An abridgement of the notable woorke of Polidore Vergile conteignyng the deuisers and firste finders out as well of artes, ministeries, feactes & ciuill ordinaunces, as of rites, and ceremonies, commo[n]ly vsed in the churche: and the originall beginnyng of the same. Co[m]pendiously gathered by Thomas Langley

The .ii. Chapiter. ¶The institucion of circumcision and baptisme.

GOD, whiche hadde made promyse to A∣braham, y^t he should be father of many na¦tions, and that al the world should be bles∣sed in his seede (that Christ) willyng to stay his farth in y^e same promise appointed the couenāt of circumcision betwene him & Abra∣ham:* 1.1 saiyng, euery male shalbe circū∣cised, and the fleshe of his fore skinne shalbe cut round about, for a signe of the leage & confederacy that I make with the.* 1.2 Vpon this cōmaundement Abraham then beyng .xcix. yeares of age dyd cut his fore skyn, & his sōne

Ismales beyng then .xii. yeares olde, whom he begatte by Agar his bond∣mayde, and al his men seruauntes: For this cause (as s. Cyprian saieth) that he might haue the fyrste fruites of the blod,* 1.3 whiche should afterward shede his holy blod for the redempti∣on of manye, yea of all that beleue in him. The fashion of it was to cut the fore skynne of a mānes yarde with a knyfe of stone, as God commaunded Iosue that he should make knyues of stone to circumcise all the Israeli∣tes the second tyme,* 1.4 and Moses dyd circumcise his children with a sharpe stone. Chrisostome calleth circumci∣sion the fyrst and most auncient com∣maundement, for there is no nacion,* 1.5 that gaue any preceptes or rules to lyue by afore Abraham or Moses: & therfore it is to be supposed that o∣ther countries toke example at the Hebrues to circumcise their chyldrē,* 1.6 as the Pheniciens, and Arabiens, the Sarrocenes, the Ethiopians, the E∣gyptiens, and the Colchians.

This circumcision of y^e fleshe was a fygure to vs of the circumcision of the heart,* 1.7 and cuttyng away of al su∣perfluouse

luste, carnal desyres, and importeth a moderacion and mortifi∣yng of the affectes & concupicences of the olde Adam I meane the sinnefull body: he that had not this signe was banished out of the nōber of the peo∣ple of God, & had no par•• in the pro∣myses made to Abraham. Baptisme wherein is lefte to vs a significacion bothe of the mortificacion of y^e fleshe and diyng to the world,* 1.8 that we may walke in a newe lyfe, and also of the washyng away of our sinnes by Chri¦stes blod, and is the token that we be of the body of the cōgregacion of the faythful,* 1.9 was instituted by s. Iohn, sonne of zacharye, the .xv. yere of the Emperoure Tyberius reigne, in the wyldernes besyde the famoose riuer of Iordane, wher he baptised muche people. This baptisme and washyng was in the water to signifye the wa∣shyng away of our sinnes that shuld be by Christ, whiche baptised in the holy ghost & fyre. There was signes of baptisme in the olde lawe, as the cloud,* 1.10 the red sea, y^e riuer of Iordain. The fyrste that was christened of the heathen was Cornelius of Cesaria,

and the eunuchus of quene Cādaces.

Christenyng of enfantes was insti∣tute among vs,* 1.11 as cyrcumcision of chyldren was of the Iewes celebra∣ted the eight day. Iginius bishop of Rome ordeyned fyrste that chyldren, whiche should be Christened, should haue a godfather and a godmother, for to be wytnesse of the sacrament y^t it was receiued.* 1.12 And Victor bishop there dyd institute that one might be christened either by a lay man or wo∣man in tyme of necessitie,* 1.13 bycause en∣fantes were often in daunger. There be thre maner of baptismes (as Cy∣prian diuideth it). One in water,* 1.14 wherof Iohn was auctour, another in the holy gost & fyre, wherof Christ was institutour, the third is in blod, wherein the children y^t Herod slewe, were Christened. It was also the maner in old tyme,* 1.15 that they whiche were growen in age should be bapti∣sed in white apparel, and that was wont to be at Easter or Whitsonday only necessitie cōstrayned otherwise: In the meane tyme tyll those daies came, they were taught the misteries of the religion of Christ, whiche they

should professe. Of that custome I suppose the sondaye after Easter is called the white sonday.* 1.16

Notes

• * 1.1

  Circumcisiō.
• * 1.2

  Abraham. circumcised.
• * 1.3

  Why y^e blod was shed.
• * 1.4

  The second circumcision.
• * 1.5

  Circumcisiō.
• * 1.6

  Other coun∣tries do cir∣cumcise.
• * 1.7

  What circū∣cision signi∣fieth.
• * 1.8

  Baptisme.
• * 1.9

  Iohn Bap∣test auctoure of baptisme.
• * 1.10

  Signes of Baptisme.
• * 1.11

  Christenyng of enfantes.
• * 1.12

  Godfather & godmother.
• * 1.13

  When lay men may christen.
• * 1.14

  Thre bap∣tismes.
• * 1.15

  The olde cu∣stome of bap¦tisyng.
• * 1.16

  Whitsonday