A defence of the Apologie of the Churche of Englande conteininge an answeare to a certaine booke lately set foorthe by M. Hardinge, and entituled, A confutation of &c. By Iohn Iewel Bishop of Sarisburie.

The B. of Sarisburie.

That in any particulare Churche faultes may be founde, that, ye saie, ye wil confesse. But that the whole Catholique Vniuersal Churche may erre and faile, that, you saie, ye denie vtterly.

Notwithstandinge it is certaine, that the Churches of Corinthe, and Gala∣tia, and sundrie others, are nowe, not in any Particulare portion, but thorowly departed from the Faith: and are nowe wholy subiecte to the Turke.

This therfore muste needes be your meaning, that al be it al other Particulare Churches throughout the worlde happen to erre, yet the Churche of Rome, that is to saie, the Pope and his Cardinalles, can neuer erre. This Lesson, I trowe,* 1.1 ye learned of Petrus de Palude: For neither Christe, nor any of his Apo∣stles euer taught it you. This woorthy Doctour saith thus: Tota Ecclesia Petri non potest à Fide deficere. Omnes autem Ecclesiae Apostolorū omniū possunt deficere à Fide totaliter, indigentes ab Ecclesia Petri confirmari: The whole Churche of Peter, cannot wholy faile from the Faithe. But al the other Churches of al the A∣postles may faile wholy from the Faithe, hauinge neede to be confirmed by the Churche of Peter.* 1.2 And to this ende, you your selfe cal the Romaine Faith, the Catholique Faith: making no maner difference betweene either other.* 1.3 And therefore Pope Nico∣las thus auaunceth, and thundreth out his owne Authoritie: Non quaelibet Terrena Sententia, sed illud Verbum, quo constructum est Coelum, & Terra, per quod denique

omnia condita sunt Elementa, Romanam fundauit Ecclesiam: Not any worldly Sectence, but the selfe same Woorde, where by Heauen, and Earthe was made, and whereby al the Elementes were created, was it, that founded the Churche of Rome. By whiche woordes he meaneth, that the Romaine Faithe shal stande as faste, as the Funda∣tions of Heauen, and Earthe. Euen so Peter assured his promisse vnto Christe: Although,* 1.4 saide he, al others denie thee, yet I alone wil not denie thee. No, though I shoulde presently die with thee, yet I onely wil neuer denie thee. Neuerthelesse, when it came to trial, the same Peter denied him firste.

Nowe, that the Churches of Rome, whiche you cal the Catholique Churche, maie erre, & be foresaken of God, it is euident by the plaine woordes of S. Paule. For thus he writeth euen vnto the Churche of Rome:* 1.5 Quòd si aliqui ex ramis fra∣cti sunt &c. If any of the boughes be broken of, and thou, beinge a wilde Oliue tree arte graffed into the natural Oliue, and made Partaker of the roote, and of the fatnesse thereof, boaste not thee selfe againste the boughes. If thou boaste, (remember) thou bearest not the Roote: but the roote beareth thee. Thou wilte saie, The boughes are broken of, that I might be graffed in. Wel, they are broken of for theire Infidelitie: but thou standest faste by Faithe. Be not highe minded: but stande in awe. Seeinge God hath not spared the Natural boughes, leste happily he spare not thee. See therefore the goodnesse, and the sharpenesse of God: His sharpenesse towardes them, that are fallen awaie: but his goodnesse towardes thee, if thou continewe,* 1.6 and remaine in goodnesse. Othervvise thou (beinge the Churche of Rome) shalte likevvise be smitten of. Hereby it is plaine, that the Churche of Rome maie faile, and fal from God, no lesse, then other like Churches. For otherwise this aduertisement of S. Paule had benne in vaine.

Therefore Hormisda,* 1.7 beinge him selfe Bishop of Rome, writeth thus, Dile∣ctissimi Fratres, continuas preces ad Dominum fundamus, & iugi deprecatione posca∣mus, vt & institutione, & opere illi, cuius esse membra cupimūs, adhaereamus. nec vn∣quam ab illa via, quae Christus est, deuio tramite declinemus: ne ab eo iustè, quem im∣piè reliquerimus, deseramur: My dearely beloued Brethren, let vs Praie vnto God, that bothe by profession, and by order of life, we maie cleaue to him, whose Members we desire to be: and that by any crooked path we neuer turne from that waie, whiche is Christe: leste vvee (beinge the Churche of Rome) be iustely forsaken of him, vvhom vvic∣kedly vvee haue forsaken. Thus would not the Pope him selfe haue written in the behoufe of the Churche of Rome, yf he had thought, the same Churche coulde neuer haue erred.* 1.8 To be shorte, Chrysostome saithe, Ecclesia, quocun{que} mo∣do egerit contra voluntatem Christi, abijci digna est. Non autem abijcitur propter longanimitatem Christi, nisi sola causa Transgressionis: The Churche, by what waie so euer shee doo againste the wil of Christe, is woorthy to be geuen ouer. Yet through the pa∣tience of Christe, shee is neuer geuen ouer, but onely for breakinge his commaundementes.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Pet. de Palude, De potestate Cu∣ratorum, Ar. 6.
• * 1.2

  M. Hard. fo. 16. b
• * 1.3

  Dist. 21. Omnes.
• * 1.4

  Matthae. 26.
• * 1.5

  Roman. 11.
• * 1.6

  Alioqui & tu excidèris.
• * 1.7

  Hormisda pp, ad Episcopos His∣paniae.
• * 1.8

  Chrysostom. De varijs locis in Matth. Homi. 20.