A defence of the true and catholike doctrine of the sacrament of the body and bloud of our sauiour Christ with a confutacion of sundry errors concernyng the same, grounded and stablished vpon Goddes holy woorde, [and] approued by ye consent of the moste auncient doctors of the Churche. Made by the moste reuerende father in God Thomas Archebyshop of Canterbury, primate of all Englande and Metropolitane.

But the aduersaries of Christe, gather toge∣ther a greate heape of authors, whiche (as they say) cal the Masse or holy communion a Sacri∣fice. But all those authors be answered vnto in this one sentence, that they called it not a sacri∣fice for sinne, bicause that it taketh awaye oure synne (which was taken away only by the death of Christ) but bicause it was ordained of Christ to put vs in remembraunce of the sacrifice made by him vpon the crosse. And for that cause it bea∣reth the name of that sacrifice, as S. Augustine declareth plainlye in his Epistle ad Bonifacium, before rehersed in this booke, fol. 64. And in his boke De fide ad Petrum diaconum before rehersed also. And in his booke De ciuitate Dei, he saith.

That which men call a sacrifice, is a signe or represen¦tacion of the true sacrifice.

And the Maister of the sentence (of whom all the schoole authors take their occasion to write) iudged truly in this point, saying:

That which ys offered & consecrated of the priest, is called a sa∣crifice and oblation, bicause it is a memorye and re∣presentacion of the trewe sacrifice and holye obla∣tion made in the altare of the crosse.

And S. Iohn Chrysostome, after he hath said that Christe is our Byshop, whiche offered that sacrifice that made vs cleane, and that we offre the same nowe, least any man might be deceaued by his manner of speakinge, he openeth his mea¦ninge

more plainly, saying:

That whiche wee doo, is doone for a remembraunce of that whiche was doone by Christe. For Christe saith: Do this in re¦membraunce of me. Also Chrysostome declaring at length, that y^e priests of the old law offered e∣uer new sacrifices, and changed them from time to tyme, & that christiā people do not so, but offre euer one sacrifice of Christ: yet by & by (lest some mē might be offēded w^t this speache) he maketh as it were a correctiō of his wordes, saying: But rather we make a remembrance of Christes sacrifice.

As though he shuld say: Although in a certaine kinde of speach we may sai, y^t euery day we make a sacrifice of Christe, yet in very deede, to speake properly, we make no sacrifice of him, but only a cōmemoration & remembrance of that sacrifice. whiche he alone made, & neuer none but he. Nor Christ neuer gaue this honor to any creature, y^t he shuld make a sacrifice of him, nor did not or∣dain the sacramēt of his holi supper, to the intēt y^t either the people shuld sacrifice Christ againe, or that y^e priests shuld make a sacrifice of him for y^e people: but his holy supper was ordained for this purpose, that euery man eating & drinking therof, shuld remembre that Christ died for him, and so shuld exercise his faith, and comforte him selfe by the remembraunce of Christes bnefites, and so giue vnto Christ most harty thanks, and giue himselfe also clearly vnto him.

Wherfore y^e ordinance of Christ ought to be fo∣lowed,

y^e priest to minister the sacramēt to y^e peo∣ple, & they to vse it to their consolation. And in this eating, drinking and vsing of the lords sup¦per, we make not of Christ a newe sacrifice pro∣pitiatory for remission of sinne.

Notes

• Chap. 13.
• An answer to the au∣thors.
• Augustinu•• ad Bonifac.
• De ciuitat. lib. 10. cap. 5
• Lombardu•• li. 4. dist. 12
• Chrysost. ad Heb. ••o. 17