MarginaliaAnno. 1556. Iuly.This present daye I receaued a letter from you, at the reading wherof my brethren and I were not a litle comforted, to see your conscience so quieted in Christ, and your continuaunce so stedfast in him: which thinges be the special giftes of God, not geuen vnto euery man, but to you his deare deareling, electe, and chosen in Christ, and such as you bee. And where as you doe require to know my simple minde concerning your aunswere vnto Doct. Story and the Chauncelour: truly I say you did aunswere them very well: for there are but twoo Sacramentes in deede: that is to say, the Sacrament of Baptisme, & the Sacrament of the body and bloud of Christ, as you haue full well aunswered them: praysed be God for his good giftes, who chuseth the weake to confound the strong, and the foolish to confound the worldly wise. If, when you come before them againe, they do aske you what a Sacrament is, MarginaliaWhat a Sacrament is.say you that a Sacrament, beyng ministred according to Christes institution, is a visible signe of an inuisible grace, and hath the promise of Gods mercy annexed vnto it, auailable to all such as do worthely receaue it, and not vnworthely worship it: as they would haue vs to do, contrary to Gods comma?dement. And these properties belonging to Christes true Sacramentes, can not be applied vnto any one of those fiue Sacram?tes which they haue inuented of their owne braine, since Antichrist began to reigne, to blind the people withall.

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I perceiue deare hart, that vp? Friday they do entend to condemne you & to geue you your iudgement.  

Therfore I thinke they wil haue no great reasoning with you, but bidde you aunswere them directly, either yea or nay, to all such thinges as they haue to charge you withall, which they haue gathered of you since you came into their cruell handes. But if they will needes make many wordes with you, because you are but a simple man, and therefore perchaunce they will be the busier with you to trouble you with many questi?s, to comber your knowledge, and then seeme to triumph ouer you & that truth that you doe hold: if (I say) they do this (as perhappes for some euill purpose they will) then bee you so plaine and short as you can, saying roundly vnto them these or such like wordes, as nigh as you can.

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MarginaliaHe instructeth him how and what to aunswere to the aduersaries.Be it knowen vnto you, that I in all pointes doe beleue as it becommeth a true Christi?, and as I haue bene truly taught in the dayes of that good kyng Edward, of such godly Preachers and Prophetes sent of God, as haue sealed their doctrine with their bloud: from whom I will dissent in no point: for I am a poore man without learning, but am commaunded of God to folow the counsell of his constant Preachers, and so do I entend to do, God geuing me grace and assistance thereto. As for you, I knowe you to bee none of Christes shepeheardes, but rauening wolues which come to kil and scatter the flock of Christ, as the Lord sayd you should: and doth will vs to beware of you and your poisoned doctrine, bidding vs to iudge you according to your fruites, whereby all men may see and know what you be, that wil not be wilfully blind. MarginaliaWe are bound to follow our true preachers.But the good shepeheardes haue geuen their liues for the defence of Christes flocke: and I am commaunded to folow their faithfull and Godly example, and to confesse with them one truth, euen to the fire, if God shall see it good: and this as a true Christian, I haue hetherto done, and henceforth by Gods grace entend for to doe. And if for the same, God shall suffer you to take away my life, as you haue done theirs, I am contented therewith: his will be done, for that onely is good. But of this be you sure, MarginaliaGod will require a count of bloud.the Lord will shortly call you to accompt for all the innocent bloud that is shed within this Realme: which you haue brought into a most wofull case, and made many a heauie harte in the same, and mo I perceaue you will make, so long as the Lord for our sinnes will suffer you to prosper, and vntill the time that your owne iniquitie bee full ripe. But then bee you sure the Lord will sit in iudgement vppon you, as well as you doe now vpon his Saintes, and will reward you according to your deseruinges: to whom with my whole hart I commit my cause, and hee will make aunswere for me, when the full time of my refreshyng commeth. In the meane space I wil keepe sil?ce with this that I haue said, trusting that I haue sufficiently discharged my consci?ce in confessing my faith and Religion to you, declaring of what Church I am, MarginaliaThe Catholicke Church in K. Edwardes dayes in England.euen of the Catholicke Church of Iesus Christ, which was well knowen to be here in Engl?d in our late good kinges dayes, MarginaliaTwoo speciall markes to know the true church in England in kyng Edwardes dayes.by twoo speciall tokens which c? not deceaue me, nor suffer me to be deceaued: that is to say, the pure preaching of his holy word, and

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the due administration of the holy Sacramentes: which is not to be seene in your Romish church, and therfore it can not iustly be called the Church and spouse of Christ. I beleue in the holie Trinitie, and all the other Articles of the Christian faith contained in the three Credes, and finally al the canonicall Scripture to be true in euery sentence. And I detest all sectes both of the Arrians and Anabaptistes, or any other that diuide them selues from the true Church of Christ, which is his mysticall body, the ground and piller of truth, and the verie house of the liuing God. And if for these thinges you take away my life, and make your selues giltie of my bloud, you may: for I am in your handes, as the sheepe brought to the Shambles, abiding the grace of the Butcher. And be you sure, your iudgem?t slepeth not, but whe you crie peace, peace, and all is safe: Marginalia1. Thess. 5.then shall your plagues begyn like the sorrowes of a woman traueling with child, according to Christes infallible promise.

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This kind of aunswere my deare harte, it shall be best for you to make, and by Gods grace, I do entend to take the same order my selfe in time to come, when the Lord shall vouch me worthie of that great dignitie, wherunto he hath called you. And if they shall laugh you to scorne, as I know they will, saying thou art a foole and an vnlearned assehead, and art able to make aunswere to nothing &c: care not you for it, but still commit your cause vnto God, who will make aunswere for you, and tell them that they haue bene aunswered againe and againe of diuers godly and learned men: but all will not helpe, MarginaliaThe Papistes haue one solution for all maner of questions.for you haue one solution for all maner of questions, euen a faire fire and Fagots: this will be the ende of your disputations. Therefore I pray you to trouble me no more, but doe that which you are appointed, when God shall permit the time. I am no better then Christ, his Apostles, and other of my good brethen that are gone before me.

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This kinde of aunswere will cut their combes most, and edifie the people that stand by, so that the same bee done coldly with sobrietie, mekenes, and patience: as I heard say our swete brethren Thomas Harland and Iohn Oswald did at Lewes in Sussex, to the great reioycing of the children of GOD that were in those parties:  

and I heare say, that they were dissolued from this earthly tabernacle at Lewes on Saterday last,   and were condemned but the Wednisday before: so that we may perceiue the Papistes haue quicke worke in hand, that they make such hast to haue vs home to our heauenly father. Therfore let vs make our selues ready to ride in the fiery chariot, Marginalia4. Reg. 2.leauing these sorie mantels and old clokes behinde vs for a litle time which God shall restore vnto vs againe in a more glorious wise.

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My good brother Harry, you shall vnderstand that bragging Iohn T. hath begilde his keepers (who trusted him to wel) and is runne away from them, and hath brought the poore men into great daunger by the same. The one of them is cast by the Counsels commaundement, into the gate house at Westminster, the other is fled forth of the co?trey for feare. MarginaliaFreewill.Thus you may see the fruites of our freewill men, that made so much boast of their owne strength. But that house which is not builded surely vppon the vnmoueable rocke, will not long stand against the boistrous windes & stormes, that blow so strongly in these dayes of trouble.

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But my dearely beloued brother, blessed be God for you and such as you be, which haue played the partes of wise builders. You haue digged downe past the sand of your owne naturall strength, and beneath the earth of your owne worldly wisedome, and are now come to the hard stone and vnmoueable rocke Christ, who is your onely keper: and vpon him alone you haue builded your faith most firmely, without doubting, mistrust, or waueryng. Therefore neither the stormes nor tempestes, windes nor weathers that Sathan and all his wily workemen can bring against you, with the very gates of hell to helpe them, shal euer be able once to moue your house, much lesse to ouerthrow it: for the Lord God him selfe, and no man, is the builder therof, and hath promised to preserue and kepe the same for euer. Vnto his most merciful defence therfore, I do hartely commit you and all your good company, desiring him for his swete sonne Iesus Christes sake, to confirme and strengthen you all, that you may be constant vnto the very ende: that after the finall victory is once gotten, you may receiue the immercessible crowne of glory, of Gods free gift, through his great mercy in Iesus Christ our alone Sauiour. To whom with the Father and the holy Ghost, bee all ho-

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