Here endith a compendiouse treetise dyalogue. of Diues [and] paup[er]. that is to say. the riche [and] the pore fructuously tretyng vpon the x. co[m]man̄mentes ...

The xx. chapter.

IF a man or woman / yeue money to be resceiued īto house of religion / and so in religi¦on in couenaunt y^t he or she shall yeue a certeyn money to ye hous it is symonie though it be comen custome so to yeue Nathelesse if he be resceyued frely as the lawe wole / he dothe no symonie. Ex∣tra e. sicut {pro} certo et c. in tantum c^o veniens. c^o. audiuimus c. Ia¦cobus. Nathelesse if the house be pore & ouircharged w^t y^e {per}sone so cladde / they may afterward pray the frēdes of that {per}sone / of sūme almesse in releuynge of the hous and of that charge. If a man or a woman yeue money to prestes riche or pore / for trental / for ānu¦el / for yerday / or for to say messe of the holy goost or other masses or to yeue money to clerkes / for saynge of psalters or of diriges. or to pore men in couenaunte of certein prayers / with intencion so to bye their prayers he doth sy¦monye. scdm̄ glosam Willī / et vt habetur in sū. con. li.i. ti. i. q̄ xlii. And yit as he saith there / it is le∣fulle to take and to yeue money and other temporel thinges / for suche spirituel thing / and for p̄y¦er by wey of deuocion and of fre yift / so to excite deuocion and lo¦ue of {per}sones the more to pray for them. And in this maner men may yeue to colleges certein mo¦ney to kepe their yereday / nat by wey of couenaunt of biyng / and of sellynge / but so to stirre theim frely to graunt them their axing by wey of more charite and mor̄ beuocion. For suche spirituel thing may nat be solde And ther¦fore men shuld yeue their goode

frely to men of hooly churche by weye of amesse / and they shulde take it frely by wey of almesse And the yeuer w^t his yifte of cha¦rite may axe certein prayers. of them that he yeueth to / & if they grauntyd him they ben bounden to kepe their graunt Therfore saith seint Austyne that the apo∣stelys toke frely their liuynge of them that they prechyd frely to. And as grete synne it is the prest to sel his prayer / as the prechour to selle his prechynge. Criste badde ī the gospel that mē shuld make them frendes of the riches∣ses of this world yat they might resceyue them into endlesse taber¦nacles that is to say yat they mi∣ght so pray for hem y^t they might be resceyued into blisse And thus muste alle men of holy churche. take their lyuyng if they wol be clene oute of symony. For they may nat sell ther office that they do in holy churche / ne their pray¦er / but by fre yiftes take their suf¦ficient lyuelode Extra ne p̄lati. vices suas. c^o qm̄ enormis.

Diues

Con̄tra. It is ordeyned by constitucion synodalle what money a parissh preest and what an annueler shuld take

Pau{per}.

That is natt for his office but it is done to lett the false couetise. of men of holy churche / to putte in certein hou moche is sufficiēt: to their lyuyng that they shulde no more axe. ne men no more ye¦ue theym. But if it be nat suffici¦ent / they may take more by leue of their prelates And that tax¦inge is natt ordeigned by the ye∣uer of the money / but by the pre¦lates of holy churche bothe anen¦tis symonye and ayenst false co∣netyce of their clerkes.