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1387 [1363]

King Eward 6. The letter of M. Yonge to M. Cheke concerning M. Redman.

cept it do fall the sooner to repentance: where with he briefly complayned of the filthy abuse of our Englishe Church.

MarginaliaPurgatory.Beeing then asked what his opinion was concerning purgatory, and what the Scholemen iudged therof, he answered, that the subtill reasons of the Scholemen concerning purgatory, seemed to him to be no lesse vayne, and friuolous, then disagreeing from the truth: adding thereunto: that when we be rapt vp to the cloudes to meete Christ comming to iudgemēt with a great number of Angels in all glory and maiesty then euery one shall be purged with fire as it is written: MarginaliaPsal. 97. & 50.The fire shall go before hym, and shall flame round about his enemies, and the fire shall burne in his sight, and round about him shall be a great tempest:  

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Psalm 97: 3.

saying that diuers of the old writers approued this his sentence concerning purgatory.

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MarginaliaThe wicked eat not the fleshe of Christ.When he was asked whether wicked and vngodly people in the holy communion did eate the body of Christ, and drinke his bloud: he aunswered that such kind men dyd not eate Christes most blessed flesh, but only tooke the Sacramēt to their own damnation: saying that Christ would not gyue his most pure and holy flesh to be eaten of suche naughty and impure persons, but would withdraw hymselfe from them. And that (quoth hee) that is obiected by S. Augustine, that Iudas receiued the selfesame thing whych Peter receiued: that I thinke to be vnderstanded of the externall Sacrament. And the like kynde of phrase of speaking (sayde hee) we may vse concerning the baptisme of Magus: that Simon Magus receaued that which the Apostles did receaue. In deede as concerning the Sacrament of the externall baptisme, Simon Magus receaued that whiche the Apostles did, but that internall grace, wherewith the Apostles were endued, and that holy spirit wherewith by baptisme they were enspired, he lacked.  

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For Simon Magus see Acts 8: 14-24. This account specifically relates that Simon, traditionally regarded as the proto-heretic, received Christian baptism.

And so (quoth he) the wicked and forsaken people, which rashly presume to come to the holy table of the Lorde, do receiue the Sacrament and the selfesame which good and godly men receiue: but the body of Christ, they do not receiue, for Christ doth not vouchsafe to deliuer it them. And thus he sayd was his opinion and beliefe, although he knewe others to be of a contrary iudgement.

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MarginaliaHow Christ is present in the Sacramedt.Being then after this demaunded whether he thought Christes presence to be in the Sacrament or no, he answered that Christ dyd geue & offer to faythfull and Christian men, his very reall body and bloud verely & really vnder sacramēts of bread & wine, is somuch that they which deuoutly come to bee partakers of that holy foode, are by the benefite thereof vnited and made one with Christe in hys fleshe and body. And therefore he sayde that Christ dyd distribute his body spiritually that he gaue it truly, not so yet neuerthelesse that by these and the like wordes we should conceiue any grosse or carnall intelligence, MarginaliaThe Capernaites grosse errour of Christes bodyly presence in the Sacramēt.such as the Capernaites  

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'Capernaite' is a prejorative term for anyone who held an overly-carnal understanding of Christ's Real Presence in the sacramental bread and wine. The term is based on John 6: 52.

once dreamed of, but that (quoth he) we myghte labour & endeuour to expresse by some kinde of wordes the ineffable maiestie of this misterie. For the maner whereby Christ is there present, and ministreth to the faythfull hys flesh, is altogether inexplicable: but we must beleue (quoth he) and thinke, that by Gods mighty power & the holy operation of his spirit, this so notable a mistery was made: & that heauen & earth was ioined together in that momēt, as the blessed man s. Gregory saith: þe lowest parts are ioined wt the highest: By which is vnderstand that holy food, whereby they whiche be regenerate by the holy Ghost in baptisme, are nourished to immortalitie. And further hee sayd that Christes body was receiued in the sayde Sacrament by faith: which being receiued both body and soule, were quickned to euerlasting life.

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MarginaliaTransubstantiation.Beeing then required to say his minde about transubstantiation, he gaue answere that he had much trauelled in that point, and that he first much fauoured and enclined to that part which mainteined transubstantiation: in searching the veritie whereof most studiously, he had bene no little while occupied, and founde to arise thereabout infinite, and almost inexplicable absurdities. In confutyng whereof, when he had but smally contented himselfe, he said he tooke iu hand the Scholemens works, and perused Gabriell and other writers of that sorte, for that by theyr helpe and aide he hoped that all inconueniences which did spring and arise by maintenance of Transubstantiation, might be cleane conuinced and wiped away. Of which his hope he was vtterly frustrate (sayd he) for that he did finde in those works many fond and fantasticall things, which were both too foolish to be recorded in writing, and also to be alledged about such a mistery: and truly (said he) euer after the reading of them, my former zeale and opinion, touching the maintenance of transubstantiation, did euery day more and more decrease, and therefore in conclusion perswaded himselfe to thinke that there was no such transubstantiation as the Schoolemen imagined and fained tobe, saying that in deede the auncient Writers were plainely against the maintenance thereof: amongst whome, he recited by name Iustine,  

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I.e., Justin Martyr, one of the early patristic writers.

Irene,  
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Irenaeus was an early patristic writer and theologian.

and Tertullian, notorious aduersaries to the same. Furthermore, he added heereunto, that the whole Schoole vnderstoode not what this word Consecratio was: MarginaliaConsecratiō what it meaneth.which he defined to be the full and entire action of the whole Communion.

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Being demaunded also whether we ought to worship Christ present in his holy Supper, he told vs that we are bound so to do: and that it was most agreeing to piety and godly Religion. Likewise being asked whether he would haue the visible Sacrament to be worshipped, which we see with our eyes, and is lifted vp betweene the Priestes hands: he answered, MarginaliaNothing to be worshiped that may be seene.that nothing which was visible, and to be seene with the eye, is to be adored or worshipped, nor that Christ woulde be eleuated into any higher, or pulled downe into any lower place, and that he can neither bee lifted vp higher, nor pulled downe lower.

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MarginaliaThe Sacrament not to be caryed about.Againe, being asked what his iudgement was about the custome and maner in carying about the Sacrament in solemne pompes, processions and otherwise: he said, that he alwaies misliked and reproued that order: in so much that about xvj. yeares agon openly in the pulpit at Cambridge he spake against that abuse and disalowed that ceremony, shewing that Christ had expressed by playne and euidente wordes a very fruitefull and right vse of this Sacrament, when he sayde Take ye: (by which phrase quoth hee, he doth expresse that he will giue a gift:) Eate yee: (by whyche words he doth declare the proper vse and order of that hys precious gift:) This is my body: (whereby he doth euidently and plainely shewe what by that gift they should receaue, and how royall and precious a gift he woulde giue them: and therefore he iudged such pompous and superstitious ostentations vtterly to be condemned and taken as plaine mockeries and Counterfaite visars.

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MarginaliaIn this poynt the iudgement of Doct. Redman is not to be followed.His iudgement also being asked about the Commemoration of the dead, and the remembrance of them in orisons whether he thought it profitable or no: he aunswered, that it seemed to him to be no lesse profitable then religious and godly: and that might be well proued out of the bookes of Machabees. The which bokes although Saint Hierome adiudging as not authentike, thought good to bee read in the Temples onely for the edifying of the Church, and not for the assertion of opinions: yet with me the opinions of the other writers, to whome those bookes are allowed as Canons, preuaileth: which he in that point thinketh good to be read.  

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Redman's belief in the merits of prayers for the dead seems to contradict the third point in the list Nowell compiled, which denied Purgatory. It also drew a sharp response from Foxe who, in a marginal note, observes that Redman's judgment on this point.

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MarginaliaTrentall Masses disproued.Being furthermore required to shew hys mynde about trentall Masses, and Masses of Scala cœli,  

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These are both series of Requiem Masses, celebrated to mitigate the punishments inflicted on departed souls in Purgatory.

he shewed them that they were altogether vnprofitable, superstitious, and irreligious, flowing out of the filthy and impure fountaine of superstition, not yelding the fruite which they promised to bring forth. MarginaliaSacrifice of the Masse disproued.The Sacrifice of the Supper of the Lorde, (the Eucharist I meane) that sacrifice he sayd could not be offered for the sinnes of the quicke and the dead.

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Finally, of his owne voluntary will, and no man (as farre as I can call to remembrance) demaunding of him, he shewed his opinion concerning Iustification by Christ, I lament (said he) and repent, beseching God forgiuenes for the same, that to seriously and earnestly I haue wythstand this proposition: MarginaliaFayth onely iustifieth.that onely fayth doth iustifye, but I alwayes feared that it should be taken to the libertie of the fleshe, and so should defile the innocencie of life which is in Christ. But that proposition: that onely faith doth iustifye, is true (quoth he) sweete and full of spirituall comfort, if it be truely taken, and rightly vnderstanded. And when hee was demaunded what he thought to be the true and very sense thereof: I vnderstand (quoth he) that to be the liuely faith, which resteth in our only Sauiour Iesus Christ and imbraceth him: so that in our only Sauiour Iesus Christ, all the hope and trust of our saluation be surely fixed. And as cōcerning good works (said he) they haue their crowne and merite: and are not destitute of their rewards. Yet neuerthelesse they do not merite the kingdome of heauen. MarginaliaWorkes do not merite saluation.For no workes (said he) coulde not purchase and obteyne that blessed, happy and euerlasting immortalitie: no nor yet those things whiche we do vnder grace by the motion of the holy Ghost. For that blessed and immortall glory is giuen and bestowed vpon vs mortall men, of the heauenly father for his Sonne our Sauiour Christes sake, as S. Paule testifieth, MarginaliaRom. 6.The gift of God is eternall life.  

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Romans 6: 23.

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MarginaliaThe iudgement of D. Yonge about the controuersies of religion.And these be the resolutions which I heard him geue to the questions by M. Nowell proposed. From which hys sentence and iudgement so heard by me and of him vttered (as I remember) I neuer declined or varied. I beseeche our Lorde Iesus Christ to cease these troublous stormes wherewith the Church is tossed, and vouchsafe for his holy names sake tenderly to beholde & looke vpon his poore

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wretched