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 Apologie, Cap. 5. Diuision. 1.

But now, sithence our very enimies doo see, and cannot denie, but wee euer in al our woordes, and writinges haue diligently put the people in minde of theire deutie, to obeie theire Princes, and Magi∣strates, yea though they be wicked, (For this dooth very trial and experience sufficiently teache, and al mennes eies, who so euer, and where so euer they be, doo wel see, and witnesse for vs) it was a foule parte of them to charge vs with these thinges: and, seinge they could finde no newe and late faultes, therefore to seeke to procure vs enuie onely with stale & outworne lies. We geeue our Lord God thankes, whose onely cause this is, there hathe yet at no time been any sutche example in al the Realmes, Dominions, & Common Weales, which haue receiued the Gospel. For wee haue ouerthrowen no King∣dome: Wee haue decaied no mans Power, or right: Wee haue disor∣dered no Common Wealthe. There continue in theire owne accusto∣med state, and Aunciente Dignitie, the Kinges of our countrie of En∣gland, y^• Kinges of Denmarke, the Kinges of Suecia, the Dukes of Saxonie, the Counties Palatine, the Marquesses of Brandeburgh, the Lantsgraues of Hessia, the Common Wealthes of the Heluetians, & Rhetians, & y^• Free Citties, as Argentine, Basile, Franckford, Vlme, Augusta, & Norenberg, doe al, I saie, abide in the same Authoritie, and estate, wherein they haue benne heretofore: or rather in a mutche better, for that by meanes of the Gospel they haue theire people more obediente vnto them. Lette them goe, I praie you, into those places, where at this presente, through Goddes goodnesse, and Mercie, the Gospel is taught. Where is there more Maiestie? Where is there lesse Arrogancie and Tyrannie? Where is the Prince more honou∣red? Where be the people lesse vnruly? Where hathe there at any time either the Commō Wealth, or the Churche benne in more quiet? Perhaps, ye wil saie, from the firste beginning of this Doctrine, the Common sorte euerywhere beganne to rage, and to rise through∣out Germanie. Allow it were so: yet Martine Luther, the publisher, and setter forewarde of this Doctrine, didde write marueilous ve∣hemently and sharpely againste them, and reclaimed them home to peace, and obedience.

M. Hardinge.

Your impudencie of lieinge hathe no measure nor ende. But we wil saie litle here, hauinge

saide yenough already in reproufe of your falsehed. VVe leaue you to the wide worlde, who seeth, and almoste feeleth your lies.

But I maruel not a litle, that in this place specially, where ye speake of the good order, that your Gospel breedeth, ye be not ashamed to make mention of Martin Luther. Good God howe mutche could we, if we were so disposed, alleage out of his seditious and Heretical bookes by him writen against the Power of lawful magistrates? At this time let one place suffise for al Luthers wordes be these. Inter Christianos nullus neque potest, ne{que} debet esse magistratus, sed &c. Amonge Christen men none can nor ought to be a magistrate, but eche one is to other equally subiecte: After the Apostles saieinge, Thinkinge al others better then your selues, &c. Againe, Be ye humble al one to an other. VVhereto Christe accordeth when he saithe, VVhen thou arte called to the mariage feaste, goe, and sitte downe lowest of al. Amonge Christen men, none is superiour saue one, and onely Christe. And what superioritie or magistrate can be there, where al be equal, and haue right, power, riches, and honour al alike? Furthermore, none coueteth to be ouer other, but al wilbe vnder one another. VVhere sutche men be, though one woulde, yet can he not make a magistrare to beare rule ouer others, sithe that na∣ture suffereth not to haue superiours, where no man wil, nor may be a superiour. And where sutche kinde of men is, there be they not Christen men, after the true sorte of Christen men. This farre Mar∣tin Luther.

He persuaded them to peace, when there was scarsly any lefte, that coulde beare a clubbe. Firste he‡ stirred vp his Disciple, Thomas Munzer in Thuringia, who was the rebelles preacher. After that he excused him of seditious preachinge to the Duke of Saxonie Prince Electour, trusting, if Munzer were let alone, the matter should wel goe forewarde.

The B. of Sarisburie.

To dissemble the reste of your Vntruthes, and your immoderate and vnciuile bitternesse, M. Hardinge, procedinge from the vnquiet, and vnsauery humoures of your harte: where ye saie, Doctor Luther admitteth no Ciuile Magistrate, & note the same so specially in your margine, I marueile mutche, that your paper blusshed not in your behalfe. Reade his Bookes throughout, and consider the quiet gouernement, bothe of the Common Wealthes, and also of the Churches of Ger∣manie: and ye shal finde, that noman euer, neither by woorde, nor by example more auaunced the Authoritie of the Ciuile Magistrate. To leaue al other his nota∣ble Sentences to this pourpose, againste the Rebelles, of whom ye speake, beinge then in the fielde againste theire Lordes, he wrote thus: God commaundeth al menne vniuersally to obeie the Magistrate with feare, and reuerence, &c. Againe, Ye take the Swerde, and withstande the Magistrate, vvhom God hath appointed. Is not this rashly to abuse the Name of God?

But he saithe, Emonge Christians neither maie be, nor ought to be any Magistrate. O M. Hardinge, nothinge coulde haue founde faulte herewith, but onely intempe∣rate, and mere malice. For Luther speaketh not these woordes of the outwarde Ciuile Gouernement, but onely of our Inwarde Bande, and Obedience towardes God. And in this respecte, there is no Kinge, or Prince in déede, nor maie be a∣ny. In this sense S. Paule saithe, There is no levve, there is no Gentile: There is no Lorde, there is no Seruaunte: There is no Man, there is no VVooman: For al you are one in Christe Jesu. S. Paule denieth not, but Ievve, Gentile, Lorde, Seruaunte, Man, and VVooman, remaine stil in theire seueral states, and kindes, as they were before. But in Christe Iesu, he saithe, there is no regarde of any sutche difference. In Ciuile Gouernmente a Kinge is a Kinge, and so hath God com∣maunded him to be knowen. But after that wée be once comme to the reuerence, and obedience of Goddes wil, there God onely is the Kinge: & the Kinge, be he ne∣uer so mighty, is but a Subiecte. So saith S. Ambrose to the Emperoure Valen∣ti••••ian, Noli te extollere, Imperator: Sed, si vis diutiùs Imperare, esto Deo subditus.

Scriptum est, Quae Dei, Deo: quae Caesaris. Caesari: O my Lorde, auance not your selfe: But if ye wil remaine long in Empiere, be subiecte vnto God. It is written, Geeue to God, that belongeth to God: Geeue to Caesar, that belongeth to Caesar.

So saithe the Emperoure Valentinian the Elder of him selfe, Ego sum in sorte plebis: I am (in this respecte) as one of the people. To like pourpose Iulius Caesar, beinge an Heathen Prince, saide sommetime of him selfe at Rome in the Councel house, Equidem ad alia omnia, quae pro vobis gerenda sunt, & Consul sum, & Dictator: quod autem ad iniuriam cuiquam faciendum attinet, sum priuatus: Touchinge al other affaires, that ought to be taken in hande for your sake, I am bothe your Consul, and your Dictator: But as touchinge any wronge to be donne to any man, I am as a priuate man, without office. So said the Heathen Renegate Iulianus the Emperour, Principes, vbi ad limen Delubri venerint, perinde sunt, atque Priuati: When the Princes, and Magistrates once comme within the entrie of the Temple, they are none other, but as Priuate Menne. And this is al that traiterous, and horrible Iudgement, that, as it pleaseth you to saie, Luther had of the Ciuile Magistrate.

Where ye saie, he sturred vp his Disciple Thomas Munzer in Thuringia, to be the preacher to the Rebelles, it is no strang mater, to sée your tonge to renne riot. Luther him selfe writinge thereof vnto the Rebelles, saithe thus, Satanas sub Euangelij praetextu, multos hoc tempore seditiosos, & planè sanguinarios Docto∣res excitauit: Satan vnder the pretense of the Gospel, hath sturred vp in these daies ma∣ny seditious, and Bloudy Doctours: Meaninge thereby Munzer, and other like his companions.

Notes

• Ciuile Magi∣strate.
• Vntruthe ma∣licious, and sclaunderous. Reade the An∣svveare.
• In libro de Saeculari po¦testate.
• Luther ad∣mitteth no ciuil Magi∣strate.
• ‡

  Nothinge els, but mere Vn∣truthe. For Lu∣ther called him the preacher of Satan.
• Iohan. Sleidanus Lib. 5.
• Galat. 3.
• Coloss. 3.
• An bros. Lib. 5. Epist. 33.
• Ciuile Magi∣strate.
• Sozom. li. 6. ca. 7.
• Dion Lib. 43. 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 Sozom. li. 5. ca. 16
• Iohan. Sleidanus Lib. 5.