Marginalia1555. Iuly.Milles. If you were a Christian man you would not be ashamed of your fayth beyng required.

Shet. I am not ashamed in deede, I thanke God, and if any man do come to me, either to teach or to learne I would declare it, but for as much as I perceaue you come neither to teach nor to learne, I hold best not to aunswere you.

MarginaliaVpon this it appeareth the letters were written to the B. of Winchester, by whom he was sent for after and examined.Milles. If you will not, then will we certifie the kynges Counsell.Sheter. I am therewith content that you should certifie that I had suffered three quarters prison wrongfully, and therefore I desire to be iustified or condemned, first for that I suffered such prisonment: and then I will not refuse to aunswere your Articles, though there were a bushell of thē. But to say that I would aunswere, whereby you shoulde heale all your wrōg done to me agaynst the law of God and the Realme, I will not.MarginaliaSheterden refuseth to aunswere before it be tryed, wherfore he was imprisoned.

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Here much adoe there was to proue that hee had no wrong:  

and agayne that it was not they that did it. But he sayd the Commissary was one of them: hee aunswered no, it was the Archdeacon. He sayd, you sat with him, and hee asked your counsell in it, and yet if it were he, it was your Church, except the Archdeacō and you be deuided one from an other. Well sayd they: will ye now deny that ye said thē, and promise here to submit your selfe hēceforth, and ye shall be deliuered?

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MarginaliaSheterden refuseth to submit hym selfe.Shet. I am not so much bounde to you to graunt any such promise: and agayne you shall well know that I would not promise to goe crosse the streete for you: but if I did at any tyme offend your lawe, let me haue the punishment, I aske no fauour.

Then sayd they that it was obstinacie in him that hee would not aunswere, & a token that his fayth was naught, seyng he was ashamed to vtter it.

Shet. Nay sayd he, ye shall well knowe I am not ashamed of my fayth: but because you doe so greedely seeke bloud, I will aunswere onely to that you haue agaynst me.

Suffr. Nay, you shall aunswere to the Articles, or els be cōdemned vpon suspition.

Shet. I am content with that: yet all men shall know that as ye suspect and can proue no cause, so shall ye cōdemne me without a matter, & then shall all men know ye seeke bloud, and not iustice.

Suffra. No we seeke not thy bloud, but thy conuersion.

Shet. That we shall see. For then wil you proue my peruersion first, before you condemne me on your owne suspition without proofe of the same: and by that I shall know whether you seeke bloud or no. Many other wordes were betwene them.

At last stept vp one MarginaliaOne Loueles a loueles lawyer.Loueles a Lawyer, whiche would proue his prisonment not to be wrong, but right, by old statutes of Edward the fourth, and Henry. &c. but at last hee was compelled to forsake those statutes from Michaelmas to Christmas,  

and then he sayd it was no wrong.

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To this Nicholas sayd, if he could proue that mē might wrongfully imprison before a lawe, and in the meane while make lawes, and then vnder that hide the first wrong, then he sayd true, or els not.

Thus he kept the Bandogs  

at staues end, not as thinkyng to escape them: but that I would see (sayd hee) the Foxes leape aboue ground for my bloud, if they can reach it (so it be the will of God): yet we shall see them gape, & leape for it. From Westgate in hast.

By yours Nicholas Shetterden.

THe holy signe in steede of the thyng signified, is seruile seruitude as S. Augustine termeth it, when the bread in the Sacrament is by commō and solemne errour worshypped in steede of the flesh assumpted of the worde of God.

MarginaliaFalse worship of the Sacrament.There was no mention of worshyppyng the creatures at the feast or first Supper that Christ did celebrate: therfore the saying of Christ concernyng diuorce, may well be applyed to them: it was not so from the begynnyng, nor shall be to the end.

MarginaliaAgaynst Sacramentall oblation.The once made oblation of Christes is hereby derogate,  

when this sacramentall oblation & offering of thankes geuyng is beleued to bee propiciatory, and that it purgeth the soule, as well of the liuyng as of the dead, agaynst this saying to the Hebrues: MarginaliaHeb. 9.With one onely oblation hee hath made perfecte for euer those that are sanctified. Agayne: Where is remission, there is no more oblation for sinnes, makyng vs cleane by him.

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This worde (by him selfe) hath a vehemency and pyth that driueth all Priestes from authoritie to enterprise such oblatiō, where as what he him selfe doth by him selfe, he leaueth not for other to do. So seemeth our Purgatory already past and done, not to come and remainyng to be done.

MarginaliaA note of the wordes or talke passed betwene Nicolas Sheterden and the B. of Winchester.I Was called into a chamber before the L. Chauncellour, the suffragan, and other, Priestes, I thinke for the most part. He standyng to the table called me to hym, and because I saw the Cardinall was not there, I bowed my selfe  

and stoode neare.

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Then sayd he, I haue sent for you, because I heare you are indyted of heresy: and beyng called before the Commissioners ye will not aunswere nor submit your selfe.

I sayd, if it like you, I dyd not refuse to aunswere: but I dyd playnely aunswere, that I had beene in prison long tyme, and reasōit was that I should be charged or discharged for that, and not to bee examined of articles to hyde my wrong imprisonment: neither did I knowe any inditement against me. If there were any, it could not be iust, for I was not abroad since the law was made.MarginaliaWilfull imprisonment of Sheterden.

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Winch. Well, yet if such suspition bee of you, if you bee a Christian ye will declare that it is not true, and so purge your selfe.

Shet. I thought it sufficient to aunswer to mine offences. &c. trustyng that they would lay no such burden vpon me, whereby the wrong done to me might bee couered, but I would be proued to haue wrong or right.

Winch. He sayd, if thou wilt declare thy selfe to the Church to be a christian, thou shalt go, and then haue a wryt of wrōg imprisonment. &c.

Shet. I sayd I was not minded to sue now, but require to haue right iustice: but to make a promise I will not: but if I offend the law, then punish accordingly. For it might bee that my conscience was not perswaded, nor would be in prison, seyng those thinges whiche I haue learned, were by Gods lawe openly taught and receaued by authority of the Realme. And he sayd, it was neuer receiued that I might speake agaynst the sacrament. I sayd, agaynst some opinion of the sacrament it was openly taught.

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MarginaliaWinchest. maketh a miracle that there was no law in K. Edwardes tyme agaynst the sacrament of the altar.Winch. By no law, and that was notable to consider, that all that while God preserued that, so that no law could passe agaynst it.

Shet. I sayd their law dyd not only perswade me, but this most: when they preached vnto vs, they tooke pain to set out the word of God in our toung, so that we may read & iudge whether they saye true or no: but nowe they take the light from vs, and woulde haue vs beleue it, because they say so, which is to me a great perswasion.

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Winch. It was not a few that could be your guid in vnderstandyng, but the Doctors and al the whole Church: MarginaliaThe Catholickes stand vpon there number.Now, whom wouldest thou beleue? either the fewe, or the many?

MarginaliaThe faythfull stand vpon the worde.Shet. I did not beleue for the few, nor for the many, but only for that he bryngeth the word, and sheweth it to me, to be so accordyng to the processe therof. &c.

Winch. Well sayd he, then If the Arian  

come to thee with scripture, thou wilt beleue hym, if he shew this text: My father is greater then I.

Shet. I aunswered, no my Lord, he must bryng me also the contrary places and proue them both true, where hee sayth: My father and I am one.

Winch. Yea, sayd he, that is by charity, as we be one w^t him.

Shet. I sayd, that glose would not stand with the rest of the scripture, where hee sayd: I am the very same, that I say to you: He sayd the truth, and the truth was God. &c wyth much such like. And here he made many wordes (but very gently) of þ^e Sacrament: Likewise Christ sayd (quoth he) it was his body: yea that is to say, a figure of his body: and how men did not consider the word was God, and God the word, and so prouoked me with such temptation: but I let him alone and sayd nothing.

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So after many wordes he came to the Churches faith, and comely order of ceremonyes and images. And then I ioyned to hym agayne with the commaundements.

MarginaliaWinchester defendeth Images.Winch. He sayd that was done that no false thing shoulde be made, as the Heathen would worship a Cat because shee kylled Myse.

Shet. I sayd it was playne that the law forbad not only such, but euen to make an image of God to any maner of lykenes.

Winch. Where finde ye that?

Shet. Forsooth in the law, where God gaue them the commaundementes, for hee sayd: Ye saw no shape, but heard a voice onely: and added a reason why: MarginaliaNo image of God to be made.lest they shoulde after make images and marre them selues, so that God would not shewe his shape, because they should haue no image of hym which was the true God. &c.

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Winch. He sayd I made a goodly  

interpretation.

Sheter. I sayd no, it was the text.

Then was the Bible called for, and when it came, he bad me finde it, and I should straight be confounded with myne