Capitulum 23m.
Possessioners also constreynen prestis to leue studiynge of holy writt & deuocion & prechynge, & neden hem bi vertue of obedience & peyne of prisonynge, & dampnacion as þei feynen, to bisien hem nedles nyȝt & day wiþ worldly occu|pacion, aȝenst cristis reule & here owene profession, for ellis þei seyn here couent schulde perische & here religion goo doun; & þus bi obedience maad to synful man, & in cas to fendis, þei fordon obedience to god lord of al þingis. & ȝif a synful ydiot bidde hem do þe lesse goode, & god biddeþ hem do þe more goode, þei schullen leue þe more good & sterynge of crist & þe holy gost for þis feyned obedience to a synful caitif; & þus whanne þei [þis AA.] bynden hem to forsake þe world & be dede þer-to, þei ben quekenyd bi anticristis obedience & maade more worldly þan ony oþere men.
Capitulum 24m.
Also þes possessioners ben neuere ful of worldly goodis & seculer lordischipis, but euere purchasen, be it riȝt be it wrong, bi gold, be ypocrisie 2of preiere2 [2_2 omitted X.] & bi pardons; for þe coueitouse man schal not be fulfillid wiþ money, as god seiþ; [Ecclus. xiv. 9.] & so þei breken þe reule of crist tauȝt & comaundid bi seint poul to alle prestis: we hawynge liflode & couerynge be we [I. Tim. vi. 8.] apeied wiþ þes þinges; & þus is ieromyes prophecie fulfillid [Jer. vi. 13.] þat fro þe leste to þe moste þei studien to coueitise. & siþ þei may not gouerne wel þe peple as lordis schulden, þei wolle not cesse til alle be conquerid in-to here dede hondis to distroie lordis & comunes & holy lif of prestis; & certis oþer þei ben of more myȝt & witt to do boþe temperal office & spiritual to-gidre þan weren crist & his apostlis, or elles þei ben foolis disceyued bi pride & coueitise of þis world; for crist & his apostlis couden not or myȝt not or wolde not do [to X. corrected by a later hand.] þes offices to-gidre, but weren fully occupyed wiþ spiritual office; & þus þes possessioners sclaundren cristis lif & ben out of feiþ, hope & charite, & harde rotid in heresie.
