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The assault of the sacrame[n]t of the Altar

containyng as well sixe severall assaultes made from tyme to tyme against the sayd blessed sacrament: as also the names & opinions of all the heretical captaines of the same assaultes: Written in the yere of oure Lorde 1549. by Myles Huggarde [i.e. Hogarde], and dedicated to the Quenes moste excellent maiestie, beyng then ladie Marie: in whych tyme (heresie then raigning) it could take no place. Now newly imprynted thys present yere

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To the reader.

Seldome is seene matters of weyght
Rudelye in ryme to be set out,
Yet make I not this thing so sleyght,
Although in ryme I go about,
To make this worke, the whiche no doubt,
Muche hygher matter doth containe,
Then ought in ryme to be made plaine.
But Yet because saint Paule doth say,
That God his gyftes geueth diuersly,
The whiche eche man ought here alway,
After his gyfte him to apply,
Therby other to edifie,
For eche man shall when it is spent,
Render accompte of his talent.
Whiche thinge when I consider well,
Seing of men many a score,
Whiche in Gods giftes do farre excell
Many other whiche were before
Their dayes, and yet neuer the more
I se set furth, for the whiche I
Do my slacknes muche lesse set by.
For none is there that aught can do,
That in suche thinges can lesse then I.
Therfore my coumpte lesse shall come to,
Then those that hath Gods gyftes more hye,
But yet the least I feare truelye,
Shall be more then they well may bere,
Whiche dothe make me my coumpte to feere.


The cause wherfore that I do make,
This treatise small, only is this,
Because men may example take,
Of those whiche did stray farre amisse,
Assaulting faith, that moost true is:
The cheife of whom as they shall se,
Did not amonge them selues agree.
Of whiche my simple enterprise,
Pardon of all men I do craue,
For my rude style my wit here tryse,
Suche wit suche termes alwaye wyll haue,
Therfore if fautes, ye do persceiue,
Do them correcte as ye cause see,
Just cause can no thing displease me.
Finis.


The assault of the sacramēt of the Altar

containyng aswell sixe seuerall assaultes made from tyme to tyme against the sayd blessed sacrament: as also the names & opinions of all the heretical captaines of the same assaultes

[_]

Written in the yere of oure Lorde 1549. by Myles Huggarde, and dedicated to the Quenes moste excellent maiestie, beyng then ladie Marie: in whiche tyme (heresie then raigning) it could take no place. Now newly imprynted this present yere.

When Sagittary had dominion,
The nightes thē being very long and cold
I mused on the straunge opinion,
the which diuers mē did diuersly hold
Against our sauiours own wordes plainly tolde
Which troubled me so, that as it did chaunce,
With the same study, I fell in a traunce,
Then with that I had a wonderfull dreame,
In the which me thought Morpheus drue neere
And toke me by the hāde & with strēgth extreme
He drue me furth, and bade me nothing feare,
But go with him, and as we going were,
Let not my coming quod he the displease,
For thou shalt finde, it shall be for thine ease.
I know that thou dost sore trouble thi minde
With the fondnes of men which thou doest see,
Against Christes wordes cauillation to finde,
The which in the scripture so plaine written be,
And how one with an other do not agree:
Is not this thy trouble, I pray the tell trewe,
It is trueth quod I, euen as thou dost shewe,
Well quod he, I shall shew the more anone,
Then came we in to an hall long and wide,
The like before I neuer loked upon,
Most gorgiously hounge it was on eche side,
With noble storyes which I wyll not hide,
Wrought in fine arrase, with pure silke & golde,
It rauishte my witte this hall to beholde.


Then did I loke vpon the lefte hande,

Exod xxv and xvii


There sawe I the Arke of God purely wrought
Of fine golde as it orderly doth stande

Exod xvi


In the byble, whiche seing I me be thought,

The first figure of the Arke.


Of the stories ther, which to my minde brought,
What the Arke, and all the reste did signifye,
Whiche on the lifte side of this hall did lye.

Gene.xliii The second figure of Melchizedech.


First there I sawe Melchizedech the king
Meting Abraham the great Patriarche
Frō slaughter of the .iiii. kinges, for which thīg
He offred to God in a mystery darke,
Breade & wine, the which thing as I did marke,
A hande in the cloudes wrote this hun before:
Thou arte a priest it saied for euer more.

Psal.cx.


Thē stode ther king Dauid redy wt his penne,
And wrote it in the spirite of prophecy,
Pointing to that priest which shuld saue al men,
Saying thou arte a priest eternally,
After Melchizedeches order truely:
The which when I sawe, I burnt in desire,
To se all the rest my hart was on fyre.

Exod.xii. The thirde figure of the paschal lambe.


There I sawe howe that the Jewes also
Did eate the paschall lambe as God cōmaūded,
When he did saue them from wicked Pharao,
Whiche with all his army was there confounded
In the rede Sea, where he deliuered,
His people drye foote, to shewe his powre great,
In remēbrance wherof, the lambe they did eate.


Nexte to this story I sawe rychely wrought,

Exod.xvi. The fourth figure of Manna.


Nowe that Manna from aboue did discende,
To fede those whō god out of thral had brought
Thus God his goodnes to them did extende:
Kyng Dauid stoode by and this truely pende,
Prophesieng therby a mystery great,
Saying, man the bread of Angels hath eate,
A goodly table then sawe I there spreade,

Levi. xxiiii. The fifth figure of the shewe breade.


By the which the high priestes stode honorably,
And did set theron the holy shewe breade,
Of the whiche none might eate but they only,
Then in that place also I did espye,
Where king Dauid did writ this sentēce cleare:
God geueth meat to those that him truely feare.
Thē as I stode musing these thinges to scāne
I could not with all my wyttes them define,
Then came there to me an auncient man,
Whiche semed to be some noble deuine,
He bad me mine eares to him incline,
And he would open to me by and by,
What all these thinges did truely signifie.
Of that I was glad, and gaue attendaunce,
To here how he would these figures discusse,
Whiche he did truely with noble vtteraunce,
And first of the Arke his saying was thus.
The Arke quod he whiche is so glorious,
Doth signifye Christ his churche be thou sure,
Which hath in it the swete Manna most pure.


This Manna is the holy sacrament,
Of the blessed body and bloud of our Lord,
Whiche he lefte here to be permanent,
As a pledge most sure of our soules comford:
Aarons rodde also doth signifie his worde,
By the whiche his churche is gouerned here,
But by Manna is figurde his body most nere.
Secondly where Melchizedech the king,
Brought furth breade and wine before Abrahā,
That did signifie Christes holy offryng,
Whiche he offred when he to his maundy came,
Christes order of priesthod cōsisteth in the same,
Sith Melchizedeches order in his sacrafice,
Was none other but that, scripture plaine trise,
And where he saieth, thou art a priest for euer,
Did not only signifie Christes eternitee,
But also his order whiche ende shall neuer,
Whiche he ordained, here at his maundie,
Fulfylling Melchizedeches order truely,
Yet is he the priest which doth worke this thinge
In his ministers, dayly ministring.
Stay there sir quod I, by your patience,

Christ is not offred now too merit a new, as he did by his passiō, for that was sufficiētlye done once for all, but we do desire that this sacrifice offered in remembrance of his death may be a means to applye the merite of that his death to unite us.


Old Melchizedeches order only consyst,
In these two thinges, me thinke of congruence,
It doth extende farther or els I haue mist,
Ye for soth quod he who wyll that resyst,
For when Christ offered him selfe by his passion
He became for euer our propiciation.


In consideration wherof we do here,
Offer to the father this swete sacrifice,
Of his blessed sonne, to him moost dere,
Whose death for mercy for vs dayly cryes,
For workes haue we none, that before his eyes,
Are worthy of mercy, therfore we do all,
In that same death for mercy dayly cal.

Exod.xii.


The next figure quod he to this agreeth wel,
Where as the Jewes the paschal lambe did eate
In the remembraunce as scripture doth tell,
Of their deliueraunce by myracle great,

Exod.xiiii.


Out of Egypte, of whiche figure to entreate,
It wyll require a longe circumstaunce,
But lette not the tyme to the be greuaunce,
Egypte the darknes of synne doth signifie,
In the whiche man was after his fall,
And by Pharao is figured the deuill truely,
Under whom man was both subiecte and thral,
And Moyses in figure Christ I may call,
Whiche Moyses ledde the children of Israel,
Through the redde sea from Pharao cruell.
Euen so our Moyses Christ our sauiour,
Deliuered his people through his redde bloud,
From Pharao the deuill and all his hole power,
Under whom man then in great daunger stood:
Now when God by Moyses, was to man thus good
He wilde man yerely for a memoriall,
To eate a lambe which they named the paschall.


Then for as muche as our lord did fore se,
Now the nature of man was corrupted
With forgetfulnes, for the whiche he,
For mens cōmoditee this ordeined,
That they shoulde eate a male lambe vnspotted,
In a remembraunce how they deliuered were
From wicked Pharao as ye before did here.
In like maner our sauiour Christ Jesu,
Ordeined for a perpetuall memorye
A lambe to be eaten our mindes to renewe
In dayly remembraunce of his mercy,
Whiche he procured by his death truely,
The lambe that he lefte was himselfe in dede,
As in the Euangelistes plaine we do reade.
That christ is the lābe it doth plaine appeare.

Joan i.


Beholde the lambe of God, saint John doth say,
That taketh awai the sinnes of the world cleare
Which he did truely by his death that day,
That his fleshe was brokē, none can this denay.
Now then to Christes maundy let vs resorte,
And se there what weight his wordes doth importe.
Christ at his last supper toke bread in his hand:

Math.xxvi.


He blest it, and brake it, and those wordes saied,
This is my body, thus doth his wordes stande,
The whiche for you, saith he, shalbe betrayed.
These were his wordes it can not be denaied.
But he spake thus, quod I, only in figure,
That doth not, quod he, agree with scripture.


Thou must nedes graūt, quoth he, that christ came here
The figures of the olde lawe to fulfyll,
Cheifely all suche as of his cōming were,
And that not with figures, to thinke so were yl,
Whoso affirmeth that, can litle skyll

i.Cor.xi


In the scripture, for thus writteth saint Paule,
That the lawe to the Jewes was in figures al.
And yet this same sacrament is a figure,
But not only of Christes body naturall,
For ye it cōtaineth, but this we read in scripture,
That the fourine of bred, which we se material,
Is a figure of Christes body mysticall,
As to the Corynthes we do plainely reade,
To recite the wordes I thinke shall not nede.
But now to note christes words how thei were spokē
This is my body, that geuē for you shalbe,
Whiche the next day on the crosse was broken
For the sinnes of all men, this by faith we se.
Now that christ is trueth, needes we must agre,
Wel thē, of the bread, truth these words did say.
Which truely was true, if he died the next day.
Thus is Christ the lambe that continuallye
Is eaten of vs in his memoriall,
Because we should not forget his mercy,
Whiche by his death he purchast for vs all.
This to his comming truely continue shall.
The Jewes then eate the lambe in figure onlye,
But we eat the true lābe, the scripture doth try.

Exo.xvi




The Manna also which came from aboue,
To feede Gods people in the wildernes,
Doth signifie this great token of loue,
With whiche Christ doth fede his people doubtlesse
As ye Prophetes saying, here plain doth expresse
The breade of Angels, man hath eate, saith he,
And christ this same breade, nameth hiself to be.

Joan.vi.


I am the breade of lyfe saieth our sauiour,
Whiche from heaven aboue did truely descende,
To geue lyfe to man doth passe mannes power,
I am the true breade, which doth to that extēde:
Manna from hounger, did man only defende,
but who ye eateth of this bread, sure of life shalbe
And the breade that I wyll geue, is my fleshe saieth he.
Came his flesh frō heauē quoth I, that wold I here
For I beleue of trueth, he toke it of Marye,
And yet by your wordes, me thike it doth appere
That ye bread was his flesh which came frō a hie
I thinke this saying true ye can not trye,
For if ye can so, my faith I wyll forsake,
For I do beleue his fleshe he did here take.
Loo, here thy ignoraunce thou dost shew to me,
Did not christ like case, say these wordes plainly:

Joan.iii.


No man ascendeth to heauen but only he,
Which came downe frō heauē, the sonne of man truly,
Which is in heauen, marke what these wordes doth try
the son of mā which is ī heauē, & yet he,
Was in his manhode here, as all men might se.


To discusse that quoth I doth farre passe my wit,
Why wilt thou thē quod he, in thy faith dispute,
Thou wouldest dig a pitte, & thi selfe fall into it,
As many other doth, them selues to cōfute,
But do not thou like case frō thi faith trāsmute,
And now to shew the I wyll take in hand,
Now these two places true together stand.
But first one text I wyll note to the more:

Joan.vi.


What wyll ye say saieth Christ, when ye shal see,
The sonne of man ascende where he was before,
Doth not this text now expresse unto thee,
His manhode in heauen before that to be,
May not I say than, his fleshe is that bread,
Which came frō heauē, wher wt our soules be fed.
Then toke he no fleshe here that I perceiue wel,
Yes forsoth quoth he this dothe not that disproue,
For why, s. John doth writ in his gospel,
That the word was made flesh, euen Gods sōne aboue

Joan.i.


By eternal generacion, none can that remoue,
So God & man was knyt, alwayes to remaine,
But one in personage, though in natures twaine:
Nowe syth our nature vnto God is knyt,
Beyng one in person as I before did say,
To know how this should be, doth passe al mens wyt
Yet that this is true, no man can denay,
But that man is God, and God is man alway:
Now then Christes holy fleshe by this vnitie,
May truely be said alwaye in heaven to be.


Now this heauēly bred vnder which christ is here
The breade of Angels the prophet well may cal,
For the foode of Angels is the glorie clere
Of the blessed godhead most celestiall,
With the whiche godhead Christ was euer equal
So then where christ is, the godhead is alway,
Then the bread of Angels we eate, we may say.
Then, quod he, here the shew breade is set out

Leui.xciiii.


Wherof none but the priestes alone might eate,
The which doth signifie, no christen mā wil dout
This most blessed bred, which is of vertu great,
The shew bread was used as an heauenly meat:
For none but the priestes God did therto admit,
And all the people did reuerence to it.
This most heauenly meat of christes fleshe and bloud,
Being, as I saied, the perfitte veritie,
Figured by this shew bread, by which ye priestes stood,
Only of priestes also eaten here must be:
Of priestes made by order, nay so take not me,
But both priestes & kings, as Peter doth us cal,

i.Pet.ii.


Which offreth to god the sacrifice spirituall.
Now we are kinges, & priestes thou must understand:
We are not all priestes in ministracion,
No more then we are kinges gouerning a lande:
Yet kinges we are by Peters nominacion,
And so are we priestes by Paules probacion!
Make your bodies saieth he, a liuely sacrifice.

Roma.ii.


By this mean & such other al mē priests he tries.


He may be called a king, learned mē doth say,
Which doth his carnall affections subdue,
But if he do not that as muche as he may,
He is in this case, neither king nor prieste true:
But if he be a king thus then will insue,
He is a worthy priest so spiritually,
Whose godly workes then God doth accept hye.
Now this kingly priesthod whoso doth attaine,
Without the feare of God it can neuer be,
Thē ye prophetes promisse, here doth folow plain:
God geueth meat to those, that feare hi saith he:
Geueth he meat to none else yis forsoth, we se
By his gifte infidelles haue their sustenaunce,
Thē doth he mean meat, of an hygher substaūce.
And what that meat is, christ doth plain declare:
My fleshe, saieth he is very meate in dede,
And my bloud is drinke, this is no figure bare,
These wordes are plain, the gospel ye maist rede:
now thou seist to what end this figure doth lede
To the faithful christ his fleshe & blod doth geue:
Then they eate it not, quoth I, that beastly do liue.
Nay I say not so, thou dost me mistake,
For euen the wicked receiueth Christes body,
Or els our receite should it his body make,
And if I so ment, I should meane wickedlye,
For Paule saith, who that eateth it vnworthily,
Eateth his own iudgement, because no differēce
He maketh of christes body, this is plain euidēce.


They say quoth I that S. Austen doth say,
That wicked mē eath not Christes flesh & bloud,
Tho they eate the sacrament euery day,
Upon which thei cōclude that none but the good
Only eateth christes fleshe, this with stout mood
They do defende and say, this doth trye,
That it is not Christ, but to the good only.
Thou must vnderstand, quoth he, that this worde Jesus
Is as much to say as a sauiour true,
And to all men Christes wyll is to be thus,
Yet is he not so, the scripture do shewe,
But why, because they folowe not vertue,
By whiche they loose the benefite of that name,
Yet Jesus is a sauiour thou wilt grāt the same.
Blessed are those saith christ whiche are not hurt by me
Who can be hurt by Christ, who is all goodnes,
Truely suche as wicked and vnfaithfull be,
Whiche receiueth him not after his worthines,
Whose iugemēt, as I sayd, s. Paule doth expresse
Now like as Christ was with the Jewes presēt
So is he with vs in the sacrament.
Christ is not quod I, with vs now present,
As he was with the Jewes, I mean not so quoth he
That he so should be, is not conueniente,
For with them he walked in his humanitee,
Fulfylling all thinges that fulfyld should be,
Which done vp to heauen he did ascende,
And frō thence shall come againe at the last end.


Than can he not be here, quoth I, by your owne tale.
That canning, quod he, will not be let by me:
For if I said, as thou saist, we should both faile,
But the tale that I tell, if it mine should be,
My canning could neuer proue unto the,
Now his body could be both here and aboue,
But loking who spake it, faith will hovv remoue.
Now wher saint Austen saith ye the wicked here
Eateth not Christes fleshe, but the good only,
Meanes not, but that Christ is eatē eueriwhere,
Both of good and ill, him selfe doth plaine trye:
The euill doth eate it, and not eate it truely:
Sacramentally thei eat Christes fleshe & bloud,
Though not to their soule health, as doth all the good.
Now those that do not eate it to that effecte,
Are counted then not to eate it at all,
As he that with any sickenes is infecte,
And digesteth not his meat, it norisheth but smal
For which as not eaten be counted it shall.
Euē so he that eateth Christ with a faith vntru,
Is counted not to eate, because hurt doth ensue.
Christ must be Jesus, to those that him receiue,
Or els to their hurt, they receiue him, we se,
As did the euil Jewes, by this thou maist perceiue
That for to eat Christe s flesh, in such sort must be,
To nourishe his soule in Christ, or els he,
Eates not a sauiour, though it be Christ in dede,
But greater iudgemēt, as in S. Paul we rede.

i.Cor.xi




By this thou mayest perceiue, s. Austens minde,
Is not to deny Christ in the sacrament,
For ye truth ī his workes most plain ye maist fide,
Therfore nothing lesse then thou saist he ment,
As vnto the I haue proued euidente.
I lyke your proffe, quoth I, I wyl no more contend.
Then for this time, quoth he, I haue made an ende.
Nowe whan he had all these figures declared,
Sodainly he vanisht frō me a way.
Then whan I sawe that, I me selfe prepared
To se more in this hall, and then with out stay,
I loked on my ryght hand, on the which side lay
But two stories of the newe testament,
Which were the verites that the figures mente.
The first was the solemne supper of our lord,
At the whiche his body he did consecrate,

Erasm. in his paraphrases frō the.xxviiii.Luc.Hebr.ix.


Plasing a newe sacrifice for the comforde,
Of his newe churche, which shall not consūmate,
Untyll he come againe hir to congregate,
To raigne wt him: which sacrifice he did ordaine,
In place of all the olde, tyll than to remaine.
Next vnto this was very rychly wrought,
Nowe Christ on the crosse suffred passion,
Wherby all mankind with his bloud he bought,
Procuring therby eternall redemption,
Leuing on his parte, scripture doth mention,
Not one iote concerning his death, & suffraunce,
Therfore he is not now offred, but ī remēbraūce.


For there remaineth no sacrifice for sinne,
By any shedding of bloud or death suffring:
For Christ ones by deth Gods fauour so did win,
He needes to dye no more: for that one offring
Was sufficient, whiche death as remembring,
We offer to God, as was tolde me before,
As our cheife meane of mercy to him euermore.
Then betwen these stories stood David ye king,
With a scrole in his hande all alonge spreed,
And indifferently to these stories pointing,
This verse he had writtē which I theron redde:
Thou arte a priest for euermore, it fed,

Psalm cx. Hebr.vii.


After Melchizedeches, order then in fine
I thought of the worde tolde me by the deuine.
This done euen sodainlye I did espye,
A goodly lady of beauty excellent,
Decte with golde and stone wondrous costly,
Whiche glistred like the sterres in the firmamēt:
Then the Euangelistes I sawe redy bente,
Hir to defende with the apostell saint Paule,
And also there was the ancient doctours all,
This lady on a thre cornerde stoue did stande,
In the whiche, Christus was grauen very well,
And an hoost consecrate she helde in hir hande,
With muche more reuerence then I can tell,
Then stood the Euāgelistes ech with his gospel
And S. Paule also, eche shewing euident
The place wher they defende this holy sacramēt.


Then al the doctors, toke of thē for their defence,
Eche of them a sworde sharpe and durable,
And faith toke them targattes of noble science,
By which to withstande, al men they were able.
Thus they stood stoutly lyke men firme & stable,
Alway redy with these wepones to fight,
Against all that woulde not lady faith vse right.
Then sawe I on their targattes written plaine
Scutum fidei, and farthermore lyke case,
Upon their swordes uerbum dei certaine,
Thus orderly they stood eche in his place,
This lady to defende assisted with grace,
Whiche had on her breest, in letters of golde,
Fides catholica, moost goodly to beholde.
Then I seing all this, with great reuerence,
On my knees to Christ I kneled by and by,
And with diuine honour as God in one assence,
With the father and the holy ghost truely,
I did him there worship in that mystery.

Reason rebeleth againste [illeg.]leth


Then reason in a corner spied me right soone,
And calde me Idolater, for that I had done.
Then, quoth I to him, why dost thou reproue me
For geuing of honour, where honour is due:
I would agree, quod he, if I that could se,
But til then, I wyll not thinke it to be true.
I se but very bread, therfore doth ensewe,
It is but bread, which is not honour worthy,
For whiche I call it plaine Idolatry.


Thou maist se here, quoth I, that scripture doth hold
That under the forme of bread is christes body,
Which here is defended by the doctours olde:
Do not all these proue the a very nody:
To dispute this, quod he, I wyll not stody:
For why of me selfe my power is but small,
But being ioyned with man then dispute I shal.
Thou knowest, quod he, that I am but a powre,
Geuen by god to mans soule, to know good & ill,
I have no grosse body, though at this houre
I appeare to the thus, because thou canst no skill,
Of a gifte as I am, but this say I wyll.
In that I am a gifte in mānes soule to dwel,
The number of my dwellinges no tōgue can tel.
Therfore now seing that I can not attaine
Now Christes body vnder fourme of bread cā be
Some men I wyll sure, earnestly constraine
To assaulte this faith, whiche I here do se.
For in no case, I wyll thereto agrree.
Therfore into some heades suche blastes I wyll blowe,
That I trust anone her cleane to ouerthrowe.
Then in a great fume he vanished away,
Which seing, towardes faith I turned my face.
O man quod she now in me thy hart stay,
And let not reason out of thy hart race
This holy sacrament, called good grace,
For the great profyte, that to man it doth bring,
If he it receiue with faith according.


Then with that sodainely came rushing in

The firste assaulte of the sacrament, by Berengarius.


Reason with a stāderde, which would not bowe,
Faring as though al the feelde he would winne,
Crying thou false faith defende thy selfe nowe.
And on his stādard was writtē, hovv hovv hovv.
His captaines name therō also was writtē thus
The noble archedeacon Berengarius.
Then when I sawe this I was abashed,
Cheifly to se them come for suche intent.
Asyde for a tyme then I reculed:
But not fro the sight of the sacrament,
Nor out of the reache of faith I neuer went,
But ioyned my selfe vnto the doctours olde,
Whiche to defende faith did styll together holde.
Then vewing these warriours of wicked minde.
I meene Berengarius, with his retenue,
Their wepons were such, that I mused to finde
Any suche, excepte it were of a turke or Jewe,
Whiche are the enemies that doth faith persue.
Turkey bowes they bare all, on whiche I did se
This worde plainly written incredulitie.
Then eche of them had an arowe in his hāde,
The which had heades very sharp, named error,
Fetherd with scripture falsly vnderstād,
Because to perse hartes they should haue ye more powre.
Than began they all to shote a great scowre:
And gaue a sore assaulte with an out crye.
Hoc est, quod they, this is, doth signifie.


Then the olde doctours hering this out crye,
Made by christen men, thought it monstruous.
And they sawe the arrowes of errour flye
To distroy this sacrament moost glorious,
then thei with their targetes, like men vertuous
Bare of their great shoote, and then againe,
With their swordes they cut al these arrowes in twaine,
Then soberly eche man did say his sentence,
According as the Euangelistes doth tell,
Affirminge the trueth in the litterall sense,
Alowing no glose that trueth to repell,
But to be taken, as it standes in the gospell:
Whiche is, hoc est corpus meum, to be ment,
That Christ lefte his own body in ye sacrament.
Then as Berengarius was preparing,
More arrowes against the sacrament to shote,
A number of doctours was redy, not sparyng
Their studies to spende his errour to roote
Out of his hart, so that he coulde not boote
Any more against the sacrament to striue,
Then with their swordes to the groūde they did him driue.
Then with that reason did let his stādard fal,
And at the foote of faith he fell prostrate.
Then Berengarius for Gods grace did call,

This Berengarius recanted thrice.


And forsoke his errour so contaminate,
Doinge penaunce therfore after suche rate,
That God was pleased, & his penaūce did take,
As he doth of all those that doth sinne forsake.


Then this assaulte for that time finished,
And faith stood constaunt as she did before,
Holding the sacrament nothing diminished,
But stood in honour as it did euermore.
Then of people I sawe there many a score,
Which gaue to the sacrament honour diuine,
Without any checke therefro to recline.
Thus lady faith quietly stoode a great while,
Tyll sathan the deuill therat had enuy,
Which sought busely some men to begyle,
As he had done before ful deceitfully.
The which came to passe experience did trye.
For anone I hard a great trumpet blowe,
Thé some enemies was nigh, by that I did know
Then came in reason with a standard new,

The secōde assaulte of the sacrament, by Wykcleiffe and his felowes Hierome of Prage, Hus and zuinglius, &c.


Which had theron the same superscription,
That the other had, which did faith persewe,
Changing but only in one condicion
There captaines names, which had the tuicion,
Of that wicked hoost, thē was John Wyikcleffe,
Hierom of Prage & Husse workers of mischeif.
All their weapones were of the same sorte
As the other were, sauing as I did here
Their out crye was so terrible and short,
As though lady faith thei wold cleane ouerbere.
Their arrowes flew so thicke, my flesh shoke for fere.
Thē al their cheife crie as these arrowes cāe

Joan.vi.


Was these wordes, caro non prodest quicquam.


Then the doctors all their targets furth did hold,
Frō their cruel shot faith for to desende,
And wt their swerdes like warriours most bold,
Thei stroke at them fore, but yet thei would not bend,
But arrogātly much tyme thei did spend
Against lady faith, but nothing preuailing,
The doctors so well withstode their assailyng.
Who all with one voice did wholy agre,
That this text, the fleshe doth profite nothing,
Was in this sense onely taken to be,
Nothing it profites after the Jewes meanyng,
For thei vnderstode a carnal eating,
As though thei should eate it in gobbets dedde,
As we do eate fleshe wherewith we are fedde.
Whiche errour to remoue, Christ before sayth:
The spirit it is that quickneth, as he would say,
To eate this fleshe of mine as your iudgemētes hath
Conceiued, so would profite you no way,
But because therby profite haue ye may,
Ioyned with the holy spirit ye shal haue it plain,
By whiche to geue life, the fleshe shall attaine.
Thinke ye that I meane that ye my flesh shal eat
In this forme, as I stande here before you all
Mangled out in pieces, as ye do other meat?
Nay, that ye are deceiued well perceiue ye shall.
For this body ye shall se by power potencial,
Ascend wher it came fro. What will ye say than?
Then shal ye well know I am more then a man.


Thus the doctours all did affirme and say,
That of Christes words this was the perfite sēse,
Prouing that Christ these wordes to the Iewes did lay
Because of his godhead they shuld haue intelligēce,
And then to his words to haue geuē credēce.
But yet thei wold not beleue more then they sawe,
Whiche was his māhod, his godhod they would not knowe.
Nedes would thei know how thei his flesh shuld eat,
Or els they would not beleue him at all.
Plainly he tolde them of this heauenly meate,
But in contention with Christ they would fall,
the tyme thei wold not tary, but stil on Christ cal
With a doubtful hovve, whiche Christ knew full well,
Therfore howe they should eat it, Christ would not tell.
But afterwarde to those that would not cōtend,
But wt hūble silence Christes wordes did beleue,
At the tyme whiche he before did intende,
He gaue them his fleshe their soules to releue,
Under suche a fourme, that it did not greue
Their stomakes, for vnder ye forme of bread it lay
With whiche their bodies were fed euery day.
Yet these enemies of Christ hearing all this,
Would not in any case ther vnto agre:
But cryed that all they had sayd amys,
And that in their sense taken it must be:
Whiche was, that Christes fleshe could profite in no degre
To be eatē: & then ye doctors this seyng
With their swordes droue them away, they had there no beyng.


Thus when wt their words thei had ouerthrown
This wicked host, which agaist Christ did striue,
That lōg after thei wer neither seen nor knowē,
Tyl that the deuil another drift did dryue
Against fayth, the whiche plainly to discriue:
When fayth a great while had stande at a stay,
New trumpettes I heard blowe, & great horses bray.
Nowe as my duetie was, & as I did before,
I worshipped Christ there with honor diuine.
In came reason, and with him many a score,
And at this my dede they did sore repyne,
Saiyng, an idol I made of bread and wyne.
Then sawe I their standardes, whiche were in numbre thre
Their names I wyll tell you, as I did them se.
The first stādard had theron Martine Luther,

The third assault of ye sacrament by Luther and his felowes.


Whiche of that wicked host was cheif captaine,
He gaue his assault like a wycked tuter,
With great gunshot, but yet for to be plaine,
He shot not so sore as did the other twayne.
For in their crye, but a signe thei did it make.
But Luther and his the litteral sense did take,
Whiche was, that hoc est, must litterally
Be taken as it standes, as Christ had it tolde,
But yet because bread remayned to his eye,
That it was bread styl, styfly he did hold,
And yet Christes body, that by Iudas was sold.
But thei wer sore withstād by the doctors stout.
Then with that Luther on saint Paul cried out.


I will sayth Luther take witnes here of Paul,
Whiche I am sure spake by the holy ghost.
For euen as it is, bread he doth it call:
And you maister doctors in eche place almost,
Where ye treate of this matter this I dare bost,
You call it bread also, defende this and ye can,
Then to honor bread God hath forbidden man.
Then one of the doctors hearing this reason,
In person of all began to dispute.
Errour quod he with the is not geason.
Why doste thou thy selfe madly confute
With saint Paule, and vs after the same sute?
Nay quod Luther, your own wordes agaist you I lay
For I am sure you cal it bread, as I say.
Saint Paule quod ye doctor doth cal it bread,
Not meanyng it is so, but doth so appeare:
Because it so was our iudgementes is led,
To call it bread styll, as though it bread were,
The whiche kynd of speche ye scripture doth here,
Whiche sayth that ye rods of Aaron did deuoure,
The rods of the Egyptians made by the deuils power.
Yet were they no roddes, but serpentes aliue,
But because thei were rods, rods they be called.
Also when Christ in Galile by prerogatiue

Joan.ii.


Turned water to wyne, and then commaunded
To geue it to ye bridegrome, which anone thei did
When he had tasted of the water, sayth S. John:
Here he calde it water, when it was wine aloue.


Euen so saint Paule and all these doctors here
Calth the sacrament bread, because bread we se,
Which proues it no more bread, then the serpents rods were
Nor ye wyne water in Cana Galile:
But here nowe one thing obiected may be.

Obiection


The serpentes were seen serpentes natural,
And the wyne tasted wyne material.
So here was two of the senses satisfied,
Therfore that this was true, reason must agre,
But now howe can this be verified,
In the sacrament, where we no chaunge do se,
In sight nor in tast that perceiued can be?
Where the senses cānot reache, faith doth attain,

Answere.


This for our soules health, Christ hath lefte vs plaine.
For him selfe vnto saint Thomas did say,
Thou beleuest, sayth he, because thou dost se:
But I say to the, blessed be all they,
That though they se not, yet wil beleue in me.
To beleue in Christ what iudgest thou to be?
Is it not to beleue all that Christ doth teache
In mysteries of fayth aboue reasons reache?
Of the whiche among all that Christ hath left here,
This sacrament doth all other excel:
First, because Christ is there & yet seen no where
But by fayth, which in this doth reasō down fel,
Whiche with all our senses against it doth rebel,
And yet fayth doth byd vs it to defende,
Whiche we intende to do vnto our lyues ende.


Now while this doctor & Luther talked thus,
In came a standard all abrode displayed,
Under whiche came in Occolampadius,

The fourth assault of ye sacrament by Occolāpadius and his felowes.


Faring as though he wold make thē all afrayde,
And agaist the sacrament like a beast he brayde,
And as did Beringarius, so did he it assayle,
But the doctours defeded it he could not preuail.
Then Decolampadius in his assaultyng
Heard Luther defende Christes presence bodily
To be vnder the sacrament, & not withstanding
The substaunce of bread to byde with the body,
For the whiche he did reproue Luthers foly,
Saiyng that no learned man would agre,
Two substances in one body to be,
Christ was promist quod he to be incarnate,
So that God & man one substaunce should be,
But who euer red he should be unpanate,
And take the nature of bread in vnitee
Of person, and so make his natures thre,
Of the whiche, one wyll corrupt we spye,

Thou shalte not suffre thy holy one to see corruption.Psal.xxv.


And then shalbe false, the prophetes prophecie.
These inconueniences with diuers other mo,
Decolampadius plainly declared,
With the doctors all confirmed to be so:
But then to speake more he him selfe prepared.
For to be mistaken very sore he feared,
All inconueniences cleane to put away,
It was but onely a signe of Christ he did say.


Thus Luther and he began to contend,
Though thei both did erre, yet did thei not agre,
Of the whiche debate or they had made an ende.
Carolstadius cummyng anone I did see,

The fift assault of the sacrament by Carolstadius and his felowes.


His assault before Luther gaue he,
But hearing them newe gloses to inuent,
To lose his fame so, he was not content.
Fyrst he hearing Luther defende so stoutly
That hoc est corpus meum, must be vnderstand,
That with bread was Christes own very body,
And then on the other side how he was withstād
By Decolampadius whiche that text scand,
That hoc est must nedes be, this doth signifie,
And stepping betwene, he sware thei both did lye
Than of proud Nēbroth I though at that houre
Whom God preuented with all his company,
At buildyng of the Babilonical towre.
By confusion of tongues God letted their foly,
And so did he theirs, experience did trye,
For when they thought lady faith to ouerrunne,
They were as nye as when they fyrst begunne.
For when the other twayne as I before say,
Had these wordes of Christ so interpretate,
He affirmed plain that thei toke the wrong way,
And that the spirit of truth did his heart inflate:
The sēse of these words sayth he, are in this rate
To be vnderstande, not est for signifie,
But est, for is, euen as the text doth lye.


So then, this is my body, Christ did say plaine.
But to what pointed he, when he did so say,
To the bread? nay there deceiued are ye twayne:
He pointed to him selfe sitting there that day,
Not meanyng of the bread by any way,
But that thei should eate it in the remembrance,
Both of his great loue, and also his sufferance.
Then eche of them affirmed his owne sense
To be the very truth, although contrarie
They were eche to other, they stode in defence
Of their sayinges, and so beganne to vary.
Yet, though eche showde him selfe aduersarie
Unto ladie fayth, yet at the last they fell,
Through pryde one against another to rebel.
But when the doctors harde Carolstadius
Of christes plain wordes, so false a glose to take:
O wicked man, quod thei, herken vnto vs,
What scriptur hail ye that for thi part doth make?
For what cause toke Christ bread & these words spake:
Take, eat, this is my body, marke this thing well,
And to what thing Christ did point this wyll the tell.
Christes taking of the bread in his holy hand,
His geuing of thankes, blessing and breaking
And bidding them eate, can no way be scande,
But that his act did cōcurre with his speaking,
Saiyng, this is my body, what playner thing
Cā there be, to proue that that which thei did eat
Was his owne body, that most heauenly meat?


Of all foolishe gloses, that is moost madde,
To say that of the bread Christ ment not at all,
And if that should be true, then the Jewes had
A better repast in eating their paschall,
That was fleshe & bloud, & had life naturall,
Then wt christ in figure they were truely fedde,
But we haue not so muche, if Christ ment not of the breade.
When he had this saied, these wretches all
Began against faieth to be more vehement,

Euery kings dome deuided in itselfe shall be desolate. Math.xii.


But then because in to sectes, they did fall,
Hauing amonge them no kinde of agrement,
Conserning the right faieth in the sacrament,
Eche against other his fancye did defende,
Thus brauling with thēselues this assaulte did ende.
Then lyke brainles beastes they fell in decay,
Lyke those that had sought their own cōfusion,
Leuing lady faieth in hir olde godly staye,
To whom all the doctours in conclucion,
Submitted them selues with out abusion,
And vnto Christ there in the sacrament,
They kneled downe with deuotion reuerent.
Then stood lady faieth quietly in rest,
Holding the sacrament honorably,
Yet some now and then would haue hir opprest,

Meane souldiers scythe. Lambert, Tyndall, &c.


Whiche were souldiours of wicked heresye,
Assaulting hir ofte very cruelly,
Whom for to hurte when they sawe they lacked power,
They fled backe all to the tente of errour.


Wherin they did rest, I sawe them no more,
Then kneled I downe doyng reuerence,
Unto Christ there as I had done before,
Suppossing the deuilles deadly diligence,
Had bene debarde by the doughty defence,
Of all the doctours, and as I there stood,
I harde horses bray as they had bene woode.
Then began my hart for great feare to qu ake

The vi. assault agaīst the sacrament here in Englāde.


He thought al the world against faith was bēt,
But then faith bad me a good hart to take,
For this assaulte, quod she, wyll be feruent,
But looke that fro me thou be not absent,
And take here, quod she, this target and sworde,

The target of faith and the sworde of the word of God.


Glad was I then of hir to heare that worde.
Then as I toke these myselfe to defende,
In came reason whiche a standard did beare,
Upon the whiche in blacke letters was pende.
The names of al those which his captaines wer,
Whō when I beheld like byshoppes did apppere,
Whiche in my mynde was a straunge sight to se,
Byshoppes on that sort disgysed to be.
The first was two Archbyshops whō I did know,
The third Rydley, which on the quene did raile,
The fourth was Hoper, the fifte was Barlowe,
The syxt was Poinet, & the seuenth was Bale,
The eight was Brown, & the ninth Couerdale,
Farrer and Tayler made twelue with Skory,
To se them in this case my hart was sory.


Their foote mē thei had which by thē did rōne
As Rogers, Rose, Horne, Saūders & Harlay,
Cardmarker, Becon Crouley, and Sampson,
Peter Hart, Carter, and olde Bylney,
Tomson, Kyrkame, Douglas, Knokes, & Makbray
Bradforde, old Steuens & yong Samuel,
With the two Turners, and mo then I can tell.
For whom I did then most hartly praye,
That our lord in time would turne their hartes all,
For by their yll doctrine many a daye,
They haue caused many from faieth to fall,
But God graunte that his churche Catholicall,
They may learne to knowe and to hir to come,
Then shall they reigne with hir in his kingdome.
In armour as blacke as any ynke they were,
And on the creast of their helmetes on hye,
A womans foresleue eche of them did bere,
The which as I toke it, did signifye,
That for womens loues their manhoodes they wold trie,
Turkey bowes eche of them had redy bent.
To those out therof their errours pestilent.
Then sawe I the cheife byshop of them all,

Cranmer.


Rushe to the doctours vnreuerently,
And rent out of their bookes in gobetes small,
Peices for his purpose, whiche peruersly,
He chewde with his teeth, and then spitefully,
Shot them at lady faieth in pellet wyse,
And beastly did the sacrament despise.


Then certaine byshoppes on lady faithes part

Catholyke byshoppes. Winchester. London. Dorcester. Chechester and duresme.


Began against him hir stoutly to defende,
Which when I sawe did comfort my hart.
But then or this their debate had an ende,
The deuyl new souldiors against faith did sede,
Whiche came vnder the standerd of ignoraunce,
Of whom selfe wyl had the chiefe gouernaunce.
By helpe of these the byshoppes effeminate,

The byshopes aboue named.


Against lady faith did so much preuaile,
That certain of hir men to them was captiuate,
And for hir sake was laide fast in gayle,
Then before hir was drawne such a vaile,

The dayly oblation was taked away.


That she was so hid, fewe men could hir se,
Tyll God sawe time, that seene she should be.
For the whiche as I a longe time did pray,
I harde trompetes blowe very swete and hye,

The cōmynge in of quene Mary.


Then did my hart reioyce putting care away,
He thought the sounde was of some victory,
With that comming in I sawe sodainly,
A noble standard all of white and grene,
Imbrodred with roses royally beseene.
After the whiche standard did enter in,
One tryumphantly as the cheife captaine,
Whiche was a crowned quene and vyrgin.
Who seing lady faieth so had in disdaine,
Drue backe the vaile that I might se plaine,
Lady faieth styll holding the sacrament,

The dayly offring set by againe.


To the which the quene did knele continent.


Geuing to our lorde harty laudes and prayse,
Whiche had geuen to hir so great a victory,
Against hir enemies in so fewe dayes,
With out bloude shede most miraculously,
Commaunding streight to set at libertye,
All these whiche imprisonment did take,

The prisoners deliuered which suffred for lady faiethes sake.


And were punished for lady faiethes sake.
Whiche done euen sodainely as I there stoode,
Al that I had seene vanisht fro my sight,
The which sodaine chaūge made me chaūge my mood
But thē Morpheus came again to me right,
And bade me feare nothing, thē fast as he might
He brought me to my bed, & wt that I did wake,
Then to write this visiō some paines I did take.
Finis.


The booke speaketh.

Deedes must I speke, thoughe I be dōme,
Some mennes malice for to preuent,
In whose handes when I chaūce to come
Be sure I shall of euyll iudgement,
Because myne aucthour doth inuent,
By matter in a dreame to se,
As a mans dreame they wyll counte me.
For the whiche here as wysdome is,
Who that in ieste doth me so call,
For an aunswere let them take this.
Some wordes written by James and Paule,
In Luthers bookes plaine finde ye shall,
Called their dreame because he knewe,
That his errours they ouerthrewe.
In lyke maner I do not doute,
But that because I do inuay,
Against all suche as went aboute,
The perfite faieth for to decay,
Some men which nowe fauour that way,
Haply my matter to defame,
Wyll saye that I haue a meete name.
But sith as I do say before,
That James and Paule they do deny,
And by Christes wordes to passe nomore,
Then they do now, no cause se I,
To meruaile though they say I lye,
And only dreame all that I tell,
Though first and last, they knowe full well.


Cheiflye they knowe whiche learned be,
That these assaultes hath trulye been,
As for the laste, all we did see,
Tyll God did sende our noble quene,
Whiche nowe wyll haue as hath been seene,
The christen faieth truely confest,
As Gods worde hath it plaine exprest.
Therfore I say, for to conclude,
What they do say I do not passe,
And mine authour thoughe they delude,
Yet wyll I shewe plaine who he was,
Because no lawe I wyll trespasse,
Myles Hogarde, men do call his name,
Who to this ende did me first frame.
Finis: