lave
of God, that it is good. And the popish also do
SO believe in Christ, and so will be his servants, that they
wil 1
be bound unto dumb ceremonies and dead works,
putting their trust and confidence in them, and hoping to
be Saved by them, and ascribing unto them the thauk of
their salvation and righteousness.

Ceremonies the New set up in Testament.

And therefore because, as I said, the Jews, yea, and the heathen too, were so accustomed unto ceremonies, and because such a multitude came with a faithless faith, they went clean contrary unto the mind of Paul, and set up ceremonies in the New Testament, partly borrowing them of Moses, and partly imagining like, as ye now see, and called them sacraments, that is to say, signs (as it is plain in the stories) the sacrament of holy water, of holy fire, holy bread, holy salt, and so forth. And they gave them significations. As, holy water signifieth the sprinkling of What holy Christ's blood for our redemption; which sacrament or nifieth. sign, though it seem superfluous, (inasmuch as the sacrament of Christ's body and blood signifieth the same daily) as long as the signification bode, it hurted not. And kissing of the pax was set up to signify, that the peace The pax. of Christ should be ever among us, one to love another after his ensample, as the word itself well declareth. For

yet the

pax is as much to say as peace.

water sig

And as for confirmation, it is no doubt but that it came Confir

this vise up, and that this was the use, which the word mation.

itself

which

tion, in the

and

and

help

tion,

well declareth. We read in the stories, that they
were converted unto the faith of the age of discre-
were full taught in the law of God (as right is) and

faith of our Saviour Jesus, yet they were baptized,
pon the profession or promising to keep that law
faith,
were baptized. And then for the succour and
Of young children, baptized before the age of discre-
to know the law of God and faith of Christ was con-

firmation instituted, that they should not be alway igno

rant

and faithless, but be taught the profession of their

baptism. And this no doubt was the manner, as we may

Confir

mation,

how it

came first

unto the church.

well gather by probable conjectures and evident tokens, when the children were of six or seven years old, their elders brought them unto the priest or deacon in every parish, which officer taught the children what their baptism meant, and what they had professed therein: that is to wit, the law of God and their duty unto all degrees, and the faith of our Saviour. And then, because it should not be neglect or left undone, an higher officer, as the archdeacon (for it hath not been as I suppose in the bishop's hands alway as now, neither were it meet) came about from parish to parish, at times convenient. And the priests firming of brought the children unto him at eleven or twelve years old, before they were admitted to receive the Sacrament of Christ's body, haply. And he apposed them of the law of God and faith of Christ, and asked them, whether they thought that law good, and whether their hearts were to follow it? And they answered Yea.

The man

ner of con

children.

This is a right confirmation.

And he apposed them in the articles of our faith, and asked them, whether they put their hope and trust in Christ, to be saved through his death and merits? And they answered, Yea. Then confirmed he their baptism, saying, I confirm you; that is, I denounce and declare, by the authority of God's word, and doctrine of Christ, that ye be truly baptized within in your hearts, and in your spirits, through professing the law of God, and the faith of our Saviour Jesus, which your outward baptism doth signify; and thereupon I put this cross in your foreheads, that ye go and fight against the devil, the world and the flesh, under the standard of our Saviour, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. Amen. Which manner I would to God, for his tender mercy, were in use this day.

But after that the devil was broken loose, and the bishops began to purchase, and the deacons to scratch all to them, and the spiritualty to climb on high; then, because the labour seemeth too tedious and painful to appose the children one by one, they asked the priests that presented

So

the only, Whether the children were taught the profession
of their baptism? And they answered Yea. And so upon
their
words they confirmed them without apposing.
when they no longer apposed them, the priests no longer
taught them, but committed the charge to their god-
fathers and godmothers, and they to the father and mother,
discharging themselves by their own authority within half

an

hour.

and

The abuse

of confir

mation.

of igno

rance.

is

made now a

And the father and mother taught them a monstrous The fruits Which gibLatin Paternoster and an Ave and a Creed. berish every popinjay speaketh with a sundry pronunciation fashion, so that one Paternoster seemeth as many languages, almost, as there be tongues that speak it. Howbeit, it is all one, as long as they understand it not. And in process, as the ignorance grew, they brought them to confirmation straight from baptism: so that now oftimes they be volowed and bishopped both in one day, that is, we confirmed in blinduess to be kept from knowledge formation w And thus are we come into this damnable ignorance and fierce wrath of God, through our own deserving, because, when the truth was told us, we had no love thereto. And to declare the full and set wrath of God upon us, our prelates whom we have exalted over us, to whom we have given almost all we had, have persuaded the worldly princes (to whom we have submitted ourselves, and given up our power) to devour us up body and soul, and to keep own in darkness, with violence of sword, and with all

be

ever.

us

d

confirming stition, ignorance,

in all super

and popery.

falsehood and guile. Insomuch, that if any do but lift up The papis

his

with

ranny.

ose to smell after the truth, they swap him in the face tistical tya fire-brand, to singe his smelling; or if he open one

of his eyes once to look toward the light of God's word,

they

that

blear and daze his sight with their false juggling: so
if it were possible, though he were God's elect, he

could not but be kept down, and perish for lack of know-
ledge of the truth.

And in like manner, because Christ had instituted the

sacr

ment of his body and blood, to keep us in remem

How the ceremonies about the ministra.

tion of the

per came first into

Amice.

The flap on the amice.

The alb.

The flaps

on the alb.

The fanon.

brance of his body breaking, and blood shedding for our sins, therefore went they and set up this fashion of the mass, and ordained sacraments in the ornaments thereof to Lord's sup- signify and express all the rest of his passion. The amice on the head is the kerchief that Christ was blindthe church. folded with, when the soldiers buffeted him and mocked him, saying, Prophesy unto us who smote thee? But now it may well signify that he that putteth it on is blinded, and hath professed to lead us after him in darkness, according unto the beginning of his play. And the flap thereon is the crown of thorns. And the alb is the white garment that Herod put on him, saying, he was a fool because he held his peace and would not answer him. And the two flaps on the sleeves, and the other two on the alb beneath over against his feet behind and before, are the four nails. And the fanon on his hand, the cord that his hands were bound with; and the stool, the rope wherewith he was bound unto the pillar, when he was The corpo scourged; and the corporis-cloth, the sindon wherein he was buried; and the altar is the cross, or haply the grave, and so forth. And the casting abroad of his hands, the splaying of Christ upon the cross. And the light and sticking up of candles, and bearing of candles or tapers in procession haply signified this text, (Matt. 5.) Ye be the light of the world, and let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. And the salt signifieth the wisdom of Christ's doctrine, and that we should therewith salt our deeds and do nothing without the authority of God's word. So that in one thing or other, what in the garments, and what in the gestures all his played, in so much that before he will go to mass, he will be sure to sell him, lest Judas's part should be left

The stool.

ris-cloth.

The altar.

Candles.

Matt. 5.

Salt.

All cere monies at

the begin ning had significa tions.

out.

And so throughout all the sacraments, ceremonies or signs (three words of one signification) there were significations unto them at the beginning. And so long as it

was

but

understood what was meant by them; and they did serve the people, and preach one thing or another them, they hurted not greatly, though that the free servant of Christ ought not to be brought violently into captivity, under the bondage of traditions of men.

un to

Sttion

the

As

Jews more

easy than

tians under

the Chris

Sprang the of the

Austin complaineth in his days, how that the condi- Austin. and state of the Jews was more easy than the The state Christians under traditions: so sore had the tyranny of of the shepherds invaded the flock already in those days. And then what just cause have we to complain [of] our captivity now; unto whose yoke from that time hitherto, traditions. even twelve hundred years long, hath ever somewhat more weight been added to, for to keep us down, and to confirm us in blindness: howbeit, as long as the significations bode, they hurted not the soul, though they were painful unto the body. Nevertheless I impute this our Out of the grievous fall into so extreme and horrible blindness ceremonies (wherein we are so deep and so deadly brought asleep) ignorance unto nothing so much as unto the multitude of ceremo- Scripture. nies. For as soon as the prelates had set up such a rabble of ceremonies, they thought it superfluous to preach tule of the plain text any longer, and the law of God, faith of ceremonies Christ, love toward our neighbour, and the order of our preaching. justfying and salvation, forasmuch as all such things were played before the people's faces, daily in the cere- Ceremomonies and every child wist the meaning: but got them unto allegories, feigning them every man after his own brain, without rule, almost on- every syllable; and from thence unto disputing and wasting their brains about words; not attending the significations until at the last

the

lay people had lost the meaning of the ceremonies;

and the prelates, the understanding of the plain text, and

of

is

The Greek, Latin, and specially of the Hebrew, which
most of need to be known, and of all phrases, the

proper manner of speakings, and borrowed speech of the

Hebrews.

Remember ye not how within this thirty years and

The multi

put away

nies are the

chief cause

of igno

rance.