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.

The thinges, whiche it liketh your Sathanical Sprite with blasphemous woordes to* 1.1 dishonour, and bringe in contempt, are suche, as neither your praises can make more praise woorthy, nor your vpbraidinges any whit of lesse estimation. If any by the stinkinge breath of your vile woordes be puffed awaie into your damned side,* 1.2 who so euer they be, they shewe them selues to haue benne light chaffe, not sounde wheate. Yet for good folkes sake, that I maie leaue your vile eloquence to your selues, and answeare the matter by you railed at, and belied, and other wise not disproued: I praie you, good Sirs, the† 1.3 Masse beinge the highest and moste Honorable Seruice, that is donne to God in his Churche (whiche other wheres beinge already proued, I treate not of in this place), why should not a Prieste, by whome onely it is, and maie be donne,* 1.4 beinge called to that vocation, and state of life, haue rewarde, and liuinge for it? Raile againste the Masse, and Priestes seruinge at the Aul∣ter of God vntil your tongues burne in your head in Hell Fire: VVe tell you, Priestes of the Catholike Churche sell† 1.5 not the Fruite and Merite of Christes Bloude offered in the Masse, but onely for their ministerie and labour require necessarie sustenance of Life.

But for your Defence, yee confesse that ye cannot awaie with the carryinge about and woor∣shippinge of Breade. No more cannot wee. To whose charge laye ye this? Be there any suche Idolaters nowe, that woorship Breade? They woulde be knowen.* 1.6 God forbid we shoulde suffer

Idolaters to liue amongest vs. Soothely in the Catholike Churche wee knowe none. If ye cannot away with the Honour whiche† 1.7 all deuoute Christen people doo to the † blessed Sacramente, (wee meane to Christes Body, and Christe him selfe † presente in Substance vnder † the Forme of Breade) then can not we take you for Christians. Mocke, scoffe, ieste, and raile at vs with the Iewes, we dare not, but Honour our Lorde Christe, where so euer our Faithe findeth him verily and in Substance presente.

If through feruent zeale (as sometimes it happeneth) abuses in certaine places haue crepte in, no good Catholike man* 1.8 defendeth them. Mary wee knowe all is not to be abrogated that misliketh your corrupte taste.† 1.9 And muche is righte Holy Deuotion pleasant in the sighte of God, and therefore allowed in the Churche, whiche your hote sprite calleth Idolatrous, and blasphemous fondnesse. And though the Ceremonie and manner, whereby sutche deuotion is shewed, cannot be prooued by ordinance of Christe or of the Apostles expressed in Scripture, yet Christen people doubte not but God accepteth their good hartes.

The Bishop of Rome ye blame vniustly, I might saie also proudely. For procuringe* 1.10 Honour and worship to Christe in the Blessed Sacrament, he hath the * woorde of God, * the authoritie of al Holy Fathers, and the * examples of antiquitie, as† 1.11 I haue at large proued in my answeare to your com∣panion Maister Iuel his eight negatiue Article. But the amblinge Horse offendeth you. VVhy be ye not also offended with the Asse and her fole, that bare the* 1.12 same Body at Ierusalem, whiche the Horse beareth at Rome: Then Visible and weightie, nowe Inuisible, and of no weight? That was donne in Pompe to the honour of Christe, and so is this. Ye saie this is done after a new guise. So then was that. Neither is it true whiche ye saie, that the Bishoppes of Rome doo carrie about with them the Sacra∣mente whither so euer they iourney.† 1.13 Ye might haue learned in that Booke, our of whiche ye alleage that matter to scoffe at,* 1.14 that suche a solemnitie is vsed specially, when the Pope rideth in Pontifica∣libus. Then (as the Booke telleth) a white Palfrey trapped, gentill, and faier, with a cleare soundinge bell hanginge at his necke, is lead, which carrieth the Monstrance, or Pixe with the most Holy Body of Christe, ouer the whiche noble Citizens shal beare a Canopie. Thus the Booke of Ceremonies.

* 1.15 And I praie you, what euill is this? If it be good to carry about that moste holy Body, by whiche as Christe once redeemed vs, so by the same deuotely honoured of faithefull people, and carried abrode and brought to certaine places, hath in olde times (as yet also dothe continually) to the greate com∣forte and helpe of sundry persons beinge in distresse, wrought miraculousely healthfull remedies: If the Israelites founde healpe at Gods hande by† 1.16 bringinge the Arke into the fielde with them, as they marched forewarde againste the Philistians:* 1.17 if the Philistians cried out for feare when they percei∣ued the Arke to be in the Israelites armie, and saide, Venit Deus in Castra. Vae nobis. God is come into their Tentes. Alas we are vndone, &c.

And concerninge the order of the Ceremonie, whereas* 1.18 the people be desirous to beholde the Body of their Redeemer with their Faithe by their carnall ete directed to the Forme of Breade,* 1.19 no man is able to holde vp on hie the Sacramente, so as conuenient it were to be donne bothe to satisfie their Deuotion, and to mainetaine their Faithe: for the Pope him selfe commonly is an aged man, and therefore ouer weake† 1.20 for that Seruice, specially arraied in Pontificalibus, as in suche solemni∣ties he is. Againe the instrument that serueth for that purpose is so greate and weighty (for so it apperteineth to the honour of Christe,) the waie so longe, the ayer for the more parte there so hote: as no other man is well able for lacke of strength to beare it so as meete it is to be borne. In this case † why may not a Horse be put to that seruice, to supplie that whiche by naturall weakenesse fai∣leth in man? VVherein he serueth not, as one that beareth a male, but as the Asse that bare Christe, as the Kine that drewe the Arke.

Neither ought the custome of bearinge the moste Holy Body of Christe,* 1.21 where the Pope goeth, seeme Newe and Strange. For we Reade in the life of the Blessed Martyr Steuen the firste, who was Pope of Rome aboue thirtene hundred yeres past, that Tharsitius the Deacon (who at length also suffred death for Christe) bare our Lordes Body, at what time he attended vpon the Blessed Man Pope Steuen, as he went to his Martyrdome. VVho desireth to see this described at large, the same maie he finde in (that Greate fonde Fabulare) Simeon Metaphrasies a Greeke writer, wel approued, and highly esteemed in the Greeke Churche, In vita Stephani Primi.

For witnesse whereof we haue S.* 1.22 Ambrose, who describeth how certaine faithful persons caried * 1.23 this blessed Sacrament with them,* 1.24 when they wente to the Sea, of whome his Brother Satyrus ob∣teined the same in a Shipwracke, and by helpe thereof, hanginge it in a stole about his necke, seekinge for none other succoure, caste him selfe into the Sea, and miraculously escaped safe to lande. Neither is the same by him done without a speciall Mysterie, though vnknowen to the more parte. Although, saithe a learned Pope, a reason cannot be geuen of al thinges, what so euer haue benne brought in vre by our Forefathers: yet I thinke, quoth he, that therein lie hidden profounde Mysteries.

I reporte me nowe to the secrete consciences of good Christen people, whether the Bishoppes of Rome vse not the Blessed Sacrament reuerently and bonorably or no,* 1.25 but rather† 1.26 as the Persians Fire, and the Reliques of the Goddesse Isis, as a stage Plaie, madde gasinges, and foolishe Gaudes, as it liketh this wicked Chammes broode to raile. VVherein they folowe the sheppes, whiche Iulian the Apostata, Lucian, Porphyrius, Celsus, and sutche other Prophane Helhoundes haue trodden before them. For after the like manner they railed at the Holy Mysieries of Christen Religion, namely Celsus, who as Origen writeth of him, obiected to the Christians the Sacrifices of Mithra, (whiche was an Idoll that the persians woorshipped, and called by the name of the Sunne) from whence he saide they had taken all their Sacramentes,* 1.27 Rites, and Ceremonies. And righte so (as we finde in S. Augustine writinge against the Manichees) the Payn••mes founde faulte with the Christen people for* 1.28 Honour donne to the * Body and Bloude of Christe vnder * Formes of Breade and VVine, saitinge that they Honoured Bacchus and Ceres.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Vntruthe For vvee honour the Holy Mysteries: and you pro∣fanely disho∣noure them.
• * 1.2

  Matth. ••. Luc. 3. A Prieste maye iustly enioy his necessary li∣uinge for seruinge at thaulter, and for say∣inge Masse. VVe knovv no VVoor∣shippers of Breade.
• † 1.3

  Vntruthe. For, as it is novve v∣sed, there is no viler dishonour, nor greatter Bla••phemie.
• * 1.4

  Vntruthe. For Christe neuer called his Disci∣ples, or sente them abroade, to saie Masse.
• † 1.5

  Alas, they haue it not. O∣thervvise for moonie it should avvaie.
• * 1.6

  God forebid, there shoulde be vvater in the Sea.
• † 1.7

  Vntruthes, and moste fonde, and blasphe∣mous folies.
• * 1.8

  Yet not one of your Catho∣lique Prelates amēdeth them.
• † 1.9

  Vntruthe, fonde and Hea∣thenishe. For God him selfe saithe, in vaine they woorship mee. &c.
• * 1.10

  Vntruthes foure together. For he disho∣noureth Christe. He hath neither Goddes vvorde, nor the Autho∣ritie of al the Fathers, nor the examples of An∣tiquitie.
• † 1.11

  Note, that in the same one litle Article, M. Hardinge hathe sente vs tvvelue greate Vn∣truthes.
• * 1.12

  Vntruthe. For this is onely the Sacramente of that same Body.
• † 1.13

  Doo the M. Hardinge scoffe at these games, or speaketh he in earnest?
• * 1.14

  Lib. Cere∣moniarum Ecclesiae Ro. Sectio∣ne. 12. Ca. 1. Baldachinū.
• * 1.15

  VVhy should a vvise man speake so fonde∣ly? Reade the Ansvveare.
• † 1.16

  They did it a∣gainste Goddes vvil: and spedde thereafter. Read the Ansvveare.
• * 1.17

  1. Reg. 4. 1. Reg. 5.
• * 1.18

  Graue Consi∣derations.
• * 1.19

  In the or∣der of this Ceremonie nothinge appeareth to a Chri∣sten man vnseemely or vnreaso∣nable.
• † 1.20

  A Horse sup∣plieth the Pope•• es••ice.
• * 1.21

  The cu∣stome of carryinge the Sacra∣mēt, vvhere the Pope goeth, is neither Nevve nor Strange.
• * 1.22

  Sale of Masses.
• * 1.23

  It vvas a greate abuse of the Sa∣cramente: and yet vvithout ei∣ther Pyxe, or Pompe: And therefore vvas aftervvarde vt∣terly takē avvaie throughout the vvhole Churche of God.
• * 1.24

  In Oratio∣ne funebri in Satyrum Fratrem. Innocent. 3. De Myste∣rijs Missae. Lib. 6.
• * 1.25

  This De∣fender fo∣lovveth Iu∣lian, Lucian. Porphyriabus;, Celsus, and suche other vvicked In∣fidels.
• † 1.26

  If yee had not these games from thence, then tel vs, from vvhence yee had them.
• * 1.27

  Cōtra Cel∣sum Lib. 6. De Mithra vide Suidam in dictione.
• * 1.28

  Moste vaine vntruthes. For S. Augustine speaketh neither of Honour, nor of Adoration, nor of Christes Body, nor of Fourmes.