A Friendly Admonition to Martin Marprelate, and his Mates. By LEONARD WRIGHT. LONDON Printed by John Wolf. 1590. To Martin Marprelate and his Mates: L. Wright wisheth the spirit of grace, wisdom and charity, with speedy reformation of former follies. HE that reproveth a wise man (saith Solomon) winneth love and favour, but who so meddleth with a scornful person, gaineth nothing but reproach and dishonour. Pro 9.10.9 13 This Proverb Martin, is verified in thee and thy fellow workers: who (like as the spiteful spider converteth his food into poison, and the venomous serpent regardeth not whom he sting: so whatsoever as yet hath been said unto you, though never so learned, pithy, or sensible, have converted the same into poisoned malice: returned it with ridiculous scoffs, and augmented it with slanderous reproaches. Notwithstanding though in small hope of more courteous entertainment at your hands, then as well myself, as others my betters have lately found, I have thought good, not in way of revenge, to requite you with evil for evil, as tant for tant, squib for squib, or scoff for scoff: but rather in friendly and charitable manner, gently to admonish and entreat you, to cease your grievous railing, disdainful mocking, and bitter contention: which yieldeth occasion for our enemies to laugh at our folly: our friends to lament our misery: and all neighbour countries to wonder at our curiosity. Alas Martin, I pity thy want of discretion, who in publishing thy unprofitable and immodest conceits, breaking the unity of the Church, hindering the course of the Gospel, & disquieting the peaceable state of the realm: hast set thyself upon an open stage, in the view of the whole world, to be scorned, hated, and detested for ever. Oh merciful Father, what Christian subject having either civil honesty, fear of God, or spark of grace, could so presumptuously take upon him, to encourage the commons to cast off the yoke of obedience, Look Martin's conclusions And their book entitled. D. Some laid open in his colours. and resist her majesties laws established, against her crown and dignity: so disdainfully to harden his heart and sharpen his tongue against his poor brethren, for showing their dutiful allegiance to her highness proceedings, or with such spiteful malice, raging fury, and desperate boldness (as though neither Prince, Magistrate, nor Law durst control them: to deride, slander & discredit those ancient grave Fathers, godly learned pastors, and chief pillars of our church, reverenced for their special gifts, placed in authority for their rare virtues, and honoured of all good men for their callings, by whom the doctrine of salvation hath been so plentifully planted and taught, during her majesties most happy reign, and taken such deep rooting in the hearts and consciences of many thousands in England (to God's honour be it spoken) as neither Papist, Martinist, nor Atheist, are able to seduce or remove them. Rom 2.23. Mark 7.6 Math. 2.12 Is this the sincerity of doctrine, purity of living, and preciseness of consciences, which thou and thy mates pretend & boast upon? Is this your brotherly kindness, to love your neighbour as yourself, Esay. 3 and do unto all men as you would be done unto? Is this the honest nature, charitable disposition, and courteous behaviour, beseeming a civil religious Gentleman? No, no Martin, If Martin be a Gentleman, it is only by profession, not by condition. thy odious railing scoffs, and vile carterly rhetoric (more fit for Skogan, Will Summer, or a vice in a play) bewrayeth in thee rather a vile, base, and churlish condition. Again, if thou and thy fellows were not even blocks in sense, and monsters in malice, you might with grief perceive, and with shame enough confess, that forasmuch as we have the Gospel of Christ sincerely preached, and his Sacraments (as seals annexed thereunto) duly ministered, the substance whereby the true Church is known, with such a godly reformation and uniform order, by law therein established (not only touching faith, doctrine, and remission of sins, in every point to the sacred word consonant and agreeable: but also touching external policy, discipline, decency, ceremonies, rites and fashions, in no point to the same repugnant or contrary) as all the churches in Europe do honour, reverence, & commend it, & by the judgement of M. Cartwright himself, M. Cartwright his Epistle to Harison. do give the right hand of society in the house of God, unto the church of England. There is no just cause of our parts therefore, why you should in sects and factions separate yourselves from us. As for your assertions, by the judgement of the profoundest divines in this land (as D. Fulke for one (whose words I am able to justify) they are false & erroneous, your reasons obscure and senseless, and your challenge most arrogant & presumptuous, whose arguments are either framed upon grounds of your own divices, to draw things indifferent to faith & religion, or else under a shadow of things which God hath commanded, to prove those he never commanded, which hath been always the special grounds of sects and schisms in the Church, & your chief points (of the best learned) have been sufficiently answered already, to satisfy any reasonable man deceived through ignorance, & for him that is drowned in wilful blindness, all that can be said will not suffice, for such as be naturally inclined to contention, will never want cavilling words. The mightier that men be (saith jesus Syrach) the greater is their wrath, & the longer that strife endureth, the more it burneth. Eccle. 28. Christ himself confuted the Pharisees, yet could he not put them to silence. To pester therefore more paper in answering every self-willed fool in his foolishness, were not only unprofitable, Prou. 26. Prou. 17.10.9.23.9. but mere ridiculous. One reproof doth more good to a wise man saith (Solomon) than an hundred stripes to a fool. Whom Pasquin very aptly compareth to an Ape, which the more sagely he is looked upon, Eccle. 22.6 the more he grinneth: so the more substantially a fool is reasoned withal, the less he understandeth. I, but Martin in his own opinion, is a man of most deep and profound judgement, It were good he had less art & more grace. In old Martin's protestation. able to see further in matters of state and religion, than all the learned Bishops in the land, whose conceits must needs be pure and perfect without errors. For why? he is resolute to confirm and seal them with his blood. Yet Martin, remember thou art but a man, and man is subject to error, yea and as it is proper to God only not to err: so is it seldom given unto man to hit the truth. He is wise that can perceive his own folly. If thou and I had been judge between the Publican and the Pharisee, which of them were the honester man, Luke. 18 I doubt we should both have erred. Again Campion the jesuite was as learned, and resolute to die as thou, and yet but an obstinate Papist. Copin and Helias the Brownists as resolute to die as thou, & yet but rebellious traitors? Lewes, Cole and Ket at Norwich, as resolute to die as thou, and yet but rank heretics? But Martin and his mates, are men specially endued with divine wisdom, The gifts of the spirit are rife, but the fruits are rear. godly zeal, and other spiritual gifts above the rest. I, but we have fair warning not to believe every spirit, for many false Prophets are gone out into the world, in whom satan transformeth himself into an Angel of light, 1 john. 4.1 2. Tim. 4.3.4 2 Cor. 2.13.14 Math. 7.16 Et ex fructibus eorum cognoscetis eos, Let us therefore try those spirits, whether they be such in deed as they would seem, yea or no. The spirit of wisdom (saith Solomon) is loving, mild, and modest, Wisdom. 1 Ephe. 5.9 james. 3 Psalm. 25.8 Eccle. 3 whose fruits (saith the Apostle) do consist in all goodness, righteousness, and truth. The wisdom that is from above (saith Saint james) is peaceable, courteous, and easy to be entreated. Those that be meek shall the Lord guide in judgement, saith David, and such as be gentle, them shall he learn his way. The children of wisdom (saith jesus Syrach) are a congregation of the righteous, 1. Corinth. 13 & their exercise is obedience and love. Ephe. 4.31 Love is humble, patiented, & courteous, Love is bountiful, liberal, and friendly, Love covereth the multitude of sins, & judgeth charitably of all men. Ezech. 13 Rom. 12. 1● Rom. 2.1 Math. 7 Math. 23 1. Tim. 4.2 Contrariwise, these Martinists are so fierce, fell, & furious, so obstinate, wilful and malicious, so churlish, disdainful and presumptuous, so captious over other men's manners, so ready to spy a moat in other men's eyes, so busy in laying open other men's infirmities, and so painful in binding heavy burdens to lay upon other men's shoulders, as it yieldeth just occasion to suspect them, for men possessed rather with spirits of error. They are very diligent labourers, I confess. But what do they? even as the venomous wasps, judas 9 2. Pet. 2 assemble together to make honey combs like good bees: so do these (under the title of a pure unspotted Church) associate themselves, with such spiteful railing slanders, to vex and persecute the true members of Christ, as the Angel durst not give to the devil himself. They blow the furrows of falsehood, sow the seeds of iniquity, & feed the multitude with lying fantasies. They lead them up & down by the ears, That ran ix. miles to suck a bull. to hear their vain conceits, as it were a fool to the stocks, till they prove as wise in the end as Waltams calf. Whose doctrine, by wring, wresting, and abusing the meaning of the holy Ghost to a wrong sense, appeareth so dark, obscure and doubtful, as the people do feel their minds more profitably edified, their consciences more sound satisfied, and their faith more comfortably strengthened, by hearing the only words of the text distinctly read without any addition at all, then by many such long, Whereby (though against their wills the people are brought by experience to know and feel, that public reading (in some measure) is preaching. 2. Pet. 2 2. Tim. 3 judas. Whose mouths, (saith the Apostle) must be stopped. Psal. 140 jere. 9 Psal 35.20 Ezech 13 Esay. 5 Psal. 59 2. Cron. 36. jere. 37 4. King 2.4 Luke. 15 Math. 23 dark, and tedious discourses, as commonly proceed from the skull of their seditious brawls, & falsely applied to serve their own purpose Thus Martin, the conditions. manners & doctrine of thee & thy fellow workers (rightly considered) do plainly bewray you for no other, than those vain janglers. presumptuous talkers, and false dissembling hypocrites, of whom the spirit of truth hath so often & so earnestly forewarned us, that should obstinately stand in their own conceits, despise government, & speak evil of those that be in authority, promising liberty to them that follow their damnable ways. Resembling much that peevish brood, of whom the Prophet David so grievously complaineth, that go to & from the evening, grinning like dogs, bend their tongues like bows, & shoot out bitter words like arrows, imagine mischief in their hearts, against those that be quiet in the land, and stir up strife all the day long. But woe be to such foolish prophets as are wise in their own conceits, follow their own spirits, & speak where thy see nothing. For the sins of their mouth, and the words of their lips, they shall be taken in their own pride. For why? their preaching is of cursing and lies. The Israelites for deriding Gods prophets, were brought to confusion. The tribe of juda for contemning his servant jeremy, were cast into loathsome captivity. The obstinate jews for pesecuting Christ and his Apostles, were brought unto miserable slavery: and yourselves for abusing the true messengers of God (without speedy repentance) must needs come ●o some fearful end. In the fear of God therefore, I do friendly admonish you: nay more, our sovereign Lady and mistress, by her princely authority, doth straightly command you, our loving mother the church of England, in sorrow & grief for your offence, doth courteously entreat you, and the Apostle himself in most christian & charitable manner, doth vehemently exhort you, that if you have conceived any feeling in the fatherly kindness of God, our merciful creator, any consolation in the precious death of Christ our loving redeemer: Phil. 2 Cleanse your hearts from malice, and your tongues from slander. Ephe 4 Wisdom 1. or any fellowship in his holy spirit, our comfortable instructor: to cease your bitter contention, confess your folly, detest your errors, repent your wickedness, & be reconciled to God & his church. Turn your scornful mocking, into pensive mourning: your spiteful railing into sorrowful weeping: your presumptuous prating, into humble praying, & your busy meddling in matters of state, into speedy reformation of your own misbehavior: call to God for grace betimes, lest with his fearful judgements he strike you suddenly: Rom. 2.4. despise no longer the riches of his goodness, patience, & long suffering, which leadeth to repentance. Abuse no longer the favourable and charitable dealing of those godly reverent fathers, who (notwithstanding your vile slanderous reproaches) have courteously sought from time to time, not your deserved confusion, but desired conversion. Submit yourselves to the mercy of our gracious sovereign, crave pardon for that is past, & learn to know from hence forth, that the displeasure of the prince, is a messenger of death, Prou. 20 and therefore more dangerous then seemly for every mean person, to call in question matters of government, or meddle in princes affairs. The fox for prying in the lions den, had his skin plucked over his ears: & surely if your wound be so uncurable, as neither friendly caveat can warn you, gentle admonition allure you, nor the fear of God withdraw you, but the still you mean to persist in your devilish enterprise, then must you know & feel, that her Majesty beareth not the sword for nought. Rom. 13 Where lenity cannot reclaim, severity must correct, duro nodo, durus cuneus. Finally (my brethren in general) forasmuch as we are all fellow servants of one household, & none of us without his imperfections, & shall all appear before the judgement seat of Christ, the only searcher of man's heart, 1. Corinth. 4.5 Rom. 14.10 Psal. 7.10 Gal. 6.5 1 Cor. 3.8 Ephe. 4 Colos. 3.12.13. 1. Cor. 10.12. Rom. 14.4 james. 3.13 Augustine. 2. Timo. 2.24 Galath. 5.15 where every one shall bear his own burden, & receive reward according to his own labour. Let us learn of the Apostle to deck ourselves with humility & lowliness of mind, & be more loving, friendly & charitable one to another. Let him that stands take heed lest he fall. As for his brother, whether he stand or fall, that pertaineth to his own master. Let him that is endued with knowledge & learning, show it forth in meekness & discretion. Let us learn of S. Augustine to agree together in fear, lest we perish in error. It becometh not the servants of God to be stubborn, wayward, or contentious, but quiet & peaceable unto all men. If you bite & devour one another (saith the Apostle) take heed lest you be consumed one of another. The Lord of his fatherly kindness, at his good will and pleasure, relent & mollify our hard stony hearts, lighten our ignorant minds, & prevent our obstinate wills, & endue us with his heavenly grace, Rom. 14.19 Ephe. 5.15.16 Phillip 2.2.3.16. 1. Pet. 2.17 Heb. 13.17 circumspectly to follow those things that make for peace, & study to be quiet, especially considering our days are dangerous, that with one heart one mind, one will, & one judgement, we may join together in due obedience, to glorify our God, honour his Prince, & reverence his Prelates.