MarginaliaAuthors dissent.
Ex Sabel. Enead. 7. lib. 8. anus Scotus sayth 8. mōethes. Damasus affirmeth 6. yeares. Sabellicus alledgeth certaine authors that say, that he was slayne by Maximinianus: but correcteth that himself, affirmyng that Maximinianus died before hym.

Miltiades by the testimony of Platina, and other that follow him sat 3. yeares, and 7. monthes, and suffred vnder Maximinus. But that seemeth not to be true, as both Sabellicus doth rightly note,MarginaliaSabel. ibid affirmyng that the same cannot stand by the supputation of tyme: Forsomuch as the said Galerius Maximinus raigned but 2. yeares, and dyed before Miltiades.MarginaliaA place of Platina confuted. Also Eusebius manifestly expresseth the example of a letter of Constantine written to this Miltiades bishop of Rome, plainely conuicting that to bee false, which Platina affirmeth.

MarginaliaThe order & procedyng described in iudgement against the Bishop of Rome. In the booke collected of generall councels among the decretall epistles, there is a long tractation about þ^e iudgement and condemnation of Marcellinus: wherof the Maisters and patrones of popery in these our dayes, take great hold to proue the supremacy of the Pope to be aboue all generall councels: and that he ought not to be subiect to the condemnation of any person or persons, for that there is wryttē: Nemo vnquam iudicauit Pontificem, nec Præsul sacerdotem suum, quoniam prima sedes nō iudicabitur a quoquā. &c. Although this sentence of Miltiades seemeth apparantly to be patched in, rather by some Heldibrandus, thē by Miltiades:MarginaliaAn obiection of the Papistes answered vnto. both for that it hangeth w^t litle order of sense vpō that which goeth before: & againe, because that prima sedes here mentioned, was not yet ordayned, nor attributed to the sea of Rome before the councell of Nice, where the order and placing of bishops was first established. But to let this sentence passe, yet notwithstanding the circūstance and proceding of this iudgement, if it be rightly weyed, maketh very litle to the purpose of these men. Neyther is it true that the bishops of this councell of Sinuesse, dyd not condemne Marcellinus: for the woordes of the councell be playne: Subscripserunt igitur in eius damnationem & damnauerunt eum extra ciuitatem. That is: They subscribed therfore to his condemnation, and condemned him to be expelled out of the citie. Moreouer by the said councell were brought in the. 42. witnesses agaynst Marcellinus. In the said councell the verdict of the same witnesses was demaūded, and also receiued. Furthermore, Quirinus there, one of the bishops openly protested, that he would not depart the councell, before the malice of the bishoppes were reuealed: what doth all this declare,MarginaliaThe Bishop of Rome cyted vp and appeareth before the Councell. but that the Bishop of Rome was called there, and did appeare before the iudgement seat of the Councell, and there stoode subiect to their sentence and authority, by the which he was expelled out of the City? Non enim nostro, sed tuo ipsius iudicio condemnaberis. &c. Item: Tuo ore iudica causam tuam. &c. These wordes importe not here the authoritie of the Romaine bishop to be aboue the councell, neither do they declare what the councell could not do: but what they would and wished rather to be done, that is, rather that he should acknowledge hys crime before God and them, with a voluntary yelding of his hart, then that the confession of such an hainous fact should be extorted from him, through their condemnation: for that they saw to be expedient for his soules health. Otherwise, their condemnation should serue hym to small purpose. And so it came to passe. For he beyng vrged of them to cōdemne hymselfe, so did: prostrating hymselfe, and weepyng before them.MarginaliaThe Byshop of Rome cōdemned by the Councel. Wherupon immediatly they proceded to the sentence agaynst him, condēning & pronouncing hym to be expelled the city. Now whether by this may be gathered, that þ^e bishop of Rome ought not to be cited, accused, & cōdemned by any person or persons, let the indifferēt reader iudge simply.

MarginaliaThe decretall epistles & cōstitutions of these Byshops of Rome examined. As touching the decretall epistles, which be intituled vnder the name of these foresayd Bbishops: who so well aduiseth them, and with iudgement wyll examine the stile, the tyme, the argument, the hanging together of the matter, & the constitutions in them contained (little seruyng to any purpose, and nothyng seruing for those so troublous dayes then present) may easily discerne them: eyther in no part to be theirs, or much of the same to be clouted and patched by the doinges of other, which liued in other tymes:MarginaliaThe chiefe scope of the cōstitutions decretall, to magnifie the Church of Rome. especially seyng all the constitutions in them for the most part tend to the setting vp and to exalt the sea of Rome aboue all other bishops and churches, and to reduce all causes & appeales to the said sea of Rome.MarginaliaThe epistle of Caius. So the epistle of Caius, beginnyng with the commendation of the authoritie of his sea, endeth after the same tenor: willing and commaunding all difficult questions in all prouincies whatsoeuer emergyng, to be referred to the sea Apostolical.MarginaliaA great part of the epistle of Caius, takē out of the epistle of Leo, to Leo the Emperour. Moreouer, the greatest part of the said epistle from this place, Quicunque illi sunt ita obcæcati. &c. to the ende of this periode: Quoniam sicut ait B. Apostolus, Magnum est pietatis. &c. is contayned in the epistle of Leo, vnto Leo the Emperour: and so rightly agreeth in all pointes with the stile of Leo, that euident it is the same to be borowed not of Leo, out of the epistle of Caius, but to be patched into þ^e epistle of Caius taken out of Leo.

MarginaliaThe Epistle of Marcellinus. Likewise the epistle of Marcellinus to get more authoritie with the Reader, is admixed with a great part of S. Paules epistle to the Ephesians, worde for worde. And how is it lyke that Marcellinus, which died in the 20. yeare of Dioclesian, could write of Consubstantialitie of the diuine persons, when, that controuersie and terme of Consubstātialitie, was not heard of in the church before Nicene coūsell, which was 23. yeares after hym?MarginaliaThe epistles decretall of Marcelius. But especially the two epistles of Marcellus bewray themselues, so that for the confutyng therof, needeth no other probation, more thē onely the reading of the same. Such a glorious stile of ambition therin doth appeare, as it is easy to be vnderstoode, not to proceede eyther from such an humble Martyr, or to sauour any thyng of the misery of such a tyme. His wordes of hys first epistle written to the brethren of Antioche, and alledged in the Popes decrees by Gratianus, are these:

Marginalia24. q. 1. Rogamus vos fratres. We desire you brethren, that ye do not teache nor conceiue any other thing, but as ye haue receyued of the blessed Apostle S. Peter, and of other Apostles, and fathers. For of hym ye were first of all instructed: wherfore ye must not forsake your owne father, and follow others. For he is the head of the whole church, to whom the Lord sayd: Thou art Peter, and vpon this rocke I will build my churche. &c. Whose seat was first wyth you in Antioch: whiche afterward by the cōmaūdement of the Lord, was translated from thence to Rome, MarginaliaIn what chapter or leafe in all the Byble doth the Lord commaund the sea of Peter to be translated frō Antioch to Rome. of the which church of Rome I am this day placed (by the grace of God) to be the gouernour. From the which church of Rome, neither ought you to seperate your selues, seyng to the same church all maner causes ecclesiasticall, beyng of any importance (Gods grace so disposing) are commaunded to be referred: by the same to be ordered regularly, from whence they tooke their first begynning. &c. And followeth consequently vppon the same. And if your church of Antioche, which was once the first, will now yeld her selfe vnto the sea of Rome, MarginaliaThe Church of Rome sueth to the Church of Antioch to yelde vnto her. there is no other church els, which will not subiect it selfe to our dominion: to whom all other bishops, who so euer listeth, and as they must nedes do (accordyngly to the decrees of the apostles, and of their successors) ought to flee vnto, as to theyr hed, and must appeale to the same: there to haue theyr redresse, and their protection from whence they toke their first instruction and consecration. &c.

Whether this be lyke matter to procede from the spirit of Marcellus that blessed martyr, in those so dreadful dayes, I say no more, but onely desire thee (gētle reader) to iudge.

MarginaliaThe second epistle of Marcellus written to Maxentius. In his second epistle moreouer, the sayd Marcellus, wryting to Maxentius, the bloudy tyraunt, first reprehendeth him for his cruelty, sharply admonishing him how and what to do: to seeke and learne the true religion of God, to maintayne his church, to honor and reuerence the Priestes of God, and specially exhorteth hym to charitie, and that he would cease from persecution, &c. All this is possible, & like to be true: but now marke (good Reader) what blanched stuffe here followed with all: as where he alledgyng the statutes and sanctiōs of his predecessors, declareth and discusseth that no bishop nor minister ought to bee persecuted, or depriued of hys goods. And if they be, then ought they to haue their possessions & places agayne restored (by the law) before they were bound (by the law) to aunswer to theyr accusations laid in agaynst them. And so after that, in conuenient tyme, to be called to a Councell. The which counsell notwithstandyng, without the authoritie of the holye sea, can not procede regularly (albeit it remaine in his power to assemble certaine bishops together). Neyther can he regularly condemne any bishop, appealyng to this his Apostolicall sea, before the sentence diffinite do proceede from the foresayd sea. &c. And it followeth after: and therefore (saith he) let no bishop of what crime so euer he be attached, come to hys accusation or be heard, but in hys owne ordinary Synode at his conuenient tyme: the regular and Apostolicall authoritie beyng ioyned withall. Moreouer in the said Epistle writing to Maxentius, he decreeth that no lay men, or any suspected bishop, ought to accuse prelates of the church: so that if they be eyther lay men, or men of euill conuersation, or proued manifest enemies, or incensed with any hatred, theyr accusations agaynst any bishop ought not to stand. With other such matters moe, concernyng the disposition of iudiciall court. Which matter if Pope Gregory the 7. had written to Henry the 3. Emperour: or if Pope Alexander the 3. had written to the Emperour Fridericusthe first: it might haue stande with some reason and oportunity of tyme. But now for Marcellus to write these