beeynge distributed amonge hys brethren, and cōmitted the guyde of the rest to his seruantes & officers, that the more quietlye he mighte geue hymself to hys Godly study, as to a continuall Sabboth reste. And besydes these his great nūber of vertues, he was well learned, although his brother Robert was better sene in þ^e litterature which doth polish and bring a man to eloquence. Yet in those things which apperteined to heauenlines, & good conscience, was far more exercysed: lyke disposition and mynde were in both, hauyng wit and memories most happely grafted in them. And as concernyng good zeale and loue toward religion, wherunto they semed by nature indifferently 

to be borne, they were so matched, and so like one to another, that a mā could not tel who excelled the other, vnlesse because Robert, as he was the bigger of stature, so he was a more earnest & myghtier Champion, against the aduersaries of the truth.

[Back to Top]

But yet Iohn lesse feared perill, althoughe thys Robert suffered as a martyr, and was as much desirous of Martyrdome as he, & more to. And verily I cannot tel whether in this case of felicitie Iohn gaue place to hys brother Robret or no, who also myght be counted a martyr, ye and cronicled for a double martyr. For the said Robert was quickly and out of hand dispatched with the sharpe and extreme tormentes of the fyre. But this the most blessed martyr of all, what greuouser passions, boyling heates of the fyre of hell, so many yeres both in body & soule he suffred and susteined, no tōgue can expresse. 

Being a younge man, I my selfe was ones or twise with him, whom as parte by his talke I perceiued, and parte by mine owne eies sawe, to be so worne and consumed by the space of v. yeres, þ^t neither almost any brooking of meat, quietnes of sleepe, pleasure of lyfe, ye and almost no kynde of senses was lefte in him: And doutles I haue greatly wondred at the meruailous workes and operation of Christe, shewed vpon him, who vnlesse he had releued betimes his poore wretched shepe, so many tymes in distresse, with continuall consolation, it could not possible be, that he should haue susteined so vntollerable paines and tormentes. And yet the occasion therof was not of so great momēt and weight: But this we see commonly among holye and blessed men, that the more deuout and godlye they are, hauing the feare of god before their eies, the more suspecte and mistruste they haue of themselfes: wherby it commeth to passe that often they are pinched and vexed with very small sinnes as moste greuous, when that contrary, you may see very many, whom the greatest crimes of the worlde, doe not ones moue or trouble. The occasion of this was, that he being first called by the light of the holy spirite to the knowledge of the gospel, & then fallyng thence, as we commonly see to his former trade of life, began to mistrust himselfe, as one that rashly & sodenly had forsakē his vocation: and therupon

[Back to Top]

was in beliefe, that he had sinned againste the holy ghost: Euen so muche, that if he had bene in the depest pitte of hell, he coulde haue dispaired no more of his saluation. Here redily euery goodman may iudge of himself, what terrors, boylings, & conuulsions, troubled in the meane time his most holye brest. Although it is moste harde for any man to iudge the greuousnes ther of, vnlesse he which hath had experiment of the like. In comparing nowe the tormentes of all Martyrs, with his paines, I praye you what paines, punishmente, and flames woulde not he willingly haue suffered, to haue hadde some respiration and tyme of breathyng: but thankes be to Christ our lord, his continual keper, which suffreth not any man to be tempted aboue his strength, but so tempereth and seasoneth the asperitye of euils, that onely they doe not withstand them, but also oftentymes falleth out to a further commoditie, then is looked for. Whiche thing didde appeare as muche in this Iohn, as euer did in any one: who albeit as we haue said, suffered many yeres so sharpe temptations, yet more happie to hym than tongue can tell: which heaped so many and greate vertues in hym, with reconciliation of his tranquillitie, and so vanquished him from all worldly affections of the same: in so muche þ^t nothing could be more blessed and purer then his lyfe, nothing more quiet or more feruent to Christ, and his waies: Nor truly it was any meruail if this his ardent and vehement zeale toward the gospell of Christ in this turbulent tyme of persecution (as in deede it did not) either coulde or did lye hid in him. what nedeth manye wordes? Assone as the B. of Couentry hard the same of this Iohn, so to be spred out of hande, wrote to the Maior and Officers, to apprehende hym as soone as might be. But it chaunced otherwyse by god his holy prouidence, which disposeth all thing according to his secret pleasure, and contrary to the expectation of man. And althoughe thys Iohn tooke it more inwardlye then anye tongue can expresse, when he beyng euer desirous of death, saw in his stede his brother to be caried to his deth: yet doutlesse it was prouided by þ^e singuler grace & iust prouidēce of god. For he seyng his olde and trusty seruant, so many yeres w^t so extreme & many torments brokē & dried vp, wold in no wise heape so many sorowes vppon one poore sely 

wretche: neyther woulde committe hym to the flames of fyre, who hadde ben skorched & so consumed with the sharpe fyres of his mynde, and hadde susteyned so many burnyng dartes and conflicts of Sathan so many yeres: God of his diuine prouidēce thought thys too muche, whose custome was neuer so to deale with his seruauntes: and therfore he prouided, that Robert either for his learnyng sake, or soundenesse of his strengthe, shoulde stoutlye suffer and susteyne thys conflicte. And althoughe there lacked no stomacke in the other to suffer martyrdome, yet our lord thought

[Back to Top]