Whole Works, Tracts 1 · Tract 5 · Body of tract · Part 19
¶ What the cauſe of all this miſchiefe is.
WHence commeth all this miſchief… Ʋerily it is the hand of God to auenge the wantonneſſe of great men, which will walke without the feare of God, folowing ye ſteps of the hye Prelates, contrary vntounto their profeſſion, & to auenge alſo yt wrongs, the blaſphemies & ſubtil perſecuting of his word.
For when Martin Luther had vttered the abhominations of the Pope, and his clergy with Gods worde, and diuers bookes were come into England: our Cardinall thought to finde a remedy againſt that well enough, and ſent to Rome for this vaine title, Defender of the fayth: which the Ʋicar of Defēder of the fayth.Croydon preached, that the Kynges grace would not loſe for all London, and xx. mile round about it. Neyther is it maruell, for it hath coſt more then London and xl. mile about it is able to make (I think) at this houre, beſide the effuſion of innocēt bloud that was offred vntounto the idoll, and dayly is offred therto. When this glorious name was come from our holy father, the The title of the defē dour of the fayth came frō Rome.Cardinall brought it vntounto the Kinges grace at Greenwich. And though the king had it already and had read it, yet againſt the morning, were all the lordes & gentlemen that could in ſo ſhort ſpace be gathered together, ſent for, to come and receaue it in with honour. And in the morning after, the Cardinall gat him through the backſide into the frier obſeruantes. And part of the The Popiſhe and vayne glorious maner of Cardinal Wolſey.gentils went round about, and welcommed him from Rome, as repreſenting the Popes perſon: part met him halfe way: part at the court gate: and laſt of all the kings grace him ſelf met him in the hall, and brought him vp in to a great chamber, where was a ſeate prepared on hye for the Kinges grace and the Cardinal, while the Bull was read: in ſo much that not the wiſe onelyonly, but men of meane vnderſtanding laughed the vaine pomp to ſcorne, not far vnlike to the receauing of the Cardinals hatte. Which whē a ruffian had brought vntounto him to Weſtminſter vnderunder his cloke, he clothed the meſſenger The Cardinals hat.in rich aray, and ſent him backe to Douer againe, and appoynted the Biſhop of Canterbury to meete him, and then an other company of lordes and gentles I wotte not how oft, ere it came The falſeſt and vaineſt Cardinall that euer was.to Weſtminſter, where it was ſet on a cupborde and tapers about, ſo that the greateſt Duke in the lande muſt make curteſie thereto: yea and to his empty ſeat he being away.
And ſhortly for lacke of authoritie of Gods worde Martin muſt be condemned by the authoritie of the king. And the kinges grace to claw the Pope againe muſt make a booke, in which to proue all that they would hauehave ſtabliſhed, for lacke of ſcripture, yea and contrary to the opē ſcripture, is made this mighty reaſon: Such prelates are the The chirch erreth. if y• pope and biſhops be the chirch.church, and the church cannot erre, and therfore all that they do is right, & we ought to beleeue them without any ſcripture, yea and though the ſcripture be contrary. Wherefore God offended with ſuch blaſphemy, to make his enemies feele that they woulde not ſee in the open ſcripture, nor in the practiſe of their liuings and doings cleane contrary vntounto the ſcripture, and vntounto the liuing of Chriſt and his Apoſtles, this viij. hundred yeares, hath poured his wrath vppon vsus, and hath ſnared the wiſe of the world with the ſubtlety of their owne wittes.
Moreouer when Marten Luther had Marten Luther ſubmitted him ſelf to king Henry viij.ſubmitted himſelfe in an epiſtle, let his grace conſider what aunſwer he gaue agayne. Where is the glory of yt great prayſe become that his grace gaue the Cardinall for his goodly actes and benefites which all the common wealth of the whole realme ſhould feele?
And More among his other blaſphemies More is proued a lyer.in his Dialogue ſayth, that none of vsus dare abide by our fayth vntounto the death: but ſhortly thereafter, God to proue More, that he hath euer bene a falſe lyar, gaue ſtrength vntounto his ſeruaunt Sir Thomas Hitton, to confeſſe, Sir Thomas Hittōand that vntounto the death, the faith of his holy ſonne Ieſus, which Thomas, the Biſſhops of Canterbury and Rocheſter, after they had dieted and tormented him ſecreatly, murthered at Maydſtone moſt cruelly.
I beſech the kings moſt noble grace therefore to conſider all the wayes by which the Cardinall and our holy Biſhops hauehave lead him, ſince he was firſt king, and to ſee wherunto al the pride, pompe, and vaine boaſt of the Cardinall is come, and how God hath reſiſted him and our Prelates in all theyr wiles. Wee hauing nothing to do at all, hauehave medled yet in all matters, and hauehave ſpent for our prelats cauſes more then all Chriſtendome, euen vntounto the vtter beggering of our ſelues, & hauehave gotten nothing but rebuke and ſhame & hate among all nations, and a mocke and a ſcorne thereto of them whome we hauehave moſt holpen.
For the Frenchmen (as the ſaying is) of late dayes made a play or a diſguiſing at Paris, in which the Emperour daunſed with the Pope, and the A daunce in Paris.French king, and weried them, the K. of England ſitting on a hye bentch, and looking on. And when it was aſked, why he daunſed not, it was aunſwered, that he ſate there, but to pay the miniſtrels their wages onelyonly.
As who ſhould ſay, we payd for all mens daunſing. We monyed the Emperour openly, and gaue the Frenche men double and treble ſecretly, and to the Pope alſo. Yea and though Fardinandus had money ſent him openly to blinde the world withall: yet the ſaying is throughout all Douchland, that we ſent money to the king of Pole, and to the Turke alſo, and that by help of our mony Fardinandus was driuen out of Hungarie. Which thing though it were not true, yet it will breed vsus a …cab at the laſt, and gette vsus with our medling, more hate then we ſhall be able to beare, if a chaunce come: vnleſſe that we waxe wiſer betime.
And I beſech his grace alſo to hauehave mercy of his own ſoule, and not to ſuffer Here Tindal prayeth for y• ceaſing of perſecution.Chriſt, and his holy Teſtament to be perſecuted vnderunder his name any longer, that the ſword of the wrath of god may be put vp againe, which for that cauſe no doubt is moſt chiefly drawne.
And I beſeech his grace to hauehave cō paſſion on his poore ſubiectes, which hauehave euer bene vntounto his grace both obediente, louing, and kinde: that the realme vtterly periſhe not, wyth the wicked counſell of our peſtilent prelates. For if his grace which is but a man, ſhould dye, the lordes and commons not knowing who hath moſt right to enioy the crowne: the realme could not but ſtande in great daunger.
And I exhorte the lordes temporall of the realme, that they come and fall before the kinges grace, and humblye deſire his maieſtie to ſuffer it to be tryed, who of right ought to ſucced, and if he or ſhe fayle who next, yea and who third. And let it be proclamed openly. Tindall pro…eth the vnderſtanding of ſuch as of right ſhould ſucceed to the crowne.And let al the lords temporal be ſworn therto, and all the knightes, & ſquires, and gentlemen, and the commons aboue xviij. yeares old, that there be no ſtrife for the ſucceſſion. For if they trye it by the ſworde, I promiſe them, I ſee none other likelyhode, but that as the Cardinall hath prophecied it will coſt the realme of England.
And all that be ſworne vntounto the cardinall, I warne them yet once againe to breake their othes, as I did in the obedience. And all my lord Cardinals Tindall warneth al the Cardinals ſecretaries to repent and turne to God.priuy ſecretaries and ſpyes, by whom he worketh yet I warne thē to beware betime. My lord Cardinall though he hauehave the name of all, yet he wrought not all of his owne brayne: but of all wilye and exerciſed in miſchiefe, he called vntounto him the moſt experte, and of their counſell and practiſe, gathered that moſt ſeemed to ſerue his wicked purpoſe.
And all that be confederate with the Cardinall, and with the Biſhops vpō any ſecret appointment be they neuer ſo great, I rede thē to break their bondes, A generall exhortation to all kinds of people.and to follow right by the playne and open way, and to be content, and not too ambitious: for it is now euill climing, the boughes be brittle. And let them looke well on the practiſe of Biſhops, how they hauehave ſerued all other men in tunes paſt, and into what troubles they hauehave brought them that were quiet. Many a man both great & ſmall hauehave they brought to death in England, euen in my dayes (beſide in times paſt) whoſe bloud God wil ſeek once. Let them learne at the laſt that it is but the caſt of the Biſhops to receaue Popiſh biſſhops make no accompt of periury.the ſacrament with one man ſecretly vponupon one purpoſe, and with an other man as ſecreatly vppon the contrary to deceaue al parties. For of periury they make as much conſcience, as a dog of a bone: for they hauehave power to diſpence with all thing, thinke they.
At the beginning of the warre betwene the Frenchking and the Emperour, the prognoſtication ſaid yeare by yeare, that there ſhould be great labor for peace: but it ſhall not come to paſſe, for there is Bicorporeū, or Corpus neutrum, that commeth betwene and letteth it: that is to ſay, a body that is neither The ſpiritualtie are neither of y• … ſide nor of the other for there is no truth in them more then ſhall ſerue their turne.nother, or holdeth on neither part: and that body is the ſpiritualtie, which hold but of thēſelues onelyonly. For when any Ambaſſadors goe betwene to entreat of peace, the biſhops are euer the chief, which though they make a goodly oration for the peace openly to deceaue the lay men, yet ſecreatly by the biſſhops of the ſame countrie, they caſt a bone in the way, and there can be no peace, vntill the peace be for their profite, let it coſt in the meane ſeaſon what bloud it will.
And as for them which for luker, as Iudas, betraye the truth, and write agaynſt their conſciences, and which for honour as Balaam, enforce to curſe the people of God: I would fayne (if their hartes were not to hard) that they dyd repent. And as fayne I would that our prelates did repent, if it were poſſible for them to prefer Gods honour before their owne.
And vntounto all ſubiectes I ſay, that they repent. For the cauſe of euill rulers is the ſinne of the ſubiectes, teſtifyeth the Scripture. And the cauſe of An admonition to all ſubiectes.falſe preachers is, that the people hauehave no louelove vntounto the truth, ſayth Paule. 2. Theſ. 2. We be all ſinners an hundred times greater then all that we ſuffer. Let vsus therfore ech forgeue other, remembring the greater ſinners the more welcome, if we repent, according to the ſimilitude of the riotous ſonne. Luc. 15. For Chriſt dyed for ſinners and Luk. 15.is their ſauiour, and hys bloud theyr treaſure to pay ſor their ſinnes. He is that fatted calf which is ſlaine to make them good cheare withall, if they will repent, and come to their father again. And his merites is that goodlye rayment, to couer the naked deformities of our ſinnes.
Theſe be ſufficient at this time, although I could ſay more, and though other hauehave deſerued that I more ſayd: yea, and I could more deeply hauehave entred into the practiſe of our Cardinall, but I ſpare for diuers conſiderations, and namely for his ſake, which neuer ſpared me, nor any faythfull frende of his owne, nor any that told him truth, nor ſpareth to perſecute the bloud of Chriſt in as cleare light as euer was, and vnderunder as ſubtile colour of hypocriſie as euer was any perſecutiō ſince the creation of the world. Nether hauehave I ſayd for hate of any perſon or perſons, Here Tindall ſheweth himſelf to be voyde of malice to any priuate perſon.God I take to recorde: but of their wickednes onelyonly, and to cal them to repentaunce, knowledging that I am a ſinner alſo, and that a greeuous. Howbeit it is a deuiliſh thing and a merciles, to defend wickednes againſt the open truth, and not to hauehave power to repent. And therefore I doubt not, if men will not be warned hereby, but that God will vtter more practiſe by whome he will, and not ceaſe vntill he hauehave broken the bonde of wilie hypocrites which perſecute ſo ſubtelly.
And finally if the perſecution of the God is mercyfull to the ignoraunt, but he pleaſeth the malicious & wilful offēder.kinges grace, and of other temporall perſons conſpiring with the ſpiritualtie be of ignoraunce, I doubt not but that theyr eyes ſhall be opened ſhortly and they ſhal ſee & repent & God ſhall ſhew them mercy. But and if it be of a ſet malice againſt the truth, and of a grounded hate againſt the law of God by the reaſō of a full conſent they hauehave to ſinne, and to walke in their olde wayes of ignorauncie, wherunto (being now paſt all repentance) they hauehave vtterly yelded themſelues to follow wt ful luſt without bridle or ſnaffle, which is the ſinne agaynſt the holy Ghoſt: then ye ſhall ſee euen ſhortly that God ſhall turne the poynt of the ſwoorde wherewith they now ſhedde Chriſtes bloud, homeward to ſhed their owne again after the enſamples of the bible.
And let them remember that I well The obedience of … Chriſten man written three yeares before this booke.toward iij. yeares agone to preuent al occaſions and all carnall beaſtes that ſeeke fleſhly liberty, ſent forth the true obedience of a chriſten man which yet they condemned, but after they had condemned the New Teſtament, as right was whence the Obedience hath his authoritie. Now then if when the light is come abroad, in which theyr wickednes cā not be hid, they finde no ſuch obedience in the people vntounto their old tyranny, whoſe fault is it? This is a ſure concluſion: none obedience that is not of louelove can not long endure: and in your deedes can no man ſee any cauſe of louelove: and the knowledge of Chriſt, for whoſe ſake onelyonly a man wold louelove you though ye were neuer ſo euill, ye perſecute. Now thē if any diſobedience riſe ye are the cauſe of it your ſelues.
Say not but that ye be warned.