MarginaliaAn. 1557. Iune.þt I will warrant you shall finde fault inough. I pray you aske him how he beleueth in the Sacrament of the aultar. I thinke he will make but a bad account therof.
Wood. Yes, I will make account good inough of that, by Gods helpe.
Lāg. Well, how say you to the Sacrament of the aultar?
Wood. I say I know no such Sacrament, vnlesse Christ be the aultar that you meane.
Gage. Lo, I told you, you should soone finde fault in him, if you came to that poynt with him. You should haue begon with that first, and neuer haue talked with him about other thynges. What? know you not the Sacrament of the aultar?
Wood. MarginaliaWoodman knoweth no sacrament of the altar, vnlesse they take Christ to be the altar.No sure, I know none such, vnlesse Christ be the aultar that you meane: for Christ is the aultar of all goodnesse. And if you meane Christ to be the aultar of the Sacrament you speake of, you shall soone heare my mynde and belief therein.
[Back to Top]Lang. Well, we meane Christ to bee the aultar. Say your mynde, and go briefly to worke: for I thinke it is almost dinner.
Gage. I pray you go roūdly to worke, that you may make an end before dinner.
Woodman. Yes, you shall soone heare my mynde therein by Gods helpe. MarginaliaWoodmans iudgement of the Sacrament.I doe beleue that whensoeuer I come to receaue the Sacrament of the body & bloud of Iesus Christ, beyng truely ministred accordyng to Christes Institution, I beleuyng that Christ was borne of the virgine Mary, and that hee was crucified on the Crosse, and shedde hys bloud for the remission of my sinnes, and so take and eate the Sacrament of bread and wyne in that remembraunce, that then I do receiue wholly Christ, God and man, mistically by fayth. This is my beliefe of the Sacrament, the which no man is able to disproue.
[Back to Top]Gage. By Saint Mary I can finde no fault in this. How say you Maister Doctour?
Lang. MarginaliaD. Langdale seeketh a knot in a rushe.Sir, you see not so much in it as I do. For he goeth craftely to worke: I tell you, as I haue heard. For though he haue graunted that the faythful receauer receaueth the body of Christ, GOD and man, yet he hath not graunted that it is the body of Christ before it bee receiued, as you shall see by and by I warrant you, by his owne wordes. How say you? is it the body of Christ as soone as the words be spoken by the Priest or not? for these woordes will try him more then all the rest.
[Back to Top]Wood. MarginaliaWhether the Sacrament be the body of Christ before it be receaued.Doth the word say that it is his body before it is receiued? if it do, I will say so to.
Gage. Why? then you shall agree well inough, if you will be tryed by the word.
Wood. Yes forsooth, that I will: God forbid els.
Gage. Why? the word sayth it is his body before it is eatē.
Wood. Those wordes would I fayne heare: but I am sure they be not in the Bible.
Lang. No? that you shall see by & by (M. Gage quoth he) & turned to the 22. of Luke, & there he read: MarginaliaLuke. 12.When supper was done, Christ tooke bread, gaue thankes, and brake it, & gaue to his Disciples, and sayd: take, eate, this is my body. Then they spake both at once: Here he sayth it is his body.
[Back to Top]Wood. Maister Gage, I do not deny but he called it his body, but not before eatyng, as I sayd before. Wherefore I pray you marke the woordes. Christ sayd, Take, eate, I pray you Syr marke these woordes that he sayd: Take and eate, and then he sayd, it was his body. MarginaliaEating goeth before the words of consecrating.So you see, eatyng goeth before. For he sayd: eate, this is my body. So accordyng to the very worde, I do beleue it is his body. Whiche wordes made them both astonied.
[Back to Top]Lang. Why, then by your saying Iudas eate not the body of Christ. How say you? did he not? MarginaliaD. Langdale driuen to his shiftes.
Wood. Nay, I aske you. Did he?
Lang. I aske you.
Wood. And I aske you.
Lang. And I aske you.
Woodman. Mary and I aske you. And I bidde you aunswere if you dare for your lyfe. For what soeuer you aunswere, vnlesse you say as I haue sayd, you will damne your owne soule. For Maister Gage, I protest before GOD, I would you should doe as well as myne owne soule and body: and it lamenteth my hart to see how you be deceaued with them: they be deceauers all the sorte of them. He can not aunswere to this, but either hee must proue Iudas to be saued, or els he must proue that it is no body before it bee receaued in fayth: as you shall well perceaue by Gods helpe, if he dare to aunswere the question.
[Back to Top]Gage. Yes, I dare say he dareth. What? you neede not to threaten him so.
Wood. Then let him aunswere if he can.
Then he sayd he knew what I would say to him: therfore he was much in doubt to aunswere the question.
Lang. Maister Gage, I will tell you in your eare what
MarginaliaD. Langdale afrayd to aunswere to Rich. Woodman.wordes he will aunswere me, or euer I speake to him.
Wood. Then he told M. Gage, a tale in his eare, and sayd:
Lang. I haue told maister Gage what you will say.
Gage. Yea, and I will tell the truth for both parties.
Wood. Well, how say you? did Iudas eate þe body of Christ or not?
Lang. Yea, I say Iudas did eate the body of Christ. MarginaliaThe Catholickes holde that Iudas dyd eate the body of Christ.
Wood. Then it must needes followe, That Iudas hath euerlastyng life. For Christ sayth in the sixt of Iohn: who so eateth my flesh, and drinketh my bloud, hath eternall life, and I will rayse him vp at the last day.
MarginaliaArgument.
Who so euer eateth the fleshe of Christ hath euerlasting lyfe. Iohn. 6.
Iudas did eate the fleshe of Christ:
Ergo, Iudas hath euerlasting lyfe. If Iudas dyd eate Christes body, I am sure you cannot deny but that he dyd both eate his flesh, and drynke his bloud, & then is Iudas saued by Christes own wordes. Therfore now you are compelled to say that it was not Christes body, or els that Iudas is saued.
Gage. Surely these be the very wordes that M. D. tolde me in mine eare, that you would say to hym.
Wood. Well, let vs see, how well he can auoyde this argument.
Lang. Iudas is damned, and yet he eate the body of Christ: but he eate it vnworthely, and therfore he is damned:
Wood. Where finde you that Iudas dyd eate the body of Christ vnworthely?
Lang. They be S. Paules woordes. MarginaliaS. Paules wordes misalleaged by D. Langdalej. Corinth. xi. chap.
Wood. M. Gage, I desyre you for Gods sake marke my wordes well what I say. If S. Paule speake any suche wordes there or in any other place, or if there be any suche wordes written in all the whole Bible, that euer any man eate the body of Christ vnworthely, then say that I am the falsest man that euer you heard speake with tong. But in deede, these be the wordes of S. Paul: Marginalia1. Cor. 11.who so eateth of this bread, and drynketh of this cup vnworthely, eateth and drynketh his own damnation, because he maketh no difference of the Lords body: MarginaliaMaking no difference of the Lordes body expounded.that is, because he presumeth to eate the sacrament of the Lords body with out fayth, makyng no difference betwixt the Sacrament and other bread and drynke: And that is S. Paules meanyng, and not that any man doth or can eate the body of Christ * Marginalia* Christ speaketh of eating hys fleshe simply, without any determination of vnworthines: that is, simply who soeuer beleueth in Christe hee shall bee saued: neyther is anye vnworthines in beleuing in Christ. vnworthily. For who so euer eateth the body of Christ, hath euerlastyng life, as is aforesayd in the 6. of Iohn. With which words one came for them to come to diner in all the hast.
[Back to Top]Gage. I am sory. I would fayne here more of this talke: but we shall haue an other day well inough.
Lang. Nay Maister Gage, I will neuer talke with hym more: for he is the vnreasonablest man that euer I talked with in all my life.
Wood. Then maister Gage put of his cap and desired hym that he would not refuse to talke with me, and that it might not be greuous to him. For he sayd: we will seeke all the meanes possible to make him an honest man, and to keep him from burnyng, if we could. For if my brother and I had not bene, he had bene burned ere this tyme. Then there was great curtesy betwixt them.
[Back to Top]Lang. Sir, for your sake, and for my maister your brothers sake, and for his fathers sake, and other of his frends sakes that haue spoken to mee many tymes with weepyng teares, I will do the best to him that I can: MarginaliaNote well the working of this mans charititie, to doe for a man more at request, then for any compassion of the partye. but for no loue nor fauor that I beare to hym, I tell you truth.
[Back to Top]Gage. Woodman, you heare what M. Doctor sayth. Whē will you come agayne?
Wood. Euen when you will send for me. For I am a prisoner, and can not come when I would. Or if I shoulde desyre to come, it will cost me money, and I haue none to geue: but if you send for me, it shall cost me none.
Gage. Well, I will send for you on Friday or Saterday, at the farthest: for to morrow I must ride forth of towne, and I would fayne here your talke.
Wood. Sir I woulde be very glad you shoulde heare our talke alway: and I trust in god you shall heare me say nothyng, but the word of God shall be my warrant. So M. Gage tooke his leaue and went his way to his lodgyng, which was right in my way as I went vnto prison ward agayne, and when he came without my Lord Mountagues gates, there wee met with one Hode of Buxted, a Smith. Then sayd Maister Gage.
[Back to Top]Gage. Woodman, I had forgot one thing, that Hode hath brought me in remēbrance of as soone as I saw hym, for he heard when the tale was told me.
Gage. Hode, did not you heare when Smith of Framfield told me that hee sawe Woodman abroade in the Citie at libertie?
Hode. Yes forsooth, that I did.
Gage. Yea surely, and I was very glad, for I had well hoped you had ben conformable. But I heard otherwise af-