of the lay peple deemen and seien to be nauȝt, and that it is brouȝt yn bi the deuel and anticrist; so that thei wolen alle preestis to be in oon degre, and noon of hem be aboue other of hem, and thei wolen that vndir preestis be dekenys, and no mo ordris, statis, or degrees in the clergie at al. [Wiclif is the fountain-head of this opinion: "Unum audacter as|sero, quod in primitiva ecclesia vel tempore Pauli suffecerunt duo or|dines clericorum, scilicet sacerdos atque diaconus. Similiter dico quod tempore Pauli fuit idem pres|byter atque episcopus . . . . . Tunc enim adinventa non fuit dis|tinctio papæ et cardinalium, patri|archarum et archiepiscoporum, epi|scoporum," &c. Dial. lib. iv. c. 15.] And bi cause that suche bifore rehercid statis and degrees aboue preestis ben in the clergie, thei bacbiten and detracten the clergie, cleping the hiȝe pope anticrist and cleping alle the othere louȝer rehercid statis aboue preestis the anticristis lymes or membris. [Thus Oldcastle, according to Capgrave, (Chron. p. 306,) said. "The pope is antechrist; bischoppis be his membris, and freres be his tayl."]
But that this bering an hond upon the clergie and that this blamyng doon to the clergie is vniust and vntrewe, y schal proue in this present iiije. parti bi fyue conclusiouns, of which the first is this: Holi Scripture weerneth not and lettith not the now re|hercid iiije. principal gouernaunce. That this conclu|sioun is trewe y proue thus: If eny text of Scripture schulde lette and weerne the seid iiije. principal go|uernaunce, it schulde be oon of these textis whiche schulen now suyngli be tretid in this present chapiter. But so it is, that noon of hem so werneth and lettith, as anoon suyngli schal be schewid. Wherfore Holi Scripture lettith not and werneth not the seid iiije. principal gouernaunce.
Aȝens the seid iiije. gouernaunce mai be argued bi textis of Holi Scripture in the Newe Testament, whiche sownen sumwhat (thouȝ litle) aȝens the seid iiije. go|uernaunce,
