ouerloke hys own dioces, and be content with that, would God he would looke vpon hys predecessour S. Gregory in hys Register, which was a Bishop of Rome, a holy man. Let hym learne there how he dyd rebuke Iohn, that tyme the Bishop of Constantinople, for takyng on him so highly, in such names, vniuersall Bishop, highest Bishop, greatest Bishop: and how he proued it to be against the law of God. MarginaliaGregorius in Registro. Lib. 4. indictione 30. Epist. 38. He sayth there in one place to this proude Byshop Iohn, what aunswer shalt thou make in that straite examination at that last iudgement, to Christ the head of of the vniuersall holy Church, that goest about to haue subiect vnto thee all the members of Christ, by takyng on thee the name of vniuersall Bishop? MarginaliaIdem. In an other place agayn in the same boke he sayth vnto him, who art thou that doest presume to vsurpe a new name vpon thee, of vniuersal bishop, contrary to the statutes of the gospell, and the decrees.

God forbid that euer this blasphemy should come in the hartes of Christen people, in the which the honour of all priesthode is taken away, when a man shall rashly and arrogantly take that name vpon hym. Let this Bishop of Rome therefore humble himselfe vnto our great vniuersall Bishop Christ, humble hymselfe vnder the mighty hand of God, and know what the Apostle doth write of the honor and power of this Christ our great and high Bishop. He is (he sayth) Pontifex misericors, fidelis, potens, magnus, humilis, penetrans cœlum, compatiens infirmitatibus nostris, offerens dona & sacrificia pro peccatis nostris, condolens ijs qui ignorant & errant: Qui potest saluum facere a morte, offerens preces & supplicationes cum clamore valido & lachrymis & exauditus est pro reuerentia sua: Pontifex appellatus a deo: Pontifex sanctus, innocens, impollutus, segregatus a peccatoribus, excelsior cœlis: Non habens necessitatem (quemadmodum alij) prius pro suis delictis hostias offerre, deinde pro populo: Pontifex sedens in dextris dei interpellans pro nobis, emundans conscientias nostras ab operibus mortuis, intrans sancta sanctorum per proprium sanguinem. Hic est pontifex confessionis nostræ. MarginaliaHeb. 2. 3. 4. 5. 7. 8. 9.
The titles & properties attributed to Christ in the scripture.

Let all earthly Bishops learne of this heauenly bishop Christ. Some of these properties are appropriate and belongeth onely to God and not to man. In some we ought to follow hym. In some we can not, ne ought to do. MarginaliaMisericors. This our high and great Bishop is Misericors sayth þ^e Apostle mercifull. A mercyfull Bishop, redy to forgiue, ready to remitte those that haue offended hym. He is not cruell, not vengeable, but full of pity, full of mercy. And in this we ought to follow hym.

MarginaliaPotens. He is Pontifex potens, a mighty Bishop, mighty and full of power. We be but weake and feble Bishops, not able to do any thing but by hys permission and helpe. He is able to make sicke, to make hole: to make riche, to make poore: to set vp, to put downe. Potens, a mighty bishop, mighty and able to remitte sinne, to forgeue, to saue both body and soule from damnation. Potens, a mighty Bishop & full of power. No power in this world but of hym. Omnis potestas a domino deo est. MarginaliaRom. 14. All power is of hym. And as he himselfe witnesseth: Data est mihi omnis potestas in cœlo & in terra. MarginaliaMath. 28. All power is geuen vnto me in heauen and in earth. Potens saluare a morte. He can saue the body, and saue the soule. He can deliuer the one, and deliuer the other from euerlastyng death. Who can forgeue sinne but he? Quis potest dimittere peccatum nisi solus deus? Est potens. MarginaliaMarc. 2. He is a mighty Bishop. Of hym and by hym, Emperours, Kings, Magistrates and Potestates, Bishops, Priestes, with all other that haue power, haue their power and authority. Who is able to turne the wynd? to make the wynd blow or cease but he? Who is able to say and proue, I wyll now haue it rayne, now cleare: the sonne to shyne, the water to flow, to ebbe, with such other, but only he? This is our mighty bishop. Pontifex potens, mighty, MarginaliaOmnipotens. yea Omnipotens, almighty. He can do all. Nothing is to hym impossible. Ipse dixit & & facta sunt omnia. Mandauit, & creata sunt vniuersa. Potens ergo est. MarginaliaPsal. 32. He is a mighty Bishop. We are not so.

MarginaliaFidelis. Fidelis Pontifex. He is a faythfull Bishop: faithfull. He is a faythfull Bishop to God, referryng all laudes, all honour and glory to hys father. In all thynges that he dyd, miracles or other, he toke neuer the more vpon hymself. He was also a faythfull Byshop to the world: For he dyd all that belonged to the office of a good Bishop. MarginaliaThree offices of a Byshop. The very office of a Bishop is, prædicare, orare, and sacrificare, MarginaliaIf he had placed here administrare sacramenta, for sacrificare, hys partitiō so myght haue stand. siue offerre. To preach, to pray, to do sacrifice or to offer. He preached to his people: He taught the world most wholesome doctryne, wherby he called the people to God: he conuerted sinners, he called them to penance. He made them weepe & lament their sinnes. They followed hys person, they followed hys word, they folowed his ensample. MarginaliaMath. 14. They came out of all costes to see hym, to heare him, to learne of him. They forsoke meate and drinke, house and home, and followed hym wheresoeuer he went, as well in wildernes, as els where. In so much that after they had followed him thre dayes, he beyng moued with pity lest they should perish for lacke of foode beyng in wildernes farre from succour, he fed them twise miraculously. Once in the desert with fiue loaues & two fishes, he fedde v. M. men, besides women and children, & there were left xij. great baskets, xij. maundes full of the brokelets, and offals at that meale. MarginaliaMath. 15. At an other tyme he fed in wildernes to the number of iiij. M. men, besides women and children, with seuen loaues and a fewe small fishes, and there was left of fragments, vij. maundes full.

MarginaliaThe second office of a Byshop is to pray. The second office of a Byshop he fulfilled also: For he prayed. He was most deuout in prayer, so to teach all Byshops and Preachers not to presume in their witte or learnyng, neither in their capacitie, memory, fayre tongue or vtteraunce: but that the preacher do studiously apply his boke w^t all diligence to study how to speake, what to speake: afore whō he shal speak: and to shape his sermō after þ^e audience. The preacher ought also besides his studye & preaching to pray. For by deuout prayer, he shal attaine percase as much or more, as by study or learning. For w^tout prayer, þ^e wordes wil litle preuaile. Loke in Christ his life, & thou shalt find, that in euery thing he went about, he prayed, to shew the valiauncie, the vertue and strength of prayer: to shew our necessities, our weakenes and feblenes of nature. MarginaliaLuke. 6. He prayed for his people (as Luke witnesseth) the space of one whole night. And what a maruelous deuout prayer made he for his people in the Mount the night afore his passion, when the Chalice of death was represented vnto him: whē he swet water and bloud? when he cried thrise, Transeat à me Calix iste: MarginaliaMath. 26. let this Chalice, let this passion and bloud, let the vertue therof passe from me vnto all mankynd. Let euery man haue the vertue and merite therof: let it worke in all folkes: let euery faithfull man and woman be perteyner therof: let it not be lost, but worke to the worldes end. This was a merueilous deuout mercifull prayer. And againe, he suffering and hanging on the crosse, offered vp for his people, Preces & supplicationes cum clamore valido & lachrymis. MarginaliaHeb. 5.
The cry of Christ on the Crosse.
The heauēs trembled.
The Angels mourned.
The Sunne lost his light.
The veile riued.
The earth quaued.
The stones rent.
The graues opened.
The dead rose.
The Cēturion confessed. He offred vp his prayers and supplications with a huge cry, with a pitious voyce, with a lamentable & a deathly shrich, and with weping teares to God his father, he hāgyng on the crosse, euen when the spirit should departe the body, not then forgetting his people at that houre when all the people forgetteth both the world and thēselues. Which cry was so huge and great, so marueilous and of that effect that the heauens trembled therat, the Angels mourned for pitie, the Sunne loste his light, the vaile in the temple riued in two, the earth quaued, the stones rent asonder and brast in gobbets, the graues opened, the deade bodies rose to lyfe, & appeared in the Citie. Centurio & those that kept Christ to see the execution done, cried: Verè, filius Dei erat iste: MarginaliaHeb. 5. This was the vndoubted sonne of God. His prayer and weeping teares were so pleasaunt vnto the father, that it was heard: Exauditus est pro reuerētia sua: MarginaliaMarc. 15. He was heard and why? For it was so entire, so deuout, so reuerently done, in such a maner and fashion, with such a zeale grounded vpon such a charitie, suffering for our gilt, and not for his owne. And for that he did the very office of a Bishop, so enterely to pray, and so reuerently to offer vp himselfe in sacrifice for his people, he was heard, he was heard: his praier was heard of God. And that is the third propertie of a good Bishop, to offer sacrifice for his people: MarginaliaThe third office of a Byshop is to minister and not to sacrifice or offer. Euery Bishop, euery Bishop for his Diocesanes and for the whole vniuersall Churche. In these three we ought as much as we may, to follow Christ.

Thus this Christ was and is Pontifex fidelis, a faythfull Byshop. Faiythfull, faythfull, in his word, true in his promise, deceiuyng no man, but profityng all. In all that he dyd or spake, he sought nothyng hys owne glory, but the glory of God: teachyng therby all Byshops of the worlde in al that they go about, to do it to the laude, prayse, and glory of God. And herein we ought also to folowe hym.

MarginaliaMagnus. Magnus Pontifex. He is the great Byshop, the high Byshop, the supreme Byshop, the vniuersall Byshop ouer all the worlde. MarginaliaNo great byshop but onely Christ. No great byshop but hee. None high, none supreme nor vniuersall Byshop, but he.

And herein the Byshop of Rome outragiously vsurpeth vppon God, as he doth vpon the worlde, to take the honour and names (onely to God appropriate) to himselfe, & doth greuously blaspheme and offend God therin. MarginaliaThe Pope blasphemeth God.
What is blasphemy, Apoc. 9. Greater blasphemye can not be, then to ascribe to God, that that no wayes belongeth vnto him, or to take from God, that þ^t vnto hym is appropriate. It is meete therfore he doe betymes and in season, leaue his vniuste encrochementes both agaynst his Lorde God, and also agaynst the world, least he do prouoke God to poure out all hys vialles of wrath vpō him: the Væes, I meane, the maledictions and vengeaunce that Iohn speaketh of in the Apocalips. I would aduise hym to cease the iniuries whiche hee hath and daylye doth