MarginaliaAn. 1557. Iune.Iudas that hanged him selfe, as thou wilt kill thy selfe wilfully, because thou wilt not be ruled.

Wood. Nay, I defye the deuill, Iudas and all theyr members. And Iudas flesh was not afrayd, but his spirite and conscience was afrayd, and therefore dispayred, and hong him selfe. But I prayse God, I fele lothsomnes in my flesh to die, but a ioyfull cōscience and a willing minde therto. Wherfore my flesh is subdued to it, I prayse God: and therefore I am not afrayd of death.

Chich. Woodman, for Gods sake be ruled. You know what you sayd to me at my house. I could say more if I would.

Wood. MarginaliaRead before pag 2176.Say what you can: the most fault that you found in me was, because I praysed the liuing God, and because I said, I praise God, and the Lord: which you ought to be ashamed of, if you haue any grace, for I told you where the wordes were written.

Winchest. Well: how say you? will you confesse that Iudas receaued the body of Christ vnworthely? tell me playnely.

Wood. My Lord, if you, or any of you all can proue before all this audience, in all the Bible, MarginaliaNo man can receaue the body of Christ vnworthely.that any man euer eate the body of Christ vnworthely, then I will be with you in all thinges that you will demaund of me: of þ^e which matter I desire all this people to be witnes.

Priest. Will you so? then we shall agree well inough. Saint Paul sayth so.

Wood. I pray you where sayth he so? rehearse the wordes.

Priest. In the xj. of the first to the Corinthians, he saith: Marginaliaj. Cor. xj.who so eateth of this bread, and drinketh of this cuppe vnworthely, eateth and drinketh his owne damnation, because he maketh no difference of the Lordes body.

Wood. Doth these wordes proue þ^t Iudas eate þ^e body of Christ vnworthely? I pray you let me see thē. They were cōtented. Thē said I: these be þ^e wordes euen that you sayd. Good people, herken well to thē: Who so eateth of this bread, and drinketh of this cup vnworthely. MarginaliaThe place of S. Paule. j. Cor. .xj. expounded.He saith not, who so eateth of this body vnworthely, or drinketh of this bloud vnworthely. But he sayth: who so eateth of this bread, & drinketh of this cup vnworthely (which is the sacrament) eateth and drinketh his own dānation, MarginaliaWhat it meaneth to make no difference of the Lordes body.because he maketh no difference of the sacrament which representeth þ^e Lords body, and other bread & drinke. Here good people, you may all see they are not able to proue theyr sayinges true. Wherfore I cannot beleue them in any thing that they doo.

Winchest. Thou art a ranke hereticke in deede. Art thou an expounder? Now I will read sentence agaynst thee.

Wood. Iudge not least you be iudged. For as you haue iudged me, you be your selfe. Then hee red the sentence. MarginaliaWinchester readeth sentence agaynst Woodman, and can not tell wherefore.Why sayd I? will you read the sentence agaynst me, and cannot tell wherfore?

Winchest. Thou art an hereticke, and therfore thou shalt be excommunicated.

Wood. I am no hereticke. I take heauen and earth to witnes, I defie al heretickes: and if you condemne me, you will be damned, if you repent it not. But God geue you grace to repent all, if it be his will: and so he red foorth the sentence in latin, but what he sayd, God knoweth, and not I. God be iudge betwene them and me. Whē he had done, I would haue talked my minde to them, but they cried away: away with him. MarginaliaRichard Woodman condemned and caryed to the Marshalsey, being not suffered to speake.So I was caried to the Marshalsea agayne, where I am, and shall be as long as it shal please God: and I praise God most hartely, that euer he hath elected, and predestinated me to come to so high dignity, as to beare rebuke for his names sake: his name be praysed therfore, for euer and euer, Amen.

And thus haue you the examinations of this blessed Woodman, or rather Goodmā: wherin may appeare as well the great grace and wisdome of God in that man, as also the grosse ignorance & barbarous crueltie

of his aduersaries, especially of D. White Bishop of Winchester. Now followeth likewise the effect of hys letter.

¶ A godly letter of Rich. Woodmā written to a Christian woman Mistres Robertes of Hawkhurst.  

Commentary     Close

Part of this letter survives in manuscript in Foxe's papers as BL, Harley MS 425, fo. 104r-v.

GRace, mercy, and peace from God the father, and frō his sonne our alone Sauiour Iesus Christ, by the operation and workyng of the holy Ghost, be multiplied plenteously vppon you (deare sister Robertes) that you may the more ioyfully beare the Crosse of Christ that ye are vnder, vnto the end, to your only comfort & consolation, and to all our brethren and sisters that are round about you, both now and euer, Amen.

In my most humble wise I commend me vnto you, and to all our brethrē & sisters in those parties, that loue our Lord vnfainedly,MarginaliaPhil. ij. certifiyng you that I and all my brethren with me, are mery and ioyfull, we prayse God therfore, looking daily to be dissolued frō these our mortall bodies, MarginaliaMath. 24.accordyng to the good pleasure of our heauenly father: praysing God also for your constancie, and gentle beneuolence, that you haue shewed vnto Gods elect people, in this troublesome time of persecution: which may be a sure pledge and tokē of Gods good will and fauour towards you, and to all other that heare therof. MarginaliaMat. v.For blessed are the mercifull, for they shall obteine mercy. Wherfore the fruites declare alway what the tree is. For a good man or woman, out of the good treasure of their hartes bryng forth good thinges.

Wherfore deare Sister, it is not as many affirme in these dayes (the more it is to be lamented) that say MarginaliaGod asketh more then the hart onely.God asketh but a means hart: which is the greatest iniury that cā be deuised against God and his word. For S. Iames sayth: MarginaliaIames. ij.Shew me thy faith by thy deedes, and I wil shew thee my fayth by my deedes, saying: the deuills haue fayth, and tremble for feare, and yet shall be but deuils still, because their mindes were neuer to do good. Let not vs therfore be like vnto them, but let our faith be made manifest to the whole world by our deedes: MarginaliaPhil. ij.and in the middest of a crooked and peruerse nation, as S. Paule sayth, let our light shine as in a darke place.

Oh deare hartes, now is the Gospell of God ouerwhelmed with many blacke and tromblesome cloudes of persecution, for the which cause very fewe go about to haue their eyes made cleare by the true light of the Gospell, for feare of losing of the treasures of this worlde which are but vaine, and shall perish. Let not vs therfore be like vnto them which light their cādle MarginaliaMat. v.& put it vnder a bushell: but let vs set our candle vppon a candlesticke, that it may geue light vnto al them that are in the house: that is to say, let al the people of the houshold of God see our good workes, in sufferyng all things patiently that shalbe layd vpon vs for the Gospels sake, if it be death it selfe. For Christ dyed for vs, leauing vs an example, that we should folow his steppes, and as he hath geuen his lyfe for vs, so ought we to geue our lyues for the defense of the Gospell, to the comfort of our brethren.

How is it then that some will say, that their faith is good, and yet they do all the deedes of Antichrist the deuill, and bee not ashamed to alledge certaine Scriptures to mainteine their wickednes? S. Paul sayth: MarginaliaRom. x.To beleue with the hart iustifieth, and to confesse with the mouth maketh a man safe.MarginaliaConfessing with the mouth, and beleuing in hart, must goe together. Oh good God: here may all mē see, that no man nor woman cā haue a true faith, vnlesse they haue deedes also: and he that doubteth, is like the waues of the Sea tossed about of the wynde, and can looke for no good thing at the Lordes handes. May not a mā iudge all such to be like those which S. Iohn speaketh of,MarginaliaApoc. j. þ^t bee neither hoate nor cold, & therfore God will (he sayth) spue thē out of his mouth? If we iudge euill of such, haue not they geuen vs occasion? MarginaliaMat 18.Had it not bene better for them to haue had a milstone tyed about their neckes, & to haue ben cast into the Sea, then they should geue such offences to Gods elect people in condemnyng them as they do, in goyng to the sinagoge of Sathā,MarginaliaApo. xiij. and there to receiue the marke of the beast, in that they see & heare God blasphemed there, and hold their peace? Doth not that declare to the whole world, that they allow their doynges to be good? MarginaliaSclaunderers of the Gospell.and these do not onely defile them selues, but also be an occasion to confirme the Papistes in their Papistrie, and so be an occasiō of our weake brothers falling, the which wil be all required at their hāds: which will be to heauy a burden for them to beare, if they repent it not with spede.MarginaliaLuk. xij.For they that know their mai-