The. xx. chapyter

BUt now for bycause he sayeth, that he wylbe content and satysfyed in thys mater with any one texte truely taken: whyle I shall say that the textes that I shall bryng hym, be by me truely taken, and he shall saye naye, and shall saye that I take them amysse & vntreuly: whyle he and I can not agre vppon the takynge, but vary vppon thexposycyō and the ryght vnderstandynge of them: by whom wyll he be iudged, whyther he or I take those textes truely? If by the congregacyon of thrysten people: the whole chrysten nacyons haue thys fyftene hundred yere iudged it agaynste hym.

For all this while haue they beleued, yt Chryst at his maūdy, whā he sayd this is my bodye, ment that yt was his very body in dede / and euer haue byleued and yet do, that yt was so in dede. If he wyll haue yt iudged by a generall counsayle, yt hath ben iudged for me agaynste hym, by mo then one all redye, before his dayes and myne bothe. If he wyl be iudged by the wrytynges of the olde holy doctours and sayntes: I haue al redye shewed you suffycyentely, that they haue al redye iudged this poynte agaynste hym. If he and I wolde va rye vppon the vnderstandyng of the olde sayntes wordes, bysydes that you se them your self so playne, that he shal in that poynte but shewe hym selfe shameful and shamelesse: yet the general counsayles (whych hym selfe denyeth not) hauyng redde and sene those holy doctours them selfe, and many of those holy sayntes beynge present at those coūsayles them selfe, haue therby iudged that poynt agaynste hym to. For no wyse man wyll doute, but that amonge theym they vnderstode the doctours than as well as mayster Maskars doth nowe. If he saye that he wyll wyth his other mo then twenty textes of scrypture of whyche he spake before, dysproue vs the textes one or two that I brynge for the blessed sacrament: than cometh he (you se well) to the self same poynt agayne, wherin he is ouerthrowen al redye. For all the corps of chrystendome of thrs. xv. hūdred yere before vs, and all the olde holy doctours & sayntes, and al the general coūsayles, and all the meruaylouse myracles that god hath shewed for the blessed sacramēt yerely almost, and I wene dayly to, what in one place and other / al whyche thynges proue the textes that I lay, to be ment and vnderstanden as I say. Al they do therby declare agaynst hym also, that none of his mo than twenty textes, can in any wyse be wel and ryght vnderstanden as he sayth. For ellys shold yt folow, that dyuerse textes of holy scrypture, not onely semed (whyche may well be) but also were indede (whyche is a thynge impossyble and can not be) cō traryouse & repugnant vnto other.

Now good chrysten readers here youse, that in his shyft that he vseth, where he sayeth that he wyl byleue any one text trewly taken: we bryng hym for the trew takyng vppon our parte, all these thynges that I haue here shortely rehersed you / of whych thynges hym selfe denyeth very fewe / that is to wyt, the olde holy doctours to holde on our parte / and the people of theyr tyme. But therin haue I shewed you diuerse of ye beste sorte agaynst hym. And the fayth of the people of the dyuerse tymes appereth by theyr bokes and by the coū sayles. And than that the generall counsayles and the myracles are on our parte, of these two thynges he denyeth neyther nother. But syth he can denye none of them, he dyspyseth bothe. And the holy counsayles of Chrystes chyrche he casseth the Anti chrysten synagoge. And goddes myracles both fryth and he be fayne to cal the workes of the deuyl.

And therfore good chrysten readers, whyle you se all thys: ye se well ynough that the textes of the gospell whyche we saye for the blessed bodye of Chryste in the blessed sacrament, be clere and playne for the purpose / and mayster Maskar wyll not agre yt so, but sayth that we take theym not trewly, onely bycause he will not perceyue and confesse the trouth.

Nowe where as mayster Maskar sayth of me ferther thus.

As for his vnwryten verytees, and thou foryfe of hys Antichrysten synagoge, vnto whyche the scrypture forsaken he is now at laste wyth shame ynough compelled to fle: they be proued starke lyes and very deuylrye.

Consyder good chrysten readers that in these wordes mayster maskar telleth you two thynges. Fyrste that I am wyth shame ynough compelled to fle fro the scrypture to myn vnwryten veryties, and to thauthoryte of thantichrysten synagoge, by whyche he meaneth the tradycyons and the determynacyons of the catho lyque chyrche.

The tother that the tradycyons and determinacyons of the chyrch, be all redy proued starke lyes and very de uylrye. For the fyrste poynte you sethat in this mater of the blessed sacrament, whyche ys one of the thynges that he meaneth, he hath not yet compelled me to fle fro the scrypture. For I haue wel all redye proued you this poynt, & very playn and clerely, by the selfe same place of scrypture, whyche mayster Maskar hathe expowned & falsely wolde wreste it a nother way, that is to wyt the wordes of Chryst wryten in the syxt chapyter of saynt Iohn̄.

Nowe yf I do for the profe of thys poynte, say the tradycyon of ye whole catholyque chyrche besyde, whyche thynge ys also suffycyent to proue the mater alone: ys that a fleynge fro the scrypture?

If that be a fleynge fro the scrypture, than myghte the olde heretyques very wel haue sayde the same vnto al the olde holy doctours, that this new heretyque sayeth nowe to me. For this woteth wel euery man (that any lernynge hathe) that those old holy doctours and sayntes, layed agaynste those old heretykes not the scrypture onely, but also the tradycyons vnwryten, byleued and taughte by the chyrche. And yf mayster Mas kar whan he shal defende hys boke, dare denye me that they so dyd: I shall brynge you so many playn proues therof, that be he neuer so shame lesse he shal be ashamed thereof.

And he can not say naye but that they so dyd, as I wote wel he can not: than you se wel good reders yt by ma ster maskers wise reason, those old he retikes might haue sayd agaynst eche of those old holy doctours & saits as mayster Maskar sayth agaynste me now, that they hadde made him with shame ynough, fle fro the scrypture, bycause he besyde the scrypture proued the trew faith and reproued their false heresyes, by thauthoryte of the catholyque chyrche. Suche strength haue alwaye so, mayster mayhers ar gumentes.

Nowe touchyng the secund point, where he calleth the catholyke chyrch the antichrysten synagoge, and the vn wryten veryties starke lyes and deuylrye: he hathe al redy shewed and declared partely which thynges they be that hym self meaneth by yt name. For he hath before specyfyed purgatorye, pylgrimages, and prayenge to sayntes, honourynge of ymages, and crepynge to the crosse, and halo wyng of belles agaynst euyl spirites in tem pestes, and boughes on palme sone daye, and byleuynge in the blessed sa crament. And Tyndale that ys eyther hym selfe or his felow, mocketh vnder the same name the sacrament of anelyng / and calleth the sacramēt of consyrmacyon the butterynge of the boyes forhed, & had as lyefe haue at his chrystenynge sande put in hys mouth as salt / and mocketh mych at fastyng. And as for lent, father frith vnder name of Bright well in the re uesacyon of Antichrist calleth it ye folishe fast / which ieste was vndouted ly reueled father fryth by the spyryt of the deuyll hym selfe, the spirituall father of Antichryste.

So that you maye se good readers that to saye the latenye, or our ladye matens, and crepe to the crosse at Ester, or praye for all christen sou les: these thynges & such other as I haue […] you, mayster Maskar saith are all redy proued starcke lyes and very deuylrye. But he she weth vs no such profe yet, neyther of lyes nor of deluylrye. […] But euery man may sone se, that he whych sayeth so myche and nothyng proueth, maketh many a starke lye / & that thus to raile agaynste god and al good men / and holy sayntes, and helpynge of good chrysten soules / and raylyng agaynst the blessed bodye of Chryste in the blessed sacrament, callynge ye bylyef therof deuylrye: yf suche raylyng in mayster maskar be not (as I wene it is) very playne and open deuylrye, yt can be no lesse yet at the leste wyse than very playne and open knauery.