Actes and monuments of matters most speciall and memorable, happenyng in the Church. [vol. 2, part 1] with an vniuersall history of the same, wherein is set forth at large the whole race and course of the Church, from the primitiue age to these latter tymes of ours, with the bloudy times, horrible troubles, and great persecutions agaynst the true martyrs of Christ, sought and wrought as well by heathen emperours, as nowe lately practised by Romish prelates, especially in this realme of England and Scotland. Newly reuised and recognised, partly also augmented, and now the fourth time agayne published and recommended to the studious reader, by the author (through the helpe of Christ our Lord) Iohn Foxe, which desireth thee good reader to helpe him with thy prayer.

¶The answere of Mayster Bland in his appea∣raunce before the Commissary and other in the spirituall Court.

MAyster Collins sayd: maister Bland, ye know that ye are presēted vnto vs, as one suspected of heresy.* 1.1 How say ye, be ye contented to reforme your selfe to the lawes of this Realme, and of the holy church?

Bland.

I denye that I am suspected iustly of heresye, and that ye hearde when I was presented, that I denyed the suspition to be iust, but to defed the vniust punishmēt that I haue suffered: neither can ye approue that any occasion hath bene geuē by me, wherby any man should suspect me therein. But if you haue any lawe or authority to proceede agaynst me for any thing done for an whole yeare ago and more, I wyll aunswere to it.

Col.

Ye were conuented before maister Archdeacon & me, and matter of heresy layd to your charge.

Bland.

That matter was done and sayde a whole yeare a∣goe, and for that I haue bene in prison this yeare & more. If ye haue any thing agaynst me by any law, I desire you to let me know the lawe and the matter, and I will aun∣swere according to the lawe.

Then sayde my Lorde Suffragan: but that I am one of the Iudges, I would ryse, and stande by thee, and accuse thee to be a Sacramentarye, and bring witnesse to proue it: yea, and further, that thou hast called the Masse an abominable Idole.

Bland.

You (my Lorde) neuer hearde me saye so: But I hearde you once say,* 1.2 that in your conscience ye had abhor∣red the Masse three yeares. Thou lyest (quoth he) I neuer sayde so.

Bland.

My Lord, if they might be heard, I can bring wit∣nes to approue it, with the day, tyme, and place: & I once did heare M. Collins at a visitation in Wingham say, that Christ was a full satisfaction for all sinne present, past, and to come, contrary to that he sayth now.

And here we had moe wordes of this matter, which I let passe for lacke of good remembrance.

Maister Collins said, this is but a drift. You were bet∣ter aunswere now: for els you shall to prison agayne, & be called on munday, & haue articles layd to you, & if ye then answere not directly, ye shalbe condemned pro confesso, & that will be worse for you.

Bland.

Syr, I doe not nowe, nor will not then denye to aunswere to any thing that ye can lay to my charge by the lawe: wherefore I trust ye will let me haue the benefite of the lawe.

Collins.

This is the lawe, that if ye be required of your Ordinary, Reddere rationem fidei, then may ye not deny it. And that we doe nowe.

Bland.

To that then I will aunswere. For I beleeue in God the Father Almightye, maker of heauen and earth, and in Iesus Christe his onely sonne our Lorde, with all the other Articles of the same Creede:* 1.3 And I beleeue all the Articles conteyned bothe in the Creede called the Masse Creede, & in the Creede of Athanasius: And I doe beleeue, that all the holy Scriptures, & all thinges therin conteyned, are most true.

Collins.

This will not serue you: ye must aunswere to all suche Articles in all these as shalbe layde to you, or as∣ked of you.

Bland.

Let me know the law that it is in that force (with∣out any iuste cause of suspition proued agaynst me) and I will aunswere.

Collins.

How say ye will ye aunswere.

Bland.

Syr, I haue aunswered you. Haue him away, sayd my Lord of Douer: he had better haue aunswered.

Bland.

My Lord, I am ready to aunswere, if ye haue any thing agaynst me by the lawe.

B. Douer.

Ye haue preached many heresyes in Adisham, where I am Parson nowe: and therefore yee muste make aunswere to them.

Bland.

Lay them to my charge by the lawe, & I will aun∣swere them, if ye can approue that I am bound to answere to y^t was done a yeare & more ago: for if ye may do that, ye may also lay to my charge, & compell me to answere to all thinges done in all my lyfe I trowe.

Collins.

It is not a yeare agoe since you were before M. Archdeacon and me.

Bland.

It is truth, it is a yeare and tenne weekes since the words were spoken: & I haue bene a prisoner euer since, and haue bene at fiue Sessions,* 1.4 and neuer coulde haue any cause tryed. Me thinke your charities should thinke it pu∣nishment enough, if I had bene gilty.

Collins.

All this will not serue you: you muste needes aunswere, and it will be better for you to aunswere nowe, then an other tyme. Will ye reforme your selfe, and goe to the Churche, and worshippe Christe in the blessed Sa∣crament of the Aultar, & be obedient vnto all the Queenes Lawes?

Bland.

* 1.5I pray you wherefore am I brought hither?

Collins

To answere to such thinges as are demaunded of you.

Bland.

Syr, I thoughte ye had had some matters agaynst me by the lawe.

Collins.

Well, on munday at .ix. of the clocke ye shall see y^e law, and haue articles layd vnto you.

Then they had spyed Mayster Coxe the Lawyer, and called him in, and sayde: Here is a Lawyer can tell you are bound by the lawe to aunswere: and he sayde, as they had sayde.

Collins.

Doe ye not beleeue that after the consecration of the blessed Sacrament of the Aultar there remayneth no substance of bread, but the substaunce of Iesus Christ both God and man.

Bland.

Mayster Commissarye, I knowe not by any lawe why ye should aske me that question, more then any other man here. And after a little talke, my Lord of Douer asked me this question: Doest thou not beleeue after y^e consecra∣tion, that it is the body of Christ? And I sayde, No,* 1.6 I doe not so beleeue: for the Scriptures do not teach me, y^t there should remayne the flesh of Christ, to eate as a man should eate mans flesh?

Then maister Glasier sayd, that was the opinion of y^e Capernaites: there is no man here of that opinion, and spake long of cutting of Christs body, as men cut flesh in the shambles.

Then Mayster Doctour Faucet sayde: Mayster Bland, for as muche as you and I were broughte vp both in one house, and borne both in one Parish, I would be as glad as any man aliue, to doe you good: but ye may not thus stand against the Church. For Christ sayth: Ye must hum∣ble your self, and take vp his Crosse, and follow him. And to humble yourselfe in this place, is to be content, and not sticke to your owne iudgement, but to humble your selfe to the holy Church, which hath determined, y^t after the cō∣secration, there remaineth no bread, but the naturall body and bloud of Christ.

Bland.

Mayster Doctour, if ye take humbling of our selfe in that place, to admitte the determination of the Church, then muste we knowe by the Scriptures,* 1.7 that the same Churche determined nothing but according to the Scrip∣tures, as this is not: and therefore I doe not beleeue any such transubstantiation, nor neuer will, god willing. Thē (quoth he I haue done with you: I will no more prey for you then for a dogge.

Then sayde M. Glasier: how thinke ye? Did Paule when he sayd: Is not the bread that we breake a partaking of the body of Christ? Did he say Bakers bread?

Bland.

Though he did not meane bakers bread,* 1.8 that doth not proue that hee brake naturall and reall flesh.

Gla.

No by saint Mary, we say not soe, but we saye, it is the naturall body glorified, vnder the formes of bread and wyne.

Bland.

Then the apostles had it not as we haue: or els his glorified body was crucified for vs.

Gla.

Tush, ye do not vnderstande the Scriptures. For Christes body was euer glorified, in that it was so mar∣uellously vnited to the Godhead: yea, and he shewed hys body diuers tymes glorified, as in the Mount Thabor. And when he walked on the water, we see he was light, and had no weight in hym. Was not that then a glorified body?

Bland.

Then belike Peters body was glorified: walking on the water was the deade of a glorified body: and the y∣ron that Elizeus made to swim vpon the water.

Douer.

Tush, quoth my Lord of Douer, that was done by prayer. But they made such a noyse with laughing, that I heard no more what my Lord sayd.

Bland.

Maysters, I knowe that it auayleth vs nothyng to reason with you, no more then it booted you in the tyme of the Gospell. For then neyther the reason of Eckius,* 1.9 Coclaeus, not yet of detection of the Deuilles sophistrye of my Lord Chauncellours doyng, coulde take anye place. And it is knowne to some that be here, that somethyng I can say in them.

Douer.

No, you know Oecolampadius, Zuinglius, and such other.

Bland.

In deede my Lorde, I haue seene parte of theyr doynges.

Douer.

That is seene by thee to day.

Gla.

I was glad when I heard you say ye beleeued the ca∣tholicke Church: and now goe you from it?

Bland.

No that I doe not.* 1.10

Gla.

Ye know that Christ sayth: If thy brother haue offended thee, goe and reconcile him, betweene thee and him. If he heare thee not, take two or three with thee, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses, all thinges may be established. If he heare not then. Dic Ecclesiae: If he heare not the Church, take him as an heathen. I pray you, where could ye haue found this chur∣che of yours fifty yeares ago?

Bland.

Ye knowe that the true church did not at all tymes florish, but was wonderfully persecuted.* 1.11

Douer.

Then my Lorde cryed: No more, I commaunde you to holde your peace. Haue hym away, and bring in an other.

Collins.

Ye shall come agayne on Monday, at nyne of the clocke, and in the meane time ye shall haue whom ye wyll to conferre withall, your frend D. Faucet, or M. Glasier, if ye desire them.

Bland.

I will refuse to talke with no man: as for any con∣ference

of your part, it is but weake lawes, established as they are. But when there was no lawe, I did desire confe∣rence. And so for that time I departed.

The Monday after we were brought forth to the same place agayne: And then M. Collins began to speak to me: but after what maner, it is cleane out of my minde: but the end was, that I woulde reforme my selfe. But as I did before, I demaunded what they had to lay to my charge, & to see the law, which they sayd before, I should see.

Douer.

What needes that? we hau•• enough agaynst you. For ye * 1.12 denyed to me the Transubstantiation in the Sa∣crament.

Bland.

I did refuse to aunsweare, till ye promised that I should see the Law, whereby ye may compell me to aun∣swere.

Douer.

My Lord tooke the Scribes book, and read the an∣swere that I made to D. Faucets reason, which I knewe not that they had written.

Bland.

My Lord, I made you no such aunswere when ye asked me. I take M. Collins and M. Glasier to witnes. Then they brought forth a Decretall, a booke of the bishop of Romes law, to bind me to answere, whiche my hart ab∣horred to looke vpon. The effecte was, that the Ordinarye had authority to examine,* 1.13 and that they so examined, must needes aunswere. But I sayde, that it meaned of suche as were iustly suspect, as I was not. And here we had muche communication. For I charged them with vniust impri∣sonment, which they could not auoyd.

* 1.14But M. Oxenden would haue helped them, and said, the Iustices put me in prison for a sermon sediously spokē, and for troubling a priest at masse.

Bland.

That is not true. For after I had bene 10. weekes in prison, I was bayled, till I was cast in agayne, (and as the Iustice sayd) for the disobeying mine Ordinary, which I neuer did.

Collins.

Will ye be content to conferre with some? It will be better for you: nowe we offer it you, because ye woulde not desire it.

Bland.

As I did not refuse before, no more will I nowe. But I did not perceyue before, but that one mighte haue come without any leaue asking, to conferre the scriptures: and therfore I looked that D. Faucet would haue come to me without desiring,* 1.15 if any commodity to me had bene in conferēce: for though I was neuer able to do him good, yet once I was his tutor.

Collins.

A••e ye content to come to his Chamber at after noone?

Bland.

Syr, I am a Prisoner, and therefore it is meete that I obey,* 1.16 and come whyther you will, and so departed. At this tyme wee were three. But they tooke an other to appeare before them the Tewesday seuennight after. And when he came, I knewe not what was done, but that I heare, they excōmunicated hym, and let him go. His name was Myller, a Clothyer.

Notes

• * 1.1

  The a••••••swere 〈◊〉〈◊〉 M 〈◊〉〈◊〉 the 〈…〉〈…〉. M 〈◊〉〈◊〉 vniust 〈◊〉〈◊〉 heresie more 〈◊〉〈◊〉 iustly 〈◊〉〈◊〉.
• * 1.2

  〈1 paragraph〉〈1 paragraph〉
• * 1.3

  〈1 paragraph〉〈1 paragraph〉
• * 1.4

  〈1 paragraph〉〈1 paragraph〉
• * 1.5

  〈1 paragraph〉〈1 paragraph〉
• * 1.6

  M. Bland de∣nyeth the realty of Christes pre∣sence in the Sa∣crament.

  The Caperna∣ites tooke christ to speake litera••∣ly of his body, and so doe the Papistes, & not the Protestants.
• * 1.7

  Determination of the Church, is to be follow∣ed so farre as the Church deter∣mineth by the Scriptures.
• * 1.8

  Argument.

  Fes- The glori∣fied body of Christ was not crucified.

  ti- The Apo∣stells did eate the body cru∣cified.

  no. Ergo, the Apostles did not eate the glorifi∣ed body of Christ.
• * 1.9

  It auayleth not to reason with the Papistes in tyme of their kingdome.
• * 1.10

  The Church visible.
• * 1.11

  Bland commaū∣ded away.
• * 1.12

  Yea but why then did you p••ison him a whole yeare be∣fore.
• * 1.13

  The popes Kay.
• * 1.14

  M. Oxenden helpeth the Catholickes.
• * 1.15

  M. Bland was tutor to Doct. Faucet.
• * 1.16

  These 3. belyke were, Bland, Shetterden, and Middleton. Miller a clothi∣er, excommu∣nicate & let go.