MarginaliaAn. 1555. February.MarginaliaAn other letter of M. Hooper.THe grace of God be with you. Amen. I am aduertised by diuers, as wel such as loue the truth, as also by such as yet be not come vnto it, that ye and I shal be caried shortly to Cambridge, there to dispute in the faith and for the religion of Christ (which is most true) that we haue and doo professe.  

I am (as I doubt not ye be) in Christ ready, not only to go to Cambridge, but also to suffer by Gods helpe, death it selfe in the maintenaunce therof. MarginaliaCommission geuen out for M. Hooper & other, to dispute at Cambridge.Weston and his complices haue obteined forth the commission already, and spedely (most like) he wil put it in execution. Wherefore deare brethren, I do aduertise you of the thing before for diuers causes. The one to comfort you in the Lord, that the time draweth nigh and is at hand, that we shall testifie before Gods enemies, Gods truth. The next, that ye shoulde prepare your selues the better for it. The third, to shew you what wayes I thinke were best to vse our selues in this matter, and also to heare of euery one of you, your better aduise, if myne be not good. Ye know such as shalbe Censors and Iudges ouer vs, breath and thirst our bloud, and whether we by Gods helpe ouercome after the worde of God, or by force and subtiltie of our aduersaries be ouercome, this wyl be the conclusion: our aduersaries wil say they ouercome, as ye percerue how they reporte of those great learned men and godly personages at Oxford.

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Wherefore I mynd neuer to answere them, except MarginaliaThe counsell of M. Hooper how and vpon what cautions to dispute with the aduersaries.I haue books present, because they vse not onely false allegation of the Doctors, but also a peece of the D. agaynst the whole course of the Doctours mynde. The next, that we may haue sworn Notaries to take things spoken indifferently: which wil be very harde to haue, for the aduersaries wil haue the ouersight of al thinges, and then make theirs better then it was, and ours worse then it was. Then if we see that two or three or more wil speake together, or with scoffes & taūtes illude and mocke vs: I suppose it were best to appeale, to be heard before the Quene and the whole Counsaile, and that would much set forth the glory of God. For many of them knowe alredy the truth, many of them erre rather of zeale thē malice, and the others that be indurate should bee aunsweared fully to their shame (I doubt not) although to our smart and bloudshedding. For of this I am assured, that the cōmissioners apointed to heare vs and iudge vs, meane nothing lesse then to heare the cause indifferently, for they be enemies vnto vs and vnto our cause, and be at a poynt already to geue sentence against vs: so that if it were possible with S. Stephen to speake, so that they coulde not resist vs, or to vse such silence and pacience as Christ did, they wyll proceede to reuenging.

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Wherefore my deare brethren, in the mercye of Iesus Christ, I would be glad to know your aduise this day or to morowe, for shortly we shall be gone, and I verily suppose that we shall not cōpany together, but be kept one abroad frō an other. They wyl deny our appeale: yet let vs chalēge the appeale, and take witnes thereof of suche as be present, and require for indifferencie of hearing and iudgement to be heard, either before the Queene and the Counsaile, or els before all the parlament, as they were vsed in king Edwards dayes. Further, for my part I wyll require both bookes and tyme to aunsweare. We haue ben prisoners now three quarters of a yeare, and haue lacked our bookes, and our memories by close keeping, and ingratitude of their partes, be not as present and quicke as theirs be. I trust God wyl be with vs, yea I doubt not but he will, & teach vs to do al thinges in his cause godly and constantly. If our aduersaries that shalbe our Iudges, may haue their purpose, we shall dispute one day, be condemned the next day, and suffer the third day. And yet is there no law to condemne vs (as far as I knowe) & so one of the Cōuocatiō house said this weeke to D. Weston. MarginaliaNote how the Papistes proceede agaynst all order and law.To whō Westō made this answer: It forceth not, quoth he, for a law, we haue ommission to proceede with them: when they be dispatched, let their frendes sue the lawe.

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Now, how soone a man may haue such a commission at my Lord Chancelors hand, you know. It is as hard to be obteined, as an enditement for Christ at Cayphas hande. Besides that, the Bishoppes hauing the Queene so vpon their sides may doe al things both without the aduise, & also the knowledge of the rest of the Lordes of the temporaltie: who at this present haue found out the marke that the Bishops shoote at, and doubtles be not pleased with their doinges. I pray you helpe that our brother Sanders & the rest in the Marshalsey may vnderstand these thinges, & send me your answer betime. Iudas nō dormit: nec scimus diem neq; horā. i. Iudas sleepeth not: neither know we the day nor the houre. Dominus Iesus Christus suo sancto numine nos omnes cōsoletur & adiuuet. Amē. i. The lord Iesus Christ

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with his holy spirite cōfort & strengthen vs al. Amen. May. 6. 1554.

Yours & with you vnto death, in Christ, I. Hooper.

OVr Saueour Iesus Christ (dearely beloued & my godlye wife) in s. Mathewes Gospel said to his disciples, MarginaliaMath. 18.that it was necessary sclaunders should come: & that they could not be auoyded, he perceiued as wel by the cōdition of those that should perish & be lost for euer in the world to come, MarginaliaAn effectuall letter of M. Hooper sent to hys wife.as also by their affliction that should be saued. For he saw the greatest part of the people would contemne & neglect, what soeuer true doctrine or godly wayes should be shewed vnto thē, or els receiue it & vse it as they thought good, to serue their pleasures without any profit to their soules at al, not caryng whether they liued as they were commaunded by Gods word or not: but would thinke it sufficiēt to be coūted to haue the name of a Christiā man, w^t such works & fruts of his profession & Christianitie, as his fathers & elders after their custome and maner, esteeme and take to be good fruites & faythful workes, & wil not try thē by the word of God at al. These men by the iust iudgement of God, he deliuered vnto þ^e craft and subtiltie of the deuil, that they may be kept by one sclaūdrous stumbling blocke or other, that they neuer come vnto Christ, who came to saue those that were lost: MarginaliaMath. 24.as ye may see how God deliuereth wicked men vp vnto their owne lustes, MarginaliaRom. 1. 1. Thes. 2.to do one mischiefe after an other careles, vntyll they come into a reprobate mynd, that forgetteth it selfe and can not know what is expedient to be done or to be leaft vndone, because they close their eyes and wyl not see the light of Gods word offred vnto thē, & being thus blinded, they preferre their owne vanities before the truth of Gods word. Wheras such corrupt minds be, there is also corrupt election & choyse of Gods honor: so that MarginaliaErrour taken for truth and persecution for Gods seruice.the mynd of man taketh falshood for truth, superstition for true religiō, death for life, damnation for saluation, hel for heauen, & persecution of Christes mēbers, for Gods seruice & honor. And as these mē wilfully & voluntarily reiect the word of God: MarginaliaIohn. 8. 9.euen so God most iustly deliuereth thē into the blyndnes of mind & hardnes of hart, that they can not vnderstande, nor yet cōsent to any thing that God would haue preached & set forth to his glory after his own wil & word: wherfore they hate it mortally, & of all things most detest gods holy word. And as þ^e diuel hath entred into their hartes, þ^t they thē selues cā not, nor wyll not come to Christ to be instructed by his holy word: euen so can they not abide any other man to be a christian man, & to leade his life after the word of God, but hate him, persecute hym, rob hym, imprison hym, yea & kyl him, whether he be man or womā, if God suffer it. And so much are those wicked men blinded, that they passe of no law, whether it be Gods or mans, but persecute such as neuer offended, yea do euyl to those that dayly haue prayed for them and wish them Godds grace.

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In their Pharaonical and blynd furie, they haue no respect to nature.MarginaliaNo respect of nature with the persecuting aduersaryes. For the brother persecuteth the brother, the father the sonne: and most deare frends, in diuelish sclaunder and offence are become most mortall enemies. And no marueile: for when they haue chosen sundry Maysters, the one the diuel the other God, the one shal agree with the other, as God and the diuel agree betwene them selues. For this cause, that the more part of the worlde dooth choose to serue the diuel vnder cloked hypocrisy of gods title, Christ said: It is expedient and necessarye that sclaunders shoulde come,MarginaliaMath. 18. & many meanes be deuised to keepe the litle babes of Christ from the heauenly father. But Christ saith:Wo be vnto him by whō the offence cōmeth: Yet is ther no remedie, mā being of such corruptiō & hatred towards god, but þ^t þ^e euyl shalbe deceiued and persecute þ^e good: & þ^e good shal vnderstand the truth, & suffer persecutiō for it vntyl þ^e worlds end. For as he that was borne after the fleshe, persecuted in tymes past, him that was borne after the spirite: euen so it is now.MarginaliaGene. 4. Galat. 4.

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Therfore, for so much as we liue in this life amongest so many great peryls & daūgers, we must be wel assured by Gods word how to beare them, & how paciently to take them, as they be sent to vs from God. We must also assure our selues that there is no other remedie for Christians in the tyme of trouble, then Christ hym selfe hath appoynted vs. In S. Luke he geueth vs this commaundement: Ye shall possesse your liues in pacience,MarginaliaLuke 2. saith he. In þ^e which wordes, he geueth vs both commaundement what to doo, and also great comfort & consolation in all troubles. He sheweth also what is to be done, & what is to be hoped for in troubles: MarginaliaPacience in troubles, onely the Christian mans remedy.and when troubles happē, he biddeth vs be patient, and in no case violently nor seditiously to resist our persecuters, because god hath such care & charge of vs, that he wyl keepe in the myddes of all troubles the very heares

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