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HEre nowe semethe vnto me conue∣niēt to serche out / & to shewe ye rea∣son / cause / or occasiō of garmēt{is} or clothyng / whervnto or vnto what ende what purpose or effect / clothīg & garmētes were ordened & made.
For byfore man had done synne: he was (as we said byfore) all naked / and yet without any shame or ba∣shement / but sone after his synne: he made a garmēt for very shame. So than may we proue: that ye fyrst occasion of garmente was shame and abashement. And the effecte where vnto ye garment dyd inseruer was to couer and to hyde the mēbres of mā / which (by synne onely) were shamefull / or bashfull in so moche: that the man and wyfe lawfully maried by god hym selfe: and bothe yet virgyns / and alone without company (for no reasonable creature was than in the worlde that with bodely syght / or loke: myght beholde or se them / but onely them selfe) and yet were they eyther a shamed of other / and moche abashed to be sene naked. Here let all christianes note wel / howe shameles / howe beastely / and howe vnnaturall some persones ben / that without shame or abashement (by more than beastly boldnes) wyll take delectacion / & pleasure in abhominable syght / and byholdynge of nakednes. Shame than or aba∣shement: [unspec 1] is one cause or occasion of garment or clo∣thynge to couer or hyde the bashefull partes of the synfull man. And this cause is alowable in reason / thoughe none other cause were founde. For it hathe [unspec 2] grounde and auctorite of holy scripture. An other reasonable cause of garment is ye necessite or nede of our miserable nature. For as man may nat longe lyue without fode: so (in some contres) bene clothes more necessarie / where colde is so intens / & so sharp tha•• man shulde soner dye and be distroyed by cold than by honger or thurste / and where a man myght lenger lyue without fode: than without clothes. And therfore dyd our lorde god couer / and clothe••* 1.1
the hole body of man / for defense agayne all maner of weders. A thyrde cause yet maye be of garmente [unspec 3] or clothyng / and that is: cōmodite / wherby we done meane: profyte or ease / whiche beyonde or bysyde ye other two causes of abashement and necessite: was (by the promission and suffraunce of god) founde out by mans inuencion / and ordeyned by wyll and reason / for ease and profyte / and so bygane some va¦riete / diuersitie / and exchaunge of garmentes / as some for rydynge / some for goynge / some for somer / some for wynter / some for the daye tyme / and some for the nyght tyme / yet can no man deney / but those persones that can be content to folowe in clothynge moste nere vnto the ordinaunce of god & of nature / is of the moste hyghe perfection that bylongeth vn∣to habite / clothynge or araye. Syr saye some per∣sones here: [Obiection.] there is no perfection in any habite or a∣raye. Habitus non facit monachum. The habite or garmente dothe nat make a {per}sone religious. I say this is trouthe. For els a freres habite: [Answere.] shulde make an Asse a frere. But I saye yet this is the cōmune excuse of dissolate persones. For I may say to them agayne. Habitus facit non monachum. That is that the habite maye rendre and make a religious per∣sone a very Asse / and no religious persone. For if a persone that is professed in religion: wolde (with∣out cause to be alowed in the lawe) put awaie ye ha∣bite of his professiō: and were a seculer habite / that persone (I saye) were excommunicate or accursed / and so worse than an Asse. But nowe let vs reason herein. They saye there is no perfection in the clo∣thynge. And I saye there is no perfection in meate nor drynke / yet saye I a {per}sone by due fedynge maye
in the qualite & quantite of meate & drynke: moche meryte / & obteyne {per}fection / & contrarie: lose meryte / and be more inperfecte. So is it of the vse of ye gar∣ment or clothynge. For the clothynge or araye may sklaunder and gyue occasion vnto the negheboure / [unspec 4] and also maye edefie. Wherof doth folowe ye fourth cause or occasion of clothynge or garmentes / and of the variete or difference of the same / that is to say cō¦ueniency. Wherby we meane that thynge that doth bycome all persones accordynge vnto theyr estate / and after theyr degre / dignite / office / rowme / order / or condicion. And this conueniency or comlynes in garmentes or clothyng / is partely of the ordinaūce of god / and partely of nature / and partely of the in∣uencion and of custome or vsage of man. As by ex∣ample / it is not cōuenient nor comely or accordyng / that men and women shulde be of lyke habyte or a∣raye. [Obiection.] Yet here some done saye / that Adam and Eue (by the ordinaunce of god) were both of one habyte or araye. And surely so they were / as vnto the mat∣ter wherof theyr garmentes were made. [Answere.] For bothe were ledder or furre. And so may yet a man and his wyfe / haue theyr garmentes of one pece of clothe / bothe lyke / for the clothe and coloure / but nat of one fourme or fashon. For so were the garmentes of A∣dam and Eue / moche different and vnlike of fashon Howe can you proue that saye they? [Obiection.] By an other place of scripture say I. [Answere.] For the same selfe god that clothed Adam and Eue / dyd afterwarde gyue in cō∣maūdement vnto his chosen people / that no womā shulde be clothed with mans araye.* 1.2 Ne any man shulde vse ye clothyng of women. For that is (sayth the scripture) abhominacion vnto almyghty god.
you may (than) surely conclude that god wolde or∣deyne nothinge: that after shulde be abhominacion or displeasure vnto hym selfe. Than is it trouthe yt a man to were a womans garment and aray / or the contrarie: a woman to were mans aray is nat co∣mely / conuenient / nor accordynge. And thus dothe folowe that I sayd / the garmentes of Adam & Eue were in fasshon (accordynge vnto the sexe) notably different. And so oughte it to be amōge wel ordred christianes accordynge vnto the ordinaunce of the church / it becōmeth nat also a prynce to were a beg∣gers cote / nor a wyse man a foles cote.* 1.3 The natu∣rall disposiciō of mā wyll prayse a good & a goodly maner of vesture / thoughe it were ryght course and poore / and contrarie: wyll abhorre or disprayse / an vncomely / or inconuenient vesture. Put this case ye a man or woman / wolde (for vesture or in stede of a garment) were ye skinne or hyde of a bull / or a cowe / and set the hornes vpon his hed / & let the tayle come after vpon the groūde: were that a comely syght / or accordynge vnto mans nature? I am sure you wyll saye nay. A shepe is knowen by the vesture / from a dogge or a wolfe / and so of other beastes. And some tyme here in Englande / the marchaūtes where kno¦wen by theyr vestures from men of the lawe / & both they from courtiours / & so forthe of other lyke / whi∣che diuersites were founde by mans deuyse. But nowe let vs se of some diuersites of araye foūded in scripture.
Gene. 3.
Deu. 22. A.
30. disti. Si qua muli.