Page:The Acts and Monuments of John Foxe Volume 3.djvu/101



To the honour of Almighty God, and our Lord Jesus Christ, both for the trying out of truth, and the profit of the holy mother the church, according to the congregation of our university of Prague, which, avoiding always to do that which shall be prejudicial to the truth, hath deferred to give their consent unto the condemnation of the forty-five articles, wishing, even unto this present time, sufficient probation to be given of the condemnation of the said articles, and particularly of every one of them: whereupon the said university doth always require due proof of the same, forasmuch as pope Damasus, in his canon, Distinction, chapter lxviii. "Chorepiscopi," saith thus; "That it is necessary that whatsoever thing standeth not by due reason should be rooted out;" whereby it appeareth, that the condemnation of the five and forty articles, if it stand not with proof and sufficient demonstration for every article, is necessarily to be rooted out.

But, if any man will object and say, that to require a reason for every thing, is to derogate from God's divine power: unto this objection Master William doth answer himself in his philosophy, the first book, almost at the end, where he, treating of the place in Genesis ii. "God made man of the slime of the earth," &c., hath these words; "For in what point," saith he, "are we contrary to the holy Scriptures, if we seek by reason to declare wherefore any thing is done, which is said in the Scriptures to be done? For if a wise man should say that a thing is done, and do not declare how it is done, and another man speaketh the very self-same thing, and declareth how it is done, what contrariety is there? But, forasmuch as they themselves know not the force of nature, to the intent that they might have all men partakers with them of their ignorance, they would have no man to inquire it out; but they would have us believe as ignorant people, and not to seek any reason of our belief, that the prophecy might be fulfilled, "Such as the people is, such shall be the priest." But we truly do say, that in all things a reason is to be sought, if it may by any means be found. But if any man do stay at any thing which the Scriptures do affirm, let him commit the same unto faith, and unto the Holy Ghost. For Moses saith, "If the lamb cannot be eaten, let it not be by and by consumed in the fire; but let him first call his neighbour which dwelleth in the next house unto him; and if they also be not sufficient to eat the lamb, then let it be burned in the fire." So likewise, when we go about to seek any thing as touching the godhead, and be not able of ourselves to comprehend the same, let us call our neighbour who dwelleth in the next house unto us; that is to say, let us seek out such a one as dwelleth in the same catholic faith with us; and if then neither we, nor yet he, be able to comprehend the same, let it then be burned with the fire of faith.

But these men, albeit they have many neighbours dwelling near unto them, yet for very pride they will not call any man unto them; choosing rather to continue still ignorant, than to ask any question. And if they do know any man to inquire for his neighbour in such case, by and by, they cry out upon him as a heretic; presuming more upon their own head, than having confidence in their wisdom. But I exhort you to give no credit unto their outward appearance, for already it is verified in them which the satirical poet saith: "No credit is to be given unto the outward show; for which of them all is it that doth not abound with most shameful and detestable vices?" And in another place he saith: "They are very dainty of their speech, and have great desire to keep silence." And thus much hath Master William. Let all such hear whom this parable doth touch; for I, with the rest of the masters, bachelors, and students of our university, considering how hard a matter the condemnation of the forty-five articles of Wickliff, without reason, is, and how grievous a thing it were if we