confession of all their sins: and that upon the Wednesday, MARY. Friday, and Saturday immediately following the same, all being of lawful age do fast (except they be let with lawful impediment) and make supplication and prayer to Jesus Christ our Lord God, and with prayer and mourning being prostrate before his feet, do ask and desire that he will not disdain to be with us, to lift us up, and to rule and govern us. And finally that he will grant to Christian princes, and to all the faithful, both the end of miseries and calamities, and also concord and peace. And that upon the Sunday following they do godly and devoutly receive the most holy communion and sacrament of the altar; and pitying the poor people of Christ, they will every one to his power relieve their need, and do other things also which appertain to godliness, charity, and chastity, with all their heart and mind, that they may the more rather promote and set forth the mercy of God our most merciful Lord. And to the intent they may the more purely and commodiously do it, we, opening the treasures of the Church, do grant unto the aforesaid faithful persons of Christ, that for this time only, they may choose unto them a priest secular, or of any other order regular, which having heard their confession, may them absolve from any manner of sins (how grievous and enormous soever) although reserved to the aforesaid see, and contained in the bull of Cæna Domini; enjoining them for the measure or quantity of their faults wholesome penance : and by the said authority we do give and grant that they may also change or alter all vows whatsoever (the vows of Jerusalem, of chastity, of religion only excepted) into other works of godliness. Nevertheless enjoining specially to all the abovesaid faithful, for the satisfaction of particular penance, that they, as well upon the Sunday of their communion as in the three days of their said fast, do say devoutly five times the Pater-noster, and the Ave Maria. And we to all and singular the faithful persons of Christ, who shall accomplish and fulfil the things before rehearsed, do (trusting in the mercy of Almighty God, and the authority of his blessed apostles Peter and Paul) grant most fully remission of their sins, and that remission or privilege which in the year of the jubilee is granted to the faithful, visiting the churches either of our said city, or elsewhere assigned them for that purpose. And to the intent that all these things may come to the knowledge of all people, and our gracious Lord may be by many graciously entreated, CRAN MER, we do straitly, in the virtue of holy obedience, command all Abp. Cant. Our brethren the patriarchs, archbishops, bishops, and other prelates of the Church, that they freely and without any deceit or gain every where throughout their provinces, cities, and dioceses, do effectually publish and cause to be published these presents or their transumpt, being subscribed with the hands of some prelate or some person being in ecclesiastical dignity : To which transumpt we will all credence to be given. Any constitutions and ordinances apostolic, or any thing else whatsoever to the contrary notwithstanding. These presents not to be vailable or of force after the Sunday immediately following the aforesaid Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday. Given at Rome at St. Mark's, in the year of the incarnation of our Lord 1555; in the ides of July, and in the first year of our pontificate. Sept. 12. Cranmer brought before the commissioners at Oxford. 385. "Ita est Edmundus episcopus London." I shall now go on to the process against Cranmer, Ridley, and Latimer, prisoners at Oxford. To begin with the first: a commission was sent from the pope to James Brooks, bishop of Gloucester, authorizing him to proceed upon Cranmer's trial. Dr. Martin and Dr. Story, two civilians, had commissions from the king and queen for the same purpose. When he was brought before them in St. Mary's church, he made his reverence to the two doctors, as representing their majesties, but refused to salute Brooks, the pope's commissioner, with any postures of respect. However, he let the bishop know, it was his foreign character, and not any disregard to his person, which put put him upon this seeming singularity. He said he had solemnly renounced the pope's supremacy; and since his reasons held good upon his mind, he could not show Fox, vol. 3. any signs of submission to the see of Rome. At this examination Cranmer affirmed the power of the keys, as well as that of the sword, was lodged in the crown'. After some trial to remove him from this sentiment, they charged him with several articles that he had been twice married; that he had refused obedience to the pope; that he had discovered his heterodoxy in the doctrine of the blessed sacrament; that he had been declared an heretic by the late prolocutor, and the rest of the doctors commissioned by the queen and the universities. He p. 663. : 1 A most explicit avowal of the ecclesiastical supremacy of British monarchs within their own dominions. confessed the charge, but offered to defend his practice and MARY. opinions. After he had passed through the formalities of a trial, he was cited to appear at Rome within fourscore days. The archbishop replied, he was willing to go thither, provided the king and queen please to send him. But this was only matter of form, for he was remanded to prison and kept in close custody, till he came to the stake, of which more afterwards. Latimer heretics. About a fortnight forward, another commission was issued from the cardinal legate to White, bishop of Lincoln, Brooks, bishop of Gloucester, and Holyman, bishop of Bristol, or any two of them, to proceed to the degrading bishop Ridley and bishop Latimer, provided they could not prevail with them to recant. These commissioners, finding them firm to their former persuasion, and refusing to own any authority from the cardinal legate, pronounced them guilty of heresy and then Ridley and declaring they were no longer members of the Church, con- pronounced signed them over to the secular magistrate, to be punished as the law directs. They were only degraded from priests' Fox. orders. This was somewhat particular, since cardinal Pole in his commission styles them bishops, and in case of obstinacy, directs their degradation from that character: and farther, White, bishop of Lincoln, one of the commissioners, owns Ridley was made a bishop according to the laws of the Church of Rome. But Brooks, bishop of Gloucester, who seems to Fox, p. 487. have been the most bigoted delegate, would allow neither of them to be any more than priest. As for Latimer, he resigned Id. p. 500. his see in the reign of Henry VIII., threw off his episcopal habit, and pretended no farther to the title. This, it may be, the commissioners conceived amounted to a degradation; otherwise it will be difficult to account why his character was not allowed. The reason why Ridley passed for no more than a priest, may be somewhat better conjectured. For this prelate, being consecrated to his first see of Rochester, several years after the pope's supremacy was discarded, the kingdom was then supposed to be in a state of schism, and by consequence the bishops had no authority to consecrate and ordain. This was the sense of most of the governing clergy of this reign. Both Ridley and Latimer kept the same distance in their behaviour, and renounced the pope both in language and gesture, as archbishop Cranmer had lately done for Ridley, MER, CRAN- especially, refused to pay any ceremony to the bishops deleAbp. Cant. gated by the cardinal. But then this was managed with a salvo of respect for Pole's royal birth, his learning, and other good qualities. And Latimer, before his answer to the articles, protested against the pope's authority. Fox. to the stake. October 16, 1555. And brought They were both brought to the stake October 16th. The place was on the north side of the town, in the ditch, over against Baliol College. And to prevent tumults, the lord Williams and the burghers were ordered by the queen to assist at the execution. As Ridley came near Bocardo, where Cranmer was prisoner, he looked up, in hopes to have seen the archbishop and taken his leave; but Cranmer being then engaged in dispute with some Spanish friars, forgot to appear at the window; but soon after, recollecting himself, and seeing them at the place, he prayed for them. When Ridley saw Latimer come up, he saluted him with an air of pleasure, and told him that God would either abate the force of the fire, or enable them to go through it. Before they prepared for the stake, Dr. Smith, who recanted popery in the late reign, was ordered to preach. The design was to take off the impression which the execution might otherwise have made upon the company. His text was, "If I give my body to be burnt, and 1 Cor. xiii. 3. have not charity, it profiteth me nothing." From these words he observes, that it was the cause, and not the pain which made the martyr: that throwing up life without warrantable reason was no instance of true fortitude: and that Judas his sending himself into the other world, was far from an expiation of his crime. To die against truth and orthodoxy, had more of desperation than greatness in it; and this, he was afraid, would be the case of these men. From hence he went on to downright satire, and coarse misrepresentation. He cautioned the people to stand off from their doctrine, said they were heretics, and died out of the Church. And to describe them to farther disadvantage, he touched upon the diversities of opinions amongst the reformed: that the Lutherans, Ecolampadians, and Zuinglians could come to no agreement amongst themselves, and that Ridley and Latimer were of the last and worst sect of the three. In the close, he exhorted them both to retract their errors; and that in case they returned to the Church, they might save both their lives and their souls. Upon this, Ridley and Latimer kneeled to the lord Williams racler. and the commissioners for leave to speak two or three words MARY. in reply to the sermon: but before the lord Williams could give an answer, Ridley's mouth was stopped by the bailiffs and Dr. Marshal, the vice-chancellor, who assured him no discourse, excepting a recantation, would be admitted. After this, they were ordered to undress themselves for the fire, which they did accordingly, and suffered with all the commendable appearances of the primitive martyrs. The station they had formerly been in, the regularity of their lives, and their behaviour at the stake, raised the compassion of the company, and made them much unpleased with the spectacle. To add a word or two Something touching farther concerning each of them: Latimer was born in Leices- their chatershire, and bred at Christ's College in Cambridge. He was always in earnest in his religion; and had a strong opinion at first of a monastic life: he thought a man could hardly miscarry in the other world, after his being professed. He was no friend to the reformers in Germany, and made a speech against Philip Melancthon at the taking of his bachelor of divinity's degree. It seems Bilney made the first impression on him as to his belief. Being thus disengaged from some of the prejudices of education, and an implicit deference to the doctrine received, he made farther advances. He preached with great plainness at king Edward's court, and made no scruple to tax the vices of the age with a freedom that became his character. In the beginning of queen Mary's reign he was sent for to appear before the council. He had notice of the messenger's coming, but was so far from making his escape, that he prepared for his journey. The pursuivant was surprised to find him thus forward, and after having delivered a letter from the board, went away, letting him know he had no orders to stay for him. From hence it is plain that the government had no inclination to seize him, but would have been better pleased with his retiring beyond sea: but Latimer, it seems, when he heard the ministry laid out for him, conceived himself obliged to appear. And thus, when he had put himself in the hands of his enemies, they might probably think they were obliged in honour not to part with him without a recantation. And thus much concerning Latimer. Ridley was a gentleman extracted from an ancient family in Northumberland: he was bred in Cambridge, where he commenced doctor of divinity, and was preferred to the mastership 386. |