BOOK I. 66 days as the Church hath ordained: but may be mitigated " and moderated by the King, being Supreme Head." Anno 1536. IV. Of Rites and Ceremonies. "As vestments in God's service, sprinkling holy water, giving holy bread, bearing "candles on Candlemas-day, giving of Ashes on Ash-Wednesday, bearing of palms on Palm-Sunday; creeping to "the cross, and kissing it, and offering unto Christ before "the same on Good-Friday; setting up the sepulchre of Christ, hallowing of the font, and other like exorcisms "and benedictions, and laudable customs: that these are "not to be contemned and cast away, but continued, to put "us in remembrance of spiritual things. But that none of "these ceremonies have power to remit sin." A conjecture, that the 66 66 V. Of Purgatory. "That Christians are to pray for souls "departed, and to commit them in their prayers to God's mercy, and cause others to pray for them in masses and "exequies; and to give alms to others to pray for them, "that they may be relieved and holpen of some part of "their pain. But because the place where they be, the "name thereof, and kinds of pain there, is to us uncertain "by Scripture, therefore we remit this, with all other 'things, to Almighty God; unto whose mercies it is meet "to commend them. That such abuses be put away, 66 "which, under the name of purgatory, have been advanced : 44" as to make men believe, that, through the Bishop of pen of the Archbishop was here. "Rome's pardons, souls might clearly be delivered out of "purgatory, and the pains of it: or that masses said at "scala cæli, or otherwise in any place, or before any image, "might deliver them from all their pains, and send them straight to heaven." 66 These are the contents of that memorable book of articles. spective tenets there laid down, and many quotations of XI. Anno 1536. popish errors here mixed with evangelical truths: which CHAP. must either be attributed to the defectiveness of our prelate's knowledge as yet in true religion, or being the principles and opinions of the King, or both. Let not any be offended herewith, but let him rather take notice, what a great deal of Gospel doctrine here came to light; and not only so, but was owned and propounded by authority to be believed and practised. The sun of truth was now but rising, and breaking through the thick mists of that idolatry, superstition, and ignorance, that had so long prevailed in this nation, and the rest of the world, and was not yet advanced to its meridian brightness. CHAP. XII. markable Cranmer's Judgment about some Cases of Matrimony. IN this year then came forth two remarkable books; Two rewhereof both the King, and the Archbishop and bishops, books pubmight be said to be joint composers: inasmuch as they lished. seemed to be devised by the Archbishop, and some of the bishops; and then revised, noted, corrected and enlarged by the King. I. of articles. The one of these was the book of articles of religion, mentioned before. This book bore this title, Articles de- The book vised by the King's highness to stable Christian quietness and unity among the people, &c. With a preface by the King: where the King saith, he was constrained to put his own pen to the book, and to conceive certain articles. Which words, I leave to the conjecture of the reader, whether by them he be inclined to think that the King were the first writer of them, or that, being writ and composed by another, they were perused, considered, corrected and augmented by his pen. II. The other book that came out this year was occasioned A book against the by a piece published by Reginald Pole, intituled De Unione Pope, Ecclesiastica: which inveighing much against the King for called the Bishops' assuming the supremacy, and extolling the Pope unmeasur- book. 1. BOOK ably, he employed the Archbishop, and some other bishops, to compile a treatise, shewing the usurpations of Popes; and Anno 1536. how late it was ere they took this superiority upon them, some hundred years passing before they did it and that 45 all bishops were limited to their own dioceses by one of the eight councils, to which every Pope did swear: and how the papal authority was first derived from the Emperor, and not from Christ. For this there were good arguments Herbert's taken from the Scriptures and the Fathers. The book was Life of King signed by both the archbishops, and nineteen other bishops. It was called the Bishops' book, because devised by them. The Lord Crumwel did use to consult with the Archbishop in all his ecclesiastical matters. And there happened matrimony put to the now, while the Archbishop was at Ford, a great case of marriage whom it concerned I cannot tell, but the King was desirous to be resolved about it by the Archbishop, and commanded Crumwel to send to him for his judgment therein. The case was threefold. Henry, P. 418. Certain cases of Archbi shop. His solu tion. I. Whether marriage contracted or solemnized in lawful age per verba de præsenti, and without carnal copulation, be matrimony before God or no? II. Whether such matrimony be consummate, or no? And, III. What the woman may thereupon demand by the law civil, after the death of her husband? This I suppose was a cause that lay before the King and his ecclesiastical vicegerent, to make some determination of. And I suspect it might relate to Katharine, his late divorced Queen. The Archbishop, who was a very good civilian, as well as a divine, but that loved to be wary and modest in all his decisions, made these answers. That as to the first, he and his authors were of opinion, that matrimony contracted per verba de præsenti, was perfect matrimony before God. 2. That such matrimony is not utterly consummated, as that term is commonly used among the school-divines and lawyers, but by carnal copulation. 3. As to the woman's demands by the law civil, he therein professed his ignorance. And he had no learned men with him there at Ford to consult with for their judgments: only Dr. Barbar, (a civilian that he always retained with him,) XII. who neither could pronounce his mind without his books, CHAP. and some learned men to confer with upon the case; but he added, that he marvelled that the votes of the civil law- Anno 1536. yer should be required herein; seeing that all manner of causes of dower be judged within this realm by the common laws of the same. And that there were plenty of welllearned men in the civil law at London, that undoubtedly could certify the King's majesty of the truth herein, as much as appertained unto that law: warily declining to make any positive judgment in a matter so ticklish. This happened in the month of January. pensation riage of a And indeed in these times there were great irregularities Refuseth to about marriage in the realm; many being incestuous and grant a disunlawful. Which caused the parliament, two or three for the maryears past, viz. 1533, in one of their acts, to publish a table relation. of degrees, wherein it was prohibited by God's law to marry. But the act did not cure this evil: many thought to bear out themselves in their illegal contracts, by getting dispensations from the Archbishop: which created him much trouble by his denying to grant them. There was one Massy, a courtier, who had contracted himself to his de- 46 ceased wife's niece. Which needing a dispensation, the party got the lord Crumwel to write to the Archbishop in his behalf: especially because it was thought to be none of the cases of prohibition contained in the act. But such was the integrity of the Archbishop, that he refused to do any thing he thought not allowable, though it were upon the persuasion of the greatest men, or the best friends he had. But he writ this civil letter to the Lord Crumwel upon this occasion. E. 5. My very singular good Lord, in my most hearty wise Cleopatra "I commend me unto your Lordship. And whereas your His letter "Lordship writeth to me in the favour of this bearer, thereupon. Massey, an old servant to the King's highness, that being "contracted to his sister's daughter of his late wife deceas 66 66 66 ed, he might enjoy the benefit of a dispensation in that "behalf; especially, considering it is none of the causes of prohibition contained in the statute: surely, my Lord, I "would gladly accomplish your request herein, if the word "of God would permit the same. And where you require BOOK I. me, that if I think this license may not be granted by the "law of God, then I should write unto you the reasons and Anno 1536."authorities that move me so to think; that upon declara"tion unto the King's highness, you may confer thereupon "with some other learned men, and so advertise me the "King's farther resolution. For shortness of time, I shall "shew you one reason, which is this. By the law of God many persons be prohibited which be not expressed, but "be understood, by like prohibition in equal degree. As "St. Ambrose saith, that the niece is forbid by the law of "God, although it be not expressed in Leviticus, that the "uncle shall not marry his niece. But where the nephew "is forbid there, that he shall not marry his aunt, by the same is understood that the niece shall not be married "unto her uncle. Likewise as the daughter is not there Vid. Fox, Acts, p. 960. 66 66 plainly expressed, yet, where the son is forbid to marry his "mother, it is understood that the daughter may not be "married to her father; because they be of like degree. "Even so it is in this case and many others. For where it "is there expressed, that the nephew shall not marry his "uncle's wife, it must needs be understood that the niece "shall not be married unto the aunt's husband, because that "also is one equality of degree. And although I could allege many reasons and authorities mo for this purpose; yet I trust this one reason shall satisfy all that be "learned, and of judgment. 66 66 "And as touching the act of parliament concerning the degrees prohibited by God's law, they be not so plainly "set forth as I would they were. Wherein I somewhat spake my mind at the making of the said law, but it was not "then accepted. I required then, that there must be express"ed mother, and mother-in-law; daughter, and daughter"in-law; and so in further degrees directly upwards and "downwards, in linea recta; also sister, and sister-in-law; "aunt, and aunt-in-law; niece, and niece-in-law. And this 17" limitation, in my judgment, would have contained all degrees prohibited by God's law, expressed and not expressed; and should have satisfied this man, and such "others which would marry their nieces-in-law. 66 "I have no news to send you from these parts; but I |