Whole Works, Tracts 1 · Tract 4 · Part 1 · Section 19
¶ Of worſhippyng of Sacraments, ceremonies, images, reliques and ſo forth.
NOw let vsus come to the worſhippyng or honouryng of Sacramentes ceremonies images and reliques. Firſt images be not God, and Images.therefore no confidence is to be put in thē. They be not made after the image of God nor are the price of Chriſtes bloud, but the woorkemanſhyp of the craftes mā and the price of money and therfore inferiours to man.
Wherfore of all right man is Lord ouer them and the honour of thē is to Images are ſeruaū tes to man, and not mā to images.do man ſeruice and mans diſhonour it is to do them honourable ſeruice, as vntounto his better. Images then and reliques ye and as Chriſt ſayth, the holy day to, are ſeruauntes vntounto man. And therefore it foloweth that we can not, but vntounto our damnatiō put on a coate worth an hūdred coates, vpō a poſtes ☜backe, and let the image of God & the price of Chriſtes bloud go vp & downe therby naked. For if we care more to cloth the dead image made by mā and the price of ſiluer then the liuely image of God and price of Chriſtes bloud, then we diſhonoure the Image of God and hym that made him and the price of Chriſtes bloud and hym that bought hym.
Wherfore the right vſe, office and honour The vſe of creatures inferiours to man.of all creatures inferiours vntounto man, is to do mā ſeruice, whether they be images, reliques, ornaments ſignes or Sacramentes, holydayes, ceremonies or ſacrifices. And that may be on this maner & no doubt it ſo once was. If (for an example) I take a peece of The worſhipping of the croſſe.the croſſe of Chriſt and make a litle croſſe therof and beare it about me, to looke theron with a repentyng hart, at tymes whē I am moued therto, to put me in remembraunce that the body of Chriſt was broken and his bloud ſhed theron, for my ſinnes, and beleue ſtedfaſtly How a mā may vſe Images well.that the mercyfull truth of God ſhall forgeue the ſinnes of all that repēt for his death ſake and neuer thinke on thē more: then it ſerueth me & I not it, & doth me ye ſame ſeruice as if I read the Teſtament in a booke, or as if the preacher preached it vntounto me. And in lyke maner if I make a croſſe in my forehead, in a remembraunce that God hath promiſed aſſiſtaunce vntounto all that beleue in him, for his ſake that dyed on the croſſe, then doth the croſſe ſerue me and I not if. And in like maner if I beare on me or looke vponupon a croſſe of what ſoeuer matter it be, or make a croſſe vponupon me, in remembraunce that who ſoeuer wilbe Chriſtes Diſciple muſt ſuffer a croſſe of aduerſitie tribulations and perſecution, ſo doth the croſſe ſerue me and I not it. And this was the vſe of the croſſe once, and for this cauſe it was at the begynnyng ſet vp in the Churches.
And ſo if I make an image of Chriſt The worſhyppyng of images.or of any thyng that Chriſt hath done for me, in a memory, it is good and not euill vntill it be abuſed.
And euen ſo, if I take the true lyfe of a Saint and cauſe it to be painted or carued, to put me in remembraunce of the Saintes lyfe, to folow the Saint as the Saint did Chriſt, and to put me in remembraunce of the great fayth of the Saint to God and how true God was to helpe him out of all tribulatiō, and to ſee the Saintes louelove towardes his neighbour, in that he ſo paciently ſuffered ſo paynefull a death & ſo cruell Martyrdome to teſtifie the truth for to ſaue other, and all to ſtrength my ſoule with all and my fayth to God and louelove to my neighbour, then doth the image ſerue me and I not it. And this was the vſe of images at the begynnyng & of reliques alſo.
And to knele before the croſſe vntounto Images & reliques at the firſt were well vſed, but now ſhame fully abuſed.the word of God which the croſſe preacheth is not euill. Neither to knele downe before an image in a mans meditations to call the liuyng of the ſaint to mynde for to deſire God of lyke grace to folow the exāple, is not euill. But the abuſe of the thing is euill, and Falſe worſhypping. …to hauehave a falſe fayth: as to beare a pece of the croſſe about a mā, thinking that ſo long as that is about him, ſpirites ſhall not come at hym, his enemyes ſhall do hym no bodely harme, all cauſes The abuſe of Imagesſhal go on his ſide euen for bearing it about him, and to thinke that if it were not about hym it would not be ſo, and to thinke, if any miſfortune chaūce, that it came for leauing it of, or becauſe this or that ceremonie was left vndone, and not rather becauſe we hauehave broken Gods cōmaundemēts, or that God tēpteth vsus to proue our patience. This is playne idolatry, & here a man is captiue, bond & ſeruaūt vntounto a falſe fayth & a falſe imagination, that is neyther God nor his worde. Now am I Gods onelyonly and ought to ſerue nothing but God and his worde. My body muſt ſerue yt rulers of this world My body muſt ſerue the Prince o my neighbour, but my ſoule muſt ſerue God onelyonlyand my neighbour (as God hath appointed it) and ſo muſt all my goods: but my ſoule muſt ſerue God onelyonly, to louelove his lawe and to truſt in hys promiſes of mercy in all my deedes. And in like manner it is that thouſandes, while the Prieſt pattereth S. Iohns S. Iohns Goſpell.Goſpell in Latine ouer their heades, croſſe themſelues with, I trow a legion of croſſes, behynde and before, and wyth reuerence on the very arſes, and (as Iacke of napes when hee claweth himſelfe) plucke vp their legges and croſſe ſo much as their heeles and the very ſoles of their fete, and beleue that if it be done in the time that he readeth the goſpel (and els not) that there ſhal no miſchaunce happen them that day, becauſe onelyonly of thoſe croſſes. And This is ye true croſſing that we ſhould vſe.where he ſhould croſſe hymſelfe, to be armed and to make himſelfe ſtrong to beare the croſſe with Chriſt, be croſſeth himſelfe to driue the croſſe from hym, and bleſſeth hymſelfe with a croſſe frō the croſſe And if he leaue it vndone, he thinketh it no ſmal ſinne, and that god is highly diſpleaſed with him, and it any miſfortune chaunce, thinketh it is therefore, which is alſo Idolatry and not Gods worde. And ſuch is the confidēce in the place or image or whatſoeuer bodely obſeruaunce it be: ſuch is S Agathes letter written in the Goſpell tyme. And ſuch are ye croſſes on palmeſonday made in the paſſion tyme. And A great nō ber of ſuperſtitious baggages.ſuch is the bearing of holy waxe about a man. And ſuch is that ſome hang a pece of S. Iohns Goſpell about their neckes. And ſuch is to beare ye names of god with croſſes betwene ech name about them. Such is the ſaying of goſpels vntounto women in childbed. Such is the limeteriers ſaying of in principio erat verbum from houſe to houſe. Such is the ſaying of Goſpels to the corne in the field in the proceſſion weeke that it ſhould the better grow. And ſuch is holy bread, holy water, and ſeruing of all ceremonies and ſacramentes in generall without ſignification. And I pray you how is it poſſible that ye people can worſhip images, reliques, ceremonies and ſacramentes, ſaue ſuperſtitiouſly, ſo long as they know not the true meaning, neyther wyll ye Prelates ſuffer any man to tell them: yea and the very meaning of ſome and right vſe no man can tell?
And as for the riches that is beſtowed on images and reliques, they can not proue but that it is abhominable, Riches beſtowed on images or reliques.as long as the poore are diſpiſed and vncared for and not firſt ſerued, for whoſe ſakes and to finde preachers, offeringes, tithes, landes, rentes, and all that they hauehave, was geuen the ſpiritualitie. They wil ſay we may do both. Obiection.May or not may, I ſee that the one Solution.moſt neceſſary of both, is not done: but the poore are bereued of the ſpiritualtie of all that was in tyme paſſed offered vntounto thē. Moreouer though both were done, they ſhall neuer proue that the ſight of golde and ſiluer and of precious ſtones ſhould moue a mās hart to diſpiſe ſuch thinges after the doctrine of Chriſt. Neither can the rich coat helpe to moue thy mynde, to follow the enſample of the Saint, but rather if he were purtrayde as he ſuffered, in the moſt vngoodly wiſe. Which thing taken away, that ſuch thynges with all other ſeruice, as ſticking vp candels, moue not thy mynde to follow the enſample of the Saint, nor To worſhyp Images is Idolatry.teach thy ſoule any godly learning: thē the image ſerueth not thee, but thou yt Image, and ſo art thou an Idolater, that is to ſay in Engliſhe, a ſerue Image. And thus it appeareth that your vngodly and belly doctrine wherwith ye ſo magnifie the deedes of your ceremonies, and of your pilgrimages, and offering for the deede it ſelfe, to pleaſe God and to obtaine the fauour of dead Saintes (and not to moue you and to put you in remembraunce of the lawe of God and of the promiſes which are in his ſonne, and to follow the enſample of the Saint) is but an exhorting to ſerue Images, and ſo are ye Image ſeruers, that is, Idolaters. And finally the more deuotion men hauehave vntounto ſuch deedes, the leſſe they hauehave vntounto Gods commaundement, in ſo much that they which be moſt wont to offer to Images & to ſhew them, be ſo colde in offering to the poore, that they wyll ſcarce geue them the ſcrappes which muſt els be geuen dogges, or their olde ſhone, if they may hauehave new bromes for them.