The.xi. chapyter

The author answereth all the obi[…]cyons proponed by the messenger in the tenthe chapyter. And some of th[…]y[…] rowched by y• messenger more at large in other partes before.

YOur hole tale in e[…]erte guod I rēteynyth thre thyngys. One that the people worshyp the sayntys and theyr ymagys also wyth ly[…] ho[…] as they d[…] god hym self. […] n[…] that they take the ymagꝭ for the r[…]ngys selfe / whych poyntys do […]ownes to ydolatry. The thyrde is the supertycyons fasshyon of worshyppe wyth desyre of vnlefull thyngys. And […]yth th[…] worshyp that the people do to the saynt[…] and […]y[…]gys be f[…]rthe / y• conclude ye thyng dyspleasaunt to god and to all halowes / and that yt may the[…]y w[…]ll appere th[…]t the myracles also be […] y• wor[…] (of god but y• delus[…] of ye deuyl. the fy[…] […] whyth ye haue […]ow twyse w[…] ys at o […]ys sone & shortly answer[…] for yt ys not […]. For though […] he[…] […] […] yet yt ys […] trew that therfore they worshyp them in euery poīt lyke vnto god. What poynte lacke they qu[…]d he. […] M[…]y the chy[…]f of all quod I That ys y• they worshyp god wyth y• mynde that he ys god / whych mynd in worshyp ys the only thyng that m[…]th yt latri[…] and no certeyne gesture […] […]dyly obseruaūce. Not & we wold […]ollow vpon the grounde vnto Cry[…]/hauyng ther[…]yth a mynd that he were the beste man y• we coulde de[…]y[…]e and thynkyng hym not god. For yf y• lov[…]ly maner of bodyly observaunce were ye thyng that wold make latri[…]/thēwer we moch ī p[…]ell of ydolatrye in our curtesye vsyd to pryncys […]el[…]ꝭ & p[…] pys to whō we vneleas low as to god almyghty / & […] and somme […] to touche them / & in the p[…] hys fote. […] prestys in euery quere be as well […] fyd as ye […] that yf latria yt ys specyal he nowe doe to god stode in such thīgys / th[…] ̄ were we grete ydolatr[…]s / not lowe w[…]rshypdome to […]y[…]ꝭ […] nor […]man neyther / but ye they know […]uy[…] mē from dede stones / & tree from […]essh & bone. And when they […]f[…]r[…] as ye spake of our lady at our pylgrymages before our lady at a nother / or one […]oode before a nother / or make theyr i[…]c[…]cyons & vowes some to y• t[…] and s[…] to the tother / I we[…]e yt esh[…] to ꝑceyue that they meane none other but that our lord and our lady / or our lord for our lady sh[…] with mo myracles at the one then at the other. And that they intend in theyr pylgrymage to vp syt s[…] of theym one place and som another[…] or partely somtyme as y• place lyeth for theim as theyr de[…] ledeth […] and y[…] not for the place / but for y• ye ly[…]eth one lord by […]nyfest, m[…] […] […] lyue in antyete and trouble of mynde for […]ny fer[…] of […]/consyderyng that our father in heu[…]n ꝓuydeth meat for the very byrdys of the ayer by whome he settyth nothyng so mych a[…] he doth by vs / yet wylled not he the contrary / but we shold wyth our bodyes labour therfore / hauyng o[…]r hertꝭ all ye whyle in heuyn. And wylled also yt we sholde as[…]e yt of hym / wythout whose helpe our labour wyl not serue. And th[…]rfore is our dayly foode one of ye petycy[…]s of the Pater noster / the prayour that hym self taught hys dyscyples. And ye horse he sette not so lytle by / but that rather thē yt shold peryssh / he rekenyd yt no breche of ye […]both day to pull hym out of a pyt. And therfore in d[…]d[…] me semeth the de[…]cyon to r[…]nne somwhat to farre / yf ye smytth[…] wyll n[…]t for eny necessyte set one a sho[…] vppon saynt Loyes day / & yet lefull ynough to pray for the helpe of a poore mānys horse. But as for your teth[…] I w[…]ne yf they akyd well / ye wolde yo[…] selfe thynke yt a thyng worthy and not to symple to aske helpe of saynt Appolyn and of god to. […] mary quod he / and of the deuyll to rather th[…]n fayle / as y• Lumbard dyde for the gowte. That when he had long called vppon god & our lady and all the holy company of heuyn and yet felte hym self […] the better / he began at laste to call as […]a[…] for helpe vnto the deuyll. And when hys wyfe & hys frendes sore ab[…]sshed and as[…]onyed rebuked hym for calling on the deuyll whych he wyst w[…]ll was naught / and yf that he holp[…] hym yt shold be for no good / he cryed ow[…]e as lowd as he could agayn / […]/all is good that helpeth. And […]od I wen[…] wolde I qu[…]d he […]all […] the deuyll and all rather than ab[…] in […]ne. Nay quod I what […] e[…]er yt say I can not thīke y[…] wold by[…] in the d[…]uyll as that Lu[…]b[…]rd dyde. Ye wolde rather fare ly[…]e a no[…]h[…]/that wh[…]n the f[…]yer apposyd hym in confes[…]on whether he […] any thī ge wyth wytchecrafte […] […]ecro[…]ancye / or had any byl[…]fe in the deuyll / he ans[…]ered hy[…]/Credere […]n le dyabl[…] […] […]yr no / Io gra[…]id […]atyge a creder[…] ī d[…] Byleue in the deuy[…] […] he / […]ay nay sy[…] I haue wor[…] yn[…]ugh to byleue in god I. And so wolde I wene yt ye were far from all by leuyng in th[…] de[…]yll / ye haue worke ynough to by[…]leue in god. Ye haue so mych worke to byleue in hymselfe / that y[…] be loth me thy[…]k[…] to mydle mych wt hys sayntꝭ. […]hen he had laug[…]ed a whyle at […] m[…]ry […]al[…]s / In good fayth quod I a[…] I was about to tell you / som what in dede yt is that ye say. For […]uyll yt is / and euyll yt is sufferyd ye supers[…]ycyo[…]s maner of worshyp. And as […]or that ye tolde of saynt Martyn yf yt be true / it hath […] excuse / but that yt nothyng towcheth our mater. For yt is not […] worshyppynge but dyspytynge and dysw[…]rshyppynge of sayntys. Towchynge the offrynge of brede and al[…] to saynt […]ermyn / I se nothyng mych[…] myste therin / where y[…] […]e s[…]me yt v[…]ed I […]ā not tell. But I h[…] my s[…]lf[…] se[…] often tymys / and yet am I not r[…]m[…]b[…]ed yt euer I saw pr[…]te or che[…] fare ye better therfore / or […]nys dryn[…] therof / but yt is geuen to chyldren or poore […]olke to pray for […] chylde[…]. And I wold wene yt […] in suche fasshyone / to […] vp […]n […] are […] people. But […]w as for our […] […] no wise mā wyth ye Cryst h[…]d not comē […]ere. Nor yt h[…]d be no ryght y• […] haue left ye occasiō of meryt & […] […]e ye good folke wold wt his h[…]lp[…] deser […]e by hys comyng / for ye […] y• wreches wold tak[…] therof by th[…]y[…] owne sh[…]uthe & malyce. Nor ī […] were yt none yt al worshyp o[…] s[…]yntꝭ & reuerēce of holy relyques & […] sayntꝭ ymagꝭ by whych good […] folke do mych meryte / we sh[…]lde ab[…] lysh & put away bycause som […] abuse it. Now touchīg ye euyl p[…]tyciōs / though they yt aske thē were as I tru[…] they be not a grete people / they be not yet so many yt aske euyl petycyō […] of saī tys / as there be yt aske ye same of god hī self. For what so euer they wyl aske of any good saīt / they wyl aske of god also. And comēly ī yt wyld yrish & s[…] ̄ ī w[…] lys to as mē say when they go forth in robbyng / they blysse thē & pray […] sēd them good spede yt they may […] wt a good purse & do harm & take nōe. […] we therfore fynd a faulte wt euery mā […] nys prayer bycause th[…]uys pr[…] for spede in robbery? Thys hath as I say no reasō all though they were a gr[…]e people yt abusyd a good thyng. And where as ye worst yt ye assygne in […] mater is yt as ye say ye people d[…] ydolatrye / in yt y[…] say they take ye ymagꝭ for ye saīt self or ye rood for Cryst hym self / whych as I sayd I thynke none doth (for some […]ood hath no crucyfyr therō / & they byleue not yt the crosse whych they sew[…]s euer at Iherusale[…]/nor yt yt was ye holy crosse yt self / & mo[…]h less[…] thīke they thē yt ye ymage yt hāgeth theron ys ye body of Cryst hymself) and all though som were so made so to thynk / yet […] yt not as ye call yt ye people. For a […]ew[…] dotyng dam[…]s make not ye peple. And ouer thys yf it were as ye wold h[…]ue it see[…]e an hole people in dede / yet wer[…] not a good thyng[…] to be put away for the mysuse of badde f[…]lke.