Marginalia1555. May.kept, and folowed of any Christian man.

4. Item, that albeit it be true, that in the Sacrament of the altar there is in substaunce the very body and bloud of Christ vnder the formes of bread and wyne, MarginaliaSubstance of Christes body vnder formes of bread and wyne.and albeit that it be so beleued, taught and preached vndoubtedly in the sayd Church of Rome, and all the other Churches aforesaid, yet thou hast not so beleued, nor doest so beleue, but contrarywise thou hast and doest beleue firmely and stedfastly, that there is not in the sayd Sacrament of the alter, vnder the formes of bread and wyne, the very substaunce of Christes body and bloud, but that there is onely the substaunce of material and common bread and wyne, with the formes therof: and that the sayd material and common bread and wyne are onely the signes and tokens of Christes body and bloud, and by fayth to be receiued, onely for a remembraunce of Christes passion and death, without any such substaunce of Christes body and bloud at all.

5. Item, that thou hast beleued and taught, and thou hast openly spoken, and to thy power mainteyned and defended, and so doest beleue, thinke, mainteine, and defend, MarginaliaTransubstantiation denyed.that the very true receiuyng and eatyng of Christes body and bloud, is onely to take materiall and common bread, and to breake it, and to distribute it amongest the people, remembryng therby the passion and death of Christ onely.

6. Item, that thou hast likewise beleued, taught, & spoken, that the Masse now vsed in this Realme of England, and others the Churches aforesaid, MarginaliaThe Masse abominable.is abominable and nought and full of Idolatrie, and is of the ordinaūce of the Pope, and not of the institution of Christ, and hath no goodnes in it, sauyng the gloria in excelsis and the Epistle and þ^e Gospell, and that therfore thou hast not, nor wilt not come and be present at the Masse, nor receaue the Sacrament of the aultar, or any other Sacrament of the Church as they are now vsed in this realme of England, and other the Churches aforesayd.

7. Item, that thou hast in tymes past beleued precisely, and obstinately affirmed and sayd, and so doest now beleue and thinke that auricular confession is not nedefull to be made vnto the Priest, but it is a thyng superfluous and vayne, and ought onely to be made to God and to none other person: and likewise thou hast condemned as superfluous, vayne, and vnprofitable, all the ceremonies of the Church, and the seruice of the same, and hast sayd that no seruice in the Church ought to be sayd but in the English toung, and if it be otherwise sayd, it is vnlawfull and naught.

¶ The aunsweres of Iohn Symson and also of Iohn Ardeley, to the foresayd Articles.  

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The articles and answers of Ardley and Simpson were taken from an official record of Bonner's which is now lost, probably a court book. Note that in the second edition Foxe conflated the two sets of identical articles and nearly identical answers.

MarginaliaTheir answeres to the articles.TO the first they beleue, that here in earth there is one catholicke and vniuersall holye Church, which doth hold and beleue as is contayned in the first article, and that this church is dispersed and scattered abroade throughout the whole world.

To the second they beleue that they be boūd to geue faith and credence vnto it, as is conteined in the second article.

To the thyrd, as concerning the fayth and religion of the Church of Rome, of Italy, Spayne, Fraunce, Ireland, Scotlād, and other churches in Europa, they say they haue nothing to do with that fayth and religion, but as concerning the fayth and religion of England, that if the sayd Church of England be ruled and gouerned by the word of lyfe, then the church of England hath the fayth and religion of the catholick church and not otherwise: and do say also, that if the church of England were ruled by the word of life, it would not go about to condemne them & others of this heresy.

To the fourth they aunswer, that in the sacrament, cōmonly called the sacrament of the aultar, there is very bread and very wyne, MarginaliaTransubstantiation denyed.not altered nor chaunged in substance in any wyse, and that hee that receaueth the sayd bread and wyne, doth spiritually and by faith onely receaue the body and bloud of Christ, but not the very naturall body and bloud of Christ in substance vnder the formes of bread and wyne.

To the fift they say they haue aunswered aunswering to the sayd fourth article, & yet neuerthelesse they say that they haue beleued, and do beleue that in the sa-

crament of the aultar there is not the very substaunce of Christes body and bloud, but onely the substance of naturall bread and wyne.

To the sixt they say that MarginaliaThe Masse detested.they beleue that the Masse is of the Pope, and not of Christ, and therefore it is not good, nor hauing in it any goodnes, sauing the Gloria in excelsis, the Epistle and Gospell, the Creede, and the Pater noster: and for this cause they say, they haue not, nor wyll not come and heare Masse.

To the seuenth, Iohn Ardeley aunswereth & sayth, that he beleueth the contentes of the same to bee true: but Iohn Symson doth aunswere, that hee is not as yet fully resolued with him selfe what answere to make therunto, and further sayth, that as touchng the common and dayly seruice sayd and vsed in the Church, he saith that he neuer said that seruice in the church ought to be sayd, but in the English toung, nor yet he neuer sayd that if it be otherwise said & vsed then in English, it is vnlawfull and naught.

Ioh. Ardeley, and Ioh. Symson.

MarginaliaAn other appearance of Symson and Ioh. Ardeley before the Byshop.Thus these articles being to them obiected, & their aunswers made vnto the same, as before, the Bishop according to the old trade of hys Consistory court, respited them to the after noone, byddyng them to make their appearance the sayd day and place, betwene the houres of two and three. At what tyme the sayd bishop repeating againe the sayd articles vnto them, and beginning with Iohn Ardeley did vrge and solicitate, according to hys maner of wordes to recant.  

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The account of the condemnation of Ardley and Simpson appears to be taken from a now lost official record, probably a court book.

To whom Iohn Ardeley agayne constantly standing to hys professed religion, gaue aunswer in words as followeth: MarginaliaThe words of Ioh. Ardley to Boner.My Lord (quoth he) neyther you, nor any other of your religion is of the catholicke Church, for you be of a false fayth: and I doubt not but you shall be deceiued at length, beare as good a face as ye cā. You will sheed the innocent bloud, & you haue killed many, & yet go about to kyll more. &c. And added further saying: if euery heare of my head were a man, I would suffer death in the opinion and fayth that I am now in. These with many other wordes he spake. Then the bishop yet demaunding if he would relinquish hys erroneous opinions (as he called them) and bee reduced againe to the vnity of the church, he aunswered as followeth: No, God foreshield that I should do so: for then I should lose my soule.

After this, the sayd Byshop asking Iohn Ardeley (after hys formall maner) if he knew any cause why hee should not haue Sentence condemnatory against hym, MarginaliaIoh. Ardley and I. Symson condemned.so read the condemnation, as hee also dyd against Iohn Symson, which stood likewise in the same cause & constancy with Ioh. Ardeley: which was done the. xxv. of day of May, and so were they both cōmitted to the secular power, that is, to the handes of the Sheriffes,  

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The authority to determine heresy rested with the bishops but they did not have the authority to inflict the death penalty. The condemned heretic had to be surrendered to the sheriffs who would execute the sentence.

MarginaliaA note of the sodaine feare of Boner.At the time of the examination of this Symson and Iohn Ardeley aforesayd, there was assembled such a great multitude of people, that because the Consistory was not able to holde them, they were fayne to stand in the church, neare about the sayd Consistorye, wayting to see the prisoners when they should depart. It happened in the meane tyme that the Byshop beyng set in heate with the stout and bold aunswers of the sayd two prisoners (especially of Symson) burst out in hys loud and angry voyce and sayd: haue hym away, haue hym away.

Now þ^e people in the Church hearing these wordes, and thinking (because the day was farre spent) that the prisoners had their iudgement, they being desirous to see the prisoners had to Newgate, seuered thē selues,