The.xliii. chapyter

NEuerthelesse myne entent is not to proue the sayde lawes all holly to be cruel and vnreasonable / for I knowe well / that yt is ryght expedyent, that […]rayt lawe[…] be made for punyshement of heresyes, that be heresyes in dede / more rather then any other offence / and that the dyscrecyon of the […]dges spyrytuall may ryght well as wage the rygour of the sayde lawes, and vse them more fauorably agaynst theym that […]e innocentes / then agaynst them that be wylfull offendours / yf they wyll charytably serche for the trouth. But surely yf the sayde lawes shuld be put into the ha[…] delyng of cruell iudges, yt myght happen that they shulde many tymes punyshe innocentes, as well as ofendours / but I truste in god, yt is not so. Neuerthelesse whyther yt be so or not▪ certayn it is / that there is a great tumour amonge the people that yt is so, and that spyrytual men punyshe not heresye euely for zele of the sayth / and of a loue ond a zele to the people / wyth a fatherly pytye to theym that so offende as they ought to do, how great offenders so euer they be / but that they do yt rather to oppresse theym that speke any thynge agaynste the worldely power or ryches of […]pyrytuall men, or agaynste the great confede[…]acy, that (as many men say) is in them to maynteyne yt.

Nowe his entent is not he sayth, to proue the said lawes of the chyrche agaynste heresyes, wholly cruell and vnreasonable / but so myche of them as yt standeth not wyth hys pleasure to approue. And now he is conten[…] that strayt lawes […]e made for punyshement of heresyes, suche as be heresyes in dede / wherin […] this boke of his meaneth two thynges. One, that he is content they be sore puny. […]ed yf they be cōdempned. But fyrst he wolde haue them called by such meanes, as he seeth well they neuer shold be sent for.

And then he wold erclude all such witnes as were likely to by wray them. And when that no man shall accuse them, nor no man be receyued that can proue yt agaynste them: then when the iudge can lawfully conuyete theym, he wolde I trow be contēt that they were burned twyse / and so wold I wene them self be content to / for they shall be saufe I now I warraunt you then.

yet a nother mystery he m[…] neth what so euer yt be, in those wordes, the punyshement of […] that be he[…]e / yes in[…]ede

Here wolde he peraduenture haue euery heresy when th[…]e newe br[…]therne were taken therin, be brought in que[…]yon agayne, and stand in controuersy whyther yt were heresy or not / and that were another good helpe for theym / as though the chyrch vsed to lay to theyr charges the spekyng agaynst some false taith / or at the lest wyse wolde proue thē heretikes in speking agaynst some suche thynges as they had neuer herd of byfore.

But now he sheweth why he doth not wholly cōdemne these lawes of the chyrche.

But then y• cause he sheweth to be such, as he by and by taketh yt away. For he layeth the cause to be, for that the iudges (yf they be good and charytable) maye by theyre wysedome and goodnes moder and temper the rygoure of the laws / but on the tother syde the euyll iudges may do by those lawes he sayth mych harme. But now what lawes are there or maye there be, by the abuse of whych none euyl iudge may do harme.

But then to shewe that by these lawes of the chyrche, myche harme and lytle good or none coulde come / he handeleth […] so that he wold make men wene, there were not a good indyfferent iudge in all the whole clergye. For when he hath shewed what hurt an euyll iudge and a cruell shold do by those lawes / he sayth y• hym selfe trusteth the spyrytuall iudges be not suche.

How be yt lest we sholde take hym at that word and byleue hym / he sheweth vs yet that the comen peple wyth a great rumour say the cōtrarye. And the thynge that he sayth here vnder the name of the people and great rumour / that sayth he in his fyrst chapyter vnder the name of many men. And yet immediatly before that / he sayth myche worse as of hym selfe / affermynge that many persones haue ben punyshed by the spyritualty for an euyll suspicyon and a false of theyr owne ymagynacyon, bycause those many persons so punysshed had byfore spoken onely agaynste spyrytuall mennys mysseorder and abusyons / whyche poynt, honesty wolde he sholde haue proued fyrste, and then wryte yt after.

And nowe cometh he and couertely goth about to make men wene, that no spyrytuall iudges be indyfferent. For thus he sayth.

And though many spyrytuall men may be founde, that haue ryght many great vertues and great gyftes of god, as cha […]tytie, lyberalytie, pacyence, sobernesse, temperaunce, connynge, and suche other / yet yt wyll be harde to fynde any one spyrytuall man / that is not infecte wyth the sayd desyre & affeccyon to haue the worldly honour of prefies exalted & preferred / and therfore yf any lay man reporte any euyl of a prest, though it be opēly knowen that yt is as he sayeth / yet they wyll be more dilygēt to cause the lay man to cease of that sayenge / then to do that in theym is to reforme that is a mysse in the preste that is yt spokē of, takynge as it were an occasyon to do the lesse in suche reformacyons / bycause saye men speke so myche agaynste them: But surely that wyll be none excuse to spyritual rulers afore god, when he shall aske accompt of his people, that were committed vnto theyr kepyng.

If the best spyrytuall men be such as thys pacyfyer here sayth they be, than be they a very sherwde sorte in dede, yf they be all so badde that it be harde to fynde any one, but that though any preste be so noughty that hys lewdnes is openly knowen, yet yf any ley man reporte it / the beste spyrytuall men wyll he sayth be more dylygent to cause the ley man ceace of hys sayeng, than to do theyr deuoyre to reforme the preste / ye and yet more then this, he sayeth they wyll do the lesse towarde the amendement of the preste, by cause ley men speke so myche of it. And thys sayth thys pacyfyer hym selfe, shewynge forth boldely therin hys own open face without any visour of some saye. And therfore syth he sayth this euen by the best / tyll he proue it somwhat better, thys shamefull tale is somwhat shamelesse dare I say / and somwhat is it folysh to, syth he saith therwith that those whyche thus wyll do, haue yet amonge many other great gyftes of god, pacyēce, sobernesse, temperaunce, and cunnynge to. For I am sure yf they haue that condycyon, that they be so affeccyonat vnto euery euyll preste, that they can so euyl bere y• disprayse of his opē knowē vnthriftynesse, that they wyll do the lesse towarde hys amendement, bycause ley men mych abhorre his lewdenesse: this pacyfier maye be pacyent I wyll not say nay, & may peraduenture haue myche connynge to / but surely eyther is this pacyfyer not very sober, or hath hys brayne otherwyse somewhat out of temper, if he take them (as he calleth them) for paciēt folke or for temperate eyther.