A15857:880
H. Zanchius his confession of Christian religion Which now at length being 70. years…H. Zanchius his confession of Christian religion Which novve at length being 70. yeares…
H. Zanchius his confession of Christian religion Which now at length being 70. years of age, he caused to be published in the name of himself & his family. Englished in sense agreeable, and in words as answerable to his own latin copy, as in so grave a mans work is requisite: for the profit of all the unlearneder sort, of English christians, that desire to know his judgement in matters of faith.H. Zanchius his confession of Christian religion Which novve at length being 70. yeares of age, he caused to bee published in the name of himselfe & his family. Englished in sense agreeable, and in words as answerable to his ovvne latine copie, as in so graue a mans worke is requisite: for the profite of all the vnlearneder sort, of English christians, that desire to know his iudgement in matters of faith.
Cambridge: printed by John Legat, 1599Cambridge: printed by Iohn Legat, 1599
Title page typeset from the transcription.
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
Here should a subdistinction have been added of the godly: because some do come worthily, some unworthily: yea one and the same godly man eateth sometime worthily sometime not worthily enough, as in the 1. to the Corinth. 11. it appeareth. And the ungodly also which receive only the element, and not the thing of the sacrament, are not all of one sort. For among them are also contained the Hypocrites, of whom we spake even now. We thought good therefore, here to join a more plain and clear distinction.
Here should a subdistinction haue beene added of the godly: because some doe come worthely, some vnworthely: yea one and the same godly man eateth sometime worthily sometime not worthily enough, as in the 1. to the Corinth. 11. it appeareth. And the vngodly also which receiue onely the element, and not the thing of the sacrament, are not all of one sort. For among them are also conteyned the Hypocrites, of whome we spake evē now. We thought good therefore, here to ioyne a more plaine and cleare distinction.
There be two kinds of men, which, like as they come to the hearing of the word, so may they come to receive the supper of the Lord: the ungodly, and the godly. Again, of the ungodly, some are wholly and simply wicked: as Atheists, Godless men, also Jews and Turks, and all such as know nothing, and ⟨p. 318⟩believe nothing of all those things, which they hear by the preaching of the gospel, or see to be done by the administration of the Sacraments: nay they rather laugh at and contemn all such matters. These if they come to the Lords table: they neither eat nor drink any thing else, but bread and wine, and that also, not as they are sacraments, (for they know not of what things they are sacraments) but only as they are of their own nature, namely, bread & wine. For even so also at the preaching of the gospel, they receive nothing but bare words and the sound of the words. Another sort are indeed and before God wicked, though they are not so in respect, I mean, in profession, or in sight of men: such as are the hypocrites in the church: who are not endued with the true and lively faith, which is proper to the elect: but have only a temporal and an hypocritical belief. These, coming to the supper, do indeed eat and drink no more then the former: that is, bread & wine. The reason is, because they have no true faith, by which alone, Christs body is truly eaten. For all this the difference between these and the other is not little.