The xxvii. Chapter. 532.
A confutation of the fable of the hangman, of manie other feined and ridiculous tales and apparitions, with a reproofe thereof.
BY the tale above mentioned you see what it is to worship the image of our ladie.Our B. ladies favor. For though we kneele to God himselfe, and make never so humble petitions unto him, without faith and repentance, it shall doo us no pleasure at all. Yet this hangman had great freendship shewed him for one point of courtesie used to our ladie, having not one dramme of faith, repentance, nor yet of honestie in him. Neverthelesse, so credulous is the nature of man, as to beleeve this and such like fables: yea, to discredit such stuffe, is thought among the papists flat heresie. And though we that are protestants will not beleeve these toies, being so apparentlie popish: yet we credit and report other appearances, and assuming of bodies by soules and spirits; though they be as prophane, absurd, and impious as the other. We are sure the holie maide of Kents vision was a verie cousenage: but we can credit, imprint, and publish for a true possession or historie, the knaverie used by Greg. 4. dialog. cap. 51. Alexand lib. 5. cap. 23. & lib. 2. cap. 9. &c.a cousening varlot at Maidstone;* [* p. 132.] and manie other such as that was. We thinke soules and spirits may come out of heaven or hell, and assume bodies, beleeving manie absurd tales told by the schoolemen and Romish doctors to that effect: but we discredit all the stories that they, and as grave menGreg. lib. 4. dialog. ca. 40. idem cap. 55, and in other places elsewhere innumerable. as they are, tell us upon their knowledge and credit, of soules condemned to purgatorie, wandering for succour and release by trentals and masses said by a popish preest, &c: and yet they in probabilitie are equall, and in number farre exceed the other.
Micha. And. thes. 151.We thinke that to be a lie, which is written, or rather fathered upon Luther; to wit, that he knew the divell, and was verie conversant with him, and had eaten manie bushels of salt and made jollie good cheere with him; and that he was confuted in a/533. disputation with a reall divell/382. about the abolishing of private masse. Neither doo we beleeve this report, that the divell in the likenes of a tall man, was present at a sermon openlie made by Carolostadius;Alex. ab Alexand. lib. 4. genealog. dierum. cap. 19.
Plutarch. oratione ad Apollonium.
Item. Basiliens. in epist.
Platina de vitis pontificum.
Nauclerus. 2 generat. 35. and from this sermon went to his house, and told his sonne that he would fetch him awaie after a daie or twaine: as the papists saie he did in deed, although they lie in everie point thereof most maliciouslie. But we can beleeve Platina and others, when they tell us of the appearances of pope Benedict the eight, and also the ninth; how the one rode upon a blacke horsse in the wildernesse, requiring a bishop (as I remember) whome he met, that he would distribute certeine monie for him, which he had purloined of that which was given in almes to the poore, &c: and how the other was seene a hundred yeares after the divell had killed him in a wood, of an heremite, in a beares skinne, and an asses head on his shoulders, &c: himselfe saieng that he appeared in such sort as he lived. And diverse such stuffe rehearseth Platina.
Now bicause S. AmbroseAmbr. ser. 90 de passione Agn.
Euseb. lib. eccles. hist. 5.
Niceph. lib. 5 cap. 7. writeth, that S. Anne appeared to Constance the daughter of Constantine, and to hir parents watching at hir sepulchre: and bicause Eusebius and Nicephorus saie, that the Pontamian virgine, Origins disciple, appeared to S. Basil, and put a crowne upon his head, in token of the glorie of his martyrdome, which should shortlie followe: and bicause HieromeHieronym. in vita Pau.
Theodor. lib. hist. 5. ca. 24.
Athan. in vita Antho. writeth of Paules appearance; and Theodoret, of S. John the Baptist; and Athanasius, of Ammons, &c: manie doo beleeve the same stories and miraculous appearances to be true. But few protestants will give credit unto such shamefull fables, or anie like them, when they find them written in the Legendarie, Festivall, Rosaries of our Ladie, or anie other such popish authors. Whereby I gather, that if the protestant beleeve some few lies, the papists beleeve a great number. This I write, to shew the imperfection of man, how attentive our eares are to hearken to tales. And though herein consist no great point of faith or infidelitie; yet let us that professe the gospell take warning of papists, not to be carried awaie with everie vaine blast of doctrine: but let us cast awaie these prophane and old wives fables. And although this matter have passed so long with generall credit and authoritie: yet manie *grave* Melancth. in Calendar. Manlii. 23. April. authors have condemned/534. long since all those vaine visions and apparitions, except such as have beene shewed by God, his sonne, and his angels. Athanasius saith, that soules once loosed from their bodies,Marbach. lib. de miracul. adversus Ins. have no more societie with mortall men. Augustine saith, that if soules could walke and visit their freends, &c: or admonish them in sleepe, or otherwise, his mother that followed Johannes Rivius de veter. superstit.
Athan. lib. 99. quæ. 11.
August. de cura pro mortu. ca. 13.
Luk. 16. him by land and by sea would shew hir selfe to him, and reveale hir knowledge, or give him warning, &c. But most true it is that is written in the gospell; We have Moses and the prophets, who are to be hearkened unto, and not the dead./