¶ Jack up Land Compiled by the famous Geoffrey Chaucer.  Ezechielis. xiii. Woe be unto you that dishonour me to me people for an handful of barley & for a piece of bread 
Cum privilegio Regali.   

¶ These been the lewd questions of Freres rites and observances the which they chargen more than God's law, and therefore men shoulden not give 'em what so they beggen, till they hadden answered and clearly assoiled these questions.  
I Jack upland make my moan to very god and to all true believing in Chryst that antichrist and his disciples by colour of holiness walkyn and deceaven Christ'S church by many false figures, where through by Antichrist & his, many virtues been transposed to vices.  
But the fellest folk that ever Antichrist found been last brought in to the church, and in a wonder wise, for they been of divers, sects of Antichrist, sown of divers contrees, & kindreds. And all men known well that they been not obedient to bishops, ne lege men to kings, neither they tyllen, ne sown, weden, ne reapen wood, corn, ne grass, neither nething that man should help, but only hem selves her lives to susteyn. And these men had all manner power of god as they say in heaven, and in earth, to sell heaven, and hell to whom, that him liketh, and these wretches wait never where to been themselves.  
And therefore frere if thine order and rules been grounded on god's law, tell thou me Jack up land that I ask of thee, and if thou be or thinkest to be on Christ's side keep thy patience.  
Saint Paul teacheth, that all our deeds should be done in charity, and else it is not worth, but displeasing to God, and harm to our own souls. And for because freres chalengen to greatest clerks of the church, & next following Christ in living, men should for charity are 'em some questions, and pray 'em to ground their answers in reason, and in holy write, for else their answer would not be worth, be it flourished never so fair, and as me think men might skilfully are thus of a frere.  
Frere how many orders be in earth, and which is the perfytest order? of what order art thou? who made thine order? what is thy rule? Is there any perfyter rule than Chryst himself made? If Christ'S rule be most perfit why rulest thou the not thereafter? without more. why shall a frere be more punished if he break the rule that his patron made than yfhe break the hests that god himself made?  
Approveth Christ any more religions than one that saint James speaketh of? If he approveth nomor why hast thou lef his rule, and taken another? why is a frere apostata that leaveth his order, and taketh another sect, sith there is but one religion of christ.  
Why be ye wedded faster to your abytes than a man is to his wife. For a man may leave his wife for a year or two as many men do, and if you leave your abyte a quarter of a year, ye should be holden apostatas.  
Maketh your abyte you men of religion or no? If it do, than ever as it weareth, your religion weareth, and after that the abbyte is better, is you religion better, and when ye lyggen it beside you, than lyg ye your religion beside you, and been apostatase, why by ye you so precious clothes, sith no man seeketh such but for vain glory, as. s. Gregory saith.  
What betokeneth your great hood, your scaplerye, your knotted girdle, and your wide cope?  
Why use ye all one colour more than other christian men do? what betokeneth that ye been clothed all in one manner clothing?  
If ye say, it betokeneth love, and charyce, certes than ye be oft hypocrites, when any of you hateth other, and in that that ye woollen be said holy by your cloting.  
Why may not a frere wear clothing of an other sect of freres, sith holiness standeth not in the clothes.  
Why hold ye silence in one house more than in another, sith men ought over all to speak the good and leave the evil?  
Why eat you flesh in one house more than in another? if your rule and your order be perfit, and the patron that made it?  
Why get ye you dispensations to have it more easy, certes either it seemeth that ye be unperfect, or he, that made it so hard, that ye may not hold it. And sicker if ye hold not the rule of your patrons ye be not than her freres, and so ye lie upon yourselves.  
Why make ye you as dead men when ye be professed, and yet ye be not dead but more quick beggars than ye were before, and it seemeth evil a dead man to go about and beg.  
Why will ye not suffer your novices hear your counsels in your chapter house ear that they been professed, if your counsels been true, and after gods law?  
Why make ye you so costly houses to dwell in? sith Chryst did not so, and dead men should have but graves, as falleth to dead men, & yet ye have more gorgeous buyldiges than many lords of England, for ye may wenden through the ted girdle, and your wide cope?  
Why use ye all one colour more than other christian men do? what betokeneth that ye been clothed all in one manner clothing?  
If ye say, it betokeneth love, and charity, certes than ye be oft hypocrites, when any of you hateth other, and in that that ye woollen be said holy by your cloting.  
Why may not a frere wear clothing of an other sect of freres, sith holiness standeth not in the clothes.  
Why hold ye silence in one house more than in another, sith men ought over all to speak the good and leave the evil?  
Why eat you flesh in one house more than in another? if your rule and your order be perfit, and the patron that made it?  
Why get ye you dispensations to have it more easy, certes either it seemeth that ye be unperfect, or he, that made it so hard, that ye may not hold it. And sicker if ye hold not the rule of your patrons ye be not than her freres, and so yelye upon yourselves.  
Why make ye you as dead men when ye be professed, and yet ye be not dead but more quick beggars than ye were before, and it seemeth evil a dead man to go about and beg.  
Why will ye not suffer your novices hear your counsels in your chapter house ear that they been professed, if your counsels been true, and after gods law?  
Why make ye you so costly houses to dwell in? sith Chryst did not so, and dead men should have but graves, as falleth to dead men, & yet ye have more gorgeous buildings than many lords of England, for ye may wenden through the the realm, and each night welnygh lygge in your own courts, and so mow but right few lords do  
Why here ye to farm your lymytors, giving therefore each year a certain rent, and will not suffer one in an others limitation, right as ye were yourselves lords of countries.  
Why be ye not under your bishops visitations, and lyege men to our king.  
Why are ye no letters of brother heads of other men's prayers, as ye desire that other men should ask letters of you?  
If your letters be good, why grant ye them not generally to all manner men for the more charity?  
Mow ye make any man more perfit brother for your prayers than god hath by our believe, by our baptism, and his own grant, if ye mow, certes than ye be above god.  
Why make ye men believe that your golden trental song of you to take therefore. r. shillings, or at the least. v. shillings will bring souls out of hell or out of purgatory, if this be south, certes ye might bring all souls out of pain, & that wool ye nought, and than ye be out of charity,  
Why make ye men believe that he that is buried in your abyte shall never come in hell, and ye wite not of yourself whether ye shall to hell or no, & if this were south, ye should sell your high houses to make many abytes; for to save many men's souls.  
Why steal ye men's children for to make 'em of your sect sith that theft is against god's hest, and sith your sect is not perfect. ye know not weather the rule that ye bind him to be best for him or worst,  
Why undermine ye not your brethren for their trespass after the law of the gospel, sith that underneminge is the best that may be, but ye put them in prison oft when they do after god's law and by saint Austin's rule, if any did amiss and would not amend him, ye should put him from you.  
Why covet ye shrift and burying of other men's paryshens, & none other sacrament that falleth to Christian folk.  
Why busy ye not to hear shrift of poor folk as well as of rich lords and ladies? sith they mow have more plenty of shrift fathers than poor folk may.  
why say ye not the gospel in houses of bedrid men? as ye do in rich men's that mow go to church and hear the gospel.  
why covet you not to bury poor folk among you? sith that they been most holy, as ye sayne that ye been for your poverty.  
why will ye not been at her dyryges as ye been at rich men's? sith God praiseth 'em more than he doth rich men.  
what is thy prayer worth? sith thou wilt take therefore, for of all chapmen ye need to be most wise for dread of simony.  
what cause hast thou that thou wilt not preach the gospel? as God sayeth that thou shouldest, sith it is the best lore and also our believe?  
why be ye evil paid that secular priests should preach the gosgel? sith god himself hath boden him.  
why hate ye the gospel to be preached, sith ye be so much hold thereto for ye win more by year with In principio then with all the rules that ever your patrons made And in this mynstrels been better than ye, for they contraryen not to the myrtes that they maken: but ye contrayen the gospel both in word and deed.  
Frere, when thou receivest a penny for to say a mass, whether sellest thou god's body for that penny or prayer, or else thy travail? if thou sayest thou wilt not travail for to say the mass but for the penny, & certes if this be sooth than thou lovest to little meed for thy soul, and if thou sellest gods body other thy prayer, than it is very simony and art become a chap man worse than judas that sold it for thirty pens.  
Why wrytest thou her names in thy tables that giveth the money? Sith God knoweth all thing, for it seemeth by thy writing, that God would not reward him, but thou write him in thy tables, god would else forgotten it.  
Why bearest thou God in hand and sclaundrest him that he begged for his meat? sith he was lord over all, for than had he been unwise to have begged, and no need thereto?  
Frere after what law rulest thou that? where findest thou in god's law that thou shouldest thus beg?  
What manner men needeth for to beg?  
Of whom oweth such men to beg?  
Why beggest thou so for thy brethren?  
If thou sayest, for they have need than thou dost it for the more perfection or else for the least, or else for the mean, if it be the most perfection of all, than should all thy brethren do so and than no man needed to beg but for himself, for so should no man beg but him needed. And if it be the lest perfection, why lovest thou than other men more than thyself? For so thou art not well in charity, sith thou shouldest seek the more per fection after thy power, living thyself most after God, and thus leaving that imperfection thou shouldest not so beg for 'em. And if it is a good mean thus to beg as thou docste than should no man do so but they been in this good mean, & yet such a mean granted to you may never be grounded in god's law, for than both learned & lewd that been in mean degree of this world, should go about and beg as ye do, & if all such should do so, certes well nigh all the world should go about & beg as ye do, and so should there be ten beggars against one yever.  
why procurest thou men to give the here alms, & sayest it is so needful, and thou wilt not thyself win the that meed,  
why wilt thou not beg for poor bedrid men that been poorer than any of your sect, that liggen and mow not go about to help them selves, sith we be all brethren in God and that brotherhood passeth any other that ye or any man could make & where most need were there were most perfection either else ye hold him not your pure brethren or worse, but than ye be imperfect in your begging.  
why make ye you so many masters among you, sith it is against the teaching of Christ & his apostles  
whose been all your rich courts that ye han, & all your rich yewels, sith ye say that ye han nought improper ne cumune if ye say they been the pope's, why gether ye then of poor men & of lords so much out of the kings hand to make your pope rich. And sith ye say that it is great perfeccyion to have nought in proper ne comune? why be ye so fast about to make the pope that is your father rich & put on him imperfection? sithen ye sayne that your goods been all his, & he should by reason be the most perfit man, it seemeth open lich that ye been cursed children so to slander your father, & make him imperfect, & if ye say that though goods be yours, them do ye against your rule, and if it be not against your rule than might ye have both plough & cart and labour as other good men done, & not so to beg by lesyngery & idle as ye done, & if ye say that it is more perfection to beg than to travail or worch with your hand why preach ye not openly & teach all men to do so? sith it is the best & most perfit life to help of her souls as ye make children to beg that might have be rich heirs.  
Why make ye not your feasts to poor men, and giveth 'em yefts, as ye done to the rich? sith poor men han more need than the rich.  
what be tokeneth that ye go twain and twain together? If ye be out of charity, ye accorden not in soul.  
why beg ye, & take salaries there to more than other priests? sith he the most taketh most charge he hath.  
why hold ye not saint France's rule & his testament? sith Fraunces saith that God showed him this lyvig & this rule, and certes if it were god's will the pope might not fordo it or else Frances was a liar that said on this wise, And but this testament that he made accord with god's will, else erred he as a liar that were out of charity, & as the law sayeth he is cursed that letteth the rightful will of a dead man lack, And this testament is the least will of Frances that is a dead man, it seemeth that all his freres been cursed.  
why will ye not touch no coined money with the cross ne with the king's head, as ye done other Jevels both of gold & silver? Certes if ye despise the cross or the kings head than ye be worthy to be despised of God and the king, and sith ye will receive money in your hearts, and not with your hands, it seemeth that ye hold more holiness in your hands then in your hearts, & than be ye false to God.  
Why have ye exempt you fro our kings laws, and visytinge of our bishops more than other christian men that lyven in this realm, if ye be not guilty of traytery to our realm, or trespasers to our bishops? But ye will have the kings laws for trespass done to you, & ye will have power of other bishops more than other priests, and also have leave to prison your brethren as lords in your courts more than other folks han the been the kings lege men.  
Why shall some sect of you freres pay each year a certain to her general provincial or minister, or else to her sovereigns, but'yf he steal a certain number of children, as some mensayne, and certes if this be sooth, than be ye constrained upon certain pain to do theft against god's commandment. Non furtuin facies.  
Why be ye so hardy to grant by letters of fraternity to men and women that they shall have part and merit of all your good deeds, & ye wyten never whither god be paid with your deeds, because of your sin, Also ye weten never whether that man or woman be in state to be saved or damned, than shall he have no merit in heaven for hrs own deeds ne for none other man, and all were it so that he should have part of your good deeds yet should ye have no more than God would give him after that he were worthy, and so much shall each man have of gods gift without your lymytation. But if ye will say that ye been goddess follows, & that he may not do without your assent, than be ye blasphemers to God.  
what tokeneth that ye have ordained that when such one as ye have made your brother or sister, & hath a letter of your seal that letter mought be brought in your holy Chapter, and there be red, or else ye will not pray for him, but & ye wyllen not pray specially for all other that weren not made your brethren or sistren than were ye not in right charity, for that ought to becommne, & namely in ghostly things  
Frere what charity is this to over charge the people by mighty begging under colour of preaching, or praying, or masses singing? Sith holy write biddeth not thus, but even the contrary, for all such ghostly deeds should be done freely as god giveth 'em freely.  
Frere what charity is this to beguile children or they comen to discretion, & bind him to your orders that been not grounded in god's law, against her friends will, sithen by this folly been many apostatase both in will & deed & many been apostatase in her will, during all her life that would gladly be discharged if they wist how, & so many been apostatase that shulden in other states have been true men.  
Frere what charity is this to make so many freres in every country to the charge of the people? sith persons & vicars alone, ye secular priests alone, ye monks & canons alone, with bishops above him were enough to the church to do priests office, & to add more than enough, is a foul error and great charge to the people, & this is openly against god's will that ordained all things to be done, in, weight, number, & measure & Christ himself was paid with twelve Apostles and a few disciples to preach and do priests office to all the hole world, than was it better done than it is now at this time by a thousand deal, and right so as four fingers, with a thumb in a man's hand helpeth a man to work and double number of fingers in one hand should let him more, and the more number that there were passing the measure of god's ordinance the more were a man letted to work. Right so as it seemeth it is of these new orders that been added to the church without ground of holy write and god's ordinance.  
Frere what charity is this to lie to the people & say that ye follow Christ in poverty more than other men done, & yet in curious & costly housing & fine and precious clothing, & delicious & liking feeding & in treasure & jewels & rich ornaments freres passen lords and other rich worldly men & soonest they should bring her cause about, be it never so costly though god's law be put abake.  
Frere what charity is this to gather up the books of holy write & put 'em in treasury & so emprysonne hem from secular priests, & curates, and by this cautel let him to preach the gospel freely to the people without wordly meed, & also to defame good priests of heresy & lain on hem openly for to let 'em to show god's law by the holy gospel to the Christian people.  
Frere what charity is this to fain so much holiness in your bodily clothing that ye clepe your abyte? that many blind fools desyren to die therein more than in an other. & also that a frere that leaveth his abyte late founden of men, may not be assoiled till he take it again, but is an apostata as ye sayne, and cursed of God and man both, The frere believeth truth & patience, chastity, meekness, & sobriety, yet for the more part of his life he may soon be assoiled of his prior, and if he bring home to his house much good by year, be it never so falsely begged and pilled of the poor and needy people, in courts & about, he shall be hold a noble frere, o lord whether this be charity?  
Frere what charity is this to press upon a rich man, and to entice him to be buried among you from his parish church, and to such rich men give letters of fraternity confirmed by your general seal, & thereby to bear him in hand that he shall have part of all your masses, matins, preachings, fastings, wakinges, & all other good deeds done by your brethren of your order both whiles he liveth, & after that he is dead, and yet ye witen never whether your deeds be acceptable to god, ne whether that man that hath that letter be able by good living to receive any part of your deeds, and yet a poor man that ye wite well or supposen in certain to have no good of, ye ne give no such letters though he be a better man to god than such a rich man nevertheless this poor man doth not reach thereof. For as men supposen such letters, and many other that freres behesten to men be full of false deceits of freres out of reason, and gods law, & christian men's faith.  
Frere what charity is this to be confessoures' oflordes and lady's, and to other mighty men, and not amend 'em in her living, but rather as it seemeth to be the bolder to pill her poor tenants, and to live in lechery, & there to dwell in your of fyce of confessor for winning of world lie goods, & to be held great by colour of such ghostly offices, this seemeth rather pride of freres than charity of God.  
Frcre what charity is this to say that who so liveth after your order liveth most perfitly, and next followeth the state of apostles in poverty and penance, and yet the wisest, and greatest clerks of you wend or send, or procure to the court of Rome to be made Cardynales, or bishops, or the pope's chaplains, and to be assoiled of the vow of poverty and obedience to your my nysters, in the which as ye sayn standeth most perfection, and merit of your orders, and thus ye faren as Pharisees that say one and do another to the contrary.  
why name ye more the patron of your order in your Confytcor when ye begin mass, than other saints as apostles or martyrs that hol church hold more glorious than them, and clepe 'em your patrons, and your avowrycs.  
Frere whether was saint Frances in making of his rule that he set thine order in, a fool and liar, or else wise and true? If ye say that he was not a fool but wise, ne a liar, but true, why show ye the contrary by your doing? when by your suggestion to the pope ye said that France's rule was made so hard, that ye might not live to hold it, without declaration, and dispensation of the pope, and so by your deed ye let your patron a fool that made a rule so hard that no man may well keep, & eke your deed proveth him a liar, where he sayeth in his rule that he took and learned it of the holy ghost.  
For how might ye for shame pray the pope to undo that the holy ghost biddeth, as ye prayed him to dispense with the hardness of your order.  
Frere which of the four orders of freres is best to a man that knoweth not which is the best, but would fain enter in to the best, & none other? If thou sayest that thine is the best than sayest thou that none of the other is as good as thine, and in this each frere in the three other orders wool say that thou liest, for in the self manner each other frere will say that his order is best. And thus to each of the. iiii. orders been the other three contrary in this point in the which if any say south, that is one alone, for there may but one be the best of four, so followeth it that if each of these orders answered to this questionn as thou dost, three were false, & but one true, & yet no man should wite who that were. And thus it seemeth that the most part of freres been or should be liars in this point and they should answer thereto. If you say that an other order of the freres is better than thine or as good, why took ye not rather thereto as to the better when thou mightest have choose at the beginning, & eke why shouldest thou be an apostate to leave thine order, & take the to that that is better, & so why goest thou not from thin order into that?  
Frere is there any perfecter rule of religion than Christ gods son gave in his gospel to his brethren, or than that religion the saint James in his epistle maketh mention of? If you say yes, than puttest thou on Christ that is wisdom of god the father uncuning, unpower, or evil will, for either than he could not make his rule so good as an other did his And so he had been uncunning, that he might not make his rule so good as an other man might, and so were he unmighty and not god, or he would not make his rule so perfit as an other did his, and so he had been evil willed namely to himself.  
For if he might, & could, & would have made a rule perfit without de fate, & did not, he was not god's son almighty. For if any other rule be perfyter than Christ'S, than must Christ'S rule lack of that perfeceyon by as much as the other weren more perfiter, and so were default, and Chryst had failed in making of his rule, but to put any default or failing in god, is blasphemy. If thou say that Christ'S rule, and that religion that saint James makcth mention of is the perfytest? why holdest thou not than thilk rule without more. And why clepest thou the rather of saint Frances or saint Domynyks rule or religion or order, than of Christ'S rule or Christ'S order?  
Frere canst thou assign any default in Christ'S rule of the gospel with the which he taught all men see kerly to be saved if they kept it to her ending. If thou say it was to hard, than sayest thou Christ lied for he said of his rule, My yoke is soft, and my burden light. If thou say, Christ's rule was to light, that may be assigned for no default, for the better may it be kept. If thou sayft that there is no default in Christ's rule of the gospel, sith Chryst himself saith, it is light and easy, what need was it to patrons of freres to add more thereto? and so to make an harder religion to save freres than was the religion that Christ's apostles and his disciples helden and we ren saved by, but if they wolden that her freres saten above the apostles in heaven for the harder religion that they keepen here, and so would they sit in heaven above Christ himself, for the more, and straight observances: than so should they be better than Chryst himself with myscaunce.  
Go now forth & frayen your clerks, and ground ye in god's law and give Jack answer, and when ye han assoiled me that I have said sadly in truth I shall soyll the of thine order, and save the to heaven.  
If freres cunne not or mow not excuse him of these questions asked of 'em, it seemeth that they be horrible guilty against god, and her even christian, for which guilts and defaults it were worthy that the order the they call her order were fordone.  
And it is wonder the men sustain hem or suffer hem live in such manner. For holy write biddeth that thou do well to the meek, and give not to the wicked but forbid to give 'em bread lest they be made thereby mightier through you.  
Finis.   

¶ printed for John Gough.  
Cum Privilegio Regali.