The. i. chapyter.

MAyster [...] hath in thys hys poysened treatice agaynst Crystes hole some so [...] xxxii. leuys. In y ^e first. xiiii. wherof he expowneth vs the later parte of the syxte chapyter of saynt [...]. And incidently by the way, the man maketh as though he answered the reasons whiche I made in my letter, agaynste the pestylent treatice that fryth made fyrst agaynst the blessed sacramēt. And in the same. xiiii. leuys also, he bryngeth forth two thynges for specyall notable, wherin he sayth I haue openly cōtraryed myn [...] wrytynge.

¶ I wyll good reader peruse the re manaūt of hys booke after this fyrst [Page] part answered. In whyche contey­nyng these thre thynges that I haue [...] you / the fyrst hath he so han desed, y ^t all were there not (as there are in dede) dyuerse false [...] interfaced therin, yet it were for the mater of very sleyght effecte. For in his exposiciō he nothyng toucheth nor cometh nere to the thyng wherin the poynt of all the mater standeth.

¶ The secund point hath he so well treated in hys argumentacyon, that the reasons whyche I laye agaynste Frith, mayster Masker fyrst falsely reherseth, and after so folyshely soy­leth, that he leueth thē more stronger agaynst hym whan he hath done, [...] he fownde them whan he bygan.

¶ And as for the thyrde poynt con­cernynge hys notable notys of suche thynges as he sayeth to myne ouer­syghte, them he so garnessheth & set­teth [Page] out so semely to the show, that I wolde no man sholde euer after this daye truste any worde that I shall wryte, but yf ye se mayster [...] pfaynesy proued therin, eyther so fo­lyshe as no man shold trust his wyt, or so false that no man shold trust his trouth. Let vs therfore now come to the fyrste point, that is to wytte hys exposicyon.

The. ii. chapyter.

THe whole summe of his [...] is, that our sauyour [...] those wordes takynge occasion of the myracle that he so late before had wrought among them, in fedyng fyut thousand of thē with fyue barly louys and two fysshes, dyd in those Iohn̄. [...]. wordes vppon theyr new resort vn­to hym whan they folowed hym to Capharnaum, fyrst rebuke & blame them bycause they soughte hym not [Page] for the miracles that they had sene hym wurke, but bicause they had ben fedde by hym & fylled theyr belyes / and that therfore our sauyour exhor­ted them to labour rather to gete that meat that neuer sholde perysshe. Op pon whiche exhortacyon whan the Iewes asked hym what they sholde do wherby they sholde wurke y ^e wur kes of god / Chryst sayd vnto them, that the wurke of god was, to byleue [...] hym whom the father had [...]

¶ Thā goeth he ferther & she weth, that vpon the wordes of the Iewis askyng our lord what tokē he shewed for whiche they shold byleue in hym, syth theyr forefathers had gyuen thē the brede of Māna in deserte, of whi [...]. 15 che it was writen, he gaue them bred from aboue / our lorde shewed them that Moses gaue them not that bred [Page iii] from heuen, but his owne father had geuen them the very brede that was descended from heuen, and that oure lorde there by all the remanaunt of those wordes in the sayd syxte chapi­ter of sait Iohn̄, declareth that hym selfe is that very bred, & is to be [...] by the fayth and the byliefe y ^t Chry­stes [...] and body was broken and his bloude shed for our synnes. And so expowneth he forth all these wor­des of Chryst, applyeng them onely to the declaracyon of his passyon to be suffred for our redempcion / and that our sauyour wold haue them by leue that point, & that the byliefe of y ^t point was ment by the eatynge, and that that fayth and byliefe is y ^e [...] of our soules.

¶ The whole somme of his expo­sicyō is this in al his sayd. xiiii. [...]. I mene not that this is all that euer [Page] he sayth therin / for I leue out his cir cumstaunces, his garnysshynge, his notes, his argumentacions, his con­tencyons with me, his mokkes, his tauntys agaynst all catholyke folke, & his many folde heresyes also, with all whiche here and there he furnys­sheth all the progresse of his paynted processe / all whiche thynges I shall after touche by them selfe. But the somme, the substaunce, and the ende wherto all the whole processe of his exposicyō cometh, is this that I haue rehersed you.

The. iii. chapyter.

BUt now good chrysten readers all this exposicyō, were it neuer so trew, neuer so comely, nor ne­uer so cunnyngly handeled / yet were it (as I tolde you before) very farre from the purpose, For this exposicyō myghte be good ynough, & yet myght [Page iiii] Thryste in those wordes teache the thynge that we speke of [...], that is to wytte besyde the teachyng them that hym selfe was the very brede y ^t was descended from heuyn to gyue lyfe to the world, and that he sholde suffre deth for the synnes of y ^e world and that they shold byleue these thyn ges, and so eate hym [...] by fayth / he myghte I saye teche in those wor­des also, that he wolde gyue vnto men his very body & his very [...] to eate, and his very bloud to drinke, and that he wolde that they shold by­leue that lesson also. And wrth y ^e spy rituall eatynge therof, by farth re­ceyue and eate also his very blessed body flesshe and bloude by the mouth not in his owne flesshely forme as y ^e flesshely Iewes mysse toke it, but (as hym selfe than ment it and parte there expowned it, and by his institu [Page] [...] dyd after more clerely declare it) informe of brede and wyne in y ^e bles­sed sacrament of the aulter.

¶ It is I trow good readers to no man almost vnknowen, that the holy scrypture of god is in suche merue­lous maner, by the profound wyse­dome of his holy spyryte, for y ^e more plentuouse profyte of his chyrche, de uised, indyghted, and wryten, that it hath not onely that one sense trewe which we call the litterall sence (that is to wytte that sence whiche for the fyrst lessō therof, god wold we shold perceiue and lerne) but also diuerse other sensys spirytuall, pertaynynge to the profyte of our maners, and in­strucciōs in sūdry vertues, by meane of [...], openyng of misteries, and lyftynge vppe of the soule into y ^e lyuely lyght and inward hygh sighte of god. And all those manyfold sen­ses [Page v] (diuers in the waye and all ten­dynge to one ende) maye be conueni­ent and trew, and all by one spyrxte prouyded, and in to diuerse spyrites by the same one spyrite inspyred, for spyrituall profite to be by many mea­nes multyplyed and encreaced in [...] chyrche.

¶ But neuer hath any good māben accustumed to playe the pageaunt y ^t mayster Maskar playeth vs here, with a spyrytuall exposicyon of alle­goryes or parables, to take awaye y ^t very fyrste sense that god wolde we shold lerne of the letter / and bycause of some allegories, turne all y ^e playn worde for y ^e first right vnderstāding, into a secundary sense of allegoryes.

¶ Of this maner [...] of scrip ture I make mencyon in my letter a­gaynst Frythes false handesynge of this same place of saynt Iohan. And [Page] there I shewed in what wyse y ^t false heretikes y ^e Arrianys vsed by y ^e same meanys, to take y ^e godhed from Cry stes persone / as fryth and these fe­lowes by the selfe same maner of ex pownynge the scrypture, do take a­waye Chrystes manhed from Chry stes blessed sacrament.

¶ In that pistle I shewed also that I wold in allegoricall exposycyons fynde no faute, but be well content with them, so that men mysse vse thē not, to the takynge away of the trew litterall sense bysyde.

¶ This thynge I there shewed good readers in the self same pystle, that mayster Masker maketh here as though he could & wold answere. And yet as though he had neuer herd my wordes but slepte while he redde them, he playeth here the selfe same pageaunt hym selfe, whyle with his [Page vi] allegorycall exposycyō of spyrytuall eatynge of Chrystes godhed and of his body by byliefe of his passyon, he goth about to take awaye from vs y ^e very lytterall trewth, of the very eatynge and bodely receyuynge of Chrystes owne very flesshe & bloud

¶ Now wyll I not say any maner blame at all, to any man that wyll exspowne all the whole processe of Genesis, by allegories / and teche vs certeyne conuenyent vertues, vnderstā den by the four floodes of paradys, and tell vs that paradyse is grace, out of whyche all the flodys of all vertues flowe, and water the erth, callynge the erth mankynd, that was made therof, beynge barayne & frutelesse but yf it be watered with y ^e floo­des of vertue / and so forth in some suche maner expowne vs all the re­manaunt. Or lo that thus doth, doth [Page] in my mynde ryght well. But mary yf he wolde do it in the maner & with the mynde, that mayster Masker ex­powneth vs Christes wordes, all in allegoryes here, and wold teche vs suche a spyrytuall sense, to make vs byleue that those wordes were to be none other wyse vnderstādē bysyde, but that there were no such floodes flowynge forth of paradyse, nor no suche paradyse at all / I wold wene verely that he were a very heretyke.

¶ I fynde no fawte also with them, [...]. [...] that expowne the story of Sampson tayenge the foxes togyther by y ^e tay­lys, and settynge a fyre in them, and sendynge them so in to the felde of y ^e Phylistyes to burne vp the corne / in those I saye that expowne that story by the deuyll, sendyng his heretykes in to the corne felde of god the catho­lyke chyrche of Chryste, wyth y ^e fyre [Page vii] of false wordes to desiroye y ^e corne, bothe of [...] we farth and good wut­kys, tayed togyder by the tayles, in token that all theyr here sies be theyr hedes neuer so farre a sūder, yet are theyr tayles tayed togyther in that y ^e all tende towarde one ende, that is to wytte to the destruccion of all manee grace and goodnes / & that the tayeng of the fyre and theyr tayles togyther signiifeth also y ^t for theyr foxly false hed, finally in the ende the hote fyre of hell shalbe so fast tayed ī all theyr tayles wrabelynge there together, y ^e neuer shall they gete y ^e fyre fro theyr taylys, nor fro the bandes of hell be seuered or breke asundre: with this al legorye of those good men that thus expowne y ^t story, I fynd no faute at all. But on the tother syde if any mā wold expowne it so by that spirituall allegorye agaynst these heretykes, y ^t [...] [Page] [...] [Page vii] [Page] [...] word therwith enforce hym selfe to take away the sytterall sense, and say the text signifyed nothyng [...], and that there was no suche thynge done indede / hym word I [...] for an hereiyke to.

¶ And in [...] wyse good readers yf mayster Masker here dyd onely ex­powne all those wordes of Chryste, as thynges spoken of spyrytuall ea­tyng by waye of allegory / that waye word I well allow / for so doth not onely: suche as he is, but also good faythfull folke to. But now whā he draweth all Christe wordes to those allegoryes of a false wyly purpose, to make men wene (& so sayth hym self for his part) y ^t they signifye none other thyng: this is the poynt y ^e pro­ueth mayster Masker an [...].

¶ And therfore as I sayd, all his ex policyō is [...] of fro the purpose, & [Page viii] approcheth not to the poynt. For the questyō is not whither those wordes may be well veryfyed & expowned of spyrituall eatyng by way of an al­legory / but whyther it may bysyde al y ^e, be trewly expowned of the very bodyly eatyng of Cryste blessed bo­dy indede. For [...] it so may / than [...] there no mā of so siēdre wytte, but he may well se, y ^e all mayster Maskers allegorycall exposicyon of his onely spirituall eatyng, [...] fro the pue pose quite, & dare not cōe [...] y ^e point

¶ Wherfore to thentēt y ^e ye may [...] rely se, y ^e in this exposicyō of his ( [...] holy as he wold haue it seme) he doth but clerely mokke (sauynge that it is myche worse thanne mockynge, to make men fall fro the fayth) I shall geue you of the same wordes of Chryst wrytē in the syxt chapyter of saynt Johan, another exposycyon [Page] my selfe / in which I shall bysyde all suche spyrytuall exposicyons, as this man vseth therin by waye of [...] or parables, declare you y ^e very lytterall sense of those wordes: My flesshe is veryly meate & my bloude veryly drynke. So that ye maye se therby, y ^t our sauyour veryly spake & ment, not onely suche a spyrytuall ratyng as mayster Masker sayth he onely ment / but also the very bodyly eatyng & drinkyng of his very fleshe and bloude in dede. whiche exposicyō of myne, yf it be in that poynt trewe / than must it nedes folow (ye se wel) that his exposicyon is farre fro the purpose. For all though there were not one false word therin / yet were it in dyssemblynge of the trouth, very lewd̄ and falsely handelyd.

¶ And now that myne exposycyon shalbe trewindede, that shall you ere [Page ix] I seue you so clerely perceyue and see, that I trust there shall neuer any suche heretyke as thysis, be able to blynde any man after that redeth it / except some such as wyllyngly lyste to wynke, or [...] he put out they­eyen, wyll hold theyr heddes to hym them selfe.

¶ Now to the entent ye may the bet ter perceyue & marke, whyther myne exposycyon agre with the texte, and whyther I leue any thyng vnto w­ched: I shall fyrst gyue you the wor des of the texte it selfe in englysshe all to gyther, and than expoune it you piece by pyece after. And yet hadde it not bene euyll to begyn somwhat be­fore at Chrystes dyscyples goynge in to the shyppe in the euenynge, and Chrystes owne walkynge after vp­pon the see, and after y ^e on the morow the people comyng after to seke hym [Page] in other shippes / which piece maistee Masker left out and word not medle with, bycause it hath an hard allegory declared by holy doctours, whyche she we that the shyppe in whiche the discyples went, [...] the chyrch which was but one / and the other di­uerse shyppes that came after, beto­kened the dyuerse chyrches of herety kes. And yet in that one shyppe that sygnyfyed the chyrch, there were as appered after, both good & badde to gyther. But lette this piece passe for this onys / I wyll begyn y ^e texte but there as mayster Masker begynneth hymselfe. So good chrysten readers these be the wordes.

The. iiii. chapyter.

‘¶ Ueryly veryly I saye to you you seke me, not bycause ye haue sene my racles, but bycause ye haue eatyn of the loues and are fylled. worke you, not the meate that perisheth, but that [Page x] [...] into euerlastyng lyfe, which the sone of man shall gyue you / for hym hath good y ^e father sealed. They sayde therfore vnto hym what shall we do that we maye worke the wor­kes of god? Iesus answered & sayde vnto them. This is the worke of god that ye byleue in hym whom he hath sent. Than they said vnto hym, what token she west thou, therfore that we may se and byleue the? what workest thou? Our fathers haue eaten māna in the deserte as it is wryten / he gaue them brede from heuyn to eate. Than sayd Iesus to them, veryly veryly I say to you Moyses hath not gyuen you the brede from the heuyn, but my father gyueth you the very brede frō the heuyn. For the very brede is that that is descēded from heuyn, and gy­ueth lyfe to the worlde. Than sayde they to hym, lorde gyue vs all waye this brede. Thāsayd Iesus to them, I am the brede of life / he that cometh [Page] to me shall not hungre, and he that byleueth in me shal neuer thyrst. But I haue sayd vnto you, that ye haue bothe sene me and haue not byleued. All that my father gyueth me shall come to me / and he that cometh to me I shall not caste hym out. For I am [...] frō heuyn, not to do myne owne wyll, but the wyll of hym that hath sent me. This is veryly the wyll of hym that hath sent me, that is to wytte the father, that all that he hath gyuen me I shold not lese any thyng therof, but sholde reyse it agayne in the last daye. This is veryly the wyll of my father that hath sent me, that euery man that seeth the sone and by leueth in hym, shold haue euerlasting lyfe, & shall reyse hym agayne in the last day. The Iewes murmured ther fore of that that he had sayde, I am the lyuely brede that am descended from heuyn. And they sayde, Is not this man the sone of Ioseph, whose [Page xi] father and mother we haue knowen. Now sayth he therfore I am descen­ded from heuyn? Iesus therfor an­swered & sayd vnto theym, murmure not amonge your selfe. There can no man come to me but if the father that sent me draw hym, and I shall reyse hym agayne in the last day. It is wry ten in the prophetes: And they shalbe all taught of god. Euery man that hath herd of the father and hath ler­ned cometh to me / not bycause any man hath seue the father, but he that is of god hath sene the father. Ueryly veryly I tell you, he that byleueth in me hath lyfe euerlastynge. I am the brede of the lyfe. your fathers haue eatē manna in the desert and be dede. This is the brede descendynge from the heuyn, that yf any mā eate therof, he sholde not dye. I am the lyuynge brede that am descended from the he­uyn. If a man eate of thys brede he shall lyue for euer, & the brede whiche [Page] I shall gyue is my fleshe, whyche I shall geue for the lyfe of the worlde. The Iewes therfore stroue amonge them selfe sayeng, how can this man geue vs his fleshe to eate. Than sayd Iesus to them. Ueryly veryly I saye to you, but yf ye eate the fleshe of the sone of man and drynke his bloude, ye shall not haue lyfe in you. He that eateth my flesshe and drynketh my bloude, hath lyfe euerlastyng, and I shall reyse hym in the last daye. My flesshe is veryly meate and my bloud is veryly drynke. He that eateth my flesshe and drynketh my bloude, dwel leth in me & I in hym. As the lyuyng father sent me, I also lyue for the fa­ther. And he that eateth me, he shall also lyue for me. This is the brede y ^t hath descended from heuyn / not as your fathers haue eaten manna and are dede. He that eateth this brede shall lyue for euer. These thynges sayd he in the synagoge, teachyng in [Page xii] Capharnaū. Many therfore of hys dyscyples herynge, sayde, This is a hard sayeng, and who may here hym Iesus therfore knowyng in hym self that his disciples murmured at this, sayd vnto them, doth this offend you yf ye shall than se the sone of man as­cendynge vppe where he was before. The spyryte it is that gyueth lyfe / the flesh auayleth nothyng. The wordes which I haue spokē to you, be [...] & lyfe. But there be some of you y ^t by­leue not. For Iesus knew from y ^e be­gynnyng who shold be y ^t byleuers & who shold bytraye [...]/and he sayd, Therfore I haue sayd vnto you y ^t no man can come to me but yf it be gyuē him of my father. From y ^t time many of his discyples went backe, & now walked no more with hym. Thā sayd Iesus to the. xii, wyll you go your wayes to. Than answered vnto hym Symon Peter, lord to whom shal we go. Thou hast the wordes of euerla­styng lyfe, & we byleue & haue knowē [Page] that thou art Chryst the sone of god. Iesus answered vnto hym: Haue not I chosen you. xii. & one of you is a de­uyll. He sayd y ^t by Iudas I [...] y ^e sone of Symon. For he it was that shold betray hym, beyng one of y ^e. xii.’

The exposycyon of the sayd texte.
The. v. chapyter.

WHo so rede & cōsyder well good crysten reders, the doctryne and y ^e doynge of our sauyour Crist, shall by sundry places of holy scryp­ture ꝑceyue, y ^t of his heuynfy wyse­dome his [...] vsage was, in ma ny great thynge y ^t he purposed to do, byfore the doyng of the same (besyde the fygures of the old testament fore fygurynge the same / & besyde the pro phecyes of the old ꝓphetes fore pro­phecyeng the same) for mēnes more redynesse toward y ^e thinges whan he wolde execute theym by his dede, to geue them some warnyng & informa [Page xiii] cyon therof before by his wordes.

¶ Thus before he made saynt Pe­ter his chyefe shepeherd ouer hys flocke, iii. times at ones, specially [...] dynge hym to fed his shepe, he fyrste sayd vnto hym, thou shalt be called stone / & after sayd also to hym, whan he cōfessed hym to be Christ: Thou art stone / & vpon the same stone shal I byeld my chyrche, and the gates of hell shall not preuayse agaynste yt.

¶ Thus before he made him his ge nerall vicare, he gaue hym the name of stone / which stone he sayd after he Iohn̄. 1 wold byelde hys chyrche vppon. Matt. 16

¶ Thus he gaue his apostles & dys cyples warnyng of his betrayeng, of [...]. 9 his takyng, of his deth, of his resur­reccion, of his ascensyon, by his word before the thinges were done in dede. And of his comynge agaynge to the dome also at y ^e general resurreccyon, whyche thynges surely shalbe & [...] [Page] not yet done in dede. And alwaye the more straunge the thynges were / the more he opened them wyth wordes. And yet hadde he for all that, some of those thynge for that whyle not very wel byleued, not euyn of some of his owne dyscyples. But yet neyther were his wordes fully frutelesse at the time, but that they toke some hold in some folke, and wrought in some sowles, though not a full fayth, yet an inclynacyon and a disposycyon to­ward̄e yt / and nowe serue, and euer synnes haue serued, and euer whyle the worlde lasteth shall serue, to the plantynge, rotynge, and waterynge of the sayth, in al chrysten nacyons all the worlde about.

¶ Nowe as our lorde dyd in many thynges / so dyd he specyally in the two great sacramētes / the sacrament of baptysme, and in this hygh blessed sacrament of the aulter.

[Page xiiii]¶ Of the tone he talked with Nicho [...]. [...] demus that came to hym by nyght, and durst not be sene with him by day for drede of the Iewes.

¶ And of the tother, that is to wytte of the sacrament of the awtre, he tal­ked here, and taught the very thynge but not the very forme therof vnto the Iewes & hys dyscyples amonge theym.

¶ And as he founde Nichodemus farre of fro the perceyuynge of the spyrytuall frute that ryseth in the sen syble ablucyon & faythfull wasshyng of baptysme / so founde he the sub­staunce of these folke very farre fro the perceyuynge of the spyrytuall fruyt, that groweth of the bodyly re­ceyuynge of Chrystes owne blessed body, to them that faithfully receyue it in the blessed sacrament vnder the sensyble forme of brede.

[Page]¶ Our sauyour also good reder by­cause the thynge that he nowe wente about to tell them, was a meruesous hygh thynge and a straunge, vsed in the proponynge therof vnto them, di uers wayes deuysed of hys diuyne wysedome.

¶ Fyrst to make them the more mete to receyue the doctryne of that poynt and to perceyue it / he dyd two myra­cles before he began to speke therof. One (which though they were not at it, yet they perceyued well as the go­spell [...]. [...]. she weth) in goyng ouer y ^e water without a vessell / and another that he dyd not onely in theyr presēce, but also made them all parteners of the profyte, that is to wyt whan he fedde [...]. 14 them all beynge fyue thousande in nombre, of two fysshes and fyue so­uys / and yet whan all theyr [...] were full, gathered & fylled twelue [Page xv] baskettes of the fragmentes.

¶ Uppon the occasyon of this myra cle good reader of these fyue louys by suche a myracle so multyplyed as a thynge very conuenient, he toke his begynnynge to induce theruppon the feste that he wold in this world leue perpetually with his chirche; by fe­dynge of innumerable thousandes with that one lofe that is his blessed body in the forme of brede. Not for y ^t y ^e myracle of y ^t fedyng of the Iewes and this fedyng of Chrystes chyrch, is in euery thynge lyke / (bytwene whiche twayne there are incompara­ble differences) but bycause the lesse miracle and in some part lyke, is a cō ­uenient thynge for an entre and a be­gynnynge wherwyth to drawe them ferther. And vnto his apostles at y ^e tyme so was it and yet vnto this time vnto all good chrysten peple so is it.

[Page]¶ Our sauyour also to enduce them the better to the bylyefe of his great kyndnes, in that he wold vouch saufe to gyue them his owne body to be re­ceyued and eaten in to theyrs, he dyd tell thē two other thynge / the tone y ^t he was very god, the tother that he wold dye for theyr sakes. Of these two poyntes / the tone myght make them sure that he wold do it, and the tother that he coulde do it. For what coulde he not do that was god al­myghty? or what wolde he dysdayne to do for vs, that wolde not dysdayn to dye for vs.

¶ Now good readers remembryng well these thynges, marke what our sauiour hath sayd in this gospell, and consyder well what he ment.

The. vi. chapyter.

WHan that after the myracle of the fedyng so many people with so fewe louys, our lord had (as it foloweth in the gospel) withdrawē hym selfe asyde into the hyll, bycause he sawe the people were mynded to make hym theyre kynge, the dyscy­ples hadde entred in the euenynge after into a shyppe, and Chryste ap­perynge to theym walkynge vppon the see, and calmynge the tempest, whan they wolde haue taken hym in to theyr shyppe, the shyppe was so­daynly comen to the land. The peo­ple on the morowe longyng to fynde oure lorde agayne, toke other lytell shyppes that came thyther after, and folowed hys dyscyples, from whom they thought he wolde not longe be, allthough they knewe that Chryste wente not in the shyppe with theym. [Page] And whan they came on the tother syde of the se to Capharnaū, & foūde not onely them there but him to / thā merueylynge mych therof, they sayd vnto hym, Mayster whan camest y ^e hyther? Our lord answered agayne & sayd vnto thē: syrs I tell you very trewth, the cause that you seke me now, is not the myracles that you ha­ue sene, but it is bycause that of the louys y ^t I gaue you you haue well eaten and well fylled your belyes.

¶ In these wordꝭ our sauyour well declared his godhed, in that he tolde them theyr myndes & thoughtes, whiche is a property belongynge onely to god. For as the scripture sayth: Regum. 2 our lord beholdeth the harte. And specyally syth he told them theyr myndꝭ beynge suche as reason wolde haue went theyr myndes had ben the con­trary. For syth that after that god [Page xvii] had so fedde and fylled them of that brede, and that they had sene so mych lefte yet besyde, they dyd vppon the syghte of that myracle saye, ‘Thys is the very prophete that shall come in to the worlde’ / and by those wordꝭ declared clerely y ^t they thoughte he was Chryste, that is to wytte Mes­syas, whom they loked for by the pro phecye of Moyses and other prophe tes, that shold come to saue y ^e world, and that theruppon they wold haue made hym kynge: who could haue went that they could haue hadde so soone vppon the morowe so colde a mynde toward hym, as to go sayle & seke hym for none other deuocyō but for the fedynge of theyr belyes. But our sauyour (whose depe syghte en­tred into theyr hartes, & labored not vppon any fallible coniecturys) both saw the sykenesse of theyr vnperfait [Page] myndes, and as a perfyt phisicyon a­gaynst theyr dysease, diuised them a good and perfyte medecyn, sayenge vnto them thus, ‘wurke syrs and la­bour for the meat, not the meate that perystheth, but for the meate that abydeth into euerlastynge lyfe / whyche meate the sone of mā shall gyue you / for hym hath god y ^e father sealed.’ As though he wold say, ye labour hither & seke me for such meate as I fedde you with y ^e tother daye / but y ^t meat is soone gone and perysheth. Labour & wurke, and make you meat that you maye eate the meat y ^t shall neuer be gone nor neuer perysh, but shall last with you for euer in euerlasting lyfe.

¶ By these wordes of the meate euerlastynge our sauyour dyd as the olde holy doctours declare, insumate and secretely sygnifye to theym the meat of [...], both [Page xviii] the spiritual eatyng of his godhed by fruicyō in heuyn, & the bodyly eatyng of his very body here ierth / of which both meates he more declareth after.

¶ For the better perceyuing wherof ye shall vnderstand that y ^e materyall meate that men eate here, hath two maner of peryshyngs. One by which thorow the naturall operacyō of the body that receyueth yt, it is altered & chaunged, and leseth his own forme, shape, nature, and substaunce, and is tourned into the nature & substaunce of the body which it norisheth. And in this maner of peryshynge perysheth all the meate that euery man eateth, or els it nothyng nurysheth.

¶ The tother maner of perysshyng by which the meate perysheth, is that peryshynge, by which the meate that is taken thorough glotony, is for the inordynate appetyte and vse thereof / [Page] destroyed and punyshed by god, and the glotonous bely to. Of whyche maner of peryshynge saynte Poule sayth, The meate for the bely, & the [...]. Lorin. 6 bely for the meate / and god shall de­stroye both the tone and the tother.

This is spoken agaynste those that eate not for the conseruacion of theyr lyfe and theyr helth, to preserue them selfe to the seruyce of god, but eate & drynke onely for the voluptuouse pleasure of theyr body.

¶ Now taught our lord the Jewes in these few wordes adoctryne short and compendyouse, that they sholde neyther be glotons in laborynge for the meate that perysheth of that se­cunde fashyon, nor so very hyghly esteme the meate that perysheth of the fyrst fasshyon, that is to wyt any maner of meate that onely nurisheth the body / but that they sholde labour [Page xix] and wurke and endeuour them selfe, that they myght be meate to receyue and eate that meate that shall abyde & endure with thē in euerlastinge lyfe / that is to saye that as theym selues were bothe bodyes and soules, so spi rytually to receyue and eate of hys own godhed, with the fruicyō wher­of they shold after this lyfe be euer­lastyngly fedde among his angellys in heuyn / and for the meane whyle in thys world bodyly to receyue & eate his owne blessed body into theyrs, as an ernest peny of theyr perpetuall cō iūccyon and incorporacyon with hym afterwarde in the kyngdome of hys eternall glory / where our bodies shal also be fedde for euer, wyth the far­passynge pleasure of the bodyly be­holdynge of his gloryous body there in his owne bewtyfull forme, whiche we now veryly recepue here, hydde [Page] in the blessed sacrament in lykenesse and forme of brede.

¶ This is the meat that Cryste in those worde ment, & wold they shold labour to make them selfe mete for. For this meat wyll in no wyse perish. But where as the bodyly meate that the man eateth of the shepe in the nu­ryshynge of the man, perysheth and leseth his owne nature, not turnynge the flesh of the man in to the flesh of the shepe / but beynge turned from the owne proper nature of shepys fleshe, in to the naturall fleshe of the man / this meate is of suche vigour & strength; that in the nuryshyng of the man it abvdeth whole and vnchaun­ged / not beynge turned into the flesh of the man, but afterynge, turnyng, & trāsformyng, as holy saynt Austayn sayth the fleshely man frō his groce [...] into a certayn maner of [Page xx] the pure nature of it selfe, by particy pacyon of that holy blessed flesh and immortall, that is with his siuely spy ryte imedyately ioyned and vnsepa­rably knitte vnto y ^e eternall flowyng foūtayn of all lyfe, y ^e godhed. This meat therfore Cryste byddeth them labour & wurke for in those wordes: ‘wurke you not the meat y ^t peryssheth but that abideth into euerlasting lyfe’

¶ But yet though Cryst tōmauded them that they shold not be idle slou­gardes & slouthfull of them self, but that they sholde wurke & labour for theyr owne parte to gete this meate, and make them selfe mete therfore: yet he let them knowe that no man could by hys owne onely power at­tayne it. And therfore he added these wordꝭ, ‘whych meate the sone of man shall gyue you’ / tellyng them therby that hym selfe which had fedde them [Page] before wyth that other meate whiche was peryshable, wold also (yf them selfe wold wurke and labour for it) geue theym the tother meate, that is permanent in to lyfe euerlastyng to. ¶ And therfore (as dyuerse holy doctours say) whan the preste miny­streth vs this mete, let vs not thinke that it is he that gyueth it vs / not the preste I saye whome we se, but the sone of man Chryst hym self, whose own fleshe not y ^e preste there geueth vs, but as Chrystes mynystre dely­uereth vs. But y ^e very geuer therof is our blessed sauyour hym selfe, as hym selfe in these wordꝭ wytnesseth, where he sayth, ‘quē filius hominis dabit vobis, whyche meate the sone of man shall gyue you.’

¶ Now lest the Iewes myght haue cause to mystruste, that he y ^t were the sone of man could̄ gyue thē y ^t meate, [Page xxi] that were fre from all peryshynge & permanent into euerlastynge lyfe: he taketh awaye that obieccion, and she­weth them that he is not onely y ^e sone of man but also the sone of god / and no more verily man by that that he is the sone of man (that is to wyt not of Ioseph but of our forefather Adam the fyrst man) than he is veryly god in that he is the sone of god, as very­ly and as naturally begotten of god the father by generacyon, as he was veryly and naturally descended of our forefather Adam by liniall dys­cent and propagacyon. Which thynge our sauyour shewed theym in these wordꝭ: ‘Hunc enim pater significauit deus. For hym hath god the father sealed.’ This is to say, that hym hath god the father specyally sequestred and seuered and set asyde out of the nomber of all creaturs, and hath sent [Page] hym in to y ^e world̄, anoynted, sygned, and marked with the very prent of his owne seale. For (as the olde holy doctours declare, and amonge other saynt Cyrill and saynt Hilary) the seale of the father with which he sea­led his sone is nothynge els but hym self his own very nature & substaūce And therfore hath god caused these wordꝭ to be writen in holy scrypture, that god the father hath sealed hys sone, as our sauyour sayd here to the Iewes / and that Crist is the image, prent, and character of the father, as saith saint Poule, bycause we therby sholde lerne and vnderstand, that as a trewe seale trewly prented, leueth in the tother the very whole expresse thynge that it is it selfe, not as it is iron, stele, or coper, syluer, brasse, or golde, but as yt is a seale, that ys to wytte thys fasshyoned fygure or y ^e, [Page xxii] and yet hepeth it whole styll [...] the lesse it selfe, so dyd god the father in the sealyng of god the sone, that is to wytte in hys eternall bygettynge, gyue hym all that euer was in hym selfe, all hys whole wyll, all his hole wysedome, all hys whole myghte and power, and fynally all his whole nature substaunce and godhed, and yet kepe neuer the lesse all the same styll hym selfe.

¶ And thus the sone of god so sea­led by his father and not onele expres sely representynge, but also veryly beynge one equale god, in nature, sub staunce, wysedome, wyll, myghte, & power, with almyghty god hys fa­ther beynge sent in to the worlde by hys father and hym selfe, and theyre bothe holy spyryte equale god wyth theym bothe, toke vppon hym the manhode, the very flesshe, and the [Page] very soule of our sauyour Chryste, Psal. 44. anoynted aboue all other creaturys with fulnesse of all graces, by the cō iunccion of his manhed in wonderful vnite with hys omnipotent godhed, meruelousely makynge one perfyt persone and one farpassynge perfyte person of god and man togyther.

¶ Thus hath our sauiour not onely she wed them the great gyfte of euer lastynge lyuely meate, that yf they wold wurke for it he wold gyue thē / but hath also she wed them that hym self is equale god with his almighty father, and therby well able to gyue it them, and also sent into the worlde for the nonys, bycause he sholde to such folke as wold be well wyllyng to labour and wurke therfore, wurke with theyre good wyl and wyllyngly gyue it them.

The. vii. chapyter.

WHan that the Iewes had herd oure sauyour speke of suche a meate that wolde not perysshe, but sholde abyde & endure with them into euerlasting lyfe / glad men were they. For yet they hoped to haue som meate that so shold fyll theyr belyes and so satysfye them, that they shold neuer nede to labour for any more.

¶ Now were those iewes yet som­what lesse glotons thā are many chry sten people now a dayes. For they coulde haue ben content so that they sholde neuer haue felt hunger more, to haue forborne eatyng for euer. As the woman of Samary, so that she myghte haue had of our sauyour one draught of suche water as myghte haue quenched her thyrste for euer, was well cōtented in her own minde, to haue forborne drynke for euer.

[Page]But many chrysten men there are, y ^e wold not I wene be content to take eyther suche meate or suche drynke, though god wold offer it theym. For many men have suche a pleasure in eatynge and drynkynge, that they wolde not gladly lyue but euyn to eate and drynke. And for the pleasure therof, they loue better hunger and thurst thā the harmelesse lacke of thē bothe though god wold gyue it them. For we se that they seke meanes to make theyre apppetyte gredy. And some wyll eate salt meate, purposely to gyue theym a corage to the cuppe. These folke do not longe to eate & drynke to lyue the lenger, but longe to lyue to eate and drynke the lenger. These be those therfore of whom [...] [...]. Lorin. 8 apostle sayth, ‘Esca ventri et venter [...] deus et hunc et illam bestruet.’ The meat for the bely & the bely for [Page xxiiii] the meat, god shall destroye both the tone and the tother.

¶ And surely besyd the puny she mēt of god in another world, & besyde all the paynes that euyn in this worlde thorough sykenesse & sorys aryse and sprynge of suche glotonye / they that gladly wold endure a gryese perpe­tually, to haue the pleasure of the con tinuall swagyng, haue in theyr beste welth but a dysplesaūt pleasure / ex­cept men be so mad as to thynke that he were well at ease that [...] be euer a hungred & euer eatyng, euer a thurst & euer drynkyng, euer lowly & euer clawig, euer skoruy & euer scrat chyng. ¶ These iewes I saye ther­fore [...]. [...] & the woman of Samary, were not of this mynd / but so y ^t they might haue lacked y ^e grief of hūger & thurst they wold haue ben cōtēt as it semeth to haue for borne meat & drynke.

[Page]¶ Now be it to say the treuth, theyr worde well wayed, it semeth y ^t theyr affecciōs were wurse than they seme at y ^e fyrst syghte. For as me thynketh they were not so gladde to put away theyr fawte, as to make a chaunge of one fawte for an other / not so glad to lese the pleasure of y ^e meate that is y ^e mayntenaunce of glotony, as to gete them to reste and idlenesse that is the mayntenaunce of slowth. And oure lorde to wched thappetyte of slouth in these Jewes, whan he bad them, ‘Operamini non cibum qui perit &c.’ Worke you for the meate, not y ^t that peryssheth but that that abydeth into euerlastynge lyfe / notynge therein as sayth saynt Chrysostom y ^e slouth­full appetyte by whiche they wolde sayne haue had hym fede them stylle by myracle, wythout any labour of Iohn̄. 4 theyr owne. And the woman of Sa­mary [Page xvx] sayd vnto hym: Lord gyue me of y ^t water that I nede no more to la boure hyther, and draw vppe water here at thys depe welle.

¶ But surely who so put not away his vyce but make a chaunge, maye soone happe to take as euyll as he le ueth, and not a wurse lyghtely than slouth. Whiche vyce god saw so noy­ouse vnto mankynde, that euyn whā he sette hym in paradyse, he bad hym be occupyed in the kepynge of that pleasaunt gardayn. And after warde Gen. [...]. whan he sholde be dreuynthense into the erth, he gaue hym a necessyte to labour / makyng the erth to be suche as without mannys labour shold not brynge hym forth hys lyuynge.

¶ And therfore an euyll and a pery­louse lyfe lyue they, that wyll in this worlde not labour & wurke, but lyue [...] in idelnesse or in idle by sinesse, [Page] dryuynge forth all theyr dayes in ga­myng for theyr passe time, as though that els theyr tyme could neuer passe but the sone wold euer stande euyn styll ouer theyr hedes & neuer draw to nyght, but yf they draue away the daye with dauncynge or some suche other goodly gamynge.

¶ God sent men hyther to wake and wurke / and as for slepe and gamynge (yf any gamynge be good in thys vale of myserye in thys ty­me of terys) it muste serue but for a refresshynge of the wery and fore­watched body, to renewe yt vn to watche and laboure agayne not all men in bodyly labour, but as the cyr­cumstaunces of the persons be, so to be bysyed ī one good bysines or other. For rest & recreacyō shold be but as a sawse. And sawce shold ye wote wel serue for a faynt and weke stomake, [Page xxvi] to gette yt the more appetyte to the meate, and not for encreace of vo­luptuouse pleasure in euery gredy gloton that hath in hym selfe sawce malapert all redy inough. And ther­fore lyke wyse as it were a fond fest y ^t had all the table full of sawce, and so lytle meate therwyth that the ges­tes sholde go thense as emptye as they came thyther; so is it surely a very madde ordered lyfe that hath but lytle tyme bestowed in any frute full by synesse, and all the substaunce idely spent in playe.

¶ And therfore to thende that the Jewes shold know that he wold not murysshe them in theyr slouth & idel­nesse, he bode them wurke. And yet leste they myght wene that he wold haue all theyr wurke aboute worldy by synes, he bode thē wurke, not for y ^e [Page] meate y ^t peryssheth, but for the meate that abydeth into euerlastynge lyfe. wherby he ment not to forbede them to labour for the tone, but to teche thē to labour mych more for the tother.

The. viii. chapyter.

BVt they as I tolde you (theyr mynde set vppon theyr bely ioy, and therfore not vnderstādyng his wordes) hoped by that worde to haue theyr belies so wef fylled ones, that they shold neuer nede more to la boure for theyr lyuynge after. And therfore they sayd agayn vnto hym: ‘what shall we do that we may wurke the wurkes of god?’ For they thought (as it semeth) that some thynge there were that Chryste wolde haue them do / after which ones done, thā shold they haue that mery feste of y ^t meate that he spake of / and therfore wolde [Page xxvii] they fayne wytte what wurke that were that they myght shortely rydde it out of hande that they were at dy­ner, for they waxed a hungered.

Our sauyour than vppon that que­styon of theyrs, shewed theym what worke it was that he wolde haue thē do for that meate, & sayd vnto them: ‘This is the wurke of god, that you sholde byleue in hym whom he hath sent.’ As though he wolde say, This is the worke that god wyll ye shall worke, before he wyll I shall geue you thys lyuely meate that I tolde you of / he wyll ye shall fyrst byleue in me whom he hath sent vnto you.

¶ Cryste here for the gettynge of that spyrituall meate, [...] theym about a spyrituall wurke / [...] labour to byleue. Why is it any la­bour to byleue? ye veryly good [...] to byleue welis no litest wurk / [Page] and so greate a wurke, that no man can do it of hys owne strength with­out the syecyall helpe of god.

¶ But here shall you se clerely that Cryst truely told thē theyr thought, whan he sayde vnto them / that they sought hym not for his myracles but for theyr belyes. For whan our saui­our here had shewedde them, that yf they wold haue y ^t lyuely meate, they must fyrste byleue in hym / theyr myn des were so sette vpon theyr belyes that they thought they wolde make hym by craft come of and geue them some meate a pace for theyr dyner. And therfore they sayde vnto hym: ‘what myracle than she west thou that we maye se it and therby byleue the? what thynge wurkest thou? Our fa­thers dyd eate manna in deserte as it is wryte / he gaue them brede from heuyn to eate.’

[Page xxviii]¶ Here you maye se that where as Cryst told them they must byleue in hym before they shold haue y ^t lyuely meate y ^t he told them of, they thought they wold by craft before they wold wurke toward y ^t bylief, cause hym to geue theym some other meate in the meane while / & therfore they not one­ly sayd y ^t it were reasō he shold wurk some myracle before thē ere he shold loke y ^t they shold byleue him, but also they assigned him in maner / what ma ner a miracle they wold haue him do, y ^t is to wyt geue them some meate by miracle by & by one or other without any worke or labour of theyrs. And therfore they put hym in mynd of the meat of manna y ^t theyr fore fathers had frō heuē whyle they were ī wyl­dernesse & wurked nothyng therfore.

¶ But agaynst thys our lorde tolde them agayne, that the brede that they [Page] dyd eate in deserte was not geuen thē by Moyses, nor geuen theym veryly from heuyn neyther. For though that Moyses was theyre prophete and theyr guyde / yet was that brede of Manna geuen them by god. And it came not also veryly downe from he uyn, but from a farre lower place of the eyer. But he shewed theym that god his owne father that gaue them that brede thā out of the ayer, geueth them now verily downe from heuyn that brede, that is for spyrituall susti­naunce and lyuely nurysshynge such maner of very brede, that in compa­ryson and respecte therof, the tother brede of manna myght seme no brede at all. For verily veryly said our lord vnto theym, ‘not Moyses gaue you that brede from heuyn / but my father gyueth you the very brede from he­uyn. For the very brede is that that [Page xxix] cometh downe from heuyn, and gy­ueth lyfe to the worlde.’

¶ Now whan they herde this, we­nynge yet that Cryste spake of some suche brede as manna was, that god wold at hys request geue thē downe from heuyn, as manna was geuyn downe in Moyses dayes, & that thys brede sholde fede the body as manna dyd, and yet be farre better to / they prayed hym and sayd, ‘Lorde gyue vs this brede alwaye’ / as though they wold saye, Good lord gyue vs thys very brede that thou spekest of that thy father sendeth downe frō heuyn, that we nede not to labour and toyle for brede in tyllynge of the erth / and gyue it vs good lorde alway, not for a seasō as our fathers had the tother in desert, but gyue it vs for euer, and let vs neuer lacke it, nor nede no more to wurke and labour for it.

The. ix. chapyter.

THan was our lord playne with them and sayed, ‘I am the brede of life / he y ^u cometh to me shal not hūger, and he that beleueth in me shall neuer thyrste.’

¶ Lo sayth our lord the brede of life that I speke of is my self whom my father gyueth downe from heuyn, to geue not onely nuryshynge, but also lyfe to the worlde.

¶ The comen brede doth but helpe to kepe and conserue the lyfe that the man hath all redy. But my father hath sent me down / me I say the ve­ry brede wherof angelles fede, not onely to conserue and kepe the life of the body / (all be it that do I to, & hele of your syke folkes full many) but also to quycken them that are dede, many in body and al the whole world in soule / wherof none can haue lyfe [Page xxx] but by me.

¶ And therfore he y ^t cometh to me, that is to wytte, who so wyll wurke the wurke of god that I tolde you, y ^e is to wytte come by fayth vn to me, and byleue in hym whom the father hath sent, that is to wytte in my self, hys hunger and thyrste shall I take awaye for euer.

¶ Good is it good readers to con­syder well these wordꝭ, leste by these wordes wronge vnderstanden, some men myghte wene (as these herety­ques teche, that now a dayes renew that olde heresye that bothe saynte Iamys and saynte Poule by playne Iacobi. 2. expresse wordes reproue) that oure Gala. 5. lorde wolde aske no more of any chri sten man but onely bare faythe a­lone. Whyche heresye / (wherof they so myche bosted a whyle) these here­tykes now fele so fully cōfuted, that [Page] though they lyue styll lyke those that byleue it, yet in theyr wordes & wry­tynge they be fayne to retrete for [...], & to seke suche gloses to saue theyr olde wrytynge, as myght make vnwyse men wene that they neuer ment otherwyse than the whole ca­tholyke chyrche comenly techeth and precheth. Whiche yf they had ment none other in dede (as in dede they ment and yet mene farre other styll) than hadde they ye wote well made myche bysynes about nought.

¶ But lettynge these heretyques passe / ye shall good chrysten readers vnderstande, that lyke as yf a man wold teche a chyld to rede, he muste fyrst begynne at his A B c (for with­out the knowlege of hys letters he can neuer go forward) so for as mich as no [...] can come vnto Cryst with­out fayth, but faith must nedes be the [Page xxxi] fyrst entre toward all chrysten ver­tues, syth no man can eyther hope in hym or loue hym whom he knoweth not, and Chryst can no man chrysten­ly know, but by fayth (for as [...] Poule sayth he that commeth vnto [...]. 11a god he must nedes byleue) so dyd our sauyour therfore as a good & a wyse mayster of his chrysten scole, bygyn ther with y ^e Iewys that there offred them self as his scolers, he began I say with fayth. But yet he ment not that to saluacyon they shold nede no thynge elles but onely bare fayth / so that yf they wold byleue all thynges that he sholde tell them, they sholde therby be surely saued, though they wolde do nothynge that he wold byd theym.

¶ But than what saye we to these wordes of our sauyour? ‘He that byleueth in me shall neuer thyrste.’ By [Page] thys worde of neuer thyrstynge, he meneth euerlastyng saluacyō, which he promyseth here to all those that by leue in hym / wherfore it may seme y ^t who so euer byleue though he do no thynge els, shall by this promyse of our sauyour be saued.

¶ Saynt Iohn̄ the baptyst at suche tyme as people came to hym, & asked [...]. [...] what they sholde do whereby they myght auoyde dāpnaciō he bode thē geue almoyse. And whan the Publi­canys asked hym what they shold do to auoyde dāpnacyon, he bode theym forbere brybys, and take no more thā the dew custumes & toll. And to the souldyours askynge hym the same questyon for theyr part, he answered that they sholde pyke no querellys, nor do no man no violence, nor take [...] by force, but holde theym selfe content wyth theyr wagys. [Page xxxii] [...] dyd he not mene that any of all thesse lessons was inough to saue thē wythout any more / but he tolde them for the whyle, eche of them the thyng that sholde be most metely for them / and moste proprely pertayne to theyr persons, and therfore moste metely for them to lerne fyrste / and the re­manaūt shold ech of thē after lerne, [...] and lytell at length, so that at laste they sholde eche of them do that one thynge wyth all other thynges necessary also, and wythout whych that one thyng could not saue them.

¶ Thus dyd our sauyoure also, by­cause the Iewys were full of infy­delyte and full of incredulyte / which vnbylyefe endurynge, they coulde not entre into the way of saluacyon. He therfore fyrste taughte theym fyrst the lesson of bylyefe and fayth / whyche onys hadde, they shoulde [Page] be mete to lerne on the remanaunt, & encreace both in hope & in well wur­kyng cheryte / so that fayth ones had, he tolde them they shold not [...]. For yf they onys byleued his worde / it was a meane to make them hope in hym and loue hym both, & those [...] thynges wold make them obay hym and wurke in suche other vertuouse, as he wolde for theyr owne [...] commande them.

¶ There are also good readers dy­uerse holy doctours, that saye that in these wordes by whych our sauyour sayde vnto the Iewes, he that byle­ueth in me shall neuer thyrst / he ment not hym that had a bare fayth alone (which is as saynt Iamys sayth but [...]. adede fayth) but hym that had fayth well formed wyth hope & cheryte.

¶ And therfore sayth holy saynt Au stayne thus: ‘Chryst sayth not byleue [Page xxxiii] hym, but byleue in hym. For it foloweth not by and by that who so byleue, hym, byleueth in hym. For the deuyls byleued hym, but they byleued not in hym. And we byleue saint Poule, but we byleue not in saynt Poule. To by leue therfore in hym, is wyth byle­uynge to go into hym, and to be in­corporate in hys membrys. This is the fayth that god requireth and exac [...] of vs / that is to wytte the fayth that by loue wyll wurke well. yet ys fayth dyscerned and seuered frō wor­kys / as the apostle sayth a man is iu stifyed by fayth without the wurkes of the lawe. And there are wurkes that seme good without the fayth of Chryste, but they be not / for they be not referred vnto that ende of whiche all good thynges come. For the ende of the law is Christ vnto iustice vnto all that byleue. And therfore our sa­uyour wold not dyscerne and deuyde fayth from the worke / but sayth that [Page] the fayth it selfe was y ^t worke of god / that is to wytte the fayth that by loue wurketh.’

¶ [...] ye perceyue good readers, that to byleue meritoriousely, so as [...] shalbe rewarded with saluacion, may not be fayth alone, but fayth wyth a wurkynge loue. Nor it may not be a bare byleuynge of Cryst, but it must be a byleuynge in Cryste / that is as saynt Austayn sayth, not an [...] dede [...] bylyefe, but a bylyefe ly­uely, quycke, & styrynge, & by cheryte and good wurkes euer walkyng and goyng into Cryst. And than they that so byleue in hym, not wyth the bare onely fayth that these heretykes pre­che, but with the well wurkyng faith y ^t the catholyke chyrche techeth / they shalbe saued sayth our sauyour from eternall hunger & thyrst.

The. x. chapyter.

BUt than goth Crist ferther, and she weth them y ^t they lacke thys meat though it stand before thē.

And she weth thē also by what mene they may gete it. Lothus he sayd vn to them. ‘But I haue tolde you y ^t both you haue sene me and you haue not byleued’ / as though he wold say, you haue sene me done myracles, and yet it hath not made you byleue.

¶ He bode thē before y ^t they sholde wurke to gete the lyuely meate / and he told them after y ^t the wurke which they shold wurke to gete it with was fayth & bylief. And he wrought [...] cles whiche they saw, to make them byleue. And now he she weth thē y ^t for all this they haue not y ^e bylief yet, but yet muste wurke & labour to haue it.

¶ Than myghte they haue asked hym, whych way may we come to it? [Page] But bycause they asked hym not / he of his hygh goodnesse tolde them the meane vnasked and sayd, ‘All that my father gyueth me shall come to me.’ As though he wold saye, Though my father haue sent me downe to caae you to me, and though I pre­che to you and tell you the trouth at your eare, & worke myracles before you that you may se thē at your eyen, ye and fede you by myracles, & putte them euyn in your bely: yet can you neuer come to me by fayth, but yf my father brynge you. Neuer can you be myne by fayth, but yf my father gy­ue you me. Now yf ye knowe of any good guyde that could brynge you to the place whyther ye wold fayne go, where you sholde fynde the thynge that ye wolde fayne haue: what wold you do / wold you not labour to hym / wolde you not pray and entreat hym [Page xxxv] to go with you & guyde you thyther? Now haue I told you who cā bryng you to me by fayth, that is to wytte god my father / and therfore labour to hym to guyde you to me, pray hym to geue you to me, wythout whose helpe ye can neuer come to me. It is I tell you no smale thynge to byleue in me. For but yf the grace of my fa­ther fyrst preuent you, ye can neuer begynne to thynke thereon. But he hath now preuented you by sendynge me to call vppon you. Now be it yet for all that, but yf he go forth wyth you and helpe to lede you forwarde, you maye faynte & fall and [...] stylle by the waye, & come no ferther forth toward me. But now he helpeth you forwarde by myne outwarde myra­cles whyche hym selfe worketh with me. But yet except he wurke wyth you inwardly / with his inward helpe [Page] to draw you, you cā for al this [...] come at me. Call well vpō hym ther fore, & pray hym to draw you & bryng you & geue you to me. which if you do & endeuour your selfe for your own parte, as I bode you before to wur­ke and walke wyth hym toward me, be shall surely brynge you in to faith, and by fayth in to hope and in to che­ryte bothe, and so gyue you gracy­ousely to me. And than shall I geue you the lyuely meat that I spake of, yf ye wyll abyde with me. ‘For hym that commeth to me wyll I not caste out.’ Let hym loke that he caste not hym selfe out / For surely I wyll not yf hym selfe wyll abyde. For it is my fathers wyll that I sholde not, ‘and I am descended from heuyn, not to do my wyll but to do the wyll of hym that hath sent me. And thys ys veryly the wyll of the father that sent [Page xxxvi] me, that all that he hath gyuen me I sholde lese nothynge therof, but that I sholde reyse vppe that agayne in the laste daye.’

The. xi. chapyter

THese wordes myghte good readers seme to an vnchrysten man or to a false christened Ar­ryane, to sygnyfye that our sauyour were not [...] god with his father, in that he speketh so often (as in ma ny mo [...] of scrypture he spe­keth more often) that he is obedyent to hys [...], and that his father sent hym, and that he is lesse than hys fa­ther / and many suche other placys, by whyche the olde Arriane [...] defended theyr [...] a­gaynste the godhed of Chryste in hys person as these Lutherane he­retyques / and these Huyskyns, [Page] zuynglians, and Tyndalyns, draw now diuerse other textes to y ^e mayn­tenaunce of theyr false heresyes, a­gaynst the precyous body and bloud of Cryst in his blessed sacrament.

¶ But as good chrysten men well know that these newe heretykes are falsely now deceyued in the tone / so know they to, that those olde herety­kes were falsely than deceyued in y ^e tother.

¶ For all the minorite and the obedi­ence that the scrypture speketh of in Chryste, is all ment of his manhed (whyche was lesse in [...]) and not of his goodhed, for they were bothe equale.

¶ For how coulde they be in godhed vnequale, whan that in godhed they were bothe one, though in persons di uerse. And therfore [...] sauyour by his godhed hath the selfe same wyll [Page xxxxii] that hys father hath and none other / as he hath the same wytte, & the same myght, the same nature, the same substaunce, and finally the same godhed and none other. And therfore what so euer the tone doth the tother dothe / & as the sone was sent by the father, so was he also sent bothe by hym selfe and by the holy goost to. And whan y ^e holy goost was sent, he was sent bo­the by the father and y ^e sone & by him selfe also. But incarnate was there no mo but the sone alone / who as he had by hys godhed none other wyll but the very selfe same that hys fa­ther had and the holy goost, so had he by his manhed another seuerall wyll and propre vnto the persone of his manhede it selfe as euery man hath his owne. And of that wyll is it that he sayth, I am descēded from heuyn, [...]. 6 not to do my wyll but y ^e wyll of hym [Page] that sent me / for in the wyll of hys manhed he obayed the godhed.

¶ But nowe yf thys obedyence be vnderstanden of hys manhed, how can it stande wyth these wordes of his, I am descended from heuyn not to do my wyll but the wyll of hym that sent me. With that poynt good reader shall no mā nede to be moued. For syth bothe the godhed and man­hed were ioyned and vned together bothe, in the one person of Chryste, that whole person myghte saye of it selfe suche thynges as were very­fyed and trewe in any of the bothe naturys. For lyke as a man maye saye of hym selfe, I shall dye and retorne into the erthe, and yet that shall not hys soule do but his body onely / and I shall after my dethe go forth with to ioy or to payne, and yet that shall not hys body do by and by but his [Page xxxviii] soule: so myghte Chryste saye of hym selfe, I am descended from he­uyn, bycause hys godhed descended frome thense though hys body dyd not / and he myghte saye I shall suf fre and dye bycause hys manhed so sholde, and yet was hys godhed ney­ther mortall nor passyble. And for all that, myghte it be sayde of Cryst, God dyed for vs, bycause he dyed that than was god. And of Chryste niyghte it well be layed, Thys man made heuyn and erthe, and yet hys manhed made it not, but was made by hys godhed as other creaturys were. But those wordes are well veryfyed by the reason that he, why­che of the person of Chryste sayth thys man, sygnyfyeth and meaneth not hys onely manhed but his whole person, whiche is not onely man but very god also,

[Page]¶ Thys thynge and this maner of spekynge expressed our sauiour very playne hym selfe, whan he sayd vnto Nichodemus in talkynge with hym of the sacrament of baptisme, ‘No mā hath ascended into heuyn but he that descended frome heuyn, the sone of man that is in heuyn.’ In these wor­des he sheweth vnto Nichodemus, that there was more credence to be geuyn vnto hym selfe alone, than vn to all the prophetes that euer were before. For hym selfe more perfytely [...] we all thynge than all they dyd. For neuer man had there ben in heuē but he. For neuer man sayd our lorde hath ascended into heuyn, but he that descended frome heuyn, the sone of man that is to wytte I my selfe that am in heuyn.

¶ Here he sayed that y ^t sone of man had bene in heuen, and had descended [Page xxxix] from heuyn, & was yet in heuyn [...]. Now was not his godhed the sone of man but the sone of god, nor his man­hed the sone of god but the sone of man. But now though the godhed & the manhed were not bothe one, but two distincte naturs styll / yet syth the sone of god and the sone of man were bothe one, that is to wyt both twayne one person Cryste / Cryste therfore myght well say than of hymselfe, I the sone of god am the sone of man, & I the sone of man am y ^e sone of god, and I the sone of god am walkynge amonge men on erth, and I the sone of man am syttynge wyth my father in heuyn.

¶ Now that ye maye good readers the better conceyue thys mater, and more easely perceyue the sentence of these wordes of Cryst, All that my father gyueth me &c. I shal expoune [Page] you these wordꝭ of his in order, as it were in bys owne person, spekynge the wordes of thys exposycyon hym selfe.

¶ No man can come to me by hye owne labour alone. But all that my father geueth me shall come to me. Labour therfore to my father & pray hym to geue you to me, geuynge you occasyon and helpynge you & (wyth your own wyll wurkyng with hym) makyng you byleue me, and so shall you wurkyng with him by your own good wyll, in subdueng of your rea­son to y ^e obedyence of fayth, by bylief come to me, and with good wyll of well wurkynge also with the bylief / shall not onely byleue me, but also by leue in me, and go into me, by beynge a membre of myne, and incorpora­tynge your self in me / and I shall by [Page xl] the gyfte of myne owne body to be eaten and receyued of yours, incorpo rate my selfe in you, and I wyll not cast you out frome but be styll incor­porated wyth you, but yf you cast me out frome you, and so by synne caste your selfe awaye fro me / els of all that commeth to me by my fathers bryngynge, I wyll caste none oute. For yf ye came to me by my father thorow fayth, and that I wolde not than suffre deth for your saluacyon, than dyd I caste you oute. For none can come in to my blisse of heuyn, but by hys rawnson payed by my dethe and passyon. But I wyll not refuse that, but I wyll suffre and dye for the worlde, to gyue the dede worlde lyfe by my deth. For I am descended from heuyn sent by my father not to do myne owne wyll, but the wyll of [Page] hym that hath sent me. But I mene not by these wordes that I wyll dye agaynst myne owne wyll, but that al be it the sensuall part of my manhed wolde of the nature of man abhorre, shrinke and withdrawe from the gre uouse payne of suche an intollerable passyon: yet shall my wyll bothe of my godhed be all one with the wyll of my father, and therby in suche ma­ner obedyent vnto his father, as we say a man is obedyent vnto his owne reason, and yet is not his owne reasō another power superiour aboue hym selfe. And my wyll of my manhed shall also be so confortable to y ^e wyll of my father, y ^e wyl of the holy goost and the wyll of myne owne godhed (all whiche thre wylles are in dede one wyll as all our thre persons are in godhed one god) that I wyll wyl­lyngly dye for them all that so come [Page xli] to me by my fathers bryngynge tho­rough the well wurkynge fayth, and wyll abyde and perseuer. And like wyse as I wyll by myne owne body gyuen vnto theym by eatynge in to theyre owne, gyue thē an ernest peny of our incorporacyon togyther, and a memory all of that deth and passyon, by whiche I wyll wyllyngly geue my selfe for them, by beynge slayne and sacryfysed for theyr synne, and made the raunsō of theyr redempciō: whan god shall for this obedyence of my manhode vnto the deth the [...] deth of the crosse, lyfte me vp and ex alte me, and gyue me the name that is aboue all names, than shall I by my resurreccion agayne to lyfe, geue them a sample and make them sure, that I shall in syke wyse at the laste day leue none of them to be loste, no more in body than in soule / but shall [Page] so resuscitate and rayse agayne theyr bodyes, that lyke as I shall my selfe ascēde into heuyn agayn from whēse I came, so shall they as membres of my body ascend thyther with me, and there be fedde of thys euerlastynge lyuely brede that I tell you of, that is to wytte of the fruyciō of my god­hed and byholdynge also of my glo­ryouse manhed for euer, eche of you that haue vse of reason after thana­logye and proporcyon of the well formed fayth, with hope & well wur­kynge cherite that you shall haue had in thys lyfe here before. For thys [...] as I byfore told you, the wyll of my father that sent me, that euery man that sethe hys sone as you do, and not onely seeth him as you do, but also by leueth in hym as you do not, shall ha­ue (yf he perseuer in that well wur­kynge by lyef) the meat that I speke [Page xlil] of that shall not peryshe but abyde in to euerlastynge lyfe. For though ye se euery man dye here for the whyle / yet I shall (as I tolde you) beynge of egall power with my father, reyse them all vppe egayne my selfe at the laste daye, & than shall my faythfull folke be fedde wyth this euerlastyng lyuely brede of myne owne person bothe god and man for euer. And lo now haue I playnely told you what brede I mene.

¶ Where as I haue good reader in the xposycyon of these wordes of our sauyour, inserted the incorporacyon of hym and vs togyther, by the recey uynge and eatynge of his owne body into ours: I haue not done it to make any man wene that that poynt appe­red and were proued by any parte of those wordes, but bycause yt ys a very trouth in dede / and not onely [Page] to wched and signyfyed in other wor­des of [...] before, but also playnely expressed and declared by other wor­des of hys owne after, as you shall hereafter se. Therfore so playne a trouth, and so necessary, and so neces­saryly parteynynge to that place of y ^e mater, me thought it not metely for to be lefte out.

The. xii. chapyter.

But nowe shall you here howe Chrystes audyence that came to seke hym, were affeccyonate to thys euerlastynge lyuely brede, whā they had herde hym declare it.

¶ All the whyle that he spake those other wordes before / they were yet in good hope, y ^t what so euer he ment besyde, he wolde gyue thē some meat for theyr belyes. And as they were groce / so had they at the fyrste went. [Page xliii] And so had they leuer that he wolde haue gyuen theym some suche groce brede made of erthely corne for theyr erthely belyes, such as he gaue them and multiplyed for them byfore, than any manna that came downe from y ^e eyre. But afterwarde whan they herde hym tell them of farre better brede that sholde come from heuyn, than māna was which theyr fathers dyd eate in desert / than were they bet ter a payed / and prayed him that they myght haue of that. But than whan they perceyued in conclusyon, that he ment all of suche brede as shold fede theyr soules, and gaue them no good comfort after theyr groce mindes, of any groce fedynge for theyr groce bo dyes than lyke as some of theyr fore fathers murmured in desert agaynst Moyses for manna, and sayed that [...] theyr stomake wambled agaynst that [Page] lyght meate, and wyshed theyr olde boundage agayn, of which they were before so wery whyle they were in Egypte / yet thought they now that they were well than, bycause they myght than syt ouer the pottes y ^t had the sodden fleshe in thē, of such flesh yet some of suche bond slauys hadde happely than but the sauour. whan these had herd hym now speke all of such spyrytuall fode / theyr hartys so fore arose agaynst hym, that theyr af [...] were clene fallen from him sodaynly. For a daye before they had hym in hygh estymacyō, & called hym the prophete that shold come and re­deme y ^e world / & wold haue made him kynge, bycause they thought he wold fede them by myracle without theyr labour / where theyr other kinge vsed to pyll them & poll them & kepe them vnder trybute so bare, y ^t with great [Page xliiii] labour they could̄ scant fynd thē self meate. And therfore wold̄ they as I saye after that fedynge that he fedde theym so by myracle, so fayne haue made hym hyng, that he was fayne to withdraue hym selfe a syde & fle from them, tyll that mynde of theyrs were gone. And that was not longe as ye se. For now y ^t after theyr great hope of such another fest for theyr [...] dyes, they herde hym turne all to the fedyng of theyr soules / and that for y ^t fedyng of theyr belyes, he went not about to geue thē so mych as one lofe among thē all to theyr breke fast / they murmured agaynst y ^t that he had said of hym self, ‘I am the quycke brede y ^t am descēded frō heuyn.’ And thā they sayd: ‘Is not thys Iosephes sone? Know not we his father and his mo­ther both? How sayth he than of hym selfe I am dscended from heuyn.’

[Page]¶ So here they called hym a carpen­ters sone, and therin they bylyed hym vnware / but farre were they nowe fallen fro the makynge hym a kyng.

¶ Then sayed our sauiour to them: ‘Murmur not amonge your selfe, no man cometh to me, but yf my father drawe hym.’ As though he wolde say: leue your murmurynge and fall to prayour, and wurke and walke with my father in comyng to me by fayth. Men are so weyke of them selfe in y ^e walkynge of this way, that there can no man come to me but yf my father not onely come to hym and take hym by the hande and lede hym, but also drawe hym to. And therfore syth he muste do so myche for you or els you can not come / so myche haue you the more nede to leue your murmuryng, and applye your self to pray hym (yf he draw you not) to draw you, and as [Page xlv] the prophete saith to pray him strayn Psal. 31. your iawys with a bytte and a brydle and draw you by the chekys, magry your teth, and make you turne your wylles from your bely ioy, to come to the soule fode with me. For where as your bely meat shall peryshe bely and all / he that thus shall come to my feste, he shall not perysshe. For I shall rayse hym vp agayn in the last day vnto euerlastynge lyfe. And if ye merueyle at this that I saye, that my father muste brynge you & drawe you, that is that he muste besyde all outwarde techynge teche you within by ledynge and drawynge you into y ^e trewth of fayth, by hys inwarde operacion ioyned with the towardnesse of your wylles preuēted moued and sette a wurke with occasions of his formare grace / yf ye merueyle of this maner of drawynge and of my [Page] fathers inward techynge, remembre [...]. 54. that your own prophete saye, that all folke shalbe taught of god. And now god techeth you / for I tech you, whi­che am as I told you y ^e brede of lyfe that am descended from heuyn. And surely there shall no man be taught y ^e fayth but yf god tech hym. Nor eue­ry man is not full taught that hereth it, but he that hereth it and lerneth it / whyche no man can do by any out­warde voyce, without god wurkyng within. And he wyll not wurke, nor Sapiē. 10 his wysdome wyll not entre into an euyl wylled harte. And therfore leue your murmurynge, and pray my fa­ther to tech you / not onely outward­ly as he techeth you nowe by me, but inwardly also, that you maye be ler­ned by his wurkynge to fayth, wyth you and within you. But why do I tell you so oftē that you can not come [Page xlvi] to hisgyfte of fayth (wythout which you can not come at me) but yf my fa ther geue it you. Veryly bycause I wolde you sholde praye hym for it.

For though he preuent you and gyue you occasyons toward the gettyng of that gyfte: yet setteth he not so sytell by this great gyfte of lerning & fayth that he lyste to caste it awaye vppon them, that whan it is she wed them set not so myche therby as to desyre it & praye therfore.

¶ And therfore I wolde haue you desyre it of hym that may geue it you And yet ys not that my father onely but my selfe also. Now be it yf I shold byd you aske it of me, and pray me geue you thys grace: you be so farre frome the bylyefe in me that ye wolde not do it.

And therfore not spekynge of myne [Page] owne power / I tell you all of the power of the father, y ^t without hym ye can not come to me / bycause I wold haue you praye to hym, that he wold geue you the grace, that as ye know by faith and knowlege hym all [...] for god, so ye maye knowe by fayth and knowlege hym for my fa­ther to / and than shal you by the same fayth, knowe and knowlege me also for his sone. And than shall you not murmur at my wordes, but humbly come to me, as to the sone, not of Io­seph but of god / & knowlege me for the quyche brede y ^e is descended from heuyn. ‘For euery man that hath herd this lesson of my father, and hath not onely herd it but also lerned it / he co­meth(as I haue told you) to me. But yet thys wyll I tell you, that neuer man saw my father yet. But he that is of god (that is to wytte my selfe y ^e. [Page xlvii] am hys owne sone) he hath sene the father, and so hath no man ellys.’

And therfore the lesson that any man hereth and lerneth of my father, he muste here of hym by me, and lerne it by the in ward wurke of my father with whose wurke I wurke also.

And so shall he come to me / thoro we perfyt well wurkynge faith in me. And I tell you very trouth, he that so byleueth in me, and perseuereth at his deth in that perfite bylief, is sure of eternall lyfe. For I am (as I dy­uerse tymes now haue told you) the very brede of life. ‘your fathers that murmured as you do now, dyd eate the brede of māna in desert, and they be dede and perysshed.’ Leue therfore that wronge waye of your fore fa­thers, leue your grudge & your mur­mur, and labour to my father that he may brynge you to me by suche faith [Page] as ye maye eate this brede that is my selfe. For thys brede is brede descen­dyng from heuyn for the nonys, that who so maye eate & be fedde of that, shal not peryshe by euerlastyng deth For I tell you yet agayn y ^t I am the quyche brede that am descēded from heuyn. ‘Who so euer come to me by my fathers bryngyng, so that by per­fyt perseueraūce and well wurkyng fayth, he may eate & be fedde of thys brede, that ys to wytte attayne the fruicyon of my gloryouse godhed, with the gloryouse syght wherof the angels are fedde in heuyn: he shalbe sure of euerlastynge lyfe.’

The. xiii. chapyter.

WHere as our saurour good rea­ders in the begynnynge vppon accasyō of his miracle wrought vpon the multyplicaciō of the brede, [Page xlviii] to wched bothe the brede of hys god­hed and also of the geuynge them of his owne body to be eaten in forme of bred, & that he som what dyd insinuate & set forththe same in those wordes, ‘wurke you not the bred y ^t peryssheth but y ^e bred y ^t abideth into euerlasting life, which y ^e sone of mā shal geue you’ as I som what tolde you before, not of myne own mynde, but of y ^e mynde of dyuerse holy doctours, Alcuinus, saynte Thomas, Theophylactus, and saynte Cyrill: Ye se that our sa­uyour in many wordes wpych I ha­ue now declared you, hath opened & shewed vnto theym the brede of hys godhed.

¶ And now good readers take hede how in those wordes that now folow he declareth vnto thē the brede of his own very body, which he gyueth vs verily to eate in the blessed sacramēt. [Page] Wherin that exposicyon, that I shall geue you shall be none inuencyon of myne, but the clere fayth and sentēce of all the holy doctours of Chrystes chirch olde and new both, from Chri stesdeth to this daye. Of whome I shall for a sample geue you ere I make an ende, the names and the sen tences of some, as suche as your self shall well se and perceyue for other maner men than I am or mayster Masher eyther / & that yf they were good men and trewe, ye shall than your selfe saye, that mayster Masher is nought and false, and that his exposicion (though it were trewe as is bothe folysshe and false) yet syth it cometh not nere the purpose, is (as I tolde you before) very falsely han deled.

¶ Let vs here now therfore of the [...] of Chrystes owne blessed [Page xlix] body verify to [...] to eate in the bles­sed sacrament, what Chryste hym selfe sayth.

¶ After his declaracion of the brede of his glorious godhed, these are his wordes. ‘And the brede that I shall geue you, is my fleshe whych I shall geue for the lyfe of the world.’

¶ where as before they murmured at the lyght spyrytuall brede of hys godhed / he telleth them now that he wyll not onely geue them that brede to fede vppon, by fruycyon of the by holdynge face to face whan the tyme shall come, as he hath also gyuen yt theym in one maner all redy by his in carnacyon to fede them spyrytually in the meane whyse by spyrytuall doc tryne / but that the brede that he wyll geue them to fede vppon, shall be­syde that be his owne flesshe, euyn the very same that he wyll geue for [Page] the lyfe of the worlde / menynge that he wolde veryly geue men the same very flesshe to eate and fede vppon, bothe bodyly and spyritually in [...] braunce of his deth, that he wold for mannys redempcyon veryly geue to deth, and veryly for a sacryfyce offre vp to god by deth.

¶ But now sayth mayster Masher the aduersary of the blessed sacramēt y ^t our sauyour ment no more in those wordes, ‘And the brede y ^t I shal geue you is my flesshe whych I shall geue for the lyfe of the worlde,’ but that he wold geue it for the lyfe of the world by hysdeth / and ment no thynge at all of the geuynge of his flesshe be­fore his deth, or after hys deth / nor nothynge in these wordes or any that in the same chapyter folowe, enten­ded to speke of any suche maner of geuynge his body to eate, as he is re­ceyued [Page l] and eaten in the blessed sacra­ment, nor nothynge ment in thys cha­pyter any thynge to speke of that mater.

¶ Thus wolde mayster Masker that all men sholde wene, as it appe­reth playnely by his exposicion. And thus also sayth Luther, & thus sayth Fryth also / & affermeth this sayenge so boldely, that he saith it twyse in his one booke wherin he answereth me. There in sayth he twyse, that all ler ned men are full and whole agreed in that poynt.

¶ And therfore wyll these aduersa­ryes of the sacramēt say, that in this exposicyon of myne, all that euer I saye wherby it maye apperc that our sauyour in these word writen in this vi. chapiter of saynt Iohn̄, any thyng spake or mēt of y ^e geuyng of his body to be eaten in the blessed sacrament, [Page] is an imaginaciō of myn own hed / [...] mayster Masher argueth & speketh [...] way of mayster More his fayth, as though it were no mannes essys but myne.

¶ But to the entent good readers that ye may cleresy perceiue maystes Mashers malycyouse fafsed therin, I shall in dyuers places of thys ex­posycyon, concernyng specyally this poynt of Chrystes spekyng and me­nynge of the gyuynge of his owne very body in the blessed sacrament, [...] you the namye of some of those whom I folow therin, & some of theyr wordes to / by whych ye shal le that I deceyue you not as maister Masher doth, that thorow all his ex­posycyon flytteth all fro the poynte, and dysimuleth all y ^e wordes of those olde holy men y ^e expowned it in suche wyse as he wolde we sholde wene [Page ii] that no good man euer dyd.

¶ Vppon these wordes therfore of our sauyour: And the brede that I shall gyue you is my flesshe, that I shall geue for the lyfe of the worlde: thus sayth Theophysactus.

¶ Consyder that that brede that we [...] eate in the sacrament, is not onely a fygure of the fleshe of our forde / but it is also the fleshe of our lord it self. For he sayd not: y ^e brede that I shall geue is a fygure of my flesshe, but he sayd it is my flesshe. For the same breade by secrete wordes, thorow the mysticall benedyccpon, & by the cum­myng also of the holy sppryte there­vnto, is transfourmed and chaunged into the flesshe of our lorde. And lest that any man sholde be trowbeled in his mynde, wenynge that it were not to be byleued y ^t brede sholde be flesh / this is well knowen that whyle our [Page] lorde washed in his fleshe, & of brede receyued his noryshynge, that brede whyche he than eate was than chaun­ged into hys body, & was made suche as his holy flesshe was, and dyd su­steyne and increace his flesshe after y ^e comen maner of men. And therfore now also is the brede chaunged into the flesshe of our forde. And how is it than (wyll some man say) that it ap­pereth not to vs flesshe but brede. That hath Chryste prouyded, to the entent we shold not [...] from the eatynge of it. For yf it were geuē vs in lykenesse of flesshe, we sholde be dysplesauntly dysposed towarde the receyuyng of our howsle. But now by the goodnesse of god condescen­dynge to our infyrmytye, this sacra­mentall meat appereth vnto vs such as we haue at other tymes bene ac­customed wyth.

[Page iii]These are not my wordes so good christen reader, but the word of that old̄ holy cunnyng doctour Theophi­lactus, whyche was also no satyn man but a greke / bycause mayster Masher speketh so mych of papyst as though y ^e catholike fayth wherby the catholike chyrch byleueth, y ^t in the blessed sacrament is the very blessed body of Crist, were a thing but made & imagyned by some pope of rome.

¶ Now yf mayster Masker wyll say y ^t myne exposicion is in this poynt false: here you se good readers that myne exposicyon is not myne, but the exposiciō of Theophilactꝰ. And the fore let hym leue daūcynge with me & daūce another white with hym.

¶ But marke well two thinge now good reader ī these wordꝭ / one y ^t this good holy doctours calleth y ^e blessed sacramēt brede as saint Paule doth, 1. [...]. 11 [Page] and oure sauyour hym selfe also, in these wordes of his in this syxte cha­pyter of saynt Iohn̄, and so doth also euery doctour of the chyrche almost. ‘Vppon whyche callynge of it brede, frere Luther and Melancton & theyr felowes, take theyr holde to saye and affirme that it is very brede styll, as vell after the consecracyon as afore.’ And frere Duskyn, with zuynglius, George Joye, Johan Fryth, & Tin dale turne forth ferther to the deuyll and not onely say that it is very bred styll; but also that it is no thynge els.

¶ But now consyder therfore as I say, that Theophilactꝰ here calleth it brede as well as they / sayenge, the brede that we receiue in the misteries or sacrament, is not onely a certayne fygure of the fleshe of our lorde, but it is also the fleshe of our lord it self. But than expresseth he plainely that [Page liii] though he calleth it brede, he meneth not that it is very materyall brede styll as it was / but that the brede ys transformed, gone, and changed into the very fleshe of Chryste. And he setteth it out also with an ensample of the brede that is eaten and turned in to the flesshe of the man whom it nu­rysseth, whyche euery man well wo­teth that any wytte hath that it is no lenger brede than.

¶ And therfore Theophilactus cal leth it brede, bycause it was brede / as in the scrypture the serpēt in to which Aarons rodde was turned is called a rodde styll, whyle it was no rodde but a serpent. For there is it thus wri [...]. 7 ten. ‘The rodde of Aron dyd deuour the roddes of the magycianis.’ And as the scrypture calleth the ser­pent there a oodde: so calleth it the [...] brede. And as Theophilactꝰ [Page] calleth here the blessed sacrament by the name of brede, and yet declareth that it is no brede: euyn so do all holy doctours that call it by that name of brede bothe mene indide, and also do clerely declare, that though they call it brede, they know well it is no brede but in lykenesse and forme of brede vnder the sacramentall signe, y ^e very blessed body of Cryst, flesh, bloude, bonys and all, & neyther wythout the soule nor the godhed neyther.

¶ Marke also good reader, y ^e Theo phylactus sayth, The brede whyche we eate in the misteryes or sacramēt, is not onely a fygure of the flesshe of our lorde, but it is also the flesshe of our lorde it selfe.

¶ In these wordes good readers marke wel that he sayth it is a figure and yet for all that the very fleshe of Chryste.

[Page liiii]¶ Thys thynge I specyally desyre you to note, bycause that by the mar­kynge of thys one poynt / ye maye voyde almoste all the crafte, wyth whiche mayster Masker, Fryth, and Tyndale, and all these heretykes la bour to deceyue you in the wrytynge of all the olde holy doctours.

¶ For where so euer any of thē call the blessed sacrament a fygure, there wolde these felowes make vs wene that he ment it were nothynge ellys. But here you se that Theophylac­tus saith it is a figure as it is in dede / but he telleth vs that it is also (as in dede it is) the very flesshe of oure lorde.

¶ And therfore marke well these. ii. poynts in this one place, y ^t whā these heretikes proue that the blessed sacra mēt is called bred, they proue nothing [Page] agaynst vs. For they that call it brede declare yet that in dede it is not brede but the body of Chryste. And whan they proue that it is called a fygure / they proue no thynge agaynste vs. For they that saye it is a fygure, saye it is not onely a fygure, but also the flesshe of Chryste. But whan we proue that the blessed sacramēt is not onely called the body and bloude of Chryst, but also y ^e the olde holy doc­tours and the exposytours of holy scrypture do playnely declare that it is so / than proue we playne agaynst them. For we denye none of y ^e tother two poyntes / but thys poynt do they denye.

The. xiiii. chapyter,

YEt to thentent that ye may se that mayster Masker in his exposicyō, doth but playnely mocke you: consider yet agayne these vordes well, [Page lv] ‘Et panis qnem ego dabo caro [...] est, quam ego dabo pro mundi [...].’ whyche texte, albe it that in the latyn it be som what otherwyse, that is to wytte. ‘Et panis quem ego dabo caro mea est pro mūdi uita, without these wordes, quem ego dabo,’ in the secūd place / whiche laten texte were yet more for my purpose, yet syth not o­nely the greke texte is as I rehersed you fyrst, whyche was the language wherin the uangelyst wrote, but that also bothe the greke expositours and many of the laten exposytours to, do so expowne it / and that though those wordes were out, yet they be such as the sentence wolde well requyre to repete and vnderstande / and finally bycause I fynde that mayster Mas­ker hym selfe doth in his exposycion take that texte in the fyrste fasshyon, onely chaungynge one worde in the [Page] secund place, y ^e is to wytte this word (geue) into thys word (paye) whiche chaunge he maketh as for an exposi­cyon: I am content to take the texte as hym selfe dothe, that is to wytte after the fyrst maner thus, And the brede that I shall geue you is my flesshe, which I shall geue for y ^e lyfe of the world.

¶ Consyder now good reader that in these wordes, our sauiour here spe keth of geuynge his flesshe twyse, by whyche he meneth, that in the tone ge uyng he wold geue it to them / and in the tother geuynge he wolde geue it for them. The tone geuynge was in the blessed sacrament / the tother was on the crosse.

¶ And loke now whyther the very wordes of Chryst agre wyth this ex posycyon or not / the wordes ye wote well be these: and the brede that I [Page lvi] shall geue you is my flesshe. Mere is lo the tone geuyng, by which he shall sayth he geue his flesshe to theym.

Than sayth he ferther, whyche I shall gyue for the lyfe of the world. So here he telleth them of the tother gyuynge, by whyche he sholde geue it for them. And bycause hys geuyng to them sholde be a memoryall of his geuynge for them, therfore he spake of them both to gether. But yet by­cause his princypall purpose was to speke in that place, not of his geuyng of hys flesshe for them, but of his ge uynge it vnto them: therfore of hys geuynge it to them he maketh after a very playne and expresse declaracyō in many playne open wordes / but of hys geuynge it for theym, he spake but a lytell, and as is were but for a declaracyon of the tother geuynge. [Page] For whan he had sayd, and the brede whyche I shall gyue you shalbe my flesshe / than to declare that he ment to geue them hys very fleshe, he ad­ded therto these wordes / whiche I shall gyue for the lyfe of the worlde. As though he wolde saye, wyll you wytte what flesshe this brede is that I wyll gyue to you: veryfy the selfe same that I wyll geue for you / and not onely for you, but for the lyfe of the whole worlde to, that is to wytte for as many of the worlde as whan they here it preched, wyll not refuse to take it. And therfore whā ye know hereafter whiche flesshe of myne I shall haue gyuen for you vppon the crosse / thā shal you not nede to do [...] whiche flesshe of myne I shall giue you in the brede of the sacrament, ex­cepte you [...] not to byleue me. For now I tell you as playne as I can, [Page lvii] that it shalbe the fame flesshe.

¶ This exposycyon good readers ye se is euydent open and playne. But now se good readers for godde sake the falsehed of mayster Mas­ker in hys exposycyon vppon y ^e same wordes. Where as our sauyour as you se speketh in these few wordes of these two geuynges, the geuynge to eate and the geuynge to dye, the ge uynge in the sacrament & the geuyng on the crosse / cometh me now maister Masker, and expowneth Chrystes wordes all to gether of the tone ge­uynge, that is to wytte the geuynge by deth on the crosse / and letteth the tother geuynge go by, as though he saw it not, albe it that Chryst speketh of that gyuynge both fyrst and most.

¶ Now yf mayster Masker wyll say that I do but fayne these two ge uynges, and saye as he sayth often [Page] that Chryste ment there but one ge­uynge, that is to wytte by hys deth, and wyll saye that Cryste speketh there no worde of the sacrament / I shall tell hym agayne that so myghte mayster Masker marre all his owne exposycyō vtterly. For Cryst whan he sayth, whiche I shall gyue for the lyfe of the worlde, speketh no word in the world neyther of his crosse nor of his deth. If he say that they be vn derstanden, thā must he geue me leue to say the lyke for my parte, that as deth & the crosse are vnderstondē in y ^e tone geuing, so eatyng & the sacramēt is vnderstonden in y ^e tother geuynge. Now be it for my part yet touchyng the fyrst geuyng, I may say y ^t Cryst speketh of the sacramēt, & signyfyeth his menyng in this word, brede, whā he sayth the brede that I shall geue you is my fleshe. And of the eatynge [Page lviii] therof he speketh expressely after. And therfore shall mayster Masker neuer wade out therof, but that I ha ue the wordes of the scrypture mych more clere for the fyrst geuyng, than he for the secund. And ye may se that of the two geuynges mayster Mas­ker to mocke vs with, hath in hys ex­posycion of a folysh wylynesse wyn­ked and dyssembled the tone.

¶ But yet if maister Masker striue with me styll vpō this point, whither our sauyour speke of two geuynges of hys fleshe, or but of one / albe it y ^e I haue proued my part therin mete­ly playne my selfe, yet am I content that a better than we both shall breke y ^t stryfe bytwen vs. I shall therfore name you y ^t holy cūnyng doctour sait Bede, whose worde I trust euery wyse man wyll byleue a lytell better thā eyther maister Maskers or myn. [Page] So thus sayth saint Bede vpō these S. Bede. wordes of Chryste, ‘And the brede whych I shall gyue is my body, whi­che I shall geue for the lyfe of the worlde.’ Thys brede (sayth saynte Bede) dyd ourforde gyue whan he gaue the sacrament of hys body and hys bloude vnto his dyscyples, and whan be offered vp hym selfe to god hys father vppon the awtre of the crosse.

¶ Here you se good readers that saynte Bede telleth you playne the same tale that I tell you, that is to wytte that our sauyour in those wor­des speketh of two geuynges of him selfe, the tone to his dyscyples in the sacrament, the tother to deth for hys dyscyples on the crosse. And therfore whyle mayster Masker with his he­resye doth vtterly denye the tone, & by his exposiciō affermeth that Crist [Page lix] in thys place dyd speke but of the to­ther / saynt Bede hereth me recorde that maister Masker lyeth, and hath made his exposicyon false. And the ferther ye go in the wordes of thys gospell, the more shall mayster Mas kers false dyceappere.

The. xv. chapyter.

WHan the Iewes harde our lord saye, that bysyde the spyrytuall meat of the brede of his godhed, the brede that he wolde gyue theym sholde be hys owne [...] / than be­gan they to contende and dyspute a­monge them vpon that worde, as one of the moste meruelouse and straūge wordes that euer they had herde be­fore. And therfore they sayd how can this man geue vs [...] flesshe to eate?

¶ [...] Bede sayth here, and so sayth saynt Austayne both, that they [Page] had conceyued a false opinyon, that Angust. in [...] in psal. 98 our lorde wold cut out hys own body in gobettes, and make them eate it so, in such maner of dede peces, as men bye byefe or [...] out of y ^e bouchers shoppys. Thys thyng they thought that he neyther coulde do / and also that though he could, yet wolde they not eate it as a thynge fowle and lothsome.

¶ We fynde good readers of one or [...]. 3 two mo bysyde these Iewes here, y ^e at the worde of god asked how. For bothe our lady asked how, and [...] also asked how.

¶ Our blessed lady whan thangell [...]. [...] told her that she shold̄ conceyue and brynge forth a chyld, asked this que­styon, how shall that [...] For man I know none / not for that she any thing dowted of the trewth of godde word sent her by godde messenger, but by­cause [Page lx] she wold know the meanis, for as mych as she had determyned her selfe vpō perpetuall virginite / and therof a promyse had passed & a vow was made, and Ioseph well agreed therwith; as it maye welbe gathered vppon the gospell.

¶ For thangell sayd not y ^e hast cōceyued, but thou shalt cōceyue. And therfore whā she answered, how shall y ^t be syth I know no man, this answer had not ben to the purpose, yf she had ment no more but y ^t she knewe none yet / for he sayd not y ^t she was cōcey­ued yet but shold cōceiue after. which she myght after do by y ^e knowlege of her husbād after, though she knewe no mā yet. And therfore we may wel gather of his wordꝭ & hers togyther as I haue shewed in my dialoge, y ^t whan she sayd how shall this be for I knowe no man, she ment therin [Page] not onely that she knew none alredy, but also that she hadde promysed and vowed that she neuer wolde knowe man afterwarde / vsynge therin such a maner of spekynge, as a mayed myghte saye by one whom she wold neuer haue, we may well talke togy­ther but we wedde not togyther.

¶ Now that her determinacyō was not with her selfe onely, but confer­med also with y ^e cōsent of her spouse, it maye well appere. For without his agrement she coulde not reken her selfe to be sure to kepe it.

¶ And that her determynacyon of perpetuall vyrginite, was a promyse and a vow to god, it may well appere by this, that els whan she had worde from god by the angell that she shold conceyue and beare a chylde, she had had no cause to aske y ^e questyon how. For if she were at lyberty to lye with [Page lxi] a man, than had that reuelacion ben a commaundement vnto her to labour for the concepcyon, whyle there were vppon her part no let or impedimēt, neyther of nature nor conscience.

¶ And very lyke it is that yf she had ben in that poynt at her libertye / than though she had mynded perpetuall virgynite, yet syth she had entended it neyther for auoydyng of the body­ly payne of the vyrth, nor for any abo minacyon of goddes naturall ordy­naunce for procreacyon (for suche re­spectes be bothe vnnaturall and syn­full) but onely for goddes pleasure & of deuocyon, it is well lykely that he rynge by the messenger of god, what maner of chyld that was y ^t god wold she shold haue, she wolde haue made no questyon of the mater, but gladly gone about the gettynge.

¶ But here may some man happely [Page] say, that this reasō by which I proue ber vow, wyll serue well inough to soyle it selfe, and proue that it appe­reth not that she had made any vow at all, but had onely some mynde and desyre of perpetuall virginyre, but yet styll at her lybertye / without any promyse or bonde. For syth she hadde now by reuelacyon from god, that his pleasure was she sholde haue a chylde / a bare purpose of virgynyte & a vow of virginyte were all of one weyght. For god was able as well to dispence with her vow, as to byd her leue of her vnuowed purpose.

¶ Of trouth yf our lady had wayed her vow as lyght as happely some lyght vowesse wold / thys mynd she myght haue had. ye & some vowesses peraduenture there are, which as yet neuer entend to breke theyr vow but thynke they wolde not with the bre­kyng [Page lxii] of theyr vow fall in y ^e dysplea­sure of god, though they wist to wyn therwith al this hole wretched world whiche yet wold be ꝑaduenture well content, y ^t god wold sende them word & vyd them go wedde & gete chyldrē.

¶ And those vowesses lo that hapen to haue any suche mynde / let them at the fyrste thought make a crosse on the yrb rest and blesse it a waye. For though it be no breking of theyr vow yet is it a waye well to warde it, and draueth (yf it be not [...]) very nere the pyttys brynke of synne, whā they wolde be gladde that god wold sende thē theyr pleasure without any sinne.

¶ And surely yf vpō y ^e delite in such a noughty mynde, god wold suffre y ^e deuyl to illude such a vowesse, & trās fygure hym self into the sykenesse of an angel of light, & call hym self La­buel, & tell her y ^e god greteth her well [Page] and sendeth her worde that she shall haue a chyld: though he there wyth went his way & neuer tolde her more whyther it shold be good or bad, her secrete in ward affeccyon to ward her flesshely luste lurkynge in her harte vnknowen vnto her selfe, couered & hyd vnder the cloke of that mynde, that she wold not for all the worlde take her own pleasure without god­des wyll, wold make her vnderstād this message for a dyspensacyon of her vow, and for a commaundement to brehe it / and so go forth and folow it wythout any ferther questyon, and go gete a chylde, and make the [...] a prophete.

¶ But [...] blessed virgyn Wary, was so surely sette vpon the kepyng of her vowed virginyte, that she ne­uer neyther longed nor loked for any messenger from god, that sholde byd [Page lxiii] her [...]. And therfore was she so dyscrete and cyrcumspecte, that she wolde not onely consyder who spake to her [...] dyscerne whyther it were man or spyrite, and also whyther it were a good spyryte or an euyll / but she wolde also way well the wordes were the spyryte neuer so good, leste her own mysse takyng by neglygēce, myght marre the reuesacyon. And therfore at Gabrielys fyrste appe­raūce, bycause he was goodly, & hys wordes were faire and plesaūtly set and spoken somwhat lyke a [...]/ she was somwhat abasshed and trou­bled in her mynde at the maner of his salutacyon. But after vpon his fer­ther wordes whan she aduysed hym and hys message well / than percey­uynge hym to be, not a man but an angell, not an euyl angell but a good, [Page] and specyally sent from god; and [...] mater no worldly wowyng but an he uynly message: she was not a sytell ioyful in her hart. And as I sayd had she not vowed virgynyte, but hadde ben at her lybertye, she had as me se­meth had no cause to do wte what god wolde haue her do / namely hauynge an husband allredy. Nor neuer wold̄ she haue thought that it had ben bet­ter for her to lyue styll in virgynyte, than to go about y ^t generacyō wherof god had sent her word. But now for as mych as she was by her vow [...] den to virginite, wherof she wist wel she myght not dispence with her self / and the angell bode not her go about to cōceyue, but onely tolde her as by way of prophecye, that she shold con ceyue / & wel she, wyst god frō whom the message came, could make her cō ­ceyue without man yf he wold: ther­fore [Page lxiiii] she neyther wold tempte god in desyryng hym to do that myracle, nor by mysse takynge of his message for hast & ouersyght, offend his mayster by the brekyng of her vow / but dys­cretely dyd aske the messenger, how & in what wyse she shold cōceiue. wher upon he shewed her that she shold be conceyued by the holy goost.

¶ Here you se good reders that the cause of her question in her askynge how, rose of no diffidence, but of veri sure faith / bicause she surely byleued y ^t he could make her cōceyue & her vir ginite saued. For els had she not had fermely y ^t faith, she had had no cause to aske the questyō, but myght haue rehened clerely / that he wolde haue her conceyued by her husband.

¶ And therfore was her questyon Luce. [...]. farte fro the question of zachary, the father of saynt Iohn̄, whiche asked [Page] not the angell how, but what token he sholde haue that he sayd trew / for ellys it semed that for all his worde, bycause of theyr bothe agys, he was mynded no more to medle with hys wyfe, syth he thought possybylite of generacyon passed. And for that dyf­fydens was he punyshed by losse of hys speche tyll the byrth of y ^e chyld.

¶ And her questyon was also very farre fro this questyō of the Iewys here, and from theyr askynge how / whyle the cause of her questyon was fayth, and the cause of theyr questyō dyffydens.

¶ Nichodemus also whan our lord Iohn̄. 3 bygan to tell hym of the sacramēt of baptysme, and sayd vnto hym, ‘verily veryly I tell the, but if a man be born agayne he can not se the kyngdome of god / answered our sauyour & sayd how may a man be borne agayn whā [Page lxv] he is olde: maye he entre agayne into hys mothers vely & be born agayne?’

¶ Lo. here the man was deceyued in that he thoughte vpō a bodyly byrth, where as our sauyour ment of a spy­rytuall byrth, by fayth and by the sa­crament of baptysme. And therfore our lorde tolde hym forthwyth, that he ment not that a man sholde be bo­dyly borne agayne of his mother, but ment of a spyrytuall regeneracyon in soule, by the water and y ^e holy goost.

¶ Now be it he told hym not for all that all the forme and maner of that sacrament, but what the substaunce sholde be, and by whose power, and wherof it shold take effecte.

¶ Now these iewes here, to whome Cryste preched of the geuyng of his body to them for meat, were not ful­ly in the case of Nichodemus, but in some point they were nerer y ^e trewth [Page] than he was at the begynnynge. For they toke our sauyours worde ryght in that they vnderstode that he spake of his owne very fleshe, and that he wold geue it them to eate / where as Nichodemus vnderstode no part of the generacyon and byrth that Cryst spake of. But they myssetoke the ma ner how he wolde geue it them, & ran forth in the deuyce and imagynacyon of theyr owne fantasy. But in dyffy­dence & dystrust they were lyke Ni­chodemus which sayd, ‘how maye a man be borne agayn whan he is old?’ And peraduēture the farther of frō endeuour to warde byseuynge. For in Nichodemus though I fynd no cō ­sent of faith in conclusyon / yet y ^e gos­pell speketh not of any finall contra­dyccyon in hym, nor of any desperate departynge, as these Iewes & these disciples dyd. And Nichodems spake in his cause after, but these discyples [Page lxvi] neuer walked after with hym.

¶ Now Cryste there vnto Nicho­demus, bycause he was slene fro the mater, told him y ^t it shold be no body­ly byrth but a spiritual / and bode hym meruayle not therof no more thā of y ^e spiryng or mouyng of the spiryt or of y ^e wynd (for y ^t word diuerse doctours take diuersely) whose voice though he herd, he neither wyst frō whens it came nor whyther he wold go. But now whā y ^t Nichodemꝰ ꝑceyuynge what y ^e thyng was, dyd yet wōder on styl & sayd: how may these things be.

Thā our lord dyd no more but leue hym with y ^e same tale styll, & byd him byleue, & tell hym why he so sholde; syth hym self y ^t so told hym came frō heuyn, and therfore could tell it / and gaue hym a sinificacyon of hys deth, wherby that sacramēt shold take the strength. But as for hys questyon how this myght be, other wyse thā y ^e [Page] it was by the power of god, that que­styon Cryst lefte vnsoyled.

¶ Now dyd he lyke wyse with these ie wys here. Syth it was so that they perceyued all redy that he spake of his very flesshe, and yet for all that word not byteue he could geue it thē / but thoughte the thynge so straunge and wonderfull, that they thought he could not do it, & therfore asked how he could do it: he dyd no more but styl tell them that he wolde do it, and that he veryly wold gyue them his fleshe to eate and his very bloud to drynke / and tolde them the profyte that they shold haue, yf they byleued hym and dyd it, and what losse they shold haue yf for lacke of bylyef they wold seue it vndone / and that he was come frō heuyn, and therfore they ought ney­ther to myssetruste hys word nor his power to performe hys worde. And [Page lxvii] [...] for otherwyse how and in what maner he could or wold do it, he lefte theyr questyon and theyr how vn­soysed.

¶ But now lest mayster Masker Masher make men wene, that I make all thys mater of myne own hede, ye S. [...]. [...]. [...]. [...]. [...]. shall here good readers vppon thys questyon of the Jewys what saynte Cyryll sayth.

[Page]¶ Nere you se good readers, that S. Cyriss in these wordes psaynesy shewed y ^t Crist here in these wordꝭ, The brede that I shall geue you is my flesh whych I shall geue for the lyfe of the worlde, ment of y ^e geuyng of hys flesshe in the sacrament. And that the Iewes wondered that he sayd he wolde geue them his flesshe, and asked how he could do it, bycause they thought it impossyble. And in re­profe of theyr incredusyte and that folyshe mynde of theyrs (by whiche they could not byleue that god could geue them his owne fleshe to eate) S. Cyriss both sheweth that many hand crafted men do thynges such as those that neuer sawe the lyke wolde wene impossyble, and also that in any worke of god it is a madnes to putte any dowt and aske how he can do it, syth he is asmyghty and able to do all [Page lxx] thynge. And to the entent that no chry sten man sholde dowt of the chaunge and conuirsyon of the bred into Cry stes blessed body in the sacrament, Saynt Cyriss here by waye of ob­ieccyon agaynste the Iewes, putteth vs in remembraunce (for vs he tea­cheth though he spake to thē) among other myracles he putteth vs I say in remembraunce of dyuerse conuer­syons and chaunges out of one na­ture into another, that god wrought in the olde sawe. As how the hande was turned from hole to sore, and from sore to hole agayne sodaynly.

Now the waters were sodaynly tur ned from bytter into swete / and how the waters were turned from water to bloude / and how the dede rodde of Moyses was turned into a quyche serpent.

The. xvi. chapyter.

BUt yet shall ye se that vpon the wordes of Cryste folowynge,

Now saynte saynte all waye more and more declareth that Christ spake there of his very body, that he wold geue men to eate in the blessed sacrament. For it foloweth in the text of the gospell.

¶ Than sayd Iesus vnto the Je­wes, ‘Ueryly veryly I say vnto you, but yf ye eate the flesshe of the soue of man ye shall not haue lyfe in you. He that eateth my flesshe and drynketh my bloude, hath euerlastynge lyfe.’

Uppon those wordes thus Lyrissus si. 4. ca. I + in eud. [...]. sayth saynt Cyrill.

¶ Here ye se good readers that saynt Cyrill playnely declareth you, that our saliyour wolde not teache theym at that tyme the maner of the eatynge, bycause of theyr infydesyte for all theyr askynge / but after ward [Page lxxii] he tolde and taught it hys faythfull dyscypses at hys faste [...] and maūdye, whan he toke them the bred and bode them eate it, and tolde them that the same was hys body / and the cuppe and bode them drynke therof, and shewed theym that that was his bloud. And thus you se well by saynt Cyrill that mayster Masker here, whych by hys exposycyd wold make vs wene that our sauyour in all hys worde here to the iewes, ment onely to tell them of y ^e geuyng of hys flesh to the deth, & that he ment nothyng of the geuynge of hys fleshe to eate in the blessed facrament, doth in all hys exposycyon but play with false dyce to deceyue you.

¶ Now as for that saint Crrif here calleth it by the name of brede, that is I trow the thynge that can nothynge trouble you, For I haue shewed you [Page] before by the wordes of that greate holy doctour Theophylactus, that it is called bred, bycause it was bred, and bycause of the forme of brede y ^e remayneth / & yet is no brede in dede, but is the very blessed body of Crist his very flesshe and hys bloude. As you se also by saynt Cyrill here, whi che of thys blessed sacramēt so often reherseth and inculketh the myracle, exhortynge all folke that no man be moued to mystruste it, though the thynge be meruelouse, nor aske as y ^e Iewes dyd how such a wunderfull wurke can be wrought / but mekely byleue it, syth he is god that sayth it / & therfore as he sayth it, so do wt not but he [...] do it / as he doth other lyke thynges, and dyd ere he were born in to thys world / of whyche thynges saint Cyrill hath here rebersed some. As the turnynge of the water into [Page lxxiii] bloude, as he turneth in the sacramēt the wyne into bloud / and the turnyng Exodi. 7 of Aarons rod into a serpēt / and that into such a serpent as deuowred vp all the serpentes of the Egypcyane wytches. Lyke as our sauyour in the blessed sacrament turneth the brede into hys owne body, y ^t holy holesome serpent that deuowreth all the poyse­ned serpentes of hell / and was ther­fore figured by the brasyn serpent that Moyses dyd sette vp in the ma­ner Nume. 21. of a crosse in the desert / the byhol dyng wherof deuowred & destroyed the venym of all the poysen serpent that had stongen any man there.

The. xvii chapyter.

ANd all be it that I she we you good chrystē readers, saint Cy­rilles wordes and hys exposy­cyon vpon the place, bycause maister [Page] Masker shall not make men wene y ^u I make all the mater of myn owne hed: yet semeth me that our sauyour declareth thys mater wyth playne wordes bym selfe. For what can be playner wordes than are hys owne, whan that vppon theyr wunderynge and theyr murmuryng question, how can he gyue vs his flesshe to eate, he said vnto thē, ‘Ueryly veryly I say to you, but yf you eate the flesh of y ^t sone of man & drink his bloud ye shall not haue lyfe in you. He y ^t eateth my flesh & drynketh my bloude, hath lyfe euer lastynge / and I shall rayse hym vppe agayne in the laste daye. For my flesshe is veryly meate, and my bloud is veryly drynke. He that eateth my flesh and drynketh my bloude, dwel­leth in me and I in hym.’

¶ In these wordes ye se good rea­ders howe playnely that our lorde sheweth theym, bothe the profyte of [Page lxxiiii] the receyuynge, and the peryll of the refusynge / and also bothe that he not onely speketh of his very body and bloud (whyche thyng mayster Mas­ker agreeth) but ouer that also that he more playnely and more precysely sayth, that they shold veryly eate it and drynke it (whyche thyng mayster Masker denyeth) and yet is that the thynge that our sauyour in these wor des most specyally laboreth to make theym byleue. For that he spake of hys very flessh, they perceyued well inough. But that he wold haue them verily eate it / that they thoughte such a maner thynge that they neyther wolde do nor could byseue, bycause they myssetoke the maner thereof, wenynge that they sholde eate it in dede peces cutte out as the bochers cutte the bestes in the shammellys.

[Page]¶ And Cryst therfore wold at thys tyme for theyr arrogaunt infydelyte (as saynte Cyrill hath told you) no thynge declare them of the maner of hys geuynge it to be veryly eaten, not in the proper forme of flesshe (as they flesshely imagyned) but in the forme of bred in the blessed sacramēt bycause (as Theophilactus decla­red you) men sholde not abhorre to eate it. But leuynge that vntaught tyll the tyme of hys maundy souper (where as saynte Cyrill hath also she wed you he taught it his faithfull dyscyples at the instytucyon of that blessed sacrament) he laboreth as I say in these wordꝭ here most speciall, wyth as playne wordes as can be de [...], to tell them and make them by leue that they shall veryly eate hys flesshe. Whyche thyng for any thyng that he could say to them, they were [Page lxxv] so hard harted that they wolde not byleue hym.

¶ And yet is mayster Masker here mych more obdurate now, and mych more faythlesse to, than all they were than. For bothe he hauyng herd what Criste sayd to those [...] than, & also what he taught his faythfull dyscyples at hys maundy after, and what all holy doctours and sayntes haue sayde theron and byleued euer synnys: yet wyll he with a few fond heretykes, take a folysshe fro warde waye, and byleue the contrary / or at the leste wyse saye that he byleueth y ^e contrary. But in good sayth y ^t they veryly byleue as they say that can I not byleue, except that of y ^e scrypture and the chrysten fayth these folke by leue nothyng at all. And so vpon my fayth I fere me that you shall se it proue at laste / as appereth by som­of [Page] them that so begynne all redy, and haue in some places put forth suche poysen in wrytynge.

¶ But surely though neyther any man had euer wryten vppon these wordes of Cryste, nor our sauyour bym selfe neuer spoken word therof after, that euer had in wrytyng comē into mēnys hands: yet are these wor­des here spokē so playne & so ful, that they must nedes make any man that were wyllyng to byleue hym, clerly perceyue and knowe that in one ma­ner or other, he wolde gyue vs hys awne very flesshe verely to be recey ued and eaten. For whan the Iewys sayd; how can he geue vs his flesshe to eate? He answered them with no sophims, but with a very playn open tale tolde them, they sholde neyther dystruste that he could on hys parte geue them his flesshe to eate, nor yet [Page llxxvi] refuse vppon theyr parte to eate it, if euer they wolde be saued. As though he wold say: Maruayle you and mys truste you my word? and aske how I can geue you mine own flesh to eate? I wyll not tell you how I can geue it, nor in what forme or fasshyon ye shall eate it / but this I wyll tell you, neyther in tropis, allegories, nor pa­rables, but euyn for a very playne trouth, y ^e eate ye shall my very flessh in dede, yf euer ye purpose to be sa­ued, ye and drynke my very bloude to. For but yf you be content to eate, and wyth a trewe fayth to eate, the flessh of the sone of man, and drynke hys bloude: ye shall not haue lyfe in you. But who so wyth a trewe well wurkynge fayth, ea­teth my flesshe and drynketh my bloude, he hath euerlastynge lyfe. Not onely bycause he ys as sure [Page] to haue it whan the tyme shall come as though he had it all redy, by reasō of the promyse that: Chryste here ma keth, where he sayth, And I shall re suscitate and rayse hym [...] at the last day / but also for that the very body of Cryste that he receyueth, is very lyfe euerlastyng of it selfe / and such a lyfe, as to them that well wyll re­ceyue it, in trew fayth, and purpose of good lyuynge, it is the thynge that is able to gyue lyfe & quyknesse euer lastynge. For as the godhed is of his owne nature [...] lyfe: so is the flesshe ioyned in vnyte of person to the godhed, by that immedyate cō ­iunccyon and vnyte, made bothe euer lastyng & lyuely in it selfe, and also euerlasting lyfe to the geuyng of life euerlastyngly to all other, that well and wurthely receyue hym, and wyll perseuer and abyde wyth hym. For [Page lxxvii] though euery mā here naturally dye for the whyle: yet shall Chryst as he promyseth here, reyse & resuscytate hym agayne to euerlastynge lyfe in the laste daye.

The. xviii. chapyter.

ANd to shew more and more that he meneth playnely of very ea­tynge and very drynkynge: he sayth, my flesshe is veryly meate, & my bloude is veryly drynke. [...] [...]. 4. ca. [...] in [...]. [...]. these wordes sayth saynt Cyril thus ‘Chryste here declareth the dyfference agayne, bytwene the mystycall bene­dyccyon, that ys to wytte the blessed sacrament and manna, and bytwene the water flowynge out of the stone, and the cōmuniō of the holy bloude. And thys he repeteth agayne, to the entent they sholde no more merueyle of y ^e myracle of manna / but that they sholde rather receyue hym whyche is [Page] the heuynly brede and the gyuer of eternall lyfe. your fathers sayd oure sauyour, dyd eate māna in the desert and they be deade. But thys brede is descended from heuyn, that a man sholde eate therof and not dye. For the meate of manna brought not eter nall lyfe, but a short remedy agaynst hunger. And therfore manna was not the very meate / that is to wytte manna was not the brede from he­uen / but the holy body of Chryst that ys the meate that noryssheth to im­mortalyte and eternall lyfe. ye sayth some man: but they dranke water out of the stone. But what wanne they by that for deade they be, and therfore that was not y ^t very drynke / but the very drynke ys the drynke of Chryste, by whyche death ys vtterly turned vppe and destroyed. For it ys not the bloude of hym that ys onely man, but the bloude of that man, [Page lxxviii] whych beynge toyned to the naturall lyfe (that ys to wytte the godhed) ys made also lyfe hym selfe.’

‘Therfore we be the body and the mē ­bres of Chryste. For by thys blessed sacrament we receyue the very sone of god hym selfe.’

¶ Here you se good readers that saynte Cyrillus playnely declareth here, y ^t these wordes of Chryst, My [...] is veryly meate &c. are spo­ken and ment of hys holy flesshe in the blessed sacrament / of whyche mayster Masker in all hys exposy­cyon and in all his hole wyse wurke, telieth vs playnely the contrary.

But saynte Cyrillus is here open and playne, bothe for that poynte & for the hole mater. For who can more playnly declare any thyng thā y ^t holy doctour declareth in these wordꝭ, y ^t in [Page] the blessed sacramēt is veryly eaten and dronken the very blessed body & holy bloude of Chryst. And yet doth not saynt Cyrillus say it more opēly than [...] our sauyour in hys [...] wordes hymselfe.

¶ And now ferther to shewe that it must nedys be so, that he whyche ea­teth hys flesshe & drynketh his bloud, muste nedes be resuscytate & reysed agayne in body to euerlastynge lyfe: our sauyour addeth therunto & saith, ‘He that eateth my flesshe and dryn­keth my bloude, dwelleth in me and I in hym.’

Uppon whyche wordes also, thus sayth holy saynt Cyrill.

‘¶ Lyke as yl a man vnto moltē wex put other wex, it can not be but that he shall thorow out mengle the tone wyth the tother: so yf a man receyue the flesshe and the bloude of our lord worthely and as he [...], it can not [Page lxxix] be but that he shall be so ioyned wyth, Chryst, as Chryst shalbe wyth hym &, he wyth Chryst.’

¶ Thus may you good readers se, how veryly a man eateth in the sacra ment the [...] body of Cryst / and by that eatynge how eche of them is in other. And than yf he so perseuer, how can it be that that body shall ha­ue euerlastynge deth, in whych there is [...] euerlastynge lyfe? For as ye haue herd, the body of Chryste is by the cōiunccyon wyth his godhed made euerlastynge lyfe.

¶ But this is ment as I saye (and all the holy doctours do declare the same) of them that receyue the sacra­ment, not onely sacramentally, but also effectually. That is to wyt, of them that not onely receyue the body of our sauyour by the sacrament into theyr bodyes, but also by trew fayth [Page] and trew repentaūce and purpose of good lyuyng, receyue hys holy [...] ther with into theyr soules, & be made therby very lyuely membres of that thyng that the blssed sacrament signi­fyeth & betokeneth, y ^t is to wyt of the mystycall body of Cryst, the chyrche and congregacyon of sayntes.

¶ For as you haue herd by Theo­philactꝰ before, this blessed sacramēt is not onely the very flesh of Cryst, but is also a figure. And that is it in diuerse wyse, as I shall ferther de­clare you in my boke agaynst Frithis answere to my pystle. With whyche boke (were hys onys come in prente whyche is allredy sent ouer to be [...] ted) I shall god wyllyng well make [...] his englysshe bretherne se & per­ceyue his foly, y ^t lyst not wyllyngly to cōtynue folys and wynke.

¶ But as I was about to say, they [Page lxxx] that receyue our lord by the sacramēt onely, & not by fayth & purpose of a­mendemēt: though they receyue hym yet they receyue hym not / & though they eate hym they eate hym not.

For though his blessed body be re­ceyued in to theyr bodyes: yet hys holy spirit is not receyued into theyr soules / & therfore he [...] not in them nor they in hym, but they eate & drynke theyr iugemēt, & receyue hym to theyr dampnacyō, for that they re­ceyue hym without faith & dew reue­uerēce / & therfore do not as saith sait Poule, discerne y ^e body of our lorde. 1. [...]. 11.

¶ And therfore sayth saint Austayn as Prosper reherseth ī lib. [...] psperi, ‘He receyueth the meat of lyfe, he drynketh y ^t draught of eternyte, y ^t dwelleth ī Cryst, & in whō Cryst dwel leth. For he y ^t discordeth from Cryst neyther eateth y ^t fleshe of Cryst, nor [...] his bloud, though he receyue [Page] euery daye indyfferentely the sacra­ment of that great thynge to the iud­gement and dampnacyon of hys pre­sumpcyon.’

¶ This text of saynt Austayne al­ledged Fryth for hys purpose in a cer tayne communycacyon / wyllyng to proue therby that the very body of Cryste was not alwaye veryly re­ceyued and eaten in the sacrament, as y ^t chyrch sayth. For here (sayd Fryth) saynt Austayne sayth playne y ^t euyll men though they receyue the sacra­ment, eate not the body of Cryst.

¶ But here Fryth eyther had not ler ned or ellys had forgoten, that saynt Austayne ment of the effectuall re­ceyuynge, by whych a man not onely receyueth Chrystes blessed body into hys own sacramentally, but also vir tually and effectually so receyueth ther wyth the spyryte of god into hys [Page lxxxi] soule, that he is incorporate therby with our sauyour, in suche wyse, that he is made a lyuely member of his mystycall body that is the [...] of sayntes by receyuyng it wur­thyly, whiche euyll folke do not, that receyue it to theyr dampnacyon.

¶ For that saynt Austayne ment not to deny that y ^e blessed body of Cryst is veryly receyued and eaten in the blessed sacramēt, both of euyll folke and good, it appereth playne by that that in mo places thā one, he speketh of the traytour Iudas. For all be it that in some places he putteth it in dowte and question, whyther Iudas receyued the sacrament amonge the apostles at Chrystes maundy, or els that y ^e morcell that he receyued were not it: yet-in dyuers places he affer­meth that he dyd. And in those places be affermeth playnely that in the sa­cramēt [Page] he receyued Chrystes bles­sed body, as euyll and as false as the traytour was, as in his fyfth boke de baptismo he clerely declareth in these wordes.

‘¶ Lyke as Iudas to whom our lord gaue the morsel, not by receyuynge any euyll thynge, but by euyll recey­uynge of a good thyng, gaue the de­uyll a place to entre into hym selfe: so euery man y ^t vnworthyly receyueth the sacrament of Cryst, maketh not y ^e sacrament euyll bycause he is euyll, nor maketh not therby that he recey­ueth nothyng bycause he receyueth it not to his saluacyō. For it was neuer the lesse the body of our lorde and the bloud of our lord, euyn vnto them of whom the apostle sayd, he that eateth it & drynketh it vnworthily, he eateth & drynketh dampnacyō to hym selfe.’

¶ Here sait Austayn good readers expressely declareth, y ^t not onely good folke but euil folke also, receiue & eat [Page lxxxii] in y ^e sacramēt y ^e very body & bloud of Cryst, though the tone to saluacyon the tother to dāpnacyō. And therfore you se y ^t saint Austayn here playnely reproueth Fryth.

¶ And that ye may playnely se also August. in epist. 163. [...] Eleusiū Glorium [...] Felicem. that saint Austayn in callynge y ^e bles­sed sacramēt the body of Cryst, me­neth not to call it onely a fygure or a memoriall (besyde his other playne wordꝭ in many sundry places) he writeth in a pistle vnto Eleusiꝰ, Gloriꝰ, & Felix, declaryng the great excellent goodnes y ^t Cryst shewed to the false traytour Iudas, he writeth I saye y ^t Cryst gaue vnto Iudas at his laste souper y ^e pryce of our redēpcyō. And what was the pryce of our redēpciō, but his owne very blessed body.

¶ How be yt Frith was on euery syde deceyued in the perceyuynge of saynt Austayns mynd / which mysse [Page] happed hym as I suppose for lacke of redynge any ferther in saynt Au­stayns wurkes, than those placys y ^t he founde falsely drawen out into frere Duyskyns boke.

¶ For saynt Austayne in very many placꝭ playnely declareth, that euery man good and badde both, receyueth and eateth in the sacrament the very body and bloude of Cryste. And also those wordes in whych he sayth, that euyll folke eate it not, he meaneth y ^t they eate it not so as they receyue the effecte therof, that is to wytte to be by the receyuynge and eatyng therof incorporate spyrytually with hym, as a lyuely member of hys mystycall body the socyete of sayntes, so that he may dwell in Chryste and Chryst in hym / but lacketh y ^t spyrytuall effecte of hys eatynge, bycause he is euyll & eateth not Chrystes flesshe in suche [Page lxxxiii] maner as he sholde do, that is to wyt worthyly in trew fayth and purpose of clene and innocent lyfe, as saynte Austayne in his boke de blasphemia spiritus sancti, declareth wel in these wordes.

‘¶ Thys also that Cryst sayth, he that eateth my flesshe and drynketh my bloud, dwelleth in me and I in hym. How shall we vnderstande it. Maye we vnderstande those folke therin to, 1. Co. 11 of whom thapostle sayth y ^t they eate & drynke theyr iugement, whan they eate the same flesshe and drynke the same bloude? Dyd Iudas the tray­tour and wicked seller of his mayster though he fyrst wyth the other apo­stles as saynt Luke theuangelyste very clerely declareth, dyd eate and drynke the same sacrament of hys flesshe and his bloude made with his awne handes, dyd he abyde yet in Cryst & Cryst in hym? Finally many men whyche with a fayned harte eate [...] [Page] [...] [Page lxxxiii] [...] [Page] [...] [Page lxxxiii] [Page] that flesihe and drynke that bloud, or ellys whan they haue eaten and dron ken it, bycome apostataas after / do they dwell in Cryst & Cryst in them? But there is vndowtedly a certayne maner of eatynge that flesshe and drynkynge that bloude, in whyche maner he that eateth it and drynketh it, dwelleth in Cryste and Cryste in hym. And therfore not who so euer eate the flesshe of Cryste and drynke hys bloude, dwelleth in Cryste and Cryste in hym / but he that eateth it and drynketh it after a certayne ma­ner, whyche maner Cryste saw whan he spake the wordes.’

¶ Here you se good readers that saint Austayn she weth, that Iudas in the sacramēt receyued & dyd eate y ^t body of Cryst, and declareth also the very whole thyng that he meneth cō cernyng the vnderstandyng of this word of Crist, He y ^t [...] my flesh and drynketh my bloude dwelleth in [Page lxxxiiii] me and I in hym / that is to wyt they y ^u eate it in a certeyn maner by which he meneth they y ^t eat it wel & in y ^t state of grace / as he playnely declareth bothe in hys exposycyon vppon saint Iohn̄s gospel, and many sundry pla ces bysyde.

¶ And those that receyue hym other wyse with a fayned hart and in pur­pose of deadely synne / they folo we Iudas and shortely shew them self. For suche as they were wont to be, such wyll they be styll, or yet rather mych wurse if they were before veri nought. And therfore sayth saynt Au stayn, y ^t a mā to eate y ^e flesh of Crist is to dwell in Cryst, & to haue Cryst dwellyng in hym. For he y ^t dwelleth not ī Crist, wel declareth y ^t though he haue receyued & eatē his flesh into his body by the sacramēt, yet hath he not receyued & eatē his spirit as I sayde [Page] into hys soule / and therfore hath not receyued and eaten his fiesshe effec­tually, but without theffecte of the spyryte and lyfe, whiche is the thyng wherby the flesshe geuyth the lyfe, and wythout whiche as our sauyour saith, his flesh auayleth vs nothyng. And so for lacke of the spyrytuall ea­tynge, the flesshely eater of his flesh though he receyue the sacrament, re­ceyueth not theffecte of the sacramēt the thynge that the sacrament sygny­fyeth, that is the partycypacyon of y ^e mystycall body of Chryste, that is to wytte the chyrche and congregacyon of all sayntes, whyche chyrch and cō gregacyon is gathered togyther as many mēbres into one body Cryste / as the brede whyche our lorde in the sacramēt chaungeth into hys blessed body, is one lose made of many gray nes of whete / and the wyne whyche [Page lxxxv] he chaungeth into his bloude, is one cuppe of wine made of many grapes as thapostle declareth.

¶ And veryly to be a quycke lyuely member of that body doth no man at­tayne that receyueth the sacrament without fayth and purpose of good lyfe / but waxeth a more weke mem­bre & a more lame, more astonied, and more losely hangynge theron than he dyd before / and by suche often recey­uynge so rotteth more and more, that finally it falleth quyte of, and is cast out into the dunghyll of hell, and shal neuer be resuscytate & reysed agayne to be made a membre of that body in glory.

¶ But as saynt Austayne sayth, yf a man after the receyuynge of the sa­crament do dwell siyll in god, that is to wytte abyde and perseuer in trew fayth and good wurkes: than is it a [Page] good synge and token that he hath ef­fectually eaten the flessh of Cryst in the blessed sacrament. And therupon muste it nedes good crysten reader folow, y ^t he that receyueth the blessed sacramēt well, & eateth therin y ^e flesh of Cryst, not onely veryly, whyche euery man doth good & bad, but also (which onely the good foske do) effec tually, & so dwelleth in Cryste and Cryste in hym perseuerauntly: that man or woman without dowt, it must nedes be that they can neuer euerla­styngly dye / but Cryst dwellyng in them, shall conserue theyr soules and resuscytate agayn theyr bodyes that so dwell in hym, into euerlastynge lyfe.

The. xix. chapyter.

[...] the surety and vnfallyble profe wherof, our sauiour said forth with vpō his worde afore remē bred forther vnto the Jewes, ‘as the [Page lxxxvi] lyuynge father sent me, so also do I lyue for my father. And he that eateth me, shall lyue also for me.’

¶ The father of heuyn beynge the orygynall substaunce of lyfe, before all begynnyng begate hys coeternall sone, and gaue vnto hym his owne whole substaūce, & therfore his own whole lyfe, as to hym whome he be­gate one equale god wyth hym selfe, in nothynge dyfferent but in onely persone.

¶ The father I saye gaue all hys owne whole lyfe to his sone, and yet none therof from hym self. And ther fore sayth our sauyour Cryste, that hym selfe lyueth for or by his father. And so y ^t man saith he that eateth me, shall lyue thorow me. For syth that by the very eatyng of hys very bles­sed body, the eater (but yf hym selfe be the let,) is ioyned wyth the flesshe [Page] of Chryst (as holy saynt Cyrill hath declared) and therby with that holy spyryt of hys also whyche from that holy flesshe is vnseparable, and so ioyned vnto the very substaunce of lyfe, that is lyfe and geueth lyfe to: he can not but lyue thorow Chryste.

¶ [...] this our sauyour fynally for conclusyon telleth them, that this brede also is come frō heuyn sayeng, ‘Thys is the brede that is descended from heuyn.’ Not meanynge that his flesshe was fyrst in heuē, and so sent downe from thense as some herety­hes haue ere this holden an opynyō / but that hys body was in the blessed virgyn hys mother, by the heuynly obumbracyon of the holy goste. And also syth hys godhed and hys man­hed were ioyned and knytte togyther in very vnite of person: our sauyour vsed that maner of spekynge by the [Page lxxxvii] tone, that he vsed by the tother. And therfore as he sayde vnto Nichode­mus, the sone of man descēded from heuyn: so sayth he here of hys flessh, this is the brede that is descended frō heuyn.

¶ And bycause that the Iewys had in the begynnynge of this cōmunica­cyon, bosted vnto hym the brede of manna, bryngynge forth for y ^e preyse therof the wordes of the prophete, Psal. 77. Thou hast geuyn them brede from heuyn: Our lord here shewed theym that thys brede that he wolde geue them to eate, that is to wyt his owne very flesshe (as hym self very play­nely declared them) is of an other ma ner descēded down frō heuen, thā the manna, whose descendynge from he­uyn they in the begynnynge bosted so. And therfore he sayd, ‘Thys is the brede that is descended from heuyn / [Page] not as your fathers dyd eate manna & are dede. He that eateth thys bred, shall lyue for euer.’ As though he wold say. This is another maner of brede, otherwyse come from heuyn than manna was that ye boste of so. For that bred was gyuen you but for the sustenaunce of the lyfe in thys worlde / but this brede y ^t is myne own body, conceyued by the holy goost, & in vnyte of person ioyned wyth my godhed, as verily as it is ioyned with myne own soule, is another maner of heuynly brede, and shalbe gyuen you to eate for another maner of purpose For manna that was geuen your fa­thers to eate for the onely sustinaūce of theyr tēporall lyfe, was but a fy­gure of this brede thus geuyn you to eate, as I shal begyn to geue it at my maūdy souper, the maner wherof I wyll not tell you now. And therfore [Page lxxxviii] as the figure or y ^e shadow of a thyng, is farre fro the propertye of y ^e thyng it selfe: so was the brede of manna farre fro the propertye of this brede y ^t is my flesshe. For lyke wyse as by­cause it was a fygure of thys brede that is very lyfe, it serued for the sus stynaunce of lyfe: so bycause it was but a fygure, and not the very lyfe it selfe, it serued therfore not to geue lyfe, but to sustayne life / not for euer but for a whyle. But this brede that is my flesshe / (whyche I shall geue you as veryly to eate as euer your fathers dyd eate manna) bycause it is not the fygure onely of the thynge that is lyfe, but is also (by cōiuncciō with the godhed) the very lyfe it self that was figured: I shall geue it you to eat in such a maner, that it shal not onely mayntayn, fede, and sustayne the body of the eater in thys present [Page] lyfe, but it shall also gyue lyfe, ye & that euersastynge lyfe in glory / not onely to y ^e soule, but also to the body to, in tyme mete and conuenyent, ray­synge it vy agayne from deth, and settynge it wyth the soule in eternall lyfe of euerlastynge blysse.

The. xx. chapyter.

‘THys communycacyon wyth the Hewys had our lorde, techynge in the synagoge at Caparnaū. And many therfore of hys dyscyples herynge these thynger sayde, Thys word is hard, and who can here hym.’

¶ The more and more that our sa­uyour playnely tolde them that he wolde geue them hys very fsesshe to eate, the more and more meruelouse harde they thought his sayenge, and rekened that it was impossyble for any man to byleue it. And therfore for lacke of bylyefe they loste the [Page lxxxix] profyt. And these that thus thought thys mater so meruelouse harde and straunge that they wolde not byleue, but for lacke of bylyefe lost the pro­fyte, were not onely such Iewes as were his enemies, but many of those also that were his owne dyscyples.

¶ But oure sauyour knowynge in hym selfe (as he that was god and neded no man to tell hym) that hys dyscyples murmured at his wordes, bycause he tolde them so often and so playnely that men shold haue no life, but yf they wolde be content veryly to eate hys owne flessh he sayd vnto them, ‘Doth thys offende you? do you stumble at thys? what than yf you shall se the sone of man ascende vppe where as he was before? The spyryt is that that quyckeneth, the flessh a­uayleth nothing. The wordes that I haue spoken to you be spirit & lyfe.’

[Page]¶ In these [...] our lorde [...] tely to [...] all theyr objectyōs gro wynge vpon theyr infydelyte, & also confuteth theyr infidelyte / and in hys word? after folowyng, putteth them yet agayne in mynde of the medicine y ^t might remoue theyr vnfaithfulnes & geue them the very fast fayth.

¶ The Iewes had byfore murmu red agaynst that that he had sayde, y ^t he was descēded frō heuyn. Agaynst whiche they sayd, Is not he the sone of Ioseph whose father and mother we know? And how sayth he thā that he is descended from heuyn? And a great pyece of theyr murmure therin arose as ye se, vppon that poynt that they had mysse conceyued, wenyng y ^t Joseph had ben his father. For had they beleued that his māhed had ben conceyued by y ^e holy goste, they wold haue murmured y ^t lesse. And had they [Page xc] byleued y ^t his godhed had descēded in to it from heuyn, they wold not haue murmured at all.

¶ In Lyke wise they murmured at the secūd poynt, in that he shewed thē so playnely y ^t he wold geue them his very flesshe to be theyr very mete, & sayd how can he gyue vs his flesh to eate. And many of his dysciples sayd also, this is an hard word, & who may here hym. And a great parte of theyr murmure was, bycause they thought that they shold haue eaten his fleshe in y ^e self fseshly forme / & bycause (as August. [...] enatta. in psal. 168. et in serm. 2 de verbisi [...]. sait Austayn saith in sundry [...]) y ^t they thought they shold haue eaten his fleshe in dede gobbettes, cut out piecemele as the meat is cut out in y ^e shamelles / & also bycause they knew him not to be god. For had thei knowē that the maner in whyche he wolde geue them hys very flesshe to eate, [Page] shold not be in the self same fleshelp forme, but in the pleasaunt forme of brede: though they wolde yet haue meruayled, bycause they woide haue thought it wonderfull, yet wold they haue murmured the lesse, bycause they wold not haue thought it lothe­ly. But thā had they ferther knowē that he had ben god / than wolde they not I suppose haue murmured at the mater at all. For I wene veryly that there were neyther of those disciples nor of those Iewes neyther, any one so euyll as now be mayster Masker, & fryth, & hys felowes, that seynge the receyuyng nothynge lothesome, and byleuynge that Cryst was god (yf they byleue it) wyll not yet byle­ue he can do it / but murmur & grudg agaynst it styll.

¶ For though mayster Masker say that yf Cryst sayd he wold do it, [Page xci] than hym selfe wold byleue he could do it: yet it shall appere ere we part, both that Cryst sayth it. And he wyll not byleue that Cryst though he say it meneth it. And also that the cause why he wyll not byleue that Cryste meneth it, is bycause he byleueth that god can not do it.

¶ But now sayd our sauyour vnto them in answerynge all thys gere. Do you stumble at thys? what yf ye se the sone of man ascende vp where he was before? what wyl you thā say? For than could they haue no cause to distruste that he descended downe, whan they shold se hym ascende vp. For that thynge semeth in mennys madde eyen suche as they were that wolde not take hym but for a man, farre the gretter maystry of the both.

¶ Also whan they sholde se hym as­cende vp to heuyn whole / than sholde [Page] they well perceyue that they mysse toke hym by a false imagynacyon of theyr owne deuyce, whan they con­stre wed the geuynge of hys fleshe to eate, as though he ment to gyue it thē in such wyse, as hym selfe shold lose all that they sholde eate.

¶ And whan he sayde they sholdse the sone of man ascend vp there as he was byfore / he gaue them agayne a sygnyfycacyō that hym selfe y ^e sone of man was the sone of god also, and therby hym selfe god also, & into the worlde comen and descended from heuyn.

¶ In these wordes our sauyour she weth that his ascensyō shold be a sufficient cause to make them knowe his power & leue theyr murmuryng. And therfore they that leue not mur­muryng at his blessed sacramēt yet, shew a great token that they byleue [Page xcii] not his wonderfull ascensiō neyther. For yf they byleued well that he had power of hym selfe to ascende vp in body, and syt in heuen one equale god with his father & the holy goost: than wold they [...] wene as they do, y ^t god lacked power to make hys owne body to be in dyuer se places at onys, and be both in heuen and erth.

The. xxi. chapyter

BUt now for as mych as [...] parte of these folkes diffydence and distrust, rose of that that the respecte of the lothsomnes made thē the lesse wyllynge to byleue, in that they thought that he ment to geue them his flesshe to eate in gobbettes cutte out dede wythout lyfe or spy­ryte: our sauyour answered them to that poynt. And though he wold not at that tyme tell them the maner how [Page] he wolde geue it them to eate: yet he tolde them that he wolde not geue it them so. And therfore he sayd vnto them. ‘The spirit is it that quycketh or geueth lyfe / the flesshe auayleth nothyng. The wordes which I haue spoken to you be spyrit and lyfe.’

¶ As though he wold say vnto thē. I tolde you before that who so wold eate my fleshe sholde haue euerla­styng lyfe. And therfore why be you so madde as to wene that I mene my fleshe cut out in gobbettes dede wythout lyfe or spyryt? it is the spirit that geueth lyfe. And therfore with­out the spirit the fleshe shold auayle you nought. But beyng knytte with the spirite of my godhed, whyche is the substaunce and very foūtayne of lyfe / so it shal (to them that worthyly eate it) geue euerlastynge lyfe. And therfore the wordes that I speke be [Page xciii] not onely fleshe / for y ^t wyll no more geue lyfe alone, thā wyll fayth alone geue life that is dede without y ^e wyll of good wurkes. But my wordes therfore that I haue spoken to you of my fleshe to be eaten, be not fleshe alone, but spyryte also and lyfe.

Therfore you muste vnderstande them not so fleshely as you do, that I wolde geue you my fleshe in gob­bettes dede / but you must vnderstād them spyrytually, that you shall eate it in an other maner animated wyth my soule, and ioyned with the spyrite of my godhed, by whych my flessh is it self made not onely lyuely but also geuynge lyfe.

¶ Thus ment our lord in those wor des. Wherin leste mayster masker myght make men wene that I runne all at ryotte vppon myne own [...], holy saynte Austayne sheweth [Page] that in these wordes, ‘The spyryt it is [...]. in [...]. [...]. y ^t quyckeneth, the fleshe auayleth no thyng. Our sauyour meneth that his flesh dede & without y ^e spirit auayleth nothyng / as cūnyng nothyng auay­leth without cherite, without whiche as sait Paule saith it doth but puffe vp a mā in pride. But on y ^e totherlide [...]. [...] lyke as cūnyng mych edifyeth & pro­fiteth ioyned with cheryte: so y ^e flesh of our sauiour mych auayleth ioyned wyth hys holy spyryte.’

¶ Saynt Cyrill also vppon y ^e same wordes declarynge them by a longe processe to the purpose that I haue shewed you, saith among many other thynges in thys maner, as it were in the person of Cryst spekyng to those Iewes, & to those dyscyples of hys, that sayde his wordes were so hard that no man could abide to here hym / which they sayd as sayth saynt Chri­sostom for theyr own excuse, bycause [...]. [...]. 46. in [...]. them self were about to walke theyr way. To them therfore sayth our sa [Page xciiii] uyour thus in saynt Cyrilles exposi cyon. ‘wene you whā I sayd that who so eate my flesh shal haue euerlasting lyfe, that I ment therin, that this er­thely body of myne doth gyue lyfe of his own proper nature? Nay veryly. But I dyd speke to you of the spyryt and of eternall lyfe. But it is not the nature of the flesshe that maketh the spyryt geue lyfe / but the power of the spyryte maketh the fleshe geue lyfe. The wordes therfore y ^t I haue spo­ken to you be spirit & lyfe / that is to wytte they be spyrituall & spoken of the spirit and lyfe / that is to wytte of y ^e spirit y ^t is the natural life, y ^e geueth lyfe. But yet the thyng y ^t we haue all redy said, it shal do no harme though we repete it agayn. The thing that I haue sayd is this. The nature of the flesh can not of it self geue lyfe. For what had thā the nature of y ^e gddhed more? But thā on y ^e tother syde, there is not ī Crist onely flesh / but he hath y ^e sone of god ioyned with it which is y ^e squale substaūs of life with his fader [Page] And therfore whan Cryst calleth hys fleshe a geuer of lyfe / that power of geuynge lyfe he doth not attrybute vnto his fleshe and vnto hys holy spi rite bothe of one fashyon. For the spi­ryte geueth lyfe by it selfe and of hys owne nature. But the fleshe ascēdeth vnto that power of geuynge lyfe, by reason of the coniunccyon and vnyte that it hath wyth that holy spyryte. How be it how and by what meane that thynge is done, we neyther are able with tōge to tell, nor with mynd to imagyne / but wyth sylence & ferme fayth we receyue it.’

¶ Thus haue you herde good rea­ders that the thynge that I saye, do not onely I say, but saynt Austayne also and saynt Cyrill both. Whych is inough to you to perceyue that I dy­uyse not myne exposyciō all of myne owne hed / and may be inough to any good chrysten man also, to perceyue [Page xcv] clerefy that our sauyour in these wor des dyd speke, not onely of a spyry­tuall eatynge of his fleshe by bylyes and remembraunce of hys deth and passyon, as mayster Masker & fryth and these fond felowes styffely bert vs in hande, but spake also and ment it of the remembrynge of hys deth & passyon, by the very eatynge of hys very blessed body as it is eaten in the blessed sacrament.

The. xxii. chapyter.

BUt these heretykes are so sette vppon myschyefe and wysful­nesse, that they wyll not in any wyse vnderstand the truth. And how coulde they vnderstande the trouth, whan they wyll not byleue. For (as the prophete Esaie sayth) but yf you [...]. 7. byleue you shal not vnderstand. And therfore these heretykes can not vn­derstand. [Page] For they be in the case now that those dyscyples & those Iewes were, with whom our sauyour foūde that faute than, in his wordes nexte ensuenge & sayd: But there be some of you that byseue not / as though he word say as playnely as I haue told it you and as oftē, yet are there some of you y ^t byleue it not. But he knewe from the begynnynge who shold by­leue, and who also sholde betraye hym.

¶And so knoweth he lyke wise now to, who be good and who be nought, and who shall amende and who shall neuer amende. Not that hys fore knowlege sorceth them to be nought / but for it is impossyble for them to be nought, but that hys infynite fore­syght muste nedes from the begyn­nynge fore se it. And yet whan he forseeth that it so shall be / it shall so [Page xcvi] be indede, and can not otherwyse be but that it shall so be yf he fore se that it shall so be. For he sholde not forese that it shall so be, yf it so were that in dede it sholde otherwyse be. But syhewyse as yf I se one syt, it muste nedes be that he sytteth, for ellys sholde I not se hym sytte / and that therfore it well foloweth I se hym sytte: ergo it muste nedes be that he sytteth. And yet my syghte forceth hym not to sytte / nor of that argu­ment the consequent proposycyon of hys nature necessarie but contingent / though of the tone proposycyon in­ferred vppon the tother, the conse­quency, or consecucyon be necessary. So beynge presupposed that god forseeth such a [...] whyth he shold not forese but yf the thyng shold be, yet hys fore syghte no more forceth [Page] the person that doth it in the thynge that is yet to come, than my syghte forceth hym to sytte whom I se syt / of whom no man can say but that he must nedes syt in the whyle in which he wyl presuppose that I se hym syt.

¶ And therfore bycause hys presey­ence and hys prouidence, forced them not to contynue in theyr wylfulnes to theyr dampnacyon / he putteth thē onys agayne in remembraunce of the meanes wherby they maye voyde y ^t wylfull ignoraunce and infrdelyte and thus he sayth vnto them:

‘Therfore I haue tolde you all redy, that no man can come to me but yf it be gyuen of my father.’

‘¶ Thynke not sayth saint Crysostom [...]. [...] 46 [...]. vppon these wordes, that euery man to whom the father gyueth it, hath it as by waye of a specyall pryuylege / so that they y ^t haue it not geuen them la cke it onely therfore, bycause god [Page xcvii] wyll not gyue it them. God(sayth S. Chrysostom) wyll gladly gyue it thē, yf they wolde not by theyr owne de­lynge make them selfe vnwurthy to receyue it.’ And therfore sayth saynte Cyryll vppon the same wordes, ‘that those that amonge the Jewys lyued well and were of good condy­cyons, had the fayth geuen them and came to Cryst. But they that were stu berne, arrogant, malycyouse, & wyl­full, as were the scrybes & the phary­seys and the styffenecked bysshoppes they letted them selfe from the gyfte of fayth.’

¶This gyfte of fayth without the helpe of god can not be hadde / nor no man can come to the sone but yf the Aug. in [...] 26. [...]. father draw hym. And whom he draweth, and whom he draweth not, and why hym, and why not hym, let vs not seke nor serche as saynt Au­stayne sayth yf we wyll not erre.

[Page]¶But yet that he reiecteth no man that wyll seke for hys soule helthe, but rather calleth vpon to be sought vppon, that doth the scrypture well wytnesse, where god sayd hym selfe, [...] I stande at the dore knockynge, yf any man heare my voyce & open me the dore, I wyll go in to hym and suppe with hym and he with me. And the prophete Esaie sayth, Seke you Esaie. 55. our lorde whyle he may be founden. Call you vppon hym whyle he is nere. Lette the wycked man leue hys way, and the vnrightuouse man leue hys deuyces, and lette hym turne to our lorde and he wyll haue pytie vp­pon hym. For he is great in forgeue­nesse. Our sauyour sayth hym selfe Matth. 7 also. Aske and you shall haue. Seke and you shall fynde. Knocke and you shall be lette in. And finally that no man sholde take these wordes of [Page xcviii] our sauyour, that no man can come to hym but yf it be geuen hym of the fa ther, and these wordes of hys also, No man can come to me but yf my father [...] hym, that no man I say sholde so take these wordes in suche a presumptuose way of eleccyō, that wenynge he were drawyn into suche a felyng faith that could neuer fayle and so sholde as Tyndale teacheth, make hym selfe so sure of hys owne saluacyon by hys sure and infallyble eleccyon, that he sholde stande out of all feare and wax slouthfull: y ^e scryp [...] cryeth, Lette hym that thynketh 1. [...]. 10 he standeth, beware lest he fall. And vn the tother syde, that no man shold̄ vppon these wordes, take that imagi nacyō that these heretykes also tech, of desperate ineuitable destyny of dampnacyon, and sytte styll and do no good hym selfe, wenynge that his [Page] owne deuour were in vayne, bicause he felyth not god any thynge drawe hym: holy saīt Austayn (whose wor­des these heretykes for eleccyon and August. in [...]. 27 in [...]. destynye agaynst the [...] of man­nys fre wyll most lap for them) byd­deth euery man for al theyr babeling if y ^t be not drawē pray god to draw y ^e.

¶ And therfore to that entēt dyd [...] sauyour Cryst putte them agayne in mynde of that he had sayed before, y ^t they coulde not come to hym but yf it were geuē thē by his father, bycause he wold̄ y ^t they [...] for theyr parte labour to remoue y ^e [...] y ^t on theyr own parte, letted his father to geue thē y ^t gyft. And that is that they shold haue lesse cure & care of theyr [...]/ the desire of whose fleshely fyllyng with perishable meat, made thē angri to here of y ^e spiritual fode of his own holy flesh / by the wel eating wherof [Page xcix] they myght haue euerlastrng lyfe.

¶ [...] taught thē also by those wor­des to perceyue (yf they wolde) that Ioseph was not his father. For whā [...] sayd that they could not haue that great gyft but of his fader, nor could not come to him but if his fader drew them: they myght well wyt he ment not Ioseph, but his father of heuyn. And therfore wold he by those wor­des geue them warnynge, that they shold leue theyr murmuryng, & pray his father geue them the grace to by­leue hym.

The. xxiii. chapyter.

BUt where as they shold haue ta ken this way & walked forward with hym, they toke the [...] way / not onely the other Iewes but many also of hys own discyples, & went away bakward frō hym, & as y ^e gospel saith walked no more with him

¶ But though that many of hys dis [Page] cyples went awaye from hym, by­cause hys father brought theym not vnto hym: yet as hym selfe sayd be­fore, all that my father geueth me shall come to me / all went not away. His apostles taried. And yet amōge those twelue taryed one false shrew. And in the stede of those dyscyples y ^t went away, which were as saīt Au­stayn [...]. 10 sayth about thre score & ten / he hose soone after other. iii. score & ten, whome he sent to preche about as he had sent hys twelue apostles before.

¶ But than seynge there were at y ^t tyme so few lefte & so many gone, he sayd vnto his. xii. apostles, wyll you be gone to? He neyther bode thē go as though he wolde be glad of theyr goynge / nor yet bode them abyde, as though he had nede of theyr abydyng but onely asked theym whyther they wolde go or not / sygnifyeng that for [Page c] all theyr [...] they were in the li­berty of theyr owne fre wyll, eyther to go after the tother / or to abide styll wyth hym. Than answered Simon Peter and sayd: Lord to whom shall we go. Thou hast the wordes of e­uerlastynge lyfe. And we byleue and know that thou arte Chryst the sone of god. As though he wolde saye yf we loue lyfe, to whom sholde we go fro the? For onely thou hast [...] not of lyfe onely but also of life euer lastynge / for all thy wordes and thy doctryne drawe men therto. And we byleue, and by bylyef we know, that thou art Cryst the very sone of god. And therby we knowe that thou arte not onely very man, but also very god. And we perceyue well therfore that thou arte the brede that is descen ded from heuen, and that thou shalt ascende thyder agayne, and [...] [Page] thou arte able and of power to geue vs that meruelouse meate of thyn owne holy fleshe to eate. And that thou so wylt do, we byleue and wote well, bycause thou so doste pro­myse. And we perceyue well y ^t thou wylt not geue it vsin dede gobbettes that could not auayle vs / but alyue, & with thyne holy spyryte y ^e foūtayne of lyfe, wherby thy fleshe shall geue vs yf we wyll eate it euerlastynge lyfe, whan thou shalt resuscytate our bodyes in the last day. But in what meruelouse maner thou wylt geue it vs to eate, that haste thou not yet de­clared vs / nor we wyll not be to bol­dely curyouse or inquisytyue of thy meruelouse mistery. But therin a­byde the tyme of thyne own determy nacyon, as to whose hyghe heuynly wysedome the season mete and [...] is open and knowen, and vn [Page ci] knowen to mortall men. And we wyl therfore obedyently receyue it & eate it, at what tyme and in what wyse y ^t thy gracyouse pleasure shalbe to cō ­maunde vs.

¶ Whan saynt Peter as hed vnder Cryst of that cōpany, had made this answere, not onely for hym selfe but also for them all, not sayenge I but we: our lorde to lette hym se that he was somwhat deceyued, & had sayed more than he coulde make good. For one false shrew was there yet styll remaynynge amonge the twelue / wherof. xi. were not ware / our sa­uyour therfore sayd. Haue not I chosen you twelue & of you twelue yet is there one a deuell? Thys he spake by Iudas Iskariot the sone of Simon for he it was that shold [...] hym beyng one of the twelue [Page] ¶ Our lorde here good [...] she wed hym selfe not deceyued. For though Iudas falsed was vnknowē to his felowes, yet was it not vnkno wē to hys mayster / which though he shewed hym selfe not ignoraunt of hys seruauntes [...] mynde, & tray­torouse purpose towarde his owne persone (to warde whych purpose as it semeth Iudas hart had at thys ty­me conceyued some inclinacyon) yet had he pacyence with hym, and con­tinually dyd vse y ^e wayes to reforme and amende hym / neuer castyng hym out, tyll he clerely caste out hym self, accordynge to the sayenge of our sa­uiour, [...]. 6. He that cometh to me I wyll not caste hym out.

The. xxiiii. chapyter.

BUt here do many men [...] not onely that our sauyour wold heye hym so longe knowynge [Page cii] hym so false, but also that he wolde take hym to him for his [...] in the begynnyng, fore knowynge by [...] godhed from the begynnynge that he wolde after be false. And dyuerse holy doctours hold also, that he was neuer trew nor good, but nought and false fro the begynnyng. And in this mater wherof god hath not so fully [...] vnto men the certeynte, that we be preasely bounden to the [...] of eyther other parte / euery man ys at lybertye to byleue whyther parte that hym selfe thynketh moost lykely by naturall reason and scripture.

¶ And therfore though some good holy men and sayntes haue thought that Iudas was neuer good, but y ^t our sauyour toke hym to his apostle, and so kepte hym in all hys masyee styll, for thaccomplysshement of the great mystery of hys passyon, well [Page] vsyng therby y ^e euyll of man, as [...] euyll vseth the goodnes of god: yet thynketh me that as Theophylactꝰ sayth, and saynt Cyrill, & saint Chri­sostome [...]. 4. ca. 30 in [...]. [...]. [...]. to, Iudas was ones very good whan our lorde dyd chese hym for his apostle, and was at that tyme geuyn vnto Cryst by his father. For profe wherof that godly cunnynge [...] M. [...], well bryngeth in y ^e [...]. wordes of our sauyour hym selfe, sayenge to his father a lytle after his [...]. 17 maundye finished: ‘Them that thou haste geuen vnto me I haue kepte, & none of them hath perysshed but the [...] of perdycyō.’ Which he ment by Iudas beyng than yet alyue in body by nature, but dede in soule by dedely synne. Hym our lord toke vnto hym for hys apostle whyle he was good / and not of the comen sorte of good men but also very specyall good as [Page ciii] these holy doctours do diuine & gesse.

¶ And though Cryste foresaw the wrechednes that he wolde after fall to: yet wolde he not forbere y ^e ryght order of iustyce, but take hym in such degre for the tyme, as hys present goodnes of good congruēs deserued For beynge at that tyme more mete for thoffyce of an apostle thā another mā / if Cryst shold haue reiected him as vnworthy & vnmete, for the fawt y ^t hym self knew he wold after do, to ward which fawte he was at y ^t tyme nothynge mynded: thā shold he haue reproched hym at suche tyme as he was not worthy to be reproched. And than were it some what lyke, as yf a man bycause he maketh hym selfe very sure that hys wyfe and hys chylderne wyll one tyme or other not fayle to dysplease hym after­warde at some one tyme or other, be [Page] angry therfore wyth thē all, & [...] them and bete them byfore. Our sa­uyour therfore whan Iudas was very good, after suche rate of good­nesse as is in mortall men, toke hym and promoted hym to the offyce and dygnyte of hys owne apostle after that order of iustyce / by whych he re wardeth one man aboue another af­ter the rate of theyr merytes, and yet euery man of them all farre aboue al hys merytes.

¶ Now whan he was afterwarde thorow couetyce waxed nought / yet our lorde kepte hym styll, and wolde not by takynge hys offyce from hym dysclose his secrete falsed, and putte hym to shame / but vsed many other meanes to mende hym, and kepe ther with the honestye of hys name / not lettynge to procure hys amendemēt on hys parte though he well knewe [Page ciiii] the wreche wolde neuer amende vp­pon hys parte.

¶ But lyke wyse as though a man haue an incurable syknes, it yet becō ­meth the physycyon all the tyme that he lyueth therwyth, to do hys parte styll to ward the curynge therof: so bycame it our saunour to do it as he dyd, and not to leue of or slake hys goodnes to warde the cure and amen dement of the mannys incurable malyce.

¶ For though Iudas was wyth all that goodnes of Cryste vsed vnto hym, not onely nothynge the better, but also very farre the worse, & fell farre the deper into deth and dampna cyon: yet syth there came of his tray­torouse delynge none harme, but vn­to. Crist whose goodnes was for our well very gladde to suffre it, and vn­to the traytour hym selfe and suche [Page] other as wylfully wolde deserue it: it had ben neyther ryght nor reason, that for to saue them from hell that nedes wolde walke in to it, he sholde haue lefte any of hys goodnesse and sufferaunce vndone, wherby he pro­cured the saluacyō of so many thou­sandes as sholde be saued by his byt ter passyon.

¶ And mych more reason it was, y ^t our sauyour shold haue respecte and regard / to procure the blysse of those that sholde be saued, than to care for the payne of those that shold be dāp­ned. For it had ben (as it semeth) not consonaunt vnto ryght, yf our lorde sholde for auoydynge of theyr payne y ^t for all his callynge backe to the cō ­trary wold yet wyllingly rūne forth into dampnacyon: haue kept awaye the reward of blysse fro them y ^t wold with hys helpe deserue it.

[Page cv]¶ And therfore our lorde as I saye toke Iudas and made hym his apo­stle, beynge very good / and after had longe pacyence wyth hym whyle he was very nought, [...] that thorow his imedicable malyce he fell of hym selfe, and so was cast out and perys­shed. But by his peryshynge our sa uyour loste not but wan. For of hys euyll came there mych more good, & hys owne place of apostleshyp was [...]. 1. afterwarde fulfylled wyth saynte Mathy.

¶ And in lyke wyse the other dyscy­ples that departed now, whych were (as saynt Chrisostom sayth and as y ^e Crisosto. hom. 46. in [...]. gospell semeth also to saye) all that than were present saue onely hys. xii. apostles, and were as saynt Austayn sayth in nomber aboue thre score and tenne: all they loste them selfe whan they wyllyngly lost theyr sauyour.

[Page]And he founde better to succede in theyr places. For soone after in the Luce. 10 stede of those thre score and tenne, he chose other thre score and tenne dyscy ples as I before shewed you, whom Math. 10 he sent about to preche as he had sent his. xii. apostles before.

¶ And vnto Iudas yet at this pre­sent tyme he gaue a secrete warnyng that he myghte well wytte that hys noughtynesse was knowen, whyche thynge myghte make hym the lesse bolde to synne / and yet he dysclosed hym not openly, bycause he wold not shame hym, and therby make hym happely shamelesse, as many suche wreches waxe / and after that, synne the more boldely.

The. xxv. chapyter.

THys worde also so spoken to Chrisosto. hom. 46. in [...]. all twelue, was (as saynt Chri sostom sayth and saynt Cyrill [Page cvi] both) a meruefouse goodly warnyng for them all. These are lo the worde of saynt Cyrill. [...]. 4. ca. 30 super [...].

‘¶ Our lord here with sharpe wordes confermyth his apostles and maketh [...] the more dylygent, by puttyng before theyr eyen the perell of theyr ruyne. For thys he semeth to saye vn­to them. O my dyscyples, mych nede haue you to vse mych watche & great study about your saluacyon. The waye of perdicyon is very slyper, and not onely wythdraweth a feble mynd from thynkynge of theyr fall, by ma­kynge them to forgette them self, but also somtyme deceyueth thē by vayn delectacyon and pleasure that are of mynde very fyrme and stronge. And that thys tale ys trewe that I nowe tell you, you may se well prouyd, not by thensample onely of them that are gone abacke, but amonge your selfe also that tary and dwell styll wyth me. For I haue you wote wel chosen [Page] you twelue as good, well knowynge that in dede you were so. For I was not ignoraunt / but beynge god (as I am) very well knew your hartes.’

‘How be it the deuyll hath deceyued one of yon with auaryce, and so pul­lyd hym awaye. For a man is a free creature, and may chose his waye as he wyll, eyther on the ryght hand or ellys on the lefte yf he wyll.’

‘¶ Our lord therfore maketh them all the more vygylant, bycause that who shuld betraye hym he doth not expres by name. But tellynge theym all in a generalty / y ^t one of them shold worke suche wyckednesse, he made them all stonde in feare. And by that horrour and drede, lyfted them vp to more vygylaunt dylygence.’

¶ Here haue you herd good reders the wordes of saynt Cyrill. Now shall ye somwhat here what sayeth laynt Crysostome.

[Page cvit] ‘¶ whan saynt Peter sayd, we byleue: our sauyour not causeles, out of the in [...]. nomber of them excepted Iudas and sayd: haue not I chosen you twelue & one of you ys a deuyll. This thyng he sayd to remoue the traytour larre from hys malyce. And where he saw that nothynge dyd auayle hym / yet he went about styll to do wel for him And se the wysedome of Chryste / for neyther wolde he bewraye hym, nor let hym lurke vntowched. The one, leste he sholde haue waxed shameles and swere naye / the tother leste we­nynge that none were ware, he shuld be the bolder in myschyefe.’

‘¶ And afterwarde thys in effecte he sayth. It is not the custome of god by force to make mē good whether they wyll or no nor in his eleccion he [...] not folkes by vyolence, but by good aduyce and mocyon. And that ye may well perceiue that his calling is no constraynt of necessyte, meny [Page] whom he calleth do wyllyngly for all his callyng perysh. And therfore it is euydent, that in our owne wyll is the power sette to chose whyther we wyll be saued or loste. By these admonys­syons therfore, lette vs labour to be sober and vigylant. For yf Iudas which was one of the nomber of that holy company of thapostles, he that had opteyned so great a gifte, he that had done myracles (for Iudas hym selfe was sent amonge other to cure the lepres, and rayse vp dede men to lyfe) after that he was ones fallen in to the greuous dysease of auaryce: neyther the benefites, nor the gyftes, nor the company of Chryste, nor the seruyce, nor the wasshyng of the lete, nor the felosshyppe of hys own bord, nor the trust in kepynge of the purse, any thyng auayled hym / but all these thynges were wyth hym a passage & awaye to his ponyshement.’

Lo good reders, here haue ye herd [Page cviii] bothe by saynt Cyrill & saynt Chry­sostome, that our sauyour gaue that secrete warnyng of Iudas falshed, and sayed that one of the twelue was adeuyll, to the entēt that all folke of what holynesse so euer they were, such stand euer in drede and fere / and not do as these heretykes teche, vpon boldnes of any felynge fayth or fy­nall eleccyon, presume them selfe so sure of saluacyon / but that whyse Iudas fell after to naught y ^t was onys a holy apostle, there shall no fe­lynge fayth nor prowde hope vppon fynall eleccyon, sette any man in hys owne harte so sure, but that with hys good hope he shall all waye couple some feare, as a brydyll & abytte to refrayne and pull hym backe, leste he fall to myschyefe, and folow Iudas in falshed, & waxe a deuyll as Cryst called hym. Whyche name our sauy­our [Page] gaue him not without good cause For y ^t deuyllys seruaūt (sayth saynt Cyril) is a deuyll to. For lyke wyse as he y ^t is by godly vertues ioyned vnto god, is one spyryt wyth god / so he that is with deuylysshe vyces ioy­ned wyth the deuyll, is one spyryte wyth hym.

¶ And therfore good readers, he y ^t in suche plyght receyueth the blessed sacrament wythout purpose of amen dement, or wythout the fayth and by lyefe, that the very flesshe & bloude of Chryste is in it: he receyueth as saynt Austayne sayth notwythstan­dyng his noughtynesse y ^e very fleshe and bloude of Cryst, the very pryce of our redempciō. But he receyueth them to hys harme as Iudas dyd, & eateth and drynketh hys owne iuge­ment & dampnacyon (as sayth saynt 1. [...]. 11 Poule) bycause he discerneth not our [Page clx] lordes body. But who so doth on the tother syde (whych I besech god we may all do) caste out the deuyll & hys wurkes by the sacrament of penaūce and than in the memory all & remem­braūce of Chrystes passyon, receyue that blessed sacrament / wyth tre we fayth and deuocyon wyth all honour and wurshyppe, as to the reuerence of Crystes blessed person present in it apperteyneth: they that so receyue the blessed sacrament, verily receyue and eate the blessed body of Cryst / & that not onely sacramētally, but also effectually / not onely the fygure, but the thynge also / not onely his blessed fleshe in to theyr bodyes, but also his holy spyryte into theyr soules, by par tycypacyon wherof he is incorporate in them & they in hym & be made lyue­ly membres of his mysticall body the [Page] congregaciō of all sayntes / of which theyr soules shall (yf they perseuer) attayne y ^e fruit & fruicyō clene & pure onys purged after thys transytory lyfe / and theyr flesh also shall Cryst resuscytate vnto the same glory, as hym selfe hath promysed. Of whych hys gracyous promyse, hys hyghe grace and goodnesse so vouche saue to make vs all perteners thorow the merytes of hys bytter passyō. Amē.

¶ And thus ende I good readers my fyrst boke, conteynyng thexposy­cyon of those wordes in the syxte cha pyter of saynte Iohn̄, wherby you may bothe perceyue by these myndes of holy sayntes, whose wordes I bryng forth, the trewth of our fayth concernynge the blessed body & bloud of Chryst veryly eaten in the blessed sacrament, and may also perceyue and controlle the wyly false folyshe [Page cx] exposycyon of mayster Masker to the contrary, suche as haue hys boke, and they be not a fewe. And yet that all men may se that I neyther blame hym for nought, nor bylye hym, I shall in my secunde boke she we yous as I promy­sed, some part of hys fawte both in fals­hed and in foly, & his own wordes therwyth.

The. i. chapyter.

I haue good reders ī my fyrst boke here before perused you thexposicyon of all that part of y ^e syxte chapyter of saynte Iohn̄, which may­ster Masker hath expowned you be­fore. And in the begynnyng of thys exposicyō, I haue not brought you forth the worde of any of the olde ex­positours, bycause y ^t (as I suppose) myne [...] wyll not mych [...] tende wyth me for so farre. But af­terwarde concernyng those wordes in which our sauyour expressely spe­keth of the geuyng of his very flesh & bloud to be veryly eaten & drōken, there haue I brought you forth such authorytees of olde holy doctours & sayntes, y ^t ye may well se bothe that [Page cxi] I fayne you not the mater but ex­powne it you ryght / & also ye se ther­by clerely, that mayster Masker ex­powneth it wrong. For though a man may dyuersly expoune one texte and bothe well: yet whan one expowneth it in one trewe maner, of a false pur­pose to exclude another trouth that is in that wrytynge by the spyryte of god [...] and immedyately ment, his exposvcyon is false all though euery worde were trewe, as mayster Mas kers is not.

¶ And therfore syth you se myne ex posycion proued you by excellēt holy men, and by theyr playne wordes, ye perceyue that the wordes of our sa­uyour hym self do proue agaynst all these [...], the catholyke fayth of Crystes catholyke chyrche very faythfull and tre we, concernyng the very flesshe of Cryste veryly eaten [Page] in the blessed sacrament / of whyche eatynge mayster Masker wold with his exposycyon make men so madde, as to wene y ^t Cryst spake nothynge at all: now I say by thys exposycyō of myne ye se his exposycyō auoyded clerely for nought, and all the mater clere vpon our parte, though no man wrote one worde more.

¶ And yet wyll I for all that, for y ^t ferther declaracyon of mayster Mas kers handelynge, she we you some peices of thexposycyō in specyall, by whych ye maye clerely se what cre­dence may be geuē to the man, eyther for honesty, or lernynge, vertue, [...] or trouth.

The. ii. chapyter.

IN the begynnynge of the second lefe of hys boke, these are may­ster Maskers wordes.

[Page cxii] ‘¶ Consyder what thys meate is whyche he bad thē here prepare and seke fore, sayenge: worke take paynes and seke for that meate &c. and thou [...] se it no nother meate than the bylyefe in chryst.’

‘Wherfore he concludeth that thys meate so often mencyoned is fayth. Of the whyche meat sayth the prophete, the iufte lyueth. Fayth in hym is therfore the meate whiche chryst prepareth and dresseth, so purely powderynge and spycyng it wyth spyrytual allegoryes in all thys chapyter folowynge, to geue vs euerlasiynge lyfe thorow it.’

¶ I wyll not laye these wordes to hys charge as heresye / but I wylbe bolde by hys lycence to note in them a lytle lacke of wytte, and some good store of foly. For though a man may well and wyth good reasō, call fayth a meate of mannys soule: yet is it great foly to saye, that the meate that Chryst speketh of here ys (as may­ster Masker sayth it is) none other meate but fayth.

¶ For mayster Masker maye play­nely se, and is not I suppose so poore blynde, but that he seeth well in dede [Page] that the meate whych Cryst speketh of here, is our sauyour Cryste hym selfe. Whyche thynge he so playnely speketh, that no man can mysse to per ceyue it / whan he saith, ‘I am my self the brede of lyfe. And whan he sayth, I am the lyuely brede that am descen ded frō heuyn, he that eateth of this brede shall lyue for euer.’ And whā he sayth also. That y ^e meat shold be hys owne fleshe (whyche promyse he per­formed after at his maundye) whych thynge he tolde them playne in these wordes, ‘And the brede which I shall geue you is my flesshe. And he that eateth my flesshe and drynketh my bloude, hath euerlastyng lyfe, and I shall resuscytate hym in the last day.’ And whan he sayed, ‘My flessh is ve­ryly meate.’

¶ Thus you se good readers how ofte & how playnly that he declareth [Page cxiii] that the meate whiche he speketh of here, is hym selfe. And now sayth mayster Masker very solemynely, & with authoryte byddeth euery man marke it well and consyder it, that y ^e meate that Cryste speketh of here is nothynge ellys but [...].

¶ And vpon what colour saith may ster Masker [...] bycause (sayth he) that our lorde bode them labour and wurke for the meate that wolde not peryshe but abyde into euerlastynge lyfe / and afterward tolde them that the wurk of god by which they shold wurke & labour for that meate, was nothynge ellys but fayth and bylyef in hym.

¶ Fyrste in thys construccyon may­ster Masker lyeth very large. For though Cryst sayd, that to byleue in hym was the wurke of god / he sayde not (as mayster Masker maketh it) [Page] that nothynge ellys was the [...] of god but onely bylyefe.

¶ But now suppose that Cryst had sayd as mayster Masker wold make it seme, that is to wyt that the wurke of god were nothynge ellys but the bylyefe: yet ye se well good readers that Cryst in sayeng that the bylyefe in hym is the wurke by whyche they shall wurke to gete the meate, sayth that the bylyefe is the meane to gete the meate, and not that the bylyefe is the meate.

¶ But mayster Masker bycause y ^t bylyefe is the waye to this meate, therfore he calleth the bylyefe the meate / as wysely as though he wold call the kynges strete Westmynster chyrche, bycause it is the way [...] yf he come from charing crosse And bycause men must spyrytually eate thys meate with fayth: therfore [Page cxiiii] he calleth the fayth the meate as wy sely as yf he wold, bycause he eateth his meate wyth his mowth, therfore call his mowth his meate. what wyt hath thys man?

¶ But now wyll mayster Masker wax angry with my wordes, and call me M. mokke as he dothe onys or twyse in hys boke.

¶ But now good readers I wyll not adiure you by godde holy names to iudge iustely / but euyn onely de­syre you that in waye of good com­pany, that you wyll say but euyn in­dyfferently. Were it not wene you great pytye that a man sholde mokke mayster Masker, whan euery fole maye perceyue hym in so great a ma­ter wryte so wysely?

¶ And yet you maye se that I dele wyth hym very gentylly. For in thys poynt wherin by cōtraryeng of Cri­stes [Page] own wordes he wryteth playne heresye / I minyshe his bordē of that odiouse cryme / & bycause the mater in thys place so serueth me, do couer the both of his [...] heresye, with this prety plaster of his pleasaūt frenesie

¶ And yet I wene the man hath so lytle honesty, that he wyll neuer can me thanke for my curtesye / specyally bycause that (as farre as I can se) the man had leuer confesse hym selfe an heretyke, than be proued a fole.

And that appereth well in this. For this lytell scabbe of hys foly he labo reth somwhat to hyde and couer, so that a man muste pull of the clowte ere he can spye the boche. But as for y ^e boch of hys cancred heresyes with out any clowt or plaster he laieth out abrode to shewe, to begge withall a­monge the blessed bretherne as beg­gers laye theyr fore legges out in [Page cxv] fyght that lye a beggynge a frydays aboute saynt sauyour and at y ^e. Sauy gate.

¶ But as for raylynge agaynst ima ges, purgatory, and [...] to sayn tes, and agaynst the holy canō of the masse: all this he taketh for tryfles / and wolde we sholde reken all these heresyes of his for poyntes well and suffycyently proued by that that he goth so boldely forth on biyond them & denyeth the blessed body of Cryste it selfe in the blessed sacrament to.

And where as he not onely mokketh and iesteth agaynst the olde [...] and sayntes of [...] ca­tholyke chyrche, but agaynste oure sauyour hym selfe in hys holy sa­crament to: yet the sage sad ercnest holy mā all made of grauite, sadnes, and seueryte, must hym selfe be reue rently reasoned with / & may haue no [Page] mokke of his, matched wyth no mery worde of myne in no maner wyse.

¶ But yet lyke as yf a ryght greate man wolde wantonly walke a mum­mynge, and dysguyse hym selfe, and with nyce appareyle dyssemble. hys personage, and with a fonde visour hydde and couer his visage, he muste be content to be taūted of euery good felow that he meteth, as merely as hym selfe lyste to ieste wyth them: so tyll mayster Masker here put of his maskers visour, and shewe forth his owue venerable visage, that I may se hym such an honorable personage, as it may become hym to saye to me what he lyste, and me to requyte hys mockes with no mery worde in this world, but stande styll demurely and make hym lowe curtesy agayne, I wyll not let in y ^e meane tyme, whyle I wote nere what he is, and whyle [Page cxvi] his wytteles wrytynge maketh men wene he were a wylde gose, to be so bolde and homely wyth his mayster­shyp (as sory as I am for hym whā he playeth the blasphemouse beste) to laugh yet & make mery wyth hym where I se hym playe the fole.

¶ Yet wyll I now lette passe his re pugnaunce, another foly of hys. For yf euer he defende his foly y ^t I haue shewed you / than shall he be fayne to declare his repugnaunce hym selfe. And therfore I leue that poynte for hym selfe, that in defendyng his foly he maye shew his repugnaunce / and so for defence of a syngle foly, proue hym selfe thryes a fole, fyrst in wry­tynge foly, secundly in wrytynge re­pugnaunce, thyrdly to be so folysshe [...] in defēce of that one foly, to bryng in the totherto.

¶ Makynge therfore for thys tyme [Page] no senger tale of his folyes, whiche wold make myne answere ouer long to brynge them in all / let vs se some pyece of his fruytefull exposycyon.

The. iii. chapyter.

IN the seconde lefe these are his wordes,

‘I am the brede of lyfe, and who so come to me that is to saye, who so is gryffed and ioyned to me by fayth, shall neuer honger, that is who so byleue in me is satissyed. It is fayth therfore that stann­cheth this honger and thyrste of the soule. Fayth it is therfore in Cryst that fylleth our hungry hartes, so that we can desyre no nother yf we ones thus eate and drynk hym by fayth / that is to say yf we byleue his fleshe and body to haue ben broken, and hys bloude shedde for out synnes, for thā are our sowles satysfyed and we be iustyfyed.’

¶ The worde of Chryst good rea­der with which he begynneth, is well and fully fulfylled, yf it be vnderstā den as I haue before declared, that is to wytte, that who so come onys by well workynge fayth, and perse­ueraunce [Page cxvii] therin, vnto the meate that is Chryste, and attayne the possessy ō and fruicion of hym in blysse, he shall neuer hunger nor thyrste after.

And bysydes this, dyuers good holy doctours expoune these wordes of y ^t eatynge of our sauyour in the blessed sacrament also.

¶ But surely I byleue that it wyll be very harde for mayster Masker to veryfye the wordes of his holy ex posycyon / ye scant of some such piece therof as semeth at the fyrste syghte well layed as where he sayth y ^t fayth so fylleth our hungry hartes, and so stauncheth the hunger and thurst of our soule, that we be satysfyed.

¶ For I suppose that men are not sa tisfied here, neyther with faith alone, nor with fayth and hope and cheryte to / but yet they hunger and thurste Eccle. 24. styll. For as oure sauyour sayth, [Page] He that drynketh me shall yet thyrst styll, & lōge sore as he drynketh hym in grace, so to drynke hym in glory.

¶ But than tēpereth mayster Mas ker hys wordes of neuer thurstyng, with that that he sayth, that yf we eat and drynke god by fayth, we shall ne uer hunger nor thyrste / but we be sa­tisfyed / for the fayth so fylleth oure hungry hartys, that we can desyre none other thynge, yf we ones thus eate him & drynke hym by fayth. And than what it is to eate hym & drynke hym by fayth, he forthwith decla­reth as for the whole somme and ex posycyon of fayth and sayth.

‘That is to say yf we byleue his fleshe and hys body to haue ben broken, and hys bloude shedde for our synnes, for than are our sowles satysfyed and we be iustyfyed.’

¶ Lo here youse good readers that he sayth that who so byleueth thys, here is all that nedeth. For he that [Page cxviii] thus byleueth is iustyfied, and eateth and drynketh Cryst, and so his soule satysfyed / bycause he that so eateth hym ones, can neuer after hūger nor thyrst. And why? For he can desyre none other thynge

¶ Fyrste I wene that all menne are not agreed, that he y ^t longeth for none other thing, is not a thurst / if he long styll for more of the same. For if a man drynke apynt of ale / though he foūde hym selfe so well contēt ther­with, that he do not desyre neyther bere, wyne nor water / yet if his appe tyte be not so fully satisfied, but that he wold fayne of the same ale, drynk a quarte more, some man wolde saye he were a drye soule & were a thyrste agayne.

¶ But now yf this man ment any good in this mater, and wolde saye y ^t who so so eateth god as he hath hym [Page] well incorporated in hym, shall so ha­ue his hunger and his thurste slaked, that he shall not hunger and thurste after the pleasure of hys body, nor after the goodes & ryches; nor after the pompe and pryde of this wreched worlde: I wolde haue suffred hym go forth with his exposicyō, and not haue interrupted it. And yet it coulde not (ye wote well) haue well & fully serued for the texte, syth the texte is, he shall neuer hunger nor thurste, which signyfyeth a takynge awaye of desyre and longynge. And by this exposicyon though there be taken a waye the desyre & longyng for other thinges / yet remaineth there a desyre and longynge for more and more of the same.

¶ But yet I wolde as I say haue lette it passe by and wynke therat, yf he ment none harme therin. But [Page cxix] now comech he after and declareth by ensample, what he meneth by this his sayenge, that he that eateth and drynketh god by byleuynge that he dyed for our synnes, shall thurst and hunger for none other. For he sayth, ‘He shall desyre none other, he shal not seke by nyght to lone another byfore whome he wolde laye hys gryefe, he shall not runne wanderyng here and there to seke dede stockes and stones.’

¶ [...] good readers here is thende of all thys holy mannys purpose / for which he draweth y ^e worde of Cryst from the very thyng that Cryst prin cypally spake of, vnto another spyry tuall vnderstandynge, in turnyng the meate that Cryst spake of, that is to wytte the meate of his owne blessed person, his godhed, and his manhed bothe, in to the meate of fayth, to the entēt that vnder the pretexte of pray­syng y ^e trew fayth, he myght bryng in slily his very false wreched heresies, [Page] by whiche he wolde haue no prayour made vnto sayntes, nor theyr pilgry mages sought, nor honour done them at theyr images.

¶ It is euident and playne that our sauyour ment in this place to speke vnto the Jewes, neyther agaynste images nor sayntes / but rather a­gaynste the sensuall appetyte y ^t they had to the fillynge of theyr belyes with bodily meate / the inordinate de­syre wherof made them the lesse apte and mete for spiritual fode. And ther [...] he bode them that they sholde lesse care for that peryshable meate, and labour and wurk to wynne faith by prayour, and by faith to come to hym. And bycause they so myche ha­ted and fered hunger and thurste, he wolde geue them hym selfe for theyr meate his very fleshe and bloude, ve cily here to eate, not deade but quicke [Page cxx] with soule and godhed therwith in this worlde / whiche yf they wolde well eate here, with a well wurkyng faith, he wolde geue them the same, so in another worlde, that than shold they neuer haue thurste nor hunger after.

¶ And he ment not that they sholde neuer whan they had ones receyued hym, thurste nor hunger after in this present worlde / in whiche byside that they must bothe hunger and thurste, or elles be euer eatyng and drynking to preuent theyr hunger and thurste, bysyde this I saye they shall hunger and thurste styll after god, yf they be good.

¶ Now yf men wyll saye that the payne of that hunger and thurste is takē away with hope, which greatly gladeth the harte: surely they that neyther hunger nor thurst for heuyn, [Page] nor care how longe they be thense so that they maye make mery here the whyle, and yet haue an hope that they shal haue heuē to whā they go hens, they fele in theyr faynt hope neyther great pleasure nor payn. But he that hopeth well of heuen, and not onely hopeth after it, but also [...] thyrsteth for it, as dyd saynt Poule whan he Philip. 1. sayd I longe to be dyssolued, that is to haue my soule losed and departed fro my body and to be wyth Cryste / such a man so, as he findeth pleasure in his hope, so fyndeth he payne in the delaye of his hope. For as Salamon Prouer. 13 sayth. The hope that is dyffered and delayed, payneth and afflycteth the soule. But whan men shall with [...] eatynge of thys meate of Chrystes blessed person, make thē mete to eate it, and shall eate it by very fruicyon in heuyn / than all though they shall [Page cxxl] neuer be fastidyouse or wery therof, but as they shall euer haue it, so shall euer desyre it(so that of y ^t state maye be sayd also, he that drynketh me shal yet thyrste) yet bycause they shall not onely alwaye desyre it, but also alwaye haue it, and so by the conty­nuall euerlastynge hauynge therof theyr euerlastyng desyre euerlasting­ly fulfylled, theyr desyre shall euer be wythout any gryefe and payne, & euer full of euerlastynge pleasure / so that of y ^t state onely the prophete Dauyd sayth: I shalbe saciate or sa­tysfied, Psal. 16. whan thy glory shall appere.

¶And this ment here our sauioure Chryste / and not that a man shall by his fayth be fully satysfyed in this wreched worlde, and neuer hunger nor thyrste after here, as mayster Masker maketh here by his exposy­cyon, in turnyng y ^e saturyte of heuyn [Page] into a saturyte in this lyfe / and tur­nynge the very meate of Chrystes blessed person, into the onely bylyefe of Chrystes bytter passyon / & than bryngeth all in conclusyon to thauan­synge of his heresye agaynst the blessed sayntes / as though Chryste in those wordes hadde ment to speke a­gaynst the honourynge of his sayntꝭ, wherwith he was so well content, y ^t Math. 29 he promysed saynt Mary Mawde­leyn a perpetuall honour in erth, for her deuocyon towarde hym in be­stowynge her costely glasse of oynte­ment vppon hym / and promysed his Math. 19 twelue apostles the honour of.xii. seates, to sytte with hym in iudgemēt vppon the worlde, for the dyshonour and penury that they sholde sustayne for hym before in the worlde.

The. iiii. chapyter.

ANd se nowe good reader also, howe myche pestylent poyson mayster Masker hath in thys pyece of his exposycyon put here, by this one syllable onys.

¶ For it is not inough to hym to say, that who so eate Chryste by fayth shall neuer hunger (whiche wordes he myghte expoune by perseueraūce and abydynge styll wyth hym after his onys comynge to hym, as Cryst meneth by his) but he sayth who so come to hym by fayth onys, he shall neuer hunger nor thyrst. And yet this worde onys, is not there in the texte of Crystes wordes, but added by mayster Masker in his glose.

¶ And yet if mayster Masker were a good catholyke man, I wolde not myche marke hys worde, onys.

[Page]But syth he she weth hym selfe wel, that he is of mayster Tindals secte, or is peraduenture mayster [...] hym selfe, one of whose false heresyesis, that who so haue ones y ^e fayth can neuer after fall therfrom, nor neuer fall after into dedly synne: therfore I can not let mayster Mas­kers onys, thys onys passe vnmar­kyd by me, by whyche he sayth / that who so come onys to Cryst by faith, that is to say sayth he, who so byleue onys that Crist suffered hys passion for our synnes, he shall neuer hunger nor thyrste / but that is he sayth to be vnderstanden that he shall neuer af­ter desyre none other.

¶ But now wolde I wht of may­ster Masker onys agayne, what he meaneth by this worde none other.

If he meane that no man that onys byleueth that Cryste suffred [...] [Page cxxiii] for vs, shall after at any tyme desyre any other sauiour, bysyde y ^t he sayth one false heresye in that word onys. (For that fayth maye be onys hadde and afterwarde loste agayne, as te­styfye [...]. 6. not onely all holy doctours & Roma. 11. 1. [...]. 10 the catholyke fayth, but the playne scrypture to) he hath in those wordes I saye bysyde that false heresye, a very false wyly foly. For the catho­lyke chyrche of chrystcndome whych he to wcheth in prayenge to sayntes & goynge in pylgrymages, do seke no saynt as theyr sauyour / but onely as them whom theyr sauyour loueth, & whose intercessyon and prayour for them he wylbe content to here, and whō for his sake he wold they sholde honour, & whom whyle for his sake they do honour, the honour that is done them for his sake, specyally re­downdeth to hym selfe / as hym selfe [Page] saith, he that hereth them hereth him, [...]. 10 and he that dyspiseth them dyspyseth hym, and in lyke wyse he that wur­shyppeth them for his sake wurshyp peth hym.

¶ Now yf mayster Masker wyll say that by these [...], who so onys byleueth that Chryste dyed for vs, shall neuer after desyre none other: he meneth that he shall so mynde and desyre euer after onely Chryst, that he shall not hunger nor thyrst nor de­syre after that any other thynge but god. Than syth mayster Masker in this boke of his, asketh me so many questyons, and saith so often, I aske mayster More this: mayster Mas­ker muste of reason geue M. More leue to aske Mayster masker some questyons agayne.

¶ Nowe myghte I aske hym ye se well, whyther he that hath had onys [Page cxxiiii] that bylyefe, sholde neuer after in suche wyse be an hungred, that he sholde desyre his dyner. But than wold mayster masker cal me maister Mokke, & say that it were but a scof­fynge questyon. And yet out of all questyon that same scoffing questyon wold quyte ouerthrow his ernest ex­posycyō. But now bycause I wyll not angre hym, I wyll lette that scof fyng question go, & I wyll aske hym now another maner thynge `a thynge of y ^t wayght & grauite, that it wayeth some sowlys downe vnto y ^e depe pyt of hell. For yf mayster masker be mayster Tyndale, than wyll I aske hym whyther he beyng a preste, desy red none other thyng but onely god, whan synnys y ^t he sayd he had onys that bylyefe, he hath beynge a preste brokē his promyse made onys to god & gone ofter than onys a woynge.

[Page]¶ And yf mayster Masker be may­ster [...] Ioy / than wold I aske hym whyther that after that bylyefe onys hadde, he desyred nothynge but god, whan beynge a preste he brake his promyse to god / and wedded a wydowe, and by such weddynge ne­uer made her wyfe, but made her a prestys harlotte.

¶ If mayster Maysker be neyther of these twayn, yet syth what so euer he be, he is a dyscyple of Luther and [...] Huyskyn both (as contrary­ouse as they be both eche of them to other) I shall aske hym than, why­ther bothe his maysters beynge both professed frerys, and hauynge bothe vowed perpetuall chastyte to god, dyd after that fayth onys had, neuer after desyre any other thynge but onely god, not than whan they brake bothe theyr solempne vowys made [Page cxxv] vnto god, and ran out of relpgyone and wedded, the tone a single womā, the tother a nonne, and made theym frerys harlottes bothe? dyd not than frere Luther and frere Huyskyn bothe contrary to mayster Maskers wordes, desyre another, and eche of them go seke by nyght to loue ano­ther, byfore whom he wolde lay his gryefe? what answere shal mayster Masker make M. More to thys? he muste eyther confesse agaynste hys owne exposicyon, that after that by­lyefe had onys, his owne maysters the archeretykes them selfe, thyrsted in the desyre of some other thyng be­syde god, or els muste he fall to blas­phemy and call a frerys harlot god, or saye that for goddys sake they wedded, and than for hys sake they wedded agaynste hys wyll, or ellys afferme finally that the maysters of [Page] hys fayth had neuer the faith yet, not the selfe same fayth that they teche. And why sholde any man than be so madde to gyue eare to suche berety­kes, & byleue theyr faythlesse talys?

The. v. chapyter.

NOw handelynge hys exposy­cyon and his doctryne of faith not onely thus falsely but also thus folyshely to, as ye do now perceyue: yet as though he hadde wonderfull wysely declared some hygh heuenly mysteryes that neuer man had herde of byfore, in y ^e fourth lefe he bosteth his great cunnynge in cōparyson of myne and sayth.

Had mayster more [...] vnderstanden [...] sentence, who so byleue in me hath lyfe euerlastyng, and knowen what Paule with the other [...] preched, especyally Paule beynge a yere & an halfe amonge the Lorinthyes, determynynge not neyther presumynge, not to haue knowen any other thynge to be preched them (as hym selfe sayth) then [...] Cryste, and that he was crucyfyed: had M. More vnderstoden this poynt, he sholde neuer thus [...] Cryste and his suffycyent scryptures, [Page cxxvi] [...] haue so belyed his euangelystes and holy a­postles, as to faye they wrote not all thynges neces­sarye for our saluacyon, but lefte out thynges of ne­cessyte to be beleued / makynge goddes holy testa­ment insuffycyent and imperfyte, fyrste reueled vnto our fathers, wryten efte sonys by Moyses and then by hys prophytes, and at the laste wryten bothe by his holy euangelystes and apostles to. But turne we to [...] agayne and let More mocke styll & lye to.

¶ Had maister Masker vnderstā ­den the selfe same shorte sentence of Cryst y ^t he speketh of, & had mayster masker well vnderstanden also the tother short sentence of saynt Poule y ^t he now to wcheth / & after those two textes well vnderstanden, had loked vpon his own boke agayne: he wold rather haue eaten his owne boke but yf he be shamelesse, thā euer haue let any man se his false foly for shame.

¶ For fyrst as for the fyrst text to w­chyng the brede & the bylief, his false & folysh hādelyng ye perceyue more than playn, in y ^t he sayth it is nothyng but fayth, where Chryste sayth it is hym selfe.

[Page]¶ Now the place that he to wcheth of saynt Pouse in hys fyrste pystle to the Corynthyes, I meruayle me mych to se the madnesse of this Mas ker, that bryngeth it forth for his pur pose here. For as you se, he meneth to make men wene, that by that place it were proued agaynst my confuta­cyon, that thapostles left no necessa­ry thynge vnwryten.

¶ Now of any other apostle ye se well he bryngeth not one worde for y ^t purpose of his, nor of saynt Pouse neyther, but this one place / whyche place syth he bryngeth forth for the profe of theyr heresye, that there is nothynge necessaryly to be byleued but yf it may be proued by playne and euydent scripture: it appereth playn that mayster Masker there mysse ta­keth saynt Pouse, and weneth that he preched nothyng to them of Crist [Page cxxvii] but onely hys passyon. For ellys he myghte notwithstandynge the wor­des of that place, preche to them dy­uerse thynges of Cryst by mouth, & leue it with them by tradycyon with­out wrytyng to, whych neyther hym selfe nor none of his felowes neuer wrote any tyme after. And of trouth so he dyd, as I haue proued at length in my worke of Tyndals confuta­cyon. Of whiche thynges one is a­monge dyuerse other, the puttyng of the water with the wyne in y ^e chalyce whyche thynge Chryste dyd at his maundy whan he dyd instytute the blessed sacramēt / and after he taught the order therof to saynt Pouse hym selfe by his owne holy mouth / and saint Poule so taught it agayne to y ^e Corynthyes by mouth, and lefte it them fyrste by tradycion without any wrytynge at all. And whan he wrote [Page] vnto thē afterward therof, he wrote it rather (as it well appereth) vppon a certayne occasyon to put them in re membraūce of theyr dewty in doyng dew reuerence to it, bycause it is the very blessed body of god, than in that place to teche them the maser and the forme of consecratyng the sacramēt. For he had taught them that myche more fully before by mouth, than he doth there by that wrytyng. For as ye wote well though he tell thē there what it is whan they drynke it, that is to wyt the bloude of our lorde: yet he telleth them not there wherof they shall consecrate it. For he neyther na­meth wyne nor water. And yet sayth in the ende that at hys commynge to them agayne, he wyll set an order in all other thynges. And where wyll mayster Masker shew me all those thinge wrytē, & proue it to be al [...]

[Page cxxviii]¶ But here you se how madly may ster Masker vnderstandeth y ^t place of saynt Pouse, whan he taketh it in that wyse, that he wold therby proue vs that we were bounden to byleue no more but that Chryst dyed for vs.

¶ And of trouth you se that speking of fayth byfore, thys is his very con­clusyon. In whych whan I redde it and confuted it here now before: yet marked I not therin so myche as I do now. For though he sayed there, yf we onys eate hym and drynke hym by faith, that is to saye yf we hyleue hys flesshe and body to haue bene broken, and hys bloud shedde for our synnys, than are our sowlys satysfyed and we be instyfyed: I marked not as I say that he ment so madly as all men maye now se he meneth, that is to wytte that men be bounden to byleue nothyng ellys, but that Chryst was crucyfyed and dyed for our sinnes. Maister masker maketh vs a prety short crede now.

[Page]¶ But that he thus meneth in dede, he now declareth playnely, whan he wolde proue agaynste me that no ne­cessary thynge was lefte vnwryten, by those wordes of saynt Poule by which he wryteth to the Counthyes, 1. Corin. 2 that he preched nothynge amonge them but Iesus Chryste and that he was crucyfyed.

¶ And as mayster Masker mysse vnderstandeth those wordes of saint Poule: so I perceyue that longe be fore mayster Masker was borne, there were some suche other folys that mysse toke those wordes after y ^e same fonde fasshyon than / and ther­fore affermed y ^t aduowtry was no dedely synne / as these folyshe folke afferme now y ^t it is no dedely synne for a frere to wedde a nonne. And there argumēt was that yf auowtry had ben dedely synne, saynt Poule [Page cxxix] wolde haue preched that poynt vnto the Corynthyes. But he preched as hym self sayth in his pystle nothyng vnto them but Chryst and hym cru­cyfyed / and theruppon they conclu­ded y ^t auowtry was no dedely synne.

¶ But saynt Austayne answereth those folys and thys fole to, that he preched not onely Chrystes crucy­fyxion. For than had he lefte his re­surreccyon vnpreched, and his ascen cion to, which both we be bounden as well to byleue as his crucyfyxion, & many other thynges mo besyde. And therfore as saynt Austayne sayth to preche Chryste, is to preche bothe euery thynge that we must be boūde to byleue, and also euery thynge that we muste be bounden to do to come to Chryste. And not as those folys & this fole techeth, that we be iustifyed yf we byleue no more but onely that [Page] Chryste was crucifyed and dyed for our synnys.

¶ And whan mayster Masker saith y ^t by affermyng any necessary pointe to be lefte vnwryten in the scrypture I make goddes holy testament insuf fycyent and vnperfyte, for all that it was fyrst reueled vnto our fathers, and efte wryten by Moyses, & than by his prophetes, and at laste wryten bothe by his holy euangelystes and apostles to: to this I saye that god­des testament is not insufficyent nor imperfyte, though some necessary thynges be lefte out of the wrytyng. For I say that his testament is not the wrytyng onely, but all the whole thynge reueled by god vnto his chyr­che, and restynge and remaynynge therin, parte in wrytynge and parte without wrytynge styll, as it was all together fyrst without writing geuē. [Page cxxx] And se now good readers the wytte of mayster Masker in this worde of his. For yf I make the testament of god vnperfyt and insuffycyent, by­cause I saye y ^t some necessary poyn­tes therof be not yet wryten: dothe not he good readers say and afferme therby, that it was all together vn­perfyte & vnsufficyent, all the whyle that god taughte it hym selfe by his owne reuelacyon of spyryte, and that our sauyour taught it hym selfe by his own blessed mouth, tyll Moyses and the prophets & thapostles wrote it wyth the penne?

¶ And whan so euer that mayster Masker is able to proue that al these thynges whiche we be bounden to by leue more than that Chryst dyed for our synnys, are so fully wryten by Chrystes apostles, that they lefte none of them all vnwryten: whan he [Page] shall haue proued thys, let hym than come hardely and byd maister More mocke on and lye on to. But nowe whyle he sayeth so, so farre out of season: whyle my worke of Tyn­dalys confutycyon hath proued my parte so playnely, that neyther hym selfe nor all the heretikes of them all shall well auoide it whyle they lyue: now may mayster More be bolde to byd maister masker go mokke on and lye on to.

¶ And thys maye I nowe saye to mayster masker the more boldely, syth you se that he vnderstādeth not, or ellys wyllyngly mysconstre weth the place of thapostle that he bryn­geth forth hym selfe, & saynt [...] gospell to, and wolde make vs went that it were inough to saluacyon, to byleue no more but that Chryst was crucyfyed for our synnys. And than [Page cxxxi] sholde we not nede in dede to byleue that we sholde do penaunce for our synnys our selfe, nor to byleue the presence of Chryst in the blessed sa­crament neyther. Whych poynt they wolde haue now taken for indyffe­rent, and many necessary pointes mo. wherof mayster masker wolde take awaye the necessyte, bycause saynte Poule sayth he preched nothynge to the Corynthies but Chryst and hym to be crucyfyed. Which argument of mayster masker were not euyn very stronge, all though saynt Pouse had at that tyme preched them nothynge ellys, bycause he myght than haue bygonne wyth that, and preche them many mo thynges after, or sende it vnto them by wrytynge.

¶ But nowe wolde I fayne that mayster masker hadde gone a lytell ferther in the same pystle. For [...] [Page] within thre lynes after it foloweth, ‘My prechynge was not among you in persuasyble wordes of mannes wysdome.’

¶ these wordꝭ I laye not agaynst mayster Masker / for he kepeth hym selfe sure inough for that poynt, and is ware well inough that he speke no persuasyble worde of mannes wyse dome. But than sayth saynt Poule ferther. ‘But my prerhynge was a­monge you in shewyng of spyryt and of power, to thentent that your fayth shold not be in the wysedome of men, but in the power of god.’

¶ Here maye mayster Masker se that saynt Poule bycause he taught straunge doctryne, proued his doc­tryne not by subtyll phylosophycall reasonyng, nor by rethorike & goodly freshe eloquence, but by myracles & the myghty hand of god.

[Page cxxxii]¶ Nowe yf mayster Masker ther­fore wylde byleued / reason is that he do as saynte Pouse dyd, syth he tea­cheth as harde thynges & as straūge to chrystē men, and as farre agaynst the christen fayth as saynte Poule & the other apostles taughte eyther Iewes or Paynyms, thrnges hard and straunge & farre from y ^e fashyon of theyr false persuasion.

¶ For settynge asyde all the whole hepe of his other heresyes: this one that he setteth forth in this pestylent booke of his, agaynste our sauyour hym selfe in the blessed sacrament, is as straunge and as execrable in all good chrysten earys, and euer hath ben synnys Chrystes dayes, as euer was the prechyng of Chrystes god­hed amonge y ^e gentylys or y ^e Iewes eyther. And therfore yf he wyll loke to be byleued as saynt Poule was: [Page] reasō is that he do myracles as saint Poule dyd.

¶ If he saye that he nedeth not, for he proueth his doctrine by scrypture: therto fyrst we saye and saye trew, y ^t in his so sayeng he lyeth. And bysyde that we saye that though he proued his doctryne by scrypture in dede: yet syth it semeth to the whole chry­sten nacyons, that the scrypturs pro­ueth not his parte but the contrary, and so haue thought so longe / ther­fore as our sauyour hym selfe and his apostles after hym, whych by the scrypture proued theyr parte very truely to the Iewes, dyd yet for all that proue the trewth of theyr such exposycyon by myracles: so muste mayster masker proue his exposiciōs by myracles to be trewe. For ellys syth oure sauyour though he wolde not wurke myracles at euery man­nes [Page cxxxii] bydding, sayd yet of the Iewes, [...]. [...] that yf hym self had not done among them suche wurkes as no man ellys had done, theyr infydelyte sholde not haue ben imputed vnto theym: we maye well be bolde to say to mayster masker, that excepte he wurke myra cles to, he canne of reason blame no man, that in thexposycyon of holy scrypture beleueth better all the olde holy doctours and sayntes, and all the hole catholyke chyrche than hym.

¶ And therfore whyle mayster mas ker wolde seme to play saynt Poule & be an apostle here, to teche englyshe men a new faith as saynt Poule dyd the Corynthyes / and than techynge thynge as straunge & as vncredyble to christen men, as his were to the Paynims, & can not do myracles for his doctrine as saynt Poule dyd for his / but hath against him for our part [Page] suche a multitude of myracles, that for the profe of any one thynge there were neuer shewed so many / & whan maister Masker in stede of myracles proueth his exposycions of scripture so folyshe hym self and so false, that to suche as marke hym well he maye surely seme to mene nothynge ellys but to mokke: we may go forth in the mater, and let mayster Masker yet agayne mokke on styll and lye on to.

The. v. chapyter.

IN the thyrde lefe thus he sayth, And the cause of thys your blyndenesse is (& wyll not say ouer hardly to yow) that the fa­ther hath not drawen you into the knowledge of me or ellys ye had receyued me. For all that the father geueth me must come to me.

¶ Mayster maskers exposycyon of these wordes (I wyll not saye ouer hardely to hym) is I promyse you good readers very bare, and lefte of [Page cxxxii] so shortely, and hādeled so slenderly, that his owne frendes coulde here scant thynke any other, thā that leuer than he wold̄ lay hardely to y ^e Iewes charge the fawte of theyr owne infi­delyte, he had leuer lay it in the necke of the father of heuen, & there leue it.

¶ Those wordes and all the worde of Cryst, in whiche is any hardnesse, his exposycyon so smothely walketh ouer them, that he gyueth no lyghte vnto the vnderstandynge of them no more than yf he neuer touched them.

¶ The bretherne can not bere that my writynge is so longe. But surely it is no maystry for a man to be short, that can fynde in his harte to do as mayster masker dothe, leue all the harde places vndeclared.

¶ For he no where stycketh but vp­pon the places, in whyche he falsely laboreth by the colour of his exposy­cyon [Page] of a spyrytuall eatyng by fayth to hyde and withdrawe the very lyt­terall trewth and the very fayth in dede, by whiche, our sauyour techeth vs to byleue / that the thynge whych in the blessed sacrament we spyrytu­ally muste eate and bodyly bothe, is his owne very flesshe in dede.

The. vii. chapyter.

IN the ende of the fourth lefe he expouneth these wordꝭ of Crist, And this brede that I shall aeue you is myne owne flesshe, whyche I shall geue for the lyfe of the worlde. And for as myche as at those worde specyally bygynneth bytwen hym and me the waye to parte in twayne, and he to go the tone and I the tother / he drawynge it all to that poynt as though Chryst there began to shew them none other thynge of [Page cxxxv] his flesshe, but the geuynge it vppon the crosse, and that he nothynge in all those wordes ment to tell them of the geuynge of his fleshe to eate, that he gyueth in the blessed sacrament / and I there expownynge it that he there telleth them of bothe, but specyally of the geuynge of his flesshe to be eaten, whyche ge gyueth in the bles­sed sacrament: therfore at those wordes good readers begynne to take specyall good hede to mayster Mas­kers fyngers. For there he specyally begynneth to playe a mummers cast with his false dice. And therfore conferre his exposycyon vpon the same wordes wyth myne, and than shal ye byd hym caste agayne, for that caste goth for nought.

The. vii. chapyter.

IN the fyfthe lefe thus he sayth, No meruayle was it though these [...] Iewes abhorred the bodyly eatynge of Lhry fles fleshe, albe it our flellhefy papyftes beyng of the Iewes carnall opynyon, yet abhore it not.

¶ What thynge more false, more folisshe, or more blasphemouse could any brute beste say than this? For the Iewes had an opinion that he wold haue them eate his fleshe in the very forme of flesshe / and (as saynte Au­stayne August. in enarra. in psalm, 98. sayth) they thought they shod eate it dede cutte out in gobbettes as sheprs flesshe is in the shamellys.

And now is not mayster masker a­shamed to rayle, vppon all good chry sten people vnder the name of papy­stes, and saye that they be all of the Iewes carnall opinion. Doth any man that receyueth the blessed sacra­ment, thynke (as y ^e Iewes thought) that the flesshe of Chryste that he re [Page cxxxvi] ceyueth, is in forme of fleshe, cut out in gobbettes as shepys fleshe is sold in the shamells, and not in forme of brede? If mayster masker were now bare faced hym selfe, he were wonderfull shamelesse yf he coulde endure to loke any man in the face for shame.

¶ Now as this was good readers wryten (as you se) moste falsefy that he sayth we be of the Iewes opiniō: so where he sayth y ^t we abhorre not to eate Chrystes flesshe in the sacra­ment / that is yet wryten ye se well as folysshly.

¶ For the wyse goodnes of god hath as the olde holy doctours declare, ge uyn vs his flesshe not in forme of flessh, but in forme of brede, bycause we sholde not abhorre it. And there­fore what horryble syghte seeth thys fole in y ^e blessed sacramēt, for whiche [Page] he sholde abborre to receyue it?

But where was there euer a more blasphemouse bestely worde spoken, than this frantyke fole speketh here: y ^t mocheth and rayleth vpon all good chrysten people in this. xv. C. yere. bycause they do not abhorre to recey­ue the blessed body of Cryste in such wyse geuen vs by Chryste, that no creature can abhorre it, but eyther deuyls or deuyls felowes [...]

The. ix. chapyter.

THan sayeth mayster Masker ferther in the same place, Neyther ceace they dayely to crucylye and offre vp Chryst agayne, whyche was onys for euer and all, offred vp as Poule testyfyeth hebre. 9.

¶ To what lewd boldenes it geueth, whan a man maye walke about in a vysor vnknowen? Mayster masker careth not what he sayth whyle hys vysor of dyssymulacyon is on, that [Page cxxxbi] men knowe hym not. For who sayth that Chryst is dayly new crucyfyed? Trouth it is that the chyrche sayth that Chryst is at y ^e awter euery daye offered, his owne blessed body in the sacramēt. This of trouth the chyrch sayth, and that Chryste is our dayly sacryfyce. But no man sayth that he is dayly crucyfied of new, and dayly put to new payne. But as he was vnys crucyfyed and kylled & offered on the crosse, so is that one deth obla­cyon and sacrifice dayly represented, by the selfe same body y ^e onely quicke sacryfyce and oblacyon that god hath lefte vnto his new chrysten chyrche, instede of all the manyfold sacryfy­ces and obsacyons of this olde syna­goge the Iewes. And that ye maye knowe y ^t I fayne you not fantasyes: [...] declareth it very playnely, whose wordes are these. ‘ [Page]what is that than that we do? Do Chriso. hom. 17 in epist. ad [...]. not we offre dayly? yes forloth. But we do it in remēbrance of hys deth. And thys hooste is one hooste & not many. Now is it one hooste and not many? For bycause that hooste was onys offered, and was offered into [...] holyest tabernacle, and [...] sacryfyce is a copte or example of that. we offer alwaye the selfe same, Nor we offre not now one lambe, & to [...] ano ther, but [...] the same. This sacryfyce [...] one. For ellys bycause it is [...] in many places at ones / ate there many [...] veryly. For it is but one Crist euery where, being bothe here hole, & there hole one [...] For in lyke maner as he that is [...] euery where, is but one body and not many bodyes: so it is also but one sacryfyce. And he is our bysshop that [...] the hooste that clenseth vs we offre [...] also the same hooste [...] was than offered, and can [...] [Page cxxxvi] be consumed. And thys that we do, is done in remembraunce of that that was done. For (he fayth) do ye this in remebraunce of me. It is none other sacryfyce / as it is none other bysshop but alwaye we do the same, or rather we make a remembraunce of that same sacryfyce.’

¶ what wordes can there he [...], to proue mayster Masker a very fonde blasphemouse [...] thanne these? by whyche this holy doctour saynt Crysostome, agaynst mayster Masker mockynge here the masse, [...] his false foly clerely. And not onely sheweth that it is a sacrifice and an [...]: but also she weth that it is the dayly [...] of [...] fame offryng & sacrifisyng, by which he was sacrifysed & offred vp on the [...]. And yet to stoppe maister mas [...] mouth in y ^e hole mater: he she [...] y ^t this [...], this blessed sacrifice [Page] the sacrament of the awter, is all one oblacyon, all one hoste, though it be offred at onys in neuer so many pla­ces. And he she weth also, that it is y ^e very self same body that was offred on the crosse. And that in thys sacryfyce of offerynge vp the selfe [...] body in the [...], [...] the [...], as a [...] is [...] after a [...] and do [...] the [...] same sacry fyee, by which Chryst the very selfe same body was [...] on the croffe.

¶ Nowe can mayster Masker & more playnely [...] and [...], than saynt [...] foundeth hym, vpon [...] of [...] foly she [...] he mouse [...] of his? wyth whyche be realeth [...] the chyrche, and sayth [...] not [...] to [...] as though the chyrch at this day [...] [Page cxxxix] put Cryst to new payne, bycause his deth is represented in the masse, and of his goodnes his very blessed body offered vp dayly a swete sacryfyce for our synnys.

¶ Lracian also recyteth in y ^e decrees for our purpose in euery ponnt, as ef­fectuall wordes of saynt Ambrose de consecrat. distinctione 2. cap. In Chrysto semef.

¶ Saynt Austayne also in the. xvi. Augu. [...]. 16. [...] ciui­tare del. booke de ciuitate dei, sayth of the holy masse in this wyse.

‘That sacryfyce is succeded into the place of all those sacryfyces of the old lawe, whyche sacryfyces were offered for a shadow of the thynge to come. And for y ^t cause also we knowe that voyce in the. xxxix. psalme, the prophe cye of our medyatour Chryste, where he sayth, Sacryfyce & oblacyon thou woldest not haue, but the body thou hast perfyted me. For in the stede of [Page] all those sacryfyces and oblacyons, his body is offered and mynistred vnto them that wylbe part takers of it.’

¶ What speke I of saynt Cryso­stome and saynt Austayne, all the old holy doctours and sayntes of chryste chyrche, without any excepcion, were euer more clere in thys poynt that mayster Masker here now denyeth and thus iesteth on, that the blessed sa crament in the masse is a sacry fyce & an oblacyon.

¶ And this can not mayster Mas­ker hym selfe denye. For his owne fyrste mayster Martyn Luther, the late well sprynge of all this flode of heresyes, in hys pestysent booke of babilonica, puttynae forth this here­sye that mayster Masker towcheth here, y ^t the blessed sacramēt in y ^e masse is no sacrifice, nor none oblaciō, obiec teth agarnst hym selfe & saith thus.

[Page cxl] ‘Now muste we take awaye another Martinns Luther in capt. babi. occasyon of ruyne, that is that the masse is euery where byleued to be a sacryfyce, that is offered vnto god.’

‘And for that opyniō, semen to sowne the canon of the masse, where it is sayd, these gyftes, these holy sacryfy­ces, this oblacyon and offrynge. And therfore is Chryste called the hoste or sacryfyce of the awter. Than cometh there also on this parte the sayenges or sentences of the holy fathers and than so many exemples.’

‘¶ Agaynst all these thynges bycause they be very fastely receiued, we must very constantely obiecte the wordes & ensample of Chryste at his maūdy.’

¶ And afterward he sayth agayne, ‘what shall we say than to the canon of the masse and to the sayenges of the olde holy doctours and sayntes: I say that yf we haue nothynge ellys to say: let vs yet rather denye them all, than graunte that the masse shold [Page] be any good wurke or any sacryfyce, leste we sholde denye the worde of Cryste, and cast downe fayth & [...] and all.’

¶ Thus you se good readers that Luther hym selfe confesseth, that in thys heresye agaynste the sacryfyce and oblacyon of the masse, whyche mayster Masker with two other he resyes to, bryngeth here forth now, the olde holy doctours and sayntes are agaynst hym / and than were we wyse, yf we wolde wene that Mar­tyne Luther & mayster masker euyll chrysten heretykes vnderstand Chri stes wordes better, than euerdyd all the holy doctours of chrystes chyrch before.

¶ And thus you se good readers what a compendyouse wryter may­ster masker is, that hath in lesse than thre lynes, compacted vp together [Page cxli] such thre abomynable blasphemouse heresyes, as the deuyll hym selfe ne­uer deuysed vurse.

¶ In the syxte the. vii. the. viii. the ix. the. x. lefe, he hath certayne argu­mentes agaynst all men in generall, that expoune those wordes of Cryst in the syxte chapyter of Iohin̄, to be spoken and ment of the very eatynge of his blessed body in the sacrament, and not onely of a spyrytuall eatyng by bysyefe of hys deth. And some so­lucyons hath he there suche as they be, agaynste myne argument in spe­cyaff made vnto Fryth: All whyche thynges I wyll sorte into theyr pla­ces a parte from his exposycyon, so that ye maye se some of the fawtes of his exposycyon by them selfe, and his argumentes answered by them selfe, and his solucyons auoyded by them selfe, and the notable notes that [Page] he maketh of my notable repugnaū ­ces laste of all layed open to you by them selfe, bycause I wyll laye all thynge in ordre playne before your eyen / so that whan ye se the thynge in such wyse before you without inter­lacynge, ruffle, & confusyon: ye shall the more easyly iudge whyther may­ster Masker in his mummery be an honest man, or ellys a false haserder and play with false dyce.

The. x. chapyter.

IN the. xi. lefe, after that in the tother tenne byfore he had spokē many tymes of fayth alone, and that the onely byliefe of farre fewer thynges than we be bounden in dede to byleue, whan it were onys hadde, sholde bothe satysfye the soule & also make vs saufe foreuer: it appereth [Page cxlii] in that lefe y ^t eyther hys own mynde beganne to mysse geue hym, or ellys some other wyly brother gaue hym warnynge, that this maner wrytyng of fayth alone wolde make all the worlde to wonder on hym. For Luther hym selfe wrytynge fyrste on the same fasshyon. that faythe alone was suffycyent for saluacyon, though it pleased idle vnthryftes ve ry well, that were glad to be by bare fayth dyscharged of al good wurks: it was yet so sore abhorred among all honest men, y ^t both hym selfe & all his secte were fayne to seke some pla­sters of false gloses, to hele y ^e foule marmole of theyr skabbed shynnys, that they hadde gotten by that texte of theyr false fayth alone.

¶ And than they sayed y ^t they ment that maner fayth, that hadde alwaye bothe hope and cheryte wyth it.

But than coulde not that glose serue [Page] them. For that maner fayth taughte euer the comen catholyke chyrch [...] che they reproued. And also y ^t glose marred theyr texte, and was clene cō trary to all theyr tale. For all the text of theyr prechynge had ben of fayth alone, and theyr glose was of fayth not alone, but encompanied with two good felowes perdye, y ^e tone called hope and the tother cheryte.

¶Now therfore eyther vppon this fere of his owne mynde, or vpon this aduertysement of some other man: mayster Masker to mende his expo­sycyon with, and to make all the ma­ter saufe, hath at the laste in the ende of the. xi. lefe, plastered his marmoll of his onely fayth on thys fasshyon. By loue we abyde in god & he in vs. Loue foloweth fayth in the order of our vnderstandynge, and not in order of successyon of tyme, yf thow lokest vpon the selfe gyftes and not of theyr frutes. So that [...] pally by fayth wherby we clene to goddes goodnes and mercy, we abyde in god and god in vs, as declare [Page cxliii] [...] folowynge, sayenge, [...] the [...] father sent me, so lyue I by my father. And euen so he that [...] me, shal lyue bycause of me or for my [...]. My father sent me, whose wyl in all thynges I obey, for I am hys sone. And euen so veryly must they that eate me, that is byleue in me, forme and [...] after my ensample, mortefyeng theyr [...] and chaungynge theyr lyuynge, or [...] they [...] me in vayne and dyssemble theyr bylyefe. For I am not comen to redeme the worlde onely, but also to chaunge theyr lyfe. They therfore that by­leue in me, shall transforme theyr lyfe after myne [...] and doctryne, and not after any [...].

¶Thys plaster good readers hath some good [...]. But it is bothe to narow by a great dele to co­uer his scalde shyn, & hath also some [...] poticary druggys put in hit that can do no good, and some thynge also [...] to his remedy.

¶But [...] vs now consyder hys wordes. Fyrst where he sayth, that by [...] we [...] in god and god in [...]: he sayeth trouth, for so sayth the scrypture / but that is to be vnderstande as longe as [Page] we loue hym, and not dwell so styll in hym. But whan we breke hys [...], and therby declare that we loue hym not as y ^e scrypture also sayth / agaynst whiche scrypture mayster Tyndase sayth that he that hath onys a felyng fayth, can neuer fall therfrom, and agaynste the same scrypture mayster Masker saith that fayth onys had suffiseth for saluaciō.

¶And mayster Masker maketh yet his mater mych wurse than [...] Tyndase. For Tyndase dyd yet at the leste wyse make some bumblyng about a colour for the mater, with a longe processe of hystorycall fayth & felyng fayth. whose false wyly [...] therin, I haue so confuted in my [...] futacyon, y ^t though he wryte agayne therin, as longe as euer he lyueth he shall neuer shake of the shame.

¶But mayster Masker handeleth [Page cxliiii] the mater bothe more wylyly than Tyndale doth, & yet mych more fo­lysshely to. For seyng that his sayeng can not be defended: he ruffleth vp all the mater shortely in a few wor­des, bothe for sparynge of labour, [...] also bycause he wolde not haue hys wordes well vnderstanden, but that his wordes myght stande for a short texte, which he wold leue for euery other good brother to make some good glose therto to maynteyne it wyth.

¶For in his nexte worde folowyng where he sayth, Loue foloweth fayth in the order of our vnderstandyng, & not in the order of [...] of [...], yf thow lokest vpon the selfe gyftes [...] not vpō theyr frutes: in these few darke wordes he wolde bothe shewe hys [...] before vnlerned men, and leue them also vndeclared, bycause he wolde haue them wene y ^t his hygh [...] passeth theyr low capacitees

[Page]¶But yet in these wordꝭ he iugleth with vs, and may with his wylynes begile them that wyl take none hede. But who so loke well to his handes shall perceyue where his galles goo well inough.

¶For trewe it is that whan so [...] god infoūdeth eyther thabyt of [...], or y ^e full perfite quycke lyuely [...] that is called fides formata: in­foundeth in lyke wyse hope and che­ryte bothe. But this is not the fayth alone. For fayth is neuer such fayth, but whyle he hath his two felowes with hym. But fayth maye be [...] tary to, before his two felowes come to hym. As a man maye byleue well longe ere he wull do well. And [...] may tary also whā both his felowes be gone from hym, as he that hath had all thre, may by dedely [...] from the [...], and [...] [Page cxlv] fayth alone remayne. And faith may come and continue styll, and neyther of bothe his felowes neuer come at hym at al. As where a man byleueth truely euery article of the fayth / and yet hath neuer y ^e wyll to wurke well nor neuer wylbe baptysed, but after dyeth in dyspayre. And in all these casys is it fayth alone. And bycause it neither wurketh well, nor hath will to wurke well, neyther in acte nor in habyt: therfore is it called fides in­formis, and a dede fayth. Not dede in the nature of fayth or bylyefe / but dede as to the attaynynge of euerla­stynge lyfe.

¶Now wolde mayster Masker iugle & make vs byleue, that he me­neth the fyrste maner of fayth that is quycke and lyuely, by the reason that it hath good hope & cheryte therwith.

¶But I can not suffre you good [Page] chrysten readers to be so be gyled, [...] suche a fonde falfe iugler For yf ye take hede vnto hym / ye shall soone perceyue that he is euen but a very bungler.

¶For whan that he fyrste telleth [...] what bylyefe is suffycient, & [...] that yf we ones eate & drynke [...] by fayth, and than expouneth y ^e hole somme of all that faythe sayenge, that is to saye, yf we byleue hys flesshe and his body to haue ben broken, and hys bloud shedde for our synnys, thā ate our soules satisfyed & we be iustyfied and now addeth therunto, that loue foloweth faith in the order of our vn derstandynge and not in the order of successyon of tyme, by whych he me­neth y ^e euery man hath cheryte [...] more as soone as he hath faythe: [...] may clerely se that he sayth y ^t a man hath cheryte euer as soone as he hath that fayth. So that by hym who byleueth euer byleueth that Chryste dyed for [Page cxlvi] vs: he hath both fayth hope & [...], though he byleue nothynge ellys.

¶But now is thys a very false de­uelysshe doctryne. For this is no full fayth. For a man maye beleue this, & yet leue many a thynge vnbyleued, whyche we be bounden to byleue by­syde. And therfore you may well se, that though the theologycall vertue of ful and perfayt fayth, haue al way cheryte togyther infounded with it: yet mayster Maskers fayth that is neyther perfyt nor full, maye be not in the begynnyng onely, but also euer after without any cheryte at all.

¶Also where he sayth, that y ^e fayth y ^t he describeth onys had; is sufficiēt / & speketh of no perseueraūce: a man may, well se y ^t his sayeng is insuffycy ent. For both y ^t fayth stādynge, a man may well fall fro cheryte. And than though he had onis cherite as sone as [Page] that fayth (yf that bare faith without more were possyble to haue cheryte with it) yet myght it lacke cheryte af­ter. And also that fayth myght it self fall quyte awaye to. For he that onys byleueth euery artycle of the fayth, and than can fall from any, as may­ster Masker is fallen from many: may lytell and lytell fall from them euerychone. For I dare well say that mayster Masker byleueth no poynt that he byleueth moste surely, any thyng more surely now, than he hath byleued ere this, dyuerse of those poyntes which he now byleueth leste yf he byleue as he wryteth.

¶ And thus good readers you se, y ^t where as his marmose is more than an handefull brode: thys plaster of his passeth not the bredeth of apeny. For I dare saye the deuyll byleueth at thys day as mych as mayster mas [Page cxlvii] her sayth that is suffycyent, that is to wyt that Chryst dyed for our synne, and yet hath he no cheryte. Nor no more hath no man that wyll byleue no more but that / or though he do by­leue more than that, wyll yet thynke that he byleueth all the remanaunt but of his courtesye, & not one whyt more of de wty.

The. xi. chapyter.

NOw where he sayth ferther, So that pryncypally by fayth wherby we [...] to goddes goodnes and mercy, we a­byde in god and god in vs, as declare hys wordes fo [...], sayenge, As the lyuynge father sent me, so lyue [...] by my father. And euen so he that eateth me, shal lyue bycause of me or for my sake.

¶ This is a very false noughty de claracyon of Chrystes wordes. For where as the holy doctours do declare those wordes as I byfore haue shewed you, that lyke as our [...] [Page] [...] [Page cxlvii] [Page] sauiour had his eternall lyfe of hys father before any beginnyng of tyme in that his father eternally before all tyme begate hym and his flesshe, not of his owne nature but by the con­iunccyon that it had with the godhed, had now the same lyfe and so lyued for the father, so shold he that eateth that flesshe accordynge to Chrystes iustytucyon with dew cyrcūstaunces of fayth and good hope, and cheryte well wyllyng to worke, attayne euer lastynge lyfe also, by reason of hys [...] and incorporacyon with hys euerlastyng flesshe, so I say [...] way if the eater eate it wyth [...] de we cyrcūstaunces requisyte / so y ^t lyke as they receyue not his holy flesshe dede as the Iewes had went, but quycke wyth holy spyryte ioyned therto, so theyr soules may ioyne with his spy­ryt as theyr flessh ioyneth wyth his: [Page cxlviii] where as the holy doctours I say do expoune these wordes thus, now cō ­meth maister Masker and saith, that in these wordes Chryst techeth vs y ^t we abyde in hym and he in vs, not pryncypally by cheryte but pryncy­pally by fayth.

¶ Now good reder what one word of those wordes of Cryst, any thyng so [...] to the mayntenaūce of may­ster Maskers [...], that god is in vs and we in hym, pryncypally by fayth? The scrypture sayth, God is cheryte, and he that dwelleth in che­ryte dwelleth in god, & god in hym.

¶ Now yf mayster Masker wolde haue [...], y ^e by fayth a man myghte eate the flesshe of Chryste, and by fayth myghte dwell in god: yf may­ster Masker were a good catholyke manne, I wolde for so farre fynde no fawte in hys exposycyon.

[Page]For it myghte haue a menynge good inough, bysyde the lyterall sence of Chrystes wordes. But now whan he contendeth that this is the lytteral sense, and therwith wolde shake of the very eatynge that our sauyour ment in y ^e blessed sacrament, and bere vs in hande that our sauyour mente not so, but ment an onely eatynge of his flesshe by a bare bylyefe of hys deth, and not the very bodyly eatyng at all / & that in those wordes he ment that though we dwell in god by loue, yet not pryncypally by loue, but pryn cypally by fayth, as to whych vertu the vertu of cheryte were but a fo­lower and a perpetuall hand mayde, where there is in those wordes of Chryste not one syllable sownynge towarde it: what good chrysten man can abyde it? namely whyle the scryp ture by playne wordes condempneth [Page cxlix] it, & sayth, fides, spes, charitas, tria 1. [...]. 13 hec maior horū charitas. Faith, hope, and cheryte, these thre, but the pryn­cypall of these is cheryte.

The. xii. chapyter.

NOw where he goth good rea­der forther forth yet vppon these wordes, and sayth,

My father sent me, whose wyll in all thynges I obey, for I am hys sone. And euen so veryly must they that eate me, that is byleue in me, forme and [...] them after my ensample, [...] theyr flesshe and chaungynge theyr lyuynge, or [...] they eate me in vayne and dyssemble theyr bylyefe.

¶ Though these wordes here seme very good: yet whyle they be all wryten vnto thys one entēt, that this gay floryshe sholde so glytter in our eyen, that we myght therby be blyn­ded and not beware of the perylouse pytte into whyche he goth aboute to caste vs, that is to make vs wene [Page] that our sauyour in sayenge that we sholde eate his flesshe, ment no very eatynge therof in y ^t blessed sacrament but onely a spyrituall eatynge by by­leuyng that he dyed for our synnys, as here he declareth agayn, they that eate me that is byleue in me &c: while all draweth I saye to that ende, hys tale is nought all togyther.

¶ And yet it is a worlde also to se, the blyndnesse that the deuyll hath dreuyn into hym, by whyche he can not be suffered to se, that by these selfe same wordes with whyche he wolde auaunce his purpose, he very playnely destroyeth it.

¶ For his purpose is ye wote well, to make vs wene that faith were not onely the pryncypall / but also that fayth hath euer loue waytyng vpon her, and folowynge her as her vnse­parable seruaunt / as hete euer fo­loweth [Page cl] the fyre. And now you se that he sayth here, that who so do not forme and fasshion them after Chry stes ensample, do eate hym in vayne. And than to eate hym he sayth is but to byleue in hym. And so he sayeth wythout good lyuyng, that is to [...] wythout cheryte, the bylyefe is but in vayne. Now to byleue invayne, is ye wote [...] to byleue, and yet haue hys bylyefe frutelesse for lacke of that loue, that is the theologicall ver­tue called cheryte.

¶ And thus ye se good readers how well and cyrcumspectely mayster Masker loketh to hys mater, that whan he hath tolde vs that fayth ne­uer lacketh cheryte forgetynge [...] selfe forth wyth, telleth vs hym self within tenne lynes after, that fayth maye lacke cheryte, and therfore be but invayne.

[Page]¶ Now where he sayth, or els they dys­semble theyr bylyefe: I wyll not dyssemble with hym, but tell hym very playne, that as great a dyssembler as he is, he woteth not as it semeth what this worde dyssemblyng meneth, or ellys wote I nere what he meneth therby. For a man dyssembleth the thynge y ^t he hath and wyll not be a knowen therof / as a man dyssembleth hys ha tered, whan he hateth one & fayneth hym selfe his frende to couer his ha­tered with. And so we say that a man dyssembleth a thynge y ^t he secth it and wyll not se it, but maketh as though he saw it not. But no man dis sembleth the thynge that he seeth not in dede, nor the thynge that he hath not in dede, but maketh as though be sawe it or had it. For he fayneth or lyeth, and not dyssembleth. As in the latyne tonge (wherof thys englysshe [Page cli] worde cometh) ille simulat non dissi­mulat. And therfore yf mayster mas ker mene here by these wordes, or ellye they dyssemble theyr bylyefe, any other thing than they fayne a byleyfe, makynge as though they byleued and do not: lette hym not dyssemble with me, but tell me what other thyng he meneth. And yf he mene by those worde none other thynge than that: than wyll I not dyssemble with hym, but tell hym the playne trewth that he maye per­aduenture mene wysely inough, but he speketh but like a fole. For by that worde he sayth the clere cōtrary that is to wytte that they make as though they byleued not, but yet they do.

The. xiii. chapyter.

BUt now at laste he concludeth all togyther thus.

For I am not comen to rebeme the world onely, but also to chaunge theyr lyfe. They therfore that by­leue [Page] in me, shall transforme theyr lyfe after myne ensample and doctryne, and not after any mannye tradysyone.

¶ I wyll not here holde a longe dy­spycyon with maister Masker vpon mannes tradycyōs, by whyche word he wold haue all the lawes made by menne vtterly sette at nought / and wolde haue man bounde but eyther by the playne worde of scrypture, or ellys by his own expresse agrement and consent. For Luther sayth that neyther man nor angell can make the bonde of any one syllable vppon any chrysten man, without his owne ex­presse consent / so that no sawe can be made by that wise reasō, by the prince and the people, to hange vp eyther these or murderer, or to burne vp an heretyke, but yf the theuys, murde­ters, and heretykes wyll consent and agree therto them selfe. Nor no law made thys daye, can bynde hym [Page clii] that shall be borne to morow, tyll he come to good age & agretherto fyrste hym selfe, as our souerayne lorde the kynges grace most prudentely layed agaynste Luther.

¶ But I lette thys foly of mayster Masker passe / and thys also that the tradycyons, whiche these heretykes be wurste content withall, be the tra­dycyons of the apostles, whych they delyuered to the chyrche, as Chryste not by wrytynge but by tradycyō, de­lyuered the thynges to theym. For which saynt Poule sayth, Ego enim 1. [...]. 11 accepi a [...] quod tradidi vobis, For I haue receyued the thynge of oure lorde by tradycyon, without wrytyng the which I haue also delyuered vn­to you. As though he wold say, as I haue receyued it by tradycyō or dely­uery of our lord, so without wrytyng I haue deliuered it by tradiciō to you

[Page]¶ I wyll lette passe all these auaū ­tages (whych I myght as ye se take agaynst mayster Masker here) and I wyll well allow these wordes of his for thys onys, so that hym selfe wyll stycke aud stande by them styf­fely, and confesse that they that trans forme not theyr lyfe after Chrystes ensample and doctryne, haue eyther theyr bylyefe in vayne, or els make as though they byleued, and haue no bylyefe at all.

¶ This onys agreed bytwene hym and me: I yf he wyll rayle vppon the prestes and prelates of the catho­syke chyrche for doynge of the con­trary, let hym name who they be and wherin they do it, and by my trouth in suche euyll doynge / they shall ne­uer be defended for me.

¶ But than of reason must mayster Masker gyue me leue agayn, to put [Page cliil] hrm in remembraunce of the prestes and prelates of theyr heretykes sec­tes / and I wyll speke of none but by name. Frere Luther I wyll name hym the chyefe and pryncypall au­thour of theyr heresies. I wyll name hym frere Lambert / dane Othe the cartusyan, zungtius the preste, and the preste Pomeran, & frere Duys­kyns the frere brigittane. These be lo the very prelates and bysshoppes metropolytanys and postles of theyr sectes.

¶ Now wyll I than aske mayster Masker what ensample of Chryste or what doctryne of Chryste he can shewe, by whyche those holy prela­tes of these new sectes euyll chrystē caytyffes that haue so wed all this se­dycyō, haue brokē theyr holy vowes and promyses made vnto god, and runne out of theyr orders / and to the [Page] shame of matrymony & holy orders bothe, speke of the spyryte, and fall to the flesshe? which whyle they haue all done, agaynste the doctryne and ensample as well of Chryste as of all holy doctours and sayntes, & of al good chrysten people syth the deth of Christ vnto this theyr own wreched tyme; and now teche it forth for a doc tryne, reason it is that mayster Mas­ker confesse, that all the prelates of his sundry sectes, erther haue but a vayne sayth, or [...] make as they had faythe and haue no fayth at all. And than are there no mannes [...] so euyll as are theyr owne, beynge theym selfe so euyll men as they be. And why shold we than here maister Masker preche, eyther theyr fayth or tradxcyons eyther, whyle theyr fayth is eyther vayne fayth or ellys false and none at all, and theyr [Page cliiii] doctryne as deuylysshe doctryne as them shelfe are deuylysshe men / and more deuelysshe I wene is scant the deuyl hym selfe.

¶ Thus haue I good readers no­ted you certayne pyeces of mayster Maskers exposicyon, by whyche as by a taste of a draught or twayne, ye may se what poysened drynke is in the whole vessell. And now shall I come to hys argumentes, whiche he maketh in generall agaynst all them that expowne thys place of Christe wordes in the syxte chapiter of saynt Iohn, to be spoken or ment of that eatynge, by whyche we eate Chryste blessed body in the blessed sacramēt.

The fyrste chapyter.

IN the fyfthe lefe vppon his exposy­cyon of these wor­des, and the brede which I shal geue for the lyfe of the the worlde thus he argueth.

And euyn her syth Chryste came to teche, to take [...] waye all dowt and to breke stryfe, he myghte ( [...] wordes otherwyse declared than he hath declared & wyll hereafter expoune them) haue soluted theyr questyon: sayenge (yf he had so ment as More ex­pouneth) that he wolde haue ben conuayed and con­nerted (as our iuglers sleyghtly can conuaye hym with a fewe worde) into a syngynge lofe, or [...] (as the Chomystycall papystes saye) ben inuisyble wyth all [...] dymencyoned body vnder the forme of bredetranssubstancyated into it. And after a lyke Chomistycall mystery, the wyne transsubstancyated to into hys blonde, so that they sholde eate his flesh and drynke his blonde after theyr owne carnall [...] [Page clv] andynge (but yet in another forme) to put away all grudge of stomake. Or syth saynt [...] (yt he had thus vnderstode hys maysters mynde, and toke vpon hym to wryte hys maysters wordee) wold leue this sermon vnto the worlde to be redde, he my [...] now haue delyuered vs and them from this dowte. But Chryst wolde not so satysfye theyr questyon, but answered, veryly veryly I say vnto you, excepte ye eate the flesshe of the sone of man and drynke his bloude, ye shall not haue that lyfe in your selues. He that eateth my flessh and drynketh my blonde, hath lyfe euerlastynge, and I shall steve hym vp in the laste daye. For my flesshe is very meate & my bloude the very drynke. He sayth not here that brede shalbe transsubstancyated or conuerted into his body, nor yet the wyne into his bloude.

¶ [...] good chrysten readers thys man here in a folysshe iestynge and mych blasphemouse raysyng maner, agaynst the conuersyon of the brede and wyne into the blessed body and bloude of Chryste in the hlessed sa­crament, in conclusyon as for a clere confutacyon of me & of saynt Tho­mas bothe, vppon whyche holy doc­tour and saynt he foly shely iesteth by name, he argueth as youse, that [...] [Page] Chryst had entended to haue geuen them his flesshe and his bloude in the sacrament, than myght he haue decla red it more openly with mo wordes and more playnly. And than mayster Masker deuiseth Chryst the wordes that he wold haue had hym say yf he had so ment. And therin the blasphe­mouse beste deuyseth, that he wolde haue had our sauyour say, y ^t he wold play as iuglers do, and slyly conuay hym selfe into a singyng lofe / & that our sauyour so doth, he sayth is myne opinion. wherin the man is shameles & shamefully bylyeth me. For I saye as the catholyke fayth is, that he not conuayeth but conuerteth the brede into his owne body, and chaungeth it therin to / and neyther conuayeth (as he speketh) his body into the brede (for than were the brede and his bles sed body bothe together styll, which [Page clvi] false opinion is Luthers heresy and that knoweth this man well inough, and therefore sheweth hym selfe shamelesse in layenge that opinion to me) nor also conuerteth not his bles­sed body into brede, for that were yet mych worse. For thā remaineth there nothynge ellys but brede styll / & that is ye wote well mayster Maskers owne heresy for whiche he wryteth agaynste me / and therfore is he dowble shamelesse (as you se) to say any suche thynge of me.

¶ But in conclusion theffecte of all his fonde argumēt is, that euynthere in that place to breke stryfe & to soyle all theyr dowte, our lorde myghte & wolde haue done at the selfe cōmuni­caciō, or els at y ^e lest wyse [...] at y ^e tyme of his wrytyng, myght and wold haue told thē playnly that they shold ete it, noti forme of flesh but in [Page] forme of bred. But neyther our sa­uyour than tolde them so, nor theuan­grelyste hath tolde vs so in the repor­tynge of his wordes spoken to them: ergo it must nestes be that Chryste ment not so.

¶ This is mayster Maskers argu ment whiche he lyketh so specyally, that afterwarde in another place, he harpeth vppon the same strynge a­gayne. But surely yf the man be in scrypture any thynge exercysed, than hath he a very poore remembraunce. And whrthet be be scryptured or not he hath a very bare barayne wytte, whan he can wene that this argumēt were aught.

¶ For fyrste (as for the scrypture) can he fynde no mo places than one, in whych our sauyour wolde not tell out playnely all at onys?

¶ Coulde Chryst of the sacrament Iohn. 3 [Page clvii] of Baptysme haue tolde no more to Nichodemus yf he had wolde? Math. 12

Coulde he to the Iewes that asked hym a token, haue told them no more of his deth, sepulture, and resurrec­cyon, but the fygure of the prophete Ionas thre dayes swalowed in to y ^t whalys bely?

¶ Whan his dyscyples asked hym Actu. I [...] the restytucyon of the kyngdome of Israell, and mysse toke his kyng­dome for a worldely kyngdome: dyd he forth with declare theym all that euer he coulde haue tolde theym? or all y ^t euer he tolde them therof at any other tyme after? nay nor theuange­lyste in the rehersynge neyther.

¶ [...] this mā eyther neuer redde or ellys forgotten, that all be it our sauyour came to be knowē for Cryst & somtyme declared hym so him self: yet at some other tymes he forbode [Page] his dysciples to be a knowen therof? So that as for y ^e scripturys (excepte he haue eyther lytell redde, or lytell remēbered of them) wold haue made mayster Masker to forbere thys fo­lysshe argument for shame.

¶ But now what wyt hath this mā that can argue thus, whan he sholde (yf he had wytte) well perceyue his argumēt answered, by the lyke made agaynste hym selfe vppon the very selfe same place.

¶ For mayster masker sayth here that our lorde ment nothynge ellys, but to tell them of the geuyng of his flesh to y ^e deth for y ^e life of the world, and to make them byleue that. Now aske I therfore mayster Masker, whyther Chryste coulde not haue tolde them by more playne wordes than he dyd there (yf it had so ben his [Page clviii] pleasure) that he sholde dye for the synne of the world, and in what wyse also. If mayster Masker answere me no: I am sure euery wyse man wyll tell hym yes. For he spake there not halfe so playnely of the geuynge of his body to be slayne, as he dyd of geuynge it to be eaten. For as for his deth, not so myche as onys named it, but onely sayeth, ‘And the brede that I shall geue you is myne owne flesshe, whyche I shall geue for the lyfe of the worde.’ In whyche wordes he not onys na­meth deth. But of the eatyng, he spe keth so expressely by and by, and so spake before, all of eatynge, & mych more afterwarde to, that he gaue them lytle occasyon to thynke that he ment of his deth any worde there at all, but of the eatynge onely.

[Page]¶ And some greate holy doctours also, construe those whole wordes, And the brede that I shall gyue is my flesshe which I shall gyue for the lyfe of the worlde, to be spo ken onely of the gyuynge of hys bles sed body in the sacramēt, and neyther the fyrste parte nor the seconde to be spoken of his deth. But that in the fyrste parte Chryste sheweth what he wolde gyue them to eate, that is to wytte his owne flesshe, and in the se­conde parte he shewed them why he wolde geue the worlde hys flesshe to eate, and what commodyle they shold haue by the eatynge of it / sayenge, y ^t he wolde geue it men to eate for the lyfe that men sholde haue by the ea­tynge of it. And therfore he pursueth forth bothe vpon the eatynge therof, and vppon the lyfe that they shall lacke that wyll not eate it, and of the lyfe that they shall haue that wyll [Page clix] eate it. So that as I saye Chryste spake and ment after the mynde of some holy cunnynge men, but of the eatynge onely / but by all good men of the eatyng specyally, and without any maner questyon of the eatynge moste playnely, as of whiche he spe­keth by name expressely. And of hys deth (yf he there spake of it as diuers holy doctours thynke he dyd) yet he spake it so couertly, y ^t he rather ment it than sayd it / as the thynge wherof he nothynge named, but onely the ge uynge to eate. So that where as mayster Masker argueth, y ^t Chryste nothynge ment of geuynge of hys flesshe to be eaten in the sacrament, but onely of his flessh to be crucified bycause that yf he hadde ment of his flesshe to be eatyn in the sacrament, he coulde and wolde haue tolde them playnely so: ye se now good readers [Page] very playne proued by the self same place, that syth mayster Masker can not saye nay, but that of his body to be geuyn by deth, Chryst could haue spoken myche more playnely than he dyd in that place, as well as he could haue spoken more playnely of the geuynge of hys body to be eaten in the blessed sacrament, mayster Mas kers owne argument (yf it were aught as it is nought) vtterly de­stroyeth all his owne exposycyon whole. And therfore ye maye se that the man is a wyse man and well ouer seen in arguynge.

The. ii chapyter.

IN the. xi. lefe he hath an other argument, towarde whiche he maketh a blynde induccyon by­fore. And bycause ye shall se that I wyll not go about to begyle you: I [Page clx] wyll reherse you his induccyon fyrst, and than his argumēt after. These arre his wordes

Whan the Iewes wolde not vnderstande thys spyrytuall sayenge of the eatynge of Chrystes flessh and drynkynge of his bloude so ofte and so playnely declared: he gaue them a stronge tryppe, and made them more blynde for they so deserued if (suche are the secrete iudgementes of god) addyng vnto all hys sayenges thus. who so eate my flessh and drynke my bloude, abydeth in me and I in hym. These wordes were spoken vnto the [...] into theyr farther obstynacyō, but vnto the faythfull for theyr better instruccyon. Now gather of thys the contrary, and saye, who so eateth not my flessh and drynketh not my bloude, abydeth not in me nor I in hym / & ioyne thys to that foresayd sentence, excepte ye eate the flesshe of the sone of man and drynke hys bloude, ye haue no lyfe in you. Lette it neuer fall [...] thy mynd chrysten reader, that fayth is the lyfe of the ryghtwyse, and that Chryst is thye lyuynge brede whom thou eatest that is to saye in whom thou by­leuest.

¶ Here is mayster Masker fall to iuglynge so / and as a iugser layeth forth hys trynclettes vpon the table and byddeth men loke on this & loke on that and blo we in hys hande / and [Page] than with certayne straunge wordes to make men muse / whurseth his iu­glynge stycke about his fyngers to make men loke vpon that / whyle he playeth a false caste and conuayeth with y ^e tother hand some thynge slyly into his purse or his sleue or some where out of syght / so fareth maister Masker here / that maketh Christes holy worde serue hym for his iugling boxes and sayeth them forth vppon the borde afore vs / and byddeth vs lo loke on this texte / and than soke so vpon this / and whan he hath she wed forth thus two or thre textes and byd vs loke vpon them he telleth vs not wherfore / nor what we shall fynde in thē. But bycause they be so playne agaynste hym he letteth them slynke awaye / and than to blere our eyen / and call our mynde fro the mater / vp he taketh his iuglynge stycke the cōmendacyon [Page clxi] of fayth / and whyrleth that about hys fyngers / and sayeth, Let it neuer fall fro thy mynde chrysten reader that sayth is the lyfe of the ryghtuouse, and that Chryst is thys lyuynge brede whom thou eatest, that is to saye in whom thou byleueft.

¶ What are these wordes good chry sien reader to the purpose. All thys wyll I pray you remember to. But I wyll pray you remēber there with all, where about this iugeler goth, y ^t wolde with bryddynge vs loke vppe here vppon fayth / iugle awaye one great poynt of farth from vs / and make vs take no hede of Chrystes wordes playnely spoken here of the very eatyng of his holy flesshe. And therfore let vs remēber fayth as be byddeth. But let vs remember well therwith specially this piece therof y ^t this iugler with byddynge vs remē ­bre, wold fayne haue vs forgette.

¶ But now after thys induccyon / [Page] forth he cometh with his wyse argu ment in this wyse,

For yf our popystes take eatyng and drynkyng here bodyly as to eate the naturall body of Chryste vn­der the forme of brede / and to drynke his bloud vn­der the forme of wyne / than must all yonge chyldren that neuer came at goddes borde departed, and al lay men that neuer dranke his bloude be dampned.

If our sauyour Chryste whyche is the waye to trouth / and the trouth it selfe, and the very trewe lyfe also / coulde and wold say false, and breke his promyse by whyche he promysed Math. 18 his chyrche to be therwith hym selfe vnto the worldes ende, and to sende it also the spyrite of trouth, that shold John. 16. teche it and sede it into al trouth: than wolde there of trouth / bothe of these wordes of Chryste and these other wordes of his also, But yf a man be John. 3 borne agayne of the water and the holy goost he can not se the kyngdom of god / and of many other wordes of his mo many greate dowtes aryse / [Page clxii] ryght harde and inexplycable. But now am I very sure / sith trouth can not be but trew / Chrystes promyse shall euer stande and be kepte, & ther Psal. 67. fore shall his chyrche euer more by y ^e John. 16. meane of his holy spyryte which ma­keth men of one maner and mynde in the howse of his chyrche / so fall in a concorde and agrement togyther vp­pon the trew sense / and so be led into euery necessary trewth / that by misse takynge of any parte of scrypture, it shall neuer be suffred to fall into any dampnable errour. Whiche thynge what pratynge so euer mayster mas­ker make / I haue so often & so surely proued for the comen knowen catho­lyke chyrch of good and badde bothe / agaynst Willy ā T indale / y ^t neyther he nor all these heretikes among thē all, shall neuer be able to voyde it.

¶Now as for his argument con­cernynge laye men of age, it were [Page] alytell more stronge / yf the blessed body of our lorde were in the blessed sacramēt vnder forme of brede with out his bloude / whiche whyle it ys not / nor theyr receyuynge is not the sacryfyce nor oblacyon, which to the integrite therof requyreth bothe the formys / that the thynge sholde agre with the fygure / the fygure I saye of the brede and wyne that was of­fered [...]. 14 by Melchysedech / mayster Maskers argument is of a feble force. Of whyche thynge bycause I purpose onys to touche god wyllyng in answerynge to doctour Barons treatyse specyally made of that ma­ter / I wyll holde here mayster Mas ker for this tyme with no longe tale therof. But to thentent ye may shor­tely se how lytell wytte is in his wise argument with whych vppon Chrystes general wordes, ‘but yf you eate [Page clxiii] the flesshe of y ^e sone of man & drynke his bloude ye shall not haue lyfe in you’ / he argueth vniuersally of all men and women & chyldrenthat dye, and neuer eate his flesshe or neuer drynke his bloude shalbe dampned / by the selfe same forme of arguyng vppon these generall wordes, But yf a man be borne of water and the spyryte, he shall neuer se the kynge­dome of god. Mayster Masker may argue generally, that who so dye by­fore he be baptysed by water and the spyrite, shalbe dampned. And therup pon conclude that many martyres be dampned for lacke of baptysynge in water, for all theyr baptysynge in theyr owne bloude. And thus you se good readers how substancyall his argumentis.

The. iii. chapyter.

IN the. xii. lefe to proue, y ^t Cryst ment nothynge to geue his body to be eaten, mayster masker vp­pon these wordes that the dyscyples whiche were offended with his wor­des sayde, This is an harde worde who maye here hym, bryngeth in an other wise argument vnder colour of expownynge y ^e texte in this wyse. These wordes dyd not onely offende them that ha­ted Chryst, but also some of his dyscyples. They were offended sayth the texte and not meruayled as More tryfleth out of trouth. These wordes good reader of offendynge and mer­uaylynge I shall answere anone in a more conuenyent place. whyche dyscy­ples sayd, Thys is an harde sayenge who may here hym? These dyscyples stoke no lesse in Chrystes vi­syble flesshe, and in the barke of his wordes, than doth now More byleuynge hym to haue spoken of his naturall body to be eaten wyth theyr teth

[Page clxiiii]¶ Here mayster masker maketh as though the catholyke faith in the bles sed sacrament, were but my fayth. But lyke wyse as I do cōfesse that his heresye is not onely his, but that he hath felowes in the same falsed / not onely fryth and Tyndale, but Wicliffe also and zuinglius, & frere Huyskyn to, bysyde a lewde sorte of wreched heretykes moo: so must he confesse yf he wyll say trew, that my fayth is not onely my fayth, but that I haue felowes in the same fayth / not onely the comen hole multytude of all good chrysten cuntrees this fyftenne hundred yere, but specyally by name those holy saīts whose wor­des I haue rehersed you before vp­pon this same mater / as Theophy­lactus, & saynt Bede, saynte Hyri­neus, and saynt Hilary, and saynte Austayne, saynte Cyryll, and saynt Chrisostome / the playne wordes [Page] of euery one of all whome, I haue here all redy brought you forth a­gaynste mayster Masker, prouynge them selfe felowes of myne in my fayth all redy, now in this answere of this fyrste parte of his. And yet kepe I for mayster Masker mater inough bysyde, of holy sayntes autho rytees, as well the same sayntes as other, to fyll vp the messys at the se­conde course. And where he bringeth forth for hym in his seconde parte, Austayne, Tertullyan, and saynte Chrysostom (For in all this his fyrst course he bryngeth forth neuer one) those thre dysshes I warraunt you shall whan I come to them, but ba­rely furnysshe hys borde.

¶ But where mayster masker saith that More stycketh in the vysyble fleshe of Chryst, to beaten as those dyscyples and those Iewes dyd: he [Page clxv] is holde to saye what hym lyste by­cause he goth inuysyble. For ellys how coulde he for shame say that we y ^t are of the catholyke chyrth, thynke that Chryste geueth vs his visyble flesshe to eate, as those dyscyples & those Iewys thought / whan euery man [...] woteth, that those dyscy­ples and those Iewes, thought that they sholde receyue hys flesshe visy­ble cutte out as saynt Austayne de­clareth in visyble dede piecys / and euery man as well knoweth & may­ster Masker to, that we thynke that we do (and so in dede we do) receyue and eate his flesshe inuisyble, not in dede pyeces, but his quycke blessed body whole, vnder the visible forme of brede. And therfore you se good readers what trouth is in this man.

¶ But now goth he forth and com­meth to hys wyse wurshypfull ar­gument [Page] and sayth.

whyche offence Chryste seynge sayed, doth thye offende you, what than wyll you saye yf you se the sone of man ascende thyther where he was before? If it offende you to eate my flessh whyle I am herre: it shall myche more offende you to eate it whan it shalbe gone out of your syght ascended into heuyn, there syttynge on the ryght hande of my father, vn tyll I come agayne as I went, that is to iudgement.

¶ The exposycyon of these wordꝭ of Chryste, I haue good readers shewed you before, accordyng to the myndes of holy doctours and saynts that by those wordes of his ascencyō he gaue them warnynge before, that be wolde by his ascendyng vp to he­uyn, make them a playne profe that thei were deceiued whā they thought it could not be that he was descended downe from heuyn, and by his ascen dyng vp with his body hole & vnmi­nyshed, make them a playne profe y ^t they were deceiued, whan they thou­ght he wold in pyeces cut out, and so geue his fleshe to them as he sholde [Page clxvi] gyue it from hym selfe, & therby lese it hym selfe. For hys whole body as­cendynge, shold well proue y ^t though his apostles had euery one eatyn it: yet had he it styll whole hym selfe / y ^t they sholde therby not dowt after­ward, but that as eche of them had it and dyd eate it, and yet hym selfe had it styll, and all at onys in. xiii. dyuerse places in erth, and hym selfe ascen­ded after whole therwith into heuin: so sholde euer after all good chrysten folke receyue it whole here in erthe, and hym selfe neuer the lesse haue it whole styll wyth hym in heuyn.

¶ Thys beynge good chrysten rea­ders y ^e mynde of our sauiour in those wordes, as by the holy doctours and sayntes well doth appere of old: now cometh this new dronkē doctour mai­ster masker, and with a wyse expo­sycyon of hys owne brayne, wolde make vs wene that those wordes [Page] with whiche (as the olde doctours testyfye) Chryste confermed the sa­crament, in declarynge his power by whyche he wurketh that wonderfull miracle in the sacrament, our sauiour had hym selfe spoken agaynste his myracles in the sacrament. For thus lo doth maister Masker make Cryst expowne his owne wordes and say, If it offende yon to eate my [...] whyle I am here: it shall mych more offende you to eate it whan my body shalbe gone out of your syght ascended into be upn, there syttynge on the ryght hande of my father vntyll I come agayne agayne [...] I went.

¶ There were good readers two causes, for whiche those Iewes and those dyscyples were offended at the herynge of Cryste, whan he sayde they shold eate his fleshe. One was, the straungenesse and the impossyby­lyte that they thought was therin / y ^t tother was the lothsomnes that they had therto. Now yf mayster Mas­ker mene here for the impossybylyte [Page clxvii] by reason of the dyfference of his pre sence and his absence: I can not se why they sholde be more offended after his ascencyon than before. For yf it be possyble for hym to make his body to be in many dyuerse places at onys in erth: than it is as possyble for hym to make it at onys in those two dyuerse places erth and heuyn. For the meruayle standeth not in the farre dystaunce of the two places a sunder, but in the dyuersyte of y ^e two places hauyng in them both one body be they neuer so nere togyther. And as for the dyfference of his presence here in erth, and his absence hense, by his ascensyon into heuyn: mayster Masker is more than madde, to put that for a dyfference, as a cause after thascensyon to make theym more of­fended to here of the eatynge of hys body. For yf he make (as he can and [Page] doth) his body to be as well here in erthe as in heuyn: than is hys body no more absent from hense thā from thense, as for the veryte of hys pre­sence in the place, though it be more absent in consyderacyon to vs that se not his body here, but in y ^e forme of brede. But the blessed [...], se that one blessed body of his in heuyn and here in the blessed sacramēt both at onys. And thus you se that may­ster Maskers argument hathe no pyth or strenght, yf he mene for im­possybylyte.

¶ Nowe yf mayster Masker here mene, that after Chrystes ascensyon into hyuyn, it sholde be a thynge that sholde of reason more offende the Iewes to eate hys flesshe, than at y ^e tyme whyle he was here, as a thyng that wolde be than a mych more loth some mete: what deuyll reason hath [Page clxviii] mayster Masker to [...] that madde mynde with all, & to thynke that hys gloryfyed flessh shold be more loth­some to receiue, than yf it were vn­gloryfyed.

¶ And yet either he meneth thus / or els he lacketh the waye to fynde the wordes, with which he wold expresse his mynde. For these are the wordes, that he maketh Chryste to saye, If it offende you to ente my flessh whyle I am here: it shall mych more offende you to eate it whan my body shalbe gone out of your syghte.

You se now that he sayth it shal more offende you to eate it whan it is gone out of your syght into heuyn. Now yf he hadde ment in the tother maner for thimpossibylyte, he wolde haue sayd (except he can not speke) that it sholde more offende theym to here it tolde them that they sholde than eate his flessh, whā his flessh were so far absent from them, than to here it told [Page] them that they sholde eate it whyle it were present wyth them / and not say it sholde than more offende theym to eate it. For they shall not be offended with the eatynge yf they eate it not. And therfore (yf he can tell how to speke and expresse his owne mynde) he meneth here whyle he sayth it shal more offend you to eate it, he meneth I saye that they sholde of reason thynke his flesshe than more lothely to eate after his gloriouse ascencyon, than it was ere he dyed. Thus it ap­pereth that mayster Masker ment. And veryly yf he so mene, he hath a madde menynge. And yf he mene not so: than hath he a madde maner of spekynge. And yet hysyde that hys menynge is as madde that waye as the tother.

¶ For as I haue shewed you, the thyng is no more impossible to Crist, [Page clxix] to geue them his body to eate after his ascensyon than byfore / and ther­fore is maister Masker a fole to say, that it sholde more offende them to here that they sholde eate it after his ascencyon than before. For by theyr eatynge he sholde not lese it / but both men may haue his body here in erth with them, and y ^e angelys may haue it in heuyn with them, and hym selfe may haue it both in erth and in heuyn with hym, and all thys at onys.

¶ Wherin leste mayster Masker myghte make some wene, that I do as he [...] I do, and as in dede may ster Masker doth hym selfe, that is to wyt mocke in this mater and lye: ye shal good readers here what holy saynt Chrysostome sayth,

‘Helyas lefte vnto Heliseus his man [...]. hom. 2. [...] popu [...]. m tell, as a very greate enherytaunce. And in very dede a great enheritaūce [Page] it was, and more precyouse than any golde. And Heliseus was a dowble Hely / & there was than helyas aboue and helyas beneth. I knowe wel that you thynke he was a iuste and a bles sed man / and you wold fayne eche of you be in his case. what wyll you say than, yf I shew you a certayne other thynge, that all we that are seasoned with the holy sacramentes, haue re­ceyued that farre excelleth helyas mantell. For helias in dede lefte hys dyscyple his mantell. But the sone of god ascendyng vp, hath lefte vntovs hys flesshe. And as for helias leuyng hys mantell to his dyscyple, lefte it of from hym selfe. But our sauyour Chryst hath bothe lefte it styll with vs, and yet in hys ascensyon hath ta ken it wyth hym selfe to. Lette neuer therfore our hartes fall for fere, nor let vs not lament and by wayle, nor drede the dyffycultees of the troube­louse tymes. For he that neither hath [Page clxx] refused to shede his bloud for vs all, and hath also bysyde that, geuen vn to vs all his fleshe to eate, & the same bloude agayne to drynke: he wyll refuse nothynge that maye serue for our saluacyon.’

¶ How say you now good chrysten readers? doth not saynt Chrysostom with these wordꝭ, afferme you play­nely the substaūce of that that I say & as playnely destroye all that may­ster masker sayth in his heretycall ex posycion of these wordes of Chryst / whych he constre weth so as he wold therby make a repugnaunce bytwen the beynge of Chrystes blessed body in y ^e blessed sacrament, and the beyng of his body by his ascension in heuyn? For though mayster masker saye they canne not stande together, but is vtterly repugnaunt that his bo­dy sholde be here in erthe before [Page] domysdaye, bycause that vntyll do­mysdaye it shalbe styll in heuyn: yet sayth saynt Chrysostome playnely, that mayster Masker in his exposy­cyon lyeth. For he sayth that Chryste blessed body is bothe in heuyn & also in erth in the blessed sacramēt in dede.

¶ And therfore let mayster Masker leue his iestynge with me, & go ieste and rayle agaynste saynte Chryso­stome. For he confuteth you mayster Masker you se well, a lytell more clerer than I. And than whyther of them twayne ye shal byleue and take for the more credyble man, mayster Masker or holy saynt Chrysostom, euery mannye owne wytte that any wyt hath, wyll well serue hym to se.

The. iiii. chapyter.

BUt mayster Masker to shewe you a ferther declaracyon of his wytte, forth with vpon his wyse and [Page clxxi] wurshypfull exposycyon of those wordes of Chryst, he repeteth that fonde argument agayne, that Chryst ment not of eatynge his flesshe in the sacrament / bycause that yf he hadde ment it, he coulde and wolde haue de clared his menynge more playnely. And in that mater thus maister Mas ker sayth.

Here myght Chryste haue [...] his [...] the trouth of the eatynge of hys fieshe in forme of brede, had thys ben his menynge. For he [...] them neuer in any perplexite or dowt, but sought all the wayes by symylytudes and famylyare examples, to teche them playnely, he neuer spake them so harde a parable, but where he perceyued theyr feble igno­raunce, anone he helpt them and declared it them.

ye and somtymes he preuented theyr askynge wyth his owne declaracyon. And thynke ye not that he dyd not so [...] veryly. For he came to teache vs and not to leue vs in any dowt and ignoraunce, especyally the chyefe poynt of our saluacyon, [...] standeth in the bylyefe in hys deth for our synnys.

Wherfore to put them out of all dowt as concernyng this eatyng of his flessh and drynkyng of his bloud, that sholde geue euerlastynge lyfe, where they [...] it for his very body to be eaten with theyr tethe: he sayed, It is the [...] that geueth this lyfe. My [Page] flesshe profyteth nothynge at all to be eaten as [...] meane so [...]: It is spyrytuall meate that I here speke of. It is my spyryt that draweth the har tes of men to me by fayth, and so refresheth them gostesy. ye be therfore carnal to thynke that I speke of my flesshe to be eaten bodyly. For so it profyteth yow nothynge at all. How longe wyll you be wyth out vnderstandyng? It is my spyryte I tell you that geueth lyfe. My flesshe profyteth you nothynge to eate it, but to byleue that it shalbe crucyfyed & suffre for the redempcyon of the worlde it profyteth. And when ye thus byleue, than eate [...] my flesshe and drynke my bloude / that is ye byleue in me to suffre for your synnes. The veryte hath spoken these wor des: My flesshe profyteth nothyng at all: it canne not therfore be false. For bothe the Iewes and hys dyscyples murmured and dysputed of his flessh, how it sholde be eaten / and not of the offerynge therof for our synnes as Chryst ment. Thys therfore is the fure anker to holde vs by, agaynst all the obieccions of the [...], for the eatynge of Chrystes body as they say in forme of brede. Chryst sayd, My flesh profyteth nothyng, menyng to eate it bodely. Thys is the key that solueth all theyr argumentes & ope­neth the waye to shew [...] all theyr false and abomy nable [...] lyes vppon Chrystes wordes, and vttereth theyr sleyght ingesynge ouer the brede to mayntayne [...] kyngdome therwyth.

And thus when Chryste had declared it, and taught them that it was not the bodyly eatynge of hys ma­teryall body, but the eatynge wyth the spyryte of faythe: he added sayenge, The wordes whyche I here speke vnto you [...] spyryte and lyfe / that is to [Page clxxii] saye, thys mater that I here haue spoken of with so many wordes, must be spyrytually vnderstanden, to geue ye this lyfe euerlastynge. wherfore the cause why ye vnderstand me not, is that ye byleue not.

Here is lo the conclusyon of all hys sermon.

¶ Many a fonde processe haue I redde good chrysten readers, but ne­uer redde I neyther a more folysshe nor a more false than this is. For the effecte and the purpose of al this pro cesse is, that Chryst in all his wordes spoken in thys syxte chapiter of saint Iohn̄, ment nothynge of the eatyng of his blessed body in the blessed sa­crament, but onely of an alle gorycal eatynge of his body / by whyche he ment onely that they sholde byleue that he sholde be crucyfyed [...] shedde his bloude and dye for redempcyon of the worlde.

¶ Now that our saniour bysyde al such allegories & other spirituall vn­derstādings, playnely ment of y ^e very [Page] eatyng of his blessed body in the bles sed sacrament, you haue good reders all redy sene by so many holy doc­tours and sayntes / whose playn wor des I haue rehersed you, that no mā can dowte but that in the whole con­clusyon of his argument and his ex­posycyon, mayster [...] hath a shamefull fall / except any mā dowt whyther mayster Masker be better to be byleued alone, or those holy doc tours amonge them all.

¶ But now thys false conclusyon of hys, how febly and how folyshely he defendeth, y ^t is euyn a very great pleasure to se.

¶ In this processe hath he. ii. poynts The fyrste is that Chryste coulde & wolde haue made it open and playne in thys place by clere and euydent worde, yf he had ment of the eatynge of his flesshe in the sacrament.

[Page clxxiii]The second is, that by these wordꝭ ‘It is the spyryte that geueth lyfe, my fleshe profyteth nothynge at all, The wordes that I haue spoken to you be spyryte and lyfe:’ Chryste doth playn and clerely declare, both that he ment not the eatynge of his flesshe in the sa crament, and also that he ment onely the bylyefe that he sholde dye for the synne of the worlde.

¶ Now touchynge his fyrste folysh poynt, I haue confuted it all redy, & shewed you some samples, where Chryste coulde at some tyme haue declared the mater mych more open­ly than he dyd, and that in great ma­ters of our fayth.

For I thynke the sacrament of bap­tysme, is a pryncypall poynt of our fayth. And yet Chryste taught not Nichodemus all that he coulde haue tolde hym therin as I sayd before.

[Page]¶ And longeth it nothyng to y ^e fayth to byleue the remyssyon of mortall sinnes? I suppose yes. And yet could Chryste yf he had wolde, haue decla red more clerely those worde of his, Matth. 12 who so blaspheme the sone of man it shalbe forgeuen hym. But he that blasphemeth the holy gooste, it shall neyther be forgeuē him in this world nor in the world to come.

¶ No good chrysten man thynketh other, but that it is a pryncypall arty­cle of the chrysten fayth, to byleue y ^t Chryst is one equale god with his father. And yet Chryste (albe it that by all places sette togyther, he hath declared it clere inough in conclusion, to them that wyll not be wylfull & contencyouse) yet dyd he not in euery place where he spake therof, declare the mater so clerely as he could haue done yf he than hadde wolde. whiche [Page clxxiiii] appereth by that that in some other places, he declared it more clerely af ter. And yet in all the places of the scrypture set togyther, he hath not, nor wolde not, declare it in so playne wordes / as he coulde haue done. For than sholde there neuer haue neded any of those commētes, that all the holy doctours haue made vppon it synnys. And surely so sayth Luther and these other heretykes, that there neded none. For all the scrypture (they saye) is open & playne inough. And therfore they put euery manne and woman vnlerned in boldenesse and corage, to be in the scrypture suf ficyently theyr owne maysters them selfe. But whyle they thus teache them, they forgete that by theyr own techyng they shold holde theyr peace thē selfe. And indede so were it good they dyd, but yf they taught better.

[Page]¶ And thus for his fyrst poynt; you se good readers that mayster Mas­ker maketh men perceyue hym for a dowble fole whan it was not inough for hym to come forth with this foly onys, but he muste a goddes name brynge in this his one foly twyse.

The. v. chapyter.

NOw as to wchyng his second poynt, in that it is a worlde to se how strongly the man hādeseth it. For where as Chryst hath by so ma­ny open playne worde before, taught and declared, that he wolde geue his owne flesshe to be eaten, and his own bloude to be drunken, and so often re­peted it, and in suche effectuall wyse inculked it, and as who sholde saye bette it into theyr hedds, that (sauyng for the forme & maner of the eatynge [Page clxxv] whyche he declared by his word and hys dede at his holy maundye) [...] as for to make men sure that veryly eate it and drynke it they sholde, there could neuer more clere wordes haue ben of any man desyred, nor by may­ster Masker hym self deuysed: now cometh mayster Masker forth with certayne wordes of Chryst, by whi­the he sayth that Chryste clerely de­clareth, that he ment clere the cōtrary that is to wytte that his fleshe shold not be eaten / and also that by thys worde eatyng of hys flesshe, he ment nothynge ellys, but the bylyefe of hys deth for mennys synnes.

¶ Now the wordes of our sauyour that (as mayster masker saith) proue these two thynges, are these. ‘It is the spyryte that geueth lyfe, my flesh profyteth nothynge at all. The wor­des that I haue spoken to you be spy ryte and lyfe.’

[Page]¶ These wordes haue good reders in them selfe neyther any thynge in dysprofe of the very eatynge of hys flesshe, nor for the profe that he ment the bylyefe of his deth. For these wor des as saynte Austayne declareth, speke not precysely agaynst y ^e eatyng of his fleshe, as he ment to geue it them wrth the spyryte and the lyfe therin / but agaynste the eatynge of his flesshe alone, dede and cutte out in gobbettes, as they cōceiued a false opinion that he ment to make theym eate it. And as I haue shewed you before, saynt Cyrill expouneth these wordes after the same maner, and other holy doctours to. And now yf ye rede agayn mayster maskers wor des here: ye shall fynde that all that semeth to proue his purpose, is onely the wordes of hym selfe, & nothynge the wordes of Chryst / but hym selfe [Page clxxvi] expounyng Chrystes worde in such wyse, that (as I haue shewed you) saynt Austayne and saynt Cyrill and other holy doctours, expoune it clere agaynste hym.

¶ If his own argumēt were aught worth that he layeth against the inter pretacyon of all that expowne those wordes of Chryste, to be spoken of the very eatynge, by whiche we eate his blessed body in the sacrament, it wolde make agaynste no man so sore as agaynst hym self euyn here in this place.

¶ For if it be trew that he sayth, that yf Chryst had ment of the eatyng of his flesh in the sacrament, he myght & wold haue in this place told it them playnely / & bycause he told them not that poynt out playnely, therfore it is clere that he ment it not: than say I that syth in these wordes / whyche [Page] mayster Masker sayth, is the very anker holde, Cryst doth not so play­nely declare, that he [...] by the eatynge of his flessh the bylyefe that he sholde dye for our synnys, as he coulde yf he had wolde, and wolde as mayster Masker sayth yf he had so ment. Thys is therfore a playne profe by mayster Maskers argumēt agaynst mayster Maskers mynde, y ^t our sauyour ment not so / and than is all master Maskers mater go.

¶ Now that our sauyour doth not here declare that poynt clerely / that he ment nothynge but that they shold byleue that he sholde dye for theym: I wyll haue mayster Maskers own wordes to bere me recorde. whyche wyll I wene make mayster Mas­ker somwhat wroth wyth hym selfe, for wrytyng them in hym self, so fo­lyshely agaynste hym selfe.

[Page clxxvii]¶ For where he sayth that bothe the Iewes and the dyscyples, murmu­red and dysputed of his flesshe how it sholde be eaten, and not of the of­ferynge therof for our synnes: thys declareth and wytnesseth well for our parte agaynste his own / that our sauyour declared more playnely his mynde for the eatyuge of his flessh, than for the offerynge therof to the deth for our synnys. And of very trouth so he dyd in dede, though may­ster Masker saye naye an hundred tymes. For of the eatyng of his flesh as I haue before said, he spake very precysely, and playnely, and often / and of his offerynge vp vppon the crosse, he neuer spake playnely so mych as one worde.

¶ For as for these wordes whyche maister masker calleth y ^e anker hold: It is the spyrite that geueth this lyfe [Page] my fleshe profyteth nothynge at all, hath not one playne word for his pur pose at all. For all the vttermost that he coulde take of these wordes, were no more but that Chryste sholde tell them that the spyryte is the thynge that geueth his flesshe the lyfe, with out whiche of it selfe it coulde not profyte them at all / and therfore the wordes that he spake were spyryte & lyfe, and to be vnderstanden spyry­tually, that they sholde eate his flesh wyth hys spyryte, and not carnally that they sholde eate hys flessh alone without his spyryte, cut out in dede peces of flesshe, as they had concey­ued a fonde opinion therof, out of whyche he sayed all this to brynge them, but yet not so mych as he could haue sayd and he had wold, nor wold not bycause of theyr vnworthynesse to here it / and yet that they shold eate [Page clxxviii] his flessh, he tolde them clere inough.

¶ But as I say, what one worde is there in all these wordꝭ of his anchor holde, wherby mayster Masker may take one handefull holde, y ^t Chryste here shewed them so clerely, that he ment the offerynge of hym selfe for our synnys? he speketh ī al these wordes not one word of offeryng; nor of crucifyeng, nor of deth. And by may­ster Maskers owne argument yf he had ment y ^t way, as he well could, so he wold also haue told them playnly thus: Sirs I mene not that you shal eate my flessh, but y ^t you shall byleue y ^t I shall dye for your synnys. And syth he sayd not thus, mayster Mas­kers own argument hath cutte of his cable rope, & lost his anchore, & runne his shyppe hym self agaynst a rocke. For he sayth that yf he had ment it, he wold haue tolde them playne the tale to put them out of all dowte.

[Page]¶ And here you se now good reders by mo meanys than one, as wel by y ^e exposycyons of olde holy doctours & sayntes, as by the wyse argument of mayster masker hym self, to what wyse wurshypfull ende, thys ryall brage of his is come to passe, in whi­che he triumpheth ouer the catholike chyrch & the blessed sacramēt, where he bosteth thus. Thys therfore is the sure anker to holde vs by, agaynst all the obieccions of the papystes, for the eatynge of Chrystes body as they say in forme of brede. Chryst sayd, My flesh profyteth nothyng, menyng to eate it bodely. Thys is the key that solueth all theyr argumentes & ope­neth the waye to shew vs all theyr false and abomynable blasphemouse lyes vppon Chrystes wordes, and vttereth theyr sleyght ingelynge ouer the brede to mayntayne Antichrystes kyngdome therwyth. And thus when Chryste had declared it, and taught them that it was not the bodyly eatynge of hys ma­teryall body, but the eatynge wyth the spyryte of faythe: he added sayenge, The wordes whyche I here speke vnto you are spyryte and lyfe / that is to saye, thys mater that I here haue spoken of with so many wordes, must be spyrytually vnderstanden, to geue ye this lyfe euerlastynge. wherfore the cause why ye vnderstand me not, is that ye byleue me not. Here is lo the conclusyon of all hys sermon.

[Page clxxix]¶ Syth your selfe haue sene good readers, that in this mater and in this whole exposycyon, there are agaynst mayster masker not onely the catho­lyke chyrche of our tyme, but also all the olde holy doctours and sayntes, which with one voyce expoune these wordes of Chryste to be spoken and ment of that eatynge of Chrystes flesshe, by whyche it is eaten in the blessed sacrament / agaynste whiche poynt mayster masker here rageth in this his furyouse boste, raylynge vp pon them all that so teche or byleue, vnder his spygstuff name of papy­stes: I wold wytte of mayster mas­ker, whyther saynt [...], saynt Au­stayn, and saynt Ambrose, saynt [...], and saint [...], Theophi­lactus, saynt Cyrill, and saynt Chry sostome, were all papystes or not? If he answere ye, and saye the were: [Page] than shall he make no man (that wise is) asshamed of the name of papyste (as odyouse as he wolde make it) yf he graunte vs that suche good godly men, & such holy doctours & sayntes were papystes.

¶ Now yf he answere me nay, and say that they were no papystes: than he maketh it playne and open vnto you good reders, that he playeth but the part of a folyssh rayler & aiester, and doth but deceyue and mocke all his owne fratexnyte / whan by ray­lynge agaynste papystes, whom he wold haue taken for folke of a false fayth, he dyssembleth the trouth, that his here sye is not onely dampned by them that he calleth papystes, but by them also whom he cōfesscth for no papistes, and whom he cannot but cō fesse for old holy doctours & saintes / nor cannot so blynd you, but that you [Page clxxx] playnely perceyue by theyr own wor des / which I haue rehersed you, and yet shal hereafter more playnely per ceyue, by mo holy doctours & saynts of the same sort, & by mo playne wor des also of y ^e same, y ^t they do all with one voyce expoune these wordes of Chryst mencyoned in the syxte chapi ter of saynt Iohn, to be spokē & ment of y ^t eatyng of his flesh, by which we eate it in the blessed sacrament.

¶ And thus haue I good reders an­swered you all mayster Maskers ar gumentes, by whych he reproueth in generall vnder the name of papyste, all those, that is to wytte all the olde holy doctours and sayntes, that con­trary to hys heresye expowne the sayde wordes of Chryste to be ment of the very eatynge of hys flesshe, and not onely of the byleuynge of his deth for our synne.

[Page]And now wyll I come to his subtyll dysputacyōs, that he maketh against me by name in specyall, to soyle such thynges as I in my letter wrote a­gaynst Iohn Fryth.

The. ii. chapyter.

BUt yet shall you now se his wyt and hys truth bothe a lytell bet­ter tryed, euyn vpon thys same place, in whiche with hys huge excsa macyons he maketh hys parte so playne.

¶ As for oportet of whyche he spe­keth here, we shall talke of after in another place. But now to wchynge this worde they meruaysed / mayster Masker sayth thus. That is not so, nor there is no suche worde in the texte. So you se good readers that he sayth two thyn ges. One that it is not so, and another that there is no such worde there in y ^e texte. As for the word good reader I wyll not greately stryue with hym. But where he sayth it is not so, and therin affermeth that they meruay­sed not: I thynke the wordes of the text wyll wel [...] my sayeng. [Page] For good reader, whan they sayde, How can he geue vs his flesh to eate? And whan they sayd, Thys word is harde and who can here it: Do not these wordes proue that they mer­uayled and thought it straunge, whā they called it so hard y ^t no man might abide to heare it, [...] how he could do it, bycause they thought it impossi­ble? ¶ Now you se good readers, y ^t gospell sayth the selfe same thynge that I say, thought it say not the self same worde / and therfore lyeth may­ster Masker in sayenge it is not so.

¶ But by thys wyse waye of may­ster Masher, yf I had wryten that Absolon was angry with Amnō his 2. Reg. 13. brother for violatynge his syster Thamar: mayster Masher wolde say, so good reader here thou hast not a taste but a tunne full of Morys per nicyouse peruertyng of goddys holy [Page clxxxviii] word / & as thou seest hym here fal­sely and pestilently destroye the pure sense of goddes worde, so doth he in all other places of his workes. For where he sayth y ^t Absolon was an­gry with Amnon, it is not so, neyther is there any such worde in the texte / except More wyl expoune oderat [...], id est irascebatur ei / he hated him, y ^t is to saye, he was angry with hym / as he expouneth murmurabāt id est mi­rabantur / they murmured, that is to say the meruayled. And thus maye thys poete make a man to sygnyfye an asse. For the byble sayeth not as More sayth, that Asolon was angry with Amnon. For the texte sayeth no more, but that Asolon hated Amnon, and caused hym to be kylled.

¶ Now lyke you now good reders this wyse solucyon of mayster Mas ker? This proueth not hym a poete [Page] that can make a man signyfye an asse but proueth hym rather in stede of a poete, and in stede of a man, a very starke asse in dede.

The. iii. chapyter.

BUt of very trouth good reader, not without a good cause and a great, I dyd rather touche the thyng y ^t was the cause of the Iewes murmur and theyr dyssensyon whan they dysputed vppon the mater, than I dyd theyr murmure and theyre dys sensyon. For of trouth where he sayd of hym self that he was a dore: there Iohn. 10. grew dyssensyon amonge his herers vppon that worde of hys, and vpon other wordes that he spake ther with at y ^t same tyme / so y ^t the gospel sayth, ‘And there was dyssensyō among the Iohn. 6 Iewes vpon these wordes / some say­enge that the deuyll was in hym and some sayeng nay, and that the deuyll [Page clxxxix] was not wont to make blynd men se’ / as there was here dissensyon and dys putynge vppon these wordes of ea­tynge of his fleshe. But inthe. x. chapyter they nothynge meruay­led of his callynge hym selfe a dore for he expowned y ^e parable at length so that they perceyued well that he called hym selfe a dore, but onely by waye of an allegory. And therfore of callynge hym self a dore they mer uayled not of that worde when he de­clared yt, for they perceyued it for a parable. But they dysputed vppon that worde and vppon his other wor­des also, wherein he sayde that no man could kyll hym agaynst his wil, Iohn. 10. and that he wolde dye for his shepe, and that he had power to put awaye his soule and take it agayn. Of these thynges they dysputed, and thought theym straunge and meruay louse to. [Page] But not for the wordes or the maner of spekynge, but for the very mater. For all they vnderstode the wordes metely wel / but many of them byle­ued them not. But not one of theym dyd so take that worde, I am a dore, as that they meruayled howe that could be. And therfore none of thē for any suche meruayle sayd there, how can he be a dore? as these Iewes said here, howe can he geue vs his fleshe to eate? And therfore as I saye, therin appereth well that our sauy­our in the tone place called hym selfe a dore by waye of a parable / and in the tother spake of the catynge of his owne very fleshe yt selfe, besides all parables. whyche well appered I saye by hys audyence. For the tone worde they perceyued for a pa­rable, and therfore none of theym meruayled of the maner of the spe­kynge [Page cxc] of that worde, though they meruayled and murmured and dys­puted at the thynge that the parable ment. But in the tother place, ma­ny meruayled at the thynge by the selfe same name that he gaue therto, sayenge, howe can he geue vs hys fleshe to eate? whereby yt well appe [...] that they ꝑceyued that he spake of very eating of his fleshe in dede / & in y ^t tother place appereth not y ^t they thought he ment that he was a very dore in dede, but the contrarye playn appereth. For Chryste by his playn and open exposycyon of that para­ble, delyuered theym clene from all occasyon of thynkynge that he ment hym selfe to be a very dore in dede.

But in these wordes of eatynge of hys fleshe, bycause he wolde geue hys very fleshe to be eaten in very dede, therfore he more [Page] and more tolde them styll the same / & also tolde theym hym selfe was god, and therfore able to do yt / and ouer that gaue theym warnynge that they sholde not eate it in dede gobbettes, but sholde eate it quycke with spyryt and lyfe. For his wordes were spyrit and lyfe. For his fleshe sholde ellys anayle nothyng. And that though his bodye sholde be eaten by many sun­dry men in many sundry places, yet sholde yt neuer the lesse be also styll whole and sounde, where so euer he wolde besyde. whych he declared by [...]. 6. his [...] wyth his body perfyte into heuen, not withstandynge that it sholde be byfore that, eaten of many men in erthe.

¶ And thus haue I good reders as for this solucyon of maister Masker, made open and playne vnto you / his falsed and his foly both / and made rt [Page cxci] clere for all his hygh pernycyouse pe stylent wordes, both that I haue hād led this place of the scripture right, & also taken rather the sentēce than the word. And I haue also by occasyō of his wise solucyon, caused you to per­ceyue that in myne argument was and is more pyth and more strength, then peraduentur euery man percey­ued before. And therfore thus mych worshyp hath he wonne by thys his fyrste solemne solucyon.

The. iiii. chapiter.

BUt in his seconde solucyon, he specyally sheweth hys depe in syghte and cunnynge, and myne ouersyght to shamefully. For there in lo thus he sayth.

But yet for hys lordely pleasure, let [...] graunt hym that they murmured, is as myche to saye as they meruayled, bycanse perchaunce the one may folowe at the tother. And than do [...] aske hym whyther [Page] Chrystes [...] and hys apostles, [...] hym not and vnderstode hym not, when he sayde I am the core and the vyne, and whan he sayde my fleshe &c. If he saye no or naye, the scrypture is playn agaynst hym Ioh. 6. 10. 15. If he saye ye or yes; then yet do I aske hym whyther his dyscypfes & apostles, thus herynge and vnderstandynge his wordes in all these thre chapyters, wondered and meruaysed as mays ter More say the, or murmured as hath the texte at theyre maysters speche what thynke ye More must answere here? here may you se whither this old holy vpholder of the popes chyrch is brought, euyn to be taken in his owne [...]. For the discyples & hys a­postles neyther murmured nor meruayled, nor yet were not offended with theyr mayster Chrystes wor des and maner of speche.

¶ [...] good readers, here mayster Masher bycause he thynketh yt not ynough for his worship, to shew him selfe ones a fole by his fyrst soluciō, conieth nowe farther forth to shewe him self twise a fole, ye thryse a fole, by the secnnde.

¶ And fyrst for away to come there to, he sayth he wyll graunte me for my sordely pleasure, that they mur­mured is as mych to say as they [...] [Page cxcii] [...]. In whych grauntynge he doth me no great fordly pleasure. For I haue as you haue herde well, pro­ued hym al redy that I nede not hys grauntynge therin. But veryly in the cause that he addeth therto, when he sayth bycause perchaunce the tone maye folowe at the tother, therin he doth me a very great lordely plea­sure. For yt is euyn a pleasure for a lord and for a kyng to, to se hym play so farre the fole, as without necessy­tie to wryte in that worde hym selfe, which helpeth myn argumēt agaynst hym self, and maketh all his wonde­rynge y ^t he hath in his fyrst sosucyon vppon me, fal in his own necke. For yf theyr murmuryng folowed vppō theyre meruaylynge, as hym selfe here sayth that peaduenture yt dyd: than playeth he fyrste peraduen­ture the fole, to make suche an oute [Page] crye vppon me for sayenge that they meruailed, where the texte saith they murmured / as though I wyth that word vtterly destroyed y ^t pure sense of goddes holy word. For that word dothe not so pestylently peruerte the sense, yf yt maye stande with the sen tence, as yt maye in dede, yf mayster Masker saye trewe that peraduen­ture the tone maye folow vppon the tother / that is to wit the murmuryng vppon the meruaylynge, for so he meaneth therby. For as madde as he is, he is not I thynke so madde yet, as to me ane that the meruaylynge fo lowed vppon the murmurynge. For they meruayled fyrst and murmured after. And nowe syth this one worde of his therfore, ouer throweth all his wondering, that he hath made on me, and proueth hym selfe willyngly and wyttyngly in all his hygh tragycall [Page cxciii] exclamacyon agaynst his own conscyence, and his own very knowledge to bylye me: he hathe therin as I saye done me a very special pleasure, to se him so farre play the fole, as to bring forth that worde hym self / specyally where there was no nede at all, but euen for a garnyshe of his induccion, wyth a shewe of his cunnynge, to make men know that he hadde not so lytle lernynge, but that he wyst well ynough hym selfe that he had shamefully bylyed me in all that euer he hadde cryed oute agaynst me, concer cernynge any mysse constrewyng of that place of holy scrypture.

The. v. chapyter.

NOwe after thys hys double folye well and wysely putte forth at ones, he bryngeth me to myn opposycyon. And therin he handeleth me so hardly, y ^t I cā not scape, which [Page] waye so euer I take. whether I say that Chrystes dyscyples and apost­les herde and vnderstode theyr may sters wordes in all the thre places, or that I saye that in any one of those thre places they vnderstode him not. For here to be sure to holde me in on both sydes that I scape not, he shew eth what daūgeour I fal in, whyche waye so euer I take. For he sayeth that on the tone syde I denye the gos spell yf I answere no or naye, and on the tother syde I am taken in myn owne trappe, yf I saye ye or yes.

¶ And surely here he playeth the wysest poynte and the moste for hys owne suertye, that I sawe hym play yet. For ye shall vnderstand that in the fyrste parte of my Confutacyon in the thyrd boke the. clxxx. syde, for as myche as Tyndale hathe ben so longe out of England, that he could [Page cxciiii] not tell howe to vse these englyshe [...], naye and no, ye and yes: I gaue hym a rule and a certayne samples of y ^e rule, wherby he mighte lerne where he shold answere naye, and where no, and where ye & where yes.

¶ Nowe mayster Masker whan he wrote hys boke, neyther hauynge my boke by hym, nor the rule by hart thoughte he wolde be sure that I sholde fynde no suche faute in hym / and therfore on the tone syde for the answere, assygneth ye and yes both / and on the tother syde bothe naye and no / leuynge the choyce to my selfe, whyche he durst not well take vpon him, lest he myght shew therin suche congruytie in the Englyhhe tonge; as he sheweth in some other thynges wherin he speketh englyshe as congrewe, as a man myghte that [Page] hadde lerned his englishe in a nother lande.

¶ But now muste I answere hym to his subtyll questyons. His fyrste questyon is thys.

¶ He asketh me, whether Chryste dyscyples and his apostles, hard him not and vnderstode hym not, whā he sayde, I am the dore, and whan he sayde, I am the vyne, and whan he sayde, my fleshe is veryly meate &c. ¶ Mayster Maskar is so wyly that I must nedes take better hede what I answere him, thā I shold nede, yf I were to answere a good plain man of the countrey. For maister Maskar in y ^e. 29. lefe bosteth hym selfe of his connynge ryally and sayth.

It [...] veryly the thyng that I desyre euen to be wry ten agaynste in thys mater. For I haue the solucy­one of al theyr obieccyone redy.

¶ Now syth therfore this man is so cunnynge, and hath his answerys so [Page cxcv] redy for all obieccyons that men may lay to hym: he can not be by lyklely­ded but wonderfull sure & redy, with subtyll replycacions, agaynst all an­sweres that men maye make to those opposycions that he deuiseth agaynst other men him self. I wyll therfore be as ware of him as I cā. And fyrst I say that his questyon is captiouse. For he asketh one answere to thre thynges at onys / and in eche of the thre he asketh me two questyons at ones. For he asketh of y ^e dore, and the vyne, and of his fleshe, all thre at ones. And yet of eche of these not a double q̄stiō as I told you / but a qua treble questyon at ones. For he as­keth both of his apostles and the disci ples / and not onely whether all these herde Chryste at all thre tymes, but also whyther all these vnderstode hym. And all twelue questyons [Page] mayster Masker wylyly to bygyle suche a symple soule as I am, as­keth in one questyone at ones. And therfore leste he betrappe me, I shall some what at the leste wyse dy­uyde theym.

¶ And than I saye to the fyrste que styon whyther Chrystes dyscyples and apostles harde hym not and vn­derstode hym not, when he sayde I am the dore: because the questyon ys yet double and captyouse, I pur­pose to make sure worke & answere, that I can not tel, I thinke that some dyd and some dyd not, for some of them I wene were not there.

¶ Nowe yf he saye that he meaneth onely them that were there: so wold I to haue taken hym, yf he were a good playne soule, and not suche a sotle sophystre that longeth to be ar­guynge, and hath all thynge so redy [Page cxcvi] vppon his fyngers endes.

¶ But go to nowe, though I could yet haue other answeres for hym yf I wolde: yet for hys lordely plea­sure I [...] content to graunt hym, that they bothe herde hym and vnder stode hym / wherin I graunte hym more yet I promyse you, than he can precysely bynde me to by the texte.

All thys grauntynge for this place geueth hym no grounde yet. [...] here I am well contente, not onely to say al that he sayth, that is y ^t his a­postles and dis discyples vnderstode that Chryste calleth hym selfe the dore but by a parable / and therfore meruailed not at y ^t maner of speking. But I saye more to, that so dyd al­so the Iewes that reproued hym and repugned agaynste hym. And saye also that they repugned so myche the more agaynste hym, and so myche [Page] the more murmured and disputed a­gaynst the mater, in how myche they more vnderstode the maner of y ^e spe­kynge and that parable. For they wyste well that worde of the dore, was spoken by a parable, for Christ playnly expowned it. But they mur mured myche at that y ^t no man might well come in but by hym. ¶ Let vs now to y ^e secund than. And where he asketh me whyther Chrystes dys cyples and his apostles, herde hym not and vnderstode him not, when he sayde, I am the very vyne: here I wolde for myne owne suertye aske [...]. 15. hym, whyther he meane by Christes discyples and apostles, some of both sortes, or ellys those disciples onely that were both dyscyples & apostles, How be it yf I shold aske him thus he wolde say I dyd but tryfle / & that [Page cxcvii] euery man maye well wytte by the puttynge of hys questyon, that he meneth of eyther sorte some. For els he wolde haue sayd no more but apo­stles which had ben inough if he had ment but them. And also it were a­gaynste his purpose, yf Chrystes other dysciples vnderstode hym not, though his apostles dyd. well I am content than to take it so. And than vnto the questyon, whyther his discy ples and apostles harde not Chryste and vnderstode hym not, whan he sayd I am the very vyne: to this questyon copulatyue I answere no. ¶ But than mayster Masker re­plyeth, that the scrypture is playne agaynste me. But vnto that replyca cyon I say naye. For I saye that the scrypture there wyth saynt Marke & saynt Luke set vnto it, proueth myne answere trewe. For it appereth well [Page] amonge them thre, that bysyde thapo stles, none of his other dyscyples vn derstode hym, for none of his other dyscyples herde hym, for none of his other dyscyples were there, nor yet all his. xii. apostles neyther / for Iu­das was gone before. So that in this parte of his fyrste questyon, mayster Masker hath geuen hym selfe a fall in the subtyll proponynge of his que styon. As to the vnderstandynge, I agre that they that were there vnder stode hym, whiche maketh nothynge agaynst me.

¶ Now to the thyrde place whan he asketh me whyther Chrystes dyscy­ples & his apostles herd hym not and vnderstode hym not, whan he sayed, my flesh is very mete &c. Fyrste as for his dyscyples I saye no not all. Than sayth mayster Masker that yf I say nay or no, the scrypture is [Page cxcviii] playne agaynst me. Iohn̄. 6. But to that say I agayne, that whan I saye no, y ^e scripture is euyn there with me. For as the gospell there playnely tel leth, many of his dysciples though they herd hym well, dyd vnderstand hym amysse. For though they vnder stode hym ryght, in that they percey­ued that he spake of the very eatyng of his very fleshe: yet they vnder­stode hym wronge, in that they toke hym that they shold eate it in the self flesshely forme & in dede pyeces with out lyfe or spyryte / and therfore they went theyr waye from hym and lefte hym, and walked no more after with hym. Here hath mayster masker an other fall in thys place to, to wchyng his fyrst que siyō as for y ^e dyscyples.

¶ But what saye we than for thapo stles? dyd not they vnderstand hym? what yf I here wolde say naye? than [Page] except mayster Masker could proue yes, ellysis not onely his fyrst que­styon gone, whyche he maketh for a waye to the secunde / but his secunde que [...] is clerely gone to, wherwith he wolde make me be taken in myne owne trappe. And therfore fyrste for argument sake, I denye that thapo­stles them selfe vnderstode Chryste worde. Now wyll now mayster Masker proue me y ^t they dyd, Mary sayth he; for they were well acqnaynted wyth suche phrases. And answered theyr mayster Chryst whan he asked theym, wyll you go hense fro me to? Lorde sayd they to whom shall we go, thou hast the wordes of euerlastynge lyfe / & we byleue that thou arte Chryste the sone of the lyuynge god.

¶ Now good reader I thynke there be some textes in scrypture that may ster Masker vnderstandeth not no more than other pore men. But yet yf he wyll not agre that, but say that he vnderstandeth: yet yf we wolde [Page cxcix] put y ^e case that there were some such one texte, he wold I thynke admytte the case for possible. Let vs than put him hardely none other, but euyn the same wordes of Chryste that we be now in hande wythall. For no man vnderstandeth any word wurse than he vnderstandeth those, euyn yet whyle he wryteth on them. If hym selfe had ben than of that flocke, and had sene all other thynges in Chryst that his apostles saw, and had byle­ued in hym, and had not mysse trusted Chryste, but ben redy to do what he wolde byd hym do, and byleue what he wolde byd hym byleue / but had yet as for those wordes of eaiynge Chrystes flesshe thought them hard to perceyue what Chryste ment by theym / but though he fully vnder­stode them not as he thought, yet he dowted not but that good they were [Page] that god spake, and that Chryst if he taryed hys tyme, wold tell hym fer­ther of the mater at more leysour: yf now whan other went theyr waye, Chryst wolde haue sayde vnto hym, wylte thou mayster Masker go thy waye fro me to? whyther wold than mayster Masker haue letted to saye euyn the selfe same wordes that the apostles sayd with other lyke, why­ther sholde I go fro the good lorde? Thou haste the wordes of euerla­stynge lyfe, & I byleue and knowe that thou arte Chryst the sone of the lyuyng god, and art able to do what thou wylte, and thy wordes be holy and godly whyther I vnderstande them or no / and thou mayst make me perceyue them better at thy ferther pleasure. wold mayster masker haue ben contented to saye thus: or ellys wolde he haue sayd? Nay by my fay [Page cc] good lorde, thou shalte tell me this tale a litel more playnly y ^t I may bet ter perceyue it by & by, or els wyll I go to the deuyll with yender good fe­lowes, and lette theym dwell wyth the that wyll.

¶ Now yf mayster Masker wolde (as I wene he wolde but yf he were starke madde) haue sayde the same hym selfe that saynt Peter sayde / or be content at the lest that saynt Pe­ter sholde saye it for hym, though hym selfe hadde not well and clerely perceyued what Chryste ment by those wordes: Now can he nowe proue by the same wordes of theyrs, that thapostles vnderstode hys wor des than.

¶ Thus you se good readers, that of his two questyons; the fyrst haue I so answered that it is come to no thynge / (yf I wolde stycke wyth [Page] hym styll at hys answere) tyll he ha­ue better proued me than he hath yet, that thapostles in the syxte chapyter of saynt Iohn̄ dyd vnderstand Cri­stes wordes. And now therfore tyll he haue better handeled his fyrst que styon, he can agaynste me neuer vse his secunde, wherby he bosteth that I coulde make none answere, but suche as sholde take my self in myne own trappe. From whych syth I am clene ascaped all redy, by the answe­rynge of his fyrste questyō, you may good readers se, that mayster Mas­ker goth as wylyly to worke to take me, as a man myghte sende a chylde about wyth salt in hys hand, and byd hym go cache a byrde, by layenge a lytell salt on her tayle / & whan y ^e byrd is flowen, comforte hym than to go cache another, and tell hym he hadde caught y ^t and it had taryed a lytell.

The. vi. chapyter.

BUt yet to se now how craftely he could betrappe me if I wold let hym alone: Let vs graunte hym for hys lordly pleasure, that the dyscyples and apostles vnderstode Christes wordes well in all thre pla ces, not onely whan he sayd he was Iohn̄. 10. the dore / and whan he sayde he was Iohn̄. 15. the vyne / but also whan he sayde, my flesshe is veryly meate. What now? Mary than sayth mayster Masker, If More answere ye or yes: than do I aske hym ferther, whyther Chrystes dyscyples and apostles thus [...] and vnderstandynge hys wordes in al the thre chapyters, wōdered & merueyled (as More sayth) or murmured (as hath the texte) at theyr may sters speche. what thynke you More muste answere here? here maye you se why ther thie olde holy vp­holder of the [...] & chyrche is brought, euyn to be taken in hys own trappe. For the dyscyples and hys apostles neyther murmured nor metuayled, nor yet were not offended wyth this theyr mayster Chrystes wordes and maner of spekynge.

¶ In what trappe of myne owne or his eyther; hath mayster Masker [Page] caught me here? Mine argumēt was Iohn̄. 10. ye [...] well, y ^t at the herynge Cryst saye, I am the dore, & I am the very Iohn̄. 15. vyne: no man meruayled at the ma­ner of spekynge, bycause that euery man perceyued his wordes for alle­goryes Ioh. 6. & parables. But in the thyrd place where he sayde, ‘My flesshe ys veryly meate, And the brede that I shall geue you is my flesshe. And ex cepte you eate the flesshe of the sone of man, and drynke his bloude, you shall not haue lyfe in you:’ so many meruayled bycause they perceyued well it was not a parable but that he spake of very eatynge of his flesshe in dede, that of all his herers very few could abyde it, but murmured & sayd how can he gyue vs his flesshe to eate. And his own dyscyples sayd, Thys worde is harde, who maye here hym / and went almost all theyr way. Now whan theffecte of myne [Page ccii] argument is, that in this poynt many meruayled at the thynge, as a thynge playnely spoken, and not a parable, but a playne tale that men sholde ve­ryly eate his flesshe / and that no man meruayled at the tother two maner of spekynge, bycause they perceyued them for parables: what maketh it agaynste me, that in the thyrde place there were some that meruayled not nor murmured not syth that though some dyd not, yet many dyd, & bothe meruailed & murmured & went theyr war, & that farre the moste part, and saue the apostles almost euerichone. And veryly the tother dyscyples as saynt Chrysostome sayth, those that than were present (agaynst mayster maskers sayeng) went theyr wayes all the maynye.

¶ Where is now good readers thys trappe of myne owne makynge, that [Page] I am fallen in? hath mayster Mas­ker caste me downe so depe, with prouynge me that some meruayled not, where I sayd many dyd? Be these two proposicions so sore repugnaunt and so playne contradyctory: Many meruayled, and some meruailed not, that bycause I sayd the fyrste, and he proueth the secund, therfore I am quyte caste and caught in myne owne trappe? This man is a wyly shrewe in argument I promyse you.

The. vii. chapyter.

BUt now that I haue good rea­ders so fayre escaped my trappe I truste with the helpe of some holy saynt, to cach mayster Masker in his owne trappe, that his mayster­shyppe hath made for me.

¶ Ye wote well good readers, that the trappe whiche he made for me, [Page cciii] were these two wyly capcyouse que­styons of his, with whych he thought to cache me / that is to wytte, fyrste whyther the dyscyples and apostles hard and vnderstode our sauyour in all thre places / and than vpon myne answere ye or yes, his other questyō ferther, whyther they meruayled or murmured. Unto whyche whyle I haue answered no: now by the trap­pys of his questyons he rekeneth me dreuyn to be caught in myne owne, bycause I sayd that many meruey­led / as though many other might not bycause the apostles dyd.

¶ Now before I shewe you howe hym selfe is taken in his own trappe ye shall here his owne gloryouse wor des with which he bosteth y ^t he hath taken me, & wolde make men wene it were so. [...] these are his, wordes.

Here may you se, whether thys olde holy vpholder of the popys chyrche is brought, euyn to be taken in [Page] hys owne trappe. For the dyscyples and his [...] neyther murmured nor meruayled, nor yet were not offended wyth this theyr mayster Chrystes worde [...] and maner of speche. For they were well acquainted wyth such phrases, & answered theyr mayster Cryst when he asked theym, wyll ye go hence fro me to? Lorde sayd they to whome shall we go [...] thou [...] the wordes of euevlastyng lyfe, & we byleue y ^t thou art Chryste the sone of the lyuynge god. Lo maysters more, they neyther merueyled nor murmured. And why? For bycause as ye saye, they vnderstode it in an allegorye sence, and petceyued well that he ment not of hys materyall body to be eaten wyth theyr teth / but he ment it of hym selfe to be byleued to be very god and very man, hauynge flesshe and bloude as they had, and yet was he the sone of the lyuynge god. Thye bylyefe gathered they of all hys spyry­tuall sayenges, as hym selfe expouneth hys owne wordes sayenge, My flesshe profyteth nothynge, meanynge to be eaten: but it is the spyryte that ge­ueth this lyfe. And the wordes that I speke vnto you are spyryte and lyfe. So that who so byleue my flesshe to be crucyfyed and broken, and my bloude to be shede for hys synnes, he eateth my flesshe and drynketh my bloud, and hath lyfe euerlastyng. And thys is the lyfe wherwyth the ryghtuouse lyueth euen by fayth. Abacuk. 2.

¶ Lo good reader here haue I reher sed you his wordes whole to thende. And yet bycause you shall se that I wyll not hyde from you any pyece of [Page cciiii] hys, that may make for any strength of his mater: I shal reherse you fer ther his other wordes wryten in his 13. lefe, whyche I wolde haue tou­ched before, sauynge that I thought to reserue it for hym, to strength with all thys place of his, where it myght do hym best seruyce / where he wold proue agaynst me to trappe me with, that the cause why the dyscyples and apostles merueyled not, nor murmu­red not, nor were not offended, was bycause they vnderstode Chrystes wordes to be spoken not of very ea­tynge of hys flesshe, but onely of the bylyefe of his passyon by waye of a parable or an allegorye / as he spake those other worde whan he sayed, I Iohn̄. 10. am y ^e dore, & whan he sayd, I am the Iohn̄. 15 vyne. The worde lo of M. Masker with which he setteth forth the profe of this point in his. 13, lefe be these, in [Page] the ende of all his exposycyon vpon the syxt chapyter of saynt Iohn̄.

Here is lo the conclusyon of all thye sermon. Chryst very god and man had set hys flesshe byfore them to be reteyed with fayth, that it sholde be broken and suffre for theyr synne. But they coulde not eate it spi rytually, bycause they byleued not in hym. wherfore many of hys dyscyples fyll from hym and walked no more wyth hym. And than he sayd to the. xii. wyll ye go away to? And Symon Peter answered: Lorde to whome shall we go? Thou haste the wor­des of euerlastynge lyfe, and we byleue and are sute that thou arte Chryste the sone of the lyuynge god. Here it is manyfest what Peter and his felowes vn­derstode by this eatynge and drynkynge of Chryste. For they were perfytely taught that it stode all in the bylyefe in Chryst, as theyr answere here testyfy eth. If this mater had stode vppon so depe a myra­cle as our papystes fayne, wythout any word of god not comprehended vnder any of theyr comen senses, that they shold eate hys body vnder forme of brede, as longe, depe, thycke, and [...] brode as it hangeth vppon the crosse, they beynge yet but feble of fayth not confermed with the holy goost; [...] here nedes haue wondered, stonied, and staggered, and haue ben more inquisytyue in and of so strange a mater, than they were. But they neyther dowted, nor merueyled nor murmured, nor nothynge offended wyth wyth ma ner of speche, as were the other that slypte awaye / but they answered fermely: Thou hast the wordes of euerlastynge lyfe, and we byleue &c. Now to the exposycyon of the wordes of our lordes sowper.

[Page ccv]¶ Lo good readers, ye wyll I trow nowe bere me recorde, that I dele playnly with mayster Maskar here, and hyde nothynge of his a syde that maye do hym any substancyall ser­uyce / towarde the profe of hys pur­pose. And I warraunt you yt shalbe long ere you fynde hym or any of all that secte, deale in suche playne ma ner wyth me.

¶ But nowe good Christen reader, reade al these whole wordes of hys in both y ^e places as often as you lyst, and consyder theym well / and than shal you perceyue in conclusyon, y ^t he proueth hys purpose by none other thynge in all this worde, than onely by his owne wordes expownynge al way the wordes of Chryste as may ster Maskar lyste hym self. And vppon that that hym selfe sayeth, that the cause wherfore the disciples [Page] and apostses [...] not, not murmured not at these wordes of Christ, The brede y ^t I shall geue you is my flesh &c. was bycause they per ceyued that Chryste spake yt in a pa table (as I say of his other wordes, I am the dore, and I am the very vyne) vppon these wordes of may­ster Maskere owne, mayster Mas­kar concludeth for his. purpose, the selfe same thynge that he fyrste pre supposeth the thyng that he shold not presuppose but preue, that is to wyt that Chryst spake yt but by way of a parable.

¶ But agaynste mayster Mas­kar and his presumptuouse presuppo synge, the mater appereth playne. For as I haue byfore sayde, our sa­uyour Iohn̄. 10. Iohn̄. 51. whan he sayd, I am the [...], and when he sayde, I am the very vyne, dyd so psecute and declare in [Page ccvi] bothe the places his owne wordes, that there coulde no man haue cause to meruayle at the maner of spe­kynge for his owne declaracyon in prosecutynge his owne wordes was suche, that it muste nedes make any man (but yf he were an idiote or an asse) perceyue that Chryste spake in those two places y ^t he was the [...] & the dore but by waye of a parable.

And this may euery mā sone se y ^t syst to [...] on y ^e places. And therfore no man sayd howe can he be a vyne, nor how can he be a dore, as many sayd in the thyrde place, ‘How can he geue vs his fleshe to eate.’ whyche wordes yf they were so [...] spoken but by waye of parable, as the tother twayne were, yt were farre [...] that so many wyse men wolde haue taken it so farre other wyse euer synnes, that take the tother twayne / [Page] for none other. And namely such ho­ly doctours and sayntes, as are well acquaynted wyth Chrystes phrases and parables / and in the studye ther­of, haue spent the great parte of all theyr lyues. And therfore mayster Maskar agaynst so many wyse men and so good, goynge about nowe to proue this poynte but a parable, by none other substancyall meane, than onely by thauthoryte of hys owne worshypfull worde, proueth [...] purpose very faynte and slender, for all his [...] Mayster More, as though hys purpose appered very clere.

The. viii. chapyter.

HOwe be yt for to furnyshe hys mater with, and to set it the bet­ter forth, bycause he wolde not haue yt seme to stande all vppon his owne onely exposycyon, that [...] to [Page ccvii] wyt vppon his owne onely worde: he setteth vnto his owne bare word, hys owne bare balde reason, and sayth.

If thys mater had stode vppon so depe a myracle as oure papystes fayne, without any worde not compre hended vnder any of theyr commen sense, that they shold eate his body beynge vnder the forme of brede, as longe, depe, [...], and as brode as yt hanged vppon the crosse: they beyng yet but feble of fayth, not confyrmed wyth the holy goste, muste here [...] haue wondered, stonned, and staggred / and haue ben more inquysytyue in and of so straunge a mater than they were. But they neyther meruayled nor murmured / nor nothynge offended wyth thys [...] of speche / as were the other that slypte awaye, but they answered fermely. Thou haste the wordes of euerlastynge lyfe, and we byleue &c. Now to the [...] of the wordes of out [...] souper.

¶ Here hath mayster Maskar ge­uen vs a maior of an argument, and a minor to. His maior is his fyrste parte vnto these wordes, But they &c. and his minor is at the remaunt.

But we maye nowe aske hym ergo what? For conclusyon he setteth none vnto theym. If he thynke the conclu [Page] syon folowe so clere that he neded not, but euery man muste nedes se what foloweth vppon his two pre­mysses: in good fayth for my parte yf I sholde set ergo to yt, that ys the comen note of the consequente, I se not what wold folow any more then the cōmen verse of the compute ma­nuell, Ergo ciphos adrifex, he hathe made his maior so folyshely.

¶ In whych that fyrst yt pleaseth his mayfter shyppe to tryfle & mocke in this great mater, & make vs pore people wene / that euery thynge that any doctour sayth in dyspycyons, or holdeth by way of probleme, were delyuered vs to byleue as a necessa­ry poynte of our fayth: he doth but play the false fole for his pleasure. For as for the maner how the blessed bodye of Chryste is in the blessed sa­crament, whyther with his dymensy [Page ccviii] one, as song, thycke, and brode, as he hanged on the crosse, or with his dy­mensyons ꝓporcionable to the forme of brede, as his blessed bodye was as veryly his bodye in the fyrst mo­ment of his holy concepcyon, as yt euer was at his passion / and yet was yt than neyther so thycke, so songe, nor so brode / or whyther his body be there in his naturall substaunce, with out any dymensyons at all / or why­ther he be there in all his distyncty ōs of the members of his holy hodye, or there haue al his mēbers without any distinctyō of place at all: these things and suche other in whiche lerned men maye moderately and reuerently dy spute and exercyse theyr witte and lernynge, the catholyque chyrche in suche wyse leueth at large, that yt vyndeth not the people to any suche strayghtes in the mater, but onely to the poyntes that we be bounden [Page] by certayne and sure reuelacyon, to byleue / that is to wytte, that vnder what maner so euer yt be there, ve­ryfy there yt is, his very fleshe and hys very blood. And in the forme of brede veryly eate hys very bodye there we do, when we receyue the ve ry blessed sacrament. Thus [...] haue we by certayne and sure reuela cyon, bothe by holy scrypture, and by the tradycyon also, by whych Chryst taught yt to hys apostles and they to the chyrche, as saynte Poule dyd to 1. Cori. 11. the Corinthyes, and the chyrch to the people by succession from age to age euer syn thapostles dayes vnto our owne tyme.

¶ And therfore wyth those moc­kes and iestes, mayster Mashar mocketh no man but hym selfe / saue that vnder the name of papystes, he mocketh all the catholyque chyrche [Page ccix] of this. xv. hundred yere both clergy and temporaltye, men and women, and [...] / and amonge the remanaunt, all [...] holy doctours and saynts that haue wythout doute or questyon both byleued and taught, that Crift ment not to speke those wordes: My fleshe is very meate, by waye of a pa table, as mayster Masker sayth he onely ment / but that he veryly spake and ment of the very eatynge of hys fleshe in dede.

¶ But now shall you se that as I sayd, his maior is so folishely made, that al the world may wonder where his wytte was when he made yt.

For he sayth that yf the mater stode in dede, vppon such a great myracle as the catholyque chyrche (whyche he calleth the papystes) byleue, that is to wyt that his very bodye sholde be eaten in forme of brede / and that [Page] also (whyche he putteth for a neces­sary parte of our sayth) as longe, as depe, as thycke, and as brode as yt was whanne yt hanged on the crosse: than the dyscyples and apostles (by­cause they were yet but feble in the fayth) muste nedes haue wondered, stonned, and stagerd, and haue bene more inquysytyue therein then they were. Nowe woteth well euery chylde good reader, that Chryst dyd not in that place, playnely tell theym in what maner that they shold eat yt / that is to wyt that they shold eate yt in forme of brede. For though he gaue them an insynnacyon & sygnyfy cacyon therof, in that he sayde, And Iohn̄. 6. the brede that I shall gyue you is my flesshe / whyche wordis coupled with his dede whē he dyd instytute in dede at hys maundy, myghte then make Mat. 26. theym clerely perceyue that they [Page ccx] sholde eate fleshe in forme of brede: yet at the tyme when the worde was fyrste spoken, yt was not so playne for that mater, but yt myght seme to theym that he vsed that worde brede but by maner of allegorye to sygny­fye there his fleshe, bycause they sholde veryly eate yt as men eate brede.

¶ Now se than good reader the mad nesse of mayster Maskar, that sayeth here, that that thyng must nedeshaue made thapostles wonder, stonned, and stagger, at the time when Christ spake those wordes in the sext chapy­pyter of saynt John̄ / at whych tyme euery chyld knoweth, y ^t they though they well perceyued that they sholde veryly eate his fleshe, yet they knew not that they shold eate it in forme of bred. And how could it thā haue made them wonder (that thyng I say that [Page] he speketh of, and so sore exaggera­teth to encrease the wonder) that ys to wytte that his fleshe sholde be ea­ten in forme of bred, and that as long as thycke, as depe, and as brode, as yt was whan yt hanged on the crosse. Nowe coulde thys thyng I saye haue made theym wonder at that tyme, at whyche tyme they thoughte not of the eatynge therof in the forme of brede? Nerd euer any man suche a madde argument, as mayster Maskar hathe made vs here.

¶ Nowe yf Chryste had there told theym in dede, all that mayster Mas kar hath here putte in so folyshely, to make the mater the more wonderful: than wolde I denye hys maior. And so wyll I do if hym self putte al that oute agayne, and leue no more in hys maior than Chryste sayde in dede, [Page ccxi] that is that they sholde veryly ease his fleshe & haue life therby, & y ^t they shold not onely eate it bodyly but also spyrytually / nor in dede gobettes wythoute lyfe or spyryte, but quycke and ioyned wyth the lyuely [...], by whyche yt sholde geue lyfe, and wythoute whyche his fleshe of hys owne proper nature to the geuynge of lyfe, coulde not auayle.

Nowe saye I that yf mayster Mas ker hadde made his maior of this: all this had ben no cause for hys apost­les to wonder, nor to be stonned and stagger, nor to murmure and grudge as they dyd that slypte awaye.

For as feble as mayster Maskar ma keth thapostles in the fayth of Crist: yet at that tyme wythoute any suche maner of meruayle, as myght make theym stonne and stagger and slyppe away from hym, they byleued suche [Page] other thynges as were as harde to byleue as this, and that wythout any farther inquysycyon at all.

¶ For elles why shode they not at the same time haue meruayled of his ascensyon vppe to heuen, and bene more inquysytyue therof. For that was no lytle meruayle neyther, and was one of the thynges / that made y ^e Iewes and those disciples to stonne and stagger, that there slypte awaye from hym.

¶ Also they byleued y ^t he was god / and hadde no such wonder therof, as made theym stonne and stagger or be more inquisytyue therof, whyche was as straūge a mater as was al the to­ther / and which poynt ones byleued, yt was [...] to byleue the tother with out any suche maner of meruaylyng, as shold make them eyther stonne or stagger therat.

[Page ccxii]¶ No we as for beynge inquisytyue therof: holy saint Chrisostome saith, that as straunge as the thing was of eatynge his fleshe. For y ^t men hadde benrysen from deth they had herd of in y ^e scripture before / but y ^t one shold eate a nothers flesh saith saīt Chriso stome, that had they neuer herd of) yet they byleued Christes word and folowed forth styll, & confessed y ^t he had the wordes of euerlastyng lyfe, and wold not be by & by curiouse and inquisytiue as mayster Maskar saith they wold, yf they had byleued hym that he ment of eatyng of his flesh in dede. For saynt Chrysostome sayth, That is y ^e parte of a discyple, what so euer his mayster affermeth, not to be curyouse and inquysytyue therof, nor to make serche therin, but to heare and byleue, and yf they wolde any thynge forther be enformed / abyde a conuenyent tyme. For they that dyd [Page] otherwyse & were inquisytyue, went [...]. [...]. 45. 6. cap. [...]. awaye backe, and that thorow theyr foly. For sayth saynt Chrysostome, ‘whan so euer it comth in the mynde, to aske the questyon how the thynge may be done: than cometh there in to the mynde incredulyte therwith. So was Nichodemus troubled & asked, Now maye a man be borne agayne [...]. 3. whan he is olde? Maye a man entre agayne into his mothers bely and be borne agayn? And so the Iewes sayd here to: how can he gyue vs his flesh to eate? But thou Iewe yf thou aske that, why dydest thou not aske that in lyke wise in the myracle of the fyue louys: why dydest thou not thā aske how can he fede so many of vs with so lytell mete. why dydest thou not aske, by what meane he wolde & dyd encreace it so mych. The cause was bycause they cared but for the meate, and not for the myracle. But thou wylte peraduenture saye, the thynge [Page ccxiii] at that tyme declared and shewed it selfe. But than I say agayne, that of that manifest open myracle that they saw hym there wurke, they shold ha­ue byleued that he coulde do these thynges to, that is to wyt these thyn­ges that they now murmured at whā they sayd, how can he gyue vs hys flesshe to eate. For therfore (saythe saynt Chrysostome) dyd our sauiour wurke the tother myracle of his lyue louys byfore, bycause he wolde ther­with induce them that they shold not dystruste those thynges that he wold tell them after, that is to wytte good readers of hys godhed, and of the geuynge of hys fleshe to eate.’

The. ix. chapyter.

NOw good, Chrsten readers here you se by saynt Chryso­stome, that though thapostles. vnder stode well that Chryste spake of the [Page] very eatynge of his flessh: yet there was no cause why they shold eyther dowtfully wōder, stonne, or stagger or be by and by curyouse and inquysitiue therof / & so destroyeth he playne mayster Maskers reason / but yf it be to suche as are dysposed for theyr pleasure, better to byleue mayster masker than saynt Chrysostome.

¶ For euery man may here well se, that saynt Chrysostom meneth here, that Chryste in those wordes bysyde all parables and allegoryes, spake and ment of the very eatynge of his very flesshe in dede. whyche thynge lest mayster Masker myghte as he is shamelesse, brynge yet in question and controuersye: I shall reherse you a fewe lynes ferther of saynte Chrysostome in this self same place. Lo thus there sayth he ferther.

[Page ccxiiii] ‘Those Iewes at that tyme toke no commodyte / but we haue taken the profyte of that benefyte. And therfore is it necessare to declare how merue­louse are these mysteryes (that is to wytte of the blessed sacrament) and why they be geuen vs, and what is y ^t profyte therof. we be one body & men­brys of Chrystes flesshe and his bo­nys. And therfore they that are chry­sten, are bounden to obaye his pre­ceptes. But yet that we sholde be not onely by loue, but also in very dede turned in to y ^t flesh of his, that thyng is done by the meate that his lybera­lyte hath gyuen vs. For whyle he lon ged to declare and expresse hys loue that he bore towarde vs, he hath by his owne body mengled hym selfe wyth vs, and hath made hym selfe one wyth vs, that the body sholde be vned with the hedde. For that is the greateste thynge that louers longe for (that is to wytte to [Page] be (if it were possyble) made both one) And that thynge lygnyfyed Iob of hio seruaūtes, of whom he was most hartely beloued. which to expresse the vehemēt loue that they bare towarde hym, sayde who coulde gyue vs the gyfte, that we myghte haue oure bo­dyes euyn fulfylled with hys flesshe: whyche thynge Chryst hath done for vs in dede / bothe to thentent to bynd vs in the more feruent loue towarde hym, and also to declare the feruent loue and desyre that hym selfe bare towarde vs. And therfore hath he not onely suffered hym selfe to be sene or loked vppon by them that desyre and longe for hym, but also to be touched and eaten, and the very teth to be in­fyxed into his flesshe, and all folke to be fulfylled in the desyre of hym. Frō goddes borde therfore let vs ryse like lions that blew out fyre at the mouth suche as the denyll maye be aferde to beholde vs / & let vs consyder Chryst [Page ccxv] our hed, & what a loue he hath shew­ed vs. The fathers and the mothers oftentymes put out theyr chyldren to other folke to nurse. But I (may our sauyour say) nuryshe & fede my chyl­dren with myne owne flesshe. I geue them here myne own selfe / so fauour I them all. And suche greate hope I geue theym all, agayne the tyme that shall come. For he that in suche wyse gyueth vs hym selfe in this lyfe here: mych more wyll he gyue vs hym selfe in the lyfe that is to come. I longed (sayd our lorde) to be your brother.’

‘And for your sakes I haue commu­nycated and made comen vnto you my flesh and my bloud. The thynges by whyche I was ioyned with you, those thynges haue I exhybyted a­gayne and geuen to you’ (y ^t is to saye the very fleshe and bloude, by which I was made natural man with you, that same haue I in the sacrament ex hybyted & geuen agayne vnto you)

[Page] ‘Thys bloud causeth y ^e kinges image to floure in vs. This bloude wyl not suffre the bewty and the noblynes of of the soule (whych it euer watereth & nuryssheth) to wyther or fade & fall. The bloud that is made in vs of our other comen meate, is not by and by bloude / but before it be bloude it ys somwhat ellys. But this bloude of Chryst out of hande watereth y ^e soule & with a certayne meruelouse myght and strength seasoneth it by and by. This mystycall or sacramētall bloud’ (that is to saye thys bloud of Christ in the sacrament) ‘dryueth the deuyls farre of and bryngeth to vs not an­gellys onely, but the lorde of all an­gellys to. The deuyls whan they by holde and se the bloud of Chryst with in vs, they fle larre from vs, and the angellys runne as faste towarde vs.’

¶ And yet saynt Chrysostome cea­ceth not wyth all thys, but goth forth with a lenger processe, declaryng the [Page ccxvi] great benefyte of this bloud, both by the shedyng on the crosse, and by the receyuyng in the sacrament / whyche whole processe I shall peraduenture hereafter in some other place reherse ¶ But for this mater good chrysten readers thus mych dothe more then suffyse. For by lesse than this ye may more than playnely perceyue, that thys olde holy doctour saynt Chryso stom, manyfestely declareth & shew­eth, that our sauyour in those wordes that he spake to the Iewes, mency­oned in the syxte chapyter of saynte Iohst, veryly spake and ment of the very eatynge of his flesshe. whyche thynge he promysed there, and which promyse he performed after at hys maundy, whan he there instituted the Math. 26 blessed sacrament.

The. x. chapyter.

ANd nowe good readers to fy­nyshe at laste this mater of may ster Maskers agaynste my se­cunde argument (whyche he calleth my fyrste, bycause my fyrste is suche as he is lothe to loke vppon) I re­torne ones agayne to mayster mas­kers two sore captyouse questyons / and lykewise as he hath asked theym of me, and I haue as you se so well auoyded his gynnys and his grinnes and all his trymtrams, that he hathe not yet trayned me into no trappe of myne owne, as you se him solēpnely boste: ‘so wyll I now be bolde to as­ke of hym fyrst, whyther saynt Chri sostome, here, ye and saynt Austayne to, and saynte Cyrille, saynte Bede saynte Nyreneus, and saynt Nila­ry, were of the mynde, that thapost­les vnderstode theyr mayster Chry [Page ccxvii] stes wordes whan he sayd, And the [...]. 6. brede that I shall gyue you is my fleshe &c. And my flesh is very meate &c. And I tell you very trouth, except you eate the flesh of y ^t sone of man &c.’ ¶ If mayster masker answer me to thys questyon naye or no, than shall he make me bolde to answere y ^e same to hym. For than shall he not fere me wyth his owne sayenge, that the go­spell sayth contrary in the syxte cha­pyter of saynte [...], yf he graunte and confesse hym selfe / that all those holy doctours saye therin agaynste his owne sayenge / whyche amonge them all, vnderstode that gospell as well as hym selfe alone, ye & though he take Fryth and frere Nuyskyn to hym to. And therfore yf he answere naye or no: than is he quyte ouer­throwen as you se / and his secunde questyon quyte gone to, for than can [Page] he neuer come to it.

¶ Now on the tother syde, yf he an­swere me ye or yes: than se good rea­ders wherto mayster Masker bryn­geth hym self euyn to be taken in his owne trappe. For than he marreth all hys mater. For syth you se clerely good readers, that all these holy doc­tours and sayntes, openly do decla­re by theyr playne worde which your selfe haue here all redy herde, that Chryste in those worde veryly spake and ment of the very eatynge of his very flesshe in dede: it muste nedes folow agaynste mayster Maskers mynde (in the earys & the hartes of al such as byleue better al those holy doctours than hym) that this is the ryght vnderstandynge of Chrystes wordes / and that thapostles yf they vnderstode his wordes, vnderstode them after the same fashyon / that is [Page ccxviii] to wyt, that he spake & ment of y ^e very eatyng of his very flesh in ded. And so serueth hym his secunde questyon of nought. For the cause why they meruaysed not in any murmurynge maner, was bycause they byleued it well at theyr maysters word, whych mayster masker doth not / and y ^e cause why therwere not by & by curyouse & inquisitiue, was asyou haue herd saīt Chrysostome declare', bycause they were meke and obedyent, and not so presūptuouse and malapert; as mai­ster Masker wolde haue ben.

¶ [...] mayster masker here may you se lo, what wurship you haue wonne with your questions / with which you haue not onely missed of trayning me into myn own trappe, as you triūphe & boste, but are also dreuyn into your own trap your self, out of which you can neuer clymbe vp your self nor al [Page] the bretherhed be able to drawe you vp, as longe as the deuyll the very father of your lyuynge bretherhed, lyeth in the depe denne of hell.

¶ Thus haue I good readers my fyrste argument (as he calleth it) that he bosteth to haue twyse so substan­cially soyled, that he maketh me ther­in such a feble babe, that I were not able to stande in his strong hand: that argumēt haue I so strongely now de fended, and geuyn hym in his owne turne so many gret & fowle fallys, in euery part of his processe, that if this great clerke had so many so great fal lys geuen hym at Clerken well at a wrestelynge, he wolde haue had I wene neyther rybbe, nor arme, nor legge lefte hym hole longe ago, nor at thys laste lyfte, his necke vnbrokē neither. And now therfore let vs loke how he soyleth my thyrde argument, [Page ccxix] whych hym selfe calleth my second, bycause he wold haue y ^t fyrst forgotē

The. xi. chapyter.

LO thus good readers goeth mayster Masker forth.

The secunde argument of More.

After thys texte thus wysely proued to be vnderstan den in the lyfter all sense wyth the carnall Iewes, & not in the allegoryke or spyrytuall sense with Cryst and hys apostles: The whole somme of Morys cō [...] of the yonge man, flandeth vppon this ar­gument, a posse ad esse / that is to wytte, God maye do it, ergo it is done. God may make thys body in many or in all places at onys, ergo it is in many or in all places at onys. whyche maner of argumenta­cyon how false and naught it is, euery Sophyfter & euery man that hath wytte, perceyueth. A lyke ar­gument. God may shew More the treuth and call hym to repentaūce as he dyd Paule for perse cutyng hys chyrche, ergo More is connerted to god. Or god maye lette hym runne of an indurate harte with Pharo, and at last take an open and sodayne ven­geaunce vppon hym for persecufynge hys worde, & burnyng hys pore mēbres: ergo it is done allredy.

¶ In all thys tale good reders you se, that mayster Masker is yet at the leste wyse constant & nothynge chaū ­geth [Page] his maners. For as falsely as he rehersed myne other argumente be­fore (wherin what falshed he vsed you haue your selfe sene) as falsely now reherseth he this other. For rede good readers all my letter thorowe your selfe, and whan you fynde that fashyoned argument there, than by­leue mayster masker in this mater / & in the meane whyle byleue but as the trouth is, that with his lyes he moc­keth you. And sith he maketh vs first a lowde lye for his fundaciō, & buyl­deth after his argumētes vppon the same, wher with he skoffeth so plea­saūtly at me, y ^t it as ꝓperly becometh the man to taunt, as it becometh a camell or a bere to daunce: I wyl not with hym argue, a posse ad esse / & say he can lye ergo he doth lye / but I wil turne the fashyon, & argue abesse ad posse / & saye that he doth lye, ergo he [Page ccxx] can lye, & so cōmende his wyt. Lo this forme of arguyng can he not denye. And thantecedent shall you fynd as trewe whan you rede ouer my letter as hym felf can not say nay, but that the consecucyon is formall.

¶ But than goth mayster Masker forth on and sayth.

Mayster More muste fyrste proue if vs by expresse wordes of holy scrypture, and not by his owne vn­wryten dremys, that Chrystes body is in many pla­ces or in all places at ones. And than though our reasyn can not reche it, yet our fayth measured and [...] wyth the worde of fayth, wyll both reche if, receyue it, and holde it fosie to / not bycause it is possyble to god, & impossyble to reason, but bycause the wryten worde of our fayth sayth it. But whan we rede goddes wordes in mo than twenty places contrary, that hys body sholde be here: More must geue vs leue to byleue hys vnwryten vanitees, very tees I wolde say, at laysour.

¶ Here ye se good reders how ma­ny thynge mayster masker hath tolde vs here, and how fresshely he florys sheth them forth.

¶ The fyrst is that I muste proue it hym, that the body of Chryste is [Page] in many places at onys, or in all pla­ces at onys.

¶ The secunde is, y ^t I muste proue it by expresse wordes of scrypture.

¶ The thyrde is, that I maye not proue it by myne owne vnwryten dremys.

¶ The fourth is, that yf I proue it so by expresse wordes of scrypture, than he wyll bothe reche it, and re­ceyue it, and holde it fast to.

¶ The fyfth is that he fyndeth. xx. places of scrypture and mo; to the contrary, prouynge that hys body is not here.

¶ The syxth is, y ^t therfore I must geue hym leue to byleue myne vn­wryten vanytees, verytees, he wold saye, at laysore.

¶ Now for the fyrste good readers where mayster Masker sayth y ^t mai­ster More muste fyrst proue it hym, [Page ccxxi] that Chrystes bodye is in many pla­ces at once or in all places at ones: I saye that as for all places at ones, mayster More muste not proue at al. For (sith y ^e sacrament is not ta al pla­ces at ones) whyther his blessed bo­dye may be in al places at ones, is no poynte of our mater.

¶ Now as touchynge the beynge of hys blessed body in many places at ones, where mayster Maskar sayth that ere he be bounde to byleue yt, I muste proue yt: he is very farre out of reason and oute of the ryght way. For is mayster Maskar nor father Frith byfore hym, bounden to byleue no more, than mayster More were able to proue them? I saye agayn to father fryth and mayster Maskar bothe, that yf eyther of theym bothe, or any suche other fonde felowe as they be, begynne to denye nowe [Page] any such playn artycle of y ^e fayth, as all good chrysten nacyons, are & long haue be full agreed vppon, so longe and so full as they haue bene vppon this, and so longe rekened the contra rye byleues for heretyques: eyther mayster More or any man els, might well with reason reproue them ther­of, and rebuke theym therfore, and onely answere the folysh argumētes that they make agaynste the trouth, and shold not ones nede to go aboute the profe of the ful receiued & vndon ted trouth, as though it were become douteful vpō euery proud heretikes blasphemouse folyshe argument.

¶ For if master maskar wold nowe brxng vppe the Arrianes heresre a­gayne, agaynst the godhed of Christ, which he might as wel as this frātike heresye of frere Huskyn & wycleffe agaynst the blessed sacrament / or yf [Page ccxxii] he wold now begyn the tother folysh herely, wher of the prophete speketh in the psalter. Dixit insipiens in corde Psal. [...]. suo nō est deus. The fole sayd in his harte there is no god, which he might as well begynne as any of the tother twayne: yf he wold now for the fur­nyshynge of this heresye, come forth with suche vnreasonale reasons, as some folysh folosophers broughte in therfore of olde, were yt not ynough for me to confute those folyshe argu­mētes wherwyth he wold [...] sym ple soulis? Must I nede besyde y ^t go make myche a do, & ꝓue y ^t there were a god, or els graūt thys gose y ^t there were no god at all, bycause hym self wold say so styll, when his found rea sons were soyled? ¶ Now to his seconde poynt, where it is not inough for him to say that I muste proue it (wherin as ye se I haue proued hym [Page] a very fole) but he assygneth me al­so what maner of ꝓse I must make / and none maye serue hym, but suche as hym selfe lyst assygne / & that ther fore I must proue it hym by expresse wordes of holy scrypture: I aske hym than whyther he wylbe content yf I proue yt hym by expresse worde of Chryste wryten in all the foure euangelystes, saynt Mathew, saynt Marke, saynt Luke, and sait Iohū? yf he saye ye as I suppose he wyll, than aske I hym farther wherfore he wyll byleue the wrytyng of them foure. wherto what will he answere, but bycause y ^t those gospell of theyrs are holy scrypture. But than shall I farther desyre hym to she we me, howe he knoweth that those foure bo kes or any one of all four, is the boke of hym, whose name yt bereth, or ys the holy scrypture of god at all. To [Page ccxxiii] this questyon lo (but yf he can go far ther than holy saint Austayne could, or the mayster captayne of his owne heresyes Martyne Luther eyther) he muste saye that he knoweth those bokes for holy scrypture, bycause the cōmen knowen catholique chyrch hath so told hym. Now whan he shal haue ones answered me thus: euery chyld may sone se what I shall aske hym agayne. For than shall I saye, tell me than mayster Maskar I be­seche you, syth you byleue this com­men knowen catholyque chyrche in that one great verytie, wherupon by your owne saynge all the other wry­ters depende: why sholde you not as well byleue yt in thys other artycle, whyche yt as playnely telleth you, and yet you do denye yt? why sholde you not I saye mayster Maskar by­leue the chyrche as wel, whan yt tel­leth [Page] you god hath taught his chyrche that this is his very body, as you by­leue the same chyrch when yt telleth you, god hath taught his chyrch that this is his very scriture, namely syth there are wryten in y ^e same scrypture other thynges, to mannes reason as harde to conceyue and as incredyble to byleue as that.

¶ Here you se good readers, to what poynte I haue brought master Maskar. I haue set hym here so fast in the myre, that therin shall he stycke and neuer clene wade oute whyle he lyueth.

¶ Moreouer mayster maskar can not denye me this, but that the ryght bylyef in y ^e sacramēt / & dyuers other thynges mo, were ones taughte and byleued, and christen men bounden to byleue them to, without expresse wor des of holy scripture layed forth for [Page ccxxiiii] the profe, before any word of y ^e new testament was wryten and after per aduenture to / where tharticles were preached, and wryten gospelles not there. Now yf suche thynges were at one tyme not onely byleued, but men also bounden to the belief therof without expresse wordes of scripture for the profe: mayster Maskar must than, though there be come wrytynge synnes, yet either profe vs by exp̄sse wordes of scrypture, that of all that god wyl we shall byleue, there is no­thynge left out / but euery such thyng there writen in with expresse wordes, or els may he neuer make him self so sure, & face in out a this fashion with expresse worde, that sauyng the very playne expresse wordes of scripture, we be no man of vs bounden to by­leue nothynge ellys.

¶ Now this am I sure inough, that suche expresse wordes shall he neuer [Page] fynde in scrypture, that tell hym ex­pressely that all is wrytē in. And than syth be can not proue vs this poynte by scrypturer, but that at the leste wyse we maye be bounden to byleue some suche thynges as in holy scryp pture is not expressely writen / which thynges those may be and which not, of whome wyll god we shall lerne, but of his knowen cathylyque chyrch by whiche he teacheth vs whiche be the very scripture?

¶ Nowe as for the thyrde poynte, mayster maskar toucheth, in whiche he wyl allowe for no suffycient ꝓfe myne owne vnwryten dremys, he ge ueth my dremys I thanke hym of his courtesye, myche more authoryte than euer I loked for. For whyle he reiecteth none of theym, but suche as are vnwryten, he she weth hym selfe redy to byleue them, yf I wold [Page vccxx] vouchesaufe to wryte them.

¶ In the fonrth point he promiseth, y ^t yf I do by expresse wordes of scrypture proue that it is so: thā (though yt be aboue the reche of his reason) yet wyl he by belyefe, both reche yt, and receyue yt, & hold it fast to. Wold god mayster Maskar wolde abyd by this worde. For now I aske hym a­gayn, whyther he wyl be content, yf I proue it him by expresse wordes of some one of the foure euangelystes. And if he be cōtent with expresse wordes of any one, than will I do more for hym, proue yt by all foure.

¶ For saynte Iohn̄ reherseth, that our sauyour sayd hym selfe he wold geue theym his fleshe to eate. And that he ment of the sacramente, you se all redy proued here byfore.

And the tother thre reherse, that Chryste sayde hym selfe whan he [Page] gaue theym the sacrament, thys is my body that shal be broken for you. What wordes cā there be more playn and expresse than these?

¶ But here sayth mayster Maskar that these be not expresse wordes. For he sayth that these wordes be spoken but by way of allegory. And he pro­ueth it as Frith doth, by y ^t our sauiour sayd of hym self, I am the dore, and I am the vyne.

¶ Nowe remember good readers, that master Maskar bylyed me right nowe, and sayd that all my second ar­gumēt was, a posse ad esse, it may be so, ergo yt is so. But now consyder good christen reders your selfe, why ther this argumēt of his be not a pos­se ad esse in dede. For by those placꝭ, I am the dore, and I am the vyne, and suche other: he concludeth that these other places of eatynge hys [Page ccxxvi] fleshe and geuynge of hys bodye, was spoken by an allegorye to.

And howe concludeth he that yt ys so? but bycause yt maye be so.

And thus ye se good readers, that the selfe same kynde of arguynge which mayster Maskar fayneth hym selfe to fynd with me, & falsely belyeth me therin (for I neded there none other thynge to do, but answere the thyn­ges that Fryth layed forthe agaynst the catholyque fayth) the selfe same kynde of arguynge I saye mayster Maskar vseth hym selfe / and so dothe yonge father Fryth hys felow in folye to.

¶ But than agayne whan they ar­gue thus, These places maye be so vnderstanden by an allegorye onely, as those other places be, ergo they be to be so vnderstāden in dede: I haue proued alredy that his entēt is false, and that they maye not be vnder­standen [Page] in an allegory onely as the to­ther be / but the playne and open diffe rence betwene the places appere vp pon the cyrcumstaunces of the texte. This haue I proued agaynst Frith alredye / and that in suche wyse, as your selfe hath sene here, that mays­ter Maskar can not auoyde yt / but in goynge about to defende Frythes foly, hathe wyth his two solucyons of myne one argument, ofter than twyse ouer throwen him self, & made myne argument more than twyse so stronge.

¶ But yet good readers, bycause I say that those wordes of Crist, The brede y ^t I shal geue you is my flesh, [...], 6. which I shal geue for the lyfe of the world / and my flesh is verily meat, and my blood veryly drynke / and, But if you eate the fleshe of the son of man, and drynke hys bloode, you [Page ccxxvii] shal not haue life in you / and so forth al such wordis as our sauyour spake hym selfe, mencyoned in the syxte chapyter of saynte Iohn / and those wordes of our sauyour at hys maun dye wryten wyth all the tother thre euangelystes. Thys is my bodye that shall be broken for you, be playn and expresse wordes for the catho­lyque fayth / and mayster maskar sayth that the be not wordes playne and expresse, but expowneth them all another waye: therfore to breke the stryfe therin betwene him and me, I haue brought you forth for my parte in myne exposycyon, the playne ex­presse wordes of dyuerse olde holy sayntes, by whych you may playne & expressely se, that they al sayd as I saye.

¶ And mayster maskar also can not hym selfe say naye / but that agaynst [Page] other heretyques before his dayes and myne, dyuerse whole generall counsayles of chrystendome, haue playnely and expressely determyned the same to be trew that I saye.

¶ And all the countreys chrystened can also testyfye, that god hathe hym self by manyfold opē miracles, playn & expressely declared for the blessid sa crament, that this is the trewe fayth which mayster Maskar here oppug­neth / and that god hath by those myra cles expowned his own wordes hym self, to be playne & expressely spoken for our part. ¶ And therfore nowe good christen reders, yf mayster mas kar wil make any more stickyng with vs, & not graūt Christes wordes for playn & expresse / & accordynge to hys promyse, reche & receyue y ^e trew faith & hold it faste to: ye may playne & ex pressely tel him, there shal neuer trew man, trust his false promyse after.

[Page ccxxviii]¶ Now touchyng the fyfth poynte, where he saith that he findeth. xx. pla ces in scripture & mo to, prouyng that Christes body is not here in erth: re­member this wel good reder agaynst he bryna them forth. For in his second part whē we come to the tale, ye shal fynd his mo than twēty, farre fewer than fyftene, & of al y ^t shal wel serue hym, ye shall fynd fewer than one.

¶ Then where he concludeth in the laste poynt vpon these fyue poyntes afore (whyche fyue howe well they proue good chrysten readers you se) that I must geue hym leue to byleue myne vn wryten vanyties (veryties he wold saye) at seysour: yf the thyn ges that he calleth vn wrytē verities were ī dede vn writē & inuēted also by me, thā he might be y ^e bolder to cast hē myne vn writen vanities, & (as he cal leth thē before) myn vn writē dremis to, But on y ^e tother syde syth you se [Page] your selfe, that I haue shewed you theym writem in holy saintes bokes, and that a thousand yere before that I was borne / & your self seeth it wri ten in the playne scrypture to, proued playn & expresse for our part against hym, by tholde exposycyon of all the holy doctours and sayntes, and by y ^e determinacyons of dyuerse generall counsayles of Christes whole catho lyque chyrche / and proued playn for our parte also, by so many playn opē myracles: mayster maskar must ne­des be more then madde to cal nowe suche wryten vetyties myne vn wry ten vanytes, or myne vn wryten dre­mys either / except he proue both all those thynges to be but an inuencyon of myne / and ouer that all those wri tynges to be yet vn writen / and that holy doctrine both of holy saintes and of holy scripture vanities, & also that [Page ccxxix] all the whyle that al those holy folke [...] awurke ther with, they neyther wrote nor studyed nor dyd nothynge but dreme.

¶ Now whyle mayster More must therfore vppon suche consyderaciōs, geue maister Masker seue to byleue thys vnwryten vanyte, whiche is in all the. iiii. euangesystes an expresse wryten verite: whyle I must I say therfore vppon suche folysh false cō [...], geue hym seue to byleue the tre we fayth at leysour / yf he had put it in my choyce, I wold haue ben soth to geue hym any senger seysour therin, for he hath ben to longe out of ryght bylyefe all redy. But syth he sayeth I muste, I maye not choyse. wherof I am as helpe me god very sory. For excepte he take hym selfe that leysour bytyme, seuynge the bu­synesse that be dayly taketh in wry­tyng [Page] of pestylēt bokes to the cōtrary: he shal eis not faile to byleue y ^e trew fayth at a longe leysour ouer late, y ^t is to wytte whan he lyeth wrechedly in hell / where he shall not wryte for lacke of lyght and burnynge vp of his paper, but shall haue euerlastyng laysour from all other worke to by­leue there that he wolde not byleue here, and lye styll & euer burne there, in euerlastynge fyre, for his formar vngracyouse obstinate infydelyte / out of whyche [...] I be [...] god geue hym the grace to crepe and gete out by tyme.

And thus you se good readers what a goodly piece mayster masker hath made you / which pleased him I war­raunt you very well, whan he wrote it. But it wyl not I wene please him now very well, whan he shall after this myne answere rede it.

The. xii. chapyter.

BUt now goth he ferther against me with a specyall goodly piece wherin thus he sayth.

Here mayst thou se chrysten reader wherfore More wolde so fayne make the byleue that [...] lest aught vnwryten of necessyte to be byleued, euyn to stablysshe the popes kyngdome, whych standeth of Morys vnwryten vanytees / as of the presence of Chrystes body, and makynge therof in the brede, of putgatory, of inuocacyon of sayntes, wurshyppyng of stonys and flockys, pylgrymages, halowynge of vowes and [...], and crepynge to the crosse &c.

If ye wyll byleue what so euer More can fayne wythout the scryptures: than can thys poete fayne ye another chyrch then Chrystes, and that ye muste byleue it what so euer it teach you / for he hath fay­ned to that it can not [...], though ye se it erre and fyght agaynst it selfe a thowsand tymes / ye yf it tell you blacke is whyte, and good is badde, and the [...] is god, yet muste ye byleue it or ellye be burned as heretykes.

¶ Styll ye se the wisdome good re­ders, & the trouth of maister masker, in euery piece of his mater. For here you se that all these thynges / that he [Page] speketh of, as that the chyrch can not erre, and the crepynge to the crosse, wyth all other ceremonyes of the chyrche, inuocacyon of sayntes, go­ynge on pylgrymage, wurshyppyng of images, byleuynge of purgatory, byleuynge the body of our sauyour present in the blessed sacrament: all these thynge he calleth myne vnwry­ten vanitees, and maketh as though these thynges were all of my fay­nynge. Is not this wene you wysely fayned of hym, that the thynges co­menly vsed this. xiiii. C. yere by fore I was borne, sholde now be fayned and imagyned by me. But yet shall it be as long after my dayes and his to, ere mayster Masker and all the mayny of them shall amonge theym all, be able to confute the thynges y ^e my selfe haue in the maters wryten. And yet hange not the maters vpon [Page ccxxxi] my wrytynge, but vppon the treuth it selfe, reueled vnto Christe knowē catholyke chyrche, bothe by Chryste hym self and his apostles after him, by tradycyon and by wrytynge both, and by many myracles confyrmed, & wyth the secrete instyncte and inspy­racyō of his holy spyryte, wrought & brought into a full & whole catholike agrement and consent, as necessary poyntes of the trewe we chrysten fayth.

¶ This is also by mayster masker wonderfull wysely fayned, y ^t More hath fayned all these thynges, euyn to the entent to stably sshe the popes kyngdome. But now what greate cause sholde moue me, to bere that greate affeccyon to the pope, as to fayne all these thynge for stably she­ment of his kyngdome: that thynge mayster masker telleth you not, as y ^e thynge that is so playne and euydent [Page] that he nedeth not. For he thynketh y ^e euery man knoweth all redy, that the pope is my godfather, & goeth aboute to make me a cardynall.

¶ But now good chrysten readers, they that wolde at the counsayle of this euyll chrysten caytyfe, cast of all suche maner thynge as all good chry sten peple haue euer taken for good, and now neyther crepe to the crosse, nor set by any halowed thynge, dys­pute pylgrymags, and set holy sayn­tes at nought, no more reuerēce theyr images thā an horse of wax, nor rekē theyr relykes any better than shepys bonys, scrape clene the letany out of euery boke, with our lady motens & the dyryge to, and away with our [...] plaster, & cast the bedys in y ^e fyre & beware also y ^t we wurshyp not the sacrament, nor take it for no better thyng than vnblessed brede, & byleue [Page ccxxxii] that the chyrch erreth in euery thyng y ^e it teacheth, and all that holy sayntes haue taught therin this. xiiii. C. [...] (for all they haue taughte all these thynges y ^t this man nowe dispyseth) than wolde there wax a mery world, y ^e very kyngdom of y ^e deuyl him self.

¶ And veryly it semeth y ^t they wold set the people vppon [...]. For pe­naunce they shake of as a thynge not necessary. Satisfacciō they call [...] synne / & cōfessyon they call y ^e deuils dryft. And of purgatory by two mea­ues they put mē out of drede. Some by slepyng tyll domys daye, & some by sendyng all strayt to heuyn, euery soule that dyeth & is not dampned for euer. And yet some good comforte geue they to the dampned to. For tyll they se somtyme to deny hell all vt­terly, they goo aboute in the meane season to putte oute the fyre.

[Page]And some yet boldely forthwith to say there is none there, that they dred a lytell / and therfore for the season they brynge the mater in questyon, & dyspute it abrode & say they wyll not vtterly afferme and say the cōtrary / but the thynge is they say but as pro­blema neutrū, wherin they wold not force whyther parte they shold take / & yet yf they sholde chose, they wold rather holde nay than ye / or though there be fyre in eyther place, that yet it neyther burneth so wle in helle, nor payneth so wle in purgatory.

But Chryst I wote well in many places sayth there is fyre there / & his Math. 13. 18. &. 25. holy sayntes after hym afferme and saye the same / and with that fyre he frayed his owne dyseyples, byddyng them fere that fyre, that they fell not therin.

¶ Now though that clerkes [...] [Page ccxxxiii] in scolys hold problems vppon eue­ry thynge: yet can I not perceyue what profyte there can come, to call it but a probleme amonge vnlerned folke, and dyspute it out abrode; and brynge the people in dowte, & make them rather thynke that there is none than any / and that this worde fyre is spoken but by parable, as these men make the eatynge of Chrystes bles­sed body. Thus shal they make men take bothe paradyse, and heuyn, and god, and all togyther, but for para­bles at laste.

Though fere of hell alone be but a seruyle drede: yet are there all redy to meny that fere hell to lytell, euyn of theym that byleue the truthe, and thynke that in hell there is very fyre in dede. Now many wyll there than be that wyll fere it lesse, yf such wor­des onys maye make theym wene, [Page] that there were in hell no very fyre at all, but that the payne that they shall fele in hell, were but after the maner of some beuy mynde, or of a troublous dreme.

¶ If a man byleue Chrystes word, that in hell is fyre in dede, and make the feare of that fyre, one meane to kepe hym thense: than though there were no fyre there, yet hath he no­thynge loste / syth good he can gete none there, though the fyre were thense. But yf he byleue suche wor­des on the tother syde, and catche therby suche boldenesse that he sette hell at lyght, and by the meanes ther of fall bosdely to synne, and ther­uppon fynally fall downe vnto the deuyll: yf he than fynde fyre there as I am sure he shall, than shall he lye there and curse them that tolde hym those false talys, as longe as [Page ccxxxiiii] god with hys good folke sytteth in the ioye of heuyn.

¶ And therfore good chrysten rea­ders, wysedome wyll we byleue Chrystes owne wordes, and let such vnwyse wordes and deuelyshe de­uyces passe.

The. xiii. chapyter.

BUt nowe after thys pleasaunt dyscourse of his into the reher­sall of this hepe of heresies that you haue herde, for whyche as for lytell tryfyls hys harte freteth sore, that any heretyke sholde be burned: he goth on agaynst me and sayth.

But let vs returne to our propose. To dyspute of goddes almighty [...] powre, what god may do wyth hys body, it is great foly and no lesse presump [...] to More, syth the pope whiche is no hole god but halfe a god, by theyr owne decrees hath decreed no man to dyspute of his power. But chrysten [...] be thou cōtent to knowe that godes wyll, his word­and his power, be all one, and repugne not. And ney ther wylleth he nor maye not do any thynge inclu­dynge [...] [Page] [...] [Page ccxxxiiii] [Page] repugnaunce, imperfeccyon, or that shuld de­rogate mynysshe or hurte hys glory and his name. The glory of hys godhed is, to be present and to fyll all places at onys essencyally, presently wyth his almyghty power, whych glory is denyed to any other creature / hym selfe sayenge by his prophete: I wyll not geue my glory to any other creature. Now therfore syth hys manhed is a creature, it can not haue this glory whiche onely is appropryed to the godhed. To attrybute to his manhed that pro pertye / whyche onely is appropryed to hys godhed / is to confonnde bothe the natures in Chryste. what thynge so euer is euery where after the sayd maner / that muste nedes be infynyte / without begynnynge and ende / it muste be one alone / and almyghty: whi­the propertyes onely are appropryed vnto the glo­ryonse maiesty of the godhed. wherfore Chrysted body may not be in all or in many places at onys. Chryste hymselfe sayenge as concernynge his man­hed: He is lesse then the father / but as towchynge his godhed the father and [...] be bothe one thynge. And Panle recyfynge the Psal. affyrmeth: Cryste as concernynge his manhed to be lesse then god / or lesse than angellys as some texte hath it. Here is it playne that all thynges that More imagyneth and fayneth / are not possyble to god / for it is not possyble for god to make a creature egall vnto hym selfe / for it includeth repugnaunce and derogateth his glory.

¶ Now haue you so good chrysten readers herde a very specyall piece, wherin mayster masker (as you se) [Page ccxxxv] solempnely fyrste rebuketh the foly and y ^e presumpcyon of me, for that I was so bolde in my letter agaynste his felow father Fryth, to dyspute of goddes almighty absolute power. But now good readers whan you shall se by the mater, y ^t it was Fryth whyche argued agaynst goddes al­myghty power, denyenge that Cryst coulde make his owne body in many places at onys / & that I dyd in effect nothynge ellys but answere hym, & [...] and affermed that god was able to do it, and that Fryth was but a fole so to strayte & to limite the power os almyghty god, but yf he could proue repugnaūce (which agaynste goddes owne word playne spoken in his hosy gospel, father Frith coulde neuer do) whan you se this good readers, I dowte not but ye wyll saye, that it is neyther foly nor presūpcyon for the [Page] symplest man or woman in a towne, to mayntayne that god maye do this thyng or that (namely the thyng that god hath sayed hym selfe he doth) a­gaynste hym that is so folyshe as to presume, agaynst the playne worde of god, to determine by his own blind reason the contrary / & specyally syth the thynge is suche in dede, as though god had not spoken therof, yet had he none holde to say that god coulde not do it, for as myche as it implyeth no suche repugnaūce as shold make the thynge impossyble vnto god.

¶ But now se ferther good reders the wysedome and the mekenesse of mayster Masker here. which as sone as he hath scant fynysshed his hygh solempne [...] of me; for suche disputyng of godde almighty power, that I sayd he was in dede so mighty that he coulde do the thynge that we [Page ccxxxvi] dysputed vpō agaynst hym that sayd nay, falleth hym selfe forth with in y ^e same fawte that he fyndeth / and yet not in the same fawte (for the fawte that he founde was none) but in the fawte that he wolde seme to fynde. For he dysputeth and taketh the part agaynst goddes almyghty power in dede / and argueth as you se that god in dede can not do it.

¶ And this poynt he argueth in such maner fashyon, that in my syfe I ne­uer sawe so folyshe an argument, so solempnely set vp an hygh. Fyrste he maketh his reasō thus. It is y ^e glory of the godhed and appopryed onely therunto, to be present and to fyll all places at onys, essencially, presently, with his almyghty power / and is de­nyed to any creature. But Chrystes [...] is a creature. Ergo it can not haue this glory that is appropryed to the godhed.

[Page]¶Here is a wise argument. God hath many gloryes. And his chyefe glory standeth not in beyng presente at onys essencyally in euery place.

And though he wyl not geue his glo­ry from hym, yet of his glory he ma­keth many creaturs in many greate partes of it, to be partiners with him It is one parte of his glory to lyue & endure in eternall blysse / & though no creature be without begynnynge, yet maketh he many a thowsande posses­sours of ioy without endynge.

¶ How proueth mayster masker y ^t to be present at onys in all places, is such a kynde of glory so appropred vnto god, y ^t god can not geue y ^t gyfte to any creature. The scrypture se­meth to appropre vnto god alone, the knowledge of mānes secrete thought. And yet can I not se but y ^t god might geue y ^t knowlege to some creature to [Page ccxxxvii] and yet abyde god styll hym selfe.

The. xiiii. chapyter.

THan maketh mayster Maskar an other argument, wherwyth he wolde as it semeth somwhat strēgth the fyrst, as yt hath of trouth no lytle nede, beynge as yt is so feble of yt selfe.

¶ His other argument therfore is (as you haue herd) this. what thyng so euer is euery where after the sayd maner, that muste nedes be infynyte withoute be gynnynge and ende. It muste be one, and alone, and almygh tye. Whyche propertees are appro­pryed vnto the gloryouse maieste of the godhed. But Chrystes manhed ys not suche (as hym selfe wytnes­seth in holy scrypture) ergo his man­hed can not be in all or in many places at ones.

¶Fyrste (that we labour not about [Page] noughte) we muste consyder what mayster Maskar meaneth by these wordes, after the sayde maner. He sayde you wote well in the tother ar­gument before, that the glory of god, is to be present, and to fyll all places at ones, essentyally, presently, with hys almyghtye power. And ther­fore whan he saythe nowe, what so euer thynge is euery where at ones after the sayde maner, he meaneth (you se well) present, and fyllynge all places at ones, essencyally, pre­sently, wyth his almyghtye power.

¶I let passe here his word present­ly, whose presence nedeth not in that place for ought that I can se. For whan he sayd byfore, present and fyl­lynge all places at ones essentyally: his other worde presently may take his leue and be absent wel ynough. For howe can he be present & essen­tyally [Page ccxxxviii] fyll the place, and not present­ly? But nowe whan he sayeth by hys almyghtye power: what ys thys to the mater? For yt is ynough a­gaynste hym, yf any creature [...] be present in euery place at ones, and essencyally fyl the place / not by hys owne almyghtye power, but by the almyghty power of god / and yet not so fyll the place neyther, but that yt maye haue a nother wysh yt in the same place. For I trowe he wyl not denye, but that there be many crea­tures in those places, whyche god wyth his owne presence essencyally fylleth full.

¶ Therefore as for these wordes ofter the sayde maner whyche he putteth in to make vs amased: mayster Mas­kar must put out again. Now y ^t being put out, reherse & cōsyder wel master maskars argument, what thynge so [Page] euer is in euery place at ones, that thynge muste nedes be infynyte with out begynnynge and ende / it must be one, and alone, and almyghty / which propretyes are appropryed to the gloryouse maiestie of the godhed.

But the manhed of Chryste is a cre ature and not god: ergo Chrystes manhed can not be in all places or in many places at ones.

And yet consyder here that though he leue oute that odyouse worde: yet muste his cōclusyon be indede, that god cā not make yt so, as you se plain by his begynnyng, where he she weth that yt implyeth repugnaunce, & that therfore god can not do yt.

¶ Now good readers consyder wel his fyrste proposycyon, whyche we call the maior, that is to wyt that god can not make any thynge created to be euery where at ones. Let vs [Page ccxxxix] pray hym to proue yt, and geue hym one yeres leysour to yt. But here he taketh vppon hym to proue yt, and layeth for the reason, that god cā not make any creature to be in all places at ones, bycause yt shold than be infynyte, and therby god almyghties mate and hygh felow. Lette hym as I say proue vs this in two yere, that yt sholde than be infynyte, wythoute begynnynge, and wythout ende, and almyghty. In good fayth eyther am I very dull, or elles doth mayster Maskar tel vs here in a very madde tale.

¶ I thynke he wyll not denye, but that god whyche coulde make all this worlde, heuen, and erthe, and all the creatures y ^t he created therin, coulde yf yt so had pleased hym, haue crea­ted onely one man, and let all the remanaunt alone vncreated, and haue [Page] kept hym styll, and neuer haue made heuen nor erth nor none other thyng, but onely that one man alone. The soule nowe that than hadde ben crea ted in that man, hadde yt not than ben in all places at ones? I suppose yes. For there hadde bene no mo places than that mannys bodye / and therein hadde there ben many placesin many diuerse partes of the man / in all why che that soule sholde haue bene pre­sent at ones, and the whole soule in euery parte of all those places at ones. For so is euery soule in euery mannes bodye nowe. And yet hadde that soule not ben infynyte, no more than euery soule is now.

¶ If god wolde nowe (as yf he wolde he coulde) create a newe spy­ryte that sholde fulfyll all the whole worlde heuyn and erthe and all, as myche as euer ys created, that in [Page ccxl] suche wyse sholde be whole present at ones in euery parte of the worlde, as the soule is in euery parte of a man, and yet sholde not be the soule of the worlde: I wyll here aske may ster Maskar, were that newe crea­ted spyryte infynyte? If he answere me naye: than hathe he soyled hys owne wyse reason hym selfe. For thanne no more were the manhed of Chryste, though yt were present in all those places of the whole world at ones. If he answere me ye: than syth that spyryte were no more infynyte than the worlde ys, wyth in the lymytes and boundes wherof yt were conteyned, yt wolde folowe therof, that the worlde were infy­nyte all redye, whyche is false.

And also yf yt were trewe, thanne wold yt folow by mayster Maskers reason, that god almyghtye hadde [Page] a mache all redy, that is to wyt a no­ther thyng infynyte besyde hym self, whyche is the inconuenience that ma keth mayster Maskar afferme yt for impossyble, that god coulde make Chrystes manhed to be in all places at ones.

¶ Thus you se good readers vpon what wyse grounde mayster Mas­kar hath here concluded, that god can not make Chrystes bodye to be in all places at ones.

¶ But yet is yt a worlde to consy­der how madly the man concludeth. His conclusion is this ye wote wel, Wherfore Chrystes body can not be in all places, or in many places at ones. All his reason ye wote well goth vppon beynge in all places at ones, bycause that therup­pon wolde yt by his wyse reason fo­lowe, that yt shold be infynyte. And nowe is that poynte of trouthe no [Page ccxli] parte of our mater. For we saye not that Chrystes bodye is in all places at ones, but in heuyn, and in suche places as the blessed sacramente ys. And therfore where as his reason goeth nothynge agaynste beynge in many places at ones, but onely agaynste beynge at ones in all places: he concludeth sodaynely a­gaynste beynge in many places, to­warde whyche conclusyon no pyece of his premisses hadde any maner of mocyon. And so in all this his hygh solemne argument, and his farre fet reason, neyther is his maior trew, nor his argumēt toucheth not the mater, nor his premysses any thynge proue his conclusyon. And yet after thys goodly reasonyng of his, he reioyceth in his harte hyghly to se how iolyly he hathe handeled yt, and sayeth,

Here yt is playne that all thynges that More yma [Page] gyneth and fayneth are not possyble to god. For yf ys not possyble to god to make a creature egall to hym selfe, for yt includeth vepugnaunce and [...] teth hys glorye.

¶ Mayster maskar speketh myche of myne vnwryten dremys and va­nytees. But here haue we hadde a wryten dreme of hys, and therein this folyshe boste also so ful of vayn gloryouse vanytie / that yf I hadde dremed yt in a fyt of a feuer, I wold I wene haue ben a shamed to haue tolde my dreme to my wyfe when I woke. And nowe shall you good readers haue here a nother pyece as proper.

God promysed and swore that all nacyons shuld be blessed in the deth of that promysed sede whych was Chryste: god had determyned and decreed yt before the world was made: ergo Cryste must nedys haue dyed / and to expowne this worde oportet as More mynseth it. For it was so necessary that the contrary was impossyble: excepte More wolde make god a [...], whyche is impossyble. Paule concludeth that Cryst must nedes haue dyed / vsynge this latin terme Necesse. Sayeng where so euer is a testyment, there muste the deth of the testyment makes go betwene: [Page ccxlii] or essys the testament is not ratyfyed and sure / but ryghtuousnes and remyssyon of synnes in Chrystes blood is his new testamēt, wherof he is medyatour: [...] the [...] maker muste nedes haue dyed. Wreste not therfore (mayster More) this word opor tet (though ye synde potest for oportet in some cor­rupte copy) vnto your vnsauery sence. But let opor­tet sygnyfye, he muste or yt [...] hym to dye. for he toke our very mortall nature for the same de­creed counsayle: hym selfe sayenge John. 2. a. 12. Oportet exaltari [...] hominis &c. It behoueth, or the sonne of man muste dye / that euery one that be­leue in hym peryshe not &c. Here may ye se also that yt is impossyble for god to breke hys promyse. It is impossyble to god whych ys that verytie to be found contrarye in hys dedes and wordes: as to saue them whome he hath damned / or to dampne them whome he hathe saued. Wherfore all thynges ymagyned of Mores brayne are not possyble to god.

And when More sayeth, that Chrystie had power to lette hys lyfe and to take yt agayne, and therfore not to haue dyed of necessyte: I wonder me, that his [...] here fayled hym, so connynge as he ma keth hym selfe therin: whyche graunteth and affer­meth (as trewe yt is) that wyth the necessarye de­creed workes of goddes forsyghte and prouydence standeth ryght well hys free lybertye.

The. xv. chapyter.

IF this pyece were good readers any thynge to the purpose of our pryncypall mater, concernynge the blessed sacrament: mayster Mas kar had here geuyn me holde ynough to geue hym four or fyue suche foule falles on the backe, that his bones sholde al to burste ther wyth. But for as myche as you shall perceyue by the readynge of my letter, that all this gere is but a bye mater, rysen vppon a certayne place of saynte Au stayne whyche Fryth alledged im­perfytely: I purpose not to spende the tyme in vayne dyspycyons wyth mayster Maskar, in a thynge out of our mater. And namely syth the man hath after his long bablyng agaynst me, yet in the ende answered him self wel and suffycyently for me.

[Page ccxliii]¶ For whan he hathe sayde a great whyle, that yt was in suche wyse ne cessarye that Chryste muste dye, that the contrary therof was impossyble: at laste as though he wold mocke me ther wyth and shew myne ignoraūce, he bryngeth in his own, and she weth that for any thynge that god hath ey­ther forsene or decreed and determy ned therin, he had left Chryst at hys lybertye to dye or lyue yf he wolde. And than yf he was at hys lybertye not to dye but yf he had wolde: than was it not impossible for hym to haue lyued yf he hadde wolde.

But the kepynge of hys lyfe was the contrarye of hys dyenge: ergo hys dyenge howe necessarye so euer yt was for mannes redempcyon, that ys to wytte so behofull thereto, that wythoute yt we sholde not haue ben saued: yet mayster Maskar here to [Page] she we hym selfe a great scoles man in respecte of me, confesseth hym selfe agaynste hym selfe, that Christ to dye was not in suche wyse ne­cessaryly constrayned, that the con­trarye therof, that is to wytte Cryst to lyue, was impossyble to hym yf he hadde wolde / whyle mayster mas kar can not saye naye, but muste ne­des geue place to the scryptures that I layed hym, and therfore must confesse and so he dothe, that Chryst coulde by no constraynte be compel­led to dye, but was offred bycause hym selfe so wolde.

¶ But the dyspytyons of thys poynte ys as I saye good reader all besyde our pryncypall mater / and therfore I wyll let hys other folyes that I fynde in this pyece passe by.

¶ Than goeth mayster Maskar forthe and sayth.

[Page ccxliiii]But mayster More sayth at laste, yf god wolde tell me that he wolde make eche of bothe theyr bodyes to (meanynge the yonge mannys bodye and Chry­stes) to be in fyftene places at ones / I wolde byleue hym I, that he were able to make hys worde trewe in the bodyes of bothe twayne / and neuer wolde I so myche as aske hym whether he wolde gloryfye theym bothe fyrste or not: but I am sure, gloryfyed or vngloryfyed, yf he sayde yt, he is able to do yt.

Lo here maye ye se what a feruent fayth thys olde man hath, and what an ernest mynde to byleue Cry ftes wordes yf he hadde tolde hym: but I praye ye mayster More, what and yf Chryste neuer tolde yt you, nor sayde yt nor neuer wolde / wolde ye not be as hastye to not beleue [...] yf he told it you / I pray ye tell vs where ye speke wyth hym, and who was by to beare ye recorde: and yet yf you bryng as false a [...] as your selse to testyfye thys thynge: [...] by your owne doctryne, muste ye make vs a myra­cle to conferme your tale / ere we be bounde to byleue you, or yet to admytte this your argumēt, God may make hys bodye in many places at ones, ergo yt ys so.

The. xvi. capyter.

REade good readers in my let­ter the. xxi. lefe, and thanne consyder mayster Maskars goodly morke that he maketh here, and you [Page] shall fynde yt very foly she. But nowe mayster Maskar asketh me, where I spake with Cryst whan he told me y ^t he wold make his owne bo dye in two places at ones, as though Christe coulde not speke to me but if I spake to hym, nor coulde not tell me the tale but yf he appered to me face to face, as he dyd after his resur reccyon to his dyscyples. This que styon of mayster Maskar cometh of an hygh wyt I warraunt you. I an­swere master maskar therfore, Crist tolde yt at hys maundy to other good credyble folke, and they tolde yt forth to the whole catholique chyrch, and the whole chyrche hathe tolde yt vnto me / and one of theym that was at yt, that is to wytte saynte Ma­thew, hathe putte yt in wrytynge as the same chyrche telleth me.

[Page ccxlv]For ellys were I not sure whyther that gospel were his or not, nor why­ther it were any parte of holy scryp­ture or not. And therfore I can lacke no good and honest wytnesse to bere me recorde in that point that wyll de­pose for me, that I fayne not the ma­ter of myne owne hed. And I haue a testymoniall also of many olde holy doctours and sayntes, made afore a good notary the good man god hym selfe, whiche hath with hys seale of many an hundred myracles, both te­styfyed for the trouth of those men, & also for the trouth of the pryncypall mater it selfe / that is to wytte that Chrystes very body is in the blessed sacrament, though the sacrament be eyther in two or in. x. thowsande pla­ces at onys. And thus mayster Mas kers questyons concernyng Chryste blessed body, that Chryst hath tolde [Page] me that he wolde make it be in two places at onys, is I truste suffycy­ently answered. But now as for Frythys body (whyche wryteth that Christes body can be no more in two places at onys than his) though I wolde haue byleued y ^t Chryst coulde haue made it in two placys as onys yf Chryste had so tolde me: yet syth Chryste hath now tolde me, by hys whole catholyke chyrche, and by wry tynge of the olde holy sayntes of the same, & by his own holy scrypture to, which scrypture by the same chyrche & the same holy saynts I know, and also se declared and expowned, and ouer that hath by many wonderfull myracles many festly proued & testy­fyed, that thopinions in which Fryth obstynately & ther with very folishly dyed, were very pesrylent here syes, wherby he is ꝑpetually seuered frō [Page ccxlvi] the lyuely body of Chryst, and made a ded mēber of the deuyll: I byleue therfore and very surely knowe as a thynge taught me by god, that the wreched body of that felow shall ne­uer be in two placs at onys / but whā it shall ryse agayne and be restored to that wreched obstynate soule, shall ther with lye styll euer more in one place, that is to wyt in theuerlastyng fyre of hell. From whych I beseche our lorde turne Tyndale & George Iay, wyth all the whole bretherhed, and mayster Masker amonge other (who so euer he be) by tyme.

¶ Now vpon his aforesard suche a proper handeled mocke as you haue herde, mayster masker goeth on, and geueth me ryght holsom admonicyō, that I medle no more with such hygh maters, as is the great absolute al­myghty power of god / & therin thus he sayth vnto me.

[Page] Syr you be to bysy wyth goddes almyghty power, and haue taken to great a burden vppon your weke shuldren.

The. xvii. chapyter.

HEre he sholde haue rehersed what one worde I had sayd of goddes almyghty power, in whyche worde I was to bysy. Rede my letter ouer, and you shall clerely se that I saye nothynge ellys, but that god is almyghty, & that he ther­fore may do all thynge. And yet (as you shall here mayster Masker hym selfe confesse) I sayed not that god coulde do thynges that imply re­pugnaunce. But I sayd that some thynges may seme repugnaunt vnto vs, which thynges god seeth how to sette togyther well inough. Be these wordꝭ good reader ouer hyghly spo­ken of godde almighty power? May not a pore vnserned man be bolde to saye that god is able to do so myche? [Page ccxlvii] And yet for sayeng thus mych, sayth mayster Masker that I am to besy, and haue taken to great a burden vp­pon my weke sholdren, and haue ouer faded my selfe with myne owne har­neyse and wepons, & many gaye wor des mo to vttre his eloquence with all. But mayster Masker vn the to­ther syde is not hym selfe to bysy at all with goddes almyghty power, in affermynge that god hath not the power to make hys owne blessed bo­dy in many places at onys. Hys myghty stronge sholdren take not to mych weyght vppon them, whan in stede of omnypotent, he proueth god impotent / and that by suche impotent argumentes, as you se your selfe so shamefully haste, that neuer sambe cryple y ^t lay impotent by y ^e wallys in crepyng out vnto a dole, halted halfe so sore. But than goth he ferther for [Page] the prayse of yonge Dauyd & sayth: you haue ouerladen your selfe wyth your owne har­neyse and weapons / and yonge Dauyd is lyke to preuayse agaynst you wyth hys slynge & his stone.

¶As for mayster Maskers yonge mayster Dauyd, who so loke vppon his fyrst treatice & my letter together shall sone se y ^t his sfing and his stone be beten both about hys earys. And whā so euer his new sling & his new stone (which is as I nowe here saye very lately come ouer in prent) come onys into my handes, I shall turne his slynge into a cokste we, & his stone into a fether, for any harine that it shalbe able to do, but yf it be to suche as wyllyngely wyll putte out theyr owne eyen, to whych they neuer nede neyther stone nor slynge, but wyth a fether they maye do it and they be so madde.

¶But an heuy thynge it is to here of his yonge folyshe Dauyd, that [Page ccxlviii] hath thus wyth his stone of stobbur­nesse, stryken out his owne brayne / & with the slynge of hys heresyes, slon gen hym selfe to the [...].

¶yet mayster Masker can not seue me thus, but on he goth ferther in his [...] rethoryke & thus he sayth. God hath infatuated your hygh subtyll wy sdome / your crafty conuayaunce is espyed. God hath sent your chyrche a mete couer for suche a cuppe, euyn such a defender as you take your selfe to be, that shall lette all theyr whole cause fall flatte in the myre, vnto bothe your shames and vtter confusyon. God therfore be praysed euer amen.

The. xviii. chapyter.

AS for wysdome I wyll not cō pare wyth mayster Masker therin / nor wolde waxe myche the prowder in good faythe though menne wolde saye that I had more wytte than he. I praye god sende vs bothe a sytell more of his grace, and make vs bothe good.

[Page]¶ But where as he iesteth concer­nynge my defence of the chyrch: who so loke my bokes thorow, shall fynde that the chyrch, in the treuth of whose catholyke fayth concernynge the bles sed sacramēt I wryte agaynst fryth and Tyndale, and mayster Masker and such false heretykes mo, is none other chyrch but the trewe catholyke chyrche of Cryst, the whole congre­gacyō of al trew chrysten nacyōs / of whyche chyrche I take not my selfe to be any specyall defender, how be it to defende it / is in dede euery good mannys parte. And as for hytherto, the thynges that I haue wryten are (I thanke god) stronge inough to stand, as it is playnely pued agaynst all these heretykes y ^t haue wrestsed therwith, wherof they coulde neuer yet ouerthro we one lyne / and no man more shamefully sowsed in y ^e myre / [Page ccxlix] than mayster Masker here hym self that bosteth his victory while he fieth in the dyrte. But the catholyke chyr­che hath another maner defender thā is any erthely man. For it hath god hym selfe therin, and his holy spyryt, permanent and abydyng by Crystes own promise to defende it frō falshed vnto thende of the worlde. And ther­fore it can not fall flatte in the myre / Math. [...] but god maketh heretykes fall flatte in the fyre.

¶ Yet to thentent good readers / that you sholde well se that I lefte not vnto wched the point of repugnaūce, with whych mayster Masker hath al this whyle set out his hygh solempn reason agaynst godde almyghtynes: hym selfe she weth here at laste, that of repugnaūce I dyd speke my self. Now be it in dede, somwhat more moderately than he / as ye shall not [Page] onely perceyue by the wordes of my letter, but also by the wordꝭ of may­ster Masker hym selfe whyche be these.

Then sayth maister More / though it semeth repugnaunt bothe to hym and to me / one body to be in two places at onys: yet god seeth how to make theym stonde togyther well inough. This man wyth hys olde eyen and spectacles seeth farte in goddes sight / and is of his preuey counsell: that knoweth belyke by some secrete reuelacyon how god seeth one body to be in many places at onys / includeth no repug­naunce. For worde hath he none for hym in all scrypture no more thē one body to be in all places at onys. It implyeth fyrst repugnaūce to my syght & reason / that all thys worlde shulde be made of nothynge: & that a vyrgyn sholde brynge forth a chyld. But yet when I se it wryten wyth the wordys of my fayth / whyche god spake / and brought it so to passe: then implyeth it no repugnaunce to me at all. For my fayth recheth it and receyueth it stedfastly. For I knowe the voyce of my herdeman / whyche yf he sayd in any place of scrypture that hys body shulde haue bene contayned vnder the forme of brede and so in many places at onys here in erth / and also aby­dynge yet styll in heuyn to / veryly I wolde haue byleued hym I / as sone and as fermely as mayster More. And therfore euen yet / yf he can shew vs but one sentence truely taken for hys parte, as we can do many for the contrary / we muste gyue place. For as for his vnwryten verytees, and thautoryte of his [Page ccl] antichrysten [...], vnto whyche (the scrypture forsaken) he is now at laste wyth shame inough cō ­pessed to flee: thēy be proued starke [...] and very deuefrye.

The. xix. chapyter.

Is not thys a wyse inuented scoffe that mayster Masker mocketh me wythall / and sayth that with myne olde eyen & my spec­tacles I se farre in goddys syghte, and am of goddys pryuy counsayle, and that I knowe bylyke by some se­crete reuefacyon, how god seeth that one body to be in many placs at onys includeth no repugnaunce. It is no counsayle ye wote well that is cryed at the crosse. But Chryst hath cryed and proclamed this hym selfe, and sent hys heraldys, hys blessed apo­stles, to cry it out abrode, & hath cau­sed his [...] also to wryte y ^e pro clamaciō, by which all y ^e world was [Page] warned that hys blessed body, hys holy fleshe and his bloude, is veryly eaten and dronken in the blessed sacra ment. And therfore eyther all those places be one in whyche the blessed sacrament is receyued at onys, or els god may do the thynge that is repug­naunt, or els he seeth that his body to be in dyuerse places at onys, is not repugnaunt. For well I wote / he sayth he doth it, in all the. iiii. euange­lystes. And well I wote also, that he can not say but soth. And therfore neyther nede I to see very farre for this poynt, nor nede no secrete reue­lacyon neyther, syth it is the poynt, that to the whole worlde, god hath bothe by worde, wrytynge, and my­racles, reueled and shewed so opēly. where is mayster Masker now?

¶ For where he sayeth I haue no worde of fcrypture for Chrystes [Page ccli] body to be in many places at onys, no more than to be in all placys at onys [...] I hadde not, yet yf god had other wyse than by wrytynge reueled the tone to hys chyrche and not the tother, I wolde and were bounde to byleue the tone, and wolde not nor were boūden to byleue the tother / as I byleue and am bounde to byleue now that the gospell of saynt Iohū is holy scrypture, and not the gospell of Nichodemus. And yf god hadde reueled bothe twayne vnto the chyr­che: I wolde and were bounde to byleue bothe twayne / as I byleue now that the gospell of saynte Iohū is holy scrypture, and the gospell of saynt Mathew to.

¶ But now of trouth mayster mas ker abomynably bylyeth the worde of god, whan he sayeth that we: haue not the worde of god, no more for the [Page] beynge of Chrystes body in many places at onys, than in all places at onys. For as for the beynge therof in all places at onys, we fynde no word playnely wryten in the scrypture. But for the beynge therof in many places at onys, Chrystes wordes in his last souper, and byfore that in the syxte chapyter of saynt Iohn̄, be as open, as clere, and as playne as any man well coulde wyth any reason re­quyre / excepte any man were so wise as to wene y ^t dyuerse mennys mow­thes were all one place. And therfore whan mayster Masker in his worde folowynge, maketh as though he wolde byleue it, as well as he by­leueth the creacyon of the world, and Chrystes byrth of a virgine (whiche seme also to hys reason repugnaunt) yf Chryste in any playne place of scrypture sayd it, the trouth appereth [Page cclii] otherwyse. For vnto hym that is not wyth his own fro wardnesse blynded by the deuyll, the thynge that he de­nyeth is as playnely spoken, as are the tother twayne that he sayth he by leueth. And some other wreches such as hym selfe is, in foly and stoburn­nesse denye bothe the tother twayne, for the repugnaunce; as well as he doth this / whiche thynge you haue herde hym al redy, with very folysh reasons declare for so repugnaunte, that he sayeth that god can not do it, bycause it were as he sayth a geuyng awaye of his glory. And therfore his harte onys sette and fyxed on the wronge syde the deuyll causeth hym so to delyte in suche fonde folysshe ar gumentes of hys owne inuencyon, that he can not endure to turne hys mynde to the trowthe / but euery texte be it neuer so playne, ys darke [Page] vnto hym / thorow the darkenesse of his owne brayne.

The. xx. chapyter.

BUt now for bycause he sayeth, that he wylbe content and satys­fyed in thys mater with any one texte truely taken: whyle I shall say that the textes that I shall bryng hym, be by me truely taken, and he shall saye naye, and shall saye that I take them amysse & vntreuly: whyle he and I can not agre vppon the ta­kynge, but vary vppon thexposycyō and the ryght vnderstandynge of them: by whom wyll he be iudged, whyther he or I take those textes truely? If by the congregacyon of thrysten people: the whole chrysten nacyons haue thys fyftene hundred yere iudged it agaynste hym.

[Page ccliii]For all this while haue they beleued, y ^t Chryst at his maūdy, whā he sayd this is my bodye, ment that yt was his very body in dede / and euer haue byleued and yet do, that yt was so in dede. If he wyll haue yt iudged by a generall counsayle, yt hath ben iud­ged for me agaynste hym, by mo then one all redye, before his dayes and myne bothe. If he wyl be iudged by the wrytynges of the olde holy doc­tours and sayntes: I haue al redye shewed you suffycyentely, that they haue al redye iudged this poynte a­gaynste hym. If he and I wolde va rye vppon the vnderstandyng of the olde sayntes wordes, bysydes that you se them your self so playne, that he shal in that poynte but shewe hym selfe shameful and shamelesse: yet the general counsayles (whych hym selfe denyeth not) hauyng redde and [Page] sene those holy doctours them selfe, and many of those holy sayntes be­ynge present at those coūsayles them selfe, haue therby iudged that poynt agaynste hym to. For no wyse man wyll doute, but that amonge theym they vnderstode the doctours than as well as mayster Maskars doth nowe. If he saye that he wyll wyth his other mo then twenty tex­tes of scrypture of whyche he spake before, dysproue vs the textes one or two that I brynge for the blessed sacrament: than cometh he (you se well) to the self same poynt agayne, wherin he is ouerthrowen al redye. For all the corps of chrystendome of thrs. xv. hūdred yere before vs, and all the olde holy doctours & sayntes, and al the general coūsayles, and all the meruaylouse myracles that god hath shewed for the blessed sacramēt [Page ccliiii] yerely almost, and I wene dayly to, what in one place and other / al why­che thynges proue the textes that I lay, to be ment and vnderstanden as I say. Al they do therby declare a­gaynst hym also, that none of his mo than twenty textes, can in any wyse be wel and ryght vnderstanden as he sayth. For ellys shold yt folow, that dyuerse textes of holy scrypture, not onely semed (whyche may well be) but also were indede (whyche is a thynge impossyble and can not be) cō traryouse & repugnant vnto other.

¶ Now good chrysten readers here youse, that in his shyft that he vseth, where he sayeth that he wyl byleue any one text trewly taken: we bryng hym for the trew takyng vppon our parte, all these thynges that I haue here shortely rehersed you / of whych thynges hym selfe denyeth very [Page] fewe / that is to wyt, the olde holy doctours to holde on our parte / and the people of theyr tyme. But therin haue I shewed you diuerse of y ^e beste sorte agaynst hym. And the fayth of the people of the dyuerse tymes ap­pereth by theyr bokes and by the coū sayles. And than that the generall counsayles and the myracles are on our parte, of these two thynges he denyeth neyther nother. But syth he can denye none of them, he dyspyseth bothe. And the holy counsayles of Chrystes chyrche he casseth the Anti chrysten synagoge. And goddes my­racles both fryth and he be fayne to cal the workes of the deuyl.

And therfore good chrysten readers, whyle you se all thys: ye se well ynough that the textes of the gospell whyche we saye for the blessed bodye of Chryste in the blessed sacrament, [Page cclv] be clere and playne for the purpose / and mayster Maskar wyll not agre yt so, but sayth that we take theym not trewly, onely bycause he will not perceyue and confesse the trouth.

¶ Nowe where as mayster Mas­kar sayth of me ferther thus.

As for his vnwryten verytees, and thou foryfe of hys Antichrysten synagoge, vnto whyche the scryp­ture forsaken he is now at laste wyth shame ynough compelled to fle: they be proued starke lyes and ve­ry deuylrye.

¶ Consyder good chrysten readers that in these wordes mayster maskar telleth you two thynges. Fyrste that I am wyth shame ynough com­pelled to fle fro the scrypture to myn vnwryten veryties, and to thautho­ryte of thantichrysten synagoge, by whyche he meaneth the tradycyons and the determynacyons of the catho lyque chyrche.

The tother that the tradycyons and [Page] determinacyons of the chyrch, be all redy proued starke lyes and very de uylrye. For the fyrste poynte you sethat in this mater of the bles­sed sacrament, whyche ys one of the thynges that he meaneth, he hath not yet compelled me to fle fro the scrypture. For I haue wel all redye proued you this poynt, & very playn and clerely, by the selfe same place of scrypture, whyche mayster Mas­kar hathe expowned & falsely wolde wreste it a nother way, that is to wyt the wordes of Chryst wryten in the syxt chapyter of saynt Iohn̄.

Nowe yf I do for the profe of thys poynte, say the tradycyon of y ^e whole catholyque chyrche besyde, whyche thynge ys also suffycyent to proue the mater alone: ys that a fleynge fro the scrypture?

If that be a fleynge fro the scryp­ture, [Page cclvi] than myghte the olde herety­ques very wel haue sayde the same vnto al the olde holy doctours, that this new heretyque sayeth nowe to me. For this woteth wel euery man (that any lernynge hathe) that those old holy doctours and sayntes, layed agaynste those old heretykes not the scrypture onely, but also the tradycy­ons vnwryten, byleued and taughte by the chyrche. And yf mayster Mas kar whan he shal defende hys boke, dare denye me that they so dyd: I shall brynge you so many playn pro­ues therof, that be he neuer so shame lesse he shal be ashamed thereof.

And he can not say naye but that they so dyd, as I wote wel he can not: than you se wel good reders y ^t by ma ster maskers wise reason, those old he retikes might haue sayd agaynst eche of those old holy doctours & saits as [Page] mayster Maskar sayth agaynste me now, that they hadde made him with shame ynough, fle fro the scrypture, bycause he besyde the scrypture pro­ued the trew faith and reproued their false heresyes, by thauthoryte of the catholyque chyrche. Suche strength haue alwaye so, mayster mayhers ar gumentes.

¶ Nowe touchyng the secund point, where he calleth the catholyke chyrch the antichrysten synagoge, and the vn wryten veryties starke lyes and de­uylrye: he hathe al redy shewed and declared partely which thynges they be that hym self meaneth by y ^t name. For he hath before specyfyed purga­torye, pylgrimages, and prayenge to sayntes, honourynge of ymages, and crepynge to the crosse, and halo wyng of belles agaynst euyl spirites in tem pestes, and boughes on palme sone [Page cclvii] daye, and byleuynge in the blessed sa crament. And Tyndale that ys ey­ther hym selfe or his felow, mocketh vnder the same name the sacrament of anelyng / and calleth the sacramēt of consyrmacyon the butterynge of the boyes forhed, & had as lyefe haue at his chrystenynge sande put in hys mouth as salt / and mocketh mych at fastyng. And as for lent, father frith vnder name of Bright well in the re uesacyon of Antichrist calleth it y ^e fo­lishe fast / which ieste was vndouted ly reueled father fryth by the spyryt of the deuyll hym selfe, the spirituall father of Antichryste.

¶ So that you maye se good rea­ders that to saye the latenye, or our ladye matens, and crepe to the crosse at Ester, or praye for all christen sou les: these thynges & such other as I haue [...] you, mayster Maskar [Page] saith are all redy proued starcke lyes and very deuylrye. But he she weth vs no such profe yet, neyther of lyes nor of deluylrye. [...] But euery man may sone se, that he whych sayeth so myche and nothyng proueth, maketh many a starke lye / & that thus to raile agaynste god and al good men / and holy sayntes, and helpynge of good chrysten soules / and raylyng agaynst the blessed bodye of Chryste in the blessed sacrament, callynge y ^e bylyef therof deuylrye: yf suche raylyng in mayster maskar be not (as I wene it is) very playne and open deuylrye, yt can be no lesse yet at the leste wyse than very playne and open knauery.

The. xxii. chapyter.

MAster Maskar cometh at last to the mockynge of those wor des of my pystle, wherin I she we [Page cclviii] that yf men wolde denye the cōuer­syon of the brede and wyne into the blessed bodye and blood of Chryste, bycause that vnto his owne reason the thynge semeth to implye repug­naunce, he shal fynde many other thynges bothe in scrypture, and in na ture, and in hande craftes to, of the trouthe wherof he nothynge dou­teth, whyche yet for any solucion that hys owne reason coulde fynde, other than the omnipotent power of god, wolde seme repugnant to / of whych maner thynges, other good holy do, ctours haue in the mater of the bles­sed sacrament vsed some ensamples byfore.

¶ Nowe for as myche as in these wordes I speke of the apperynge of the face in the glasse, and one face in euery pyece of the glasse bro­kē in to twēty: mayster Maskar hath [Page] caughte that glasse in hand and moc­keth and moweth in that glasse, and maketh as many straunge faces and as many pretye pottes therin, as yt were an olde ryueled ape. For these are his wordes so.

Then sayth he, that ye wote wel that many good folke haue vsed in thys mater many good frutefull ex samples of goddes other workes: not onely myra cles, wryten in scrypture / vnde versus? (where one I praye ye?) But also done by the comen course of na ture here in erth. (If they be done by the comē course of nature: so be they no myracles) And some thyn­ges made also by mans hande. As one face beholden in dyuerse glasses: and in euery pyece of one glasse broke into twenty &c. Lorde howe thys pontyfy call poete playeth hys parte. Because (as he sayeth) we se many faces in many glasses: therfore maye one bodye be in many places / as though euery shadowe and symylytude representynge the bodye / were a bo­dyly substaunce. But I aske More / when he seeth his owne face in so many glasses / whyther all those faces that appere in the glasses be hys own very face hauynge boldely substaunce skynne, fleshe, and bone, as hathe that face / whyche hathe hys very mouth, nose, yien &c. wherwyth he faceth vs oute the trouthe thus falsely wyth lyes? and yf they be al hys very faces / thā in very dede there ys one body in many places / & he hym selfe beareth as many fa­ces in one hoode. But accordynge to hys purpose / [Page cclix] euen as they be no very faces / nor those so many voyces, sownes, and symylytudes multyplyed in the ayer betwene the glasse or other obiecte and the body (as the phylosopher proueth by naturall reason) be no very bodyes: no more is yt Chrystes very bo­dye, as they wolde make the byleue in the brede in so many places at ones:

¶ Now good reders to thende that you may se the custumable maner of mayster Maskar in rehersynge my mater to his owne aduauntage / syth my wordes in my letter that touche this poynt be not very longe / I shall reherse them here vnto you my self / so good reders thus shal you fynd yt there in the. xxvi. lefe.

I wote well that many good folke haue vsed in this mater many good frutefull examples of goddes other workes, not onely myracles wryten in scrypture, but also done by the co­men course of nature here in erth and some thynges made also by mannys hand as one face byholden in dyuers glasses & in euery pyece of one glasse [Page] broken into. xx. and the merueyle of the makynge of the glasse it selfe such mater as it is made of. And of one worde comyng whole to an hundred earys at onys and the syghte of one lytell eye present and beholdynge an whole great cuntrey at onys wyth a thousande such other merueyles mo, such as those that se them dayly done and therfore merueyle not at theym, shall yet neuer be able no not thys yonge man hym selfe, to geue suche reason by what meane they maye be done / but that he maye haue such re­pugnaunce layed agaynste it that he shall be fayne in conclusyon for the chyefe and the moste euydent reason to say that the cause of all those thyn­ges is bycause god that hath caused theym so to be done, is almyghty of hym selfe and canne do what hym lyste.

¶ Lo good Chrysten readers here you se your selse, that I made none [Page cclx] suche argument as mayster Maskar bereth me in hand. Nor no man vseth vppon a symilytude, to cōclude a ne­cessarye consequence, in the mater of the blessed sacrament / vnto whyche we can brynge nothynge so lyke, but that in dede it muste be farre vnlyke, sauynge that it is as semeth me some what lyke in this, that god is as able by his almyghty power, to make one body be in twenty places at ones, as he is by comē course of nature which hym self hath made, able to make one face kepynge styll hys owne fygure in hys owne place, caste yet and mul­typly the same fygure of yt self, into xx. pyeces of one broken glasse / of whyche pyeces eche hathe a seuerall place. And as he is able by the nature that hym selfe made, to make one self worde that the speker hath brethed oute in the spekynge to be forth with [Page] in the eares of an whole hundred per sones, eche of theym occupyeng a se­uerall place, and that a good dys­taunce a sundre. Of whyche two thynges (as natural and as comen as they both be) yet cā I neuer cease to wonder, for all the reasons that euer I redde of the phylopher. And lyke wyse as I veryly truste, that the tyme shall come, whan we shall in the clere syght of Christe godhed, se this great myracle soyled, and wel perceyue howe yt ys, and howe yt maye be, that his blessed bodye ys bothe in beuyn and in erth, and in so many places at ones: so thynke I veryly that in the syght of hys god­hed than, we shall also perceyue a better cause of those two other thyn­ges than euer any phylolopher hath hytherto shewed vs yet / or ellys I wene for my parte I shall neuer [Page cclxi] perceyue theym well.

¶ But nowe where as mayster Maskar mocketh myne argument, not whych I made, but whyche hym selfe maketh in my name / and ma­keth yt feble for the nonce, that he maye whan he hathe made yt at hys owne pleasure soyle yt, as chyldren make castelles of tyle shardes, and than make theym theyr passe tyme in the throwynge downe agayne: yet is yt not euyn so, so feble as his own, where he argueth in the negatyue, as I saye the sample for thaffyrma­tyue. For as for the tone that he ma­keth for me: though thargument be nought for sacke of forme, yet hol­deth it somwhat so so, by the mater in that the consequent that is to wytte, that god may make one body to be at ones in many places, is what so euer mayster masker bable, a trouth with [Page] out questyon necessary.

¶ But where he argueth for hym selfe in the negatyue, by that that the bodyly substaunce of the face is not in the glasse, that therfore the bodyly substaunce of our sauyoure Chryste is not in the blessed sacrament: that argument hath no maner holde at all. For thantecedent is very trewe / and (excepte goddys worde be vn­trewe) ellys as I haue all redy by the old holy expositours of the same, well and planely proued you, the cō ­sequent is very false.

¶ Now yf he wyll saye that he ma­keth not that argument, but vseth onely the face in the glasse for a sam­ple & a symylytude: than he she weth hym selfe to playe the false shrewe, whan of my bryngynge in the selfe same sample, he maketh that argu­ment for me. And therfore now whā [Page cclxii] vppon those facys in the glasse, he maketh and faceth hym selfe that lye vppon me, and than scoffeth that I face out the trouth with lyes, and thā proueth neuer one: he doth but shew what prety wordes he coulde speke, and how properly he coulde scoffe, yf the mater wolde serue hym.

¶ And yet I pray you good readers consyder well the wordes of that ar­gumēt that he maketh in myne name. we se many faces in many glasses: therfore may one body be in many places. Now spake not I you wote well of many faces sene in many glassys (as he bothe falsely & folysshely reherseth me) but of one face sene at onys in many glassys.

For that is lyke to the mater. For like as all those glasses, whyle onely one man loketh in them / he seeth but hys owne one face in all those places / so be (as saynt Chrysostom declareth) [Page] all the hostes of the blessed sacramēt beynge in so farre dystaunt seuerall places a sondre, all one very body of our blessed sauyour hym selfe, and all one hoste, one sacryfyce, and one oblacyon.

¶ And as properly as mayster mas ker scoffeth at that sample and symy sytude of the glasse: I wolde not haue mysse lyked myne owne wytte therin, yf thinuencyō therof had ben myne owne. For I fynde not many samples so mete for the mater, to the capacite of good and vnlerned folke, as it is. For as for the poynt of which mayster Masker maketh all the dyf ficultye, that one substaunce beynge but a creature myghte be in many places at onys: euery man that is lerned seeth a sample that satisfyeth hym shortely. For he seeth and per­ceyueth by good reasō, that the soule [Page cclxiii] is vndiuisyble and is in euery parte of the body, and in euery parte it is whole. And yet is euery member a seuerall place. And so is the blessed substaunce of the spyrytuall body of Chrystes flesshe & his bonys, whole in euery parte of the sacrament.

¶ But thys sample of the soule can not euery man vnserned cōcey­ue and imagyne ryghte / but of the glasse bath for his capacite a more me tely symisitude, & that y ^t in one poynt also doth more resemble the mater. For the soule forsaketh euery mem­ber y ^t is clene deuided from the body. But the blessed body of our sauyour abydeth styll whole in euery parte of the blessed sacrament, though it be broken into neuer so many places / as the image and forme of the face avy­deth whole styll to hym that byhol­deth it, in euery parte of the broken [Page] glasse. And thus good readers as for thys sample and symylytude of the face in the glasse, mayster Masker maye for his folyshe facynge yt out, be myche ashamed yf he haue any shame, whan so euer he loketh on his owne face in the glasse.

¶ And for conclusyon, thys beynge of the body of Chryste in dyuers pla ces at ones, syth the olde holy doc­tours and sayntes sawe and percey­ued, that the soule of euery man why che is a very substaunce, and perad­uenture yet of lesse spirituall power, than the flesshe and bones of our sa­uyour Chryste be now, and yet very flesshe for all that and very bonys also styll: they rekened not that the beynge therof in dyuers places at ones, wolde after theyr dayes begyn to be taken for so straunge and harde a thynge as these heretykes make yt [Page cclxiiii] nowe. And therfore they made no­thyng so great a mater of that poynt / but the thynge that they thought men wolde moste meruayse of, was the conuersyon and turnyng of the brede and the wyne into Chrystes very flesshe and bloud. And therfore to make that poynte well open, and to make it synke into mennys brestes: those olde holy doctours and sayntes (as I sayde in these wordes whyche maister maskar mocketh) vsed many mo good samples of thynges done by nature.

¶ But than were they no myracles sayth mayster Masker. And what than good master Masker? Myghte they not'serue to proue y ^t god myght do as mych by myracle, as nature by her comen course? Those wordes so were by maister masker (you se wel) very well and wysely put in.

The. xxiii. chapyter.

[...] this towarde the percey­uyng and bylyefe of that point of conuersyon of the brede and the wyne into the very flesshe and bloud of Christe: I sayd that those holy doctours and sayntes, vsed ensam­ples of other myracles done by god, and wryten in holy scrypture.

¶ Now at thys word mayster mas­ker asketh me Ende versus? where one I [...] your you haue herd all redy good rea­ders in the. xv. chapyter of the fyrste boke, the wordes of that holy doctour saynt Cyryll, in whyche for the cre­dence of that poynt, that is to wytte the chaungynge of the brede and the wyne into Chrystes flesshe and hys bloud, he bryngeth the myracles that god wrought in the olde lawe, as the chaūgyng of the water into bloude, [Page cclxv] and the chaungyng of Moses rodde into a serpent, and dyuers other chaū ges and myghty myracles mo.

¶ Yow haue herde also before, how saynt Chrysostome agaynste them y ^e wolde dowte, how Chryste coulde geue them hys flesshe to eate, layeth forth the myracle of the multiplyeng of fyue louys so sodaynly, to. xii bas­ketes full more than the fuffycyent fedynge of fyue thousand folke.

¶ Here be lo some verses yet may­ster Masker, & mo than one miracle perdye, that those holy doctours and sayntes haue vsed in this mater of the blessed sacrament. And yet suche other mo shall I brynge you at ano­ther leysour, ere I haue done wyth your second course, that it shall greue you to se them. And surely where properly you scoffe at me wyth my many facys in one hode: I haue here [Page] in thys fyrste parte all redy brought you for the trew sayth of the catho­lyke chyrche, agaynste your false he­resye, wherwith you wolde face our sauyout out of y ^e blessed sacrament: I haue brought agaynst you to your face, saint [...] and Theophilactꝰ, saynt Austayne, and saynt Hylary, saynt Hyreneus, saynt Cyryll, and saynte Chrysostome, so many suche good facys into this one hode, that al the shamefullyes y ^t your shamelesse face can make, shall neuer agaynste these facys be able to face out the trouth. And thus ende I good rea­ders my fourth boke.

The fyrste chapyter.

Now come I good chrysten readers to the last poynte that I spake of, the two contra­dyccyons of myn owne, that may­ster Masker hath hyghly layed vn­to my charge / whose wordes I shall good reders fyrst reherse you whole to these they be god saue them.

At laste note chrysten reader, that mayster More in the thyrde boke of hys confutacyon of Tyndale, the 249. syde, to proue saynt [...] gospell vnperfyte & in suffycyent, for leuyng out of so necessary a poynt of our fayth, as he calleth the last souper of Chryste hys maundye: sayth that Iohn spake nothynge at all of thys sacrament. And now se agayne in these [Page] hys letters agaynste Fryth / how hym selfe bryno geth in Iohn 6. cap. to impugne Frythes wrytyng / and to make all for the sacrament, euen thus / My flesshe is veryly meate, and my bloude drynke. By lyke the man had there ouershette hym selfe fowle / the yenge man here causynge hym to put on his spec tacles and poore better and more wysshely wyth his olde eyen vppon saynt Iohn̄s gospell to fynde that thynge there now wryten, whyche before he wolde haue made one of hys vnwryten verytees. As yet yf he loke narowly he shall espye that hym selfe hath proued vs by scrypture, in the 37. lefe of his dyaloge of quod he and quod I our ladyes perpetuall virgy­nyte expownynge non cognosco, id est, non cognos cam / whych now wryten vnwryten veryte he uom­bereth a lytell before amonge hys vnwryten vany­tees Thus maye ye se how thys olde holy vpholder of the popes chyrche / hys wordes fyghte agaynste them selfe into his owne confusyon, in fyndynge vs forth hys vnwryten wryten vanitees veritees I shulde saye. But returne we vnto the exposycyō of saynt Iohn̄.

¶ Now haue you good christen rea­ders herd his whole tale, concernyng my two contradyccyons. Of whyche twayne I wyll fyrst answere y ^t last, that concerneth y ^e perpetual virginite of our lady. which point I haue tow­ched towarde the ende of the. xxv. [Page cclxvii] chapyter of the fyrst boke of my dya­loge, wherin master masker [...] me for ꝙ I and ꝙ he / and wolde I se well in no wyse; that in the rehersyng of a cōmunycacyō had bytwene my selfe & another man, I shold not for shame say ꝙ I and ꝙ he / but rather reherse our two talkings, with quoth we and quoth she.

¶ I haue also spoken of that poynt in mo places than one of my wurke that I wrote of Tyndals [...], cyon / whiche places who so lyste to rede shall fynde thys poynt of cōtra dyccyon answered all redy, y ^t [...] masker now layth to my charge dys­symulynge such thynges as I haue answered it wyth.

And of this contradyccyon I am so sore ashamed, y ^t for all [...] mas­kers wordes euyn here before in my fyrst boke of this wurke, I haue not [Page] letted the beste that my wytte wyll serue me this vnwryten veryte, to proue yet agayne by the selfe same place of saynte Lukes holy writyng.

¶ For why, to saye the trouth I do not so myche force to haue that arty­cle taken for an vnwryten veryte, with good catholyke folke for the mayntenaūce of my word, as to haue it for the honour of our lady, taken & byleued for an vndowted trowth, with catholykes and those heretykes to, that wyll take it for no such trouth but yf it be wryten in scrypture.

¶ Now doth the clere certayntye of thys artycle in dede depende vppon the tradycyon of thapostles, conti­nued in the catholyke chyrche. For all be it that my self thynke, that I fynd some wordes wryten in scrypture that wolde well proue it / and vppon those wordes lette not to wryte myn [Page cclxviii] owne mynde, and dyuers olde holy doctours to: yet whyle I se that holy saynt Hierome hym selfe, a man far otherwyse sene in scrypture than I, arguynge for the defence of that ar­tycle agaynst that heretyke Helui­dius dyd onely soyle the scryptures that Heluidius layed agaynste it, and layeth no scripture hym selfe for y ^e profe of his part, but resteth therin to thauthoryte of Chryste catholyke chyrche, whyche mayster Masker here calleth y ^e antichryssen synagoge: I neyther dare nor wyl take so [...] vpon my selfe, as to afferme surely that it is proued to be a wryten ve­ryte. And thys lacke of takynge lo so myche vpon my selfe, is the thynge y ^t mayster Masker calleth so shame­ful repugnaūce to my great cōfusiō.

¶ And therfore in that place of my dyaloge, though I vpon that worde [Page] of our lady, ‘In what wise shall thys thyng be done for I know not a man’ do reason and shew my mynde, that it proueth for this parte, as in dede me thynketh it doth: yet I am not so bold vpon myne owne exposicion therin, as to afferme that the scripture saith there opēly & playnely, that she was a perpetuall virgyne. For yf it hadde ben a very precyse playne euydent open profe of that mater, myne own mynde geueth me, y ^t saynt Hierom wolde not haue fayled to haue found it before me.

¶ I shall also for this poynte haue maister masker hym self to say some what for me, though he do therin (as he is often wont to do) speke some­what agaynst hym selfe. For he sayth here him self, y ^t if a mā loke narowly than he shal espye y ^t I haue my selfe proued our ladyes ꝑpetual virginite. [Page cclxix] Nowe syth that mayster Maskar sayth that a man can not spye yt but yf he loke narowly: he sayth you se [...] hym selfe, that yt is no playne open profe. And than is yt no profe to theym you wote wel. For they re­ceyue no scrypture for profe of any purpose, but onely playne open and euydent.

¶ And therfore by mayster Mas­kars owne tale, though I proued yt suffycyently a wryten verytie vnto good catholyques: yet rested yt vn­proued styll a wryten verite, vnto suche heretyques, and agaynst them ye wote wel wrote I.

¶ Now be it here wyll I demaund of mayster masker touchyng the per­petuall virgynyte of our lady to be playnely wryten in holy scrypture, whyther I proue that pornt well or not? If not / thā maye I well inough [Page] notwithstandynge any such profe of myne, saye styll that it is an vnwry­ten veryte. If he wyll confesse that I proue it well: I wylbe cōtent with that prayse of hym selfe to abyde his rebuke of that contradyccyon. For I sette more as I sayde by the pro fyt of his soule in fallynge from the contrary heresye to the ryght bylye fe of our ladyes perpetual vyrgynyte, than I sette by myne owne prayse & commendacyon of abydynge well by my wordes.

¶ But yet if he wyl allow my profe made of that poynt: I meruayle me mych but yf that he allow nowe my profe made for the blessed body of Chryste present in the blessed sacra­ment. For I am very sure I haue proued mych more clerely, by myche more open and playne wordes of the scrypture, and the sense of those wor [Page cclxx] des by dyuers olde holy doctours other maner of men than my self, thā I haue pued or any man elles, y ^e ꝑpe tuall vyrginyte of our blessed ladye.

¶ Nowe be yt of trouthe though I proued wel that poynte of the perpe­petual vyrginyte of our ladye, to be a verytie wryten in scrypture, and that many other also proued yt mych bet­ter than I, as I thynke there do / and that my selfe hadde affermed yt neuer so strongely for neuer so clere a wryten verytie: yet syth wyllyam Tyndale agaynste whome I spe­cyally wrote, taketh yt, as in his wry tynge well and playne appereth, for no wryten veryte, and yet agreeth that yt is to be byleued, but not of ne cessyte / and yet after vppon hys owne wordes I proue hym that of necessyte to: I maye wythoute a­ny contradyccyon or repugnaunce at [Page] all, laye yt agaynste hym for an vnwryten verytie, for as myche as hym selfe so taketh yt.

¶ Moreouer all the profe that I make of our ladyes perpetual vyrginyte, is no more, but that she was a perpetual vyrgyne except she brake her vowe. And surely as I saye, yt semeth to my selfe that I proue this very clerely. And this beynge pro­ued, is in dede ynough to good chry­sten folke, for a ful profe that she was a perpepetual vyrgyne. But yet vnto these heretyques agaynste whome I wrote, syth they set nought by vowes of vyrgynyte, but saye that they that make theym do bothe vnlawfully make theym, and maye whan they wil lawfully breke them / and y ^t therfore freres may rūne oute of relygyon and wedde nunnes: this profe of myne ys to theym no maner [Page cclxxi] profe at al. And therfore I maye to theym wythoute contradycyon or repugnaunce, laye yt for an vnwry­ten verytie styl.

¶ And thus I trust you se good rea ders, that as for this repugnaunce turneth to mayster Maskars confu­syon and not myne.

The secunde chapyter.

NOwe come I than good rea­ders to the tother contradyccy on that he layeth agaynst me, his wor des wherin, byfore myne answere I praye you rede ones agayne. And leste ye sholde be loth to turne backe and seke theym / here shall you haue them agayne, lo these they be.

At laste note chrysten reader, that mayster More in the thyrde boke of hys confutacyon of Tyndale, the 249. syde, to proue saynt Iohn̄s gospell [...] & insuffycyent, for lenyng out of so necessary a poynt of our fayth, as he calleth the last sonper of Chryste hys maundye: sayth that Iohn̄ spake nothynge at all of thys sacrament. And now se agayne in these [Page] hys letters agaynste Fryth / how hym selfe bryn­geth in Iohn̄ 6. cap. to impagne Frythes wrytyng / and to make all for the sacrament, euen thus / My flesshe is veryly meate, and my bloude drynke. By lyke the man had there ouershette hym selfe fowle / the yonge man here causynge hym to put on his spec tacles and poore better and more wysshely wyth his olde eyen vppon saynt Iohn̄s gospell to fynde that thynge there now wryten, whyche before he wolde haue made one of hys vnwryten verytees.

¶ whan my selfe good reader redde fyrste these wordes of his, all be it that I was sure ynough, that in the thinge that I purposed there was no repugnaunce in dede: yet seynge that he so dylygently layed forth the lefe in whyche my faute shold be founde, I very playnly thought that I had not so circumspectely sene vnto my wordes as wysedome wold I shold. And taking therfore myne ouersyght for a very trouth, I neuer vouche­faufede to tourne my booke and loke.

But afterwarde yt happed on a day [Page cclxxii] I sayde in a certayne company, that I was somwhat sorye, that yt hadde mysse happed me to take in this one poynte no better hede to myne hand, but to wryte therin two thynges re­pugnaunt and contrary. Where vnto some of theym made answere, y ^t such a chaunce happeth sometyme [...] a man be ware in a longe worke. But yet quoth one of theym a gentyl­woman, haue you consydered well the place in your boke, and sene that he sayth trouth. Nay by my trouthe quod I that haue I not. For yt yr­keth me to loke vppon the place a­gayne nowe whan yt ys to late to mende yt. For I am sure the mā wolde nat be so madde, to name the very lefe, but yf he were well sure y ^t he sayd trew. By our lady [...] she, but syth you haue not loked yt your [Page] selfe, I wyl for al the lefe layed out by hym, se the thynge my selfe ere I byleue his wrytynge, I knowe these felowes for so false. And therwyth al she sent for the boke, and turned to the very. 249. syde, and wyth that nōber marked also. And in good fayth good readers, there founde we no suche maner mater, neyther on the tone syde of the lefe nor on the tho­ther.

¶ Nowe be yt of trouth I can not denye, but that in a syde after mysse marked with the nōbre of. 249, whyche sholde haue ben marked wyth the nomber of. 259, there we founde the mater in that place. But therin found we the moste shamefull, eyther fo­ly or falysed of mayster Maskar, that euer I saw lyghtly in any man in my lyfe. whych bycause ye shal not seke farre to fynde: I shal reherse you [Page cclxxiii] here the very wordes of that place. Lo good readers these they be.

But now bycause of Tyndale, let vs take some one thing. And what thing rather then the last souper of Chryst, hys maundye with his apostles, in whiche he instytuted the blessed sacra ment of the aulter hys owne blessed body and bloode. Is this no necessa­ry poynt of fayth? Tyndale can not denye it for a necessary poynt of faith & though it were but of his own false fayth, agreynge with Luther, Huys­kyn, or Suynglyus. And he can not saye that saynt Iohn̄ speketh any thynge therof, specyally not of the in­stytucyon. Nor he can not saye that saynt Iohn̄ speketh any thyng of the sacrament at all, syth that hys secte expressely denyeth, that saynt Iohn̄ ment the sacrament in hys wordes where he speketh expressely therof in the. vi. chapyter of his gospelli

¶ Where haue you euer good chry­sten [Page] readers sene any fonde [...] byfore thys, handle a thynge so [...] ly or so folyshely, as maister maskar here handeleth this? Ne telleth you that I sayde here, that saynt Iohn spake nothynge of the sacrament at all. Nowe you se that mayster Maskar in that poynte bylyeth me. For I sayd not here that saynt Iohn spake notkynge therof / but fyrste I sayde there that Tyndale agaynste whome I there wrote, could not say that saynte Iohn̄ wrote any thynge of the blessed sacrament, specyally not of the instytucyon therof. And this is very trouthe. For as tou­chynge thinstytucyon therof at Chry stes laste souper and maundye, ney­ther Tyndale nor no man ellys can saye that saynte Iohn̄ any thynge wrote therof in his gospell.

¶ Than sayde I farther there (as [Page cclxxiiii] you se) not that saynte Iohn̄ speketh nothyng of the sacramēt, but y ^t Tyn dale can not saye that saynte Iohn̄ speketh of the sacrament any thynge at all. And that I ment not in those wordes, to saye myne owne selfe that saynte Iohn̄ spake nothynge therof: I declare playnely there forthwyth, by that I shew the cause why Tyndale can not say that saynt Iohū spake any thynge of the sacra­mēt at all, that is to wyt bycause that al his sect expressely denyeth, that a­ny thynge was ment of the sacramēt in the wordes of Chryste wryten in the. vi. chapyter of saynt Iohn̄.

¶ By this ye may se playnely good readers, that mayster Maskar playn ly belyeth me. For I sayde not my selfe that saynt Iohn̄ spake nothyng of the sacrament / but that Tyndale bycause of thopynyon of all his [...] [Page] in that poynt, coulde not saye y ^e saynt Iohn̄ spake any thyng therof. Which was ynough for my purpose, whyle Tyndale was the man agaynste whome I wrote, though my selfe wolde for myne owne parte saye the cōtrary. For yt is y ^t hyude of argumtē that is in the scoles called argumentū adhominē. And thus you se good re ders, mayster Maskar in this thyng eyther shamefully false, or very shamefully folish / shamefully false, if he perceyued & vnderstode my wor des, and than for al that thus [...] me / shamefully foly she yf the thyng beynge spoken by me so playne, his wyt wold not serue hym to ꝑceyue it.

¶ But now as clere as ye se the ma ter all redy by this, to thētent yet that mayster Maskar shal haue no mater left hym in all this word to make any argument of for hys excuse therin: [Page cclxxv] rede my wordes agayn good reders, and byd maister Maskar marke wel my wordes therin, where I saye ex­pressely that saynte Iohn̄ spake ex­pressely therof in the [...] chapyter of his gospel. For these wordes are as you se there the very last worde of [...] Nor Tyndale can not say, that saynt John̄ speketh any thyng of the sacra ment at all, syth that his sect expresse ly denyeth that saynt John̄ ment the sacrament in his wordes (where he speketh expressely therof) in the. vi. chapyter of his gospell.

¶ whose wordes are these? where he speketh expressely therof? Are not these wordes myne? And do I not in these wordes expressely say, y ^t saynte Iohn̄ expressely speketh of the bles­sed sacrament in the syxt chapiter of his gospel, in whych place Tindals secte saith expressely that he nothyng spake therof. And now sath M. mas [Page] kar that I sayde there, that saynte Iohn̄ spake nothynge therof at all. And layeth it' for a foule repugnaūce in me, that in my letter agaynst Fryth I saye therof the contrary.

¶ But how [...] we mayster maskar? What haue you nowe to saye? wyth [...] shameful shyft wyl your sham lesse face, face vs oute this folyshe lye of yours, that you make vppon me here? If you lyed so loude wyt­tyngly: howe can you loke that any man shold trust your worde? If for lacke of vnderstandynge: howe can you lake than for shame that any man sholde truste your wyt? Why sholde we thynke that your wyt wyll perse into the perceyuynge of harde worde in the holy scripture of god, whan yt wyll not serue you to perceyue suche pore playne wordes of myne.

¶ Ye wryte that the younge man [...] [Page cclxxvi] here made me done on my spectacles and loke more wyshly on the mater, to fynde now writen therin the thyng that I sayde byfore was not wryten therin. But nowe muste you loke more wyshely vppon my wordes, on whych you make here so loude a lye, and pore better on theym wyth your spectacles vppon your Maskars nose.

¶ I wyste ones a good felow, why­che whyle he daunsed in a maske, vp­pon boldenesse that no man coulde haue knowen hym, whan he percey­ued that he was well espyed by hys euyll fauored daunsynge: he waxed so ashamed sodaynly, y ^e he softly said vnto his felowe, I pray you tell me doth not my visour blosh rede? Now surely good reders, M. maskar here, yf he were not vtterly paste shame, [Page] hathe cause ynough to be in [...] poynt so sore ashamed, that he myght wene y ^e glowyng of his vysage shold euyn perse thorow his visor, & make it rede for shame. ¶ Thus haue I now good christen readers, answe red at the full in these fyue bokes of my fyrst parte, the fyrst part of mays ter maskars worke / and taken vp the fyrst course of mayster maskars sou­per, whych he falsely calleth the last souper of the lorde / whyle he hathe with his own poysened cokery, made yt the souper of the deuyl. And yet wold the deuyl I wene dysdayne to haue his souperdressed of such a rude ruffyn, suche a scald Colyn coke, as vnder the name of a clerke, so rybal­dyousely rayleth agaynst the blessed bodye of Chryste in the blessed sacra ment of thauter.

The. iii. chapyter.

BUt one thynge wyll I yet re­herse you, that I haue hytherto dyfferred, that is to wytte my fyrste argument agaynst fryth, whi­che (as I shewed you before) may­ster Masker lette go by, as he hath done many thynges mo; and made as though he saw them not. That ar­gument good readers was thys,

In this heresye besyde the comon fayth of all catholyke chrysten regy­ons, the exposycyōs of al the old holy doctours & sayntes be clere agaynste Fryth, as whole as agaynste any he­retike that euer was hitherto herd of. For as for the wordes of Chryste of whyche we speke touchynge the bles­sed sacrament / though he maye fynd some olde holy men that bysyde the lytteral sence doth expowne thē in an allegorye, yet he shal neuer fynde any [Page] of them that dyd as he doth now after wicliffe, Ecolampadius, Tyndale, & Sutnglius, denye the lyterall sence / and say that Chryste ment not that it was his very body & hys very bloud in dede / but the olde holy doctours & exposytours bysyde all suche allego­ryes, do playnely declare & expoune, that in those wordes our sauyour as he expressely spake, so dyd also well and playnely mene, that the thynge whych he there gaue to his discyples in the sacrament, was in very dede hys very flesh and bloud. And so dyd neuer any of the olde exposytours of scrypture expowne any of those other places in whyche Chryste is called a vyne or a dore. And therfore it appe­reth well, that the maner of spekynge was not lyke. For yf it had / thā wold not the olde exposytours haue vsed suche so farre vnlyke [...] in the expownynge of them.

¶ Thys was lo good readers the [Page cclxxviii] fyrste argumēt of myne that maister Masker mette with, and whiche he sholde fyrste therfore haue soyled.

But it is suche as he lysted lytle to loke vppon. For where as he maketh mych a do to haue it seme that bothe these wordes of our sauyour at hys laste souper, thys is my body, and his wordes of eatynge of his fleshe, and drynkynge of his bloude, wryten in the syxte chapyter of saynte Iohū, sholde be spoken in a lyke phrase and maner of spekyng, as were his other wordes, I am the dore and I am the very vyne: I shewed there vnto Fryth (whome mayster masker ma­keth as though he wolde defende) y ^t by thexposycyōs of all the olde holy doctours & saynte y ^t haue expowned all those. iiii. place before, y ^e differēce well appereth, syth none of them de­clare hym to be a very material dore, [Page] nor a naturall very vine. This saith no man not so myche as a very natu­rall fole. But that in the sacrament is his very naturall body, his very flesshe and his bloude, this declare clerely all the olde holy exposytours of the scrypture, whiche were good men and gracyouse, wysw and well lerned bothe. And therfore as I sayd the differēce may sone be perceyued, but yf mayster masker lyste better to byleue hym self than all them. which yf he do (as in dede he doth) than is he myche [...] fole than a naturall fole in [...].

¶ For as for his. iii. places of saynt Austayne, Tertulyane, and saynte Chrysostome, whom he bryngeth in his secunde parte: I shall in my se­cunde parte in takynge vp of his se­cund course, whan we come to frute, pare hym I warraunt you those thre [Page cclxxix] perys so nere, that he getteth not a good morcell amonge them. And yet peraduenture ere I come at it to.

¶ For so is it now good reders, that I very certaynly knowe, that y ^e boke whiche Fryth made laste agaynst the blessed sacrament, ys come ouer into thys realme in prente, and secretely sent abrode into the bretherns hands, and some good systers to. And for as mych as I am surely enformed for trouth, that Fryth hath in to that boke of his, taken many textes of old holy doctours wylyly handeled by false frere Nuy skyn byfore, to make it falsely seme that tholde holy doc­tours and sayntes were fauerouse of theyr false heresye: therfore wyll I for the whyle sette mayster maskers secund part asyde tyll I haue answe red that pestylent peuyshe booke of Iohn̄ Frith / about which I purpose [Page] to go as soone as I can gete one of them / whych so many beyng abrode, shall I truste not be longe to. And than shal I by the grace and helpe of almyghty god, make you, the [...] & the fashed of Fryth and frere Nuys kyn bothe as open and as clere, as I haue in thys wurke made open and clere vnto you, the falshed and the foly of mayster Masker here.

¶ And where as I a yere now pas­sed and more, wrote and put in prynte a letter agaynste the pestylent trea­tyse of Iohn̄ Fryth, whyche he than had made and secretely sent abrode amonge the bretherne agaynste the blessed sacrament of thaulter, which letter of myne as I haue declared in myn apology, I nathelesse caused to be kepte styll and wolde not suffre it to be put out abrode into euery man nes hands, bycause Frythes treatyse [Page cclxxx] was not yet at that time in prente: yet now sythe I se that there are comen ouer in prente, not onely Frythes bo­ke, but ouer that this maskers boke also / and that eyther of theyr bothe bokes maketh mencyon of my sayde letter, and wolde seme to soyle it, and laboreth sore there about: I do therfore nowe suffre the prenter to putte wyth thys boke my sayd letter also to sale.

¶ And for as myche also as those authorytees of saynt Austayn, saynt Chrysostome, and Turtuliane, whych master maysker layeth in hys secunde parte, I shall of lykelyhed fynde also in Frythes boke, and ther­fore answere theym there, and all mayster Maskers whole mater to, before I retourne to his secund part, whyche yet I wyll after all thys [Page] (god wyllyng) not leue nor let go so: in the meane while may mayster mas kar (syth it is ashe saith so great plea sure to hym to be wryten agaynst, ha uynge as he bosteth all solucyons so redely) loke and assay whither he can soyle these thynges wyth whyche I haue in this fyrst parte ouethrowen his whole heresye, and proued hym very playne, a very false fole all re­dye. Of whose false wyly foly to be ware our forde geue vs grace / and of all suche other lyke, whych with folyshe argumentes of theyre owne blynde reason, wresting the scripture into a wronge sense, agaynste the ve­ry playn wordes of the text, agaynst the xposycyons of all the olde holy sayntes, agaynste the determynacy­ons of dyuers whole generall coun­sayles, agaynste the full consent of all trewe chrysten nacyons this. xv. [Page cclxxxi] hundred yere before theyr days, and agaynste the playne declaracyon of almyghty god hym self, made in eue ry chrysten coūtrey by so many playn open myracles, labour now to make vs so folyshely blynde and madde, as to forsake the very trew catholike fayth, forsake y ^e socyetie of the trew catholyque chyrche, and wyth fundry sectes of heretike fallē out therof, to set both holy dayes & fastyng days at nought, & for the deuyllis pleasure to forbere & abstayne from all prayer to be made either for soules or to saynte iest on our blessed lady y ^e immaculate mother of Chryste, make mockes at all pylgrymages, and crepynge of Chrystes crosse, the holy ceremo­nyes of the chyrche and the sacramen tes to, turne theym into tryflynge, wyth lykenynge theym to wyne gar­landes and ale polys / and fynally by [Page] these wayes in the ende and conclusy­on, forsake our sauyour hym selfe in the blessed sacramente / and in stede of his own blessed bodye & his blood, wene there were nothynge but bare brede and wyne, and call it ydolatrye there to do hym honour. But woo may suche wreches be. For this we may be sure, that who so dyshonour god in one place wyth occasyon of a false fayth: standynge that false by­lyefe and infydelyte, all thonour that he dothe hym any where besyde, ys odyouse and dyspyghtfull and reiec­ted of god, and neuer shall saue that faythlesse soule from the fyre of hel. From whcche our lorde geue theym grace trewely to tourne in tyme, so that we and they to gether in one ca­tholyque chyrche, knytte vnto god to gether in one catholyque fayth, fayth I saye, not fayth alone as [Page cclxxxii] they do, but acompanyed wyth good hope, and wyth her chyefe syster well workynge charytie, maye so re­ceyue Chrystes blessed sacramentes here, and specyally that we may so receyue hym selfe, his very bles­sed bodye, very fleshe and blood, in the blessed sacrament our holy bles­sed howsyll, that we maye here be wyth hym incorporate so by grace, that after the shorte course of this transytorye lyfe, wyth hys tender pytye powred vppon vs in purgato­rye, at the prayour of good people, and intercessyon of holy sayntes, we maye be wyth them in theyr holy fe­lyshyppe, incorporate in Chryste in hys eternall glorye Amen.