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.

M. Hardinge.

But why doo yee not here plainely declare, whiche be the Bookes of the Scriptures, that ye al∣lowe, and whiche be they* 1.1 that ye reiecte? In general, ye saie, that ye embrace al the Canonical Scriptures.* 1.2 Yet if a man presse you with the place of the Machabees, for Praier to be made for the Deade, and with the woordes of S. Iames Epistle againste your Iustification of Faithe onely, and likewise with certaine other places of the Scriptures, whiche be accompted in the Canon of the Churche, againste certaine other your false doctrines: in this case* 1.3 your wonte is to denie those Scriptures to be Canonical. Yet here ye beare the worlde in hande ye allowe al. VVould God there were in you either more truthe. or lesse crafte. VVel, ye geue thankes to God for the Scriptures, for that hauinge them before your eies, ye are staied in Truthe, assured, that by the suttelty of man, or snares of the Diuel, ye be not caried awaie into Errours, and Lies. And is it so in deede? I praie you syrs of what secte be ye? or of whiche secte is eche one of you? For I dare boldely saye, and so the worlde seethe, that yee agree not al in one. If yee saie, yee be Lutherans, then muste I further demaunde of you, of whiche sorte of Lutherans? For that puddle runneth out by many sinckes. Be yee Zuinglians, Arians, Osiandrines, Libertines, Adiaphoristes, Anabaptistes, Calui∣nistes, or Sathanis••es? VVhat Priuiledge haue ye before your felowes? a matche beinge made be∣twene you (I meane that newe Cleregie of Englande) and the other sectes of our time, &c. If yee haue this lighte of the Scriptures before your eies, how is it, that ye agree not within your selues? yea how is it, that eche one of you oftentimes disagreeth with him selfe? howe is it that* 1.4 so many times ye haue chaunged your Comm••nion Booke, the order of your Seruice, your doctrine of the bles∣sed Sacrament, your Homilies, &c. VVho knoweth not how in the matter of the Sacrament your chiefe Capitaines haue shewed them selues inconstant and mutable, and contrary to them selues. I meane Cranmere, Ridley, Latimer, and that greate Rabbin Peter Martyr him selfe? As for the res••, they be not woorthy to be named.

But what saie ye? be these the Heauenly Voices, whereby God hath opened vnto vs his wil? Then howe dare yee to transgresse his wil declared in these Voices, where ye reade expressely, that he, * 1.5 whiche heareth not the Churche, is to be taken for no better, then a Heathen, and a Publicane? As yee procede, ye saye, that onely in the Scriptures mans harte can haue setled reste, and that in them be abundātly and fully comprehended al thinges, what so euer be needeful for our Saluation, as Origen,

Augustine, Chrysostome, and Cyrillus haue taught. Either you knowe not, what you saie, sir De∣fender, nor the thinges of whiche you make affirmation,* 1.6 as S. Paule saile of suche, as ye are, wri∣tinge to Timothe, or you are fowly ouerseene. If the harte of man haue setled rest in the Scriptures onely,* 1.7 as you saye, then in nothinge els but in the Scriptures. By this you seeme to trouble and dis∣qutet many hartes. For if this be true,* 1.8 then had good Abel no better reste in his harte, then wic∣ked restlesse Cain.

VVhen the Holy Booke of Scripture was loste, whiche God restored by Esdras, were there none in al that time, whose hartes had setled reste? VVhat foolishe, and absurde doctrine is this?* 1.9 VVhat if it had pleased God, there had neuer benne letter written of the Olde, or Newe Testament? shoulde not Gods frendes haue founde his peace that passeth al sense,* 1.10 as S. Paule saieth? Had Paule, Antony, Hila∣rion, Pambus, and many other Holy men liuinge in VVildernesse* 1.11 without letters, no reste, ne quiet at their hartes? Nay, who had the like? And whereas you saie, that al thinges needeful for our Salua∣tion be abundantly, and fully cōprehended in the Scriptures, this is also as false, as sundry other partes of your Doctrine. For if al thinges necessary to Saluation be conteined in the Scriptures, then what so euer is not in them conteined, the same is not necessarie: If not necessarie, why shoulde we be laden with vnnecessarie burdens? Then awaie with al Traditions at a clappe, be they neuer so Apostolike, neuer so Auncient, neuer so Healthful, neuer so longe time in the Churche continued. Remember you not, what the moste renoumed Fathers haue written of the necessitie of Traditions? Or if you remember them, what thought you when you wrote thus? Let Learned and Holy Basil be hearde in steede of many, if not to reuoke you from your errour, yet to discredite you, and staye others in the truthe.* 1.12 His woordes be these: Of the doctrines, whiche be preached in the Churche, certaine we haue out of the Scripture written, certaine we haue receiued in secrete Mistery by tra∣dition of the Apostles,* 1.13 whiche bothe be of equal force to Godlines. Neither concerninge these any man gainesaieth, be he of neuer so smal knowledge. For if we goe about to reiect the customes that be not set foorth in writinge, as beinge of litle regarde, then shal we condemne those thinges also, whiche we haue in the Gospel necessarie to Saluation. Yea rather we shal bringe the preachinge of the Faithe but to a bare name. For so they were taken for Heretikes, whiche regarded not the so∣lemne faste of Lente* 1.14 receiued at the Apostles,* 1.15 as we reade in S. Augustine, De Haer. ad Quod∣uultdeum, cap. 53. and in the Councel of Gangra in an Epistle to the Bishops of Armenia. Euen so they whiche denied the* 1.16 distinction of a Bishop and a Prieste, were condemned of Heresie, as we finde in S. Augustine in the Booke and Chapter aforesaide, and in Epiphanius Lib. 3. Cap. 75. In the Councel of Constance the same is to be founde.

Againe if al thinges necessarie to Saluation be* 1.17 expressed in the Scriptures, to what purpose saide S. Paule concerninge order, and maner, to be vsed at the celebration of the holy Sacramente: Coetera cùm venero disponam,* 1.18 As for other thinges I wil take Order for them, when I come? VVhat meaneth S. Iohn to saye, Hauinge other thinges to write to you of, I woulde not (write them) in Paper and inke: for I truste to be with you, and speake to you mouthe to mouthe. To conclude muche, that might be obiected, in fewe woordes for breuities sake, what saie you, sir Defender, shal we finde al thinges necessarie to Saluation in the Scripture?* 1.19 Howe thinke you of the Scripture it selfe? How knowe you this to be the Scripture? How knowe ye the Gospel of Mathewe, Marke, Luke, and Iohn, to be theirs, whose names they beare? This can you not finde in al the Scripture,* 1.20 and yet is the same necessary to be beleeued. VVhat Scripture have you to admitte these, and to refuse the Booke bearinge the name of* 1.21 Peter, the Gospel of Thomas, of Bartholome we, of Nicodeme? VVhy admitte you not the Prophetes that Basilides would to be allowed, but onely the foure greate, and the twelue lesser? what auctoritie haue you to staie your selfe by, concerninge these: but onely that of the Churche? for Scripture haue you none for proufe hereof. Then hath not Scripture al thinges in it necessarie for a Christen man.* 1.22 Is it not necessarie to beleeue the Sonne of God to be Homousion, that is to saie, of the same Substance with the Father? whiche if you denie, you restore the olde con∣demned Heresie of the Arians.* 1.23 The same can you not finde in the Scripture. VVhere in al the Bi∣ble finde you that God the Father is Ingenitus? VVhere finde you, that the Holy Ghoste proceedeth frō the Father and the Sonne? that the blessed Virgin Marie continued in her Virginitie? that suche as be

Baptized of Heretikes oughte to be Baptized againe?* 1.24 That in fantes ought to be Baptized? That the Foure Bookes of the Gospels were written by Mathewe, Marke, Luke, and Iohn, by what Scrip∣ture can you prooue it? To ende, where finde you expressely in al the Scriptures three Persons to be one God?

Notes

• * 1.1

  Vntruthe. For vvee reiecte no parte of al the Scriptures.
• * 1.2

  •• Macha. 12 Iacob. 2.
• * 1.3

  Vntruthe: For vvee denie no more, then S. Augustine, S. Hierome, and other Holy Fa∣thers haue de∣nied.
• * 1.4

  Childishe, and fonde vntruthe: For the Com∣munion Booke vvas neuer but once changed. But see the of∣ten changes of the Masse.
• * 1.5

  S. Cyprian saithe, Non iun∣gitur Ecclesiae, qui ab Euange∣lio separatur: De Lapsis Ser∣mo. 5.
• * 1.6

  1. Timo. 6.
• * 1.7

  Mans harte hath not setled reste in Scrip∣tures onely.
• * 1.8

  Vntruthe. For Ab••l ••earde the VVoorde of God. Reade the An••••veare.
• * 1.9

  A vvoorthy doubte.
• * 1.10

  Philip. 4.
• * 1.11

  Vntruthe. For S. Augustine saithe, Antoni∣us Scripturas Diuinas memo∣riter audiendo tenuit, &c.
• * 1.12

  Lib. de Spi∣ritu San∣cto. ca. 27.
• * 1.13

  Yet novve the very same ne∣cessarie Tradi∣tions be quite forgotten, and abolished, yea euen in the Churche of Rome.
• * 1.14

  Vntruthe. Reade the An∣svveare.
• * 1.15

  Faste of Lente.
• * 1.16

  Vntruthe. For hereby bothe S. P••ule, and S. Hierome, and o∣ther good men are condemned of Heresie.
• * 1.17

  Vntruthe. For vvee saie not, Al things are there expressed.
• * 1.18

  1. Corin. 11. Epist. 2.
• * 1.19

  Stale, and fonde questiōs.
• * 1.20

  Vntruthe. For it is not neces∣sarie to Salua∣tion.
• * 1.21

  They vvere vvritten by He∣retiques in de∣••ogation of the Truthe.
• * 1.22

  Homou∣sion.
• * 1.23

  Vntruthe. For Epipham{que} 〈◊〉〈◊〉, Sensus eius no∣tain••s vbi{que} est.
• * 1.24

  S. Imaes.