The English works of Wyclif hitherto unprinted.Edited by F. D. Matthew.

XIX. OF POOR PREACHING PRIESTS.

I GIVE this title for want of a better, but the tract has no heading in the MS. It is a summary of the wishes of the writer as to reform in Church and State; the first thirteen points of the poor priests relating to the clergy, and the eighteen which follow (and which might almost be taken as a separate tract), having reference to the duties of secular rulers.

I am inclined to date it 1377. The first year of a new reign would be a suitable time for the issue of a programme such as this; and there is a stronger ground for the supposition in the correspondence of several 'points' with petitions of the Commons in Richard's first Parliament. The tract certainly belongs to the fourteenth century. The desire that no priest or religious should be prisoned without open doom (p. 279) marks a time when no Act of Parliament had sanctioned the burning of heretics, but when the bishops, alarmed at the spread of heresy, were taking the law into their own hands.

I can give no decided opinion as authorship, but all the points are within the scope of Wyclif's teaching.

The tract is to be found only in the Corpus MS. X.

Of poor preaching Priests.

[page 234] Þe first general poynt of pore prestis þat prechen in engelond is þis; þat þe lawe of god be wel knowen, tauȝt, meyntened, magnyfied. ¶ Þe secunde þat þe grete opyn synne þat regneþ in diuerse statis be distroied, & also heresie & ypocrisie of anticristis & his folweris. ¶ Þe þridde þat verrey pees, pros|perite & brennynge charite be encresed in cristendom, & namely in þe rewme of engelond, for to brynge [men] redily to þe blisse of heuene. ¶ Þe first special poynt is þis, þat cristene men, & namely clerkis of scole & curatis, studie, kepe, teche, & meyntene holy writt more þan newe statutis, cus|tomes & s[er]ymonyes maad of synful men. ¶ Þe secunde, þat þe ordynaunce of ihū crist be stedfastly [page 235] kept in alle degres, so þat alle clerkis lyue clenly on spiritualte, as crist & his apostlis deden, & ȝeuynge ensaumple of mekenesse, pacience & heuenly lif & charite; & þat alle seculer lordischipis turne clene to seculer lordis, as god biddiþ in þe olde testament & newe, & þat þei don riȝtwisnesse, mercy & pite, & riȝtly gouerne þe comouns in reste, pees & charite, iuste customes, [&] resonable rentis to here lordis & maistris; & þat þe comyns wilfully, mekely & trewely do here seruyce. ¶ Þe þridde, þat þe ordre of presthod wiþ clennest reulis of cristis gospel be holden [&] meyntened boþe perfiter & esier & sikerer þan ony newe [ordre] [Not in MS., but some such word is evidently wanted.] or secte wiþ bilawis, customes, obseruauncis founden of synful men, þat ofte erreden in þouȝt, worde & dede. ¶ Þe firþe, þat cursed heresie of symonye in þe clergie be distroied boþe in benefices, ordris, sacramentis & pardons. ¶ Þe fifte, þat þe raueyne & extorcion of prelatis & here officeris, þat þei don vnder colour of iuridiccon & almes in meyntenynge of synne for annuel rente, wisly & trewely be stoppid, & þat þei be wel chastised for robbynge of þe kyngis lege men. ¶ Þe sixte, þat curatis ben not occupied in worldly

office in lordis courtis, leuynge cristene soules vngouerned & vntauȝt, for boþe þe lord & þe clerk don gret traiterie to god & his peple; & þat fals confessoures þat norischen men in synne for worldly worschipe, worldly wynnynge, welfare & ese, be hurled out of office & courtis for drede of schedynge of worldly venyme. ¶ Þe seuenþe, þat clerkis be meke & obeschaunt to worldly lordis, as crist & his apostlis weren, & be not norischid in grete synne by anticristis exempcion, leste cristene rewmes be distroied for suffraunce & meyntenynge of cursed synnes. ¶ Þe eiȝteþe, þat cristene men drede more þe riȝtful cursynge of god for brekynge of his hestis þen wrongful cursynge of synful men, þat cursen men for trewe prechynge of þe gospel & fulfillynge of þe werkis of mercy; for god blisseþ where þei cursen. ¶ Þe nynþe, þat pore men of þe rewme be not robbid for symonye of þe firste fruytis bi þe bischop of rome, ne bi þe bischepis at hom for halowynge of chirchis & auteris, & prouyng of testa|mentis & aquitauncis. ¶ Þe tenþe, þat cristene men ȝeue more credence to cristis gospel & his lif þan to ony bullis of synful bischopis of þis world, or ellis þei forsaken crist and taken anticrist & sathanas for here chief gouernour. ¶ Þe elleuenþe, þat þe sotil vsure of riche clerkis & marchaundes be hurled out of lond, & borwyng & lynynge be frely don to pore men for goddis sake. ¶ Þe twelfþe, þat no lege man of oure kyng [page 236] be prisoned for wrongful cursynge of prelat, þe while he is redy to be iustified bi holy writt & trewely don his office. ¶ Þe þrittenþe, þat who euere doþ most symonye & meynteneþ most synne be demed, knowen & tretid most heretik, most aduersarie of ihū crist & principal anticrist. ¶ Ȝif ony man kan proue bi holy writt or reson þat þes poyntis ben false, pore prestis wolen mekely ben amendid, & hertely preien alle goode men to helpe hem in here trewe cause for worschipe of god, helþe of here soulis, & saluacion of cristene rewmes.

¶ Þes ben eiȝtene poyntis to distroie grete wrongis & synnes & strengþe þe pees & charite in oure lond, ȝif þe kyng, lordis & comyns wolen practise hem wel.

Þat þe grete blasphemye of goddis name in veyn & fals swerynge & vnlefully creaturis, as bi cristis woundes, nayles & oþere membris, be refreyned bi drede of peynes sett bi þe kyng, lordis & comounte of cristene peple, lest god take grete vengaunce on oure peple, boþe in þis wor[l]d & in þe toþer. ¶Þat falsse witnesse in assises & oþere causes, þat forsweren hem for coueitise, loue or drede or hate, & alle þat procuren hem þer-to, ben opynly ponyschid in ensaumple of oþere; for ellis schal no man meyntene his heritage, goodis or lif for multitude of false questis. ¶Þat meyntenours of false causes bi strengþe or lordischipe or bi sotel cauillacions feyned on þe lawe be wisly refreyned & scharply ponyschid in oure lond; for ellis no pore man schal ben hardy to chalenge his owene goodis, neiþer riche man but ȝif he wole make opyn debate or werre; or ellis treuþe, pees & charite schullen be exilid, & wrong & mansleyng, þefte & werre be hauntid, til oure lond be con|querid bi enemys or heþene men, as it haþ ofte ben bi-fore þis tyme. ¶Þat þe open þefte of mennus children þat feyned religious vsen vnder colour of holynesse be scharply ponyschid & forbeden, for bi þis many children ben deppere dampned þan þei schulden ellis; & þei may not worschipe here eldris as god biddiþ ne vsen þe fredom of cristis gospel; for whanne þei beþ stolen awey fro here eldris, ȝe wiþ-inne age of discrecion, þei schul not forsake þe habit of freris for drede of prisonynge & deþ, þouȝ it be agens here wille & conscience; & þouȝ here frendis seke neuere so faste þei schullen not fynde hem, so þei schul be led fro place to place. ¶Þat pore tenauntis of oure lond be not robbid bi þe gredy & nedles beggeris of sotel ypocritis hauynge þe name of religiouse men, & þat ihũ crist be not sclaundred her by affermynge [page 237] þat he beggede nedely fro hous to hous, as feyned religiouse vsen nowe; siþ holy writt forbediþ siche beggynge, þouȝ summe beggen myȝte be suffrid in tyme of grete nede. ¶Þat þe sotil amortasynge of seculer lordischipis þat is don bi menene hondis in fraude of

þe kyngis statute be visely [?bisily; or, perhaps, for avisely=carefully.] enquyred, & þe goodis turned in helpe of þe rewme in sparynge of þe pore comons of taxes. ¶ Þat þe almes of lordis ȝouen to prelatis & religious, vp certeyn condicions to fede certeyn pore men & oþer hospitalite & certeyn noumber of good prestis, be wisly amendid bi þe kyng & lordis whanne þes goodis beþ turned in-to pompe, glotonye & lecherie & meyntenynge false purchases; for þe kyng & lordis ben patrons & meyntenours of many synnes to dis|truction of þe lond. ¶ Þat þe pore comons be not chargid wiþ taxis, þe while clerkis, & namely religiouse, han superfluyte of riches of gold & siluer & riche vesselis & oþere iewelis; siþ alle þes goodis ben pore mennus goodis, & clerkis ben not lordis of hem but proctours, to spende hem trewely in pore mennus nedis, as goddis lawe & mannys witnessen. ¶ Þat þe wast tresour hanged on stockis & stones be wisly spendid in defence of þe rewme, & releuynge of þe pore comouns; þat þe peple of oure lond be not brouȝt to maumetrie, ne þefte, ne lecherie meyntened vnder siche pilgrimage, ne almes drawen fro pore nedy men bouȝt wiþ cristis precious blood. ¶ Þat þe clergie of oure londe be refreyned fro pride, glorious array & worldly occupacion, & namely oure prelatis & curatis; arn [?and] chargid bi þe kyng & lordis to teche wel here sugetis bi ensaumple of good lif & opyn & trewe prechynge of þe gospel, as bisily & redily as þei asken here tiþes. ¶ Þat non of þe clergie be lettid to kepe trewely & frely þe gospel of ihū crist in good lyuynge & trewe techynge, for no feyned priuelegie or tradicions founden vp of synful wrecchis. ¶ Þat no prest or religious in oure lond be prisoned wiþ-oten opyn dom & trewe cause, fully knowen to oure kyng or his trewe conseil; for ellis worldly prestis & feyned religious may stoppe trewe men from prechynge of holy writt & magnyfyng of þe kyngis regalie, & murþere þe kyngis lege men wiþ-outen answere. ¶ Þat þe obedience of children to fader & to modir & of seruauntis & tenauntis to here lordis & maistris, þe whiche

obedience crist vsed & tauȝtte & comaundid it [MS. inserts to. Perhaps the sentence should be corrected by repeat|ing ".be magnyfied & prechid."] be magnyfied & prechid more þan ony newe feyned obedience founden of synful men, þe whiche obedience neiþer crist ne his [page 238] apostlis deden ne tauȝten ne comaunden ne conseileden opynly þer-to. ¶ Þat chepynge, & namely feiris, be not vsed on þe halidaies, & algatis on þe sunday & in holy chirche, for þat is expresly aȝenst goddis comaundement & comone lawe of holy chirche. ¶ Þat open lecherie & avoutrie be not suffrid in grete placis in oure rewme, ne meyntened for annual rente, for þat is vterly aȝenst goddis biddynge. ¶ Þat þefte & raueynen & mansleyng & robberie be not meyntened in seyntiwarye vnder colour of priuylegie; siþ kyng & cristene men ben sworen to meynten eche man in his riȝt & distroie wrong & falsenesse. ¶ Þat worldly clerkis & feyned religious vsurpen not þe kyngis regalie, ne stelle fro hym his holy power graunted of god for no criynge or ypocrisie; siþ þei ben sworn to be trewe to þe kyng & furþere his worschipe & profit of his lond. ¶ Þat þe kyng & lordis gouerne hem self in here astaat as god ordeyned it, in gret wisdom, myȝt of men & sufficient riches to aȝen|stonde wrong & mysdoeris, & helpe pore men, fadirles & modirles & widewes & aliens in here lordischipe & worschipe, & rewarde trewe men, to reule clerkis in mekenesse, wilful pouert & bisynesse of gostly traueile for helpe of mannys soule, as crist & his apostlis diden, and suffre hem not to haunten anticristis ypocrisie & tirauntrie of þe comones bi feyned censures, iurisdiction & power of prisonynge. & þat þei reule here seruauntis & tenauntis in riȝt mercy, pees & charite, & suffre no man hardy to breke goddis hestis in here [herte MS.] presence, ne ony man don wrong or dispit to oþere, but in alle in worschipe of eche oþere in vnyte, pees & charite.