More

Blessynge of bysshopes Tyndale iesteth vpon in mo places then one. And for as mych as he knoweth well that all crysten people haue and euer haue had a good faythfull byleue in blessynge, both where a man or woman blesse them selfe, and also where as any that hath authoryte ouer them gyuen by god to blesse them, whyche is a kynde of prayour and inuocacyon of goddes grace vppon the partye so blessed wyth the sygne of the crosse / as the naturall father or the godfather blesseth the chylde, or the curate his paryshen, or the bysshope his diocesa[…]e: such thynges Tyndale taketh for tryfels, and laugeth such blessynge and crossynge to skorne.

For in his boke of obedyence, the laynge of the bysshops hande vppon the preste in geuynge the sacrament of holy orders, he resembleth to the layeng of a mannes hande vppon a boyes h[…]d whē he calleth hym good sonne. And ye blessynge as he calleth yt here the waggynge of two fyngers / so he calleth yt there the waggynge of the hande in the ayre.

How be yt we nede not mych to meruayle though Tyndale and Luther and frere Huskyn aud theyr felowes, sette lytle by the sygne of the crosse made by a mannes hande in the ayre / syth we se that they set so lytle by an ymage of the crucyfyx, and also by Crystes holy crosse yt selfe / wherof Luther wryteth that yf he had all the peaces, he wolde caste thē all there as neuer sonne shold shyne vppon them. But all crysten men syth Crystes deth hytherwarde / hath set mych by that kynde of blessynge, in whych the sygne of the crosse is made vppon a mā eyther by hym selfe or by a nother. And not a few storyes are there that testyfye great thynges done in the vertue of that sygne / not onely amonge good crysten men, but also sometyme amonge euyll men and the very infydeles them selfe.

And though that I entende not to prolonge this worke wyth wrytynge of storyes[…] yet commeth there one to my mynde so mete for the mater, and wryten by so great authoryte, that I cane not let yt passe.

¹Saynt Gregory Nazianzene the great famouse olde doctour, wrytynge in his seconde oracyon made agaynste the great emperour infydele cōmenly called Iulianus apostata, wryteth that when that man was fallen from the fayth of cryste vnto paganysme and gentylyte / geuynge hym self therewyth not onely to the persecucyon of crysten men, but also to the folowynge of euery kynde of superstycyouse foly: he toke with hym on a tyme certayne necromācyers, and went in to a caue to coniure vp spyrites, to enquyre of them certayne thynges wherof he was very curyouse to knowe. And when he was in the pyt amonge them with theyr coniuracyons, there appered many terryble syghtes, so far forth that all be yt wyth the truste of his coniuracyons he bare yt oute a whyle, yet at the laste the terrour and feare so sore encreased, that he was fayne for the surest refuge to blesse him selfe wyth the sygne of the crosse, whych he so pursued and hated. At whyche onely sygne so made wyth the waggynge (as Tyndale calleth yt) of his hande in the ayre, as euyll an hande as yt was: yet were all the deuyls so sore a frayed, yt all theyr ferefull illusyons fayled & vanyshed quyte away.

Lo what a force and strength hathe that fasshyon of blessyng that Tyndale setteth a[…] so lyght[…] wherin many a man dayly fyndeth great profyte, in au[…]ydynge of temtacions of our goostly enimye the deuyll, and in manye a soden fere of the fende.

And I lytle doute but as Tyndale foloweth Iulianus apostata in fallynge from the ryght fayth: so wold he at a nede folowe hym also in blessynge to. For as lytle as Tyndale setteth by blessynge now: yet yf he myghte ones mete y• deuyll in the darke, he wolde I warraunte you crosse and blesse a pace. And I beseche our lorde to gyue hym grace so to blesse hym self by tyme, that he mete not the deuyll in eternall derkenes, where who so myshape to mete hym, cā haue no grace to crosse and to blesse hym selfe / but shall in stede of crossynge and blessynge, fall all to cursynge and desperate sorowe and furyouse blasphemynge wythout comforte and wythoute ende.

Footnotes

1. Grego. Nazi. ↩