THE ije. principal conclusioun is this: Doom of naturali weel disposid resoun weerneth not and re|proueth not ymagis to be had and to be vsid as rememoratijf and mynding signes. That this con|clusioun is trewe y proue thus: If eny doom of re|soun schulde weerne and reproue ymagis to be thus had and vsid, thilk doom of resoun schulde be oon of these iij. doomys, of whiche the firste is this: That peple doon ydolatrie bi and with tho ymagis. The ije. is this: That the peple trowen or bileeuen summe wrong and vntrewe opiniouns bi occasioun of ymagis, as that sum godli vertu is in tho ymagis, or that tho ymagis doon myraclis, or that thei ben quyk and seen, heeren, [and heere, MS. (first hand).] or speken at sum while, or that thei sweten at sum while. The iije. doom is: That ymagis ben occasiouns of summe moral vicis in the peple, as of overmyche worschiping [worchiping, MS. (first hand).] doon to hem, or of pride, or of coueitise, or of suche othere. But so it is, that noon of these iij. doomys sufficith forto reproue and weerne the seid hauyng and vsing of ymagis; wherfore no doom of weel disposid resoun reproueth and weerneth the seid hauyng and vsing of ymagis in the chirche.
The ije. premysse of this now maad argument, as anentis the firste doom, schal be openli proued thus: Peple in hauyng and vsing ymagis sett vp in the chirche doon noon ydolatrie by hem. Forwhi ydolatrie is neuere doon, [dooū or dooū, MS.] saue whanne a man takith a creature for his God and worschipith thilk creature as for his God; but so doith no man with eny ymage now in
