A confutation of Johannes Laurentius, and of manie others, mainteining these fained and ridiculous tales and apparitions, and what driveth them awaie: of Moses and Helias appearance in mount Thabor.
URTHERMORE, to prosecute this matter in more words; if I saie that these apparitions of soules are but knaveries and cousenages; they object that Moses and HeliasMatth 17.
Luke. 9. appeared in mount Thabor, and talked with Christ, in the presence of the principall apostles: yea, and that God appearedJohan. Laur. lib. de natur. dæmon. in the bush, &c. As though spirits and soules could doo whatsoever it pleaseth the Lord to doo, or appoint to be doone for his owne glorie, or for the manifestation of his sonne miraculouslie. And therefore I thought good to give you a taste of the witchmongers absurd opinions in this behalfe.
Mich. Andr. thes. 222, &c And first you shall understand, that they hold, that all the soules in heaven may come downe and appeare to us when they list, and assume anie bodie saving their owne: otherwise (saie they) such soules should not be perfectlie happie.Idem thes. 235. &. 136. They saie that you may know the good soules from the bad verie easilie. For a damned soule hath a verie heavie and sowre looke; but a saints soule hath a cheerefull and a merrie countenance: these also are white/535. and shining, the other cole blacke. And these damned soules also maie come up out of hell at their pleasure; although AbrahamIdem thes. 226. made DivesTh. Aq. 1. pa. quæ. 89. ar. 8. beleeve the contrarie. They affirme that damned soules walke oftenest: next unto them the soules of purgatorie; and most seldome the soules of saints. Also they saie that in the old lawe soules did appeare seldome; and after doomes daieGregor. in dial. 4. they shall never be seene more: in the time of grace they shall be most frequent. The walking of these soules (saith Michael Andr.)Mich. And. thes. 313. 316. 317. is a most excellent argument for the proofe of purgatorie: for (saith he) those soules have testified that which the popes have affirmed in that behalfe; to wit, that there is not onelie such a place of punishment, but that they are released from thence by masses, and such other satisfactorie works; whereby the goodnes of the masse is also ratified and confirmed.
Idem thes. 346.These heavenlie or purgatorie soules (saie they) appeare most commonlie to them that are borne upon ember daies, and they also walke most usuallieLeo. serm. de jejuniis 10. mens.
Gelas. in epistola ad episc. on those ember daies: bicause we are in best state at that time to praie for the one, and to keepe companie with the other. Also they saie, that soules appeare oftenest by night; bicause men may then be at best leasure,Mich. Andr. thes. 345. and most quiet. Also they never appeare to the whole multitude, seldome to a few, and most commonlie to one alone: for so one may tell a lie without controlment.Greg. dial. 4. cap. 1. 12. 14.
Mich. And. thes. 347. Also they are oftenest seene by them that are readie to die: as Trasilla sawe pope Fœlix; Ursine, Peter and Paule; Galla Romana, S. Peter; and as Musa the maid sawe our Ladie: which are the most certeine appearances, credited and allowed in the church of Rome:Greg. dial. 4. cap. 11.
Mich. And. thes. 347. also they may be seene of some, and of some other in that presence not seene/384. at all; as Ursine sawe Peter and Paule, and yet manie at that instant being present could not see anie such sight, but thought it a lie: as I doo. Michael AndræasMich. And. thes. 341.
Ide. thes. 388. confesseth, that papists see more visions than protestants: he saith also, that a good soule can take none other shape than of a man; marie a damned soule may and dooth take the shape of a blacke moore, or of a beast, or of a serpent, or speciallie of an heretike. The christian signesIde. thes. 411.
Mal. malef. J. Bod. &c.
Mich. And. these. 412. that drive awaie these evill soules, are the crosse, the name of Jesus, and the relikes of saints: in the number whereof are holiwater, holie bread, Agnus Dei, &c. For Andrew saith, that notwithstanding Julianus was/536. an Apostata, and a betraier of christian religion: yet at an extremitie, with the onelie signe of the crosse,Idem. thes. 414. he drave awaie from him manie such evill spirits; whereby also (he saith) the greatest diseases and sicknesses are cured, and the sorest dangers avoided.
The xxix. Chapter.
A confutation of assuming of bodies, and of the serpent that seduced Eve.
HEY that contend so earnestlie for the divels assuming of bodies and visible shapes, doo thinke they have a great advantage by the words uttered in the third of Genesis,Gen 3. 14. 15. where they saie, the divell entered into a serpent or snake: and that by the cursse it appeareth, that the whole displeasure of God lighted upon the poore snake onlie. How those words are to be considered may appeare, in that it is of purpose so spoken, as our weake capacities may thereby best conceive the substance, tenor, and true meaning of the word, which is there set downe in the manner of a tragedie, in such humane and sensible forme, as woonderfullie informeth our understanding; though it seeme contrarie to the spirituall course of spirits and divels, and also to the nature and divinitie of God himselfe; who is infinite, and whome no man ever sawe with corporall eies, and lived. And doubtles, if the serpent there had not beene taken absolutelie, nor metaphoricallie for the divell, the Holie-ghost would have informed us thereof in some part of that storie. But to affirme it sometimes to be a divell, and sometimes a snake; whereas there is no such distinction to be found or seene in the text, is an invention and a fetch (me thinks) beyond the compasse of all divinitie. Gen. 3. 1.
1. Cor. 11. 3. Certeinlie the serpent was he that seduced Eve: now whether it were the divell, or a snake; let anie wise man (or rather let the word of God) judge. Doubtles the scripture in manie places expoundeth it to be the divell. And I have (I am sure) one wiseman on my side/537. for the interpretation hereof, namelie Salomon;Sap. 2, 24. who saith, Through envie*[* = hatred] of the divell came death into the world: referring that to the divell, which Moses in the letter did to the serpent. But a better expositor hereof needeth not, than the text it selfe, even in the same place, where it is written; I will put enmitie betweene thee and the woman, and betweene thy seed and hir seed: he shall breake thy head, and thou shalt bruse his heele. What christian knoweth not, that in these words the mysterie of/385. our redemption is comprised and promised? Wherein is not meant (as manie suppose) that the common seed of woman shall tread upon a snakes head, and so breake it in peeces, &c: but that speciall seed, which is Christ, should be borne of a woman, to the utter overthrow of sathan, and to the redemption of mankind, whose heele or flesh in his members the divell should bruse and assault, with continuall attempts, and carnall provocations, &c.