Christ rebuked the false trust the Jews

will works.

vity and persecution under their brethren, as we be under our's in the kingdom of the pope.

Then he putteth no jeopardy to worship an unconsecrated host. But with what worship men should worship the consecrated doth he not teach, neither the use of that sacrament or any other, nor how aught may be worshipped, but teacheth only that all things may be worshipped, and sheweth not the right worship from the false.

Then he noteth Paul, (1 Cor. i.) how he exhorteth us to agree only, but not on the truth or on the good, but only to agree a great multitude together. O this deep blindness! Did not Paul first teach them the true y? And did he not instruct them anew in the true way, and in the said Epistle rebuke the false confidence that they had in men, the cause of all their dissension and all errors that were among them?

way

Then he saith, The Jews had saints in honour, as the patriarchs and prophets; we teach to dishonour none. But the Jews prayed to none.

MORE. Christ rebuked not the pharisees for garnishing the sepulchres of the prophets, but for that they followed the conditions of them that slew them.

TYNDALE. Yes, and for their false trust in such works as we do you. And ye, Sir, think that ye deserve heaven in had in their worshipping the saints' bones, and be as ready to slay them that believe, teach and live as the saints did, as your fathers were to slay them: besides that, ye worship saints that followed Christ after the example of your holy cardinal, of whom I doubt not but that ye will make a God in process of time also.

Then repenteth he for forgetting, how Eliseus' bones raised up a dead body: that was to confirm his preaching only. For the Israelites, as wicked as they were, neither prayed to him, neither kissed his bones, nor offered, nor sticked up candles before him; which thing if they had done in the kingdom of the Jews, I doubt not but that some

good king would have burnt his bones, as well as the
brazen serpent, that was as great a relic as dead bones.
And Christ shewed miracles at the finding of the cross.
That was to stablish the faith of Christ's death, and that
it should be a memory of his death; and not that we
should trust in the wood as
we do.
For which false
abuse, the whole land where Christ did his miracles is

destroyed.

་

The miracles done by the prophets and apostles was to con

firm their doctrine.

made the woman

Then he allegeth the woman that was healed, through Christ touching of Christ's coat, because we should worship it. When Christ said, her faith hath made her whole, not in whole, and the coat, but in Christ.

not his coat.

Miracles

were done

firmation of

doctrine.

And the miracle was shewed, to provoke to the worshipping of the preaching, and not of the coat. Though for the conto keep the coat reverently in the memorial of the deed, to provoke unto the faith of Christ were not evil of itself. And Paul, by your doctrine, sent his napkin to heal the sick, that men should shrine his snivelled napkin, and not to believe his preaching.

THE TENTH CHAPTER.

THE tenth chapter of saint Walary is meet for the A filthy author, and his worshipful doctrine.

THE ELEVENTH CHAPTER.

chapter.

IN the eleventh he juggleth with this mystical term Latria. I answer, God is no vain name, but signifieth Latria. one that is almighty, all merciful, all true and good, which he that believeth will go to God, to his promises and testament, and not follow his own imaginations, as M. More's doctrine teacheth.

He saith, that bodily service is not Latria. No, but bodily service done and referred unto him which is a spirit, is Idololatria.

He trusteth, that men know the image from the saint.

Moses.

Moses's bones.

The brazen serpent.

I ask M. More why God did hide Moses's body and divers other? The Jews would have known that Moses had not been God, and that Moses's bones had not been Moses. And they knew that the brazen serpent was not God, and that the golden calves were not God, and that wood and stone were not God. But, sir, there is ever a false imagination by. The world, because they cannot worship God in the spirit, to repent of evil, and to love the law, and to believe that he will help at all need, therefore run they unto their own imaginations, and think that God, for such service as they do to images, will fulfil their worldly desires; for godly can they nought desire. Now God is a Spirit, and will be worshipped in his word only, which is spiritual, and worshipped will have no bodily service. And the ceremonies of the spiritually. old law he set up, to signify his word only, and to keep the people in mind of his testament. So that he which

God is a

Spirit, and

will be

observeth any ceremony of any other purpose is an idolater, that is, an image server.

And when he saith, if men ask women whether it were our lady of Walsingam or Ipswich that was saluted of Gabriel, or that stood by Christ when he hung on the cross? The idola they will Then I ask him what meanneither nother. say

trous per

son wor

shippeth the image for the saint.

Processions though they be

abused may

not be put

down.

eth it that they say, Our lady of Walsingham pray for me; Our lady of Ipswich pray for me; Our lady of Wilsdon pray for me? insomuch that some which reckon themselves no small fools, make them rolls of half an hour long, to pray after that manner. And they that so pray, thou mayest be sure, mean our lady that stood by the cross, and her that was saluted thereto.

Then he rehearseth many abuses, and how that women sing songs of ribaldry in processions in cathedral churches unto which abominations yet our holy church, that cannot err, consent with full delectation. For on the one side they will not amend the abuse. And on the other side they have hired M. More to prove with his sophistry that the things ought not to be put down.

Then he bringeth in how the wild Irish and the Welch

M. More, it is not like.

Wild Irish.
Welch men.

pray, when they go to steal. And asketh whether because they abuse prayer, we should put all praying down? Nay, Prayer is God's commandment and where faith is, there must prayer needs be, and cannot be away. Howbeit, things that are but men's traditions, and all indifferent things which we may be as well without as with, may well be put down for their disho- the abuses' nouring of God through the abuse. We have turned

kissing in the church into the pax.

watching all night in the church on

We have put down
saints' eves for the

Many things are altered for

sake.

The true preaching of God's word retheft and

moveth

abuse. And Ezekias brake the brazen serpent, Ezekias. (4 Kings xviii.) for the abuse. And even so such processions, and the multitude of ceremonies, and of holy days too, might as well be put down. And the ceremonies that be left would have their significations put to them, and the people should be taught them. And on the Sundays God's word would be truly preached. Which if his holy church would do, neither the Irish nor yet the Welsh would so pray. By which praying, and other like blindness, M. More may see that buzzing in Latin on the holy days helpeth not the hearts of the people. And I wonder that M. More can laugh at it, and not rather weep for compassion, to see the souls for which Christ shed his blood to perish. And yet I believe that your holy church will not refuse at Easter to receive the tithes of all that such blind people rob, as well as they dispense with all false gotten good that is brought them; and will lay the ensample of Abraham and Melchizedec for them.

THE TWELFTH CHAPTER.

IN the twelfth he allegeth that St. Jerom and Augustine prayed to saints, and concludeth, that if any sect be one better than another they be the best. I answer, though he could prove that they prayed to saints, yet could he not prove himself thereby of the best sect, nor that it were good therefore to pray to saints. For first,

all other wicked

ness.

A good

man may err and yet not be damned.

The miracles of

saints confirm man's

imaginations.

no doctors,

neither

apostles, that did

miracles to

the apostles, patriarchs, and prophets were sure to be followed, which prayed to none. And again, a good man might err in many things, and not be damned, so that his error were not directly against the promises that are in Christ's blood, neither that he held them maliciously. As if I believed that the souls were in heaven immediately, and that they prayed for us, as we do one for another, and did believe that they heard all that we spake or thought; and upon that prayed to some saint to pray for me, to put him in remembrance only, as I pray my neighbour, and without other trust or confidence; and though all be false, yet should I not be damned so long as I had no obstinacy therein; for the faith that I have in Christ's blood should swallow up that error, till I were better taught: but M. More should have alleged the places where they prayed unto saints.

And then he allegeth against himself, that the miracles were wrought by God, to confirm his doctrine, and to testify that the preacher there was a true messenger. But the miracles that confirm praying to saints, do not confirm God's doctrine, but man's imaginations. For there was never man yet that came forth and said Lo, the souls of the saints that be dead be in heaven in joy with Christ, and God will that ye pray unto them. In token whereof I do this or that miracle.

And when he triumpheth a little after, as though all were won, saying, if our old holy doctors were false and their doctrine untrue, and their miracles feigned; let them come forth and do miracles themselves, and prove ours

There were feigned. Sir, ye have no doctors that did miracles to stablish your worshipping of images and so forth. Your doctrine is but the opinion of faithless people, which to confirm, the devil hath wrought much subtilty. And as for the miracles done at saints' graves, and at the presence of relics, as long as true miracles endured, and until the Scripture was authentically received, [they] were done to confirm the preaching that such saints had preached while they

establish the wor

shipping of images.