Marginalia1557. Iune.serue the yonger. Iacob I haue loued, and Esau I hated. How thinke you? had this childe faith or euer he were borne, or no? aunswere to this if you can.

Lang. What, you speake of the olde law. Iacob was not christened, but circumcised. I spake of Baptisme, and you are gone from Baptising to the time of circumcision: aunswere me to the Baptising. And me thinke by your talke, you deny originall sinne and free will, by the wordes that you brought in of S. Paul. MarginaliaDoctor Langdales argument. Children dying without baptisme may be saued: Ergo, children haue no originall sinne.For if children can be saued without Baptisme, then it must nedes follow, that children haue no originall sinne, the which is put away in the baptising. But I thinke you know not what originall sinne is, nor free will neither, me thinke by your talke.

Wood. Yes, I prayse God (I thinke) I can tell them all better then you can, me thinke euen by your words. First I pray you what free will hath man to doo good of himselfe? Tell me this first, and then I will aunswere to all your other questions that you haue obiected agaynst me.

Lang. MarginaliaAbsurde doctrine.I say that all men haue as much free will now, as Adam had before hys fall.

Wood. I pray you, how proue you that?

Lang. Thus I proue it, that as sinne entred into the world, and by the meanes of one that sinned, al men became sinners, the which was by Adam, so by the obedience of man, MarginaliaAunswere. This righteousnes by Iesus Christ cōmeth vpon all mē, not in taking away imperfectiōs of nature, but in not imputing the imperfections of man, to damnatiō.righteousnes came vppon all men that had sinned, and set them as free as they were before theyr fall, the which was by Iesus Christ. Rom. v.

Wood. Oh Lord, what an ouerthrowe haue you geuen your selfe here in originall sinne, and yet cannot see it? For in prouing that we haue free will, you haue denied quite originall sinne. For here you haue declared that we be set as free by the death of Christ, as Adam was before his fall, and I am sure Adam had no originall sinne before his fall. If we be as free now as he was then, I marueile wherfore Paul complayned thrise to God, to take away the sting of it, God making him aunswere, and saying: my grace is sufficient for thee. These wordes, with diuers other, approueth originall sinne in vs: but not that it shal hurt Gods elect people, but that his grace is sufficient for all his.MarginaliaWe are made free by þ^e death of Christ, not from falling, but from damnatiō due by the lawe for our falling. But you saye in one place: it is not without Baptisme: and in an other place you put it away quite by the death of Christ: and in very deede you haue spoken truer in the matter, then you be aware of. For all that beleue in Christ are baptised in the bloud of Christ that he shed on the Crosse, and in the water that hee swette for payne, and putting away of our sinnes at his death. And yet I say with Dauid in the lj. Psalme: MarginaliaOriginall sinne.In sinne was I borne, in sinne hath my mother conceaued me: but in no such sinne that shall bee imputed, because I am borne of God by fayth, as saith S. Iohn.MarginaliaIohn. iij. Therefore I am blessed as saith the Prophete, MarginaliaPsa. xxiij.because the Lord imputeth not my sinne, and not because I haue no sinne: but because God hath not imputed my sinnes. MarginaliaPerfect doctrine.Not of our owne deseruing, but of his free mercy he saueth vs. Where is now your free will become that you speake of? If we haue free will, then our saluation commeth of our owne selfe, and not of God: the which is great blasphemy agaynst God, and his word.

For S. Iames sayth: MarginaliaIames. j.Euery good gift, and euery perfect gifte commeth from aboue, from the father of light, with whome is no variablenes, neither is he chaunged into darkenes. Of hys owne will begat he vs. For the winde bloweth where it lusteth, and we heare the sound therof, as saith S. Iohn.MarginaliaIohn. iij. But we cannot tell from whence it commeth, neither whether it goeth: Euen so is it with euery one that is borne of God. For S. Paul sayth,MarginaliaPhil. ij. it is God that worketh in vs the will and also the dede, euen of good will. Seing then that euery good and perfect gifte commeth from aboue, and lighteth vpō whom it pleaseth God, & that he worketh in vs both the will and the deede:MarginaliaAdams free will nothyng. me thinke all the rest of our owne will is litle worth, or nought at all, vnlesse it be to wickednes. So me thinke here be places

inough to proue that a man hath no free will to doo good of himself: with a hundred places moe, þ^t I could recite if time did serue. And as for originall sinne, I thinke I haue declared my minde therein, how it remayneth in man: which you cannot deny vnlesse you deny the word of God. Now if you will suffer me, I will proue my sauing of Iacob & Esau, that I brought in to proue that MarginaliaFaith was before baptisme.fayth was before Baptisme, and you refused it, because (you sayd) Iacob was not Baptised. Yf you will geue me leaue, you shall see what I can say therin: for me thinke you thinke my talke long. This I sayd, because I saw he was sore offended at my sayinges.

Lang. Say what you can. MarginaliaD. Langdale seemeth to be put to silence.For it auayleth me to say nothyng to you. For I was desired to send for you, to teach you, and there will no wordes of mine take place in you: but you go about to reproue me. Say what you will, for me.

Wood. I take not vpon me to teach you, but to aunswere to such thinges as you lay vnto my charge: and I speake not mine owne minde, but the minde of the holy Ghost, written by the Prophetes and Apostles. Will you geue me leaue to aunswere briefly in that matter, that you may report to other what I hold? And he sayd he was contented. But I thinke it was for nothyng, but to haue caught vantage of my wordes.

Wood. MarginaliaChildren dying without baptisme are not therfore damned, speaking absolutely.First, if you be remembred, you sayd that if my child had dyed without Baptisme, if I had bene the cause that it had not bene Baptised, the childe shoulde haue bene damned, and I to. How say you?

Lang. Yea, that you should.

Wood. That is most vntrue. For the Prophet sayth: MarginaliaChildrē beare not the offences of their fathers.the father shall not beare the childes offences, nor the child the fathers offences: but that soule that sinneth shall dye. What could the child haue done withall, if it had dyed without Baptisme? the child could not do withall. How say you vnto this? And I am sure that which I brought in, in þ^e old law, to proue that fayth is before Baptisme, is not disagreable vnto the worde. For Circumcision was a figure of Baptisme. And that I may bring, to proue Baptisme by, as well as S. Peter did:Marginaliaj. Pet. iii. for hee brought in Noes floud, which was a long tyme before Iacob and Esau, to proue Baptisme, saying: MarginaliaGene. vj.while the Arke was a preparyng, wherin few (þ^t is to say) viij. soules were saued by water, like as Baptisme also now saueth vs, not in puttyng away of the filth of the fleshe, but that there is a good conscience consentyng to God. Here Peter proueth that the water had not saued Noe, and the other. vij. no more then it saued all the rest, if it had not ben for their fayth, which fayth now saueth vs: not in puttyng away of the filthy sinne of the fleshe by the washyng of the water, but by a good cōscience cōsenting vnto God. But you sayd: if they be Baptised with the water, if they dye before they come to yeares of discretion, they be all saued: the which S. Peter is clene agaynst, vnlesse you graunt that children haue fayth before they be Baptised. Now I aske you what cōsent of conscience the children haue, beyng infantes. For you say they beleue not, before they be Baptised: Ergo, then they consent not to be Baptised, because they beleue not. And by this it foloweth that none shalbe saued, although they be Baptised. I would fayne see how you can aunswere to this.

Lang. You are the most peruerse man that euer I knew. You wote not what you say. The children are Baptised in their *Marginalia* Nay, rather in the fayth of their parentes. Neither is it the fayth of the Godfathers and Godmothers þ^t sanctifieth the child, but their diligence may helpe hym in seing hym catechised. Godfathers & Godmothers faith, and that is the good conscience that S. Peter speaketh of: and the Christenyng is the keepyng of the law, that S. Paul speaketh of, saying: neither is circumcisiō any thyng worth, nor vncircumcision any thyng worth, but keepyng of the law is altogether. Like as the circumcision was the keepyng of the old law, so is Baptisme the keepyng of the new law.

Wood. Ah, me thought if you would talke with me, you should be fayne to bryng in the old law, to mainteine your sayinges by (for all that you refused it) when