Edward Farr, ed. Select Poetry of the Reign of Queen Elizabeth. 1845.
How Our Religion Is AuthenticallLXVI. William Warner
Chap.
U
Our Church foundation lay,
Let pattriarchs, prophets, gospell, and
Th’ apostles for us say;
For soule and body we affirme,
And all-sufficient thay;
Yet ye adde canons, part corrupt,
Some books ye quite denay.
We by the Hebrew, and the Greeke
(Their primer penores) expound
Each Scripture, by the eldest clarks,
Whom doubtful textes be found,
Not by the Latin onely, as
Ye would that all weare bound:
So far forth yeat the Fathers and
The councels we approve,
As doe their expositions tende
To sincere faith and love.
Els fully Scriptures, in themselves,
Explain themselves, say we,
If searched with the humble spirit
By which they written be:
Through which is ofte from litrall speech
A spirituall sence set free,
Upon which sence the Catholic Church
Did, doth, and must agree.
Nor doth our Church admit, at least
Allow of those in her
That teach not faith sincerely, winne
To heaven, from hell deter.
That with new glozes tante the text,
Or such as be unreade
In that sweete promise of the seed
Should brooze the serpent’s head—
The Alpha and Omega of
All Scriptures, and whereby
Of grace, through faith in Christ, our soles
Revive, and sinne doth die:
Our Church affects, how so effects,
Such pure theologies
And guides, and to our naturall prince
Grants sole supremacie.
God’s cov’nant with the patriarchs,
And extending to the seede,
Us Gentiles to coequall, is
A primate in our creede;
And Christ we know the end of it;
In circumcision’s place
Is baptisme; and intirely we
The tables two imbrace,
Which God himselfe in Synia wrote,
And gave to Moses then,
To publish to the people, two
Commandements in ten:
Scriptures’ idæa, crouched in
Our love to God and men.
Th’ Apostles’, Athanasian, Nice,
And Bizain Creeds we hold
Authentic, by the Holy Spirit
In sacred Writ enrold.
One Godhead of Three Persons,
In coequall Maiestie,
Doe we beleeve; of whom the Sonne
Did for beleevers die,
The onely ransome that redeemes
From Sathan’s tyrannie;
Even Christ, the Way, the Truth, the Life,
Not crooked, glozed, fraile,
But right for rule, in promise firme,
Guerdon near to faile;
Who to reprove the bad, approove
The good, and to assure
The wav’ring, and against the divell
Our safetie to procure,
Did giltless die, that we, lost soules,
Might live, naught els did make,
That he, his Deitie adorn’d,
Did humaine nature take.
Nor, glorifide, disclaimes he us,
Unlesse we him forsake.
And what is fruitles faith, but such
Apostasie? and what
Ensues apostasie, but to
Be doomed dam’d for that?
No doctrine or traditions we
Hold currant, save the same
The Gospell, or the Apostles’ Acts,
Or pennes include or name.
Baptisme, incorporating us
In Christ, and us in one,
Christ’s misticall last Supper, whearein
Signe his death is knowne,
Be sacraments, except which twaine
Doe we accept of none.
By only Christ our advocate
We to the Father pray,
Nor think we saints deceased can
Our sutes to him convay;
Howbeit, still most reuerently
Of saints we thinke and say.
Vnnecessarie burthens on
Our Christian freedome laide,
Contrarie thest, that beleefe and
Vertuous life perswaide;
Yea, only faith doth iustice,
Say we, of God’s free grace
By Christ: nor faith is idle, but
Doth charitie imbrace.
Who may, but will not helpe, doth hurt,
We know; and curious thay
That, dribling almes by art, disband
Wel-meant from wel-don’s pay:
And he that questions one’s distresse,
And doth not helpe indevour,
Than he that sees, and nothing sayes
Or eares, is less deceivour.
Then hope we health when sinne is felt
Repentantly in heart;
Adde then new life, and we to God,
God doth to us conuart.
Thus Peter vsed his keyes, nor thus
Play popes S. Peter’s part.
For cleargie-men and laye our Church
Hath godly discipline,
Lawes worthie better than sometimes
Are those the lawes define.
Our princes in their policies
And lawes do we obey;
Though God his cause they seeke to crosse,
Yeat we for them do pray
In patience, not peruerse attempts;
For better times we stay.
Not as denide, but as devout,
We doe and should abstaine
From meates euen meet, the prouder flesh
From sinne’s excess to waine;
Which should we skant, and yet bee dronke
With lust, or like, were vaine.
Saue also publique pollicie doth
Publique sparing craue,
In feast or differences of meates,
No other keepe we have.
Almes-deeds are workes of charitie
We practively professe,
And follow saints as they did Christ,
And leave wheare they transgresse.
Such and so much, as said, are we;
Forgive vs, God, if lesse.
For godly though religion, prince
And policie they are,
Yet things, that of themselves be good,
Abuse brings out of square;
And sundrie faultes in sundrie folks
We sometimes must forbeare;
Howbeit with best-gouerned states
Our state may now compare.