Answer Unto Assertion that Church of Rome is the True Church, Answer 1 – Assertion 3
Aunswere.
YOu affirme that we ought to beleeue the Catholique Churche. It is true. we ought to be most assured that the death of Christ was not fruitelesse, but that by it the Lord hath purchased a peculiar people vntounto him selfe, takinge them out of all places where it hath liked him, according to the good pleasure of his will: without bindinge of himselfe, and his grace vntounto any particular person, countrie, or place alone, and this we ought to beleeue.
Consider it wel therfore with your self, that the church is a matter that falleth into beliefe, in so much that good Christians harkeninge ouermuch vntounto their reason & sence, hauehave somtime iudged amisse therof: takinge it not to be, when notwithstādinge it is, or not there to be, where in trueth it is: stumbling at suche things, as sense & reason are wont to be offended withal: as that the persons be often in number fewe, in condicion base, in estimation contēptible, subiect vntounto the iniurious dealings of the world: and therfore not onelyonly not equall vntounto the rest, but in the iudgement of sence & reason muche inferior. So that necessarilie belief taketh place in the article of the Churche. And if this be true in particular churches, howe much more is the vse of faith required for the Catholique & vniuersal, church, which can not bee subiect to any man his sight. You affirme moreouer that the holy Ghost is scholemaister vntounto the churche, & that therefore this article touchinge the churche is placed next vntounto that of our beliefe in the holy Ghost. I doe admitte your gathering for there nere placing, & I hartely pray you consider what can be said for the order of their standing. For albeit their places be nere togither, yet the article of our belief in the holy Ghost in order is the former, takinge the first place & the vpperhande of the other, wherby we are admonished, that if any people claime the title of the Catholique church, we are not bound to beleeue them, before they make good proufe, that the holy Ghost hath bene their scholemaister. For they may not come into to the possession of the Catholique church, but by proufe, that the doctrine wt they hould, hath beene taught them by that heauenlie teacher. And therefore let the writings of the holy Ghost bee perused, which are the canonical scriptures, as witnesseth Chrysostom in this woordes:Chrysost. de Fide & Lege Naturae. Omnia quaecunque vel Lex dicit, vel Prophetae vaticinantur, vel Apostoli praedicāt, Sācto spiritui verè tribuuntur & ascribuntur: And if it shall appeare by them, that you hauehave beene taught of him, we will yeelde vntounto you the title of the catholique church: But if you wil deuide the holy Ghost from the Scriptures, vrginge vsus only with his bare name, and doe not warrant by the woord that, which you ascribe vntounto him: we can not receiue such a spirit for holy Ghost: because we finde a graunt both of the Spirit and the woord, passed from the Lord vntounto the Churche, to continewe for euer ioyntly togither.Esay 59.21. Hoc foedus meum cū eis dicit Dominus: Spiritus meus qui est in te, & verba mea quae posui in ore tuo, non recedent, de ore tuo, & de ore seminis tui, dicit Dominus, ex nunc & vsus{que} in sempiternum. This is my couenant with them, saith the Lord: my Spirit that is vponupon thee, & my woord which I hauehave put in thy mouth, shall not depart out of thy mouth, nor out of the mouth of thy seede, from hence foorth euen for euer. You saye likewise that the Churche can not erre in matters of faithe, because S. Paule saith shee is Columna & Firmamentū veritatis: If she be the piller of truthe, let vsus, I pray you, see the banner of truthe, I meane the woord of God displayed in your Church, which (you say) is the piller thereof, and then we will not refuse to fight vnderunder your standard: But you hauehave hid the woorde of God from the multitude, in the close vessell of a straunge and vnknowne tonge, and from the rest in the darke dennes and dungeons of your owne expositions. For you will allowe thē to make no sence or construction thereof, otherwise than you shall ratifie and allow. And therfore if the Churche bee the piller of trueth, wee findinge no trueth with you, can acknowledge no true Church among you. I am to craue of you, euen by the mercies of Christ, that you would diligently peruse that whole chapter of S. Paule, where you gather that the Church can not erre, because shee is the piller and ground of trueth: and then you shall finde that it is not likelie by his dealing for her direction, and that by writing, euen in the least thinges, that he was of opinion shee could not erre. For he hath not left her vntounto her owne iudgement vponupon that hope, no not in matters, where there was the least feare of error & deceit. The Apostle, as it appeareth in that chapter, had taught Timothie, that Bishops & Deacons may be no dronkards, no fighters, no mē geuen to filthie lucre, no men whose children liue without awe or cōly order: that their wifes should be honest, no sclāderers, but sober & faithfull in all things, Immediatly after these instructions hee hath these wordes, these things write I vntounto the, trusting to come to the very shortlie, but if I tary long, that thou maiest know yet how to behaue thyselfe in the house of God, which is the church of the liuinge god, the piller & ground of trueth. Saint Paul here derecteth Timothie by writing, how to beehaue himselfe for dealinges in the church, touching those things where error seemeth least to be feared. For who wold suspect the church of so much want in iudgemēt, that shee were to be warned & that by writinge, in hir choise of Ministers to beware of drunkards, fighters, couetous persons, & men that cā not rule their owne housholds. A man would thinke that ciuill men, who hauehave no help but from fleshe and blood, were sufficiently able to discerne of thē selfs, that such infamous persons were not meet mē to serue in a place of so great credit. Who woulde not hauehave trusted the church wt greater matters than these, if S. Paule by his example had not made vsus suspicious & gelous ouer her herein? Who whē he geueth so much (as you think) vntounto the church, euen then & there saieth: These thinges hauehave I written, that thou maist knowe (if I tarie lōg) how to behaue thy self in the church of god, which is the piller of trueth. He shoulde rather hauehave said (if he had bene of your opiniō, touching ye impossibility of the church to erre) I will not trouble the wt writing of these matters: there is no daunger although I neither speake nor write therof. For the church by whome they are to be chosen, hauinge promise of such assistaunce continually frō the holy Ghost, as that it is not possible for her to erre, can order matters of greater difficultie than these. She can not erre in matters of faith, to iudge amisse of thē, & therfore is error much lesse to be feared, in discerning that so grosse euilles as these bee, cānot beseme him, who is to serue the lord in so high a callinge. I hartely beseeche you to marke it well, that in the same place where you ground the Church can not erre, the Apostle hath left a doctrine vntounto the Churche least shee shoulde erre, and that in matters most easy to be discussed. So that if the Church bee void of errour, it is not otherwise, than so farforthe as shee geueth an attentiue eare to the writinges of the Holy Ghost, which are geuen to keepe hir from swaruinge. For the Apostle doeth first instruct her by wrytinge, before he tell vsus of this priuiledge, which (you say) vpholdeth a fredom from erringe. How bee it you shall hardly perswade any man of indifferent iudgement, that the Apostle would hauehave vsus to cōceiue so highly of hir impossibility to erre in matters of faithe: as not to inquire whither shee followe therein the rule of the written woord: when in his owne practise, hee leaueth her not without direction in writinge, touching matters not of faithe, but (which is lesse subiect vntounto errour) of conuersation: and that euen in the same place, where this priuiledge of hers seemeth to be most vpholden by him. Saint Paule instructeth a man with doctrine and principles of trueth, that he may knowe howe to behaue himselfe in the Churche, which is the piller of trueth: But you first of all without doctrine, thrust a man vponupon your Churche: & then force him to imbrace such doctrine, as ther he shal finde receiued without further examination: because (as you saie) it is the piller of trueth, and therfore can not erre. I leaue it to the iudgement of eueryevery indifferent reader to consider, whither this maner of proceding, bee any thing like vntounto that course which the Apostle kepeth. It were the spediest dispatch of al controuersies, although not the best, yf the one party should bee first put in possession, and ther vponupon hauehave title vntounto al thinges possessed: But it were the best, although not the spediest dispatche, if the title were first assuredly knowne and determined, & thervpon the true owner put in possession. You will first hauehave the possessiō of the Church, & thervpō be intitled to the trueth, and all other treasures thereof: Whereas you ought first to proue your title to the trueth to be good: & then might you lawfully hauehave possession of the church. As concerninge the sense and meaning of that place of the Apostle, Chrysostome maketh an other exposition of it, than your Churche of Rome can digest. Est columna (inquit Chrysost.) ac firmamentum veritatis, Chrysost. epistola Pauli ad Tim. 1. capit. 3.non quemadmodum illud Iudaicum tēplum: Hoc enim est quod Fidem continet ac praedicationem: quippe veritas Ecclesiae & columna & firmamentum est. He saith that the trueth is the piller and grounde of the Church. He will hauehave the Church to bee a piller hewē out of the truth. In his iudgemēt the words are to be expoūded passiuely, so that the meaning of this saying. (The church is the ground & piller of truthe) is, that the Churche is a piller and made one of the trueth. You woulde hauehave vsus to discerne the scriptures by the churche, because (as you saie) she cannot erre: but Augustine woulde hauehave vsus to discerne the churche by the scriptures, his wordes are these:Aug. in epist. 166. In scripturis didicimus Christum: in scripturis didicimus Ecclesiā: Has scripturas communiter habemus, quare non in eis & Christum & Ecclesiam communiter retinemus? Now that we hauehave sene the strēgth and grounde of your beginning, I pray you …ou consider in good earnest the forme and manner of your proceedinge. And reasoning in this triall of true Religion. You first appoint a churche which (as you take it) is the churche of Rome, a number of people who are altogither of your iudgement in these matters that are called into question, those you saie can not erre, and therfore by them you will be tried, As if in causes of triall, a man might picke out all the men himselfe who were to passe vponupon him: & that lawe & reason woulde permit a mā to refuse God & the country, & to put himself vponupon his fellow prisoners, yea and vponupon those only of them, who were indited of the same trespasse, that he standeth to be tried of. It is against al right & reason, you shoulde be both party & iudge. Augustine saith in the place before alleged Scripturas cōmuniter habemus, The scriptures are cōmon and indifferent to both, and therefore mete to iudge: The Romane Churche is a party, and therefore not fit to beare witnesse, & much lesse to iudge in this cause. Our Sauiour Christ affirmeth that if hee shoulde hauehave had no testimony but frō him selfe,Iohn. 5. his witnesse should not hauehave ben true, & therfore willeth thē in the same chapter, to search the scriptures, for they (saith he) beare witnesse of me. You testifie of your selfs alone, applealing alwaies vntounto your owne churche, which as you saie can not erre, & therfore your witnesse (by the testimony of our sauiour Christ) is found not to be trew. Whereunto agreeth Chryso. his woords are these.Chrys. de sancto & adorando spiritu. Venit Montanus dicens: Spiritum sanctū habeo: venit Manichoeus, dicens, spiritum Sanctum habeo: nō fuit autem manifestum, vt igitur ne plures nomine seducerentur, quoniam inuisibiliter donum venturum erat, dicit: Quando venerit Paracletus spiritus veritatis qui a patre procedit, ille vos memores faciet verborum meorum, & inducet vos in omnem veritatem: nō enim a semetipso loquetur. Nam si quem videritis dicentē Spiritum sanctum habeo: & non loquentem euangelica, sed propria, is a seipso loquitur, & non est spiritus sanctus in ipso. Sicut enim dicit de seipso, ego a meipso non loquor: vt soluat suspicionem deceptionis, imò errorem a veritate separet: ita vt ostendat quinam habent spiritum sanctum, & qui non habent, sed simulant se habere: a me audistis quid tradidi. Quando veniet inuisibilis spiritus mea loquetur. Si videritis aliquem euangelica repetentem, profectò spiritum sanctū habet, veniet enim spiritus sanctus, vt recordari vos faciat eodum quae docui. Si quis igitur eorum qui dicuntur habere spiritū sanctū, dicat aliquid a seipso, & non ex Euangeliis, non credite. Montanus and Manichaeus two heretiques, came & affirmed that they had the holy Ghost: therfore our Sauiour Christ least moe should bee seduced by that name, for as much as the gift was inuisible and not to bee sene, saith, when the holy Ghoste the spirit of trueth shall come, hee shall bringe my words vntounto your remēbraunce, and shall lead you into all trueth. For he shall not speake of himselfe. For if you see any mā that saith, I hauehave the holy Ghost, and speaketh not out of the Gospel, but out of himselfe, he speaketh of himselfe, and the Holy Ghost is not in him. For as our Sauiour Christ said of himselfe, I speake not of my selfe, that therby he might take away all suspicion of deceit: Nay rather that hee might put a plaine difference betweene trueth and error: in like maner that he might declare who they bee, that hauehave the holy Ghoste, and who hauehave him not, he saith: ye hauehave heard of me, what I hauehave deliuered, to wit: that when the inuisible Spirit shall come, he shall speake of me. If ye shall see any man confirming his cause by the Gospell, that man hath the Holy Ghost, for the Holy Ghost shall come that hee maie bringe to your memories, such things as I hauehave taught. Therefore if any of them who are said to hauehave the holy Ghost, speake any things of thēselfs, & not out of the Gospel, beeleue them not. Consider I praye you, that Chrysostome will hauehave the holy Ghost discerned to be in mē (by this marke) of speaking not of thēselfs, but out of the woord and Gospel of God. Your church therfore which stādeth especiallie vponupon this point: Wee are the church & therfore can not erre: hath not the holy Ghost: for the holy Ghost appealeth not to himselfe. And if to speake out of the word of God, bee the true note of the spiri… of God, and as he saith a plaine distinctiō betweene error & trueth: then nede we not inquire from what place or people hee cometh, as if he were only bound to them that had antiquity & consent to alledge for their Religion: but are to content vsus with this (as the true note) to wit that the spirit of God doeth not speake of himselfe, but out of the woord and Gospel of God. Our charge is not geuen vsus from god, to make iniquisition from what people he cometh, but with what voice he speaketh. For if he speake of himselfe, that is, if he iustifie not that which he saith by the Gospel of god, he is a deceiuer, what antiquity & consent soeuer bee alledged for him. And therfore Chrysost. in the same place, immediatly after the words nowe alledged, speakinge against the heretique Manichaeus, saith thus: Vbi legisti haec? ex quo non legit haec scripta, sed a seipso loquitur, manifestum est quod non habet spiritum sanctum. Where hast thou read these things? seinge that he readeth not these thinges in the scripture, but speaketh of himself, it is manifest that he hath not the holy Ghost. Would to god that you & suche as you are, who binde the trueth, & therfore the holy Ghost the spirit of truethe, vntounto antiquity, succession of Bishopps, & consent of people: grounding your Religion thervpon: would carefully consider of the iudgement, not onelyonly of Chrysostome, but of Christ himself: therby to discerne who they bee, that hauehave the spirit of god, and who hauehave him not: then should you clearly se that he is to be discerned by his spech, & neither by his yeares, nor yet by the great traine & multitude of mē wt follow after him, & least of al by the order that they obserue in followinge one an other. His speach doeth so plainely bewray him, that Chrysostome is not afraid to saye, it is a manifest matter, not subiect to any exception, that if any read not out of the written woord that which they teach other, those same hauehave not the holy Ghost. For the holy Ghost which was promised, was promised to bee such a one, as should not speake of himselfe, but appeale vntounto the Gospel and woord of God for his warrant. Any man therefore may clearlie se, howe iustlie we chalenge that Spirit that speaketh in your Church not to be the holy Ghost, for hee appealeth to himselfe, his Councels and Doctors, makinge vsus beleue that there is no certainty in the word, and therfore no safe testimony to bee had from thence: not driuing vsus to the Scriptures, there to enquire after him: but pulinge vsus from thence vntounto the Churche, because she can not (as he saith) be deceiued. The speaches of your Spirit are these: Thus beleueth the Church, which can not erre, this is confirmed by councels and warranted by Doctors: This hath for it antiquity, vniuersality and consent. The voice of the holy Ghoste is this: hauehave you not read in your lawe? it is written of me in the volume of the booke: the scripture must be fulfilled: it is thus written. Nowe if the holy Ghost must hauehave the scriptures to testifie and speake for him, not being allowe… to speake of himself as binding mē therfore to receiue him because he can not erre: surely your priuiledge is mōstruously great, to hauehave that liberty & credit in your owne cause to speake of your selfe, which is not graunted vntounto the holy Ghost himselfe. I would be resolued of this one thinge by you, why our Sauiour Christ shoulde put himselfe vponupon the Scriptures for his triall being head of the Churche: and you taking your selues for mēbers therof, yet refuse it. If you thinke you shoulde offer your selues wrong because you onelyonly hauehave the true sense of the Scripture, remember that then our Sauiour Christ hauinge the true vnderstanding of the woord, did offer iniurie vntounto himselfe in puttinge himselfe vponupon the Sciptures, dealinge with these men, who had not the true sense thereof, because they were not of the churche, which is the piller of trueth. If you saye it is not the safest waye to perswade, and therefore you send them to the church as vntounto a safer waye: consider that in so doinge you charge our sauiour Christ with vnfaithfull dealinge, who hath not sent them to tha… triall of the church, which coulde not fail… but leade them vntounto him: but chose rathe… to send them to that trial of the Scripture… which (as you thinke) may be drawne thi… way and that way, and therfore not with out great danger to deceiue. It can not be auoyded but that both our sauiour Christ must offer himself wrong (if your assertion be true) in putting himselfe vponupon ye scriptures, to them who had not the true sense of the scripture: And also deale vnfaithfully in his fathers house, in suppressinge that which were the best able to lead them into all trueth: and sending them to that which could not but deceiue them, they not hauing the true sense therof. I doe therfore much marueile howe you can satisfie your owne conscience, in groundinge your faithe and perswading your self touching religion, to rest safely whersoeuer you shal find a nōber of people professing religion, who of long time together with a great nomber hauehave obserued the same: seing that our Sauiour Christ neuer vsed any such reason to perswade them wt were enimies vntounto trueth. Dare you challeng such wisdom vntounto your selfe, as to hauehave found out a wiser way to induce men vntounto the trueth, or to continue them therin, then the onelyonly wise God hath practised? Or dare you charge him wt vnfaithfulnesse, in concealing that manner of reasoning & perswading, wc is most able to preuaile? Or dare you leauinge out his manner of persuasion, vse an other and yet promise vntounto your selfe the best successe therby? As for his manner of perswadinge men vntounto the Gospel, and howe it differed from the seducers and false teachers that went before him, may appeare plainely out of the scriptures. Which thing is wel obserued by Chrysostome in these words.Chrysost. de sancto & odoando spiritu. Venerunt igitur illi falsi Christi, & non docuerunt ex lege & Prophetis, sed ex seipsis loquuti sunt & ex propria sententia: Saluator venit, & non discessit à lege, non discessit a Prophetis, sed dicebat quasi in exemplo benè dixit Isaias, Et iterum, Nonne scriptū est in lege vestra? Et eum accederet ad eum diabolus dicit, Dominum Deum tuum adorabis & illi soli seruies. There came false Christes (saith Chrysost.) & they taught not out of the lawe & prophetes, but spake of them selfs: Our Sauiour Christ came, & he went not from the lawe, he went not frō the Prophetes, but said (to giuegive it you in example) Well spoke the Prophet Esaie. And agayne. Is it not written in your lawe? And when the deuill came vntounto him, he said vntounto him. It is written, thou shalt worshippe the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serue. We hauehave here that māner of persuasion wt our Sauiour Christ tooke to bee the best, and therefore practised the same: and not onelyonly that, but (as Chrysostome saith) he was discerned therein, frō the false Prophets which went before him. Wee may see also in this practise of our sauiour Christ, a plaine confutatiō of your strongest reason, which moueth you to fly frō the scriptures vntounto fathers, Doctors, and the churche. You were wont to saye if one alledge scriptures for his purpose, and another holdinge a contrarie opinion, shall likewise bringe in scriptures to vphoulde his iudgement: how shal the trueth bee tried but by the writinges and expositions of fathers vponupon these places? Heere you see that Sathan would perswade his purpose by scripturs, our Sauiour Christ flieth not for defence vntounto the Churche, alledging the writings of the learned Iewes, and the expositions of the Rabbines vponupon that place, but by an other place of scripture, beateth out the true sence & meaning of that which was misaleaged by Sathan: to wit, that he might so hope for helpe and defence from God, as that he stode bound neuerthelesse to vse such meanes as the Lord should giuegive into his handes, because it was written in an other place of Scripture, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God; which he should hauehave done, if hauing meanes to goe downe safely, hee should for all that hauehave cast himselfe headlonge off the pinnacle, in hope that the Lorde woulde not suffer him to dashe his foote against a stone. You maye see that the scripture hath in it self sufficient light, to cleare and make plaine the darke places of her self: And therfore they ar iustlie charged to be infected with a most dangerous heresy, who perswade & mainteyne a great doubtfulnesse and obscuritie to bee in the word, therby to shunne the reproufe of their religion & conuersatiō: according as Irenaeus testifieth in his third booke.Irenaeus lib. 3. Cap. 2. Haeretici, cùm ex Scripturis arguuntur, in accusationē cōuertuntur ipsarum scripturarum, quasi non rectè habeant ne{que} fint ex authoritate: & quasi variè sint dictae: & quia non possit ex his inueniri veritas ab his qui nesciant traditionē. Heretiques whē they are reproued by the scriptures, they returne an accusatiō against the scripturs, as if they were not of sufficient authoritie, and as if they were doubtful & diuersty to be taken & expoūded: & that the trueth could not be founde out by the scriptures, of those men which knowe not ye traditiō. These are the very speaches of your Churche at this daye against the scriptures, that the scripture hath no right title and sufficient authoritie to decide controuersies, & discerne spirites, because it is but a dead letter, & that one place may bee taken in diuers & sundrie senses, & that the true sence can not be had but onelyonly in your churche, because it knoweth the tradition, that is in what sence the fathers hauehave deliuered it vntounto thē. I hauehave tould you already that it was the practise of our Sauiour christ, to appeale vntounto the scriptures rather thē vntounto the church: so consider I pray you, that wee finde it in the scriptures, that the wicked & vngodlie hauehave appealed rather to the Churche, then to the Scriptures: reasoning as you doe, that they were of the Churche and therfore coulde not be deceiued: And thervpon hauehave taken liberty, not onelyonly to neglect the word brought by the true Prophet of God, but also to persecute the bringer. For thus speake the Iewes against Ieremy: Ieremy. 18.Come and let vsus imagyne some deuyse against Ieremy, for the lawe shall not perishe from the Priest, nor counsaile from the wise, nor the word from the Prophet: Come and let vsus smite him with the tongue, and let vsus not giuegive hede vntounto any of his words. You may see that vponupon this grounde that the law could not perishe from the Priest, nor the word from the Prophet, which is this in effect, that the Churche coulde not erre: they take liberty to fight against the truthe, and true Churche of God, and not to regarde the wordes of the true Prophet of God.
Assertion.
Quatuor notae eiusdem Ecclesiae,
Est Vna, Sancta, Apostolica, Catholica.
1. In her is vnity of Doctrine and Sacraments.
2. In her is holinesse and perfection of a christian life, practised, vsed, and exercised, as deuout seruinge of God both daye and night, chastity of life, almesse deedes, fastings and other afflictions to bring the rebellious body in subiection to the spirit, buildinge of Churches, vniuersities, Colledges, Hospitalls for the poore, lending of mony for charitie and not for vsury, and a continuall remembrance as well for the liuinge as for the dead.
3. In her ther is a continual succession as well of Bishops as of doctrine, from the Apostles time euen vntounto this.
4. In her is vniuersalitie of faith doctrine and Religion.
Answeare.
YOu make iiii. notes or marks of the true churche whereby shee is to bee knowne & discerned. The first for that shee is at vnity within hir selfe, both touchinge hir doctrine and Sacraments. The second because the fruits of holines and true righteousnesse abound in hir. The third in that shee hath the Apostles doctrine deliuered into her handes, by a continuall succession of Bishops, frō the Apostles time vntounto the end of the world, for I thinke that is your meaninge, albeit your wordes warrant succession of Bishoppes and Doctrine no longer than vntounto this tyme. The fourth, because her faith Doctrine and religion is vniuersal. Because you bring foorth proofes afterward (such as they be) for the strengthening of your opinion touchinge these markes & notes of the church: the answere therunto shall sufficiently teache vsus what to thinke of this that you hauehave said, and in what sense and meaninge, or with what caution and condition, these are to bee receiued as markes of the Church.
Assertion.
For the first. God saith by his Prophet Ieremy.Ieremy. 32. Dabo eis cor vnum & viā vnam. For the same Christ also prayed to his father.Ioan. 17. As thou and I are one in deity, so graunt that such as are mine may be one in concord. Which as you maye read in the Actes was graunted him of his said father:Act. 4. For there was in the primitiue Churche, Cor vnum, & anima vna: Saint Paule also prayed for the same, saying: Deus pacientiae & solatij det vobis id ipsum …apere in alterutrum, Roma. 15.secūdum Iesum Christum, vt vnanimes vno ore honorificetis Deū & Patrem Domini nostri Iesu Christi. 1. Corint. 1.Et …ibi: obsecro vt idipsum dicatis omnes, & …on sint in vobis Schismata. Therefore I conclude that where discord & diuision is in matters of faith, there can not bee the churche of Christ: vnlesse you wil affirme that god hath not performed his said promise made by Ieremie, neither that the father hearde the said prayer of his sonne for the vnity of the Churche: And that Saint August. was greatly deceiued,August. epis. 165. who saith that in Cathedra vnitatis, est doctrina veritatis.