THE LOVE OF THE SOUL  
Made by G. M.   christogram IHS 
Printed at Roan 1578.   

TO MY LOVING AND best beloved Sisters.  
DEAR SISTERS my care, my love, and of all worldly things (next to my good MOTHER) my greatest comfort and joy. Unless you did think that I do most heartily love you, you could not always heretofore have declared your exceeding great love so plentifully towards me, for the which Almighty God reward you. This my love because it is not a natural affection only, but sincere and true Charity forceth me to wish unto you my loving SISTERS, not only many worldly commodities, which (God be thanked) you lack not: but much more, all Spiritual treasure and Heavenly riches, whereof you cannot have great store, because you dwell not where it groweth.  
I know good SISTERS, that you mean well, and most willing are you to do that which might please God: but in good sooth you are out of the way, & therefore the further you hold on, the further you are from your journey end, and the further from Heaven. The wise man saith: Proverbs. 14. There is away which seemeth to a man right but the end thereof leadeth to destruction. Bear with me if I writ boldly, and tell you the truth plainly. I am your Brother, I love you as nature bindeth me, not only in worldly respect, but much more towards God. Your souls are dear unto me: my heart always mourneth to think upon your dangerous state wherein you stand. O good SISTERS, the pain, of Hell exceedeth all torments, and that fire shall burn for ever. Happy are they that keep themselves by GOD his great goodness within the Catholic Church, for out of it there is no hope of salvation: And moste happy are they that having been out of this Church by the wicked persuasions of false Preachers, when that it pleaseth God to send them true teachers: will not remain obstinate: but follow good exhortations, and good wholesome doctrine, and so return again as obedient Children to Christ their father, and to the Church their Mother, who are always ready to receive them: remembering that which a most ancient & learned Father writeth. S. Austin in the 88 Psal. He can never account God to be his Father, who will not have the Church to be his mother.  
If you ask me what this Church is, that is called Catholic, and how you may know it, behold the true and certain marks thereof, and yourself judge whether you be within it or no. This Church is a Congregation of all true Christians, which began in Christ and his Disciples at jerusalem, & from thence, grew and multiplied throughout the whole world, according as it is said in the Psalm: their sound (speaking of the Apostles) is gone out into the whole world, & their words into the ends of the earth. Psa. 18. ve. 5 
The first mark of the church is to be usible  So that the first mark of the true Church is, that it must grow and multiply, be seen, & appear always as a light in the world: and therefore Christ calleth it A City builded upon a hill, which cannot be hid. And the blessed Martyr S. Cip. saith: The Church being lightened with the brightness of our Lord, doth reach forth her beams throughout the whole world And S. Aust. beside many other places to this purpose, compareth Christ & his Church, to that stone which was cut out of a hill without men's hands, & after grew to be a mighty mountain, so that it filled the whole earth. For undoubtedly this stone whereof the Prophet speaketh in CHRIST, who was borne of a Virgin without the help of man, & is now grown from a few Apostles and Disciples to an infinite number of Christian people in all countries confessing one Faith, & one Belief: and this is the Catholic Church, whereof your CREED telleth, and teacheth you to say. I believe the Catholic Church.  
Let us see now whether this mark doth agree to your brethren in England, who call themselves Protestant's: or to us whom it pleaseth them to call Papists. First, they call themselves in their books the English Church, that is to say, of that faith which is professed in England: but we are of the Catholic Church, that is, of such a faith as is professed in France, in Spain, in Flanders, Brabant, Zealand, etc. In a great part of Germany, in all Italy, and beyond, wheresoever there be Christians, and is preached in the Indians, that never heard of Christ before, & increaseth wonderfully. And within these forty years, in England, Scotland, Ireland, Denmark, and Germany, there was no other faith openly professed but ours. And now also in all these countries, how many are there think you of secret Catholics that wish for the old religion again with all their heart, and follow the new only for fear? Nay how many are there especially in England that do yet openly profess the Catholic faith?  
Ask good Sisters ask, and you shall learn that all the prisons not only of London, but of England are full of them, because they will not yield to these new proceed, nor contaminate their souls with this new service, and leave the old true and Catholic faith: besides a number of sundry degrees, which are dead in prison: namely twenty three Bishops, all deprived of their living these twenty three years, and now but two of them alive: I omit Doctors, Deans, Archdeacon's Knights, Squires, partly in prison, partly departed the realm and forsaking all, rather than they will forsake God, and his most true and undoubted Religion. This is true (good Sisters) as knoweth God, you seldom hear of these things, & therefore you think either there is no other Religion but that cold service without all comfort and devotion which you see in your parish Church, or you think that must needs, be the best, because you are not taught any other: whereas you see (if you believe me) that all Christendom almost is of another Religion. And therefore this is the Catholic Church, and yours is worthily called by your own ministers, the Church of England. 
The second mark is succession.  But this shall better appear if I give you an other mark of the true and Catholic Church, which is, that it may continue for ever, and from the first beginning, which was in Christ & his Apostles, never to fail, but to appear & be seen still as a City up on a hill, or a light in the world: For Christ said. I will be with you unto the end of the world. Mat. 28 And again: I will send you another comforter, the spirit of truth who shall roman with you for ever And unto Peter. upon this Rock will I build my Church, and the gates of Hell shall not previale against it. Mat. 16. That is to say, the Devil and all his Ministers, shall never so prevail against this Church, but that it will still appear and profess one & the same faith: So that there shall be no time wherein this faith & this Church is not. Now mark good Sisters I pray you heartily, whether your Church and your English religion hath been always in the world since Christ his time. I will speak unto you as before God, and as I shall answer before him at the latter day, and therefore I request you to mark well my words, and to consider of them. A whole thousand & five hundred years after Christ, your English religion was not heard of in any part of the world, but I told you before, that the true Church must continue for ever, and appear always, unless you think CHRIST is false of his promise. When began your religion them Forsooth about fifty veeres agone, by one Martin Luther in Germany a Friar: who as well for other ungodly respects, as also because he would needs marry, and break his vow which he had made of chastity, began to preach against the Pope, and against the Catholic Church, and because he taught great liberty, as that Princes ought not to reverence the Pope, that all Priests might marry, that no man need to fast, and such like: he found many Disciples in Germany, and hath unto this day carnal and fleshly men that love their own pleasure more than the will of God, and his holy Church.  
But will you know what manner of man this was? Forsooth being examined by learned men concerning his doctrine, he was so priest and so angered with the force of truth, that he said in a great rage. This quarrel was never begun for God's sake, neither for his sake shall it be ended. Will you know further that he wrote against the Pope for malice and not for conscience? himself in his letter to ARgentmenses saith: I neither can deny, neither will I, that if Carolstadius or any other man cold five years agone have persuaded me, that in the Sacrament is nothing but bread and wine, he might have deserved of me great thanks: for I laboured in that matter very carefully, knowing right well that by that means, I might much have hindered the Pope's authority. Mark that this man would gladly have found some what against the blessed Sacrament, but a long time he could not, till at length the Devil had taught him to write against the Mass, as himself witnesseth in his books, de Missa angulari. where he telleth what talk he and the Devil had together. Much more could I tell you of this man: but of this little you may judge whether you may adventure to build your faith upon this man, who lived within these fifty years, and to forsake the ancient faith of all Christendom: continued from Christ until this day: for it is most certain that from this man came your new Religion into England, but not immediately at the first when he began to preach, 
majesties Father wrote a learned Book against Luther for the Pope. Afterward he forsook him not upon religion or conscience but upon displeasure.  for King Henry the eight, wrote a learned book very earnestly against The Queens him, which is common to be seen, but long after, partly when the King began to take displeasure against the Pope, because he might not be married & unmarried as he list, partly & especially, when King Edward being in the beginning of his reign, but a very Child, was overruled by wicked Counsellors to maintain such a Religion, as might best agree to their carnal appetite. This was the beginning of your Religion, the beginning I say, for as for King Henry, he went nothing so far as they are now come: but whereas for his pleasure he had put away the Pope's authority, & for his profit had plucked down abbeys, he let all other points in manner remain as before, & for this repent before he died as it is known, if not? woe be to him that ever he was bornes for there in the next world, good Sisters, Kings & Queens come to their accounts, as well as you and we poor folks.  
I could here tell you of many learned and virtuous men that were then put to death, because they would not yield to the King in his unlawful doings: knowing right well that it was all contrary to the law of God. Amongst whom were these two: the Bishop of Rochester the most virtuous and best learned of all the clergy, as appeareth by his books. And Sir Thomas Moor Lord Chancel or of England a Lay-man, who for his virtue, wisdom and learning passed all temporal men that ever were in that realm, as appeareth by his learned works written in the English tongue, but now not suffered to be read: because they teach the Catholic faith: some man will tell you, that they were beheaded for treason: but believe him not, unless it be treason to obey God rather than Princes, surely other treason they committed none. 
The .3. mark is unity.  One mark more I will show you to discern the true church, & that in few words: but so plain that yourself will confess it. To know the Catholic Church this is a certain and an unfallible mark, if it be in unity and concord if it have an agreement & consent of hearts & opinions: that is to say, if it have but one faith & religion: For of the true Church it is said, The whole multitude of believers had one heart & one mind. Act. 5. And saint Paul saith. One God, one faith, one Baptism. Eph. 4. And again. God is not a God of dissension, but of peace & unity. 1. Cor. 14. Look now and consider the state of your Protestants in England only, are they all of one religion? Have you not among them some Lutherans, some Caluinists, some Puritans, all agreeing against the Pope, and each disagreeing one from the other? Do not your Lutherans preach yea before the Queen, not without great thanks for their labour, that the Body of Christ is really present in the Sacrament? And do not your Caluerusts preach clean contrary, that there is only bread and wine? And as for your Puritans do not they preach and write so far contrary from the other two, that they are now forbidden to preach & cast into prison, and put from all livings? Yea the communion book itself, doth it not now say clean contrary to that which it said in the latter end of King Henry his time? Then you were expressly commanded to believe that under each kind, of bread, & wine, are contained the body and blood of Christ, now it is a petty treason to say so: I speak not here of Denmark, of Geneva, of other cities in Germany, who are all Protestants, and are differing among themselves and from you. I have only declared how great diversity and disagreeing there is among your Protestants at home within one little Island: which is so evident, and so far from good Christianity, that it may be unto you a very certain and sure token, that the true faith can not be among them, which hitherto can not agree in one faith, each condemning the others opinion.  
Thus (dearly beloved, and my very loving Sisters) I have given you certain general marks to learn the true Church: To write all were infinite, because all books are full of our religion, I trust hereafter to instruct you in every point as you would desire, and I pray GOD give you grace, that you may desire it: All at once would be too tedious: in the mean time remember these two things: When your religion began, and by whom, & how it came at length into England. This is the year of Christ, a thousand five hundred eighty and three. Luther began to preach within these fifty years: If he preached the truth, & all before him were deceived, where was the Church of Christ in all the world for a thousand & five hundred years before? and how is Christ true of his promise, that said: I will remain with you for ever, & the holy Ghost shall teach you all truth & the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. But for our Church, that is to say, the Catholic Church, we can show how it is grown, and continued from the Apostles until this day, and never failed: we can reckon you from time to time, Counsels, Bishops Doctors, infinite numbers of good Christians of all ages that were all of our faith, and of our Church. Can your Ministers deny but that Saint Chrisostome alloweth praying to saints? Or that S. Jerome calleth the Bishop of Rome, Supreme head of the whole Church under Christ? Or that S. Austin prayed for his mother being dead? Or that he honoured the Relics of S. Steven. Or that S. Gregory said Mass? Or that S. Ambrose saith, before the words of consecration it is bread and wine, but after the words are spoken by the Priest, it is the very body and blood of Christ? or that all Christians in S. Augustine's time? did worship the blessed Sacrament? Or that the second Council of Nice, did many hundred years, allow the use of Images, for the memory and representation of Christ & his Saints, condemning Image breakers. Or that Saint Bernard was an Abbot and had Monks under him, as in Catholic Countries now a days? can they deny but that all this is true? and dare they deny these virtuous Fathers, and Doctors of the Church to be now Saints in heaven?  
O my good Sisters, that you could understand their books and their writings that you might yourselves see what they say, and what wonderful men they were, endued with the spirit of God exceedingly above other, even good men, much more than your licentious leaders, I doubt not but you would suspect your new Doctors, and follow these: you should perceive they had the Scriptures at their finger's ends, they knew right well the meaning & sense thereof, night and day by fasting and prayer, and chaste life, beseeching God that they might understand and truly expound his word. O what a difference is there between them and these new preachers? Sisters, I appeal to your consciences, whether will you, or ought you to trust in the expounding of Scripture, your young unlearned and fleshly ministers, or these ancient, most skilful, and most virtuous Fathers.  
When Christ said: Take eat, this is my Body. All these Fathers say and agree, that it was his Body in very deed: your ministers tell you it was but Bread and Wine. When Christ said to Peter: Thou art Peter, that is a rock, & on this rock will I build my Church. Mat. 16. These Fathers say that Peter was made head of the Church, and after him all his successors in the See of Room where Peter was the first Bishop. Your Ministers tell you that Peter had no more pre-eminence than the other Apostles, and therefore the Bishop of Room hath no more authority than an other Bishop hath. When Christ said to his Apostles: Receive ye the Holy Ghost what soever ye do lose in earth, shall be loosed in heaven, & what soever ye do bind in earth shall be bound in heaven. These Fathers say that Christ gave to his Church authority to remit sin by the ministry of the Priest, to all such as do truly repent, and therefore will have the people go to confession: your ministers have taken that comfortable Sacrament of Penance away altogether. When Raphael the Angel saith in the twelfth chapter of Tobias: That he did offer up Tobi as prayer to Almighty God. And when in the second book of Macchabes the 15. chap. Onias the Priest saith of jeremy being dead. This is he that prayeth much for his people, and for the holy City: these Fathers say, that the Angels and Saints do pray for us, and that we may pray to them: your ministers do not stick to say, that these books of Toby and the Maccabees are scant good Scripture.  
Many other things like unto these, I could reckon, but I should be too long, fearing lest I should weary you: these few are sufficient to give you to taste of such marks as may show you the Catholic Church. These and many other great reasons do keep all good Christians within the church. These things make so many Catholics, partly to have suffered death: partly to have died in prison: partly to continue in prison so many years: partly to forsake their pleasant country, their dear friends, and to live to their conscience among strangers, being thought of many worldly men to be very fools for so doing: but they knowright well that the wisdom of this world is foolishness before God. And Christ saith, He that loveth father & mother, sister & brother, better than me, is not worthy of me. Mat. 10.  
Sister's give me leave to tell you somewhat of myself, not for any brag, but the more to move you and to give God all the praise for his great goodness towards me. It pleased my Parents to bring me up in learning as you know, as I was not the best, so I was at all times not counted the worst amongst my fellows and companions: some small estimation I had in Oxford above my desert, more afterwards when it pleased the Duke to make me though unworthy, Tutor to the Earl his son: as long as his grace did prosper, I lived in his house to my conscience without trouble: when he was in the Tower, and other men ruled his house, I was willed to receive the Communion, or to departed: if I would have yielded, I had very large offers which I need not tell. It pleased God to stay me so with his grace, that I chose rather to forsake all then to do against my belief, against my knowledge, against my conscience, against the law of Almighty God: For a time I lay secretly in England, afterwards I came beyond the Seas into these Catholic countries, out of schism and heresy: for the which I do thank Almighty GOD much more, then for all the estimation that I had, or might have had in England. Whatsoever my estate is here, I do more esteem it, than all the riches of England as it now standeth.  
And were I so mad think you to forsake all preferment, all livings, all estimation, to live from my good mother, from you my loving sisters, & your husbands, from other my dear friends & companions, out of mine own most pleasant country, would I do this think you, but that my learning and my conscience, telleth me, that to follow your Religion is present danger of body and soul, and to be in the Catholic Church is the only way to salvation? Fie upon all worldly riches, when the soul is in danger, nothing is so precious as the soul: first seek for the Kingdom of heaven, & for other things as it pleaseth God. O that I might understand once that you were of my mind, and of the Catholic religion: O my heart would leap for joy, to consider that although we cannot live together upon earth, yet we may hereafter meet in heaven: which is impossible as long as we disagree in faith. S. Paul saith. There is one God, one Faith, one Baptism. S. Austin saith, speaking of one Emeritus, He cannot be saved but in the Catholic Church.  
Do you think it sufficient to believe in the Father, the Son, & the holy Ghost? hearken what S. Austin saith in the 88 Psalm. What doth it profit thee, if thou confess the Lord? If thou honour God? if thou preach & praise him? if thou acknowledge his Son? if thou confess that he sitteth at the right hand of his Father? what doth this profit thee, if thou blaspheme his Church? S. Athanasius in his Creed saith: Whosoever will be saved it is necessary that he hold the Catholic Faith, which Faith unless a man believe in all points, and every article, without doubt (saith he) he shall perish everlastingly. One point is (good Sisters) that Christ gave us at his last Supper, his own blessed body & blood to feed upon in the remembrance of his bitter death: he that saith it is not so, doth he believe in Christ? Doth he not in effect say that Christ was not able to do it, and by that reason that he was not omnipotent? For when the three Evangelists report it so plainly, & S. Paul after them: Take, eat, this is my Body that shall be delivered for you: this is my blood that shall be shed for you: Mat. 26. Mar. 14. Luke. 22.1. Cor. 11. What maketh a man to doubt but that it is so in deed O you will say, I see nothing but bread and wine. If you should see his body: no god a mercy if you did believe it: But Christ said to Thomas: Thou Thomas dost believe because thou hast seen: but happy are they that believe when they see not. joh. 20. Mat. 2.  
I pray you when the three wise men came from the East to worship Christ, what did they see in him? forsooth a young Infant, not able to help himself sucking his mother a poor carpenters wife, and that in an Ox stall: yet they fell down and worshipped him as God: Is it not as easy to believe the body of Christ is under the form of bread, as that Almighty God himself was then under the shape of a silly weak Infant? O good Sisters, unless you believe, you shall never understand: believe once Christ his words, & that he is almighty, and that he is able to do whatsoever he saith, and you will think that all is easy: return to the Catholic Church, and be content to learn that which you know not, of them that will not for all the world deceive you, and you shall find exceeding comfort.  
When Christ shall say at the latter day, as it were in this manner. Was it not of my great kindness that I left unto you mine own Body and Blood? and was it not of my exceeding goodness and wisdom to leave it, not in the form of flesh and blood, lest your nature should abhor it, but of bread & wine which can be loathsome to no man? and you make me this gay recompense, saying that it was nothing but bread and wine, because you could taste nothing else in your mouth, and because your new Preachers told you so, whom I sent not? were not you christened in an other Faith? Did not my Church which is my spouse, Apoc. 21. and the pillar of truth, 1. Tim. 3. always teach otherways. What have you to say for yourself, but that you have most unkindly abused that blessed Sacrament and heavenly mystery, and make me a liar, and deny my omnipotency, and therefore deserve eternal damnation with all such as have deceived you?  
When Christ shall say this, will it not be a heavy case? when Cyprian, Ambrose, Chrisostome, Augustine, Jerome, Gregory, Bernard, all the old Fathers, now Saints in heaven, shall come & bear witness against you, and say that they taught otherwise? When your Bishops that are now partly dead, and partly in prison for the defending of this cause, shall condemn you because you did not follow their good example? When your own Doctors and Teachers shall not be able to answer for themselves, will it not be a pitiful case? But I hope better of you (good Sisters) I can not mistrust your good natures, but that you will be glad to learn the truth which: Almighty God grant unto you for his dear sons sake, who died for us: and that I may hear some comfortable news from you.  
Do but signify unto me that you are content, if any thing be amiss to be better instructed. Prove me what I can say for any thing that troubleth your consciences: It shall be far better news unto me, to receive two lines from you to such a purpose, then to understand that your husbands were made Lords, and you Ladies. He is rich that is in the Catholic Church, and he is honourable that is in the favour of God. Sisters if I might do you good to Godward, I would not stick to adventure this body of mine to save your souls, to come and talk with you: my body is not more precious unto me than your souls: how you are disposed, and what you would have me to do for your sakes let me understand by the next. Deal wisely I pray you and warily, both for our own sake, and for our good friend this bearer: It is not reason that for his good will, he should incur any danger: God forbidden, my trust is in your wisdom, that you will keep this very close tell hereafter, by reason of the great persecution.  
The matter is weighty, and conserneth both you and this bearer very much: be wise and trusty, and deceive not your Brother that loveth you as himself, and therefore wisheth by all means to do you good. Saint Paul saith: 1. Timothy. 5. He that hath not regard of his own kindred, hath denied the faith and is worse than an Infidel. Saint Chrisostome upon the same place writeth thus.  
If a man instruct strangers in the Faith, & suffer his own kin to continue in there error with whom he were likely to prevail most, because they make most account of him, were it not a most cruel & barbarous man? For this cause I writ unto you, & wish you all grace, all goodness, all heavenly comfort: last of all & least of all, to prosper in this world, and yet I wish you that with all my heart at the pleasure of God.  
Other good thing I have none to send you but this, I will remain in your debt for your gentle tokens. Commend me to yourselves, your loving husbands, & your little ones, and when you have learned to believe right yourselves, bring them up accordingly and teach them to fear God. Make much of this bearer I pray you, and save him harmless by your wise and discreet dealings. Almighty God preserve you, and by his Holy spirit lead you into all truth. Amen.  
FINIS.