troubles, and much businesse in the church of Christ, concerning the reformation of divers abuses and great errors crept into the same, namely in the church of Rome: as appeareth by the doings of them, in divers and sundry places, whereof mention hath been made heretofore in this said history. For what godly man hath there been within the space of these five hundred yeeres, either vertuously disposed, or excellently learned, which hath not disproved the misordred doings and corrupt examples of the see and bishop of Rome from time to time, unto the comming of this Luther? Wherein this appeareth to me, and may also appeare no lesse to all godly disposed men, to be noted, not without great admiration, that seeing this foresaid Romish bishop hath had great enemies and gainsaiers continually from time to time, both speaking and working, preaching and writing against him, yet notwithstanding never any could prevaile before the comming of this man. The cause whereof, although it be secretly knowne unto God, and unknowne unto men, yet so far as men by conjectures may suppose, it may thus not unlikely be thought; that whereas other men before him, speaking against the pompe, pride, and avarice of the bishop of Rome, charged him only or most specially with examples and maners of life; Luther went further with him, charging him not with life, but with his learning; not with his doings, but with his doctrine; not picking at the rind, but plucking up the roote; not seeking the man, but shaking his seat, yea and charging him with plaine heresie, as prejudicial to and resisting plainly against the bloud of Christ, contrary to the true sense and direct understanding of the sacred testament of Gods holy word. For whereas the foundation of our faith grounded upon the Holy Scripture, teacheth and leadeth us to be justified only by the worthinesse of Christ, and only price of his 7 To be justified only.] Essential as the true doctrine of justification by faith is to the deliverance and safety of the individual Christian, and so, by direct consequence, to the emancipation of the whole church collectively, yet this doctrine is not every thing; and it is never to be forgotten, and ought therefore to have been here mentioned by Fox, that there were other great articles, quite as necessary to our entire freedom and rescue, as that which he has so deservedly celebrated. We shall see at a greater length below, in a subsequent part of this collection, (see note on Life of Bishop Ridley; or Index, under Reformation, main points of controversy in,) that they who understood the matter best, regarded two principal things as "bearing up the whole brunt of the religion that hath been in the world of late time; the one, the 8 bloud, the pope proceeding with a contrary doctrine, teacheth us otherwise to seeke our salvation, not by Christ alone, but by the way of mens meriting and deserving by works: whereupon rose divers sorts of orders and religious sects amongst men, some professing one thing, and some another, and every man seeking his owne righteousnes, but few seeking the righteousnes of him which is set up of God to be our righteousnes, redemption and justification. Martin Luther therfore urging and reducing things to the foundation and touchstone of the scripture, opened the eies of many, which before were drowned in darknes. Whereupon it cannot be expressed what joy, comfort and consolation came to the hearts of men, some lying in darknesse and ignorance, some wallowing in sinne, some being in despaire, some macerating themselves by works, and some presuming upon their owne righteousnesse, to behold that glorious benefit of the great liberty and free justification set up in Christ Jesus. And briefly to speake, the more glorious the benefit of this doctrine appeared to the world after long ignorance, the greater persecution followed upon the same. And where the elect of God tooke most occasion of comfort and of salvation, thereof the adversaries tooke most matter of vexation and disturbance: as commonly we see the true word of God to bring with it ever dissention and perturbation: and therefore truly it was said of Christ, That hee came not to send peace on earth, but the sword. And this was the cause why that after the doctrine and preaching of Luther, so great troubles and persecutions followed in all quarters of the world: whereby rose great disquietnesse among the prelats, and many mass, and the things thereunto belonging; the other, the authority of the pope." e.”—Meanwhile, with respect to one of these points, it has been well remarked by a modern writer (Dr. Paley); "when the doctrine of transubstantiation had later possession of the Christian world, it was not without the industry of learned men, that it came at length to be discovered, that no such doctrine was contained in the New Testament.-But had those excellent persons done nothing more by their discovery than abolished an innocent superstition, or changed some directions in the ceremonial of public worship, they had merited little of that veneration, with which the gratitude of Protestant churches remembers their services.-What they did for mankind was this: they exonerated Christianity of a weight which sunk it.” 8 By the way.] The true distinctions between the two churches of England and Rome in this great question, are much more correctly laid down by Hooker in his learned Treatise of Justification, Works, vol. iv. Keble's edit. lawes and decrees were made, to overthrow the same by cruell handling of many good and Christian men. Thus while authority armed with lawes and rigor, did strive against simple veritie, lamentable it was to heare, how many poore men were troubled and went to wracke, some tost from place to place, some exiled out of the land for feare, some caused to abjure, some driven to caves in woods, some wracked with torment, and some pursued to death with fagot and fire.-Of whom we have now (Christ willing) in this history following to entreat. |