Duns. Question answered. Talmud: even so have ours set up their Duns, their Thomas, and a thousand like draff, to stablish their lies, through falsifying the Scripture, and say that it cannot be understood without them, be it never so plain. And if a man allege an holy doctor against them, they gloss him out as they do the Scripture, or will not hear, or say the church hath otherwise determined. Now, therefore, when they ask us how we know it is the Scripture of God, ask them how John Baptist knew, A good an- and other prophets, which God stirred up in all such times. as the Scripture was in like captivity under hypocrites? the papists. Did John believe that the scribes, pharisees and high swer to be made to John i. John x. Isaiah i. Rom. ix. Augusti nus. priests, were the true church of God, and had his Spirit, and could not err? Who taught the eagles to spy out their prey? even so the children of God spy out their father; and Christ's elect spy out their Lord, and trace out the paths of his feet, and follow; yea, though he go upon the plain and liquid water, which will receive no step and yet there they find out his foot: his elect know him, but the world knoweth him not. (John i.) If the world know him not, and thou call the world pride, wrath, envy, covetousness, sloth, gluttony, and lechery, then our spiritualty know him not. Christ's sheep hear the voice of Christ. (John x.) Where the world of hypocrites, as they know him not, even so the wolves hear not his voice, but compel the Scripture to hear them, and to speak what they lust. And, therefore, except the Lord of Sabbaoth hath left his seed, we had been all as Sodom and Gomorrah, said Isaiah. (chap. i.) And even so said Paul, in his time. And even so say we in our time, that the Lord of the hosts hath saved him seed, and hath gathered him a flock, to whom he hath given ears to hear that the hypocritish wolves cannot hear; and eyes to see that the blind leaders of the blind cannot see; and an heart to understand that the generation of poisoned vipers can neither understand nor know. 4 If they allege St. Augustine, which saith, I had not St. The true meaning of the works of St. Augustin. believed the gospel, except the authority of the church had moved me: I answer, as they abuse that saying of the holy man, even so they allege all the Scripture, and all that they bring for them, even in a false sense. Augustine, before he was converted, was an heathen man, and a philosopher, full of worldly wisdom, unto whom the preaching of Christ is but foolishness, saith Paul. (1 Cor. i.) And he disputed with blind reasons of worldly 1 Cor. i. wisdom against the Christian. Nevertheless, the earnest living of the Christian, according unto their doctrine, and the constant suffering of persecution and adversity for their doctrine's sake, moved him, and stirred him to believe that it was no vain doctrine, but that it must needs be of God, in that it had such power with it. For it happeneth that they which will not hear the word at the beginning, are afterward moved by the holy conversation of them that believe. As Peter warneth Christian wives 1 Pet iii. that had heathen husbands, that would not hear the truth preached, to live so godly, that they might win their heathen husbands with holy conversation. And Paul saith, 1 Cor. vii. How knowest thou, Christian wife, whether thou shalt win thine heathen husband? with holy conversation, meant he. For many are won with godly living, which at the first either will not hear, or cannot believe. And that is the authority that St. Augustine meant. But if we shall not believe, till the living of the spiritualty convert us, we be like to bide long enough in unbelief. And when they ask whether we received the Scripture of them? I answer, That they which come after receive the Scripture of them that go before. And when they ask whether we believe not that it is God's word by the reason that they tell us so? I answer, That there are two manner [of] faiths, an historical faith, and a feeling faith. The historical faith hangeth of the truth and honesty of the teller, or of the common fame and consent of many. if one told me that the Turk had won a city, and I believed it, moved with the honesty of the man; now if there E 2 As There are two manner of faiths. An historical faith. A feeling faith. John vi. Rom viii. The true and sure feeling faith. John iv. come another that seemeth more honest, or that hath better persuasions that it is not so, I think immediately that he lied, and lose my faith again. And a feeling faith is, as if a man were there present when it was won, and there were wounded, and had there lost all that he had, and were taken prisoner there also. That man should so believe that all the world could not turn him from his faith. Then, even likewise, if my mother had blown on her finger, and told me that the fire would burn me, I should have believed her with an historical faith, as we believe the stories of the world, because I thought she would not have mocked ine. And so I should have done, if she had told me that the fire had been cold, and would not have burned; but as soon as I had put my finger in the fire, I should have believed, not by reason of her, but with a feeling faith, so that she could not have persuaded me afterward the contrary. So now with an historical faith, I may believe that the Scripture is God's, by the teaching of them; and so I should have done, though they had told me that Robin Hood had been the Scripture of God. Which faith is but an opinion, and therefore abideth ever fruitless, and falleth away, if a more glorious reason be made unto me, or if the preacher live contrary. But of a feeling faith it is written, (John vi.) They shall be all taught of God. That is, God shall write it in their hearts with his Holy Spirit. And Paul also testifieth, (Rom. viii.) The Spirit beareth record unto our spirit, that we be the sons of God. And this faith is none opinion, but a sure feeling, and therefore ever fruitful. Neither hangeth it of the honesty of the preacher, but of the power of God, and of the Spirit; and, therefore, if all the preachers of the world would go about to persuade the contrary, it would not prevail, no more than though they would make me believe the fire were cold, after that I had put my finger therein. Of this we have an ensample (John iv.) of the Samaritanish wife, which left her pitcher, and went into the city, and said, Come, and see a man that hath told me all that ever I did, is not he Christ? And many of the Samaritans believed, because of the saying of the woman, how that he had told her all that ever she did, and went out unto him, and desired him to come in. Which faith was but an opinion, and no faith that could have lasted, or have brought out fruit; but when they had heard Christ, the Spirit wrought, and made them feel. Whereupon they came unto the woman, and said: We believe, not now because of thy saying, but because we have heard ourselves, and know that he is Christ, the Saviour of the world. For Christ's preaching was with power and spirit, that maketh a man feel and know and work too; and not as the scribes and pharisees preached, and as ours make a man ready to cast his gorge to hear them rave and rage as mad men. And, therefore, saith the Scripture, Cursed is he that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm; that is to say, his strength. And even so, Cursed is he that hath none other belief but because men so say. Cursed were he that had none other why to believe than that I say. And even so cursed is he that believeth only because the pope so saith, and so forth throughout all the men in the world. The feeling far excel faith doth the historical faith. Cursed is he that trusteth in man. THE FAITH THAT DEPENDETH OF ANOTHER IF I have none other feeling in my faith than because a man so saith, then is my faith faithless and fruitless. For if I have none other feeling that lechery is sin than that the pope so preacheth, whom I see before my face set up in Rome a stews of twenty or thirty thousand whores, taking of every piece tribute yearly; and his bishops with all other his disciples following the ensample mightily; and Lechery. nation of the Romish church. Marriage forbidden and whore dom allowed. The abomi- the pope therewith not content, but to set up thereto a stews of young boys, against nature, the committers of which sin be burnt at a stake among the Turks, as Moses also commandeth in his law. And the pope also to forbid all the spiritualty, a multitude of forty or fifty hundred thousand, to marry, and to give them license to keep every man his whore who so will. If, I say, I have none other feeling in my faith that lechery is sin than this man's preaching, I think my faith should be too weak to bear much fruit. How could I believe a man that would say he loved me, if all his deeds were contrary? I could not believe God himself that he loved me, if in all my tribulations I had of him none other comfort than those bare words. Covetous ness. And in like manner if I had none other feeling in my faith that covetousness were sin, than that the spiritualty so saith, my faith could be but weak and fainty when I see how the pope with wiles hath thrust down the emperor, and how the bishops and prelates be crept up an high in in all regions above their kings, and have made them a several kingdom, and have gotten into their hands almost the one half of every realm, which they divide among themselves, giving no layman any part with them; and heaping bishopric upon bishopric, promotion upon promotion, Unions, tot benefice upon benefice, with unions and tot quots, robbing in every parish the souls of their food, and the poor of their due sustenance; yea, and some preaching that it were less sin to have two wives than two benefices, but while they be yet young and hot, and therefore think covetousness greater sin than lechery: which same, when they be waxed elder, and their complexion somewhat altered, think that covetousness is as small a sin as lechery and therefore take all that cometh. And if any quots. The papists think lechery nor covetousness to be any sin. I man cast their preaching in their teeth, they answer that they be better learned and have seen further. If I say have no other feeling that covetousness is sin, than the preaching of these holy fathers, my faith were built but upon a weak rock, or rather on the soft sand. And |