“That I hold most sincerely and truly all the doctrines necessary for my eternal salvation, and all other doctrines which I find clearly set forth in God’s blessed Word, sent in His mercy and love as a sure guide to perishing man,” answered Antonio, boldly.
“Then you consider the Bible, by which so many are misled, as the only guide and rule of faith?” said the Chief Inquisitor. “You set at nought the authority of the Church?”
“I bow with all submission to the authority of the Church in all points in which she is clearly guided by Holy Scripture,” answered Herezuelo, who still clung, as did many of the Protestants of those days, to the false idea that there exists only one sole visible Church on earth; and believing that such a Church does exist, supposed it to be, in spite of all its errors, the Church of Rome.
“Then, heretic, you dare to say that the Bible is above the Church?” exclaimed the Inquisitor. “Why, fool, it is through the Church that you have a Bible; but it is not fit that the laity should possess it, for they can only, as we have evidence that you and others have done, make a most improper use of it. Therefore it is a prohibited book, and yet you dare to acknowledge that you have both possessed one and studied it. Ay, you have done so, and to your own utter destruction of body and soul.”
“To the salvation of my soul,” said Antonio, boldly. “Our blessed Lord Himself appealed to Scripture on many occasions, and to Scripture I appeal and trust.”
“Then you reject the traditions of the Church?” said the Inquisitor, looking towards the secretary, who was busily noting down all the questions he put, and the answers made by the prisoner.
“By tradition we may be deceived. Scripture is a sure guide, which, through the teaching of the Holy Spirit, will lead us infallibly aright,” answered Herezuelo.
“Oh, what abominable—what terrible heresy!” exclaimed the Inquisitor. “You deny, too, that the Blessed Virgin should be adored and honoured above Christ, as, being His mother, and, from being a woman, more ready to hear the prayers of the faithful than He can be?”
“The Virgin Mary was blessed in that she became the earthly mother of Jesus, and thus she was peculiarly honoured among women; but I find nowhere in Scripture that prayers should be made to her; on the contrary, at the marriage feast of Cana of Galilee, our Lord says, ‘Woman, what have I to do with thee?’ when she ventured to interfere in a matter she was incapable of understanding. Saint Mark tells us of the remark made by our Lord when told that His mother and His brethren waited without: ‘Who is My mother or My brethren? Whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is My brother, and My sister, and mother.’ When hanging on the cross, too, and looking down on Mary and His beloved disciple John, He said, ‘Woman, behold thy son!’ and then, addressing His disciple, He said, ‘Behold thy mother!’ ‘And from that hour that disciple took her to his own home.’ Not a word more does the Holy Spirit reveal to us of the history of the mortal mother of Jesus. All we know is, that, as a mortal child of Adam, she must have been saved by His precious blood shed on Calvary, for without that blood shed there is no remission of sins.”
The Inquisitor rose from his seat as if he would tear off his clothes, and sat down again, exclaiming, “Blasphemy! blasphemy! You deny, too, I hear, the necessity of confession and of priestly absolution?”