solitarinesse is a trespasse against the nature of man, and God
when he had made all things good, saw it was not good for man
to be alone.
Surely from great antiquity in the Primitive Church, many
retired themselves to solitary places, (where they were alwayes
alone, and alwayes in the company of good thoughts) chiefly
to shade themselves from the heat of persecution. Whose ex∣ample
was in after-ages imitated by others, when there was no
such necessity: As here by these Carmelites; whose order was
afterwards perfected in the year 1216, by Albert Patriarch of
Jerusalem, with certain Canonicall observations imposed upon
them. And in the next age, these bees which first bred in the
ground and hollow trees, got them hives in gardens; and lea∣ving
the deserts, gained them princely houses in pleasant pla∣ces.
They pretended indeed that they followed the pattern of
Elias, though farre enough from his example: First, for their
habit; they wore white coats guarded with red streaks: but
they have no colour in the Bible that Elias ever wore such a li∣very;
it suits rather with Joseph then with him. Secondly, by
their order they were to ride on he-asses; whereas we read that
Elias went on foot, and rode but once in a chariot of fire. Third∣ly,
they by the constitution of Pope Nicolas the 5. had sisters
of their company living near unto them; we find Elias to have
no such feminine consorts. Fourthly, they lived in all lust and
lazinesse, as Nicolas Gallus their own Generall did complain,
that they were Sodomites, and compared them to the tail of the
Dragon: so that their luxury differed from Elias his austerity,
as much as velvet from sackcloth. Wherefore that the Carme∣lites
came from mount Carmel cannot be denyed: But on that
mountain I find that both Elias and Baals priests gathered toge∣ther;
and let the indifferent reader judge which of them their
lives do most resemble.
Afterwards Pope Honorius 3. counting the party-coloured
coats these Carmelites did wear to be too gaudy, caused them
to wear onely white, the colour which nature doth die; simple,
and therefore fittest for religion. But Melexala King of Egypt,
who formerly was very bountifull to the Carmelites, knew not
his Alms-men in their new coats, but changed his love, as
they their livery, and persecuted them out of all Egypt. It
seemeth afterwards, by the complaint of Mantuan, that they
wore some black again over their white: For he playeth on
them, as if their bad manners had blacked and altered their
clothes.
Now though Palestine was their mother, England was their
best nurse. Ralph Fresburg, about the year 1240, first
brought them hither; and they were first seated at Newenden