Against the Outward Apparel and Ministering Garments of the Popish Church, Letter 2
¶ Grace and peace with all maner ſpiritual feling and liuing worthi of the kindnes of Chriſt, be with all that thriſt the will of God.
TO my faythfull and deare brethren in Chriſt Ieſu,
as in comen daungers of fier, or ſuche lyke, welbelouyd, they that be fare of, com to ſocoure thoſe that hauehave nede, ſo I beinge out of iepordie and far of,tru Chriſtian louelove. can not but of deuty wyſhe well to thoſe that be touchyd about the popiſhe apparell in thys libertye of Gods truthe, whyche is tought plainely without offencis, in ye greatyſt miſterys of our religion and ſaluacion, yt is much to be marvayled, that this ſmall controuerſye of aparell ſhould be ſo heuely taken. But this is the mallis of ſatan,the practiſ… of the wickid. that wher he can not ouerthrow the greatiſt matters, he will cauſe great troubels in trifels. Peter and Paule agreyde in the greatyſte articles of our ſaluacion, and yet they differyd ſo about meattes, that Paule withſtode and rebuckid hym openly.the infirmites of the godly. Paule and Barnabas fell at ſuche bytter contencion, whether Marke ſhuld go with them or no, that they partyd companyes, and eyther of them went ſondry waies. God defend vsus from the lyke.the conſtance of the godly Paule circumciſyd Timothe when ther was hope to wine the Iewes: but when they wold hauehave it of neceſſite, he would not circumciſe Titus, therfore compellinge would not be vſyd in thinges of liberte, yt is a lamētable caſe, that among them that are civil & full of knouledge, that yt ſhuld come thus to paſſe. Conſyder dearly belouyd, I beſech you, how that all countres, whiche hauehave reformid religion, hauehave caſt away the popiſhe aparell with the pope: and yet we that wyll be taken for the beſt goſpelars, are contentid to kepe it as an holie religion. Marke well alſo how many godly and learnid miniſters ther be here in all countres, that be ſo zelous not onlie to forſake the wickyd doctrine of poperie, ready to leue the minyſtry, & to loſe lyuinges, rather then to be lyke the popiſhe teachers of ſuperſticious order in aparell or behaviour. This realme hath ſuch ſkacite of teachers, that yf ſo many worthye men and learnid ſhuld be caſt out of the miniſtrie for ſuche ſmall matters, many placis ſhulde be deſtitude of preachers, & yt wold geue an incurable offence to all the fauourars of gods truthe here, and in other countres, alſo ſhall we make ſo much and ſo precious of the popes rages, that other reformyd places, exteme as vyle & filthye, God forbid. S. Paule byddith wemen vſe ſuche aparell as becomith them that profes true godlines, which rule is muche more to be obſeruid of men, & eſpeciallye of preachers. But yf we forſake popery as wickid, ſhall we ſay that their aparell becommith ſaintes, and profeſſars of tru holines. Saint Paule bydith vsus refraine from al outward ſhew of evell, but ſurely in kepinge of this popiſhe aparell, we forbear not an outwarde ſhew of much evell, yf popery be iudgid evell, as greter wickidnes can not be, as we wolde hauehave a diuers ſhewe of aparel to be knowē from the comon people, ſo is yt neceſſary in aparell, to hauehave a ſhew, howe a proteſtante is to be knowen from a papiſte. Yt hathe pleaſyd God to call vsus to preache his heuenly worde to that hye office, God geue you grace and vsus all to ſeke hys honor & glorie yf we ſo do with a pure hart and mynde, he hath promyſed, He that honorith me, I will glorify him, and he that contemnith me, I wyll contemne him. Let ther be no curtiſye made to healpe gods people now they be in danger. Call to your remembraunce Quene Eaſter, ſhe be gaue to make curtiſy to ſpeke in yt cauſe, but Mardocheus ſayd vntounto her: Yf thou now hold thy peace, God ſhall delyuer by an other meane, & yet thou & thy fathers houſe ſhall peryſhe. You that can and may do good, do it whyle tyme is offerid, the tyme will come when it wylbe to late: yet god wyll comfort his by ſome other meane: It ys a perilous thinge, not to healpe in the tyme of neade, & not to ſuffer religion to goe forward in all ſyncerite, and to further gods cauſe when ye maye, when Terenti a good Chriſtian captaine returnid with great triumphe & victory, the Emperor Valerius bade him are what he wold, and he ſhuld hauehave it for his good ſeruice: he hauing God before his eyes, deſyrd nether ryches, nether honor, but thoſe which had aduentered their liues for true religion, might hauehave a church alowid them, to ſerue their god purely in, & ſeueral from the Arrians. The Emperour beyng angrie with his requeſt, pullyd his ſupplicacion in pecis, and bade him axe ſom other thing. but he gathered vp the pecis of his, paper and ſayd: I hauehave receuid my rewarde, I wyll axe nothinge els, God encrece about Princes the ſmall nomber of ſuche zelous ſuters & promoters of religion, and then no doubt gods glorye ſhall floriſhe when we ſeke his dewe honor, and not oure owne profyte. But to avoide contencion & ſciſme Auſten gevith good counſel to godly and quiet men, that they mercifully correcte that whiche they can, & that which they can not, paciently beare, grone and morne, with louelove, vntil god ether correct or amend them. But how this Chriſtian louelove ſhuld be kept in this church, when ſo manye godlie for ſo ſmall thinges ſhalbe thruſte out, & alſo how many already is from the miniſtery & theyr lyuinges, yt paſſyth manye good and godlie wittes to conceyue. S. Pauls rule in ſuche thinges, ſayth: All thinges to me is lawfull, but all thinges is not expedient: all thinges to me is lawfull, but all thinges edefye not. Therfor in this caſe we muſt not ſo ſuttelly diſpute, what Chriſtian liberte will ſuffer vsus to do, but what is metiſt and moſt edefying for Chriſtian charite, & promoting Chriſtian and pure religion. But ſurely how popiſhe aparell ſhuld edefie, or ſet forwarde the goſpell of Chriſt Ieſus, it can not be ſeen of the multitude, nay, it is to much fealt how gredly it reioyſith the aduerſaries of the truth, when they ſee what we borowe of them, & contend for the ſame as thinges neceſſarie. marke well the byſſhopes wearing of their whyte rochets, what grounde they fyrſte had, and from whence they receyuid it. Ther was a certayne man, namid Siſinius an heriticke biſhop of the Novacions, and he firſt begane yt. all thoſe other popiſh traſhe hath the lyke foundacions, but they hauehave to long contineuyd & pleaſyd poperie, which is beggerly patchid vp of al ſortes of cerimones, & that they coulde neuer be routyd out ſence, no not from manie profeſſors of the goſpel. Wherfore you that ſe others that is come to a better perfection, grudge not at yt, but be thankfull to God, though thynges may be borne wythe for a tyme for Chriſtian lybertes ſake, in hope to winne the weake. yet when lyberte is turnyd into neceſſite, yt ys evell, & no lenger lyberte: and that, that was for wynning the weake ſufferid for a tyme, is become the confyrminge of the frowarde in their obſtinacie. Paul vſyd circūciſion for a tyme as of lyberte, but when it was vrgyd of neceſſite, he wold not bende vntounto it. That famous father Maſter Bucer, when he was aryd why he wolde not weare a ſquare cape, made aunſwere, becauſe hys heade was not foure ſquare. wherin ſurelye he notyd well the comlynes of aparell to be, when yt was faſſionyd lyke the body, & a gret folly when a ſquare cape was ſet on a rounde heade.
God be mercyfull vntounto vsus, and graunte vsus vprightly to ſeke hys honore wyth all earneſtnes & ſimplicite. The Lorde comfort his afflictid church, & graunte that in this oulde age of the worlde, we may ſerue the Lord of hoſtes in ſynglenes of hart, and laboure to rote out all ſtomblinge blockes in religion, that Chriſtes glorie maye nakydly ſhyne of yt ſealue, without all tradicions or inuencions of men, as in the begynninge when yt was pureſt, and all ſuch deuyſes vnknowen, but inuentid of late to bleare the eyes of the ignorant, with outwarde ſhewe of holines. God graunt that we may geue all honor to whom al honore is deue, both inwardly and outwardly, to ſerve hym vnfaynedlye al the dayes of oure lyfe. Fare well deare brethren in the Lorde Ieſu, who euer kepe vsus in hys fayth, feare, and louelove, for euer.
Amen.
End of the text · Robert Crowley, Against the Outward Apparel and Ministering Garments of the Popish Church (1566)