part ii. c. 3.

CHAP. have been elsewhere called by the Bishop, The spreding VII. of the four tables. However this be, the author informs Repressour, us that the third part of this book is chiefly upon usury. 7. The just apprising of holi Scripture, in three partis. The design of this book seems to have been to shew, in opposition to the Wiclifists, the use and authority of holy Scripture. Two principal faults he finds with the Lollards: 1. Their overmych leenyng to Scripture, and in such maner and wise as it longith not to holi Scripture for to receyve. 2. Setting not bi for to folowe the determynations and the holdingis of the Chirche in mater of faith. The first of these, the Bishop tells us in his book of faith, he had sufficiently removed in this book and his Repressour. The other very probably he undertakes in the following book.

No. 190. fol.

8. The just apprising of Doctours, or, of the use of the Fathers.

9. The provoker of Cristen men.
10. The book of counceilis.

11. The proving of Cristen faith.

12. The book of signis in the Chirche, alias, The booke of worschiping; the subject whereof the Bishop expresses a little more fully, Repressour, part ii. chap. 12, viz. that it treated of the uce of worsciping doon bi seable rememoratif signes. By which, I suppose, he means the images of saints. In this our Bishop seems to have been of the same opinion with Doctor Wiclif, that imagis moun be worschipid in a manere, as for signis of seyntis, or as bookis of lewid men, or as a wyfe kepith cherli the ryng of her weddinge for love of her husbonde.

13. The represser of ouer myche wiiting the Clergie. A copy of this is still in being in the public library of the University of Cambridge. At the end of it is written in a hand different from that of the book itself; exhibit. coram Domino in capella sua apud Lamhith xi Novembr. anno

b Among William Tindale's works is a tract with this title; A Treatise upon Signes and Sacraments.

Domini MCCCCLVIImo; which very probably is the entry of the notary after reading this book before the Archbishop, &c. in order to its examination.

14. The boke of leernyng. 15. The boke of presthode.

16. The boke of baptym.

17. The boke of faith, in two parts. Of this book I have given an account before. The copy we have of it certainly wants a considerable part at the latter end, where it breaks off abruptly.

18. The boke of the Chirche, mentioned in the boke of faith, part ii. chap. 2, as so schal be taugt in the book of the Chirche.

66

CHAP.

VII.

part i. c. 10.

Of some of these English books the Bishop more than once speaks in his other writings with a good deal of satisfaction, as of performances deserving very highly to be valued and esteemed; however, by such as are ignorant, and have not better opportunities of informing themselves of the things treated of in them. "Full weel ougten," says Repressour, he "alle persoones of the lay parti not leerned ougwhere MS. "ellis-for to make miche of bookis maad to hem in her ❝modiris langage, whiche ben clepid thus: The donet "into Cristen religioun; The folwer to the donet; The "book of Cristen religioun, namelich the first parti fro the bigynnyng of the iii treti forthward; The book filling "the iiii tablis; The book of worschiping; The book clepid the just appriseing of holi Scripture; The book cle“pid the provoker of Cristen man; The book of counceiles, " and other mo pertenyng to the now seid book of Cristen 66 religioun.—Miche ougten lay persoones for to make, and "apprise, and love the now spoken bokis. And ferther66 more ouer this now seid, the now spoken bokis techen "ful clereli and bihoue fulli the treuthis and governauncis "of Goddis laws, whiche ben groundid in holi Scripture; "and also other treuthis of feith, which ben not lawis, "and ben groundid in holi Scripture. And also thei "treten ful nobili the positiif lawis of Criste aboute the newe Sacramentis.-Of this same mater it is quikli and

66

CHAP. ❝smertli spoken in a litil book thereto, and therefore VII. "maad, whiche y clepe the provoker of Cristen peple, and

"therfore no more therof here."

66

In much the same manner does the Bishop recommend these books to the Wiclifist laity, and bespeak their kindPart i. MS. ness to him in his Book of faith. "If ye asken,” says he, "who y am, which makith him so bisi here agens you; "forsothe he is the man, which hath more labourid and "done into youre goostli auaile, as of trewe kunnyng, to "be had of you, and errour to be remoued fro you, than ye you silf ben of kunnyng and of power for to so do to 66 you silf. In more special for to seie, he is the man "which for you, and for alle lay-men, hath write in lay"mennys langage these bokis: The forcrier; The donet "into the book of Cristen religioun; The provoker; The 66 represser ; The book of signis in the Cherche, which y "clepe The book of worschiping; The boke of leernyng; "The book of filling the iiii tablis; this present boke of "feith; The boke of Presthode, with summe other mo. "Whiche bokis if ye wolen rede diligentli, and attende "therto studioseli, and be wel acqueyntid with hem, and "not for to take an hasti smel, or smatche in hem, and "soone leie hem aside; ye schullen fynde in hem so greet "witt and leerning of Cristen religioun, that ye schulen "holde you bigilid, in the trust which ye had bifore in youre othere studies and laboris for leernyng: and ye "schule se, that so fer the wittis and kunnyng of Clerkis passen youre wittis and youre leernyng in maters of "Cristen religioun, that ye schulan not truste so moche "to youre kunnyng as ye now doon. And ye schulen "truste more to the kunnyng of Clerkis, and seche bisili "to have her helpe and counseiling in tho maters, than ye "have bifore this doon. And ye schulen chastise you "ful wel, and ful vertuoseli, fro pride and presumpcioun "bifore had, in setting and apprising youre leernyng and "kunnyng in maters of Cristen religioun bifore the leernyng and kunnyng of Clerkis, and of the Chirche, as ye "bifore this han doon."

66

66

66

silf

VII.

In this manner did our Bishop try to gain the affections of CHAP. the Dissenters, and to incline them to hearken to and consider the reasons and motives which he used to abate their prejudices, and reconcile them to the Church. What success his Lordship had.in these his labours, he himself tells them, for whose sake he took so much pains. "Forsothe," says he, "summe of the kunnyngist men of youre soorte, aftir "that thei han red of summe of these spokun bokis, and ❝han take bi notable tyme assaie and acqueyntance in hem, "han hungrid and thirstid for to have hadde the copie " and the contynuel uce of tho bokis to hem, as moche as 66 euer thei hungriden and thirstiden aftir mete and drinke." Elsewhere in the same book he tells his readers, that "the "wittiest and kunnyngist men of thilk seid soort contrarie "to the Chirche, and which han beholde as dukis amonge "hem, han loued him, for that he wolde speak oft tyme "and bi long leiser with them, and pacientli heere her "euydencis and her motyves without exprobracioun."

English Tracts promised by the Bishop, and which, so far

as appears, were never published by him.

1. A schort compendiose logik. Of this he says as fol- Repressour, part i. c. 2. lows, after expressing the great need there was of such a thing in her modires langage, and the excellent use it might be of: Into whos making, if God wole graunte leue and leyser, y purpose sumtyme aftir my othere by synessis for to assaie.

c. 12.

2. A book of legendis. Of this design our Bishop thus Ibid. part i. speaks: In legendis ben founde manie ful untrewe fables, as in a book therof to be maad schal appeere.

3. The book of eukarist. By an uncertain author of a Chronicle in the library of Lincoln College in Oxford we are informed, that our Bishop entertained wrong opinions of the Eucharist. But this seems scarce credible, that his Lordship should be allowed by such severe judges to do so with impunity; or that they should omit mentioning this among the Conclusions which they condemned.

CHAP.
VII.

Dict. Theol.
MS.

MS.

Besides these English books, our Bishop wrote and published the Latin ones following.

1. De fide et sacramentis, mentioned by him, Repress. part i. c. 8, and Boke of Faith, part ii. c. 2: as so schal be taugt in the book of feith in Latin.

De baptismo,

3. De pænitentia,

}

mentioned Repress. part iv. c. 2.

4. Justa doctorum æstimatio. The same in Latin as the English book before mentioned, with this title, The just apprising of Doctors.

Latin Treatises promised only, so far as appears. 1. Lectiones e cathedra academica, Repress. part v. C. 6.

2. Demonstratio Christianæ fidei. Book of Faith, part i. c. 2: y hope to make in Latin, and to be clepid the proof of Cristen faith. He refers to the same again, c. 10.

3. De Ecclesia, promised in the same book to be made in Latin, part i. c. 10.

4. De prædicatione, mentioned in his allegation to the Archbishop in behalf of his seven Conclusions; prout satis clurus patebit in 9o decimo libro de prædicatione super ipsis conclusionibus scribendo,

Besides these, Bishop Bale ascribes to our Bishop the following books, but by what authority I do not know. 1. The defender.

2. The folower of it.

3. The declaratory.

4. Of the Creed. Dr. Gascoigne tells us, that the Bishop forged a new Creed very tedious, and published it in English. The same, or to this purpose, we are told by Acta, &c. Abbot Whethamstede, viz, that our Bishop "added to the "three Creeds a fourth of his own in the vulgar tongue, "in which, together with the article of Christ's descent "into hell, he set aside divers other articles, as if he had 66 no faith nor credence in them." This seems inconsistent with what Gascoigne reports, that this Creed was: