Christ is already come, therefore our sacraments give no grace, &c.? He that eateth Christ's flesh sheweth his death, saith St. Paul; and he that eateth my flesh, saith Christ, hath life everlasting. Mark how our having of life goeth together with our shewing of Christ's death; you divide these matters, and make Christ's sacraments only to be shows.-The answer. You have misalleged St. Paul, Mr. Harding. These are not his words; look better on your books, and see your error. If I had some part of your eloquence, I could cry out, as you do, Falsifiers and corrupters of God's word.

St. Paul saith not, "He that eateth Christ's flesh sheweth his death." You deal untruly. Thus he saith, "As often as you shall eat this bread, and drink this cup, you shall shew forth the Lord's death." (1 Cor. xi.) The bread of the sacrament is. one thing, Mr. Harding, and the flesh of Christ is another. The bread entereth only into the bodily mouth, Christ's flesh entereth only into the soul. Without eating of that bread of the sacrament, we may be saved; without eating of Christ's flesh, we can never be saved.

St. Augustine saith precisely, "Qui non sumit carnern Christi, non habet vitam; et qui eam sumit habet vitam, et eam utique æternam."-" He that receiveth not the flesh of Christ hath not life; and he that receiveth the same hath life, and that for ever."

Again he saith, "The sacrament is received of some unto life, of some unto destruction. But the thing itself (that is, the flesh of Christ), whereof the sacrament is a sacrament, is received of all men unto life, and of no man to destruction, whosoever shall be partaker of it."

Thus you see, Mr. Harding, there is a great difference between the bread of the sacrament, and the flesh of Christ. Ye were to blame therefore so to

falsify St. Paul, and to place the one instead of the other. We divide these things, because God himself had so divided them. But you undiscreetly mingle and confound these things together, whereas, indeed, they should be divided; and so ye wilfully deceive your simple reader.

ON BAPTISM.

(Page 217.)

MR. HARDING,

AS ye acknowledge few sacraments, so ye speak of them very slenderly. Baptism (ye say) is a sacrament of the remission of sins, and of that washing which we have in the blood of Christ. Now whereas ye mean, as within few lines ye declare, by the name of a sacrament, no more but a token or sign, specially since ye teach in your articles, that baptism at the best is but a sign and seal of our new birth, ye seem not to attribute to baptism so much as the Scripture doth.

Neither is baptism only a sign or token that sins be remitted, but we believe, as the Catholic church, ac, cording to the Scriptures, teacheth, that in and by baptism sins be fully and truly remitted, and put away; and that not through the faith only of the giver or receiver, or of any other, though hereunto it be necessary in those that be come to age of discretion, but through the power and virtue of the sacrament, and God's pro

mise.

And therefore to whom it is given, of them it is rightly said, that they be baptized for remission of their sins.. The Scriptures be plain. First, Ezekiel, speaking of this holy sacrament, saith, in the person of God, "I wished upon you clean water, and ye shall be made clean from all your defilings, and from your idols will I cleanse you." Next St. Paul saith, “That

God hath saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and of the renewing of the Holy Ghost, whom he hath poured upon us abundantly, by Jesus Christ, our Saviour." That I may add to these manifest Scriptures, the authority of a learned father, not whereby to strengthen the truth of them, but to witness our right understanding of them;

St. Augustine, lib. i. contra Duas Epist. Pelagian. cap. 3, shewing the slander of the Pelagians against the Catholics, saith thus in their persons : Again, they (that is, after their meaning, the Catholics) avouch that baptism maketh not indeed new men again; that is to wit, that it giveth not full remission of sins, &c. Thereto eftsoons answering, St. Augustine saith," Mentiuntur, insidiantur, tergiversantur." "They lie, they study how to deceive, they seek shifts." We say not this. And after certain sentences returning to baptism, he concludeth thus: "Wherefore baptism washeth away all sins, utterly all, of deeds, of words, thoughts, be they original or actual, be they done ignorantly or wittingly. But it taketh not away the infirmity which the regenerate resisteth, &c.” Which place doth not only set forth the virtue of baptism, but also destroyeth the doctrine of our new gospellers, that affirm concupiscence, which remaineth after baptism, to be verily sin. Wherein they err manifestly against the Scripture, and sense of the fathers.

THE BISHOP of Salisbury.

Ill will is ever plentiful of ill words. Mr. Harding here maketh himself much matter without cause. He teacheth our new clergy, that baptism is not only a sign or a token of remission of sins. He telleth us, of the faith of the giver, of the faith of the receiver, of the power of the sacrament; of concupiscence, that it is no sin. And more, I trow, he would have said,

if more had presently come to mind. Verily the poor new clergy speak not one word in all this whole place, neither of sign nor of token, nor of the receiver, nor of the giver, nor of the power of the sacrament, nor of concupiscence, whether it be sin or not sin, nor of any other like thing.

Yet in the end he takes St. Augustine's words without his meaning, and crieth out against us, They lie, they study to deceive, they seek shifts. And why so? Certainly because we say, "Baptism is a sacrament of remission of sins." And, "That the children of the faithful, for that they be born in sin, and pertain to the people of God, ought therefore to be baptized." Other causes than these, in any our words, he can find none.

True it is, that the sacrament dependeth not, neither of the minister, nor of the receiver, nor of any other. For though they be all the children of sin, yet is baptism the sacrament of remission of sin. St. Augustine saith," Securum me fecit Magister meus, de quo Spiritus ejus dicit, Hic est qui baptizat."— "Christ my master hath assured me, of whom his own Spirit saith, This is he that baptizeth'."

Nevertheless, concerning the faith of the parents, and others, the holy doctors have sometime written otherwise. St. Augustine saith," Satis piè rectèque creditur prodesse parvulo eorum fidem à quibus consecrandus offertur."-" It is good and godly to believe that the child is holpen by the faith of them by whom he is offered, or brought unto baptism."

Again he saith," Accommodat illis mater ecclesia aliorum pedes, ut veniant; aliorum cor, ut credant." "Our mother the church lendeth them other men's feet, that they may come; and other men's hearts, that they may believe." The like sayings might be alleged out of Justinus Martyr, St. Cyprian, St. Jerome, and others. For thus they write, how truly I

will not say. But their words be plain. The prophet Habakkuk saith, " Justus ex fide suâ vivet.". "The just man shall live (not by the faith of his parents, but) by his own faith.".

Of this faith St. Jerome saith, "Qui plena fide non suscipiunt salutare baptisma, accipiunt quidem aquam, sed non accipiunt Spiritum."" They that receive not baptism with perfect faith, receive the water, but the Holy Ghost they receive not." St Augustine saith, "Verus baptismus constat non tam ablutione corporis, quam fide cordis, sicut apostolica doctrina tradidit, dicens, Fide mundans corda eorum; et alibi, Salvos facit baptisma, non carnis depositio sordium, sed conscientiæ bonæ interrogatio in Deum, per resurrectionem Jesu Christi."-" True baptism standeth not so much in washing of the body, as in the faith of the heart; as the doctrine of the Apostles hath taught us, saying, By faith purifying their hearts;' and in another place, 'Baptism maketh us safe;' not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the examining of a good conscience before God, by the resurrection of Jesus Christ."

Likewise again he saith, "Unde ista tanta virtus aquæ, ut corpus tangat, et cor abluat, nisi faciente, verbo? Non quia dicitur, sed quia creditur.""Whence is all this so great virtue, or power of the water, that it toucheth the body, and washeth the heart, but by the working of the word? Not for that it is spoken (by the minister), but for that it is believed (of the faithful).”

Some men will say, children or infants believe nothing, but are utterly void of faith. St. Augustine answereth, " Qui non crediderit condemnabitur. Sicut eos renasci per ministerium baptizantium, ita etiam eos credere per corda et ora confitentium confitemur."-" He that believeth not shall be damned. We confess, that as they be born again by the minis