That is to saye: We often vse to saye, when Easter draweth nyghe, that to morow or the nexte day is the Lordes passyō, ād yet yt is many yeares sens he suffered, and that passyon was neuer done but ones. And vpon that sondaye we saye, thys daye the Lorde ded ryse agayne, and yet yt ys many yeares sens he rose. Now ys there no man so folyshe to reproue vs as lyers for so sayenge, because we name these dayes after the symylytude of those in which these thynges were done, so that yt is called the same daye, which is not the verye same, but by the reuolucyon of tyme lyke it. And yt is named to be done the same daye through the celebracyon of the sacramēt (through kepynge the memoryall of the thynge ones done) which ys not done that daye, but was done lōge before. Was not Christe ones crucyfyed in hys owne parson? ād yet in a mysterye (which is the remembraunce of hys very passyon) he ys crucyfyed for the people not onely euery feaste of Easter, but euery daye. Neyther doth he lye which (whē he is asked) answereth that he is crucyfyed. For yf the sacramentes, had not certayne symylytudes of those thynges wherof they are sacramentes, then shulde they be no sacramentes at all. And for thys symylytude for the most parte they take the names of the very thynges, and therfore after a certayne maner the sacramente of Christes bodye ys Christes bodye, & the sacramēte of Christes bloode, is christes bloode, so the sacramēt of faythe, is fayth. For yt ys nō other thyng to beleue, thē to haue fayth, & therfore whē a mā āswereth that the infante beleueth which hath not the affecte of fayth, he answereth that yt hath faythe for the sacramēt of fayth: And that yt turneth yt selfe to GOD, for the sacrament of conuersyon. For the answere yt selfe perteyneth vnto the mynystrynge of the sacrament. As the Apostle wryteth of Baptyme: we are buryed (sayeth he) wyth Christ through Baptyme vnto death. He sayeth not, we sygnyfye buryenge, but vtterlye sayeth, we are buryed. He called therfore the sacrament of so greate a thynge euen wyth the propre name of the verye thynge it selfe. & ce. If a man wolde avoyde contencyon and loke soberly vpon those wordes of Saynte Austen, he shall soone perceyue the mysterye of thys matter. For euē as the nexte good frydaye shalbe called the daye of Christes passyon: and yet he shall not suffer death a gayne vpon that daye, for he dyed but ones and is nowe immortall, euē so is the Sacrament called Christes bodye. And as that daye is not the verye daye that he dyed vpon, but onelye a remembraunce therof: So the Sacrament is not hys very naturall bodye, but onelye a remembraunce of hys bodye breakynge and bloode sheadynge. And lykewyse, as the nexte Easter daye shall be called the daye of hys resurrectyon, not that it is the very same daye that Christe ded ryse in, but a remembraunce of the same: Euen so the Sacrament is called hys bodye: not that it is hys bodye in dede, but onely a remembraunce of the same. And furdermore, euē as the Preste doth offer hym, that is to saye, crucyfye hym at Masse, euē so is the sacramēt hys bodye. But the Masse doth but onely represent hys passyon. And so doth the Sacrament represent hys bodye. And yet though the Masse dothe but represent his crucyfyēge, we maye trulye saye he is crucyfyed, euen so though the Sacrament do but sygnyfye or represent hys bodye, yet may we trulye saye that it is hys bodye. Why so? verely (sayeth he) for the sacramentes haue a certayne symylytude of those thynges wherof they are sacramentes. And for thys symylytude for the moste parte, they take the names of the verye thynges. Blessed be God which hathe so clearelye dyscussed this matter by thys faythfull Father. Notwithstondynge he doth yet expresse it more playnelye sayēg: After a certayne maner the sacrament of Christes bodye is Christes bodye. Beholde deare bretherne he sayeth, after a certayne maner the sacramēt is Christes bodye. And by that you maye soone knowe that he neuer mēte that it shulde be hys verye naturall bodye in dede, but onelye a token and memoryall to keape in memorye the death of hys bodye, and so to nouryshe our fayth. Besydes that, hys symylytude which he after allegeth of Baptyme, doth througlye expoūde this matter, for (sayeth he) the Apostle sayeth not, we sygnyfye buryenge: but he sayeth, we are buryed, & yet in dede the Baptyme doth but sygnyfye it. And therevpon .S. Austen addeth, that he called the sacrament of so greate a thynge euen with the name of the verye thynge it selfe. And lykewyse it is in our sacrament. Fynallye to be shorte, I wyll passe ouer many places which I haue gathered out of this holye father, and wyll towche but this one more. Saynte Austē sayeth. |Augusti cōtr. adamantū.| Non enim Dominus dubitauit dicere, Hoc est corpus meum, cum daret signum corporis sui. Et in eoden capite exponit. Sic est enim sanguis anima, quomodo petra erat Christus, nec tamen petra (ait) significabat Christū, sed ait petra erat Christus. That is to saye: The lorde doubted not to saye, this is my bodye, whē he gaue a sygne of hys bodye. And after in the same chapyter he expoundeth it. For trulye so the bloode is the soule, as Christe was the stone. And yet the Apostle sayeth not, the stone ded sygnyfye Christ, but he sayeth the stone was Christ.
Here S. Austen sayeth playnelye, that Christe called the sygne of hys bodye, his bodye, and in this chapyter doth compare these thre textes of scrypture, this is my bodye, the bloode is the soule, and Christe was the stone: And declareth them to be one phrase, and to be expounded after one fashyō. Now is there no mā so madde, as to saye, that Christe was a naturall stone (excepte he be a naturall foole) whose Judgemēt we neade not greately to regarde. Therefore we may well cōclude that the sacrament is not his naturall bodye, but is called his bodye, for a symylytude that it hath, wherin it sygnyfyeth & representeth his bodye. And that the sacramēt of so greate a thynge is called euē with the name of the very thynge it selfe. As s. Austē sayde. Thys were prove ynough to conclude that all the olde Fathers ded holde the same opynyon, for who wolde ones surmyse (seynge we haue. S. Austen so playne for vs which is the cheafest amonge thē all) who wolde ones surmyse I say, that they dyssented in thys greate matter frō the other faythfull fathers, or they from hym? Neuerthelesse I dare not lett hym stōde post alone, leaste ye dyspyse hym. And therfore I wyll shewe you the mynde of certayne other also: and fyrste of hys master Saynt Ambrose.
|Ambrosi super illud mortē domini annuncia.| S. Ambrose wrytynge vpon the Epystle of Paule to the Corynthyans in the .xi. Chapter sayeth. Quia enim morte Domini liberati sumus, huius rei in edēdo & potādo, carnem & sanguinem qui pro nobis oblata sunt, significamus. That is to saye: because we be delyuered by the death of the Lorde, in eatynge and drynkynge of thys thynge, meanynge of the Sacrament, we sygnyfye the fleshe and bloode which were offered for vs. Here doth S. Ambrose saye ynough, yf men were not sophysters, but wolde be content with reason. For he sayeth that in eatynge and drynkynge the Sacramēt of Christes bodye, we sygnyfye or represent the fleshe and bloode of our sauyoure Iesus. Notwithstondynge be cause you are so slyppery, we shall bynde you a lytle better by thys mās wordes.
|Ambrosi de sacra.| S. Ambrose sayeth. Sed forte dices speciem sanguinis non uideo, sed habet similitudinem. Sicut enim mortis similitudinem sumpsisti, ita etiam similitudinem preciosi sanguinis bibis. That is to saye. But perauenture thou wylte saye, I see no apperaunce of bloode, but it hathe a symylytude. For euē as thou haste taken the symylytude of death, euen so thou drynkest the symylytude of the precyous bloode. Here maye ye see by the conferrynge of these two Sacramentes, what .S. Ambrose iudged of it. For he sayeth, euen as thou haste taken a symylytude of hys death in the sacramēt of baptyme, so doste thou drynke a symylytude of hys precyouse bloode in the Sacrament of the Aulter. And yet as S. Austen sayde before, the Apostle sayeth, not we sygnyfye buryenge, but sayeth, we are buryed. And lykewyse here Christe sayde, not this sygnyfyeth my bodye, but this is my bodye, callynge the Sacrament, a sygne, token, and memoryall of so greate a thynge, euen with the name of the verye thynge it selfe. Thus doth S. Ambrose choke our sophysters.
Neuerthelesse I wyll alleage one place more out of Ambrose, where he sayeth. |Ambrosi lib .3. de sacramē.| Dicit sacerdos fac nobis hanc oblationē scriptam rationabilem, quod est figura corporis Domini nostri Iesu Christi. That is: the Preste sayeth, make vs this oblacyon acceptable. & ce. For it is a fygure of the bodye of our Lorde Iesus Chryst. Here he calleth it playnelye a fygure of Christes bodye, which thynge you can not avoyde. Therfore geue prayse vnto God and lette hys trouth sprede, which is so playnelye testyfyed, by these holye Fathers. Now lette vs see what S. Hierome sayeth.
|Hieronimus super eccle.| Saynte Hierome wrytynge vpon Ecclesiastes sayeth on this maner. Caro Domini uerus cibus est, & sanguis eius uerus potus est, hoc solum habemus in presenti sæculo bonum, si uescamur carne eius cruoreque potemur, nō solum in misterio, sed etiam in scripturarum lectione, uerus enim cibus est & potus, qui ex uerbo Dei sumitur scientia scripturarum. That is to saye: the fleshe of the lorde is verye meate, and his bloode verye drynke. This is onelye the pleasure or profytte that we haue in this worlde, that we maye eate hys fleshe and drynke his bloode, not onely in a mysterye, but also in the readynge of scryptures. For it is very meate and drynke, which is taken out of Godes worde, by the knowelege of scryptures. Here maye ye see S. Hieroms mynde in fewe wordes. For fyrste he sayeth that we eate hys fleshe and drynke hys bloode in a mysterye, whiche is the sacrament of hys remembraunce, and memoryall of his passyon. And after he addeth, that we eate his fleshe ād drynke hys bloode in the readynge ād knowelege of scriptures, ād calleth that very meate ād very drynke. And yet I am sure ye are not so grosse, as to thynke that the letters whiche you reade are tourned in to naturall fleshe ād blode. And lykewyse it is not necessarye that the breade shulde be tourned in to hys bodye, no more than the letters in scrypture are tourned in to his fleshe. And neuerthelesse through faythe we may as well eate hys bodye in receyuynge of the sacrament, as eate hys fleshe in readynge of the letters of the scrypture. Besydes that S. Hierome calleth the vnsterstōdynge of the scripture verye meate and very drynke: whiche you muste neades vnderstonde in a mysterye and spyrituall sense. For it is no materyall meate nor drynke that is receyued with the mouth and teth, but it is spyrytuall meate and drynke, and is so called for a symylytude and propertye: because that as meate and drynke counforte the bodye and outwarde man, so doth the readynge and knowelege of scrypture conforte the soule and inwarde man. And lykewyse it is of Christes bodye, whiche is called verye meate and verye drynke, whiche you muste neades vnderstonde in a mysterye or spyrytuall sense (as Saynte Hierome called it) for hys bodye is no materyall meate nor drynke that is receyued with the mouth or teth: But it is spyrytuall meate and drynke, and so called for a symilytude and propertye, because that as meate and drynke conforte the bodye, so doth the fayth in hys bodye breakynge & bloode sheadynge refreshe the soule vnto lyfe euerlastynge. We vse it customablye in our daylye speache to saye, when a chylde setteth all hys mynde and delyght vpō sporte and playe: It is meate and drynke to thys chylde to playe. And also we saye by a man that loueth well hawkynge and huntynge: It is meate and drynke to thys man to hawke and hunte. Where no man doubteth, but it is a fyguratyue speache. And therfore I wonder that they are so blynde in thys one poynte of Christes bodye. And can not also take the wordes fyguratyuelye, as these olde doctours ded. |Hieronimus super Matheum.| Agayne S. Hierome sayeth. Postquam mysticum pascha fuerat impletum & agni carnes cum apostolis comederat, assumit panem qui confortat cor hominis, & ad uerū paschæ transgreditur sacramentum, quomodo in prefiguratione eius Melchisedech uinum & panem proferens fecerat, ipse quoq; ueritatem corporis repræsentaret. That is to saye: after the mystycall Easter lābe fullfylled, and that Christe had eaten the lambes fleshe with the Apostles, he toke breade which conforteth the harte of man, and passeth to the true sacramēt of the Easter lambe: that as Melchisedech brought forthe breade and wyne fygurynge hym, so myght he lykewyse represent the truth of hys bodye. Here doth S. Hierome speake after the maner that Tertullyā ded before: that Christe with breade and wyne ded represent the truth of hys bodye. For excepte he had had a true bodye, he coulde not leaue a fygure of it nor represent it vnto vs. For a vayne thynge or fantasye can haue no fygure, nor can not be represented. As by example. How shulde a mā make a fygure of hys dreame or represent it vnto our memorye? But Christ hath lefte vs a fygure and representacyon of hys bodye in breade and wyne: therfore it foloweth that he had a true bodye. And that this was .S. Hieroms mynde doth manefestly appeare by the wordes of Bede, which doth more copyouslye sette out this sayenge of Hierome. |Beda super Luc.| For he wryteth on this maner. Finitis paschæ ueteris solennijs que in commemorationē antiquæ de ægypto liberationis agebantur, transit ad nouū quod in suæ redemptionis memoriā ecclesia frequētare desiderat, ut uidelicet pro carne agni uel sanguine suo, carnis sanguinisq; sacramentum in panis ac uini figura substituens, ipsum se esse monstraret cui iurauit Dominus. Tu es sacerdos in æternum secundum ordinem Melchisedech. Frangit autem ipse panem quem porrigit, ut ostendat corporis sui fractionem non sine sua sponte futuram. Similiter & calicem postquam cœna uit dedit eis. Quia ergo panis carnē cōfirmat, uinum uero sanguinē operatur in carne, hic ad corpus Christi mystice, illud refertur ad sanguinem. That is to saye. After the solempnyte of the olde Easter lambe was fynyshed, which was obserued in the remēbraunce of the olde delyueraūce out of Egypte, he goth vnto the newe which the churche gladlye obserueth in the remēbraunce of hys redempcyon, that he in the steade of the fleshe and bloode of the lambe, myght instytute and ordeyne the sacramēt of hys fleshe and bloode in the fygure of breade and wyne, and so declare hym selfe to be the same vnto whome the Lorde sware, thou arte a perpetuall Preste after the order of Melchisedech. And he hym selfe brake the breade which he gaue, to shewe that the breakynge of hys bodye shulde not be done without hys owne wyll. And lykewyse he gaue them the cuppe after he had supped. And because breade doth confyrme or strengthen the fleshe, and wyne worketh bloode in the fleshe, therfore is the breade mystycallye referred vnto the bodye of Christe, and the wyne referred vnto hys bloode.
Here maye you note, fyrste that as the lambe was a remembraunce of theyr delyueraunce out of Egipte (and yet the lābe delyuered them not) so is the sacrament a remembraunce of our redemptyon, and yet the sacrament redeamed vs not. Besydes that he sayeth, that Christ in the steade of the fleshe and bloode of the lambe, ded instytute the sacrament of hys fleshe and bloode in fygure of breade and wyne.
Marke well, he sayeth not that in the steade of lambes fleshe and bloode he ded instytute hys owne fleshe and bloode, but sayeth that he ded instytute the sacrament of hys fleshe and bloode. What thynge is a sacrament? Verelye it is the sygne of an holye thynge, and there is no dyference betwene a sygne and a sacrament, but that the sygne is referred vnto a worldlye thynge, and a Sacrament vnto a spyrytuall or holye thynge.
|Ad Marcellum.| As Saynte Austen sayeth. Signa cum ad res diuinas pertinent, sacramenta appellantur. That is to saye: sygnes when they partayne vnto godlye thynges are called sacramentes.
Therfore when Bede sayeth, that they ded instytute the Sacrament of hys fleshe and bloode in the fygure of breade and wyne, it is as moche to saye (by Saynte Austens dyffynycyon) as that he ded instytute the fygure of hys holye fleshe and bloode in the fygure of breade and wyne, that is to saye: that breade and wyne shulde be the fygure and sygne representynge hys most blessed holye fleshe and bloode vnto vs, for a perpetuall remēbraunce. And afterwarde he declared the propertye for whiche the breade is called the bodye ād the wyne the bloode: savynge he speaketh not so darkelye as I now do, but playnelye sayeth that the breade is mystycallye referred vnto the bodye of Christe: because that as breade doth strēgthē the fleshe, so Christes bodye which is fygured by the breade, doth strēgthen the soule through fayth in hys death. And so doth he clearlye proue my purpose.