An apology or answer in defence of the Church of England with a brief…An apologie or answere in defence of the Churche of Englande with a briefe…

Much less cause have they to complain of our departing, and to call us again to be fellows and friends with them, and to believe as they believe. Men ⟨image 124⟩say that one Cobdon a Lacedaemonian, when he was sent Ambassador to the king of the Persians to treat of a league, and found by chance them of the court playing at dice, he returned straight way home again, leaving his message undone. And when he was asked why he did flack to do the things which he had received by public commission to do, he made answer, he thought it should be a great reproach to his common wealth, to make a league with Dicers. But if we should content our selves to return to the Pope and his popish errors, and to make a covenant not only with dicers, but also with men farr• more ungracious and wicked then any dicers be: Besides that this should be a great blot to our good name, it should also be a very dangerous matter both to kindle God's wrath against be, and to clog and condemn our own souls forever. For of very truth we have departed from him whom we saw had ⟨image 125⟩blinded the whole world this many an hundred year. From him who to far presumptuously was wont to say, he could not err, and whatsoever he did no mortal man had power to condemn him, neither kings nor Emperors, nor the whole Clergy, nor yet all the people in the world together, no and though he should carry away with him to Hell a thousand souls. From him who toke upon him power to command not only men but even God's Angels, to go, to return, to lead souls into Purgatory, and to bring them back again when he list him self: whom Gregory said, with out all doubt is the very forerunner and standard bearer of Antichrist, and hath utterly forsaken the catholic faith: From whom also those ringleaders of ours, who now with might and main resist the Gospel, & the truth which they know to be the truth, have or this departed every one of their own accord and good will, and ⟨image 125⟩would even now also gladly depart from him, if the note of inconstancy & shame and their own estimation among the people were not a let unto them. In conclusion, we have departed from him to whom we were not bound, and who had nothing to lay for him self, but only I know not what virtue or power of the place where he dwelleth, and a continuance of secession.