N20568:9513
The new and complete book of martyrs; or, An universal history of martyrdom: being…
The new and complete book of martyrs; or, An universal history of martyrdom: being Fox's Book of martyrs, revised and corrected, with additions and great improvements. : Containing an authentic account of the lives, persecutions and sufferings of the holy martyrs; and the many dreadful persecutions against the Church of Christ in all parts of the world, by pagans, Jews, Turks, papists, and others, from earliest ages of the church to the present period. ... The whole forming at once a general Christian martyrology, and a complete history of persecutions. / By the Rev. Mr. John Fox, M.A. late of Magdalen College, Oxford. ; Now revised, corrected and improved, with many additional articles, relating to the acts and monuments of the church. By Paul Wright, D.D. ; Embellished with forty elegant copper plate engravings. ; In two volumes. Vol. I[-II].The new and complete book of martyrs; or, An universal history of martyrdom: being Fox's Book of marytrs, revised and corrected, with additions and great improvements. : Containing an authentic account of the lives, persecutions and sufferings of the holy martyrs; and the many dreadful persecutions against the Church of Christ in all parts of the world, by pagans, Jews, Turks, papists, and others, from earliest ages of the church to the present period. ... The whole forming at once a general Christian martyrology, and a complete history of persecutions. / By the Rev. Mr. John Fox, M.A. late of Magdalen College, Oxford. ; Now revised, corrected and improved, with many additional articles, relating to the acts and monuments of the church. By Paul Wright, D.D. ; Embellished with forty elegant copper plate engravings. ; In two volumes. Vol. I[-II].
New-York: printed by William Durell, 1794
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.
YOUR grace may see what means and craft the spirituality (as they will be called) imagine, to break and withstand the acts which were made in your grace's last parliament against their superfluities. Wherefore they that thus do, your grace may know them not to be true followers of Christ. And although I named the spirituality to be corrupt with their unthrifty ambition; yet I mean not all to be faulty therein, for there be some good of them. Neither will I that your grace should take away the goods due to the church, but take away all evil persons from their goods, and set better in their stead.
I name nor appoint no person nor persons, but remit your grace to the rule of our Saviour Christ, as in Matthew the 7th chapter, By their fruit you shall know them. As touching the words that our Saviour Christ spake to his disciples when he sent them to preach his gospel, they be read in Matthew, the fifteenth chapter, where he showeth, That here they shall be hated and despised of all men worldly, and brought before kings and rulers, and that all evil should be said of them for their preaching sake; but he exhorteth them to take patiently such persecution by his own example, saying, It becometh not the servant to be above the master. And seeing they call me Beelzebub, what marvel is it if they call you devilish persons and heretics. Read the fourteenth chapter of St. Matthew's gospel, and there your grace shall see that he promised to the true preachers no worldly promotions or dignity, but persecutions and all kinds of punishment, and that they should be betrayed even by their own brethren and children. In John also he saith, In the world ye shall have oppression, and the world shall hate you: but in me you shall have peace. And in the tenth chapter of St. Matthew's gospel, saith our Saviour Christ also, Lo I send you forth as sheep among wolves. So that true preachers go like sheep, harmless, and be persecuted, and yet they revenge not their wrongs, but remit all to God; so far is it off that they will persecute any other but with the word of God only, which is their weapon. And so this is the most evident token that our Saviour Jesus Christ would that his gospel and the preachers of it should be known by, that it should be despised among those worldly wise men, and that they should repute it but foolishness and deceivable doctrine, and the true preachers should be persecuted and hated, and driven from town to town, yea, and at the last lose both goods and life.