UT papists perchance will denie, that they attribute so much to these idols as I report; or that they thinke it so meritorious to praie to the images of saints as is supposed, affirming that they worship God, and the saints themselves, under the formes of images. Which was also the conceipt of the heathen, and their excuse in this behalfe; whose eiesight and insight herein reached as farre as the papisticall distinctions published by popes and their councels. Neither doo anie of them admit so grosse idolatrie, as the councell of TrentThe idolatrous councell of Trent. hath doone, who alloweth that worship to the Rood that is due to Jesus Christ himselfe, and so likewise of other images of saints. I thought it not impertinent therfore in this place to insert an example taken out of the Rosarie of our Ladie, in which booke doo remaine (besides this) ninetie and eight examples to this effect: which are of such authoritie in/531. the church of Rome, that all scripture must give place unto them. And these are either read there as their speciall homilies, or preached by their cheefe doctors. And this is the sermon for this daie verbatim translated out of the said Rosarie, a booke much esteemed and reverenced among papists.
Exempl. 4.A certeine hangman passing by the image of our Ladie, saluted hir, commending himselfe to hir protection. Afterwards, while he praied before hir, he was called awaie to hang an offendor: but his enimies intercepted him, and slew him by the waie. And lo a certeine holie preest, which nightlie walked about everie church in the citie, rose up that night, and was going to his ladie, I should saie to our ladie church. And in the churchyard he saw a great manie dead men, and some of them he knew, of whome he asked what the matter was, &c. Who answered, that the hangman was slaine, and the divell challenged his soule, the which our ladie said was hirs: and the judge was even at hand comming thither to heare the cause, & therefore (said they) we are now come togither. The preest thought he would be at the hearing hereof, and hid himselfeBut our ladie spied him well enough: as you shal read. behind a tree; and anon he saw the judiciall seat readie prepared and furnished, where the judge, to wit Jesus Christ, sate, who tooke up his mother unto him. Soone after the divels brought in the hangman pinnioned, and prooved by good evidence, that his soule belonged to them. On the/381. other side, our ladie pleaded for the hangman, prooving that he, at the houre of death, commended his soule to hir. The judge hearing the matter so well debated on either side, but willing to obeie (for these are his words) his mothers desire, and loath to doo the divels anie wrong, gave sentence, that the hangmans soule should returne to his bodie, untill he had made sufficient satisfaction; ordeining that the pope should set foorth a publike forme of praier for the hangmans soule. It was demanded, who should doo the arrand to the popes holines? Marie quoth our ladie, that shall yonder preest that lurketh behind the tree.The preests arse made buttons. The preest being called foorth, and injoined to make relation hereof, and to desire the pope to take the paines to doo according to this decree, asked by what token he should be directed. Then was delivered unto him a rose of such beautie, as when the pope saw it, he knew his message was true. And so, if they doo not well, I praie God we may./
The xxvii. Chapter.532.
A confutation of the fable of the hangman, of manie other feined and ridiculous tales and apparitions, with a reproofe thereof.
Y the tale above mentioned you see what it is to worship the image of our ladie.Our B. ladies favor. For though we kneele to God himselfe, and make never so humble petitions unto him, without faith and repentance, it shall doo us no pleasure at all. Yet this hangman had great freendship shewed him for one point of courtesie used to our ladie, having not one dramme of faith, repentance, nor yet of honestie in him. Neverthelesse, so credulous is the nature of man, as to beleeve this and such like fables: yea, to discredit such stuffe, is thought among the papists flat heresie. And though we that are protestants will not beleeve these toies, being so apparentlie popish: yet we credit and report other appearances, and assuming of bodies by soules and spirits; though they be as prophane, absurd, and impious as the other. We are sure the holie maide of Kents vision was a verie cousenage: but we can credit, imprint, and publish for a true possession or historie, the knaverie used by Greg. 4. dialog. cap. 51. Alexand lib. 5. cap. 23. & lib. 2. cap. 9. &c.a cousening varlot at Maidstone;* [* p. 132.] and manie other such as that was. We thinke soules and spirits may come out of heaven or hell, and assume bodies, beleeving manie absurd tales told by the schoolemen and Romish doctors to that effect: but we discredit all the stories that they, and as grave menGreg. lib. 4. dialog. ca. 40. idem cap. 55, and in other places elsewhere innumerable. as they are, tell us upon their knowledge and credit, of soules condemned to purgatorie, wandering for succour and release by trentals and masses said by a popish preest, &c: and yet they in probabilitie are equall, and in number farre exceed the other.
Micha. And. thes. 151.We thinke that to be a lie, which is written, or rather fathered upon Luther; to wit, that he knew the divell, and was verie conversant with him, and had eaten manie bushels of salt and made jollie good cheere with him; and that he was confuted in a/533. disputation with a reall divell/382. about the abolishing of private masse. Neither doo we beleeve this report, that the divell in the likenes of a tall man, was present at a sermon openlie made by Carolostadius;Alex. ab Alexand. lib. 4. genealog. dierum. cap. 19.
Plutarch. oratione ad Apollonium.
Item. Basiliens. in epist.
Platina de vitis pontificum.
Nauclerus. 2 generat. 35. and from this sermon went to his house, and told his sonne that he would fetch him awaie after a daie or twaine: as the papists saie he did in deed, although they lie in everie point thereof most maliciouslie. But we can beleeve Platina and others, when they tell us of the appearances of pope Benedict the eight, and also the ninth; how the one rode upon a blacke horsse in the wildernesse, requiring a bishop (as I remember) whome he met, that he would distribute certeine monie for him, which he had purloined of that which was given in almes to the poore, &c: and how the other was seene a hundred yeares after the divell had killed him in a wood, of an heremite, in a beares skinne, and an asses head on his shoulders, &c: himselfe saieng that he appeared in such sort as he lived. And diverse such stuffe rehearseth Platina.
Now bicause S. AmbroseAmbr. ser. 90 de passione Agn.
Euseb. lib. eccles. hist. 5.
Niceph. lib. 5 cap. 7. writeth, that S. Anne appeared to Constance the daughter of Constantine, and to hir parents watching at hir sepulchre: and bicause Eusebius and Nicephorus saie, that the Pontamian virgine, Origins disciple, appeared to S. Basil, and put a crowne upon his head, in token of the glorie of his martyrdome, which should shortlie followe: and bicause HieromeHieronym. in vita Pau.
Theodor. lib. hist. 5. ca. 24.
Athan. in vita Antho. writeth of Paules appearance; and Theodoret, of S. John the Baptist; and Athanasius, of Ammons, &c: manie doo beleeve the same stories and miraculous appearances to be true. But few protestants will give credit unto such shamefull fables, or anie like them, when they find them written in the Legendarie, Festivall, Rosaries of our Ladie, or anie other such popish authors. Whereby I gather, that if the protestant beleeve some few lies, the papists beleeve a great number. This I write, to shew the imperfection of man, how attentive our eares are to hearken to tales. And though herein consist no great point of faith or infidelitie; yet let us that professe the gospell take warning of papists, not to be carried awaie with everie vaine blast of doctrine: but let us cast awaie these prophane and old wives fables. And although this matter have passed so long with generall credit and authoritie: yet manie *grave* Melancth. in Calendar. Manlii. 23. April. authors have condemned/534. long since all those vaine visions and apparitions, except such as have beene shewed by God, his sonne, and his angels. Athanasius saith, that soules once loosed from their bodies,Marbach. lib. de miracul. adversus Ins. have no more societie with mortall men. Augustine saith, that if soules could walke and visit their freends, &c: or admonish them in sleepe, or otherwise, his mother that followed Johannes Rivius de veter. superstit.
Athan. lib. 99. quæ. 11.
August. de cura pro mortu. ca. 13.
Luk. 16. him by land and by sea would shew hir selfe to him, and reveale hir knowledge, or give him warning, &c. But most true it is that is written in the gospell; We have Moses and the prophets, who are to be hearkened unto, and not the dead./