To the extent possible under law, the Text Creation Partnership has waived all copyright and related or neighboring rights to this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above, according to the terms of the CC0 1.0 Public Domain Dedication (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/). This waiver does not extend to any page images or other supplementary files associated with this work, which may be protected by copyright or other license restrictions. Please go to http://www.textcreationpartnership.org/ for more information.
If therefore superioritie and domination of one aboue the rest haue such force to keepe men frō schismes, when they be in the truth, it hath as great force to keepe them togither in errour, and so be∣sides that one is easier to be corrupted than many, this power of one bringeth as great incōmoditie in keping them in error, if they fall into it, as in the truth, if they are in it.
This is as though you should saye, that if a Monarchie be an excellent kynde of gouernment, and in déede the best, when the lawes rule and not man (as Aristo∣tle sayth) then also is it the worste, when affection ruleth and not the lawe, which is true: for that is the worst state of gouernment which is opposed to the beste. But if you will therefore conclude, that a Monarchie is not the best state, your argument hath no reason in it: euen so is it in the gouernment of the Churche, if the chéefe go∣uernour thereof should follow his owne appetite and be ruled by his priuate affecti∣ons: but it is farre otherwise when he ruleth according to the lawes wherevnto he himselfe is subiect.