A confutation of certaine articles deliuered vnto the Familye of Loue with the exposition of Theophilus, a supposed elder in the sayd Familye vpon the same articles. By William Wilkinson Maister of Artes and student of diuinitye. Hereunto are prefixed by the right reuerend Father in God I.Y. Byshop of Rochester, certaine notes collected out of their Gospell, and aunswered by the Fam. By the author, a description of the tyme, places, authors, and manner of spreading the same: of their liues, and wrestyng of Scriptures: with notes in the end how to know an heretique.

¶3. Token to know an Heretique.

THirdly concernyng the doctrine,* 1.1 which is by all he∣retiques generally taught in corners,* 1.2 S. Iude sayth it maketh sectes.* 1.3 S. Peter saith it speaketh euill of the way of truth. S. Paul geueth them these titles: Men that cause diuision and offences, which serue not the Lordes Iesus but their owne bellyes, who with fayre speach and flat∣teryng wordes deceiue the simple.

Now whether HN. haue made a sect, and be author of admission or not the subscription of those letters, whiche come from his Schollers with these wordes, Your louyng Frendes the Fam. of Loue, can sufficiently testifie.

That HN. speaketh euill of the way of truth is mani∣fest, for these be his woordes.* 1.4 Whose false beyng (vz. of the Preachers which through the false light haue taken on an imagination of knowledge) is the Deuill, the Antichrist, the kingdome of the Maiestie of the Deuill him selfe. &c. and in the same place the 10. sent. hee sayth they are but a neast of Deuils, and of all wicked spirites.* 1.5 The hearers of the Prea∣chers hee calleth the Sinagogue of Sathan, or Schoole of the Deuill. What God HN. and his confederates serue, I will not Iudge, but what speach they vse towardes the simple people in their day communication with them, whether they bee flatteryng and swéete wordes, they can at large testifie, who at any tyme haue vsed their compa∣ny: may easely affirme with what sugred woordes they féede the itchyng eares of those, whō they labour to draw into their opinions.

* 1.6Furthermore S. Peter he termeth the doctrine of here∣tiques. Welles without water, cloudes caried about with the tempest, speakyng swellyng wordes of vanitie.

* 1.7S. Iude sayth they are corrupt trees without fruite, twise dead and pulled vp by the rootes, ragyng waues fomyng out their owne shame, wandryng starres. &c.

The which excellent Metaphores here vsed by the ho∣ly Ghost, liuely and to the full describe vnto vs the pro∣perties of Schismaticall teachers, and their hereticall do∣ctrine. For the nature of the cloud is, when the earth is parched with heate, & the fruite thereof for want of moy∣sture begynneth to windell, and wither away with glad∣some weate and siluer dropes, to cherish and relieue the tender plantes, whiche by the hardnes of the earth doth hurt their sappy iuice, for want of water: euen so should the Preachers of Gods word, and Ministers of the Gos∣pell, with wholesome doctrine and godly exhortations water the consciences and supple the hartes of their hea∣rers, which are wounded with the féelyng of their sinnes, and inwardly in some measure touched with a conceaued grief, because they haue displeased God, whiche is their louyng Father and mercyfull redéemer. And this is that which S. Paule calleth the Preachers of the word wate∣rers and planters. 1. Cor. 3. chap. 6. vers.

Now in so much as Schismaticall and phantasticall teachers make in worde great boast, and to the worlde wardes will néedes cary a countenaunce of planters and waterers: Yet when the afflicted soule and tormented hart shall come to such welles to draw, thinkyng with their liquor to be relieued, when they looke for most suc∣cour, their comfort is the least, and all the hope they haue of moysture is turned into emptines: for the least storme that is will soone scatter such cloudes, and the smallest heate will so resolue them, that when our hope is the greatest, our helpe is very small. So that in false tea∣chers it is assuredly true, whiche the holy Prophet long sithence complained of the halting Israelites their good∣nes

is like a mornyng cloude and as the dew that goeth early away.

Now whether HN. his writyngs haue in them ought but swellyng woordes of mans vanitie,* 1.8 and beyng fruit∣les trées, and starres that wander without a certaine mo∣tion, it is a litle further of vs to be considered.

For, to examine the matter conteyned in HN. his bookes it is very small and silly: for let the diligent Rea∣der pare and set aside his wrested and violent Allegories, his vnusuall and insignificant phrases, of beyng Vnited into the perfect beyng of the loue in the spirite,* 1.9 incorporatyng into God, consubstantiatyng with Christ. &c, and such lyke wordes of course, he shall finde small substaunce and litle stuffe in matter that may be gathered by the order of rea∣dyng by pen or memory, and sometyme he shalbe so plun∣ged in the wordes, and wander for matter, that hee shall very hardly or not at all make sence of that hee readeth. That this is true, they know whiche are occupyed in the perusing of them.

As for his vayne and idle quotation they are innume∣rable whiche as Mutes vpon a stage called forth to fill vp a roome and make a shew, depart not vtteryng any word at all. His cityng of Scriptures sometymes for the phrase, wherein his greatest vayne is, and wherein of∣tentymes hee is vaynely occupyed, sometymes for one word onely hee clappeth out many places, without any further matter, sometymes neither for word, nor yet for matter. Yea sometymes he alledgeth a place for a proofe, which cleane ouerturneth the Assertion why he induceth it for. As for example. 1. Exhortation. 6. chap. sent. 41. leafe 17. line. 16. to proue the resurrection he alledgeth Ezechi∣ell. 36. chap. b. there is no such place, neither in that whole Chapter any word that maketh mention of the resurrection. In the .37. chapter v. vers. 4. &c. the resurre∣ction is clearely prophecied and by him rightly and to the purpose alledged. But Esay. 26. c. vers. 14. The dead shall not lyue, neither shall the dead arise. &c. Is alledged to

the same purpose, where the woordes séeme to be cleane contrary, (where note also what HN. thinketh of the Re∣surrection) beyng meant, that the Lord will so scourge the wicked that euen in this lyfe, they shall féele in some measure the torment and worme of the conscience, that they shall haue in the world to come, when as the godly shall haue all ioye that can possible be thought, and more in déede then mortall man can imagine, the quietnesse of conscience that passeth all vnderstandyng: but this is meant of this lyfe, and not to be vnderstanded of the re∣surrection or the lyfe to come. For that, in all that Chap∣ter the meanyng & scope of the Prophet is not to handle any such matter.

And thus much for the manner how, the personnes whereby, and the doctrine that is taught by them, whom the scripture termeth an heretique,* 1.10 which in my iudge∣ment doth as fitly agrée to HN. and is by S. Peter as fully foretold as if he had liued in HN. his tyme, and bin priuie vnto all his dealinges. Now in one word con∣cerning HN. his stile, and the maner of the deliuerye of his opinions in his bookes.

* 1.11His method is, take it among ye: The thred of his speach is sometymes knotty, and sometimes great, and sometyme small as vnskilfull spinners vse to afford, his grace and giftes in pēning thereof is euen such as Mar∣cion is reported to haue vsed in penning of his hereticall writings,* 1.12 Whose whole talke of the spirite was in such a straunge kinde of stile, that those which hard or read them at the first did wonder at them. And this being a part of that wherein our Familye doe as it were won∣derfull loue, and make of themselues, so that in their speach which they dayly vse in talke with any man, if euer they may be gotten to confer of the knowledge of the Scriptures, of the law, of sinne, inner man and re∣generation, of the humblyng of the soule, which are the largest Common Places of their studye, straight way by the vnusualnes of their speaches, and straūge termes ye

may easely vnderstand what way they are enclined. So that when I my selfe haue spoken publiquely the great paynes which I haue taken in perusing their bookes, haue so acquainted my selfe with HN. his phrases, that I vsing them at vnwares haue by diuers, which knew me not, ben suspected to be priuie vnto their doctrine.

But concerning the generall noates of an heretique this shall suffice with the perticuler application thereof vnto HN. it remaineth that I confer his opinions with the perticuler fantasies of diuers heretiques with whom we shall finde him so to agrée, that it may easely appeare they haue had all but one and the same Scholemaister, who hath instructed them in the same principles, to ouer∣throw and disquiet the Church of God.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Vers. 19.
• * 1.2

  2. Pet. 2.2.
• * 1.3

  Rom. 16.17.
• * 1.4

  2. Exhort. cap. 15. sent. 17. fol. 38. d.
• * 1.5

  1. Exhort. cap. 16. sent. 19.
• * 1.6

  2. Pet. 2.7.
• * 1.7

  Verse. 12.13. &c.
• * 1.8

  Hosea. 6.4.
• * 1.9

  HN. his scrip∣ture quoting.
• * 1.10

  2. Pet. 2.
• * 1.11

  HN. his stile is hereticall.
• * 1.12

  Caluin agaynst the Libertines, leaf. 131. &. 129.