Of the institution of the sacrament of the blessed bodie and blood of Christ, (by some called) the masse of Christ eight bookes; discovering the superstitious, sacrilegious, and idolatrous abominations of the Romish masse. Together with the consequent obstinacies, overtures of perjuries, and the heresies discernable in the defenders thereof. By the R. Father in God Thomas L. Bishop of Coventry and Lichfield.

Our Second Proofe of the Falshood of the Article of Transubstantia∣tion is from the Article of our Christian Creed, [BORNE OF THE VIRGIN MARY.]

SECT. II.

TRansubstantiation (as hath beene defined by your Councell of Trent) is a Conversion of the substance of Bread into the Substance of Christ's Body. Now, in every such Substantiall Change, there are Two Tearmes, one is the Substance from which; the other is the Substance whereinto the Substantiall Change is made: as it was in Christ his miraculous Change of Water into Wine. But this was by producing the Substance of Wine out of the Substance of Water, as the matter, from which the Conversion was made. Therefore must it it be by Production of the Substance of Christ's Body, out of the Substance of Bread. Your Cardinall hath no Evasion, but by deny∣ing the Conversion to be by Production, which notwithstanding was formerly the Generall Tenet of the Romish Schoole, ever since the Doctrine of Transubstantiation was hatched; and which is con∣trary to his owne device of Conversion by Adduction: wherein first he i 1.1 confoundeth himselfe, and secondly, his opinion hath beene scornfully reiected by your owne learned Doctors, as being nothing lesse than Transubstantiation, as you have heard. Therefore may you make much of your breaden Christ. As for vs, We, according to our Apostolicall Creed, beleeve no Body of Christ, but that which was Produced out of the Sanctified flesh of the blessed Virgin Mary, for feare of k 1.2 Heresie.

This same Obiection being made of late to a Iesuite of prime note, received from him this Answer: viz. God that was ableto raise Children to Abraham out of stones, can of bread transubstantiate the same into that Body of Christ, which was of the Virgin. And he againe received this Reply; That the Children, which should be so rai∣sed out of Stones, howsoever they might be Abraham's Children, according to Faith, yet could they not be Children of Abraham according to the Flesh. Therefore is there as great a Difference be∣tweene that Body from Bread, and the other from the Blessed Virgin, as there must have beene betweene Children out of Stones, and Children out of Flesh.

And this out Reason accordeth right well to the Ancient Faith, professed within this Land, in the dayes of Edgar a Saxon King, as it is set out in an l 1.3 Homily of that time, which being published stan∣deth thus. Much is betweene the body that Christ sufferedin, and be∣tweene

the body of the hallowed Howsell: The body truly that Christ suffered in was borne of the flesh of the Virgin Mary with blood, and with bone, with skin, and with sinewes in humane limbes; and his Ghost∣ly body, which we call his Howsell, is gathered of many Cornes, without blood, and bone, without limbe, and therefore nothing is to be under∣stood herein bodily, but all is Ghostly to be understood. This was our then Saxon's Faith; wherein is plainely distinguished the Body of Christ borne of the blessed Virgin from the Sacramentall (which is called Ghostly) as is the Body of flesh from the Consecrated Substance of Bread. A Doctrine directly confirmed by * 1.4 Saint Augustine. Wherefore we may as truly say, concerning this your Conversion, that if it be by Transubstantiation from bread, then it is not the Bo∣dy, which was borne of the blessed Virgin; as your owne Romish Glosse could say of the Predication: * 1.5 If Bread be Christ's Body, then something was Christ's body, which was not borne of the Virgin Mary.

Notes

• i 1.1

  Dico Corpus Christi ex pane fieri, non tanquàm ex ma∣teria, sed tanquàm à Termino à quo, ut mundus ex nihilo, [then confuting him∣selfe] e••iam ut ex a∣qua vinum (that was not ex nihilo.) In pr••∣senti negotio, Con∣versio non est Produ∣ctiva. Panis enim cō∣vertitur in Corpus Christi praeexistens: ergò Corpus Christi factum ex Pane, & ex Carne est idem. Bell. lib. 3. de Euch. cap. 24. §. Ad Tertium.
• k 1.2

  Alphonsus de Ca∣stro lib. 4. Ti••. Christ{us}. haeres. 2. Manichaei di••erūt Christū non ex utero Virginis prodijsse; Et Apolli∣naris dixit Christū nō assumpsisse carnē ex Virgine. Item. Chi∣liastae, Democritae, Melchioritae, & Pro∣clianitae. Prateolus in Elench. Haeret. suis quique titul••s.
• l 1.3

  Homily on Easter day, pag. 35.
• * 1.4

  See Booke 4. C. 4. §. 〈◊〉〈◊〉. in the Challenge.
• * 1.5

  See above, Booke 2. Chap. 1. § 4.