A forme of Christian pollicie drawne out of French by Geffray Fenton. A worke very necessary to al sorts of people generally, as wherein is contayned doctrine, both vniuersall, and special touching the institution of al Christian profession: and also conuenient perticularly for all magistrates and gouernours of common weales, for their more happy regiment according to God.

Refutation of the false iudgements of some proude worldlings touching the profession of schoolemasters: with a praise of that profession. Chapter. xiij.

MAny there be of too fleshly and re∣probate iudgement, who, eyther ig∣norant in the dignitie of learning, or sworne enemies against it, de∣spise the state of schoolemasters,* 1.1 cal∣ling them by many scornefull and ridiculous names. But according to my former opinion, I hold it afore God, a calling most honorable and acceptable, and in a common weale, the most profitable and necessary profession. For if know∣ledge be commendable, & vertue deserue honour, much more merite of reuerence belonges to such as teach them? If to men vsing great estates and offices, be re∣serued an vniuersall reuerence? What lesse honour is due to him that makes them worthy of it, and by his in¦dustry, brings them into the merit of such high calling? If wise and learned men be famous through the world for the benefites that growe by their counsell, commaū¦dement and authoritie: is there lesse dutie of renoume and immortall praise to such as are the authors of those benefites by their learning? If men learned in the lawes profite so much common weales? If Phisitions be so necessary for that in them resteth the cure of bo∣dies? If lastly by the deuines wée finde comfort to our heauie soules: how much are we bound to such as are the first causes of these deuine fruites, who are the schoolemasters, without whom and the foundation by them layed in those doctrines, they had neuer ascended

to those seates of honour: when we sée a goodly building so excellent in beautie that the worlde giues it sin∣guler estimation, what can we ascribe lesse to him who laied the foundation and raised the worke to that excel¦lencie then the principall praise? For if faire, delitefull and profitable workes be so generally praysed, nothing lesse is due to the hand that fashioned them: Who de∣lites to behold a goodly picture, doth great wrong to y^e painter, if he ascribe not much to the commendation of his skill: yea, if there were layd on but the first cool∣lers, yet the beholder ought to be thankfull to his in∣dustrie and labour. But if such as nourish our mortall bodies deserue great affection & memorable renoume, much more are we bound both in loue and perpetuall dutie, to them that minister foode to the immortall spi∣rites of little children: if so great reuerence be reserued to Phisitions, for helping the health of bodies, which one day must die notwithstanding: Is there not more merit of honour to such as cure our soules of immortal diseases? The scripture pronounceth many textes to y^e shame of those which despise scholemasters: of which profession Christ séemed to make his Apostles when he spake to Peter: if thou louest mée féede my Lambes. What other thing is it to féede, then to nourish & teach in good doctrine: and the Lambes of the flocke of Iesus Christ (according to the natural propertie of speaking) are young children, whom he holdes no lesse deare then his proper fleshe. I saye not that vnder that name are ment all sortes of people, and yet it can not be denied but that those littleones deserue chief instruction: For S. John, after he had taught in diuers countreys, (being compelled to leaue them for a time and go elswhether) by speciall writing sayd to the little ones, comfort your selues O ye young ones,* 1.2 in that you are (by y^e grace & word of God) strong and vertuous, for that the woord of God remaynes in you, and that you haue vanquished

the wicked spirit through the grace and merit of Iesus Christ: Yea Christ him selfe caused the little children to come into his schoole,* 1.3 blaming the Apostles (being yet of the flesh) by cause they let those littleones for com¦ming to him, as though he would not haue taught and holpen them aswell, as euen the greatest: but he com∣maunded to bring them to him, and pronounced them (in that instruction and imposition of hands which hée gaue them) worthy of the kyngdome of GOD, saying that to those and such like the euerlasting worlde be∣longeth: Then such as receiue little children into dis∣cipline, exercise the office of Iesus Church: the same sturring vp the Bishops in old time to take into charge of discipline and teaching little children, as also did both the one and the other S. Iohn, and the Prophets had ma¦ny disciples, who otherwayes were called the children of the Prophets: it is written, that many holy men went thorough the world to teach schollers with this intention, that with the rules of learning, they should also instruct them in the principles of faith, and by that meane, winne the Fathers & mothers to Iesus christ: amongest these Origen was not the least zealous: and S. Gregorie the Pope refused not this vocation for cer∣taine houres of the day: For which considerations, a certaine learned doctor of our time,* 1.4 and chauncellor of a famous vniuersitie, had no shame to go thorow the Colleadges of the vniuersities at certaine conuenient houres, and teach little children in familiar doctrines which he did for the loue & zeale of God: And being of∣tentimes reproched by other doctors, that he shewed an example vnworthy his place, specially for that there were sufficient tuters to that purpose: he aunswered that they were as fleshly doctors, resembling the Apo∣stles not yet in full libertie of the spirite, who, by glori∣ous opinion forbad little children to approche neare to Iesus Christ: alleadging that there was no dutie of

accesse to him but by those that were graue: I aske of those fleshly doctors, whether the shepeheard that kéeps the Lambes of a Father of houshold do not as good and agréeable seruice to his Master, as if he had in charge greater shéepe? If a Father shew more deare loue to his little children, then to those that haue riper age, fo∣loweth it not by congruent reason, that such as giue suc¦coures to those little ones and kéepe them from daun∣ger, deserue better recompence of the Father, then if they had done seruice to his greater sonnes? If the lit∣tle plant in the garden of any Farmer, be so much che∣rished that the eye of the owner is seldome from it: hée then that watreth it, prunes it, and defends it from the cropping of beastes, and other iniuries, what seruice doth he to the owner? Yea what greater pleasure can he do to the Farmer: whose young plant without this industrie, were subiect to spoyle, without hope to yéeld any fruite: euen as if the little Lambes of the flocke were lost, and the young children corrupt, there were no exspectation of restitution of that losse and corrupti¦on. The schoolemaster then, hauing in charge these lit∣tle lambes of Iesus Christ, and the preparing of this tender plant of his gardeine (which is the Church) and lastly the leading of these little children, being the de∣lites of the Lord, how acceptable is his loyall and dili∣gent seruice to his Lorde, and to God? And if such as sclaunder these little ones through wicked doctrine & example, deserue to haue fastened to their necke a mil∣stone, and drowned in the bottome of the déepest Sea: What recompence or reward is due to those tutors & scholemasters by whome those littleones are instruc∣ted, and led in example of all holines? Are they not wor¦thy as Daniell sayeth, to shine as the firmament and starres of heauen in euerlasting glory, and to be called the greatest of the kyngdome of God? Yea (according to Iesus Christ) euen the most happie of all? And if eue∣rie

one ought to receiue the reward of his trauels, as there is no estate of more hard laboures, more great paines, more perpetuall perplexeties, and more often reproches, yea being euen as little martyrs: so there is no profession wherein are lesse faultes: For the Ma∣sters séeking but to comunicate their learning with their disciplrs, neuer endure their vices: if they speake euill, they correct them: if they do euill they are puni∣shed: they neuer giue them libertie of idlenes though they allow times of necessary recreation. In this estate is nothing but chastitie, for which cause they are called Pallas, and the Muses being Mayds, by which occasion, not without cause the Poets fained Pallas the Goddes of wisedome and mayde with hir nine mayden sisters the Muses, who also as they signifie the exercise of sci∣ences, contayning in it virginitie and perpetuall hone∣stie: so they are called sisters, as being all of one mu∣tuall societie, and indiuidible coniunction. There is no thing but vertue, and godlines in a schoole, and therfore it deserues well to be called a religion: if in any bookes of the pagans, there be wordes vnciuill, bearing to vn¦chast loue, or expressing nombers of Goddes: the schol∣lers are aduertised by their tutors, that they are spée∣ches of infidelles which knew not God, and therfore in taking the rose, they may leaue the thornes, and being taught the good, they are also warned from that which is euill. What resteth now more to be alleadged of these detractors and scoffers of the estate of schoolema∣sters, so noble and happie, and almost the generall cause of all the benefites that are done in the worlde: where they being men of vaine and light spirites, are also a people vnprofitable, and a burden and charge to the earth, Rattes and deuowring vermin of the gar∣nors of good men, bycause they haue not passed by good schooles, where, (with ciuilitie in spéech and life) they might haue learned some Art, profitable to their coun∣trey,

and honorable to themselues: when they die, they cannot leaue any testimonie that they liued vppon the earth for that to them posteritie can prescribe no memo¦rie of God. These scoffers by contempt call schoolema∣sters Magisters and Dominos, which turnes as a glory to them, for that they haue those names common with Iesus Christ saying to his Disciples, you call me Ma∣gister and Domine, sum etenim so schoolemasters are Ma¦gistri, by the state of their teaching, and Domini, for that they commaund their disciples, and giue lawes to their affections and lustes: where those dispisers of good men (for whom according to Salomon the terrible iudge¦ments of God are prepared) are thralles and slaues to their passions:* 1.5 yea, it is to be feared, that they are euen the bondmen of Sathan, whom they obey, and are the executors of his commaundements, whereof the grea∣test and most pernicious, is, to contemne the good sort and vex with violence and wrong, men of learning and vertue, being an estate that most batter the kingdome of Sathan, & bring ruine to his tirannie. But notwith∣standing their scoffes and vaine impediments, they are both Lords and Masters, as exercising both authoritie and discipline in their iurisdiction of their small com∣mon weale, aswell as the greatest Magistrate of the earth: and to scoffe with those scoffers, we may say they haue their scepture in hand, with distribucion of high & inferior Iustice: for they condemne, iustefie, and ab∣solue, & when they condemne there is no appeale: yea there is such direct pollecie in their cōmon weale, that it suffreth neither disorder nor confusion: where it is hard to these inciuill iesters to put order in their small families, compounded perhaps but vppon two or thrée persons: but crying some times as the blind man whē he hath lost his staffe, strike sometimes without mea∣sure or reason, reaping by their disorder, a gréeuous curse to themselues and families: whereuppon is no

great cause of merueile for that being not hable to go∣uerne themselues for want of discipline, they haue lesse capacitie to rule others: For end let them remember the sentence of Seneca, that euill doth he merit to com∣maunde others, which hath not himselfe liued long vn∣der the discipline of good Masters and learned to obey their commaundements: So that with Salomon I may aunswere them at full, that a wicked man, can not but leade his toung in wickednes, and who abhorres good men, are detested of God.

Notes

• * 1.1

  1. Peter. 2
• * 1.2

  1. Iohn. 2.
• * 1.3

  Mat. 18.19. Luke. 18.
• * 1.4

  M. Iohn Garson of Par.
• * 1.5

  Pro. 19.