A golden chaine: or The description of theologie containing the order of the causes of saluation and damnation, according to Gods word. A view whereof is to be seene in the table annexed. Hereunto is adioyned the order which M. Theodore Beza vsed in comforting afflicted consciences.

The proofe.

I Neede not stand to prooue the proposition, the assumption is rather to be confirmed: which first I will prooue by induction of particulars. First, that a man should be iustified by works, is an opinion setled in nature, as may ap∣peare in them that crucified our Sauiour Christ: for when they were pricked in their hearts at Peters sermon, b 1.1 they saide, Men and brethren, what shall we doe to be saued? and this said the yong man before named, not what should I beleeue, but what should I doe to be saued. So then in them it appeareth, that it is a naturall opinion of all men to thinke that they must be saued by doing of somewhat. A Papist will say, though this be naturall thus to thinke, yet it may be good: for there is some goodnes in nature.

I answer that the wisdome of the flesh is enmitie to Gods wisdome, Rom. 8.7. and a••l men by nature are nothing but flesh: for naturally they are the children of wrath. Secondly, the worshipping of god in images, is a great mat∣ter in the Church of Rome: but this manner of worshipping is nothing but a worke of the flesh, which thus I prooue: b 1.2 Idolatrie is naturall, and a worke of the flesh; but to worship God in images, is idolatrie. The children of Israel when they erected the golden calfe•• they did commit idolatrie, and yet they did not worship the calfe it selfe, b•••• God in the calfe. For when the calfe was made, they c 1.3 proclaimed an holy day, not to the calfe, but to the Lord. And Baal, that detestable idol, was nothing but the image of God, as appeareth in Hosea the prophet. At that day, saith the lord,* 1.4 thou shalt calme no more Baal.

It remaineth therfore, that to serue God in an image, is a work of the flesh,

and altogether agreeth to the vile corruption of nature. Thirdly,d 1.5 pride, and a desire to be a aduanced aboue other, is a naturall corruption: to this agreeth the Popes primacie, his double sword, and triple crown: yet the outragious pomp of that seate is as a paire of bellowes to kindle the concupiscence, and to make the hidden sparkes of pride to breake out into a great flame. Fourthly, Doub∣ting of Gods prouidence & mercie is a naturall corruption in all men: to this agreeth, and from hence issueth that foolish and vaine opinion, concerning doubting of our saluation, and of the remission of sinnes. Fiftly, selfe-loue, and selfe-liking are naturall corruptions: to this agreeth that doctrine of the Pa∣pists, not ouermuch to abase our selues, but to maintaine freewill by nature, and to thinke that we haue so much goodnes, that we are able to prepare our selues to receiue, and in some sort to merit grace. Sixtly, idlenes and riotousnes is a naturall corruption, and to it very fitly answereth the great number of feasts, of holy daies, of halfe holy daies which the Church of Rome vseth. Se∣uenthly, Couetousnes is a naturall corruption, and to the feeding of this vice serueth Purgatorie, a fire of great gaine, which in very truth, if it had not bur∣ned very hot, the fire in the Popes kitchin had burned very colde: hitherto serue Pilgrimages, saying of Masses, and selling of pardons for money. Eight∣ly, to be at libertie is the desire of nature: answerable to this is that opinion, that the spiritualtie is to be exempted from subiection to Magistrates. Ninthly, to commit adulterie is naturall: to this agreeth the Stewes, and the permission of simple fornication. Tenthly, ignorance is a filthy corruption in nature: this the Church of Rome maketh the mother of deuotion, and it is inioyned the lay man as a meanes of his saluation: for he must beleeue as the church beleeueth, he is not bound to know. XI. Infidelitie is naturall, and to this agreeth that they call vpon Saints and Angels, the Lord hauing commanded them to call vpon him in the name of Christ, what argueth this els, but hearts distrusting Gods goodnes, and guiltie consciences? XII. Images in the Church of Rome came from infidelitie, because men in reason could not perswade themselues that God was present, vnlesse that were made manifest by some signe and i∣mage. Which thing the Israelites declared when they said to Aaron in the wil∣dernes in Moses absence,* 1.6 Make vs gods to goe before vs. XIII. Satisfactions for sinne are naturall: for wicked e 1.7 men when they haue offended God, they haue alwaies vsed some ceremonies to pacifie God with, which when they haue performed, then they thinke they haue done enough. XIV. The church of Rome saith, that the Scriptures are darke & obscure: the blind man findeth fault with the darknes of the sunne: If the Scriptures appeare to any to be ob∣scure, the fault is not in the Scriptures, but in the blindnes of the minde of him which readeth and heareth them. XV. Lastly, pardons open a gap to all licen∣tiousnes: therefore they agree to mans corrupt nature: for who almost will not sinne, when he may get a pardon for his sinnes, for a little peece of money, as twentie shillings or foure nobles? And what is it but cosonage to sell pardons which shall be in force many yeares after the ende of the world as the Pope doth.

It is naturall to a man to serue God in certaine ceremonies, without the power of godlines: and this seruice is prescribed by the religion of the Church

of Rome,* 1.8 which standeth only in outward and corporall ceremonies, as the outward succession of Bishops, garments, vestures, gestures, coloures, choice of meat, difference of daies, times, and places, hearing, seeing, saying, touching, tasting, numbring of beads, gilding and worshipping of images, building Monasteries, rising at midnight, silence in cloysters, abstaining from flesh and white meat. Fasting in Lent, keeping Imber daies, hearing Masse and diuine seruice, seeing and adoring the bodie in forme of bread, re∣ceiuing holy water and holy bread, creeping to the crosse, carrying Palmes, taking a∣shes, bearing Candles, Pilgrimages going, censing, kneeling, knocking, altars, superal∣tars, candlestickes, pardons: In orders, crossing, annointing, shauing, forswearing mar∣riage: In baptisme, salting, crossing, spatling, exorcising, washing of hands: At Easter, confession, penance, dirge, satisfaction, and in receiuing with beards new shauen, to i∣magine a bodie where they see none: and though he were there present to be seene, yet the outward seeing and touching of him, of it selfe without faith conduceth no more then it did the Iewes. At Rogation daies to carrie banners, to followe the Crosse, to walke about the fieldes: After Pentecost to goe about with Corpus Christi plaie. At Hollowmasse to watch in the Church, to say Dirge or commendation, and to ring for all soules, to pay tithes truly, to giue to the hie Altar. And if a man will be a priest, to say Masse and Mattens, to serue the Saint of that daie, and to lift well ouer the head. In sickenes to be anneled, to take his rites, after his death to haue funerall and Obites said for him, and to be rung for at his Funerall, moneths minde, and yeare minde. This is the summe of the catholike religion, standing in bodily actions, not in a∣ny motions or worke of the holy Ghost, working in the heart. [unspec II]

The morall law containing perfect righteousnes, is flat opposite to man•• corrupt nature: therfore whatsoeuer Religion shall repeale and make of none effect the commandements of the morall lawe, that same religion must needs ioyne hands with the corruption of nature, and stand for the maintenance of it. This doth the religion of the Church of Rome: it may be it doth not plain∣ly repeale them, yet in effect it doth:a 1.9 & if it shall frustrate but any one point of any one commandement, yea, the whole lawe thereby is made in vaine. 1. The first commandement requireth, that we haue the true Iehoua for our on∣ly God: Church of Rome maketh other gods beside this true God: it ma∣keth the body of Christ to be god, because they hold it may bee in many pla∣ces, in heauen, in earth at the same time, which thing is only proper to God. It maketh euery Saint departed to bee God, because it holdeth that Saints doe heare vs now being vpon the earth, & that they know our thoughts when we pray to them, which none but the true God can doe. It maketh the Pope to be God, and that in plaine words. b 1.10Pope Nicholas saith, Constat, summum Pontifi∣cem à pio principe Constantino Deum appellari: It is well known that the Pope of the godly prince Constantine was called God. Againe, in c 1.11 the extra••agants of the same Cannon law it is written, Dominus Deus noster Papa, Our Lord God the Pope. And againe,d 1.12 Christopher Marcellus said to the Pope, Tu es al∣ter Deus in terris, Thou art another God vpon earth: and the Pope tooke it to himselfe. As the Pope in plaine wordes is made God, so the power giuen to him declareth the same. e 1.13 He can make holy that which is vnholy, and iustifie the wicked and pardon sinnes: f 1.14 hee may dispense contrarie to the saying of ••n Apostle: he can change the nature of things, and of nothing make some∣what.

What is all this, but to place the Pope in Gods roome, and to robbe the Lord of his Maiestie?

Againe, the Church of Rome maketh Marie the mother of Iesus to bee as God. In the Breuiary reformed and published at the commandement of Pius the V.a 1.15 shee is called a Goddesse, in expresse words: and she is further tearmed the Queene of heauen, the Queene of the world, the gate of heauen, the mother of grace and mercy: Yea shee is farre exalted aboue Christ, and he in regard of her is made but a poore vnderling in heauen: for papists in their seruice vnto her pray on this manner, saying: Shew thy selfe to be a mother: and cause thy sonne to receiue our praiers: set free the captiues and giue light to the blind.b 1.16 Lastly, the very crosse is made as a God. For they salute it by the name of their only hope and pray it to increase iustice to the godly, and to giue sinners pardon. Wher∣fore the Church of Rome beside the one true God distinguished into three persons, the father, the sonne, and the holy ghost, maketh also many other, and so in trueth hath repealed his first commandement.

And they haue very plainely repealed the second commandement, in that they teach it lawfull to make images of the true God, and to worship him in them. For the flat contrarie is the very scope of this commandement: namely that no image must be made of the true Iehoua: nor any worship be perfor∣med vnto him in an image: which appeareth thus. In Deutronomie Moses maketh a large Commentarie of this commandement, and this very point he sets down expressely, saying,* 1.17 take heed to your selues: for ye sawe no image in the day that the Lord spake vnto you in Horeb, out of the middest of the fire: that ye corrupt not your selues, and make you a grauen image, or representa∣tion of any figure, &c. His argument I set downe thus. As God appeared in mount Horeb, so he is to be conceiued and represented: but hee appeared in no image in mount Horeb, only his voice was heard: therefore he is not to be conceiued or represented in any image: but men are to be content, if they may heare his voice. Againe, that sin to which the people of Israel were specially giuen, euen that doth the Lord specially forbid: but to this were the people of Israel specially giuen, not so much to make images of false gods, as to make i∣mages of the true God, and to worship him in them: which I prooue thus.

In the booke of Iudges it is said, that the children of Israel did wickedly in the sight of the Lord,* 1.18 and serued Baalim. Now these Baalims, what are they? Surely Idols resembling the true God: as the Prophet Hosea declareth.* 1.19 And at that day saith the Lord, thou shalt call me Ishai, & shalt call me no more Ba∣ali. Here it appeareth that the Israelites meaning was not to worship a false god, but the true God in Baalim. And Aaron when he made the golden calfe proclaimed that the next day should be holy daie,* 1.20 not of any false god, but of the Lord that brought them out of Egypt. The prophet Esay after that hee had set forth Gods maiestie very worthily,* 1.21 he comes in with this conclusion: To whom thē will ye likē God? or what similitude wil ye set vp of him? which declareth that the Iewes after the maner of the Gentiles ran a whoring after I∣dols, that is, Images not only of false gods, but also of the true God. I conclude therefore as I began, that the Church of Rome, by maintaining images, hath repealed this commandement.

Neither doth it shew lesse fauour to the third commandement: which also is repealed.* 1.22 First, in that they teach men to giue the glorie which is proper to God, to some thing els: it is proper to God after the daie of iudgement to bee all in all: this they giue to Marie, saying that shee is all in all.

It is proper to Christ in respect of other creatures to be a light lightening all that come into the world, yet they pray to Marie to giue light to the blind.* 1.23 It is proper to Christ to be the redeemer of mankind, & this worke of redēp∣tion is ascribed to Marie, whome the Papists call their hope, their ioy, their me∣d••atresse, a medicine for the diseased, a defence from the enemie, a friend in the houre of death. Againe, they make S. Martin a priest according to the order of Melchi∣sedech, which is proper to Christ.

Secondly, they hold that the people is to be barred from the reading of the Scriptures, vnlesse it be in an vnknowne tongue, and so they maintaine igno∣rance and the prophaning of Gods name, for the preaching of the word, and therefore also the hearing, learning, reading, searching of it,* 1.24 is the glorifying of the word, and so the glorifying of Gods name.

The fourth commandement is repealed in that they require that their feast daies should be kept as solemnly as the Lords sabboth: For they must be kept in all honour and comlines:* 1.25 and men must rest from their labours, from morning to euening, as on the Sabboth: whereas contrariwise the Lord hath giuen permis∣sion to his seruantes to labour the sixe daies, so bee it, on the seuenth they will rest from the workes of their callings, and do the works of the spirit.

They repeale the fift commandemēt in that they teach that their Cleargie hath an immunitie, & therfore is not bound to performe obedience to magi∣strates, for so they haue decreed,* 1.26 that Clearkes are to be iudged only of Bishops: & that they are only to reskue them from iniuries. Againe, that the Bishop must not be iudged of the secular power: and that the Pope himselfe oweth no sub∣iection to Kings, Princes, Emperours, but hath power to make them, and to put them downe at his pleasure. But S. Paul for the maintaining of the fift commandement, bids euery soule be subiect to the higher powers: and there∣fore the pope with his cleargie (as Chrysostome hath expoūded it) must be sub∣iect to ciuil magistrates, vnles they wil exclude themselues out of the number of men, for Paul speakes to all.

Against the sixt commandement they haue decreed asyles for murderers, plainely permitting them which feare authoritie,* 1.27 to haue safetie in the lap of their mother the Church. Thus they annihilate Gods commandement, yea & more then this, whither tends all that they teach but to the very murdering of soules? For example, saluation by works of grace, is one of their chiefe points. But that man that is perswaded that he must be saued by his workes, must also put his trust in them, and hee which trusteth to his workes is accursed before god.* 1.28 For cursed is that man that trusteth in man, whether it be himselfe or other.

The seuenth Commandement is repealed diuers waies. First, in that they maintaine the occasions of Adulterie and fornication: namely, the vowe of single life both in men and women, when as they haue not receiued the gift from God to be continent: which gift when they want, and yet are bound to single life, they must needes breake out into much loosenes. This sinne made

Mantuan, Palingenius and Petrarch to crie out against the Church of Rome. Againe,* 1.29 some Papists defend the toleration of the stewes in Rome, for the a∣uoiding of greater euils. And in the Councell of Trent, chastitie and Priests marriage are made opposite, so that marriage with them is a filthie thing, al∣though God hath ordained it for the auoyding of fornication in all.* 1.30 Further∣more, that which is most abhominable and prooues the Church of Rome to be an Antichristian Church: they maintaine marriages within the degrees forbidden both by the law of nature, & of gods word. For in the table of con∣sanguinitie they which are placed in the transuerse vnequall line cannot mar∣rie, because they are as Parents & children: yet if they be distant foure degrees on diuers sides from the common stock they may marrie togither by the Ca∣non law. As for example, the graund vncle may marrie his sisters nephewes neece,* 1.31 a thing very filthy in nature, considering that a man cannot marrie with any honestie his sisters child. To goe further, by Gods word they which are distant foure degrees in the transuerse equall line, are not forbidden to marry togither, as cosin germanes. Thus the daughters of Zelophehad were married to their fathers brothers sonnes: this example (as I take it) may be a warrant of the lawfulnes of this marriage: Yet the Canon lawe vtterly condemnes this marriage of cosin germans, & the marriage of their children after thē, though they be eight degrees distāt.* 1.32 Thus the Church of Rome doth ouerthwart the Lord: where he giues libertie, they restraine it; and when hee restraineth men, then they giue libertie.

They repeale the 8. cōmandement by their spirituall marchandize in which they sel those things which are not to be sold, as Crosses to dead men, Images, praiers, the sound of bels, remission of sins, and the merits by which men may come to the kingdom of heauē: their shaueling priests wil do no duty without they be fed with money; hence comes the prouerb, no penny no pater noster.

They teach men to beare false witnes, and so to sinne against the ninth cō∣mandement, in that they holde that Marie is the Queene of heauen: whereas indeede shee is no Queene, but doth continually cast down her crown before Christ with the rest of the Saints.* 1.33 And a man may as well beare false witnes in speaking too much, as in speaking too little.

In the tenth commandement the first motions that goe before consent are forbidden: otherwise there shall be no difference betweene it and the rest. For they also are spirituall, and forbid inward motions: but the difference is that they forbid only the motions that goe with consent. Nowe the papists say, that these motions are no sin properly vnles consent follow: and therefore they in expresse words repeale this commandement. For if concupiscence & the first motions be no sinnes properly, then there neede no prohibition of them.

Notes

• b 1.1

  Act. 2.37. Ioh. 6.28. Mar. 10.17.
• b 1.2

  Gal. 5. 20.
• c 1.3

  Exo. 32.5.
• * 1.4

  Hos 2.16.
• d 1.5

  〈◊〉〈◊〉. 20.••.
• * 1.6

  Exod. 32. 1.
• e 1.7

  Mich. 6.7. Isa. 58.4,5.
• * 1.8

  F•••• Ac••. •••• •• eg••••
• a 1.9

  Mat. 15.••
• b 1.10

  Dec. dist. 69. satis eui∣denter.
• c 1.11

  Extraua. Ioh. 22. cum inter. in glos∣sa.
• d 1.12

  Concil. La∣ter. sess. 4.
• e 1.13

  Extra de maior. & ••∣bedientia.
• f 1.14

  Dist. 34. can. lect. in gloss. dist. ••2. can. Presbit.
• a 1.15

  In officio par. beatae Mariae, ad Matut.
• b 1.16

  Breuiar. refor. in festo Exalt. Cru∣••is.
• * 1.17

  Deut. 4.15, 16.
• * 1.18

  Iudg. 2. ••0.
• * 1.19

  Hos. 2. 12.
• * 1.20

  Eoxd. 32.5.
• * 1.21

  Esa. 40. 18.
• * 1.22

  1. Cor. 1••. 28.
• * 1.23

  Ioh. 10.9. Breuiar. & miss. & re∣for••••.
• * 1.24

  2. Thess. 3.1.
• * 1.25

  Con. M••∣gunt. c. 36. 37.

  Matiscon. 2. c. 1.2.
• * 1.26

  Matisc. con. c. 7.9.8.
• * 1.27

  Matis. 2.••.••.
• * 1.28

  Ier. 17.5.
• * 1.29

  ••elog. 5. lib. 4.5.9.
• * 1.30

  Sess. 24. c. 6.
• * 1.31

  Greg. cap. 8. de consang. a••unculus maximus abnepotis.
• * 1.32

  Num. 36.11.
• * 1.33

  Re••. 7.12. and 5.10.