The B. of Sarisburie.
What so euer plentie of suche examples M. Hardinge hath, if he had any better, he might wel haue spared these. Here he saithe, Some olde m••nne for their age, and drieth, were suffred to Communicate of the Cuppe onely, as beinge not hable to swallow the Breade.* 1.1 A litle before he saide, That S. Ambrose lieinge in his deathe bedde, receiued the Breade onely: And that S. Basile in the like case receiued the Sacrament, beinge then stale and drie, of seuen yeeres keepinge, and that alone without VVine. Seneca saithe, Proprium est ••••xuriae gaudere peruersis. It is the propertie of wantonnesse, to delite in thinges out of order.
Infantes, saithe M. Hardinge, receiued in one Kinde, and thereto he allegeth the authoritie of S. Cyprian: whiche although it made with him to this purpose toutchinge Children, yet to other great purposes it maketh directly against him. For firste by that place of S. Cyprian,* 1.2 the holy Communion was thought so ne∣cessarie to al the faithful, that Children and Infantes were not excluded: whiche plainely ouerthroweth the Priuate Masse: Bisides that, the whole people receiued in Bothe Kindes, as it is manifest by S. Cyprians woordes:* 1.3 whiche thinge is con∣trary to M. Hardinges halfe Communion.
Al this he graunteth touchinge the people: wherein onely I ioyned issue: and maketh his whole plea vpon an Infante: and yet of Infantes, as he knoweth, I spake nothinge. If al that he saithe, were proued true, yet hath he gotten but an Infante of his side. But what if•• this Infant receiued bothe kindes? Uerely, there is nothinge in Cyprian to the contrary. And it appeareth by S. Hierome, S. Augustine and other olde writers,* 1.4 that they that were Baptized, as wel chil∣dren, as others, immediatly receiued the holy Mysteries in Bothe Kindes. S. Hie∣rome speakinge of one Hilarius saithe thus:* 1.5 Non potest Baptisma tradere sine Eu∣charistia. He cannot minister Baptisme without the Sacrament of thankes geuinge. S. Cy∣prians woordes toutchinge this mater be these: Vbi solemnibus adimpletis calicem Diaconus offerre praesentibus coepit, & accipientibus caeteris, locus eius aduenit, faciem suam paruula instinctu diuinae Maiestatis auertere &c. After the solemnitie (of the Con∣secration) was donne, and the Deacon beganne to minister the Cuppe vnto them that were present, and emonge others that receiued, her tourne was come, the childe by the power of Goddes diuine. Maiestie tourned away her face &c. Hereby we may wel geather, that like as the Priest, the Deacons, and the people receiued, euen so the childe receiued to, without any manner innouation, or difference.
He wil say, there is mention made but onely of the Cuppe. Therefore the Childe receiued not the other kinde. This gheasse is ouer s••lender: yet is it an ordinary argument with M. Hardinge. But it séemeth, he dothe not wel consider the inconuenience, that thereof may followe. For so may he as wel conclude, that the Prieste him selfe, and the Deacons, and the whole people, receiued onely of the Cuppe. For there is no mention at al made of the other portion.
If the Breade had beene offred to the childe, she woulde as wel haue refused that, as she did the Cuppe. This is an other gheasse without any necessary sequele. This effect fol∣lowed when God would haue it: of whose dooinges we canne geue no reason.