bloud as he was borne of the Virgin marye? These were the wordes of the commissioners And then thou saydest: thou durst not saye otherwise then the scripture sayth. I cannot finde (sayd you) that it is the body of Christ, before it is receaued by faith, bringing in the xxii. of Luke, saying: Christ said, take eate this is my body: so I can not proue that it is his body before it is eaten. Then said the Commissioners: did not Iudas eate Christs body? And if you can proue that Iudas is saued, sayde you I must graunte that hee eate hys body. For Christ sayth in the. vi. of Iohn. Who so eateth my flesh and drinketh my bloud, hath eternal lyfe, and I will raise him vp at the last daye, which wordes proue (sayd you) that if Iudas eate the body of christ, he must nedes be saued. How say you now? did Iudas eate the body of Christ or no?

Then I perceaued they went about nothing but to catch words of me in his dioces, to condemne me with. Though I should confound him neuer so much, I perceyued that hee was fully bent therto, to whom I answered & said.

wood. I will answer you to no such thing. for I am none of your dioces. Wherfore I wil not answer to you.

win. Thou art within my dioces, and thou hast offended within my dioces: and therfore I wil haue to do with you.

wood. Haue to do with mee and you wyl: but I wyl haue nothing to do with you, I tell you playnly: for though I be now in your dioces, I haue not offended in your dioces. If I haue, shewe me wherein.

win. Mary here is thine owne hande writing the which thou affirmedst in my dioces.

wood. I do not deny, but it is myne owne hand writinge: but that proueth neuer the more that I haue offended in your dioces. For that doth but declare what talke there was betwyxt the Commissioners & me, the whiche you haue nothing to do with al.

win. No? hold him a booke, and thou shalte sweare, whether thou holdest it now or not, and whether thou wrotest it not in my dioces, as I think thou diddest. Lay thy hand on the booke.

wood. I wil not be sworne for you: for I am not of your dioces, and therfore you haue nothing to do with me. And as for the wryting of that same, I neuer wrote word of it in your dioces.

Langdall. No, did you not? my Lord let mee see: I will find where you wrote it.

VVood. Then he tooke it, and loked on it and anone he founde that I was sente for out of the kinges Benche, to come before the Commissioners.

Langdall. My Lorde, here you maye see, it was in the kings benche, the which is in your

Dioces. 

Commentary    Close

The King's Bench prison was in Southwark which was part of the diocese of Winchester. Langdale is trying to argue that if Woodman wrote a heretical document in the diocese of Winchester, that he could be tried by the bishop of Winchester.

wood. Although I were fet out of the kings Bench, that proueth not that I wrote it there nor I did not, I promise you truly.

The fat priest. Where wrote you it then?

wood. Nay, I owe you not so muche seruice, to tel you. Find it out, as wel as you can. For I perceaue you go about to sheade my bloud.

win. It is no greate matter whre it was written: it is here, and he denieth not but hee wrote it, you shal here more of it. Here the cōmissioners asked you whether Iudas dydde eate any more then bare bread, and you answered, that hee eate more then bare bread. Where vpon they sent you awaye backe to the Kinges Bench agayne, and asked you not what more, for þ^e which cause (you haue written here) you had a hel burning in your conscience. for you had thought they wold haue sēt discharge to the kinges Benche, & so let me go (said you) & register my name in theyr bookes, that I had graunted that Iudas did eate the body of Christ. And so the gospell should haue bene slaundered by mee. For the which cause I was in such case, I could scātly eate, drinke or sleepe (for that space) as all my pryson fellowes can testify. If al you (I saye) that go to the Church of Sathan, and there here the detestable doctrine, that they spit, and spue out in their churches, and Pulpittes, to the greate dishonor of God, if all you (I saye) that come there, had such a hel burning in your conscience, for the tyme, as I had, til I came before them agayne, and had vttered my conscience more plainlie, I dare saye you woulde come there no more. All this is your wrytinge, is it not? how say you?

wood. I do not deny, but it was myne own deede.

winches. And I pray you, where is there such spitting, and spuing out of false doctrine, as you speake of?

wood. In the sinagog of Sathan, wher God is dishonored with false doctrine.

winches. And I pray you, wher is one of thē?

VVood. Nay, that iudge your selfe: I came not hether to be a iudge.

winches. Well, here you haue affirmed that Iudas (your maister) eate more then bred: but yet he eate not the body of Christ, as you haue declared by your words. for you had a hel burning in your conscience, because you were in doubt, that the commissioners vnderstode by your wordes that Iudas had eate the body of Christe, because you sayde, he eate more then breade. Therfore thou haddest a great sort of deuils in thee. For in hel be many deuils: and therfore the deuill, and Iudas is thy maister, by thine owne wordes.

wood. Nay, I defye Iudas, and the Deuill, and his seruauntes: for they bee your masters