Marginalia1555. Iuly.Creswel. I pray you let me make labour for you.

Bradford. You may do what ye will.

MarginaliaCreswell offereth to make sute for M. Bradford.Creswell. But tel me what sute I should make for ou.

Brad. Forsooth that ye will doe, doe it not at my request, for I desire nothing at your handes. If the Queene will geue me lyfe, I wyll thanke her. If she wyll banish me, I will thanke her. If shee wyll burne me, I will thanke her: If she wil condemne me to perpetuall prisonment, I wyll thanke her.

Hereupon Creswell went away, & about a. xj. of the clocke he and the other man came againe, and brought MarginaliaMores booke brought to Bradford.a booke of Mores making, desiring Bradford to reade it ouer.

Bradford taking the booke, sayd: Good Perciuall, I am setled for being moued in this article.

Creswell. Oh, if euer ye loued me, do one thing for me.

Bradford. What is it?

Creswell. Desire and name what learned man or mē ye will haue to come vnto you. My Lord of Yorke, my Lord of Lyncolne, my Lorde of Bath, and others wyll gladly come vnto you.

Brad. No, neuer wyll I desire them or any other to come to conferre with me, for I am as certayne of my doctrine as I am of any thing. But for your pleasure, and also that all men may know I am not ashamed to haue my fayth sifted and tried, bring whom ye wil, and I will talke with them. So they went their way.

And about. 3. of the clocke in the afternone MarginaliaDoctor Harding commeth to Maister Bradford.M. Doctor Harding, who was then the Byshop of Lyncolnes Chaplayn came to Bradford, and after a great and solemne protestation, shewing how that hee had prayed to God before he came to turne his talke to Bradfords good, he began to tel of the good opinion he had of Bradford, and spent the tyme in such tratling, so that their talke was to little purpose: saue that Bradford prayed him to consider from whence he was fallen, and not to follow the world, nor to loue it: For the loue of God is not where the world is.

Harding. But Harding counted Bradford in a dānable estate, as one being out of the church, and therefore willed him to take heede of hys soule, & not to die in such an opinion.

Brad. What M. Harding, quoth Bradford? MarginaliaDoctor Harding reuolted from hys former profession.I haue heard you wyth these eares mayntayne this that I stand in.

Harding. I graunt that I haue taught that the doctrine of transubstantiation was a subtil doctrine, but otherwise I neuer taught it. And so he inueying against mariages of priestes, and namely agaynst MarginaliaD. Harding inueyeth agaynst Peter Martyr, Bucer, and Luther.Peter Martyr, Martin Bucer, Luther, and such, which for breaking their vowes were iustly geuen vp into heresies (as he sayd) Bradford seing him altogether geuen vp to Popery, after admonishment thereof, bad hym farewell.

VPon the. xxv. of February Perciual Creswell came with MarginaliaD. Harpsfield talketh with M. Bradford.M. Harpsfield Archdeacon of London, & a seruant wayting vpō hym. After formall salutations, hee made a long oration, of which this is a short summe: That all men, euen the infidels, Turkes, Iewes, Anabaptistes, and Libertines desyre felicity as well as the Christians, and how that euery one thynketh they shal attayne to it by their Religion. To which Bradford aunswered briefly, that he spake not farre amisse.

Harps. Then sayd Harpsfield, MarginaliaFelicitie coueted of all mē, but the way to felicitie not knowen of all men.but the way thither is not all alyke. For the infidels by Iupiter, Iuno: the Turke by hys Alcoran: the Iewe by his Thalmud, do beleue to come to heauen. For so may I speake of such as beleue the immortality of the soule.

Brad. You speake truely.

Harps. Well, then here is the matter, to know the

way to thys heauen.

Brad. Wee may not inuent any manner of wayes. MarginaliaThe true way to felicitie.There is but one way, and that is Iesus Christ, as he himselfe doth witnesse: I am the way.

Harps. It is true that you say, and false also. I suppose that you meane by Christ, beleuing in Christ.

Brad. I haue learned to discerne betwixt fayth and Christ. Albeit I cōfesse, that who so beleueth in Christ, the same shall be saued.

Harps. No not all that beleue in Christ: for some shal say, Lord, Lord, haue not we cast out deuils? &c. But Christ will aunswer in the day of iudgement to those: Depart from me, I know you not.

Brad. You must make a differēce MarginaliaNote the difference betwene beleuing, and saying I beleue.betwixt beleuing, and saying I beleue. As for example: if one should say and sweare he loueth you, for all his saying ye will not beleue him when you see hee goeth about to vtter and do all the euill against you that he can.

Harps. Well, this is not much materiall. There is but one way Christ. Howe come we to know hym? Where shall we seeke to finde him?

Brad. Forsooth, we must seeke him MarginaliaThe way to come to Christ is by the word: for by the word commeth fayth, by fayth we come to Christ.by his word, and in his word, and after his word.

Harps. Very good, but tell me nowe howe first we came in to the company of them that could tell vs this, but by Baptisme?

Brad. MarginaliaBaptisme an outward seale whereby we are knowē to be Christians.Baptisme is the sacrament, by the which outwardly we are engrafted into Christ: I say outwardly, because I dare not exclude from Christ all that dye without Baptisme. I wyll not tye God, where hee is not bound. Some Infants die, whose parentes desire Baptisme for them, and can not haue it.

MarginaliaChildren which dye without Baptisme.Harps. To those we maye thincke perchaunce that God will shew some mercy.

Brad. Yea, the childrē whose parents do contemne Baptisme, will not I condemne, because the Childe shall not beare the Fathers offence.

Harps. Well, we agree that by Baptisme then wee are brought, and, as a mā would say, begottē to Christ. For Christ is our father, and the church his Spouse is our mother. As all men naturally haue Adam for theyr father, and Eua for their mother: so all spirituall men haue Christ for their father, & MarginaliaThe church is our mother.the Church for their mother. And as Eue was takē out of Adams side, so was the Church taken out of Christes side: wherout flowed bloud for the satisfaction and purgation of our sinnes.MarginaliaDescent of the Christ.

Brad. All this is truely spoken.

Harps. Now, then tell me whether this Church of Christ hath not bene alwayes?

Brad. Yes, sithens the creation of man, and shall be for euer.

Harps. Very good. But yet tell mee whether thys church is a visible Church, or no?

MarginaliaThe church of Christ is visible euen as Christ was. that is, not by exteriour pōpe or shew, but by the inward eye.Brad. It is no otherwise visible, then Christ was here on earth: that is, by no exteriour pompe or shewe that setteth her forth commonly, and therfore to see her we must put on such eyes, as good men put on to see and know Christ whē he walked here on earth: for as Eue was of the same substaunce that Adam was of, so was the Church of the same substance that Christ was of, flesh of his flesh, & bone of his bones, as Paule sayth, Ephe. 5. Looke therfore how Christ was visibly knowē to be Christ whē he was on earth, that is, by cōsidering hym after the woord of God, so is the Church knowen.

Harps. I do not come to reason at this present, and therefore I wyll go on forward. Is not thys Church a multitude?

Brad. Ye that it is. Howbeit, latet anguis in herba,  

Latin/Greek Translations     Close

Foxe narrative

Foxe text Latin

latet anguis in herba

Foxe text translation

Not translated.

Translation (Wade 2003)

A snake lies hidden in the grass.

Harps. Ye diuert from the matter.

Brad. No, nothing at al. MarginaliaD. Harpsfield preuented of his purpose.For I do but preuent you, knowing well wherabout you go. And therfore fewer