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

Capitulum 30^m.

Also prelatis disceyuen cristene men bi licknesse [page 96] of apis & bi argumentis of glotones til þe peple breke goddis hestis & meytenen hem in here cursed lustis. For apis whanne þei seen a man don ony þing bi hem wolen assaie to don þe same dedis til þei ben perischid for defaute of crafte or kunnynge; & glotones arguen þus, siþ it is good to me to ete or drynke þus moche, And more mete & drynk is betere, þan it is betere to me to ete & drynk þus moche more; & bi þis colour þei cessen not til þei heten & drynkyne her legges & hondis out of myȝt & here heuyd out of witt & ben as dede hogges. Þus faren þe worldly prelatis. Þei seyn, siþ þe peple schulden worschipe gregorii, petir & poule, & oþere trewe apostlis of crist, & þei comen in þe staat of apostlis, þanne þe peple schulden worschipen hem þus moche. but þei taken no rewarde hou þes apostlis comen to þis staat, bi ordeynynge & chesynge of god & for holy lif & trewe seruyce þat þei diden to cristene peple, in trewe techynge of þe holy gospel boþe in word & dede; & hou þei comen to here staat by symonye, bi chesynge of worldly clerkis, & in cas quyke deuelis in flech & blood, & don [omitted X.] not here office but lyuen in pride, coueitise, robberie of þe peple, & in fleschly lustis þat cristis apostelis deden not. Also þei arguen þus, siþ petir & poul & oþere apostlis of crist hadden keies of heuene & power to bynde & vnbynde synnes, whiche doynge was confermed in heuene, & we ben in þe staat &

successouris of hem, þan we han þe same power; but þei loken litel þat mannus eleccion makiþ hem not in sich staat, but chesynge of god & kunnynge of holy writt, & souereyn traueile & holy lif, & techynge & meyntenynge of þe gospel, & brennynge charite to deþe for goddis loue, & sauynge of cristene soulis; & comunly þei ben fer fro alle þes goodnesse & wlappid in pride & coueitise & moo synnes. Also þes worldly moldwarpis arguen þus as glotons; siþ it is good to prestis to haue worldly goodis for here necessarie liflode & helynge, as poul techiþ & reson, & þanne þe more þe betre; til þei ben smyten in coueitise & occupacion of þis world, þat þei sauouren nouȝt of gostly þingis, but riot & pride & roten muk of þis world. & ȝif it be good to haue holy writt & presthod and knyȝthod and laboreris to serue god & reule þe peple; þan it is betre to make moo newe lawis & moo ordris in þe chirche, til þe lawe of god be forȝeten & newe tradicions in excercise & newe ordris magnyfied more þanne þe [omitted X.] clene ordre þat crist made himself; & bi þes iapis þei disceyuen þe peple, & gedren to hem [page 97] self þe goodis of þis world & magnyfien hemself, here ordris, & here lawes more þan crist & his lawis, & maken þe peple to holden vp þis ypocrisie & heresie.