¶The Letter of Mayster Latimer written to King Henry, for the restoring agayne the free liberty of reading the holy Scriptures.
❧To the most mighty Prince King of England Henrye the eight, Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Fa∣ther by our Lord Iesus Christ.
* 1.1THe holy Doctour Saynt Austine in an Epistle whiche he wrote to Casulanus sayth that he whiche for feare of any power hideth the trueth, prouoketh the wrath of God to come vpon him: for he feareth men more then God. And according to the same, the holy man Saynt Iohn Chriso∣stome sayth: that he is not alonely a traytour to the truth, which opēly for truth teacheth a lie, but he also which doth not freely pronounce and shewe the trueth that he know∣eth. These sentences (moste redoubted Kyng) when I read nowe of late, and marked them earnestlye in the in∣ward partes of mine hart, they made me sore afrayd, trou∣bled and vexed me grieuously in my conscience, and at the last droue me to this strayt,* 1.2 that either I must shewe forth such thinges as I haue read and learned in Scripture, or elles to be of the sort that prouoke the wrath of GOD v∣pon them, and be traitors vnto the trueth: the which thing rather then it shoulde happen, I had rather suffer extreme punishment.
For what other thing is it to bee a Traytour vnto the trueth, then to be a Traytour and a Iudas vnto Christe, which is the very truth and cause of all trueth?* 1.3 the whiche sayth that whosoeuer denyeth him here before men, he wil deny him before his father in heauen. The which denying ought more to be feared and dread, then the losse of al tem∣porall goodes, honour, promotion, fame, prison, sclaunder, hurtes, banishmentes, and all manner of tormentes, and crueltyes, yea, and death it selfe, bee it neuer so shame∣full and paynefull. But alas, how litle do mē regard those sharpe sayinges of these two holy men? and how litle doe they feare the terrible iudgemente of almightye God? and specially they which boast themselues to be guides and ca∣pitaynes vnto other, and chalenging vnto themselues the knowledge of holy Scripture, yet will neither shewe the trueth themselues (as they be bounde) neither suffer them that would: So that vnto thē may be sayd that which our sauior Christ said to ye Phariseis, Math. 23. Wo be vnto you Scribes and Phariseis, which shut vp the kingdome of heauen be∣fore men,* 1.4 and neither will you enter in your selues, neither suffer them that would, to enter in. And they will as much as in them lyeth, debarre, not onely the word of God, whyche Dauid calleth a light to direct and shew euery man how to or∣der his affections and lustes, according to the Commaunde∣mentes of God: but also by theyr subtle wylinesse they in∣struct,* 1.5 moue, and prouoke, in a maner, all Kinges in chri∣stendome to ayde, succour, and helpe them in thys theyr mischiefe: and especially in this your Realme, they haue sore blynded your Liege people and Subiectes wyth their Lawes, Customes, Ceremonyes, and Banbery Glofes, and punished them wyth Cursynges, Excommunicati∣ons, and other corruptions (corrections I woulde say) and now, at the last when they see that they cannot pre∣uayle agaynst the open trueth (which the more is persecu∣ted, the more it increaseth by their tiranny) they haue made it Treason to your noble Grace to haue the Scripture in English.
Here I beseech your Grace to pardon me a while and paciently to heare me a worde or two: yea and thoughe it be so that as concerning your high Maiesty and regall po∣wer, whereunto almightye God hath called your Grace, there is as great difference betweene you and mee, as be∣twene God and man. For you be here to me and to al your subiectes, in Gods sted, to defend, ayde, and succour vs in our right,* 1.6 and so I should tremble and quake to speake to your grace. But agayne, as concerning that you be a mor∣tall man, in daunger of sinne, hauing in you the corrupte nature of Adam, in the which al we be both conceiued and borne, so haue you no lesse need of the merites of Christes passion for your saluation, then I and other of your subie∣ctes haue, whiche be all members of the misticall bodye of christ. And though you be an higher member, yet you must not disdayne the lesser. For as Saynt Paule sayth: those members that be taken most vilest and had in least reputation, be as necessary as the other, for the preseruation and keeping of the body. This, most gracious king, when I considered, and also your fauorable and gētle nature, I was bold to write this rude, homely, and simple letter vnto your grace, tru∣sting that you will accepte my true and faythfull minde e∣uen as it is.
First and before all thinges I will exhort your grace to marke the life and processe of our Sauiour Christe and his Apostles in preaching and setting forth of the Gospell,* 1.7 and to note also the wordes of our Mayster Christ, whiche he had to his Disciples when he sent them forth to preache his Gospell, and to these haue euer in your minde the gol∣den rule of our mayster Christ: The tree is knowne by the fruit. For by the diligent marking of these, your grace shal clearely know and perceiue who bee the true folowers of Christ and teachers of his Gospell, and who be not.* 1.8 And concerning the first, all Scripture sheweth playnelye that our sauiour Iesus Christes life was very poore.
Begin at his byrth, and I beseech you,* 1.9 who euer heard of a poorer or so poore as he was? It were to long to wryte how poore Ioseph and the blessed Uirgin Mary took theyr iourney from Nazareth toward Bethlem, in the cold and frosty winter, hauing no body to wayte vpon them, but he both Mayster and man, and she both Mistres and mayde▪ How vilely thinkes your grace, they were intreated in the Innes and lodgings by the way? and in how vile and ab∣iect place was this poore mayd, the mother of our Sauior Iesus Christ, brought to bed in, without company, lighte or any other thing necessary for a woman in that plighte? Was not here a poore beginning, as cōcerning the world? Yes truly. And according to this beginning was the pro∣cesse and end of his life in this worlde, and yet he might by his godly power haue had all the goodes and treasures of this world at his pleasure, when and where he would.
But this he did to shew vs that his folowers and Ui∣cars should not regard nor set by the riches and treasures of this worlde,* 1.10 but after the saying of Dauid we oughte to take them, which sayth thus: If riches, promotions, and digni∣ty happen to a man, let him not set his affiaunce, pleasure, trust, & hart vpon them. So that it is not agaynst the pouertye in spirite which Christ prayseth in the Gospel of Saynt Ma∣thew, chapter 5. to be rich, to be in dignity, and in honour, so that theyr hartes be not fixed and set vpō them so much, that they neither care for GOD nor good man. But they be enemies to this pouertye in spirite, haue they neuer so litle, that haue greedy and desirous mindes to the goodes of this worlde, onely because they woulde liue after theyr owne pleasure and lustes. And they also be priuy enemies (and so much the worse) which haue professed (as they say) wilfull pouerty, and will not be called worldly men. And they haue Lordes Landes, and kinges riches, yea rather then they would lose one iot of that whiche they haue, they will set debate betwene king and king,* 1.11 Realme and Real∣me, yea betwene the king and his Subiectes, and cause re∣bellion agaynst the Temporall power, to the whiche our Sauiour Christ himselfe obeyed and payed tribute, as the Gospell declareth: vnto whom the holy Apostle S. Paul teacheth euery Christen manne to obey. Yea and beside al this, they will curse and ban, as much as in them lyeth, e∣uen into the deepe pit of hell, all that gayne say theyr appe∣tite, wherby they thinke theyr goodes, promotions, or dig∣nities should decay.
Your grace may see what meanes and craft the Spiri∣tualty (as they will be called) imagine to breake and with∣stand the Actes which were made in your graces last Par∣liamēt against theyr superfluities. Wherfore they that thus do, your Grace may knowe them not to be true folowers of Christ.* 1.12 And although I named the spiritualty to be cor∣rupt with this vnthrifty ambition: yet I meane not all to be faulty therein, for there be some good of them. Neyther will I that your Grace should take away the goodes due to the Churche, but take away such euil persons from the goodes, and set better in theyr stead.
I name nor appoynte no person nor persons, but re∣mit your Grace to the rule of our Sauiour Christe, as in Mathew the seuēth Chapiter:* 1.13 By theyr fruites ye shall know them. As touching the woordes that our Sauiour Christe spake to his Disciples when hee sente them to preache hys Gospell, they be readde in Mathew the fiftenth Chapiter, where he sheweth,* 1.14 that here they shall bee hated and despised of all men worldly, and broughte before the Kinges and Rulers, and that all euill shoulde be sayde by them,* 1.15 for theyr preaching sake, but he exhorteth them to take paciently such persecu∣tion by his owne example, saying: It becommeth not the ser∣uaunt to be aboue the Mayster. And seing they called me Belz••∣bub, what maruayle is it, if they call you Deuillishe persons and heretickes? Reade the fourtenth Chapiter of Saynt Ma∣thewes Gospell,* 1.16 & there your Grace shall see that he pro∣mised to the true Preachers no worldlye promotions or