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¶A Letter wherein hee reproueth and condemneth the false and sclaunde∣rous reportes of the Papistes, which sayd that he had set vp Masse agayne at Canterbury.
AS the deuill Christes auncient aduersary is a lyer, & the father of lying: Euē so hath he sturred vp his seruaunts and members, to persecute Christ & his true word and Reli∣gion with lying, whiche he ceasseth not to do most earnestly at this present. For whereas the Prince of famous memory kyng Henry the eight seyng the great abuses of the Latin Masse, reformed some thyng therein in his tyme, and also our late soueraigne Lord kyng Edward the vj. tooke the same whole away for the manifold errours and abuses therof, and restored in the place therof Christes holy Supper accordyng to Christes owne institution and as the Apostles in the primatiue Church vsed the same: the deuil goeth about by lying to ouerthrow the Lordes holy Supper and to restore his Latin satisfactory Masse, a thyng of his owne inuention and deuise: and to bryng the same more easely to passe, some haue a∣bused the name of me Thomas Archbyshop of Canterbury, brutyng abroad that I haue set vp the Masse at Canterbury and that I offred to say Masse at the buriall of our late soue∣raigne Prince kyng Edward the vj. and also that I offred to say Masse, before the Queenes highnes and at Paules Church, and I wot not where. And although I haue bene wel ex∣ercised these xx. yeares to suffer and beare euill reportes and lyes, and haue bene much gre∣ued thereat, but haue borne all thynges quietly: yet when vntrue reportes and lyes turne to the hinderaunce of Gods truth, they be in no wise to be suffred.
Wherfore these be to signifie vnto the world, that it was a false, flatteryng, lying & dis∣semblyng Monke which caused Masse to be set vp there, without myne aduise or counsell, Reddat illi Dominus in die illo.* 1.1 And as for offering my selfe to say Masse before the Queenes highnes, or in any other place, I neuer did it, as her grace well knoweth. But if her grace giue me leaue, I shalbe ready to proue agaynst all that will say the contrary, that all that is sayd in the holy Communion, set out by the most innocent and godly Prince kyng Edward the vj. in his high Court of Parliament, is conformable to the order which our soueraigne Christ did both obserue and commaunded to be obserued, and which his Apostles and pri∣matiue Church vsed many yeares: whereas the Masse in many thyngs not onely hath no foundation of Christ, his Apostles nor the primatiue Church, but is manifestly contrary to the same, and containeth many horrible abuses in it. And although many vnlearned and malitious do report, that M. Peter Martyr is vnlearned, yet if the Queenes highnesse will graunt thereunto, I with the sayd M. Peter Martyr, and other iiij. or v. which I shall chose, will (by Gods grace) take vpon vs, to defend not onely the cōmon prayers of the Church, the ministration of the Sacraments and other rites & ceremonies, but also all the doctrine and Religion set out by our soueraigne Lord kyng Edward the vi. to be more pure & accor∣dyng to Gods word, then any other that hath bene vsed in Englād this M. yeares: so that Gods word may be the Iudge, and that the reasons and profes vpon both parties may be set out in writing, to the intent aswell that all the world may examine and Iudge thereon, as that no man shall start backe from his writyng. And where they boast of the fayth that hath bene in the Church this M. and v. hundreth yeares, we will ioyne with them in this point, and that the doctrine and vsage is to be followed which was in the Church a M. & v. hundreth yeares past: and we shall proue that the order of the Church set out at this pre∣sent in this Realme by Act of Parliament, is the same that was vsed in Church .1500. yeares past, and so shall they be neuer able to proue theirs.