Again, thou hast an Obligation 1in thy hand, and I ask thee, what hast thou there, and thou sayest, I have here an hundred pounds: why (say I) there is nothing but paper, ink, and wax: oh but by this sayest thou, I will ⟨image 90⟩recover an hundred pounds, that is as good. So beloved, this is as good, that under these signs, you receive the virtue of Christs body and blood by faith, as if you did eat his body, and drink his blood indeed, which is horrible to think that any should devour their God, thinking thereby to worship him, never any Heretic nor Idolater conceived so grossly of their God, before the Papist. We read of a people which did eat men, but never of any people which did eat their God. All the Apostles say, that it was needful that Christ should take our flesh, but no Apostle saith, that it is needful that we should take Christs flesh; for all the blessings of Christ are apprehended by faith, and nothing is fit to apprehend him whom we see not but ⟨image 90⟩faith: and therefore one of their own pillars said, Believe, and thou 2hast eaten. Faith doth more in religion than the mouth, or else we might say with the woman, Blessed 3are the breasts which gave thee suck, and so none should be blessed but Mary: but Mary was not blessed, because Christ was in her body, but because Christ was in her hart, and least this should seem incredible unto you, because Mary is called blessed among Women. When Christ hard the woman say, Blessed are the breasts which gave thee suck, he replied unto her, Blessed are they which hear the word of God, and keep it, these are my Brethren, and Sisters, and Mother 4(saith Christ) as though the rest were no kin to him in heaven, though they were kin in earth. Thus if Christ were in thy ⟨image 91⟩body, and thou shouldest say as this woman, Blessed is the body which hath thee in it, nay would Christ say, Blessed is the hart which hath me in it. If Mary were no whit better for having Christ in her arms, nor for having him in her body, how much better art thou, for having him in thy belly where thou canst not see him? must the sun needs come to us, or else cannot his heat and light profit us, nay, it doth us more good, because it is so far off: so this sun is gone from us, that he might give more light unto us, which made him say, It is good for you that I go from you;
Againe, thou hast an Obligation 1in thy hand, and I aske thee, what hast thou there, and thou sayest, I haue heere an hundreth pounds: why (say I) there is nothing but paper, inke, and waxe: oh but by this sayst thou, I will ⟨image 90⟩recouer an hundreth pounds, that is as good. So beloued, this is as good, that vnder these signes, you receyue the virtue of Christes bodie and bloud by faith, as if you did eate his body, and drinke his bloud indeede, which is horrible to thinke that any should deuoure their God, thinking thereby to worship him, neuer any Heretike nor Idolater conceyued so grosly of their God, before the Papist. We reade of a people which did eate men, but neuer of any people which did eate their God. All the Apostles say, that it was needfull that Christ should take our flesh, but no Apostle sayth, that it is needefull that wee shoulde take Christes flesh; for all the blessings of Christ are apprehended by faith, and nothing is fit to apprehend him whome we see not but ⟨image 90⟩faith: and therefore one of their owne pillars said, Beleeue, and thou 2hast eaten. Faith doth more in religion than the mouth, or else we might say with the woman, Blessed 3are the breasts which gaue thee sucke, and so none should be blessed but Mary: but Mary was not blessed, because Christ was in her body, but because Christ was in her hart, and least this should seme incredible vnto you, because Mary is called blessed among Women. When Christ hard the woman say, Blessed are the brests which gaue thee sucke, he replied vnto her, Blessed are they which heare the word of God, and keepe it, these are my Brethren, and Sisters, and Mother 4(saith Christ) as though the rest were no kin to him in heauen, though they were kin in earth. Thus if Christ were in thy ⟨image 91⟩body, and thou shouldest say as this woman, Blessed is the body which hath thee in it, nay would Christ say, Blessed is the hart which hath me in it. If Mary were no whit better for hauing Christ in her armes, nor for hauing him in her body, how much better art thou, for hauing him in thy belly where thou canst not see him? must the sunne needes come to vs, or else cannot his heate and light profit vs, nay, it doth vs more good, because it is so farre off: so this sunne is gone from vs, that he might giue more light vnto vs, which made him say, It is good for you that I goe from you;
- 1Another similitude.
- 2Augustine.
- 3Luk. 11. 27.
- 4Luk. 8. 21.
