A18680:4
A christen sentence and true judgement of the most honourable sacrament of Christs body…A christen sentence and true iudgement of the moste honorable sacrament of Christes body…
A christen sentence and true judgement of the most honourable sacrament of Christs body [and] blood declared both by the authority of the holy scriptures and the ancient doctors. Very necessary to be read in this time of all the faithful.A christen sentence and true iudgement of the moste honorable sacrament of Christes body [and] bloude declared both by the auctorite of the holy scriptures and the auncient doctores. Very necessary to be redde in this tyme of all the faythfull.
London : Imprinted by me Richard Wyer, 1548?London : Imprynted by me Rycharde Wyer, 1548?
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.
The first Chapter proveth that it is none article of our faith necessary to salvation.
The fyrste Chapter proueth that it is none article of our fayth necessarye to saluacion.
First we must all acknowledge that it is none article of our faith which can save us neither which we are bound to believe under the pain of eternal damnation, for if I should believe that his very natural body both flesh & blood were materially in the bread & wine, that should not save me seeing many believe that, & receive it to their damnation. For it is not his presence in the bread that can save me, but his presence in my heart through faith in his blood, which hath washed out my sins and pacified the Fathers wrath ⟨image 3⟩towards me. And again if I do not believe that his bodily presence is in the bread and wine that shall not damn me. For it is not his absence out of the bread that can damn me, but the absence out of my hart through unbelief now if they would here object that though it be truth that the absence out of the bread of it self could not damn us yet are we bound to believe it because of God's word, which who believeth not as much as in him is, he maketh god a liar. And therefore of an obstinate mind not to believe his words may be an occasion of damnation. To this we may answer that we believe God's word and knowledge that it is true, but in this we dissent whether it be true in the sense that we take it in, or in the sense that ye take ⟨image 3⟩it in, And we say again that though ye have as it appeareth unto you the evident words of Christ, and therefore consist in the bark of the letter, yet are we compelled by con fearing of the scriptures together to enter within the letter and to search out the mind of our saviour which spake the words, and we say thirdly that we do it not of an obstinate mind for he that defendeth a thing obstinately whether it be true or false, is ever to be reprehended but we do it to satisfy our consciences which are compelled by other places of Scripture reasons and doctors so to judge of it And even so ought you to judge of your part and to defend your sentences / not of an obstinacy for then ye offend) but for to satisfy your consciences as touching