66 66 VIII. Anno 1553. "good christen people: whereby now, being ashamed of CHAP. my former wicked living here, I ask almighty God mercy "and forgiveness, and the whole church; and am sorry " and penitent even from the bottom of my heart therefore. "And in token hereof, I am here, as you see, to declare "and shew unto you this my repentance; that before God, on the latter day, you may testify with me of the same. "And I most heartily and humbly pray and desire you all, "whom by this evil example doing I have greatly offended, "that for your part you will forgive me, and remember me "in your prayers, that God may give me grace, that here"after I may live a continent life, according to his laws, "and the godly ordinances of our mother the holy catholick church, through and by his grace. And do here before "you all openly promise for to do, during my life.” The manner of the restitution of these priests, thus performing their penance, may be seen in the Appendix. No. LXXV. married without And this is some account of the church of Canterbury's Boner dedoings, in pursuance of the. Queen's instructions before prives the mentioned. But Bishop Boner, with his zeal, was before- clergy in hand with the Queen; not staying for any orders from London, above in dealing with his clergy; but of his own power, in order. the latter end of February, deprived all married priests, in 329 his diocese in London, from their livings. And, after this done, commanded them all to bring their wives within a fortnight, that they might be divorced from them. prebenda against. These were some of the doings with the married priests in Married London. And in the same manner did they proceed about ries in Canthis time in Canterbury with Edmund Cranmer, the Arch- terbury proceeded bishop's brother, Archdeacon and Prebendary of that church; together with William Willoughby, William Devenish, and Robert Goldson, Prebendaries; and divers others. For March 15, at the chapter-house in Canterbury, before Henry Harvey, LL. D. Vicar-general; Richard Bishop of Dover, Subdean; Richard Parkhurst and John Mills, Prebendaries of the said church; personally appeared the said Archdeacon and Prebendaries; Thomas Brook and Thomas Stevens, preachers; and Sherland and Goodrick, petty canons of the said church: who all subscribed with their own hands to a confession of certain articles exhibited against III. BOOK them, touching their being married. And, being asked what they could say why they should not be suspended and Anno 1553. deprived for the said pretended marriages, they gave this Edmund deprived of Reg. Eccl. The injustice of these pro 66 answer, as it is set down in the register of that church; Se nihil habere dicendum, &c. "That they had nothing to say "that might be profitable for them; the ecclesiastical law, "and the decrees of the holy fathers, standing in their full "force: but, by the law of God, they thought they had lawfully married their wives; and, being married, might "not forsake them with a safe conscience." Then sentence of suspension from priestly function, sequestration, deprivation, and prohibition to live with their wives, was pronounced. It is registered, "that they aquiesced in these "sentences against them; no one of them appealing, but "all remaining silent.” This is the account of the good Archbishop's brother, his manner of deprivation, and his peaceable behaviour under it. Thus he was deprived of his prebend, and one Robert Collins was admitted into the same: of his rectory of Ickham, and Robert Marsh succeeded him there, April 12, 1554 and of his archdeaconry, and Nicolas Harpsfield was admitted thereunto. Who at the same time entered into obligation to pay, out of the profits of the said archdeaconry, unto William Warham, late Archdeacon, during his life, a yearly pension of forty pounds sterling, March 31, 1554 But some of the church then appeared not, being either fled, or in prison; and those were pronounced contumacious, viz. John Joseph, Peter Alexander, and Bernard Ochin, prebendaries; Lancelot Ridley, Richard Turner, Thomas Becon, and Richard Besely, preachers. These doings in all quarters of the realm raised great admiration among the people, upon divers and sundry conceedings. siderations, incident and depending upon such proceedings: since these marriages were no more than what were agreeable to the laws of the land. So that these married preachers, in marrying themselves, were no transgressors of the law: and yet underwent as great punishments, as though they were so in some high degree. And the proceedings seemed contrary even to the Queen's commission, comprised in cer330 tain articles (before mentioned) to her bishops: which was, VIII. "That they should proceed, according to learning and dis- CHAP. "cretion, in these weighty matters, and that they should "not put any other canons and constitutions of the church Anno 1553. "in exercise, than such as might stand with the law of the "realm." Yet they went in most places both against learning and discretion, and the laws of the land. book Marriage. For the bringing this to pass, they first possessed the Queen Martin's with great prejudices against these marriages. They cried against in her ears, how uncomely these copulations were; how Priests' against God and his honour; how against the church's decrees and discipline; and how worthy to be dissolved again. And when they had obtained their ends with the Queen, and gotten out her letter and instructions for that purpose, and by warrant thereof executed their purposes; then, for the giving a better countenance to a thing that looked so odious, and had so much severity in it, to the ruining of so many thousand families, books were thought fit to be published; the purpose of which was, to make married priests contemptible, and to shew how unlawful and wicked marriage was in men of holy orders. Dr. Thomas Martin's book made the greatest noise; a book writ with a brow of brass, so did it abound with confident un. truths and falsehoods. And, to the further accumulation of the heavy state of the ministers deprived, were added in this book most slanderous accusations, and untrue matters surmised against them to the Queen and realm. The author greatly pretended antiquity and authority all along for his doctrine: whereas indeed it was nothing but counterfeited imitation of authority, and belying antiquity. And, in short, (to give you the sense of ones who wrote against the book, and did sufficiently expose it,) "it was mere subtilty without "substance, wit without wisdom, zeal without knowledge, " and heat without charity." To give but one instance of the unfair and false dealing of the author, he saith, in his book, "that the hereticks affirmed, that all priests and bishops must of necessity marry, whether they have the gift of sole life, or no; and that they were so beastly and ignorant, that they should teach that the fellowship and 66 66 g Supposed to be Bishop Ponet. BOOK 66 company of a woman, in a spiritual man, is a means to "perfect religion, and that single life was an hinderance Anno 1553. " to the same, and that they should despise all manner of virginity and single life in them that had the gift of God; "and that they pronounced it wicked and abominable, and "termed it a doctrine of devils, and the invention of An"tichrist." All which Bishop Ponet, in the name of all the Protestants, in his book did utterly deny that ever they said, writ, or thought so. Wherein had the This book was indeed made by the Bishop of Winchester, when he was in the Tower, (and he borrowed much of it from Albertus Pighius,) and published about that time. Martin being then a student at the university of Bourges in France, it once happened, in some conversation there, that Edward the King of England was commended, whether it were for his virtue, or learning, or abilities, beyond his years; whereat Martin began, as it seemed, to eclipse the King's honour, by mentioning the imprisonment of Winchester, saying, that there was a head Papist prisoner in England, meaning him. Upon which several asked him, 331 whether it was not the same Winchester that had set out an hodge-podge concerning marriage of priests? He, laughing, Declaration answered, "It was even he." But that no man ought to marvel; for that Winchester was more meet for warlike than for ecclesiastical disputations. Which passage I have from Bale; who was acquainted at that university with Franciscus Baldwin, the learned professor of law there. Out of this book Martin framed that which went under his name, with Winchester's privity: and this was well enough known to Bale and others in those times. Ponet said, that Martin was abused by others, who set him a-work to bear the name, and to desire the fame of so gay a book, rather than diner in his he was the author of it indeed. book lately of Boner's articles, 1554. Thomas Martin, or Winchester under that name. fol. 15. Mr. Martin, Winches ter's own voice. fol. 40. Gar spread under the name of Thomas The said Ponet, or Poinet, late Bishop of Winchester, but now an exile, very learnedly answered this book in two several treatises. The first was entitled, An Apology against Martin. fol. Thomas Martin's Blasphemies. In this treatise, upon occasion of the Papists' prohibition of marriage to priests, he proved that the said Papists were hereticks, and had taken by Ponct. part in the most principal parts with all the hereticks that 77. Bale's declar. Answered VIII. had corrupted the true Church of Christ. The second CHAP. treatise, replenished with great learning, he lived not to finish; (though some doubt whether he were the author of Anno 1553. this book ;) but the copy falling into the hands of Matthew Parker, Archbishop of Canterbury, he published it, in the beginning of Queen Elizabeth's reign, with very large and excellent additions of his own. Ponet had thoroughly studied this point, and I believe was put upon the study of it by Archbishop Cranmer, whose chaplain he was: for before this he put forth two books upon this argument, viz. Of the Marriage of Ministers; and a Defence of that Marriage. fessions of The last thing I have to say concerning these orders taken The conwith the married clergy, is, that there were two things the married thought very hard, which were put upon those that were priests. willing to comply, and put away their wives. The one was in relation to the public confessions they were to make: which were put into their mouths by others, and drawn up for them in that manner, as made them tell horrible lies. They must speak their own shame in bills of their penance : lying against themselves most vilely and most shamefully; disabling their credit and estimation for ever. And to give an instance: one such confession, which was much cried out against, was made by one Sir John Busby of Windsor, June 29, in the year 1555. Which Ponet calleth a goodly confession of his hearty and earnest repentance. "Which," saith he," was so finely penned, and so catholickly tracted, Def. of Pr. "that I warrant you it was none of the smallest fools that "forged it." Marr. p. 269. did their hardly The other thing was, that, after these poor men had thus Married done their penances, and spoke their confessions, the im- priests that posers of these penalties upon them were not so good as penance they pretended they would be, and as the Queen's in- dealt with. structions required them to be, towards them: not restoring them to their ministration. Some, that had been two or three years parted from their wives, could not be admitted again to ministration: yet they must do open penance, and go by the cross, without any redemption or entreaty, that could be made. |