A reply to an answer made of M. Doctor Whitgifte Against the admonition to…A replye to an ansvvere made of M. Doctor VVhitgifte Against the admonition to…

In the 153. page M. Bucers censure upon the communion book is cited / for the allowance of that it hath touching private baptism / and consequently of the baptism by women. It may be / that as M. Bucer although otherwise very learned hath other gross absurdities / so he may have that. But it had been for the credit of your cause / if you had showed that out of those writings / which are published and known to be his / and not out of those whereof men may doubt / whether ever he wrote any such or no: and if he wrote / whether they be corrupted by those into whose hands they came. And if you would take any advantage of M. Bucers testimony / considering y• a witness is a public person / you should have brought him out of your study into the Stationers shop / where he mought have been common to others as well as to you / where by his stile and manner of writing / as it were by his gestures & countenances / & by those things that go before and come after / as it were by his head & his feet / we might the better know whether it were the true Bucer or no. For although I will not say but that this may be Bucers doing / yet it seemeth very strange / that Bucer should not only contrary to the learned writers now / but also contrary to all learned antiquity / and contrary to the practise of the church / whilst there was any tolerable estate / allow of women's baptising. ^a.Tertullian sayeth it is not permitted unto a woman to speak in the church / nor to teach / nor to baptise / nor to do any work of a man / much less of a minister. ^b.And in an other place / although he do permit it to be done of lay men in the time of necessity (as it is termed) yet he giveth not that licence to the woman. ^c.Epiphanius upbraideth Marcian that he suffered women to baptise / and. ^d.in an other book he derideth them that they made women bishops / and. ^e.in an other book he saith / it was not granted onto the holy mother of Christ to baptise her son. ^f.