deliuered ouer vnto the Ciuill power, he should be openly depriued & spoyled of his Pristly ornaments. When Ihon Hus was brought thether, he fell downe vpon his knees before that same hygh place, and prayed a long tyme. In the meane while the Byshop of Londy, went vp into the Pulpet and made this Sermon folowyng.

MarginaliaThe sermon before the sentence.IN the name of the Father, the Sonne, and of the holy Ghost. Trusting by humble inuocation vpon the Diuine helpe and ayde, most noble Prince, and most Christiā Emperour, and you most excellent fathers, and reuerēd Lordes, Byshops, and Prelates, also most excellent Doctours and Maisters, most famous and noble Dukes and high Coūtes, honorable Nobles, and Barons, and all other men worthy of remembraūce: that the intent & purpose of my mynde may the more playnly and euidently appeare vnto this most sacred congregation, MarginaliaThe theame.I am first of all determined to intreate or speake of that whiche is read in the Epistle on the next Sonday, in the vi. chapter to the Romaines. That is to say, let the body of sinne be destroyed. &c. It appeareth by the authoritie of Aristotle in his booke intituled De Cælo & mundo, MarginaliaHis theame confirmed by Aristotle.How wicked, daungerous and foolish a matter it semeth to be, not to withstand peruerse and wicked begynnynges. For he sayth, that a small errour in the begynnyng is very great in the end. It is very damnable and daungerous to haue erred, but more hard to be corrected or amended. Wherupon that worthy Doctour S. Hierome in his booke vpon the exposition of the Catholicke fayth, teacheth vs, how necessary a thing it is, that hereticks and heresies should be suppressed, euē at the first begynnyng of them, saying thus: the rotten and dead flesh is to be cut of from the body, least that the whole body do perish and putrifie. For a scabbed sheepe is to be put out of the fold, least þ^e whole flocke be infected. And a litle fire is to be quenched, least the whole house be consumed and burned. Arrius was first a sparke in Alexandria, who because he was not at the first quenched, he presumed and went about with his wicked and peruerse imaginatiōs and phancasticall inuentions to spot and defile the Catholicke fayth, which is founded and established by Christ, defended with the victorious triumphes of so many Martyrs, and illuminate and set forth with the excellent doctrines and writynges of so many men. Such therfore must be resisted: such heretickes of necessitie must be suppressed & cōdemned.

Wherfore I haue truely propounded, as touchyng the punishment of euery such obstinate hereticke, that the body of sinne is to be destroyed. Whereupon it is to be considered accordyng vnto the holy traditions of the fathers, that some sinnes are aduerse and contrary vnto an other. Other some are annexed or cōioyned together: other some are, as it were, brāches and members of others. And some are, as it were þ^e rootes & head of others. Amongst all which, those are to be counted the most detestable, out of þ^e which þ^e most & worst, haue their originall and begynnyng. Wherfore albeit that all sinnes and offēces are to be abhorred of vs: yet those are specially to be eschewed, which are the head and roote of the rest. For by how much the peruersnes of them is of more force and power to hurt, with somuch the more speede & circumspection, ought they to be rooted out and extinguished, with apt preseruatiues and remedyes. For somuch then as amongest all sinnes none doth more appeare to be inueterate, then the mischief of this most execrable Schisme, therfore haue I right well propounded that the body of sinne should be destroyed. For by the long continuaunce of this Schisme, great and most cruell destruction is sprong vp amongest the faythfull, and hath long cōtinued, abhominable diuisions of heresies are growen: threatnynges are increased and multiplyed: the confusion of the whole Clergy is growen thereupon, and the opprobries and sclaunders of the Christian people are aboundauntly sprong vp and increased. And truely it is no maruel, for somuch as that most detestable and execrable Schisme, is as it were, a body & heape of dissolution of the true fayth of God: for what can be good or holy in that place, where as such a pestiferous Schisme hath raigned so long a tyme? For as S. Bernard sayth, lyke as in the vnitie and concorde of the faythfull, there is the habitation and dwellyng of the Lord, so likewise in the Schisme and dissipation of the Christiās, there is made the habitatiō and dwellyng of the deuill. Is not schisme and deuision the originall of all subuersion, the denne of heresies, & the nourisher of all offences? for the knot of vnitie and peace beyng once troubled and broken, there is free passage made for all strife and debate. Couetousnes is vttered in othes for lukers sake, lust and will is set at libertie, and all meanes o-pened vnto slaughter. All right and equitie is banished, the Ecclesiasticall power is iniuried, MarginaliaThey can not abide the laitie to rule in any case.and the calamitie of this Schisme, bringeth in all kynde of bondage, swordes & violence doth rule, the laytie haue the dominion, concorde & vnitie are banished, and all prescript rules of Religion vtterly contemned and set at naught.

Consider most gentle Lordes, how that duryng this most pestiferous Schisme, how many heresies haue appeared and shewed themselues, how many heretikes haue scaped vnpunished, how many Churches haue bene spoyled & pulled downe, how many Cities haue bene oppressed & regions brought to ruine, what confusion hath there happened in the Clergy? What & how great destruction hath bene amongest the Christian people? MarginaliaAll the popishe religion lieth in lands, lordships, and liberties.I pray you marke how the Churche of God, the spouse of Christ, and the mother of all faythfull, is contemned & despised. For who doth reuerence the keyes of the church, who fereth the censures or lawes, or who is it that doth defend the liberties therof? But rather who is it, that doth not offend the same, or who doth not inuade it, or els what is he that dare not violently lay handes vpon the patrimony or heritage of Iesus Christ? MarginaliaNote here the popes diuinitie, how the bloud of Christ serueth to purchase their patrimonie.The goodes of the Clergy, and of the poore, and the relief of Pilgrimes and straungers, gotten together by the bloud of our Sauiour, and of many Martyrs, are spoyled and taken away, behold the abhomination of the desolatiō brought vpon the Church of God, the destruction of the fayth, & the confusion of the Christian people, to the ruine of the Lordes flocke or fold, & all the whole company of our most holy sauiour and redemer. This losse is more greate or greuous thē any whiche could happen vnto the Martyrs of Christ, and this persecution much more cruell then the persecution of any tyraunts, for they did but onely punish the bodyes, but in this Schisme, and diuision the soules are tormented. There the bloud of men was onely shed, but in this case the true fayth is subuerted and ouerthrown. That persecutiō was saluation vnto many: but this Schisme is destruction vnto all men. When the tyrauntes raged, then the fayth did increase: but by thys diuisiō it is vtterly decayd. During their cruelty and madnes, the primatiue Churche increased, but through this schisme it is confoūded and ouerthrowne. Tyrauntes did ignorantly offende: but in this schisme many do wittingly and willingly euen of obstinacie offend. There came in heretikes, vsers of Symonie and hypocrites, to the great detriment and deceite of the Church: vnder those tyrauntes the merites of the iust were increased.

But duryng this Schisme, mischief and wickednesse are augmented, for in this moste cursed and execrable diuision, truth was made an enemy vnto all Christians, fayth is not regarded, loue and charitie hated, hope is lost, iustice ouerthrowen, no kynde of courage or valiauntnes, but onely vnto mischief: modesty and temperaūce cloked, wisdome tourned into deceit, humilitie fayned, equitie and truth falsified, pacience vtterly fled, conscience small, all wickednes intended, deuotion counted folly, gentlenes abiect and cast away, religion despised, obediēce not regarded, and all maner of life reprochfull and abhominable. With how great and greuous sorowes is the church of God replenished and filled, whiles that tyrauntes do oppresse it, heretikes inuade it, vsers of Symonie do spoyle and robbe it, and Schismatikes go about vtterly to subuert it? MarginaliaThis Schisme continued xl. yeares.O most miserable and wretched Christian people, whom now by the space of . xl. yeares, with such indurate and cōtinuall Schisme, they haue tormented and almost brought to ruine. O the litle barcke and shyp of Christ, whiche hath so long tyme wandred and strayde now in the middest of the whorlepooles, and by and by sticketh fast in the rockes, tossed to and fro with moste greuous and tempesteous stormes. O miserable and wretched boate of Peter, if the most holy father would suffer thee to sinck or drowne, into what daungers and perils haue the wicked pyrates brought thee? amongest what rockes haue they placed thee? O most godly and louyng Christiās, what faythful deuout man is there, whiche beholding and seing the great ruine & decay of þ^e church, wold not be prouoked vnto teares? what good consciēce is there þ^t can refrayne wepyng? because that contention & strife is poured vpō þ^e ecclesiastical rulers, which haue made vs to erre in the way: because they haue not founde or rather would not finde the way of vnitie and concorde: Whereupon so manye heresies and so great confusion is sprong vp and growne in the flocke of Peter and the fold of our Lord.

MarginaliaHe sturreth vp the Emperour Sigismund.Many Princes, kynges and Prelates haue greatly laboured and traueled for the rootyng out hereof, but yet could they neuer bryng to passe or finish that most holesome and necessary worke. Wherfore most Christian kyng, this most glorious and triumphant victory hath taryed onely for thee, the crowne and glory therof shalbe thyne for euer, &