The Iesuits character. Or, A description of the wonderfull birth, wicked life, and wretched death, of a Jesuite. A discovery, on purpose made unto this end, that all men knowing him by this description might beware of him, as of one which is the most subtill, obstinate, cruell, counterfeit, ambitious, vitious, treacherous, and rebellious person in the world.

THE IESVITES CHARACTER.

A Iesuit is the Nimblest pated Fellow that the Pope hath to send on his Errand, and of most Resolution and Service: but a 1.1 Least in awe.

He is the very Staffe on which the Tottering Popedome now Leaneth, strangely Hewn at first out b 1.2 of a Souldier, and then put into the Popes Hands, when Luther tript at his Heels, to stay his Great∣nesse up from Falling: and he is a Chip of the old Blocke (as we say) for he is such a Staffe, as carries a Sword in it to cut the Throat of Monarchies and Kingdomes.

He is the Erra Pater or Ʋagabond Father of the Church of Rome. He and a roaring Lion the Devill in his company compasse the Earth too and fro: and both go on the selfe same errand seeking whom they may devour.

He is the worst man of the best name: calling himselfe a Iesuite, as it were a follower of Iesu••; he is indeed a (c 1.3) Iebusite, that is, an Enemy to all the Israel of God in the very midst of (d 1.4) Ierusalem, and (e 1.5) Israel alas c••n∣not expell him.

He is the M〈…〉〈…〉olist•• by (f 1.6) P••tent ••as of all ••••vil••∣ges Ecclesiasticall▪ 〈…〉〈…〉 of a•••• variti•••• of L••y ••ab•••• ••d ••••∣lings: whom if you know to day, you may meet and see, bu•• not know to morrow; ••e ••at•• as many shapes as Proteus had, and as many names as a Welchman hath: by these two he avoids all acquaintance both with your eyes and eares; no man is more publikely busie, and yet no man hides his head more: a meere composition he is of V••illany, Subtilty, and Falshood; and hi•• very cloths Equivocate, in not resembling but dissembling him: whose Religion as it is Papistry, so we may well call it (g 1.7) Papelardie, that is, fl••t Dissimulation, and Hypocrisie.

These make him in the Art of Insinuation to b•• the most absolute Proficient of the world, the Serpent was a Bungler to him: Confession is his engine by which he Skrews himselfe into acquaintance with all Affairs, all Dispositions; which he makes the best conducing to his ends, that is, the worst use of. But for this point of Craft, he is owing to the Serpent, to grow inward with the Woman when he dares not immediately adventure on the Man; whose Secrets whilst he indeavou••s to dis∣cover in Confession, if she be Obediently yielding (a matter which he earnestly presseth her unto, as a thing simply ne∣cessary to her salvation) then he proves most Indulgent unto her in Penance, which himselfe Acts upon her; and he is

therefore the most Impious Lecher of the world, because he prostitutes not only her Body, but her Conscience to his Lust; the ancient manner of confessing wa••, the Peni∣tents kneeled at the Confessors Side, but he humbleth the women to his Bosome, and thus he becomes a Fa∣ther, by his Supernumerary vow of (n 1.8) Mission and get∣ting children.

Of all the Orders of and in the Roman Church professed, he is the only one out of all order, and yet professed; for whereas all of them may be comprited in these two Secu∣lar and Regular, we cannot say he is a Regular, because he injoyeth the Immunities of a Secular, and useth nei∣ther (h 1.9) Cloister, Cowl, nor Tonsure; neither yet can we say that he is a Secular, because he Ʋowes Poverty, Chastity and Obedience, which are the ordinary Ʋowes of Religious men and Regulars: indeed he is neither Se∣cular nor Regular, but Irregular; who ties himselfe to no Rule, but to Over-rule.

Ambitious he is aboue measure, and (impud••ntly pursuing the world by his Practice, who hath utterly ca∣shierd it by his vow) upon the graduall steps of School∣master (his (i 1.10) first disguise) Disputant, Publike Lecturer, and Rector, from a Pendant he hath rais'd himselfe to that greatnesse in which now he stands: he hath bin a (k 1.11) Cardinall, would have bin a (l) King, his thoughts are* 1.12

restlesse, till he be a Pope, nay (for that neither will yet, suffice him till he be (m 1.13) Onely Pope.

He reads the Fathers much, and the Scriptures (not Pure, but (o 1.14) Sophisticated, mangled and mingled by himselfe, not the Bible but the Trent Index) a little to confute Hereticks, that is Protestants, but most of all Ma∣chiavil to confound Princes, that is h••s Master-work: no attempt hapneth against any King or Prince in Christendom, but it hath him either for the Projector, or abetter, like the Salamander he lives in Fire and him∣selfe first kindles it, he is the Alastor and Fury that Sowes calamities, Plagues and Death amongst men; the peace of Princes is his Bane, their Quarrels both his Pastime and Preferment: if they haue none, he makes some; in which, he alwaies is the chiefest Stickler, Papists, Atheists, and Discontents his seconds. That the Sulfureous Breath which hath lately kindled, and still foments, and increa∣seth these present Western Flames was blowen from the Bellowes of his Lungs, and that his Mouth (like that of the Dragons) did spit this fire, it is not to be doub∣ted of.

A Papist might be a Richer, Honester, and Happier man then alwaies he is, but only for Him, he is ever and anon Emptying his purse, ever and anon Thrusting him upon some Disloyall and Desperate practise, under the pretence of Religion in prosecution of his own secret Ends and Policies: the event whereof is (if not the Death of his body upon the Discovery, yea of his Soule too, that D••sl••yalty not repented of) yet the just indignation of the King o•• Kingdome so unjustly dealt withall, ••ot a∣gainst his own person conceived only in particular, but now against the whole b••dy of that partiality, to •• generall

detriment; (which being a Iust indignation for Treason, yet th•• Iesuit hath a trick to make it odious to the world, by calling it an Ʋnjust persecution for Religion: to recompence the Traitor in shew, if he dieth for the Fact (and to incourage others to the like undertakings when∣soever at his instance) he procureth the Pope to make him (a 1.15) a Martyr. The Papist calleth a Iesuite Father; so doth the Iesuite also call the Papist his Sonne, but he maketh him his Slave.

His principall Errand (as commonly conjectured) is to gaine the absolute Soveraignty of the Western Empire by these stirs unto his great ••enefactor and Protector, the King of Spain, and so to settle the Catholick Religion (that is, the Religion of the Church of Rome, for so he calls it) by and under him as under one Temporall head throughout all Christendom; (in disposition whereunto, as giving an Omen thereof, the Pope hath therefore already stiled the King of Spain with the Title of the Catholick King) and for this reason it is (as thought) that the Ie∣suite doth never practice against the King of Spain, but (b 1.16) for him. But wiser judgements doe foresee, that it is to get the absolute Monarchy of the whole World unto the Pope (and, by a plot consequent thereto, to his own or∣der at last) whose Stale, to bring in the game and gaine to them by the Iesuites fine policy the King of Spaine is made: and therefore it is that he doth seeke so highly to advance the Power, and Authortiy of the Pope, even in Temporall matters, aboue that of Kings, and hath brought the King of Spaine himselfe also his opinion to submit thereunto. In the prosecution of t〈…〉〈…〉s project he is apt to be be designed against any King or Prince whatsoever, Yea his owne▪ Iudas was one of the society of Iesus, as is he; and he as forward to betray his owne Master to gaine by it, as was Iudas, and a Iesuite is a Iu∣dasite, a Loyalist a flat Disloyalist. and, as he is complya∣ble with Iudas in his Fact, which was Treason; so he is also with him in his Punishmen••, which is, to have his

Neck brok•• and his Bowels rent forth, that is, to be hang'd and quartered, and so to goe with Iudas to his owne place. If there be any difference between them in their Ruines, it falls out in the person of the Executio∣ner, for, whereas Iudas hang'd himselfe, the Common Hangman hangs the Iesuite; who as he makes his En∣trance hither by Tibur so hath this Destiny sometimes, to make his Exit hence againe by Tiburn, and well de∣serves it, if they will not abide from hence, It will ne∣ver be well with England, till they be all Hang'd: and they have my Ʋote for it.

Notes

• a 1.1

  They spared not Pope Sixtus the fifth in their Pulpits: and it is said, they gave him a Dramme to send him packing, because they thought that he favoured Henry the fourth of France, before he came to the Crowne▪
• b 1.2

  Ignatius Loy∣ola a Souldier at the siege of Pā∣pelune in France where being la∣med and made unfit for the Service of the Warres, he betooke himselfe to reading of the Fathers, and became the first Founder of this Order.
• c 1.3

  Jos. 15. 63.
• d 1.4

  Londo•• the Metropolitan City of Eng∣land, as Ierusalm of Iudea.
• e 1.5

  The Israelites could not expell the Iebusites, but they dwelt a∣mongst them, and were as thorn▪ in their sides, in that place of Ios. no more can the English the Iesuit••.
• f 1.6

  But of Paul 3. of Iulius 3. of P••••s 4. & 5. and of Gr••••ory 13. which Popes gave them se∣verall Privi∣ledges and dispensati∣ons.
• g 1.7

  A French word.
• n 1.8

  Vow of Mission is, that at the command of the Pope or superintendent of his Order, he will go into any part of the world whatsoever, into which either of them two shall send him, which none of any other Order doth take: therefore it is called Supernumerary, as being superadded to the 3 ordinary vowes, and when he hath made this vow, he is then invested with the title of Father.
• h 1.9

  That is, he neither liveth in Cloisters, nor weareth a Friers gown with a Cowl or Hood, nor hath his crown sha∣ved as all re∣gulars do and have.
• i 1.10

  Ignatius Lo••••la and his fellows, when first they pre∣sented them∣selves to Paul 3. did it under this offer, to teach children for nothing.
• k 1.11

  ••olet, Baronius, Bellarmine, &c. Cardinals, and Jesuits.
• * 1.12

  (m) They moved Schastian King of Portuga••, (being childles) a great fautour of their Order, to nominate some one of the Iesuits for his Successour, and to make an Act, that for the time to come the election of the King of Portugal should be by the Colledge of the Iesuits, no otherwise than as the Election of the Pope is by the Colledg•• of Cardinals.
• m 1.13

  For this they have laid a Foundation by one of their owne constitutions, which is to this effect, that the same order of which the present Pope is, he being dead, may choose the next: so as if a Iesuit doth obtaine the Popedome at any time▪ that order will never part with it again to any other, or else he is more charitable then I thinke him.
• o 1.14

  Which they call In∣dex expur∣gatorius, in which they have altered the Text of the Scripture, expunged whatsoever doth make against them, and added such things as seem more advantagious for them; and and this by authority from the councell of Trent, which firrt began this sacri∣ledge.
• a 1.15

  So were Percy, Catesby, and the rest of the Pow∣dermen made Martyrs at Rome, who died for trea∣son here in England.
• b 1.16

  And when he hath made his vowes, at his first entry into the or∣der, he addeth this Brevet in favour of the King of Spai••: I pray (saith he) that all Kings may be children, blind, unwise▪ unhappy, and that the King of Spa••n may Reigne alone.