The.xvi. Chapter. Another comfort and courage agaynst the losse of vvorldly substaunce

MUche lesse then this may serue Cosin, with calling & trusting vpon gods helpe, without which muche more than this cannot serue. But the feruour of ye christen fayth so sore fainteth now adaies, and decayeth coming from hote vnto leuke warme, & from leuke warme almost to kaye cold, that men must nowe be fayne as at a fire that is almost out, to lay many drye stickes therto, and vse much blowing thereat[…] but els woulde I wene by my trouth, y• vnto a warme faithful man, one thing alone wherof we spake yet no word, wer comfort ynough in this kind of persecu[…]ion agaynste the losse of all goodes.

Vincent. What thing may that be vncle?

Anthony. In good fayth Cosin, euen the bare remēbraunce of the pouertie that our Sauior willingly suffered for vs. For I verely suppose, that if there wer a great king yt had so tēder loue to a seruāt of his yt he had, to helpe him out of daunger, forsaken & left of al his worldly welth & royaltie, & become poore & nedy for his sake: ye seruāt couldscant be found, yt wer of such an vnkind villayn corage, yt if himselfe came after to some substance, would not wt better wil lese it al […]gain, than shamefully to forsake such a maister. And therfore as I say, I doe verely suppose, yt if we woulde wel remēbre & in wardly considre ye great goodnes of our sauiour Christ toward vs, not yet being hys poore siuful seruantes, but rather his aduersaries & hys enemies. And what welth of thys worlde yt he willinglye forsoke for our sake, being in dede vniuersal king therof: & so hauing ye power in hys own hād[…] to haue vsed it if he had woulde, in stede whereof (to make vs ryche in heauē) he liued here in nedines & pouertie al his lyfe, & nether would haue autoritie, nor kepe netherlādes nor goodes. The depe cōsideracion & earne[…] aduisemēt of this one point alone, wer able to make ani kind christē man or womā wel contēt rather for his sake again to geue vp al yt euer god hath lent them:) & lent thē hath he al yt euer they haue) than vnkindly & vnfaithfully to forsake hym. And him they forsake, if yt for feare […]hey forsake ye confession of his christen faith. And therfor[…] to finish this pece wi[…]hal concerning y• drede of lesing our outward worldly goodes, let vs consider ye sl[…]ndre cōmoditie y• they bring, wt what labor they be b[…]ught, how litle while they abyde, with whōsoeuer they be lō gest, what payn theyr pleasure is mingled withal, what harme ye loue of them doth vnto the soule, what losse is in y• keping, Christes fayth refused for thē: what winning in ye losse, if we lese thē for gods sake, how muche more profitable they be wel geuen, than euil kept. And finally, what vnkindnes it wer, if we would not rather forsake thē for Christes sake, thā vnfaythfully forsake Christ for them: which while he liued for our sake, forsoke al ye world, beside the suffring of shameful & painful death, whereof we shall speake after. If we these thinges (I say, wil cōsider wel & wil pray god with his holy hand to print thē in our heartes, & wil abyde and dwel styll in ye hope of his helpe, hys trueth shal (as the prophete sayth) so cōpasse vs about with a pauice, y• we shall not nede to bee afrayd ab incursu et demonio meridiano. of this incursion of this midde day deuil, thys open plain persecucion of ye Turke[…] for any losse yt we can take by ye bereuing from vs of our wretched worldlye goodes, for whose shorte & smal pleasure in thys life forborne, we shalbe with heauenly sub[…]taun[…]e euerlastinglye recompensed of God in ioyful blisse and glorye.