The pope is antichrist.

The fleshly

children do

naturally consent un

to lies.

The fleshly

minded can

never con

sent unto God's law.

The fleshly persecute them of the Spirit.

and sell Christ's merics, and to make merchandise over us with feigned words. And thus, as M. More feeleth that the pope is holy church, I feel that he is antichrist. And as my feeling can be no proof to him, no more can his, with all his captivating his wits to believe phantasies, be unto me; wherefore if he have no other probation to prove that the pope is holy church, than that his heart so agreeth unto his learning, he ought of no right to compel with sword unto his sect. Howbeit there are ever two manner [of] people that will cleave unto God, a fleshly and a spiritual. The spiritual, which be of God, shall hear God's word, and the children of the truth shall consent unto the truth. And contrary, the fleshly and children of falsehood and of the devil, whose hearts be full of lies, shall naturally consent unto lies, (as young children, though they have eat themselves as good as dead with fruit, yet will not, nor cannot, believe him that telleth them that such fruit is nought; but him that praiseth them will they hear, and eat themselves stark dead, because their hearts be full of lies, and they judge all things as they appear unto the eyes.) And the fleshly minded, as soon as he believed of God as much as the devil doth, he hath enough, and goeth to and serveth God with bodily service, as he before served his idols, and after his own imagination, and not in the Spirit, in loving his laws and believing his promises, or longing for them: no, if he might ever live in the flesh, he would never desire them. And God must do for him again, not what he had promised, but what he lusteth. And his brother that serveth God in the spirit, according to God's word, him will the carnal beast persecute. So that he which will godly live, must suffer persecution unto the world's end, according to the doctrine of Christ and of his apostles, and according unto the ensamples that are gone before.

And finally, I have better reasons for my feeling that the pope is antichrist, than M. More hath for his endeavouring himself, and captivating his wits, that he is the

true church.

For the church that was the true messenger of God, hath ever shewed a sign and a badge thereof, either a present miracle, or authentic Scripture, insomuch that Moses when he was sent, asked how shall they believe me? and God gave him a sign, as ever before and since. Neither was there any other cause of the writing of the New, and the last and everlasting Testament, thau that when miracles ceased, we might have wherewith to defend ourselves against false doctrine and heresies, which we could not do, if we were bound to believe that were no where written. And again, if the pope could not err in his doctrine, he could not sin of purpose and profession, abominably and openly, above the Turks and all the heathen that ever were, and defend it so maliciously as he hath viii. hundred years long, and will not be reformed, and maketh them his saints and his defenders that sin as he doth. He persecuteth as the carnal church ever did, when the Scripture is away, he proveth his doctrine with the Scripture, and as soon as the Scripture cometh to light, he runneth away unto his sophistry and unto his sword. We see also by stories how your confession, penance, and pardons are come up, and whence your purgatory is sprung. And your falshood in the sacraments we see by open Scripture. And all your works we rebuke with the Scripture, and therewith prove that the false belief that ye couple to them may not stand with the true faith that is in our Saviour Jesus.

THE SECOND CHAPTER.

IN the end of the second chapter, he bringeth in Eutychus, that fell out at a window, (Acts xx.) whom, Eutychus. saith he, St. Paul's merits did recover. Verily Paul durst not say so, but that Christ's merits did it. Peter

saith, (Acts iii.) Ye men of Israel, why gaze ye and Acts iii.

starc upon us, as though had made this man go?

we by our power and godliness
Nay, the name of Jesus and

All glory and honour

is to be gi

ven to the

name of Jesus.

Judges.

Purgatory is the foun

faith that is in him, hath given him strength, and made him sound. And even here, it was the name of Jesus through Paul's faith that did that miracle, and not Paul's merits, though he were never so holy.

THE THIRD CHAPTER.

IN the third chapter he saith, that Bilney's judges, (which he yet nameth not for fear of slandering them) were indifferent. Nay, they that take rewards be not indifferent. For rewards and gifts blind the eyes of the Deut. xvii. seeing, and pervert the words of the righteous. (Deut. xvii.) Now all they that be shorn take great rewards to defend pilgrimages, purgatory, and praying unto saints: even the third part I trow of all Christendom. For all they have, they have received in the name of purgatory, and of saints, and on that foundation be all their bishoprics, abbies, colleges, and cathedral churches built. If leges, &c. they be indifferent judges, they must be made servants, and do service, as their duty is. And when they have done a quarter's service, then give them wages as right is, unto every man that laboureth in Christ's harvest a sufficient living, and no more, and that in the name of his labour, and not of saints, and so forth. And then they shall be more indifferent judges, when there cometh no vantage to judge more on one side than another.

dation of abbies col

THE FOURTH CHAPTER.

In the end of the fourth he saith, the man took an oath secretly, and was dismissed with secret penance. O, hypocrites, why dare ye not do it openly!

THE FIFTH CHAPTER.

IN the fifth the messenger asketh him whether he were present? And he denieth and saith ever, he heard say. Alas, Sir, why take you bribes to defend that you know

not? why suffer you not them that were present, and to
whom the matter pertaineth, to lie for themselves?
Then he jesteth out the matter with Wilken and Sim-
kin; as he doth Hun and every thing, because men should
not consider their falsehood earnestly. Wherein behold
his subtle conveyance. He asketh, What, if Simkin
would have sworn that he saw men make those prints?
Whereunto M. More answereth under the name of quod
he, that he would swear, that besides the loss of the
wager, he had lost his honesty and his soul thereto.
Behold this man's gravity, how could you that do when
the case is possible? You should have put him to his
proofs, and bid him bring record.

Then saith he, the church receiveth no man convict of heresy unto mercy, but of mercy receiveth him to open shame. Of such mercy, God give them plenty that are so merciful.

Then he sheweth how merciful they were ro receive the man to penance that abode still in perjury and deadly sin. O, shameless hypocrites, how can ye receive into the congregation of Christ an open obstinate sinner, that repenteth not, when ye are commanded of Christ to cast all such out? And again, O scribes and pharisees, by what example of Christ and of his doctrine, can ye put a man that repenteth unto open shame, and to that thing whereby ever after he is had in derision among his brethren, of whom he ought to be loved, and not mocked: ye might enjoin honest things, to tame his flesh, as prayer and fasting, and not that which should be to him shame ever after, and such as ye yourselves would not do.

THE SEVENTH CHAPTER.

In the seventh chapter, he maketh much to do about Swearing. swearing, and that for a subtle purpose. Notwithstanding, the truth is, that no judge ought to make a man swear against his will for many inconvenients. If a man re

The oath of a witness

may be ta

ken, but no man may

led to swear

ceive an office, he that putteth him in the room ought to charge him to do it truly, and may, and haply ought, to take an oath of him. If a man offer himself to bear witness, the judge may, and of some haply ought, to take an oath of them; but to compel a man to bear witness be compel ought he not. And moreover, if a judge put a man to an oath that he shall answer unto all that he shall be demanded of, he ought to refuse. Howbeit, if he have sworn, and then the wicked judge ask him of things hurtful unto his neighbour, and against the love that is in Christ, then he must repent that he hath sworn, but not sin again to fulfil his oath. For it is against God's commandment, that a man should hurt his neighbour that hath not deserved it.

and be a witness.

A godly lesson.

M. More is a liar.

THE EIGHTH CHAPTER.

UNTO church, priest, charity, grace, confession and penance, is answered him in the beginning of the book. And when he saith Tyndale was confederate with Luther, that is not truth.

THE NINTH CHAPTER.

THAN his ninth chapter is there nothing more foolish. For if he would have any wise man to believe that my translation would destroy the mass, any otherwise than the Latin or Greek text, he should have alleged the place, and how.

THE ELEVENTH CHAPTER.

IN the eleventh chapter, M. More will not defend the living of our spiritualty, because it is so open that he The papists cannot. And as little should he be able to defend their And lies, if the light were abroad that men might see. as he cannot deny them abominable, so cannot he deny

are obsti

nate and will not repent.