The Pope confuted The holy and apostolic Church confuting the Pope. The first action.…The Pope confuted The holy and apostolique Church confuting the Pope. The first action.…

A DEFENCE OF THE holy and Apostolic Church, against the Bishop of Rome. THE FIRST ACTION.

A DEFENCE OF THE holy and Apostolyke Church, against the Bishop of Rome. THE FIRST ACTION.

Howe long at the length will you abuse our gentle suff• raunce,¹ ye Pope of Rome? Howe long shall your fury and counterfeit hypocrisy delude us? What kind of inordinate licentiousness is this, that so much diste••pereth you? What doeth your outrageous insolencie import? what doeth it practise? whether will i• ra•nge• what measure or end of this your intolerable […] and tyranny shall we look for at your hands at the last •have you so shamefully shaken off all shamefastness all feeling and insight of humanity and common reason: that knowing both heaven and earth conspired against your destruction, through your monstrous and manifold treacheries, horrible and unmeasurable murders, beholding daily with your eyes, so many, so manifest arguments, and plain demonstrations, as it were fore warnings of your utter overthrow, and can none of all the same mollify your mind any thing at all? Can they nothing at all restrain you from outrage? what? doeth not this so palpable lightsomeness of Christs Gospel, this so glorious majesty of the trueth glistering as the Sunshine in midday, menacing, I know not what horrible confusion of your kingdom, the pomp of your tottering Throne already rent asunder, and for the most part darkened and lef• succourless: doeth not the blood of so many ⟨image 6⟩Martyrs, the testimonies of so many Doctors: the […] of the people: The secrete determinations, and foreiugementes, yea not only secrete determinations, but the open speeches, and frank voices of all the godly, wherewith they do generally all denounce, detest, and condemn you for the very Antichrist: doeth not the apparent gestures and frowning countenances of all sorts of men: doth not the sting of your own conscience at the least, nor any regard of shame: doeth not the friendly alliance of so many Cities united in one, with unseparable hands of mutual league, apparent even to your face, the daily protestations of all people, the Lances and Swords of princes, sharpened with deadly hate, and et an edge against you, and even now bending their main force to your destruction, the prepared power of people and Nations: the inward heart burnings of the greatest dominions of the world, yea their very nails scarcely restrainable from your present aking in peers, doth nothing of all these, no one of all these (I say) move you any jo at all?