A detection of sundrie foule errours, lies, sclaunders, corruptions, and other false dealinges, touching doctrine, and other matters vttered and practized by M.Iewel, in a booke lately by him set foorth entituled, a defence of the apologie. &c. By Thomas Harding doctor of diuinitie.

Iewel.

The maine grounde of his vvhole Plea is this, that the Bishop of Rome, vvha•• so 〈◊〉〈◊〉 it ••••al like him to determine in iudgemēt can neuer ••rr•• (F•••• directiō of the R••••der he quoteth thus.) C••sus. fo. 334. b

Harding.

What he meaneth by his terme, Plea, I wote not, ne care not. I pleade not for right of any temporal thing.

Neither am I a lawier, as he knoweth 〈◊〉〈◊〉 emploie my studie of Diuinitie to defend•• the. Catholique Fa••th, and to detecte his falshod, that God•• people be not by him, and his felowes dangerously seduced. The thing, whereat he scoffeth, (for these wordes, what so euer it shal like him

to determine, be scorneful wordes) is not so vttered by me, as he reporteth? Who liste to see, what I saie, for so muche as the booke of my Confutation is not alwaies at hand••, thus it is.

The Pope succedeth Peter in auctoritie and power.* 1.1

For whereas the shepe of Christe continewe to the worldes ende, he is not wise, that thinketh Christe to haue made a shepeherd tēporarie for a time, ouer his perpetual flocke. Then what shepeherdly endoument our Lorde gaue to the first shepeherde, at the institution of the shepeherd∣ly office of the Churche: that is he vnderstanded to haue geuen ordinarily to euery successour. To Peter he gaue, that he obteined by his praier made to the Father, that his Faith should not faile. Againe to him he gaue grace,* 1.2 that to performe, the performance whereof at him he required, to wit, that he confirmed, and strengthened his brethren. Wherefore the grace of stedfastnes of faith, and of confirming the wauering,* 1.3 and doubteful in the Faith, euery Pope obteineth of the holy Ghoste, for the benefite of the Churche. And so the Pope although he maie erre by personal errour in his owne priuate iudge∣ment, as a man, and as a particular doctour in his owne opinion: yet as he is Pope, the successour of Peter, the Vi∣care of Christe in earth, the shepeherd of the vniuersal Churche, in publike iudgement, in deliberation and defi∣nitiue sentence, he neuer erreth, nor neuer erred. For when so euer he ordeineth, or determineth any thing by his high bishoply auctoritie, intending to binde Christen menne to performe, or beleeue the same: he is alwaies go∣uerned, and holpen with the grace and fauour of the holy Ghoste.

Answer M. Iewel to this, if ye can. Certainely hi∣therto ye haue not answered. As for that you bring against it in your pretensed Defence, there is no graue or learned man of your side, that is not ashamed of it. In that game of scoffing I doo gladly yelde you the garlande. Your greatest Doctours there, are Al∣phonsus de Castro and Erasmus, menne of our age. As for Erasmus, it were easie to Answer him, but here I thinke his tale not worthe the Answering. Mary Alphonsus saith somewhat to your purpose, if the tale whiche you make him to tel, were his owne. Cer∣tainely if he once wrote it, when he beganne first to write, afterwards with better aduise he reuoked it. For in the bookes of the later printes those woordes, whiche you reherse, are not founde. Thus you saie.

* 1.4Alphonsus de Castro, one of M. Hardinges owne special Doctours saith: Non dubitamus, an Haereticum esse, & Papam esse, coire in vnum possent, &c. Non enim credo aliquem esse adeo Impudentem Papae Assentatorem, vt ei tribuere hoc ve∣lit, vt nec errare, nec in Interpretatione Sacrarum litera∣rum h••llucin••ri possit: We doubte not, whether one man maie be a Pope, and an Heretique both together. For, I beleeue there is none so shamelesse a flatterer of the Pope, that wil saie (* 1.5 as you saie M. Harding) The Pope can neuer erre, nor be deceiued in the exposition of the Scri∣ptures.

This very saying M. Iewel bringeth in likewise against the Popes, in the Defence. pag 615. vnder the name of

Alphonsus, with the same Cotation. And after that he hath rehersed the wordes, thus he pipeth him selfe vp the triumphe against Hosius in despite of the Popes, as if he had gotten of me a worthy, and glorious conqueste.

Here M. Harding, your owne principal Doctour Alphon∣sus, calleth al them that mainteine your Doctrine, and saie as you saie, the shamelesse flatterers of the Pope. But I saie on the other side: here M. Iewel, It pitieth me to see you so vaine a man: and it is some paine also with litle profite, for me stil to tel you one tale, that al stan∣deth vpon false grownde that you builde. I had neede to be wel seene in Copia Verborum, to be furnished with diuersitie of termes, that I might by some change of speache ease the griefe of the Readers eares, who must alwaies heare this muche at my hande, that M. Iewel lyeth.

Looke Reader, and peruse my woordes aboue re∣hersed, and thou shalt see, I saie not, that the Pope can not erre, nor be deceiued in the exposition of the Scriptures. I saie he maie erre by personal errour, in his owne priuate iudgement, as a man, and as a par∣ticular Doctor in his owne opinion. But that he erreth, or euer erred in publique iudgement, in definitiue sen∣tence, and determinations touching matters of Faith: that I vtterly denie.* 1.6 Alphonsus would them to be accomp∣ted flatterers, who wil needes saie, that the Pope can not erre, or be deceiued in any case: whiche neither I, nor any learned Catholique man euer said. You doo vs wrong therefore with your vncourteous lan∣guage, M. Iewel, and belie Alphonsus, faining him to call vs shamelesse Flatterers, whiche he neuer

meant. It had benne your part to shewe where, or when any Pope euer defined any false and erroneous doctrine to be receiued and beleeued of the Church. Excepte ye shew vs this, whiche we are sure, ye can neuer shew, ye maie spare such idle talke, whereof ye haue great stoare, whereby in many places of your bookes ye go about to proue, that sundrie Popes haue erred.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Confut. Fol. 334. b
• * 1.2

  Luca. 22.
• * 1.3

  Hovv ād, vvherin the Pope erreth not, ••e neuer erred.
• * 1.4

  Defence. pag. ••••5. Alphōsus de haeresiae bu•• li. 1. cap. 4.
• * 1.5

  I saie it not: read my wor∣des again.
• * 1.6

  VVho be they, whō Alphōsus in this case cal∣leth Flat∣terers.