The.xiii. Chapter. VVhither men desier these outvvard goodes for theyr onely vvorldly vvelthe, or for any goo

Vincent. VErely good Uncle this thing is so plainly true, yt no mā may with any good reasō deny it. But I wee[…]e Uncle also, yt there wil no mā say nay. For I see no mā yt wil for very shame cōfesse that he desireth riches, honour & renowne, offices & roumes of authoritie, for his onely worldly pleasure. For euery mā would faine seme as holy as a horse. And therfore wil euery mā saye & would it were so beleued to, yt he desireth these thinges (though for his worldly welth a litle so) yet principally to merite therby thorowe doing some good dede therwt.

Anthony. This is Cosin very sure so, yt so doth euery mā say, but first he yt in ye desier therof, hath his respect therin, vnto his worldly welth as you saye, but a litle so, so much as hym self weeneth were but a litle, may sone proue a great deale to muche: and many men wyll saye so to that haue in dede theyr principal respect vnto theyr worldely commoditie, and vnto godward therin, litle or nothing at al: & yet they pretend y• contrarye, and that vnto theyr owne harme, quia deu[…] n[…] irridetur, God can not be mocked. And some peraduenture, knowe not well theyr owne affeccion thē selfe, but there lieth more imperfeccion, secrete in theyr affeccion, thā them selfe are wel ware of, which onely god behold[…]th, and therefore sayeth the Prophets vnto god. Imperfectum meum viderant oculi […]ui. Myue imperfeccion haue thy yien beholdē. For which the prophete praieth: Ab occultis meis mund[…] me dom[…]ne[…] From my hid sinnes clense thou me good lord. But nowe cosin thys tribulacion of the Turke, if he so persecute vs for the fayth, yt those that wyll forsake theyr fayth shall kepe theyr goodes, and those shall lese theyr goodes that will not leaue theyr faith. This maner of persecucion loe, shal like a touch stone trye them, and showne the fayned from the true minded, and teache also them that weene they meane better than they doe in dede better to deserne thē selfe. For some[…] there are y• weene they meane wel while they frame thē felfe a conscyence & euer kepe stil a great heape of superfluous substaunce by them, thinking euer […]il yt they will bethinke thē selfe vpon some good dede, wheron they will wel bestowe it once or els theyr executors shal. But if they lye not vnto thē self, but kepe theyr goodes for anye good purpose to ye pleasure of god in dede, thā shall they in this persecucion for the pleasure of God, in the keping of hys faith, be glad for to depart fro thē. And therfore as for al those thinges ye losse I meane of al those outwarde thinges that men cal the giftes of fortune, this is me thinketh in this Turkes pers[…]cucion for ye faith, consolacion great & sufficient, y• sith euery mā that hath thē, either setteth by thē for the worlde or for God. He that setteth by thē for the worlde, hath as I haue shewed you litle profite by thē to the body, & great harme vnto y• soule'. And therfore may wel (if he be wise) reckō that he winneth by the losse although he loste thē but by some commen chaunce. And much more happy thā while he leseth them by such a meritorious meane. And on the tother side, he that kepeth them for some good purpose entending to bestowe thē for the pleasure of god, ye losse of thē in thys Turkes persecucion for keping of the fayth, can be no maner griefe vnto him, sith yt by his so parting frō thē, he bestoweth them in such wyse vnto gods pleasure, yt at that tyme whē he leseth thē by no way could he bestowe thē vnto hys high pleasure better. For though it hadde beene peraduenture better to haue bestowed […]hē wel before, yet sith he kepte thē for some good purpose, he woulde not haue lefte them vnbestowed[…] if he had foreknowē the chaunce: but being nowe preuēted so by persecucion the he can not bestowe them in that other good waye that he would, y[…]t while he parteth from them because he wyll not parte from the fayth though the deuils escheator violently take them from him, yet willingly he geueth them to God.