The.ix. chapyter

The messenger yet agayne obi[…] cteth agaynst reliques. And putteth grete dow[…]e in canonysyng. Where vnto the author maketh answere[…]

HOw cā I quod he be sure therof[…] May ye takyng vppe of a mā […] b[…]nes / and settyng his ca[…]tas in a g[…] […]/& thā […]y[…]ng his […]re scalpe / make a mā a saynt. And yet are there some vnsheyned / for no man woteth where th[…]y lye. And som that mē do[…] whyther euer th[…]y had eny body at all or not. But ma[…]y to recōpence that […] all there be som agayne that haue two bodyes / to lend one to som good felow th[…] la[…]eth. For as I sayd before somone body lyeth hole in two placys far a sonder / or ellys the mōkys of ye to[…] b[…] begyled. For both ye placys playnly aff[…]rme that ye lyeth there. And at eyth[…]r place they shew the shryne. And in ye shryne they shew a body whych they say is the body and boldly byde therby that yt is yt / alledgyng olde wrytyng & myracle[…] also for ye profe. Now must w[…] confe[…] that eyther the myra[…] at […]he ton[…] place b[…] false or done by the deuyll / or ellys that ye same saynt had.ii. b[…]dyes in dede. And thā were that in my mynd as gre[…]e a myracle as the gretest of theym all. And therfore is yt lykely sōwhere a bone worshypped for a relyq[…] of som holy saynt / that was peraduēture a bone as Chaucer sayth […] also somethin ye gospel to & […] pro[…]e the ph[…]rysyes for makyng fullshe […] sepulchre[…] of holy prophet […] and makyng sh[…] of theyr g[…]ys. wh[…]r[…]by yt app[…]reth that he wold […] worshypped and set in gay golden shrynes. And yet besydys this ye shal fynde many mo worsh[…]pped I wene than shryned / many shryned that ye fynde not canonysed / though ye s[…]ke vp all ye regestres in Rome. And whan they be shryned and can[…]nysed to / yet syth the chyrche in the […]ony[…]acyon vse th[…] meane th[…] […] begyle theym / for they stande to the recorde of men both of theyr lyues and of theyr myracles / whych mē may per […]uenture lye / why may yt not than […]/that the chyrch[…] he deceyued in the […]nonysacyon. And that they may for lacke of trew knowledge byleuynge vntrew mē / canonyse for sayntys such folke sometyme as be full farre there from. I dare not say so mych as sayth saynt Austyn. For he letteth not to say playnly that many bodyes be w[…]shypped for sayntꝭ herein erthe / whose soules […]e beryed in hel. Ye haue quod I sayd many thyngys very stoutly. But yet let vs fyrst consyder where vnto al to gether wayeth. For yt stretcheth no ferther yf yt were all trewe / but that we myght be deceyued in some that we shold take for say[…]tys. An[…] yt neyther proueth yt there be no sayntys / whych I wote well no wyse man wyll saye / nor that yf eny be they sholde not […]e worshypped nor prayed vnto Excepte ye wolde say that yf we myght by possybylyte mystake some / therfore we sholde worshyp none. And than sholde you by that reason neuer take eny physycyon / syth ye myght happen vppon […] dogge leche for lacke of knowledge of the connyng. For in recordis of men ye myght he as well deceyued them / as h[…]re. Now suppose than fyrste th[…] of […]yntꝭ & of […]aly[…]/some were trew and some were false. Yet the worshyp that y[…] […] wold we shold do to theym all / shold be bycause (that standyng as they do vnknowen and vndyscerned) ye re[…]ened theym all trew and all for goddys well beloued seruauntes. For yf ye knew of theym which were trew and whyth false / th[…] wolde ye worshyp the trew / and trede ye false vnder fote. That is no dowt q he. Th[…] q[…]od I yf we were begyled in some[…] I se no grete peryll growe towarde v[…] thereby. For yf there came a gret meany of the kyngys frendys into your cō […]trye / and ye for hys sake made the y[…] all grete che[…]. Yf there came amonge theym vnware to you some spyes that were hys mortall enemyes / werynge hys badge and semyng to you and so reporte […]as hys famyly[…]frendꝭ / wheather wolde he blame you […]or the good there ye made hys enemyes or thanke you for the good che[…]e ye made hys f[…] ̄ dys. He wolde I thynke q he thāke me for the good intreaty[…]ge of theym both / syth doth semed good to me / and both had of me theyr […]here but for they semed hy[…] frendys and for hys sake: Ye say q I good reason. But I put case now that ye had an […]lynge or ellys a playne warnyng / that som of them were hys enmyes that semed hys best frendys / but whych they were no man came tell you / what wolde you now do / make theym all chere and h[…] nourably entreate theym all / or elles shewyng theym that ye here say playnly that some of theym be nought / there fore dyd theym be walkynge all wyth sorow? Nay quod he no dowt we[…]e yt / but that I shold l[…]ke for thanke yf I cheryshed hys enemyes for hys frendys / rather then despytfully to handel hys frendys[…] or hys enemyes. Uery well quod I. And thys were trew all though ye had warnyng that some of thē w[…]r[…] hys enmyes. But what thāke wold ye then deserue yf ye shold shake of bothe / where ye had no such[…] warning at all / but wold say that ye durst not make eny of theym chere / bycause ye thought that peraduēture yt myght b[…] that som were wors thā they were taken for? For in suche case be you h[…]re / ye know not th[…]t eny mā worshypped for a saynt is none / but only ye thynke that ye be not sure whether all be or som not. Yes quod […]e saynt Austeyn as I tolde you gyueth me warnyng / that many be none. Ye be q I deceyued therin / as I shall tell you after. But in ye meane whyl[…] marke me wel this / and let yt stande for a sure grounde / yt all your obiecyon yf yt were trewe / serueth not agaynst worshyppy[…]ge of sayntys or sayntys relyques / […] the worshyppyng of such as were no saynt ys […] no sayntys rely[…]es. And that […] out examynacyon. For surely ye wordabis; wherof they toke ye occasyō whyche he wryteth ī ye fyrst boke de ciuitate dei / & repeteth agayne ī hys boke of ye cure and care th[…]t men sholde haue for them that be dede / those wordꝭ I say go far wyde frome all such purpose. For there he speketh onely of costely bury[…]nge / & makyng of sumptuoꝰ sepulchres / and doyng ye dede corps of ryche mē worldly worshyp in the caryenge for the and ent[…]erynge of the body / as ye playnly and euydently appereth by the mater yt he wryteth of. And surely sythe oure lord neuer w[…]ld amōge hys chosen people gyue ye glory of hys name to a nother / nor neuer so suffred ydolatry among th[…] iewes / but y• eyther […]e forth wyth punyss[…] and pourged yt / or so […] wyll haue hym honoured and had for hallowed in hys chyrch here in erth / & thys thyng eyther by them that hath y• cure of hys chyrche after suche dylygē ce vsed / beyng by y• canonysacyon declared vnto the people / or ꝑaduenture wythout canonysacyon growen there of (by the holynes well knowen / and myracles many sene) so sure a cōmon ꝑsuasyon / through the hoole people of chrystendom yt the person ys acceptyd and reputyd for an vndoubted saynt / be the bonys trāslatyd or not / hys body founden or not / al be yt by possybylyte of nature yt m[…]ught be that men were in suche thyngys deceyued as ye haue sayd / yet we boldyly may and well we ought in thys case / to trust yt the grace and ayde of god and hys holy spyryt assystyng hys chyrch / hath go[…]yd the iugemēt of hys mynysters / & enclyned the myndys of hys people to suche consent. And yt he hath not sufferyd them to cure in a thyng so nerely touchyng hys honor and worshyp / eyther truly to be applyed where hys wyl were yt should / vpō hym self or hy[…] holy sayntys for hys […]/or to be wythdr[…]wen the use and by erronyous mystakyng of trouth […] mete and cōuenyent to be ꝑceyued of the chyrch for goddes honor (whyche kynde of trouth god sent the holy gost to teche hys chyrch) the same worshyp to be bestowed vpon them whom he wold in no […] haue yt / but whom he […] nal shame. For the body […] or not maketh no doubt of the saynt. No mā doubteth of our lady. No mā doubteth of saynt Iohan theuangely[…] though theyr bodyes be not founden. And yet yf they were / then were there I thynk no good chrystyen man but he wold be contented they were shrynyd and had in honour. For where as ye wold […] be the reuerence from all relyques bycause that some be doubtful / in y• some one sayntys hed is as ye say and of som y• hole body shewed at two sondry p[…] cys / yt may fortu[…]e for all thys that of one hed ther may by sondry […] and eyther parte in the comē speche of people called the hed. For at A mya[…] saynt Iohn̄s hed the baptist as mē […] yt in talkyng / euen they that haue ben there and sene yt. But then yf they be askyd further question therof / they […]ell that ye nether iowe lacheth. Thys may well happen also and so doth yt happe in dede / by some saynt of whom in.ii. dyurtse countrees be dyuers shrynes / And there be rekened & reported yt its eyther of them be layd the hole body & yt pylgrymes at neyther places do loke in to yt cofyn o[…] ye s[…]iyne to se whether yt be all o[…] pat[…]e. In some place peradu[…]nture lay y• body by & some occasyon yt body […]an[…]lat[…] the […] of olde[…] and yet the shryne shewed styll wyth som of the relyques […]ynynge there in. yt may well happ[…] also that ther[…] were two good holy […] in dyuerse cō trees bothe of one name. And p[…]a[…] in some place may the[…] […]e som very relyques vnknowē and […]ysu[…]ed. For in olde tyme […] of infydelys dyd […] […] neuer can begyle them. And that is ye assystence of god and ye holy goste. For elles myght the chyrch be most easyly begyled in the receyuyng of the very scypture / wherin they take outwardly but the testymonys of […] from mouth to mouth and hande to hāde / wythout other examynacyō. But ye secret meane that enclyneth theyr credulyte to consent in the byleuyng all in one poynte whych ys the secret instynete of god / thys is the sure means that neuer can in any necessarye poynte fayle here in Crystys chyrch. For yf yt myght / all were quyte at large. And that poynt onys taken a waye / scrypture and all walketh wyth yt. And in thys mynde as yt seemyth / was very sure and fastely confermyd ye holy Appostle saynt Poule / Whych in his fyrste epystle to the Corynthyes wryteth in this wyse[…] Obsecro vos fratres per nomen domini nostri Iesu Cristi vt idipsum dicatꝭ omnes / et non […]nt in vobis scismata / sed sitis integrum corpus eadem mēte et eadem sententia / I beseche you my brothren by the name of our lord Ihū Cryst / that you say all one thyng / and let ther be no scysmes or seuerall sectꝭ among you / but be ye one hole entier[…] body of one mynde and one sentence. Trouth is yt that he taught them and other the ryght way so fersoth / that he boldely forbode an angell of heuyn to be byleuyd / yf any wold come & preche a nother gospell. But yet in this place I note myche / that he calleth vppon them only for agrement / byddynge them only to agre all vppō one thyng / and makyth no mencyon of agrement vppon the beste and vpon the trouth / but only to auoyde all dyscorde & dyuysyon and by comen consent exho[…]yth them to aggree all in one / meanynge therby as me thynketh / yt yf the chyrch of Cryst e[…]dyng well / do all agree vppō eny one thyng cō […]ernyng goddes honour or mannys so[…]e / yt can not be but that thyng must nedes be tr[…]. For goddes holy spyrit th[…] any[…]teth his chyrch and geueth yt lyfe / wyll neuer suffer yt all consent and agree togeder vppon any […]. And therfore wold he n[…]ue[…] […]u[…]er y• chyrch so fully to consent[…] in the worshyp of sayntys and reuerence of relyques / yf yt were a thyng suche as s[…]m mē wold haue yt seme that is to wytte a thyng false and fayned. Wherin as myche as ye laye to mynysshe […] credence / that yt myght[…] seme as yt saye well ynough that some of thē […]re […]aynyd / yet wyst I neuer prouyd th[…]t any such so taken and by the chyrche approued / was euer yet hytherto re[…]d / eyther here in Crystys chyrch or amonge the Iewes in theyr synagoge before Crystys days / and yet sayntys they had in honour as patryarches and ꝓphetꝭ and theyr bodyes and relyques in reue[…]. Now yf of such as s[…]yd good men we neuer had […] any for ypochrytys / albe yt yt myght be that some were suche / yet wolde we not I thynke suppose that there were any so in dede / yf we neuer had knowen yt tryed and prouyd so. And why shall we then of sayntꝭ or relyq[…]s […] doubte & mystrust? Of whom beyng receyue[…] by the chyrch for trew / […] neuer that I coulde […]yt synne god wrought the worlde tryed and prouyd any of both sortys vntrue / neyth[…]r as I say in the chyrche of Cryst no[…] sy[…]go[…] of the Iewes / whych two sortys[…]ty […]ere goddes chosen people. And yet […] as well the Iewes as […] I sayd in hon[…]r / and theyr relyq[…] in grete […]/as […] as well by the gospell as by the […]lde […]. Iacob that […]y patry[…]rche cōm[…]ū ded hys chyldren in […] to […]ary hys body to the […]eryall out of th[…]t countrey of Egypte / and so they dyd. And I […] also […] that when they shoulde after de[…]rte out of Egypte / they should cary hys b[…] nys wyth them. The dede bonys of y• prophet […] as the byble […]en[…]y[…] neth […]ysed a dede body to lyfe. And thynke you then that those bonys were not there honoured for holy relyques[…] Nor our […] Cryst blameth not the Iewys in the gospell for that they garneshed the sepulcres of ye olde prophetys / wyth whose honoure he was well content / but for yt they cōdempned them selfe in folowyng the condycyon of them that slewethē / entēdyng to […]yll Cryst as theyr forefathers dyd hys holy prophetys. For as for ye dede bodyes of the holy prophetys that god wold […] them had in honour and reuerēce he declared well by that he reysed a dede body by the […] of y• dede bonys of the prophets Heliseus as I sayd you byfore. Dyd not […] l[…]d in the fyndyng of that holy relyque hys holy crosse decl[…] by myracle and make hys owne crosse knowen from the crosses of the.ii. theues by the reysyng of a dede man wyth the touche therof? Wherin ys to be notyd by the waye / yt there was betwen hys and theyres no notable dy[…]erence / but they nayled as he was / or ellys had yt be no doubt […] vestures? And doubt we then whether g[…]d w[…]lde we shoulde worshyp them when he so well and aboue nature […] wordeth vs for ye worshyp we do them[…]