MarginaliaS. Cyprian exhorteth and confirmeth the Christiā Martyrs.
Cipr Lib. 3 Epist. vlti. they haue their rest in Christ. And though their weary bones lye vpon the cold grounde, yet it is no payne to lye with Christ. Their feete haue bene fettered with bandes & chaynes: but happely is he bound of man, whom the Lord Christ doth loose: happely doth he lye tyed in the stockes, whose feete thereby are made swifter to runne to heauen. Neither can any man tye a Christian so fast, but he rūneth so much the faster for his garlād of lyfe. They haue no garmentes to saue them frō cold, but he that putteth on Christ, is sufficiently coated. Doth bread lacke to their hungry bodyes? But man liueth not onely by bread, but by euery word proceedyng from the mouth of God. Your deformitie (sayth he) shall be turned to honor, your mournyng to ioy, your payne to pleasure and felicitie infinite. And if this do greue you, that ye cannot now employe your sacrifices and oblations after your wonted maner: yet your sacrifice dayly ceaseth not,MarginaliaThe Christian mans sacrifice. which is a contrite & humble hart, as whō you offer vp dayly your bodies a liuely and a glorious sacrifice vnto the Lorde, whiche is the sacrifice that pleaseth God. And though your trauaile be great, yet is the reward greater, which is most certaine to follow. For God beholdyng and lookyng downe vpon them that confesse his name, in their willyng mynde approueth them, in their striuyng helpeth them, in their victory crowneth them, rewardyng that in vs, which he hath perfourmed, and crownyng that which he hath in vs perfected. With these and such like comfortable wordes he doth animate his brethrē, admonishyng thē, that they are now in a ioyfull iourney, hastyng a pace to the mansiōs of the Martyrs, there to enioy after this darknes a stable light, and brightnes greater then all their passions, accordyng to the Apostles saying: The sufferynges of this present tyme be nothyng lyke comparable to the brightnesse of the glory that shall be reuealed in vs. &c.

MarginaliaCypria. Lib. 4. Epist. 1.
Seagrius.
Rogatianus.
Martyrs. And after like wordes of sweete comfort and consolation writyng to Seagrius, and Rogatianus, whiche were in prison and bondes for the testimonie of truth, doth incourage them to continue stedfast and paciēt in the way, wherein they haue begon to runne, for that they haue the Lord with them their helper and defender, who promiseth to be with vs to the worldes end: and therefore willeth them to set before their eyes in their death immortalitie, in their payne euerlastyng glory, of the whiche it is written: Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his Saintes. Itē, although before men they suffered tormentes, yet their hope is full of immortalitie: & beyng vexed in small thinges, they shall be well requited in great matters. For the Lord hath tried them as gold in the fire.MarginaliaSapien. 3. And writeth moreouer admonishyng them, that it is so appointed from the begynnyng of the world, that righteousnes here should suffer in secular conflictes, for so iust Abell was slayne in the beginnyng of the world, and after him all iust and good men, the Prophetes also and the Apostles sent of the Lord himselfe, vnto whom all, the Lord first gaue an example in himselfe, teachyng that there is no commyng to his kyngdome, but by that waye, whiche he entred him selfe, saying by these wordes: he that loueth his life in this worlde, shall loose it, &c. And agayne, feare yet not thē, that slay the body, but haue no power to slay the soule. And S. Paule likewise admonishyng all them, who soeuer couete to be partakers of the promises of the Lord, to folow the Lord, sayth: if we suffer together with him, we shall reigne together, &c.

Furthermore as þ^e same Cyprian doth encourage here þ^e holy Martyrs, which were in captiuitie, to persiste: so likewise writyng to þ^e Priestes & Deacōs, which were free, exhorteth them to be seruiceable & obsequious with all care & loue to cherish & embrase thē that were in bondes. Cypria. Lib. 3. Epist. 6.MarginaliaCyprian. Lib. 3. Epist. 6. whereby may appeare the feruent zeale & care of this good byshop toward the Church of Christ, although beyng now in exile, in the tyme of this Emperour Gallus.

In the same tyme, and vnder the sayd Gallus reignyng with his sonne Volusianus, was alsoMarginaliaLucius bishop of Rome banished.
An. 256.
Lucius Byshop of Rome sent to banishment, who next succeded after Cornelius in that Byshopricke, about the yeare of our Lorde. 256. Albeit in this banishmēt he did not long cōtinue, but returned agayne home to his church, as by the Epistle of S. Cyprian. Lib. 3. Epist. 1. may appeare. As to all other Byshops of Rome in those primitiue dayes certaine decretall Epistles with seuerall ordinaunces be ascribed, bearyng their names & titles, as hath bene afore declared: so also hath Lucius one Epistle fathered vpon him, in the whiche Epistle,MarginaliaThe Epistle decretall of Lucius bishop. he writing to the brethren of Fraunce and of Spayne, appointeth such an order and forme of the Church, as seemeth not to agree with the tyme then present: For so he decreeth in that Epistle, that a Byshop in all places, whether soeuer he goeth, should haue two Priestes with three Deacōs waytyng vpō him, to be witnesses of all his wayes and doynges. MarginaliaThe ordinaūces of Lucius.Which ordinaunce although I deny not, but it may be and is conuenient, yet I see not how that tyme of Lucius could serue then, for a Byshop to cary such a pompe of Priestes and Deacōs about him, or to study for any such matter: for somuch as Byshops commonly in those dayes were seldome free to go abroad, went they neuer so secrete, but either were in houses close and secrete, or in prison, or els in banishment.MarginaliaThe pompous style of the churche of Rome. Moreouer in the sayd Epistle how pompously he writeth of the Church of Rome: This holy and apostolicall Church of Romeo (sayth he) the mother of all Churches of Christ, which by the grace of God omnipotent, hath neuer bene proued to swarue out of the pathe of Apostolicall tradition, neither hath euer fallen, or bene depraued with hereticall innouations: but euen as in the first begynnyng it receaued the rule of the Apostolicall fayth by his first instructers, the Princes of the Apostles, so it continueth euer immaculate and vndefiled vnto the ende.

MarginaliaDistinct. 81. Ministri
Ministers restrained frō their own wiues. Vnto this Lucius also is referred in the decrees of Gracian, this constitution, that no Minister what soeuer, after his ordination, should at any tyme reenter to the chamber of his owne wife, in payne of loosing his Ministery in the Church. &c.MarginaliaEusebius and Damasus varye in tyme.
Lucius Byshop of Rome, Martyr. Eusebius in his vij. booke, makyng mention of the death of Lucius, and not of his Matrydome, sayth that he sat but eight monethes. But Damasus in his Martyrologe holdeth that he sat three yeares, and was beheaded the second yeare of Valerian, and Galienus Emperours. And so doth also Marianus Scotus, and Nauclerus, with other that folow Damasus, affirme the same.

MarginaliaStephanus Bishop of Rome, Martyr. After him came Stephanus next Byshop of Rome, folowyng Lucius: whom Damasus, Platina, and Sabellicus affirme to haue sit. vij. yeares, five monethes, & to dye a martyr. Cōtrary Eusebius, and Volateranus holdyng with him, geue him but two yeares: which part commeth most neare to the truth, I leaue to the Readers iudgemēt. Of his two Epistles decretall, and of his ordinaunces out of the same collected, I neede not much to tary, for two respectes: either for that concernyng these decretall Epistles suspiciously intituled to the names of the fathers of the primitiue church, sufficiently hath bene sayd before: or els because both the phrase barbarous and incongrue, and also the matter it selfe therein contained is such, that although no testimony came agaynst it, yet it easely refelleth it selfe.MarginaliaThe censure of the decretall Epistles and ordinaunces of Stephanus. As where in the seconde Epistle he decreeth: that no Byshop beyng expulsed out of his seate, or depriued of his goodes, ought to be accused of any, or is bounde to answer for him selfe, before that by the law regularly he be restored agayne fully to his former state, MarginaliaNo Byshop ought to be accused, after he be expulsed, before he be restored agayne. and that the Primates and the Synode render to him agayne all such possessions & fruites, as were taken frō him before his accusation, as is agreyng both to the lawes Canō, and also secular. First here I would desire the Reader a litle to stay, and this to consider with him selfe, who be these here ment, which either vsed or might despoyl these Byshops of their goodes, & expulse them from their seates, for such wrongfull causes, but onely kynges and Emperours, which at this tyme were not yet Christened, nor vsed any such proceedyngs agaynst these Byshops, in such sort as either Primates or Synodes could restore them agayne to their places and possessions. Agayne, what priuate goodes or possessions had Byshops then to be taken from them, when as Churches yet neither were indued with patrimonies nor possessions. And if any treasures were cōmitted to the Church, it pertained not properly to the Byshop, but went in generall to the subuention of the poore in the Churche, as in the Epistle of Cornelius to Fabius may appeare, alledged in Eusebius, Lib. 6. cap. 43. where he speakyng of his Churche, and declaryng how there ought to be but one Byshop in the same, inferreth mention of xlvi. Priestes, vij. Deacons, with. vij. Subdeacons, xlij. Acoluthes,MarginaliaThe number of the poore founde at Rome by the Church goodes. of widowes and poore afflicted persons to the number of a. 1500. and aboue, founde and nourished in the same Church, by the mercyfull benignitie and prouidence of God, Eusebius. Lib. 6. cap. 43. It foloweth more in the end of the sayd Canon, whiche thyng is forbidden both by the lawes Ecclesiastical, and also seculare. &c. Now what lawes secular were in the tyme of Stephen, for byshops not to be charged with any accusation, before they were restored agayne to their state, let any Reader markyng well the state of the Heathen lawes that then were, iudge: and in iudgyng, I doubt not but this matter alone, though there were no other, will be inough to discry the vntruth hereof.

Moreouer, by diuers other probable notes and argumentes in the sayd second Epistle of Stephanus, it may be easly espyed, this Epistle to be fayned and misauthored: especially by the fift Canon of the sayd Epistle, where he so solemly entreateth ofMarginaliaPrimates, Metropolitanes, ArchByshops the difference betwene Primates, Metropolitanes, and Archbyshops, whiche distinction of