Acts and Monuments Volume 2 Part 2, Book 11 · Account 13 · Letter 8
¶A Letter of Byshop Ridley answearyng to a certayne Letter of one Maister West, sometime his Chapleine.
An other letter of B. Ridley …. 1 Iohn. 2. Math. 10.I Wishe you grace in God and louelove of the truth, without the which truely stablished in mens hartes by the mightie hand of almighty God, it is no more possible to stande by the truth in Christe in tyme of trouble, then it is for the waxe to abide the heate of the fyre. Sir, knowe you this, that I am (blessed be God) perswaded that this worlde is but transitorie, and (as saint Iohn sayth) The world passeth away and the lust thereof. I am perswaded Christes wordes to be true: Who soeuer shall confesse me before men, hym will I confesse also before my father which is in heauen: and I beleue that no earthly creature shalbe saued, whom the Redeemer and Sauiour of the worlde shall before his father denie.… This the Lorde graunt, that it may be so graffed, established, and fixed in my hart, that neyther thinges present nor to come, hygh nor low, lyfe nor death be able to remoue me thence. It is a goodly wishe, that you wish me deepely to consider thinges perteyning vntounto Gods glorye: but if you had wished also, that neither feare of death, nor hope of worldly prosperitie shoulde let me to mayneteine Gods worde and his truth, which is his glory and true honour,What it is … himselfe. it would hauehave liked me well. You desire me for Gods sake to remember my selfe. In deede sir, nowe it is time so to do, for so farre as I can perceiue, it standeth me vponupon no lesse daunger, then of the losse both of body and soule, and I trow, then it is time for a man to awake, if any thyng will awake him.Luke. 12. He that will not feare hym that threatneth to cast both body & soule into euerlasting fire,Feare of G…d. whom will he feare? With this feare, O Lord, fasten thou together our frayle flesh, that we neuer swarue from thy lawes. You say, you hauehave made much sute for me. Sir, God graunt that you hauehave not in suing for my worldly deliueraunce, impayred and hindered the furtheraunce of Gods worde and his truth.
Bishop Ridley … to hauehave s…te made for him.You hauehave knowen me long in deede: in the which time it hath chaunced me (as you say) to mislike some thinges. It is true, I graunt: for sodaine chaunges without substantiall and necessary cause, and the heady settyng foorth of extremities, I did neuer louelove. Confession vntounto the minister which is able to instruct, correct, comfort, & informe the weake,Confession to the minister in the way of … couns…le not …. B Ridley … a reuerend hand… of the Sacrament. wounded, and ignoraunt conscience, in deede I euer thought might do much good in Christes congregation, and so, I assure you. I thynke euen at this daye. My doctrine and my preaching you say, you hauehave hearde often, and after your iudgement hauehave thought it godly, sauyng onelyonly for the Sacrament, which thing although it was of me reuerently handled, and a great deale better then of the rest (as you) yet in the margent you write warily, and in this worlde wisely: and yet me thought all sounding not well. Sir, but that I see so many changes in this worlde, & so much alteration, els at this your saying I would not a litle marueile. I hauehave taken you for my frend, and a man whom I fansied for plainnes and faythfulnes, as much (I assure you) as for your learning: and hauehave you kept this so close in your hart from me vntounto this day? Sir, I consider moe things then one, and wil not say all that I thinke. But what neede you to care what I thinke, for any thing I shalbe able to do vntounto you, eyther good or harme? You geue me good lessons to stand in nothing against my learning, and to beware of vayne glory. Truely sir, I herein like your counsell very well, and by Gods grace I intend to folow it vntounto my lyues end.
To write vntounto those whom you name, I can not see what it wyll auayle me. For this I woulde hauehave you knowe, that I esteeme nothyng auayleable for me,The part of a t…ue Bishop only to seeke the glory of Christ his Maister. which also wyll not further the glory of GOD. And now, because I perceiue you hauehave an entire zeale and desire of my deliueraunce out of this captiuitie and worldly myserie, if I shoulde not beare you a good hart in God againe, me thinke I were to blame. Sir, howe nigh the day of my dissolution and departure out of this worlde is at hand, I can not tell: the Lordes wyll be fulfilled how sone soeuer it shall come. I knowe the Lordes wordes must be verified on me, that I shall appeare before the incorrupt Iudge, and be countable to him of all my former lyfe. And although ye hope of his mercies is my shootanker of eternall saluation, yet am I perswaded, that who soeuer wittingly neglecteth & regardeth not to cleare his conscience, he can not hauehave peace with God, nor a liuely fayth in his mercy. Conscience therefore moueth me, considering you were one of my familie and one of my houshold, of whom then I thinke I had a speciall cure, and of all them which were within my house, which in deede ought to hauehave bene an example of godlynes to all the rest of my cure, not only of good life, but also in promotyng of Gods worde to the vttermost of their power, (but, alas,B. Ridley repenteth that he was not more earnest in stablishing the consciences of his famely and cure. now when the tryall doth seperate the chaffe from the corne, how small a deale it is, God knoweth, which the wind doth not blow away) this conscience, I say, doth moue me to feare, lest the lightnesse of my familie shall be layde to my charge for lacke of more earnest and diligent instruction which should hauehave ben done. But blessed be God which hath geuen me grace to see this my default, and to lament it from the bottome of my hart, before my departyng hence.
This conscience dooth mooue me also now to require both you and my friende Doctor Haruy, to remember your promises made to me in tymes past,Doctor Haruey charged. of the pure settyng foorth and preachyng of Gods worde and his truth. These promises, although you shall not neede to feare to be charged with them of me hereafter before the worlde,Good monitiōs of B. Ridley to his olde Chapleynes. yet looke for none other (I exhort you as my friendes) but to be charged with them at Gods hand. This conscience and the louelove that I beare vntounto you, byddeth me now say vntounto you both in Gods name, feare GOD, and louelove not the world: for GOD is able to caste both body and soule into hell fyre. When his wrath shall sodaynely be kindled, blessed are all they that put their trust in hym.Psal. 2. And the saying of sainct Iohn is true: All that is in the world, as the lust of the fleshe, the lust of the eyes, Iohn. 2.and the pride of lyfe, is not of the father, but of the worlde, and the worlde passeth away, and the lust thereof, but he that doth the wyll of God abydeth for euer. If this gyfte of grace (whiche vndoubtedly is necessarily required vntounto eternall saluation) were truely and vnfainedly graffed and firmely stablished in mens hartes, they would not be so light, so sodenly to shrinke from the maintenance and confession of the truth, as is now (alas) seene so manifestly of so many in these dayes.What is truth. Iohn. 17. Eccle. 27. But here peraduenture you woulde knowe of me what is the truth. Syr, Gods woorde is the truth, as sainct Iohn sayth, and that euen the same that was heretofore. For albeit man doth vary and change as the Moone, yet Gods worde is stable & abydeth one for euermore: and of Christ it is truely sayd:Heb. 13. Christ yesterday and to day, the same is also for euer.
When I was in office, all that were esteemed learned in Gods word,Common prayer in the common tongue. agreed this to be a truth in Gods word written, that the common prayer of the Churche should be had in the common tongue. You know I hauehave conferred with many, and I ensure you, I neuer founde man (so farre as I do remember) neither old nor new, gospeller nor papist, of what iudgement soeuer he was, in this thing to be of a contrary opinion. If then it were a truth of Gods word, thinke you that the alteration of the world can make it an vntruth? If it can not, why then do so many men shrynke from the confession & maintenance of this truth receyued once of vsus all? For what is it, I pray you,What it is to cō fesse Christ. els to confesse or deny Christe in this worlde, but to mainteyne the truth taught in Gods word, or for any worldly respect to shrink from the same?He that denyeth an open truth agaynst Gods word for worldly daunger, will be as ready to deny God himselfe. Death common to good and bad. Damnable … greement. This one thing hauehave I brought for an ensample: other thinges be in like case, which now particulerly I neede not to rehearse. For he that wil forsake wittingly, either for feare or gayne of the world, any one open truth of Gods word, if he be constrained, he wyl assuredly forsake God and al his truth, rather then he wyl endaunger hym selfe to loose or to leaue that he loueth better in deede, then he doth God and the truth of his word.
I like very well your plaine speaking, wherein you say, I must eyther agree or dye, and I thinke that you meane of the bodyly death, which is common both to good and bad. Sir, I knowe I must dye whether I agree or no. But what folly were it then to make such an agreement, by the which I could neuer escape this death which is so common to all, and also incurre the gylt of death and eternall damnation? Lord graunt that I may vtterly abhorre and detest this damnable agreement so long as I lyue. And because (I dare say) you wrote of friendshyp vntounto me this short earnest aduertisement, and I thynke veryly, wishing me to lyue, and not to dye, therefore bearyng you in my hart no lesse louelove in GOD, then you doe me in the worlde, I say vntounto you in the worde of the Lord (and that I say to you, I say to all my friendes and louers in God) that if you do not confesse & maintayne to your power & knowledge that which is grounded vponupon Gods worde, but will eyther for feare or gayne of the worlde, shrinke and play the *Apostata was he who fled from his captayne to the enemye. He was also so called that departed from the Christians to the Iewes and Gentiles. The Summe of M Grindals letter to B. Ridley.Apostata, in deede you shall dye the death: you know what I meane. And I beseeche you all my true frendes & louers in God, remember what I say, for this may be the last time peraduenture that euer I shall write vntounto you.
From Bocardo in Oxford, the .viij. day of Aprill. 1555.
M. Grindal now Archbishop of Canterbury, being in the tyme of exile in ye citie of Frankford, wrote to D. Ridley thē prisoner, a certaine Epistle, wherin first he lamenteth his captiuitie, exhorting him withall to be constant. Secondly he certifieth him of ye state of the English exiles being dispersed in Germany, and of the singuler prouidence of God in stirring vp the fauour of the Magistrates and rulers there towardes them. Thirdly, he writeth to know his minde and will concerning the printing of his booke agaynst Transubstantiation, and of certayne other treatises and his disputations. Wherunto Bishop Ridley answereth agayne in order, as foloweth.