66 III. Wiclif, p. 66 synne. For bi Austyn on Jon, and bi Crisostom on the CHAP. "Pistil to Ebreis the vi. chap. Crist swoor whanne he "seide, truli, truli, I seie to you. And as Austyn wit"nessith in the v. chap. of Matthew, Poul swoor oft in "seiynge thus; God is witnesse to me, or thus, I clepe "God to witnesse to my soule: and the Aungil in the x. "chap. of Apoc. swoor bi God lyvinge in worldis of "worldis." What Dr. Wiclif blamed was, "men's swer- Life of Dr. ing customabli, needlesli, and oft unadvisedli and falsli 160. "by the membres of God P, by Christ, and bi sayntis." This he called idolatry, and observed that men were encouraged thus to swear by the examples of Lords and Prelates, who commonly made, each one for himself, an idol of some 9 saint, whom he worshipped more than God; for commonly they swore by our Lady of Walsingham, St. John Baptist, St. Edward, St. Thomas of Canterbury, and such other saints, and charged more this oath than the oaths they swore by the Holy Trinity. 70. By the story of William Thorpe, preserved by Mr. Fox, it appears, that the Wiclifists thought it " evil done, "and great sin to swear truth, when in any manner a man P -Hoc anno Christi Jesu in quo fecisti plurimos homines mori in Angliæ emittendo (sanguinem) per juncturas et per secessum, scilicet in illis partibus corporis per quas horribiliter jurare. consueverunt, scilicet, per oculos Christi, per faciem Christi, per latera Christi, per sanguinem Christi, per cor In Kent the Christi pretiosum, per clavos Christi in suis manibus et pedibus. Gasc. Dict, vulgar yet Theol. use Lawcus heart for To this profane swearing Chaucer alludes in the following words, where he Lord intimates how it was reproved by the people called Lollers. Sir, parish Priest, quoth he, for Goddis bones, Ise wel that ye lernid men in lore Can mochil good, by Goddis dignity. The Parson him answered benedicite, What ails the man so sinfully to swere? I smell a Loller in the wind This Loller here will prechin us somewhat. Sanctorum Alphegi et Thome martyrum patronorum nostrorum――sacris meritis et precibus. Sancte Etheldrede virginis patrone nostre-sacris meritis, &c. Mandatum, W. Gray Ep. Eliensis, &c. Christ's heart. Squire's CHAP. &c. 298. 2, &c. 66 may excuse himself without an oath. But if a man may "not excuse himself without an oath, to them that have power to compel him to swear, then he ought to swear 66 only by God, taking him only that is soothfastness Col. 2706, "to witness to soothfastness." Henry Knighton therefore represents them as affirming, that it is not lawful to swear in any manner; though by what he adds, he seems to intimate that this is to be restrained to their common conversation, since he represents them as conProvinciale, firming what they said thus, I am siker it is soth, or thus, Notes col. withoute doubte it is so. Our canonist Lyndwood tells us, that the Wiclifists affirmed, that no truth is to be confirmed by an oath; accordingly he argues against them on this supposition. He shews, that God swore by himself, and, that if he who is most perfect swore, it follows, that to swear is not against the law of perfection: that the Angel swore, Apoc. x. and, that the Apostle swore, Rom. i. God is my witness; which are the very same arguments which Dr. Wiclif used to shew the lawfulness of swearing. And yet he makes the following harsh and severe reflection, that, " since God, an Angel, and an holy man did swear, it is wonderful, that an heretic will not 66 swear, as if he would be more holy than God, Angels, "and saints: but, that he seemed to be rather like the "Devil, since he did not remember that he had read, that "the Devil ever swore to the confirmation of the truth." In refuting the objections, which he pretends the Lollards used against swearing, he observes, that Christ does not say omnino non jurabis, but non jurabis omnino, which he thus explains; "he did not forbid all swearing, but all "causeless swearing, lest, by swearing on every trifling "occasion, men might come to a facility of swearing, and "from thence to a habit of it, and from thence to perjury." So St. James, he observes, when he says, above all things swear not, “forbids indiscreet swearing, or swearing for any cause without any distinction. He does not abso 66 Sequela cujuslibet dicti eorum talis erat. I am syke it is soth, &c. III. "lutely forbid all swearing; but only voluntatem libidino- CHAP, "sam jurandi, quia ad jurandum non debet quenquam de "honestate spontanea voluntas inducere. This, he says, "some expound to be the meaning of omnino, i. e. ubi66 que, or without cause, or for a light cause, or indifferently "in omnibus, et in omnia." So well did our learned canonist agree with those whom he condemned of heresy. 71. By the same story of Thorpe, we are shewn, that the Wiclifists thought it "not lawful to a subject, at the "bidding of his Prelate, to kneel down and touche the holy "Gospel book, and kiss it, saying, So helpe me God and "this holy dome; for, that to swear upon a book is to 66 swear bi creatures, and this swearing is ever unleeful." To this opinion of theirs Archbishop Arundel refers in his Constitution, which orders, that no one shall presume to dispute publicly or privately, unless it be to have a true understanding of articles or points determined by the Church. Among these he reckons the taking of oaths, by touching the holy Gospels of God, and upon them in cases expressed in the law, and used in either court by all who are concerned. Lyndwood notes, that it was not neces- Provinciale, sary that the book on which they swore should be the P. 110. col. holy Gospels; it was enough that it was a sacred book; accordingly it was usual to swear on the s tropery or toper, a book of sequences. Three things were chiefly regarded; that the thing on which they swore was holy; that it was open, and not shut; and, that it was in sight. That oath, he says, obliged the swearer, whether it was made by God, or by the book of the holy Gospels, or upon the altar, or upon the cross, or on any other holy thing. In what manner our Bishop defended this way of swearing, I am not able to say. It is not improbable, that he excused it from the charge of idolatry, as he did the worship of images. 72. The last governance here mentioned by our Bishop, Nulla justitia defuit Johanni in curia mea, sed ipse- -attulit in curia quendam Toper, et juravit super illum. Rogeri de Hoveden, Annal. pars posterior Hen. II. 4. III. CHAP. is the use of capital punishments, and of war approved by the Church. By capital punishments I suppose to be meant the punishing heresy with death; and by war approved by the Church, is to be understood, I presume, the croisades which were so much encouraged by the Popes. Ephes. vi. 73. As to the first, it is to be observed, that Christ Jesus gave this reason to Pilate, to shew that his kingdom was not of this world, viz. that if it were of this world, then would his servants fight, that he should not be delivered to the Jews. Accordingly the great Apostle of the Gentiles declared, that though he and the rest of the Apo2 Cor. x. 3, stles walked in the flesh, they did not war after the flesh, nor were the weapons of their warfare carnal; that their armour was the armour of righteousness, and in particular the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit: and that they approved themselves as the ministers of God in much patience, in afflictions, in neces2 Ep. i. 2. sities, and in distresses. He shewed Timothy, that though if any man taught otherwise than he had instructed him to teach, and consented not to wholesome words, the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness, he should withdraw himself from such; yet the servant of the Lord must not strive, but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, and of a forbearing temper, in meekness instructing those that opposed themselves. 74. After the death of Christ and his Apostles, for above two hundred years, so far were the Bishops and Pastors of the Church from having the secular arm at their beck, to execute their sentences on those they thought fit to deliver over to it, that they themselves were in bonds, imprisonments, and endured persecutions and tribulations for the sake of the Gospel. They were armed Epist. lib. with no other defence than that of their doctrine, their prayers, and tears, and had no other weapon to fight against heretics with, than the sword of the Spirit. Accordingly they opposed with all their might all cruelty Erasm. xxxi. ep. 47. and persecution on account of religion. Thus Tertullian CHAP. bids the heathens consider, whether this was not for the III. advantage of irreligion, their taking away the freedom of Apologet. religion, and forbidding men the "choice of the object of c. 24. "divine worship, so that they might not worship whom 66 they would, but were forced to worship whom they "would not. Since no one, not even a man, would be "worshipped by any one against his will." So in the same apology he thus expresses his sentiments: "Since C. 38. "it so plainly appears to be wrong to force free men "against their wills to sacrifice, for that otherwise a will"ing mind is required to the performance of any divine “matter, it must certainly be thought foolish for any one "to compel another to honour the gods, whom for their "own sakes they ought of their own accord to appease." To the same purpose in his book to Scapula. "It is the c. 11. "right of mankind, and their natural privilege, for every "body to worship that which he shall think best; nor "does any one man's religion profit or incommode an"other. Besides, it is no part of religion to force religion, "which should be taken up voluntarily, and not by con"straint; since even sacrifices are required to be offered "with a willing mind: so that though you by force com"pel us to sacrifice, you will thereby do nothing for your "gods, since, unless they are spiteful, they will never de"sire sacrifices from such as are unwilling to offer them, "and if any of them be of so spiteful a temper, he is not 66 a God." St. Cyprian follows his master Tertullian in delivering the same sentiments: thus he expresses them, according to the fine translation of Dr. Marshal: speaking of the excommunication of offenders, he proceeds thus: nium de "God hath commanded such to be slain as obeyed Epist. IV. "not his priests, as refused to hearken to bis judges who ad Pompo"should be appointed for the time being: then indeed the Virginibus. "temporal sword took vengeance of them, as the carnal cir"cumcision stood then in force; but now that a spiritual "circumcision hath begun to take place among the faith"ful servants of God, the presumptuous and obstinate |