaunged, but remayneth the same that was before: but all the alteration is inwardly and spiritually.
If thou wilt know (sayth he) how it ought not to seme to thee a new thing and impossible,De conscer. Distinction 2. quia that earthly and corruptible thinges be turned into the substance of Christ, looke vponupon thy selfe, which art made new in baptisme: when thou wast farre from life, and banished as a stranger from mercy, and from the way of saluation, and inwardly wast deade, yet sodenly thou beganst an other life in Christ, & wast made new by holsome misteries, & wast turned into the body of the church, not by seeing, but by beleuing: and of the child of damnation, by a secret purenes, thou wast made the chosen sonne of God. Thou visibly diddest remayne in the same measure, that thou haddest before, but inuisibly thou wast made greater, without any increase of thy body. Thou wast the selfe same person, and yet by the increase of fayth, thou wast made an other man. Outwardly nothing was added, but all the change was inwardly. And so was man made the sonne of Christ, and Christ fourmed in the mind of man. Therfore as thou (putting away thy former vilenes) diddest receaue a new dignite, not feeling any change in thy body, and as the curing of thy disease, the putting away of thine infection, the wiping away of thy filthines, be not sene with thine eyes, but are beleued in thy mind: so likewise when thou doest go vp to the reuerend altar, to feede vponupon spirituall meate, in thy fayth looke vponupon the body and bloud of him that is thy God, honor him, touch him with thy mind, take him in the hand of thy hart, and chiefly drincke him with the draught of thy inward man.
Hitherto hauehave I rehersed the sayinges of Eusebius, which be so playne, that no man can wish more playnly to be declared, that this mutation of the bread and wine into the body and bloud of Christ, is a sacramentall mutation, and that outwardly nothing is changed. But as outwardly we eate the bread, and drincke the wine with our mouthes, so inwardly by fayth, we spiritually eate the very flesh, and drincke the very bloud of Christ.