worldly pre-eminence, safe and without impairing, to our possible power: that we so have gotten ourselves away from that Church which they had made a 'den of thieves,' and wherein nothing was in good frame, or once like to the Church of GoD, and which, by their own confessions, had erred many ways; even as Lot in times past got him out of Sodom, or Abraham out of Chaldea; not upon a desire of contention, but by the warning of GOD himself: and that we have searched out of the holy Bible, which we are sure cannot deceive us, one sure form of religion; and have returned again unto the primitive Church of the ancient fathers and apostles that is to say, to the ground and beginning of things, unto the very foundations and headsprings of CHRIST'S Church. Neither have we tarried in this matter for the authority or consent of the 'Tridentine Council, [Council of Trent,]h wherein we saw nothing done uprightly, nor by good order; where also every body was sworn to the maintenance of one man; where princes' ambassadors were contemned; where not one of our divines could be heard; and where parts' taking and ambition was openly and earnestly procured and wrought: but as the holy fathers in former time, and as our predecessors have commonly done, we have restored our Churches by a Provincial Convocation, and have clean shaken off, as our duty was, the yoke and tyranny of the bishop of Rome, to whom we were not bound; who also had no manner of thing like, neither to CHRIST, nor to Peter, nor to an apostle, nor to any bishop at all.i Finally, we say that we agree amongst ourselves touching the whole judgment and chief substance of the Christian religion, and with one mouth, and with one spirit do worship GoD and the Father of our LORD JESUS CHRIST. Sect. 2. Wherefore, O Christian and godly reader, forsomuch as thou seest the reasons and causes, both why we have restored religion, and why we have forsaken these men; thou oughtest not to marvel, though we have chosen to obey our Master CHRIST rather than men. St. Paul hath given us warning that we should not suffer ourselves to be carried away with such sundry learnings, and to fly their companies, specially such as would sow debate and variance,1 clean contrary to the doctrine which they had received of CHRIST and the apostles. Long since have these men's crafts and treacheries decayed and vanished and fled away at the sight and light of the Gospel, even as the owl doth at the sunrising. And albeit their trumpery be built up, and reared as high as the sky, yea, even in a moment, and as it were of itself, falleth it down again to the ground and cometh to nought. For you must not think that all these things have come to pass by chance, or at adventure. It was God's pleasure, that against all men's wills, well nigh, the Gospel of JESUS CHRIST should be spread abroad throughout the whole world at these days. And therefore men, following God's commandment, have of their own free will resorted unto the doctrine of JESUS CHRIST. And for our parts, truly we have sought hereby neither glory, nor wealth, nor pleasure, nor ease. For there is plenty of all these things with our adversaries. And when we were of their side, we enjoyed such worldly commodities much more liberally and bountifully, than we do now. For Sect. 3. Neither do we eschew concord and peace. But to have peace with man, we may not be at war with GOD. "The name of peace is a sweet and pleasant thing," saith HILARY: "but yet beware," saith he; peace is one thing, and bondage is another." m if it should so be, as they seek to have it, that CHRIST should be commanded to keep silence, that the truth of the Gospel should be betrayed, that horrible errors should be cloaked, that Christian men's eyes should be 66 * Heb. xiii. 9. 11 Tim. vi. 5. Rom. xvi. 17. "Dulce quidem est nomen pacis ; sed aliud est pax, aliud servitus." bleared, and that they might be suffered to conspire openly against GOD; this were not a peace, but a most ungodly covenant of servitude. "There is a peace," saith ŇAZIANZEN, "that is uprofitable: there is a discord," saith he, "that is profitable." For we must conditionally desire peace; so far as is lawful before GOD, and so far as we may conveniently. For otherwise CHRIST himself “ brought not peace into the world, but a sword."n Wherefore, if the Pope will have us to be reconciled unto him, his duty is first to be reconciled to GoD: for "from thence," saith CYPRIAN, "spring schisms and sects, because men seek not the head, and have not their recourse to the fountain, (of the Scriptures,) and keep not the rules given by the heavenly Teacher; for," saith he, “that is not peace, but war; neither is he joined unto the Church, which is severed from the Gospel.". Sect. 4. As for these men, they use to make a merchandize of the name of peace. For that peace which they so fain would have, is only a rest of idle bellies. They and we might easily be brought to atonement P touching all these matters, were it not that ambition, gluttony, and excess, doth let it. Hence cometh their whining: their heart is on their halfpenny. Out of doubt, their clamours and stirs be to none other end, but to maintain more shamefully and naughtily ill gotten goods. Now-a-days the pardoners complain of us, the Dataries, the Pope's collectors, the bawds and others n Matth. x. 34. "Hinc enim schismata oriuntur, quia Caput non quæritur, et ad fontem sacrarum Scripturarum non reditur, et cœlestis Magistri præcepta non servantur. Non enim pax est ea, sed bellum; nec Ecclesiæ jungitur, qui ab Evangelio separatur." P [This passage beautifully illustrates the origin of the word atonement, now so completely changed in its signification. LADY BACON uses it, as it was doubtless commonly used in her day, to express the reconciliation, the 'being AT ONE,' of parties formerly at variance. Now, it is limited to the means of effecting the reconciliation -the satisfaction to the aggrieved party.] [Persons empowered to travel through specified districts for the sale of indulgences.] г [The receivers of the Papal revenues.] which think gain to be godliness, and serve not JESUS CHRIST, but their own bellies. Many a day ago, and in the old world, a wonderful great advantage grew hereby to these kinds of people. But now they reckon all is lost unto them that CHRIST gaineth. The Pope himself maketh a great complaint at this present, that charity in people is waxen cold. And why so, trow ye? Forsooth, because his profits decay more and more. And for this cause doth he hale us into hatred, all that ever he may, laying load upon us with despiteful railings, and condemning us for heretics; to the end that they that understand not the matter, may think there be no worse men upon earth than we be. Sect. 5. Notwithstanding, in the mean season we are not ashamed in this behalf: neither ought we to be ashamed of the Gospel. For we set more by the glory of GOD, than we do by the estimation of men. We are sure all is true that we teach, and we may not either go against our own conscience, or bear any witness against GOD. For if we deny any part of the Gospel of JESUS CHRIST before men, he on the other side will deny us before his Father. And if there be any that will still be offended, and cannot endure CHRIST's doctrine; such, say we, be blind, and leaders of the blind: the truth nevertheless must be preached and preferred above all; and we must with patience wait for Gop's judgment. Let these folks, in the mean time, take good heed what they do, and let them be well advised of their own salvation, and cease to hate and persecute the Gospel of the Son of God, for fear lest they feel him once a redresser and revenger of his own cause. GOD will not suffer himself to be made a mocking stock. The world espieth, a good while ago, what there is a doing abroad. This flame, the more it is kept down, so much the more with greater force and strength doth it break out and fly abroad. The unfaithfulness of men shall not disappoint God's faithful promise. And if they shall refuse to lay away this their hardness of heart, and to . 1 Tim. vi. 5. Rom. xvi. 18, Matt. x. 33. o and the Father of our LORD JESUS CHRIST, the eyes of them all, that they may be able to see lessed hope, whereunto they have been called;" we may together in one glorify Him alone, who true God, and also that same JESUS CHRIST whom at down to us from heaven: unto whom, with the ER and the HOLY GHOST, be given all honour and everlastingly. So be it. |